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Reilly
Mountain climber
Monrovia, CA
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Topic Author's Original Post - Feb 22, 2010 - 02:02pm PT
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**'Specially when it's yur livelihood!
During a private "fly-in" fishing excursion in the Alaskan wilderness, the chartered pilot and fishermen left a cooler and bait in the plane and a bear smelled it. This is what he did to the plane:
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** The pilot used his radio and had another pilot bring him 2 new tires, 3 cases of duct tape, and a supply of sheet plastic. He patched the plane together, and FLEW IT HOME !
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<Duct Tape> Never Leave Home Without It!!!
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Dirka
Trad climber
SF
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Feb 22, 2010 - 02:04pm PT
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Ill bet the plane is stronger now!
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Mungeclimber
Trad climber
sorry, just posting out loud.
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Feb 22, 2010 - 02:15pm PT
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what happened to the plywood piece on the wing that was bolted down?
hrm, seems suspicious.
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karodrinker
Trad climber
San Jose, CA
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Feb 22, 2010 - 02:18pm PT
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Nope. I would not be getting back on that deathtrap! I'd hike out, don't care if it took me a month!
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donini
Trad climber
Ouray, Colorado
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Feb 22, 2010 - 02:20pm PT
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Kudos to the bear!!!
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bluering
Trad climber
Santa Clara, Ca.
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Feb 22, 2010 - 02:22pm PT
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That's why you should carry an appropriate caliber gun...
(or don't leave food in the plane)
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gonzo chemist
climber
a crucible
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Feb 22, 2010 - 02:24pm PT
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I'm fairly certain duct tape can do ANYTHING...
yup, its a BOAT made out of duct tape...pretty impressive...
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Chaz
Trad climber
greater Boss Angeles area
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Feb 22, 2010 - 02:24pm PT
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I like how they took a marker and wrote the tail number on it.
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Reilly
Mountain climber
Monrovia, CA
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Topic Author's Reply - Feb 22, 2010 - 02:39pm PT
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Munge,
That plywood is a flap/aileron lock which is usually
removed before flight.
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corniss chopper
Mountain climber
san jose, ca
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Feb 22, 2010 - 02:50pm PT
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Very cool fix. thanks Reilly.
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IntheFog
climber
Mostly the next place
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Feb 22, 2010 - 03:09pm PT
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And now, for the rest of the story:
http://www.alaskadispatch.com/dispatches/news/3370-an-appetite-for-revenge
An appetite for revenge
Jill Burke
Dec 20, 2009
We had high hopes we'd get the pilot to dish out the straight story, separating fact from fiction, but he opted to remain silent and keep the mysteries alive. What follows is the tale of the bear's destruction spree and the plane's revival as told by the pilot's dad, Mark Miller, and family friend and hunting guide Gary LaRose, who first discovered the bear's fabric-eating, metal-bending offense.
Contrary to some reports, it wasn't a fishy aroma that lured the bear in. The plane wasn't full of fish, nor had it just been used to haul fish. The pilot didn't radio for help -- he used a cell phone -- and the incident isn't a hoax dating back nine years; it happened around Sept. 26 and 27, 2009.
And yes, duct tape and plastic wrap saved the day.
LaRose had already had a few run-ins with the brown bruin, which discovered it could use the new meat shed at LaRose's lodge like a McDonald's drive-through....
Miller stopped in a day or two later on his way to a piloting job for another guide. A storm was moving through with heavy rain and 25 to 30 mile per hour winds, and LaRose's lodge offered a comfortable place for a night of rest. Offered a choice to tie down the plane out in the open, or about 60 feet from the shed, where it would be better sheltered, he chose the area by the shed.
"I figured the bear situation was done," La Rose said. "The meat had been gone for three or four days and I figured it got the message."
Early the next morning after a night of howling winds, in the dark before sunrise, a client reported another meat shed break-in to LaRose, who took a walk to check things out and discovered the bear had once again pulled out a window, but otherwise had done no damage.
No damage, that is, until LaRose remembered Miller's plane.
"My headlamp hit Luke's plane and it was literally destroyed," he said. "My heart sank. It was just an unbelievable sight."
LaRose was faced with the unhappy task of waking Miller up to tell him the bear had destroyed the 1958 Piper Cub's wheels by clawing at the rubber, busted out the windows on the plane's left side, and shredded fabric from rear windows to tail.
"He basically ravaged the whole plane," LaRose said, adding that, in his 38 years as a pilot in Alaska, he has never seen anything like it.
Miller had a small amount of vacuum-sealed meat for personal use stored in plastic and stashed in the gear he had brought along for his upcoming job assignment. Despite all the damage done to the plane, the bear missed it. LaRose questions whether the bear was even able to smell it, and said Miller's plane was otherwise clean.
Miller grew up in a family that owns a remote lodge and learned early on to scrub planes down with bleach, soap and water after hauling meat. He had transported caribou a few weeks earlier, and LaRose said he supposes it's possible there was a hint of blood on board, but he's skeptical, and thinks there's a better explanation -- one having to do with the bear's fondness for the meat shed and its proximity to the plane.
"He was pissed," LaRose said. "His easy food source had dried up and he was out for revenge."
If malice was indeed the motivation, the bear knew how drive the point home. It took a dump next to its handiwork near Miller's plane, LaRose said, and left a similar gift not too far away near where other planes were tied down.
After a few days of meticulous fix-it work, the plane was airworthy enough to fly back to Anchorage. Miller fitted the windows with plywood and Plexiglas, replaced the tires and the horizontal stabilizer (the bear either leaned on it or sat on it), and, according to Miller's dad, fashioned a makeshift fabric skin out of 25 rolls of duct tape and some industrial-strength plastic wrap.
As for the bear, it hasn't been seen since. It may have been "whacked" during bear hunting season in October, or it may be playing it smart. After all, bears know when it's time "to get the hell out of Dodge," according to the LaRose.
Then again, it may be off enjoying a satisfied rest.
"He's off digesting some fabric right now. He just disappeared into the night. He doesn't know how famous he is," the pilot's father, Mark Miller, said.
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Reilly
Mountain climber
Monrovia, CA
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Topic Author's Reply - Feb 22, 2010 - 03:35pm PT
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Fog,
Thanks for that! I had a hard time believing a bush pilot would
be dumb enough to leave food in a plane. I would think it nigh
impossible to completely sanitize one, especially a fabric job, if
any meat were to touch the inside of the fabric.
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Scared Silly
Trad climber
UT
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Feb 22, 2010 - 03:43pm PT
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The plastic and duct tape was probably stronger than the fabric originally covering the airframe.
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couchmaster
climber
pdx
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Feb 22, 2010 - 03:45pm PT
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Once those bears learn how to fly those planes, in about a year or 2, we puny humans will be in a world of hurt.....
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Jingy
Social climber
Nowhere
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Feb 22, 2010 - 03:48pm PT
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Incredible story Reilly!!!!
When I was viewing the first set of pics, I thought "Dang... that bird is grounded...!!!" Not knowing the resourcefulness of the Alaskan Bush pilot..
Then Duct Tape to the rescue!!!
That is cool!!!
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Reilly
Mountain climber
Monrovia, CA
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Topic Author's Reply - Feb 22, 2010 - 03:53pm PT
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So Cliff Hudson told me about a bud of his in Bearflanks who got
hired to fly some snot-nosed Easterners up to the Brooks Range to
bag some plums. After the pilot makes 'em show him the gun is empty
the owner says, "So what do you think of this 375 as a bear gun?"
The grizzled dude looks the kid in the eye and says, "First thing
I'd do is file the front sight off."
Bright-eyed and thinking he's ahead of the game the kid answers
"So it won't get hung up in the brush?"
"Nope. So it won't hurt so bad when Mr Griz shoves it up yur arse!"
_
On a sad and ironic note old Alaskan bush pilot Harmon Helmericks
passed the other day after 93 good years:
http://www.latimes.com/news/local/la-me-passings22-2010feb22,0,7282524.story
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Mungeclimber
Trad climber
sorry, just posting out loud.
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Feb 22, 2010 - 03:54pm PT
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thx Reilly, didn't know that.
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tolman_paul
Trad climber
Anchorage, AK
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Feb 22, 2010 - 06:56pm PT
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Bears have the occasional habbit of being rough on planes, boats and cabins.
Reilly, you messed up the joke, it's what do you think of a 357 as a bear gun, also told as what do you think of a 44 mag as a bear gun.
A 375 is a rifle, fully up to the task, and not the but of jokes.
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Mighty Hiker
climber
Vancouver, B.C.
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Feb 22, 2010 - 07:07pm PT
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Could have been a wolverine. Or a Republican.
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Reilly
Mountain climber
Monrovia, CA
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Topic Author's Reply - Feb 22, 2010 - 10:10pm PT
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Tolman,
I well know the difference between a 357 and a 375 and I am
pretty sure a 375 shoved up your backside would hurt more than
a 357 although I don't plan on experiencing either, I'm not
that kind of guy.
My handgun of choice is a S&W 500 not some lightweight 44. :-)
ps
I used to live outside Wasilla.
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