Voss got off two shots with his .270 that proved fatal to the bear, but the grizzly bit Voss about the head they usually go for the head and killed him. The big grizzly dropped, kicked and then lay still. he has said the gun is (in his words) in deplorable condition as BellaRead more . Another account says that the bear was dropped with one .22-long cartridge, but that another 7 or 8 shots were used to be sure that the bear stayed down. One shot to the brain at contact distance will kill instantly. The story says the distance was a few yards, and so with a decent view of the target it would not be a tall tale at all. On that fascinating subject, Ive been amassing information for some 40 years of living as a teacher, fruit grower and hunter in that bear paradise, British Columbia, where stories of encounters with grizzlies and brown bears are enjoyed where ever sportsmen gather and are often headlined in newspapers and television newscasts. WEST GLACIER - A grizzly bear fell to its death Thursday morning in Glacier National Park. Amazing. There have been quite a few debates over this big bear takedown, from how many rounds it actually took to what kind of rifle she used. MULE DEER NON-TYPICAL. Dont mess with country girls. My Uncle Arthur, his Father also named Arthur. She was known to be a deadly shot with the small rifle. This cookie can only be read from the domain they are set on and will not track any data while browsing through other sites. Officials who shot the . That cartridge has killed many grizzlies and browns. C.I.L. If I ever find anymore longs Ill put it in as my new self defense weapon. In 1986, another record-class grizzly was killed by Alvars Barkis of Sinking Spring, Pennsylvania, with a .300 Magnum; and a medium-size one, about 500 pounds, was killed by 12-year-old Gary H. Holmes of Kimberly, BC, with a .25/06. There are no berries available on 10 May in the vicinity of Slave Lake. The bear was as tall as their house. Larry died April 8, 2016, but he left behind a legacy of wonderful stories, some of which are in the process of being published by his loving wife Constance Brissenden, who is honoring him with a post-humous publication of his work. The giant bear weighed 966 kg (2,130 lb) when he died in June 1987 at the age of 22. Bella Twin had her beat up .22 single shot Cooey Ace 1 with her. This story reminds me of a sort of mantra a guy at a gun board I frequent always chants, whenever the subject of home protection comes up. It stood 12' 6" high at the shoulder, 14' to the top of his head. I recall buying longs in the middle 1960s from a gas station. A Franco-Canadian man died after being attacked by a grizzly bear in a remote area of Canada last week, police announced on Monday. Quantserve sets the mc cookie to anonymously track user behaviour on the website. Anxiously, I scanned through the pictures, and suddenly, there he was. Greatest Weights (in pounds) for Montana Big Game . some few years ago i came across a blog that told of an Inuit grandmother taking down a brown bear that was trying to claw its way into her cabin (seems ineffectually). Bella Twin, a Cree Indian, and her partner, Dave Auger, were hunting small game south of Slave Lake, in Alberta, Canada. The cookie is used to store the user consent for the cookies in the category "Other. I remember the story about a girl berry hunting and shooting it in the ear.I can see a shot like that working. She fired and the bear dropped. A large male can stand over 10' tall when on his hind legs, and 5' when on all four legs. May 10, 1957, she killed a massive grizzly bear with her Cooey Ace #1 .22. Im a firm believer that some of our hunting memories can only be truly appreciated in time. Authors Note: This story first published nine years ago in Outdoor Life magazine. So spot-and-stalk hunting is all but impossible, and as a rule, these bears have gotten big because they are very good at avoiding people. When I interviewed Brissenden she said to me, Look, she was a Cree and a top-notch hunter. Jared Carbajal, one of the pilots of the Coast Guard helicopter, said in an interview on Wednesday. The few times Ive seen big grizzlies on a bait in person, they were as spooky as the wariest whitetail; if they smell you, you will never know they were there. This closeup shows the penciled score. Peter Capstick wrote in one of his African books about 2 young men taking a bull elephant with a .22 long rifle. He was working at the time as a Kenyan government hunter culling herds that were over-grazing and rampaging through villages. His older brothers name was Samuel. YouTube sets this cookie to store the video preferences of the user using embedded YouTube video. Kodiak bears are the largest bears in the world. His dad paid $15 for it. You can still use itits ok. By comparison, my bear weighed approximately 650 pounds and was scored at 25216, potentially placing it at number nine in the Pope and Young record book. Bear records are based on skull size. You may have heard a story of a little 9-year old girl that shot a World Record Alaskan Brown Bear (Grizzly Bear). It is worth noting that grizzly bear populations in Alberta are well on their way to being recovered and at some point in the future, if we can sort the facts from the politics and emotion, we may well have a chance to hunt bears as big as Bella Twins. This was the only bear Id ever killed that actually got bigger when I walked up to him. With air guns, pellets or cast slugs its about precision. It dropped dead just a few feet from him. The bruin squared more than 10 feet, weighed more than 1,000 pounds, and had a 28-inch skull. This took place in 1953, was the world-record grizzly for several years. I would NOT be out there with just a .22lr or worse, unarmed, period. | This lady is my grandmothers sister and I can assure you this story is true. Back in 1965, the world-record grizzly fell to one .30/30 bullet fired by Jack Turner. any substantiation? Just $1 per month , The author takes one of the largest archery grizzly bears of all time with a recurve bow, By Who could blame her?. Save my name, email, and website in this browser for the next time I comment. /S. One charged him and he turned around to get his rifle from his trusty gun bearer only to find that the gun bearer was gone. In one other case, a prospector had a single shot .22 and a box of shorts. A hunter in Alaska has been credited with killing a record grizzly bear, according to Boone and Crockett Club officials. document.getElementById( "ak_js_1" ).setAttribute( "value", ( new Date() ).getTime() ); Leon Pantenburg is a wilderness enthusiast and writer. He was truly a creature of dreams. The only gun they had was Bellas single-shot bolt-action .22 Rimfire rifle. If she saw a grizzly coming toward her, she would run like the wind in the opposite direction. A new world record, the story said. Twin was carrying her battered single-shot .22 when the two were approached by a gigantic grizzly. If you can get your bullet. Theres a reason these bears get so big. Make sure to. The __qca cookie is associated with Quantcast. Bella Twin, an Indian girl, and her friend Dave Auger were hunting grouse near Lesser Slave Lake in northern Alberta. 165. Taking no chances, Bella went up close and fired all of the cartridges she had, seven or eight .22 Longs, into the bears head. Rolf Voss of Surrey, British Columbia, had shot a caribou near Fort Nelson, in the north-central part of the province, and was carrying parts of the carcass back to his camp in wooded mountain country when a grizzly, perhaps smelling the meat, attacked him. What actually happened is that in October 2001 a 22-year-old airman from Eielson Air Force Base named Ted Winnen killed a grizzly bear on Hinchinbrook Island. Not exactly a quick stopper! Youtube - Track the views of embedded videos. The big bear was still alive so the hunter reloaded and shot it several times in the head. Whats do you think this gun is worth? My money is on it being a Cooeygood ol Canadian classic. She would have wanted neither the additional velocity nor the additional cost. With facts like this about this entire thing how can you believe any of it ? She walked up to the bear and fired another six or seven rounds of .22 long into its brain, in the same spot. Copyright 2023 Leon Pantenburg, All Rights Reserved, Survival Common Sense Blog | Emergency Preparedness, World record grizzly killed with a .22 caliber rifle, https://survivalcommonsense.com/wp-content/uploads/2021/01/Bella-Twin-is-shown-with-the-hide-from-the-world-record-grizzly-bear-312x400.jpg, https://survivalcommonsense.com/wp-content/uploads/2017/03/22-Long-Rifle-474x400.jpg. Dont know what gun this little girl or old lady is holding but it aint a Stevens ! Many details are in this story that were never put together before. 274 7/8. Instantly he tore off through the brush. It was scored at 27 316 by Boone and Crockett measurers and stands as the largest hunter-killed grizzly ever taken by any method. She was born in 1890. In fact, a .22 LRbullet is easily capable of killing or injuring humans. But most of the detail in the story I was able to research on the Internets and in relatively unrelated books. Bella sold the hide and her rifle to a museum. All materials posted herein are protected by copyright law and the also: who else can say they took a bear with a 22? The world's record Alaska brown bear ( Ursos arctos middendorffi) scored 30 12/16 and . It was him, the bear that had haunted my dreams, right there in front of me. She paid the insurance. Dont assume a large animal is dead. Grizzly 399 (born 1996) is a grizzly bear inhabiting Grand Teton National Park and Bridger-Teton National Forest.She is followed by as many as 40 wildlife photographers, and millions of tourists come to the Greater Yellowstone Ecosystem to see her and the other grizzly bears. Author Larry Loyie, Bellas grandson, was proud of his grandmother. Wooded terrain, especially on the edge of a cut, is complex, and wind eddies are unpredictable. The Stephens .22 was definitively short in the forearm. WOW! The woman took out her little Bareta, shot her husband in the knee, and was able to stroll away unharmed. And, you know, it's walking or standing because if it saw them might have stood and then she wants it to look down so she can shoot it. She had been a trapper and a hunter for decades. Never used anything but a .22 on and butchered animal from a 200lb roasting pig to a 2500 +lb beef.One shot into the brain =goodnight, Very interesting story about shooting the bear. Looks just like my Pops old Springfield 15Y he got from Sears Roebuck for $2.98 before WWII and used on his trapline. The bear charged the worker, who shot it with the .22 revolver. They do that before they kill you. "Analyzing contents of the bear's stomach, the Fish and Wildlife Commission established the bear had killed at least two humans in the past 72 hours, including a hiker missing two days prior. You know, they wouldn't wait over by the side to kill it. If you are planning a grizzly hunt or only dreaming of one, a big question is which rifle to use. I knew he was huge, but I didnt realize how huge. In fact I remember him telling me this story in the 1970s when I was a boy learning to shoot. Its been a while but I think Bella shot this bear with aRead more , Indeed a Cooey 22 which is held by the Royal Alberta Museum, bedded in a piece of bike tire and attached to the stock with hockey tape, the museum has the hide of the bear as well, neither are on regular display. I have. These cookies track visitors across websites and collect information to provide customized ads. And that it was on the cut line, the forestry cut line outside of town. 140. Some folks say it was Dave Auger, Twins companion that killed the bear. 13 08/16. One on one? He observed, Bella was a good hunter, he said. Nineteen years later, I have yet to top him. A freakin 22: The 1953 World record grizzly killed by a woman with a .22 has been known for decades. Stent: Bella Twin, an Indian girl, and her friend Dave Auger were hunting grouse near Lesser Slave Lake in northern Alberta. That bear, killed in 1953, was the world-record grizzly for several years and is still high in the records today. However, the validity of this . See a cow or a hog being processed? YouTube - Store data on what videos from YouTube the user has seen - 2. Ive had my experience with a male grizzly chasing me in 1962 . Ill bet a crisp fifty-dollar bill that they were .22-shorts. A recent one ended with both man and bear dead. I cant remember where i heard of this; perhaps somewhere on the Alaska Highway many years ago, but twas an old native woman (would be Bella) was in a Hudsons Bay Outpost when the bear came in for food. COPYRIGHT 2021, THETRUTHABOUTGUNS.COM. That is often over-looked, or under-stated. I read a story about a guy in Africa in the early 1900s hunting Cape Buffalo. At dawn, temperature had been 40 degrees F. On the morning of the 11th it would be 35 degrees F. The high for the 10th was 58 degrees. (If only for a very short time thanks to Twins Cooey Ace, calm demeanor, and marksmanship.) Reinhold Eben EbenauRolands fatheracquired the skull and this remains a part of the Eben-Ebenau family museum on the Northshore Homestead Ranch (www.northshorehomestead.com) in Northern Alberta where Roland still raises bison. Dean Weingarten has been a peace officer, a military officer, was on the University of Wisconsin Pistol Team for four years, and was first certified to teach firearms safety in 1973. I met up with my cousin Clint that afternoon, and we headed back out. Americas oldest Second Amendment News outlet. Such meetings sometimes result in a mauled man or shot bear, or both. It was a big bear, no doubt. This was his Mother. It was reportedly 12 feet, 6 inches at the shoulder, no less and weighed at least 1,600 pounds. The _ga cookie, installed by Google Analytics, calculates visitor, session and campaign data and also keeps track of site usage for the site's analytics report. . A possible fatality supposedly occurred in 1907 when a man was attacked by a female grizzly bear after he prodded her cub with an umbrella. This story has been one of the most enjoyable research projects I have engaged in my whole life. We do not know what year the picture was taken. Read the whole Bella Twin grizzly story here. Redirecting to /1803246/alaskan-bags-world-record-grizzly/ (308) Females are about 20% smaller, and 30% lighter than males. The photos became an internet sensation and soon, stories appeared along with the images. My father owned a Cooey and, as I recall, his would not take a 22 long rifle. The bear kept getting closer and closer. Experienced hunters will take advantage of concealment if it is available. It did not qualify for Pope and Young because Debias used a Lumenok on his arrow. In the top picture by Engler, the rifle is missing the bolt. Fern Spaulding Rivers did shoot a trophy Brown Bear but it was not a world record. Well I was expecting The Bella Twins from WWE , theyre hawt ! There has been a lot of speculation over the intervening years about what exactly happened that day there on the trapline. Provided by Google Tag Manager to experiment advertisement efficiency of websites using their services. It was good that the weather was cool. I was hunting two locations, and after spending a fruitless night in one stand that had just been hit by two nice bears, I headed downriver to check the other bait. Wildlife officials in Montana shot and killed a grizzly bear Friday morning less than two miles from Ovando, where a 65-year-old woman was killed in a bear attack Tuesday, Montana Fish, Wildlife . and a record to go with it. Alaska Peninsula brown bears are among the largest types of brown bear in the world. I wore clothing from Sitka Gear and carried a Stone . Several times I have had to put down large hogs in the 300-400 pound range that were injured. We use cookies on our website to give you the most relevant experience by remembering your preferences and repeat visits. Lucky for her, her tactics worked. The Moose would trot 40-50yds and fall dead. Save my name, email, and website in this browser for the next time I comment. By clicking Accept All, you consent to the use of ALL the cookies. 170. This is just a bear. I carry a small 22 in my pocket all the time. While the grizzly was a world record the method of shooting Polar and Grizzly bears is not uncommon. The largest Grizzly bear skull on record was not taken by a hunter, but was found dead near Lone Mountain, Alaska by Gordon Scott in 1976. Which begs the question: Why arent more bird hunters using them? He had been there for a couple of minutes when I heard another bear coming in. Several times I have had to put down large hogs in the 300-400 pound range that were injured. If the bear had stood up near her, its head would have been nine feet in the air. I have to believe that somebody with only a single-shot would not have taken a shot at a bear that size if the situation wasnt desperate, head shot or no. The oldest known wild Kodiak bear was a 34-year-old sow. Vimeo installs this cookie to collect tracking information by setting a unique ID to embed videos to the website. So he (Larry Loyie) said it had to have surprised them. From Grizzly Guns by H.V. Learning about bears can help you avoid a confrontation. Bella Twin was a calm, quiet, clear-headed Cree woman with a trap line. My father and others observing the event said that at one point I could have patted the bear on the nose . I owned a 1910 Stephens .22 Long Rifle pump and have a picture that would make this gun look like a family member. Bears have very thick skulls. It took 60 rounds form a 22 to kill a black bear here in Colorado. And I had a large boar walk to within 3 feet of my rifle muzzle. The skull cant be stretched like the hide, reports Roland, second-generation owner of the North Shore Homestead. Did I mention to you the grizzly bear held the Boone and Crocket world record at 26 5/16 inches? If you test them in water jugs or gel you will see why. Some people mistakenly assume that hunting grizzlies over bait is easy, or even cheating. We used to see only black bears, but in 2011, I had pictures of more than 15 different grizzlies on my trail cameras. And on butchering day, the tool used to euthanize a hog or steer was a .22 rifle. (Elephant killing probe heats up, Bangkok Post, March 26, 2013, by TERRY FREDRICKSON). 22s were and still are used to cleanly kill cattle for butchering. Posted on 02/15/2012 8:43:55 AM PST by marktwain. Cant imagine that choice of need to shoot or not and ones survival counted on it. Rodney Debias of Windber, Pennsylvania took an Alaskan grizzly bear in 2009 that was officially recognized as the new Pope & Young world record in 2016. The wife he left behind when he died is Constance Brissenden. The Stevens and Springfields looked alike , assume the Y was for youth , as it was shorter than my own first .22 . It's very possible that she threw down a little pack or something that they were carrying. They wont just kill you. She walked up to the bear and fired another six or seven rounds of .22 long into its brain, in the same spot. Three hours later, the auto body man had taken down the grizzly that. Shortly after 1 a.m., all was quiet, and we were straining our ears to hear the slightest noise. It was a very accurate little shooter, & accounted for many sparrows, starlings, & not a few squirrels. They chose well. Roland Eben-Ebenau was kind enough to photograph the grizzly skull from his family's museum collection. When you live and spend a lot of time hunting in Alaska, your odds of eventually having an encounter with a grizzly drift more toward the guaranteed end of the spectrum. It was cool, cloudy, and windy. As soon as I walked in to the bait site, I knew a big grizzly had been there, as the bait was scattered everywhere. She made a rug out of a thousand pound bear with the longs. In the book, Bella is surprised by the bear that suddenly rises above them in the bush, arms raised high. The big bruin, taken in 2013 near Fairbanks, Alaska, by Larry Fitzgerald of Fairbanks. The cookie is used to store the user consent for the cookies in the category "Performance". She too is a writer and here is an excerpt from what she wrote for the Lakeside Leader of Slave Lake: Bella Twin, who lived on Rabbit Hill overlooking Slave Lake, shot the biggest grizzly bear in North America on May 10, 1953. A trapper neither needed nor wanted the extra velocity of the Long Rife rimfire rounds for two reasons: undamaged pelts bring a premium dollar, and .22 Long Rife rounds were more expensivejust speculating here. Almost my entire family (military vets included) carries a .22lr. The bears have had plenty of time these 16 years to fill out to their maximum potential. I had experienced the greatest adventure of my life while spending two weeks with my friends in the Alaskan bush. Larry wrote his version of the grizzly adventure in As Long as the Rivers Flow. 1 hit from that counts more than 6 misses with a 500S&W mag or 17 misses with an ugly Glock. A 63-year-old Cree grandmother and her partner were hunting small game near Florida Lake. So they said it had to be Dave. This cookie is set by GDPR Cookie Consent plugin. We dont know what time of day the bear was shot. Last week, the Pope and Young Club, a. The current rank in the Boone and Crockett records is number 21, along with other bears measured at 26 7/16: People have estimated the bear weighed 1,000 pounds. Montana authorities are searching for a grizzly bear Tuesday after it attacked and killed a woman on an overnight camping trip near the rural town of Ovando, Montana Fish, Wildlife and Parks . Grizzly 399 is the most famous brown bear mother in the world, with her own Facebook and Twitter accounts. So that was one thing that annoyed Larry. I suspect that she was tracking the bear in her sights. But thats what happened on May 10, 1953. H.V. I have to wonder if she donated her set of gigantic brass balls to the same museum after she died. More penetration than some common pistol rounds. It is recorded that Bella pumped several other shots into the grizzly after it fell. "the big brown bear came lolloping over the mountain", FreeRepublic.com is powered by software copyright 2000-2008 John Robinson. This one taken by overjoyed muzzleloader Douglas Salomon is the largest recorded. Was it necessary to shoot the bear? For a while, I thought it might be a Tobin, but it clearly is not. The worker approached a bear in a black bear snare. At 3:30 a.m. one morning, Jim Landess heard banging on his Sterling, Alaska, home. It does not store any personal data. Tex, Bella was technically Larrys great aunt, Kokum to Larry. He ended up emptying his gun on the bear, which dropped 10 yards from him. Another story of a woman surviving a grizzly attack using a .22, this time with a Baretta .22 pistol. Here are Five reasons to own a .22 rifle). A bear shot on the Kenai just last fall. Bella Twin is show with the world record grizzly she killed with her single shot .22 rifle. The bears skull was purchased from Bella Twin by Reinhold Eben-Ebenau. It was taken in Unalakleet, Alaska in 2004 by Dennis Dunn. From "Biggest Bears Of 2006" in the March/April 2007 issue of Bear Hunting Magazine, due on newsstands late . After five unsuccessful hunting trips, Debias finally got his. The current World's Record grizzly bear is 26 3/16, taken in Unalakleet, Alaska in 2004 by Dennis Dunn. It weighed 1200 pounds at the time of its death. why couldnt she just scare it off or gently wound it, asked the Liberal snowflake. Safe traveling in bear country begins before you get on the trail. In 1953, the likelihood of a trapper using Long Rifle .22 rimfire ammunition while trapping, was, well, lets say, unlikely. The Buffalo waited for him to come down. It appears to be an inexpensive "boys". The Bear was reported to be shot with a .22 Long. However, you may visit "Cookie Settings" to provide a controlled consent. We could hear the grizzly breathing before we could see him, and by the time he walked into view, I felt like my heart was going to explode. The Cooey Ace 1 is 33 inches long. He made a dummy out of his clothes and hung it down for the Buffalo to charge at. A photo of the skull showing some of the bullet holes can be accessed at: https://www.albertaoutdoorsmen.ca/record-book.html A very popular 22 calibre rifle used in Alberta in 1953 was manufactured by H. W. Cooey Machine & Arms Company in Cobourg, Ontario, Canada. Ill add one more speculation. A very neat skull to have, It has been a conversation piece for years! In the spring of 2012, Alaska Fish and Game announced that hunting grizzlies over bait would be legal the following year in the game unit we hunt. Amazing story. Some folks say she tracked it, went after it. "When grizzly bears attack, they . The grizzlies, however, were not so cooperative. It moved on to the Reynolds Museum in Wetaskiwin, opened in 1955 by Stanley Reynolds. Which only goes to show that in an emergency, strange things are possible, but who wants that kind of emergency? Research may disclose.at one time anyway, the World Record grizzly was killed with a 30-30;the story showing up in Outdoor Life in the good old daysand the World Record Polar Bear, with a 270 Winchester. His Dad killed a few big bears in the slave lake area and well may have had his eye on this bear for himself or one of his clients. The guide located a qualifying bull at about 100 yards and pointed it out to the old gentleman. In October 2001, a hunter legally shot a bear on Hinchinbrook Island off Alaska's southern coast. posters and do not necessarily represent the opinion of Free Republic or its Every farmer who raise livestock will inevitably have to put down a large, injured animal. The holes in the Skull verify that it was a .22. Bella Twin was a calm, quiet, clear-headed Cree woman with a trap line. Perhaps someone in Alberta has access to records that give us more definitive information. YouTube - Store data on what videos from YouTube the user has seen. MOUNTAIN LION. The bolt was so rusted the action wouldnt work. A reward of $40,000 is being offered for information leading to the arrest and a conviction in the most recent case. A large hungry grizzly is not to be played with a .22lr. Big bear little mama, boltless .22 is no drama. The huge grizzly was a world record in 1953. I had undoubtedly taken one of the largest interior grizzly bears in the world, ironically, with my Bears Paw recurve and Grizzly broadheads. The bear was outnumbered nearly 20 to one, and yet it managed to hold his own against the wolves until the pack decided to leave the carcass to the bear. MULE DEER TYPICAL. I could feel my pulse in my neck. The forearm is quite short. Theyll gut you, quarter you and the coyotes are the only ones that will ever see you again.. The biggest interior grizzly bear ever killed by a bowhunter was shot in May 2009 by Pennsylvania hunter Rob Debias. Photos of Bella Twins Cooey Ace 1 currently at the Royal Alberta Museum in Edmonton Alberta that she used to kill that record setting Grizzly Bear in 1953. GRIZZLY BEAR-19. His huge front paws were raised high. The place to aim was between the eyes, about an inch up. It stands as the second-largest ever killed. A 700-pound bear shot in New Jersey last year has set a new world record as the largest black bear ever killed with a bow and arrow in North America. He waited until the bull grazed to within 75 yards or less and dropped the 1 ton bull with one well placed shot to the brain. Necessary cookies are absolutely essential for the website to function properly. Bella Twin killed that World Record Grizzly Bear in 1953 using 22 Long (not Long Rifle) cartridges. The huge grizzly was a world record in 1953. Articles may contain affiliate links which enable us to share in the revenue of any purchases made. The biggest interior grizzly bear ever killed by a bowhunter was shot in May 2009 by Pennsylvania hunter Rob Debias. They were longs not shorts and she changed them at least seven times . Set by the GDPR Cookie Consent plugin, this cookie is used to record the user consent for the cookies in the "Advertisement" category . The bear roared at him at some point, and he popped it through the roof of the mouth into the brain and killed it. The cookie is set by crwdcntrl.net to collect statistical data such as the number of visits, average time spent on site, and what pages have been loaded, for targeted advertising. Some of my most exciting have happened while hunting black bears over bait. I would not shoot a bear with a 22 because it might must make him mad and then what would I do? This bears skull was 16 9/16 long and 9 14/16 wide, for a total score of 26 7/16. Grizzly bears are long-lived mammals, generally living into their mid to late 20s, although some wild bears have lived for over 35 years.