A great digression as a winter storm hits New England! Campfire fodder!

I suggest as do Alaska experts that the 30-06 Springfield is proven in Alaska but I believe it to be an absolute minimum for Bull Moose and Brown Bear.  Like I hunted in Africa, I believe you should be able to shoot it off hand, handle the recoil and know how to cycle your bolt open and closed and place repeat bullets in a pie plate at say 70 to 80 yards. I did that with a .338 Win Mag and 250 grain bullets on my African Safari.

Alaska is a land of potential dangerous game! Use a rifle caliber that is in stock at the local stores in Alaska if possible. I hear .308, 30-06, 12 gauge shotgun and .22 LR are most common, but it might pay to check and take ammo precautions if your baggage is lost, like have a box ordered and waiting at the local Alaska store of your brand and special caliber.

The .308 or 6 mm/.243 Win or the new 6.5 Creedmoor I love is fine for black tail deer however if you are on an island with deer and bear, the .308 or 6mm is a “not so good” choice if a bear wants you and your downed deer. A 30-06 with 180 or 200 grain heads would perhaps be a better choice. Bigger bores and magnums are recommended if you can handle it. “Bears think that your shot is like ringing the dinner bell!”

Shot placement is everything! If you cant handle your rifle recoil then Alaska is perhaps not for you!

In Brown bear open country, a 30-06 or better a  300 Win Mag with an expanding bonded bullet is Ok. I prefer the .375 Ruger with Nosler AccuBonds or Partitions in at least 260 to 300 grain heads. I do like the .338 Win Mag as well.  I shoot these very well in my Ruger M77. Further that you would be wise to have a Mauser style bolt with a claw extractor to ensure guaranteed chamber feed and removal when hunting dangerous game.

In close quarters like in tag alders where shots are less than 25 yards a pump 12 gauge shotgun with slugs. “In a brown bear charge, you must make the first shot, a brain shot count to turn out its lights.” I would not recommend that kind of close quarters hunt, but it can happen with wounded bears say some experts.

Recoil management has come a long way so use recoil pads that can absorb recoil up to  50%. Get some!

Don’t forget a sidearm like the 44 magnum with 240 grain solid semi-jacket bullets and update your Will if you are Brown Bear Hunting or fishing near Brown Bear.

Good  Hunting!

© 2018

This is a Birchwood Casey Deer target and will show your hits as yellow as seen above. You can order on-line $12 for 2 targets with extra kill zones. Locate it with your favorite search engine.

This one comes in a 2 pack with extra vitals and should last more than one season.

Deer Vitals are outlined. A medium deer will have a 17 to 18 inch deep chest. A large deer will have an 18 to 20 inch chest. By shooting just below the midpoint and tight behind the front leg you are in the heart/lung vitals. Read the article at Chuck Hawkes below. What is missing here perhaps is that if you can see a shape or tuft of hair in the kill zone to aim at then even better, focus on it as your target. Remember, aim small miss small.

http://chuckhawks.com/kill_zone_game_animals.htm

For years I keep reading about the need for 2500 ft-lbs bullet energy to kill a Moose cleanly. I shot my moose with a .375 Ruger but it was not broadside it was face on, taking out just one lung.  The bullet traveled the whole length and lodged in the hide at his rear end.  It took another round from my partners .308 and then a finishing shot from me to the spine.

Yet there is story after story of rifle calibers in the 6mm, .270 and 7mm, .308 Winchester lower recoil class that kill cleanly every year (broadside double lung shots) with less energy than the 2500 ft-lbs that so many have fallen in line with. The key to killing a full grown moose is for the most part, accurate bullet placement and adequate penetration ,Jack O’connor and I would argue, to reach the vitals of the heart/lung area. Jack killed Moose at 200 yards with his 130 grain .270 Winchester. Others have taken moose out to 400 yards with the .270 Winchester. I would avoid that one if possible. 

Moose are slow to react even from a killing shot so an immediate follow-up shot is often recommended. 

Based on penetration, the Sectional Density of a bullet is a tell all for penetration as long as the bullet design is geared to “stay together and mushroom”. Do you need a big powerful bullet to kill moose? Some think so but I don’t, especially with today’s bonded, copper etc. bullets and the partition style. They penetrate well and stay together.  I do ascribe to the 1500 ft-lbs delivered energy for Elk but the 2500 ft-lbs is perhaps now disproven for moose.  In my opinion, deliverd energy should at least be 1500 ft-lbs or greater, ideally in the 2000 ft-lb range. After the shot, immediately reload and prepare to shoot again.

The key to remember is to try for broadside shots whenever possible and avoid quartering shots that need to travel far to vitals unless you have a 30-06 or larger caliber to break bone and push through part of the gut cavity to reach them.

A double lung hit is a sure bet on all big game.

Go shoot a big moose with your deer rifle! It’s been done for decades! Just shoot-em’ in the heart lungs area such as a double lung hit and that moose is yours. Of course if you have a bigger gun, no problem.

Good Hunting!

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