Posted on 08/31/2016 5:32:45 AM PDT by marktwain
Kim Woodman, dressed as he was when attacked by the brown bear on Humpy Creek (courtesy Kim Woodman)
Video from Kim Woodman
On 29 July, 2016, about 4 p.m. Kim Woodman was attacked by a sow brown bear at Humpy Creek.
Kim had a Glock model 20 10 mm pistol with him. He was able to stop the attack by shooting the bear as it charged at him. While backing away from the charging bear, Kim tripped and fell backward. He instinctively attempted to fend off the bear with his foot, while he concentrated on firing the shots that saved his life. The last shot was just short of contact. It probably hit the bear in the chest, but also took off the tip of one of Kim's toes.
Kim Woodman was kind enough to grant me an interview.
On Friday, the 29th of July, Kim impulsively decided to take a day hike up Humpy creek. He did not expect trouble. Almost as an afterthought, he put the Glock model 20 10mm pistol and a box of ammunition in his day pack.
I was just moving up Humpy crick there, I had just thrown the gun in my pack.Kim was born in Alaska. He is 57 years old. His father homesteaded in the state in 1938, and was one of the first bear guides there. Kim has spent nearly all his life in Alaska, with a few winters spent in Nevada going to high school. Kim is very familiar with bears and how to deal with them. He has encountered many bears on a lot of creeks. From Kim:
I saw bear scat, so I loaded the gun, with 15 rounds in the magazine, none in the chamber. That is the way I grew up and was taught by my dad.
I put the pistol in my pants pocket.
I have been in that situation a lot, you are going up a creek, you see a bear, you back up.Kim did not want to shoot the bear. But even more, he did not want to be mauled 4 1/2 miles from his skiff in dense woods and rough terrain. He had hiked up Humpy creek instead of following the trail. As Kim puts it:
Generally you can back out, and the bear will just slink off.
I did not want to be the guy shooting a sow with cubs. But even more I did not want to be the guy mauled.Kim was making some noise as he went up the creek. The cover was very thick. There were plenty of mosquitoes:
It was about 4 1/2 mile out from my skiff. I had just downloaded an app to show topographic details. I used that to find the trail for heading back out. It was very thick. I did not want to fight the brush on the way back.
There was no cell phone connection.
There wasn't a lot of noise, and I was not making a lot of noise. I was busting through brush and mosquitoes and sweat. It was a pretty ugly mosquito year.
It was just another creek with some bear sign, and the chance of meeting a bear.
You think it isn't going to happen until it does. So it is best to be prepared.
I am moving up this really thick stuff, too much fallen over the creek itself to go up it. There was a deep hole in Humpy creek, and the bears were in the hole.
The cubs and I saw each other first, across about a 30 foot opening. The cubs went scampering off and the sow saw me and came straight at me.
She had to come up a little bit of bank, that gave me a little extra time to make sure I chambered a round. I was shouting at her when I realized that I had to shoot. I let about three go, and then she was right on top of me.
That is when I tripped backward and she was right up on me when I let go with the last round that took the tip of my toe off.
Even if she had only got me for a few seconds, I do not know if I would have been able to crawl out.Kim's description of how he perceived the situation is pretty common for deadly force events:
Hooked my heel on something while backing up and firing. Thick alders and brush.Kim said that there wasn't any real choice. The sow was totally committed. She had made the decision to attack, and was in a full out charge. Kim said that he clearly remembers shooting two handed.
It wasn't even like I was falling. There was tunnel vision, concentrating on the shot.
I instinctively put my foot up at the same time, and snapping a shot off.
Everything happened so fast, 4 seconds, and you are standing there with a dead sow, and I see blood coming out of my boot.
I saw a moose out on the swamp, real early in the morning.The bear was so close that Kim could not use the scope on his .338 Winchester Magnum. He sighted down the side of the barrel. Trophy hunters do not shoot bears in the head. It ruins the skull as a trophy, and makes the skull impossible to score for the record books. The bear was coming at him, but not full out. It was only 15 feet away when he shot. It went down as if he had scrambled its brains, but the bullet had gone through the muscle alongside the skull, just nicking the bone. It knocked the bear out. Kim thought it was dead.
I heard something behind me, and it was padding up on me. I had a bear tag, but I wanted a moose first. I had just enough time to swing the rifle around. I yelled at it, and got a real aggressive response. There were a lot of problem bears around, a bad berry year, a guy had gotten eaten by a bear.
All of a sudden I heard a growl, so I went back in there, obviously you can't leave a wounded bear around. It was whirling in a circle, tearing out chunks of the tundra.
I stuck the barrel up against its neck, and the 250 grain .338 did not make it out the other side of its neck.
I’ve just skimmed through but this has the makings of a good movie.
That whole toe thing had to hurt!!
I guess he didn’t get to the bear carcass in time to save the pelt. That would have been cool.
Stopped a bear with a pistol!
Whodathunkit?
I guess he didnt get to the bear carcass in time to save the pelt. That would have been cool.
Bear pelts shot in self defense are property of the State of Alaska. He can buy it back at their annual auction.
a Glock 20 is my EDC weapon. I put a KKM barrel in it and trijicon 3 dot tritium night sights on top. The ammo is 180 grain Hornady XTPs and pretty hot. I don’t live in bear country but there’s no shortage of two legged threats walking around and storoes like these leave me with no doubt that the 10mm automatic is adequate to stop those threats should it ever be necessary and I pray that it isn’t. I have a Glock 29 which is the Glock 20s little brother and it will take the Glock 20’s 15 round magazines but I prefer the bigger pistol.
Great report, Dean. I’m glad he told his story to you.
Interesting read. Thank you!
I like my mod 20 for all of those reasons. I still have a carefully hoarded lot of Black Talon loads for it.
Kim is a good guy. He was willing to be interviewed after he read the original story, where I speculated about what might have happened, and hit pretty close.
It is obvious why he wasn’t willing to talk to the old media.
One has to wonder how much of this self censorship is going on, and how far to the left it has pushed us.
A long way, I suspect.
Not his fault. Chilling of speech by “progressives” bent of “manufacturing consent”.
Damn fine work under the circumstances.
Thanks for the kind words. This story should be front page news, but to “progressives” it supports all the “wrong” values.
Fascinating story. I think buffalo bore cartridges are a good idea going forward.
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