Close but not close enough!

JohnS

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Well Guys I'm a pretty proud guy today, I mett my G/F 3 yrs ago and she wasn't educated in hunting or Shooting till she hooked up with me LOL! I took her out a few times to the range and she really enjoyed herself .. so I thought to myself maybe she'll like hunting if she likes shooting, so I took her out a few times as a spotter, sure enough she liked it so she went and got her Core and hunter number, then she took her PAL course and passed No Problem. :D

So this year she puts in for Spring Grizzly and sure enough she got drawin I was pretty excited for her and she was like amazed she got a draw. No worries I said I'll be there for ya and back you up. She was all relaxed then ;) LOL!

So anyways we head out today and look for that boar, since the last time we were out alls we seen was a super nice black bear but she didn't have a tag and I didn't feel like field dressing and skinning a bear that day LOL! so he lives for another day, it was around 6' not hudge and not small either.

So on our travels today wondering the bush we come across this bear in the pic ... nice colour phase and not to hudge that would cost a fortune to get done into a rug, So we stalk in on the bear and all is going good, get within 100yrds without the twigs and fallin branches snapping under our feet, thats good I say to her, lets watch and see if he gives you a good shot, well the bear never gave her a decete shot for her maybe if she had that little extra confidence as a hunter/shooter maybe she would have let it ripp, But she decided against it, I have to respect the choice she made, reason being : a new hunter, and it was a Grizzly and they don't like to be wounded LOL! and its her Tag.

So I said : I respect your choice of not fireing on the Bear, maybe next time;) she was upset alittle bit of not having the expierence ... but hey I said at least you had it in your scope and you could have legaly shot it.... she smiled as we headed down the mountian. I totaly respect her Hunting Ethic's even more now. I figure the Bear to be about 4yrs old.
 
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Nice Pic, and great story. Gotta respect the ethics and choices that were made.
I have never hunted bears, and I don't mean to do a high jack on your thread, but would shooting that bear, with an aiming point just left of its nose put it down, or is that not any where near the vitals? Just wondering if that would be the sweet spot for a shot on that bear, or would something else be better?

Thanks
7.62mm
 
Very nice story and your girlfriend will be a great hunter with good ethics to welcome into our community. I must agree with Demonical, that bear seems to be missing what should be a fairly predominant hump for a 4 year old. All is well that ends well still.:)
 
It's always better to pass-up a shot that you believe to be questionable. She done good!

To try to answer 7.62mm's question, that particular presentaion is a bit tricky. If I were to shoot it as it sits, the "just left of its nose" hit would probably take-out the shoulder, which would put it down; but probably require a follow-up to kill it.
If it were me, I'd have the choice of making a quiet whitsle or squeak to get the bear to look up, and then sticking the bullet almost exactly where it's nose is in the pic, or (if I were close enough, tough to judge range in a photo), draw a line from the left ear to the right eye, then draw a line from the right ear to left eye. Where those lines cross is where I'd stick the bullet; but you'd have to be very quick, if Mr. Bruin lifts his chin a little, the bullet could end-up skidding along his skull and just annoying him.
 
Good ethics in not taking the shot. That angle is bad, although I have had to take bears in less than prefect position. Lets just hope that a grizz doesn't present the same angle, and decide to come in.
 
Waioting is right. If it turned slightly to the left, put a bullet right through the shoulder!

Did'nt happen so you passed up on the shot. Good choice!
 
Nice job JohnS......does she go by the name MightyMouse on HBC?

My wife passed up on a few bears before taking her first this year. Nothing wrong with waiting for a comfortable shot.
 
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