BANG! BANG!

Yes, it's a good idea to bring a gun. Yes the brown bears are big and they can attack you and you will want to be protected. Yes, it will need to be a big gun. Well, ok then. Let's take this back a little bit and tell you a few things....

I shot my first handgun last year in a range in Idaho with my Uncle at my side showing me how to work each one. He took his time, was very patient and I did quite well for my first time ever. This is to say that there were several holes in the targets. We shot small ones and worked up to a 45 Alaskan and a 45 Judge. I found that the Judge fit better in my hand as I have small ones and gripping the gun was sometimes a challenge. The differences in kickbacks and being able to hold them effectively was a big learning experience for me.

I get told that having a gun on my side is a very good idea and that I would basically be stupid to not have one and I think, "Ok, I can do this." Research begins on what I should be taking with me that is good for bear protection. Now that it's figured out what I need, the gun comes with my Uncle and it's time to figure out if I can handle it, the practice rounds and the rounds for if I have a bear to protect myself from.

Here's the great part. I can. For the most part. Day one went well. It's a big gun, not something I would use on a regular basis if I didn't need something that large. My hands, as I said before, are quite small and it's not got the smallest grip. I'm not strong enough, steady enough or good enough to just pull through to shoot. (Either that or I just have a midget trigger finger) So for now, it's a cock back and pull so I don't have to pull so far or hard. It works for me right now and I know with practice that will get faster.

We went and shot for a bit, I learned the ins and outs of the gun, it's pretty simple actually. All the better for me! I shot some cowboy rounds to get used to the gun, my stance again and learn how to let the gun kick up. Since I have pretty strong arms, I didn't really feel it kick so much after a few rounds, I wasn't letting it kick up on it's own and was just letting my body absorb it. Well, turns out that was a BIG mistake. Uncle John had a plan brewing to fix that real quick.

He'd hand me a couple of bullets, I'd but them in, pull out the shells and we'd repeat. Ha, since my ENTIRE family knows I'm super gullible, the time he helps me load two bullets in, I don't think another thing of it. I figured he was helping me out, showing me I was doing something a bit off or maybe just being nice. Nice....ha. Teaching me a freaking lesson was more like it.

Let the gun kick up, not back, not to the side, let it kick up on it's own. It's going to have a big kick when we shoot the big bullets. He'd warned be on the drive up, warned me that it would get worse when we started the big bullets. I figured I'd have a warning about when that would happen. NOPE. The first of the two was the cowboy shot...smaller, same thing we'd been working on. I pulled the trigger, and hit the target. Cocked it back, target in sight, deep breath, pull trigger......AUGH! I felt like my wrist exploded! Did it kick up in the air? I don't think so, I'm sure my wrist took the brunt of it.

Now, at this point in time, thoughts were racing through my head. No was the answer to all of these just to let you know and as I heard the familiar chuckle I knew he knew what he had done. This was a father type figure who had just gotten to teach a 30-year old kid a lesson. "Listen to what I said" Let the gun kick up in the air. He wanted to see what would happen when I didn't know it was coming. Well, I did the same thing as with the smaller shots, tried to absorb the kick. Let me tell you, it doesn't work.....his plan did. When I shoot the big shots, the gun kicks up now and I try to let the small ones kick up as well.

We shot for a bit more, small ones felt like nothing, the next round of big ones came....the first one was ok, the second bullet of the big ones psyched me out. I think it was one of the only times in my life I really had to stop, re-gain composure and tell myself I really could do it and that I wasn't scared. Self-doubt really isn't something that I deal with. After that gun was done, we moved onto a self-protection model that he wanted to shot with and try out, it was fun to see the difference again in the guns.

It was a small little one but it did have more kick than I anticipated for how little it was. Not so much though than one could handle. In all, I had a great day and a wonderful learning experience at the hand of a fantastic man. I have been assigned homework and he'll be back to check on my progress. (And I thought school was done!)

Getting ready for Alaska hasn't been the easiest thing so far, a lot of paperwork, thinking of what to bring with the guidance of the district and the many people who have their advice and the many thoughts of how it's really going to be when I walk across those TSA lines not to return again for many months. I know I didn't sign up for a "cake-walk" job and I'm ready to take on the challenge. I hope you all enjoy the stories that come with it too.

One last picture to leave you with. Uncle John and I chatted about how big the bears were. I found this picture, it's posted on several sites but we'll say courtesy of deltana.com. I look at it and think about how big that bear looks dead. Think about what it looks like alive.

53 days.....