Wyoming Grizzly Bear Attack Stopped with 44 Magnum Revolver

AmmoLand ^ | December 19, 2023 | Dean Weingarten

[marktwain]

Position of the empty chamber “click” at the charging grizzly.

As part of a previous Freedom of Information Act request, AmmoLand obtained details of the defensive shooting of a grizzly bear with a revolver, which happened at Paint Creek, Wyoming, in 2010.

On September 2, 2010, an archery hunter and his guide were hunting for elk from a camp at the end of Henry’s Mill Road. This is the head of the Paint Creek drainage in Wyoming. Paint Creek is in the mid-eastern part of the Greater Yellowstone Ecosystem, about 20 miles NNE of Cody. The hunter and guide left the camp at about 6:30 in the evening. The hunter had a Colt Anaconda .44 Magnum revolver in a hip holster with a thumb break on his backpack belt. The holster looks similar to a Bianchi.

Hunter’s quiver, backpack, and holster.

The revolver is stainless steel with a 4-inch barrel. The hunter carried the revolver with an empty chamber in the first position to come under the hammer when the revolver is cocked because he had encountered situations where he had found the hammer unintentionally cocked when carried in that holster. The hunter carried a recurve bow and arrows as well as a backpack. The temperature was about 70 degrees. The attack started at 7 p.m., about an hour before sunset.

This Colt Anaconda revolver was used in the incident.

The guide noticed the bear a little before the hunter did. He said the bear had taken an aggressive posture broadside to him, approaching the hunter with its head low to the ground. It all happened very quickly.

[marktwain]

Carrying the revolver with an empty chamber proved to be very dangerous.

[moovova]

I’ve never considered carrying a holster on a backpack waistbelt. Makes perfect sense.

[BlueStateRightist]

Do the photos represent after-the-attack poses/depictions of what happened? I’m pretty sure no one was there in the moment to photograph the actual attack.

[Brooklyn Attitude]

“The hunter carried the revolver with an empty chamber in the first position to come under the hammer when the revolver is cocked because he had encountered situations where he had found the hammer unintentionally cocked when carried in that holster.”

Time for a new holster, one with a retention strap that prevents the hammer from accidentally cocking.

[MtnClimber]

He is lucky he was not carrying his gun inside his back pack as I have known some to do. Sort of like a woman carrying a self defense gun in her purse (where she can never find anything).

[know.your.why]

[know.your.why]

[03A3]

Carrying the revolver with an empty chamber proved to be very dangerous.

Still unclear as to what happened. Never owned a Colt but assume it works like a Smith other than rotating backwards. Artical says grip was two handed suggesting DA mode, but regardless of SA or DA it should have advanced the cylinder one chamber. So he had it on a live round and advanced it to an empty chamber?

[Red Badger]

“Wyoming Grizzly Bear Attack Stopped with 44 Magnum Revolver”

Did he throw it at the bear?.......................

[Red Badger]

[FLNittany]

Flick says he saw some grizzly bears near Pulaski’s candy store.

[marktwain]

So he had it on a live round and advanced it to an empty chamber?

Yes, apparently so.

I wonder if he might have done this unintentionally (made an error in the placement of the empty chamber), and then found a reason to claim it was intentional.

I do not know the man. He recovered quite well. The holster appears to be a Bianchi, which have a reputation for quality. The thumb break on a proper Bianchi holster would prevent a revolver from being cocked in the holster.

The article accurately reports what was recorded in the official records recovered with the Freedom of information act request.

[Bonemaker]

That went out with the newer Peacemakers. How the hell could the thing get cocked holstering it?

[moovova]

Must be after the fact. Imaging having a videographer along with you...the guide, the hunter and a videographer.

“Yep, that’s the third videographer we’ve lost to a bear this month.”

[marktwain]

The pictures are of the principles re-enacting the scenes from the attack for the investigators. My supposition is the backpacks were placed in the approximate positions the bear was in when the trigger was pulled.

[OKSooner]

Sounds like, by putting the holster on his backpack, out in the middle of everything where it can be flopping around with all sorts of other stuff like his bow and quiver, etc.

OOPS

JMHO.

[grundle]

[HartleyMBaldwin]

The very first time that happened (unintentional cocking), I’d get rid of that holster.

[Old Yeller]

I guess the bear felt lucky and tested it.

[marktwain]

In 1973, Wilf Etherington, a biologist, was killed while shooting movie film of a grizzly bear release in Banff National park in Canada. The bear recovered from being drugged and attacked Etherington. Etherington had taken motion pictures of the bear attempting to attack the low flying helicopter.

P. 39, Bear Attacks, their causes and avoidance by Herrero.