RUSSIA: Kamchatka Brown Bear

[Kalthoff]

Our military service was one of the factors in our risk assessment for this trip. My dad is a retired Colonel, and I am a retired Sergeant First Class and currently work for the military as a federal civilian employee. We did get interviewed about our government connections. It definitely adds a little risk to the equation to have that background.

Had you mentioned that upfront, I would have read your description in a different light. It would have explained the lengthy interrogations and the focus on your military connections.

It sounds as if the sentence you ended up serving was merely for the two counts of breaking Russian law which you did commit, albeit acting on bad advice in both cases.

It sounds as if the Russian judge and jail system did not use your military ties against you. On this count you should count yourself lucky.

Your story can serve as a cautionary tale as how deeply we depend on local advice, when we travel to hunt in a foreign country. It is a tale of bad local advice landing a traveler in jail.

 

[uplander01]

Not worth it to me, not even close....

 

[chonk34]

Had you mentioned that upfront, I would have read your description in a different light. It would have explained the lengthy interrogations and the focus on your military connections.

It sounds as if the sentence you ended up serving was merely for the two counts of breaking Russian law which you did commit, albeit acting on bad advice in both cases.

It sounds as if the Russian judge and jail system did not use your military ties against you. On this count you should count yourself lucky.

Your story can serve as a cautionary tale as how deeply we depend on local advice, when we travel to hunt in a foreign country. It is a tale of bad local advice landing a traveler in jail.

I didn't ever get the sense that they were really pursuing us on account of our government service. Even the special interview mid-sentence felt like they were training a new guy on interviews with Americans they happened to have on hand. I agree that we were dependent on faulty local advice, which got us into trouble and then got us into more trouble, leading to a jail sentence instead of merely paying a fine. I got the impression that in Kamchatka, far away from Moscow's flagpole, they recognize the value of hunting income for the region and don't want to harass too many hunters if they can help it.

 

[medvedhunting]

Whew! Glad you made it out.
I worked in Russia and Kazakhstan for 4 years, as well as other hell holes - Nigeria and CAR.
What happened to you is pretty consistent with my experience. Even with a guy on the inside to get you in and out, there are issues that all solved with money.

Russia and Nigeria are the worst. "Facilitation payments" are the norm no matter who well connected the insiders are. I think the insiders are part of the problem.

I hope to never set foot in Russia or another "stan" country again. Life is too short to be threatened and potentially jailed as a hostage.

i lived and worked in CAR at the end of 80s and it was defintely not as bad as it became in those days ... except the sudanese invasions and the yaringas (today called road blockers) and of course the corruption ... but nothing to compare with that story that reminds all of us how in a foreign country everything can go that fast in a situation you cannot control at all especially with the language issue ...

 

[medvedhunting]

thank you for the story and the adventures that came with.

 

[matt85]

Wow, that is one heck of a write up!

For better or worse it will be a hunt you will never forget. Personally... I'd be willing to try it.

 

[Macduff]

That's a hell of a story and I'm glad it had a happy ending.

I don't mean this personally towards you, but in general...visiting Russia without a very, very good reason is a dumb idea. I can't imagine going there as an American citizen at the moment.

It's too easy to become a pawn in a much larger game, through no fault of your own.

Hard pass, although the bear does look great.

 

[mark-hunter]

The question is why so light sentence.
I went to search on internet.

Found this source:

В России вступил в силу закон, позволяющий брать охотничье оружие в аренду - Газета.Ru | Новости

Граждане России и других стран с 15 июля смогут взять в аренду охотничье ружье. Как сообщает РИА Новости , условием для этого будет наличие соответствующего разрешения, а также охотничий билет.

www.gazeta.ru

Translated by google:
Citizens of Russia and other countries from July 15 will be able to rent a hunting rifle. According to RIA Novosti, the condition for this will be the availability of an appropriate permit, as well as a hunting license.

Foreigners will be able to rent guns from legal entities and individual entrepreneurs who have permission to rent them out, and Russians from any legal entities and individuals who own such a gun.

To rent weapons, foreigners must obtain a permit to own firearms abroad or apply for a permit from the diplomatic mission of their state in Russia to issue a permit to rent such weapons.

(c) gazeta.ru

How I read this, conditions to rent a rifle are following:
Foreigner must provide his own firearms license to outfitter (and authorities), or optionally to provide some statement from his embassy in Russia that he can rent a firearm
And he must obtain hunting license by outfitter
Registered outfitter must have license to rent firearms.

Due diligence for a foreign hunter would be to confirm all this paperwork is available.
My educated guess, the authorities saw this as a minor offence, and kept the hunter detained till this was sorted out.

Few years ago, I was considering to hunt in Russia for siberian roe buck, moose and cappercaille, But the war broke out, and now I have no intention of going till this situation is settled, It can also mean - never to go there.

 

[DieJager]

Great report. You sir have some guts.

This line was even better

. I did wind up bribing officials in Kazakhstan last year,

You like to pay Russian roulette it seems (pun intended)

 

[HankBuck]

That's a hell of a story and I'm glad it had a happy ending.

I don't mean this personally towards you, but in general...visiting Russia without a very, very good reason is a dumb idea. I can't imagine going there as an American citizen at the moment.

It's too easy to become a pawn in a much larger game, through no fault of your own.

Hard pass, although the bear does look great.

@Macduff: agree, for me to go to Russia just to hunt Bear (when I could easily go to Alaska) the “Bear” would need to weigh 3000 lbs., have a 40” B&C skull, and Hunt cost under $5000……ALL IN.

 

[Red Leg]

I didn't ever get the sense that they were really pursuing us on account of our government service. Even the special interview mid-sentence felt like they were training a new guy on interviews with Americans they happened to have on hand. I agree that we were dependent on faulty local advice, which got us into trouble and then got us into more trouble, leading to a jail sentence instead of merely paying a fine. I got the impression that in Kamchatka, far away from Moscow's flagpole, they recognize the value of hunting income for the region and don't want to harass too many hunters if they can help it.

But, all it would have taken was a phone call from Moscow and you both would have been languishing for months, perhaps years, awaiting the next prisoner exchange.

 

[WAB]

And if one does choose to bribe a foreign official, one might seriously consider NOT posting it on a public forum.

 

[HankBuck]

But, all it would have taken was a phone call from Moscow and you both would have been languishing for months, perhaps years, awaiting the next prisoner exchange.

@Red Leg - there are other Countries where Bear hunting is even more dangerous - Somalia, North Korea, San Francisco !!

 

[dlmac]

Hunted there in 2015, got a nice 10 foot bear and a smaller one(gift from an old Chinese man who was tire to hunt more), Not nearly the political turmoil as now. They did take my passport and would not give it back. The rest of the group got theirs back in 24 hours mines was given back in 48 hrs, I refused to leave the hotel or sign out until I got my passport back. They wanted me to go on to the hunting camp without the passport.....not happening. I am a retired military officer with a mildly interesting career. Got the passport back and no problems after that. Was offered another hunt in another area for Moose the following year...REFUSED. Never going back to Russia, ones luck can last only so long.
Who is in the picture, very interesting shirt. Your story is much more interesting than mine.

 

[dlmac]

Did your trophy bear hides & skull get “released” and make it back to your homes ?
I’ve met other Hunters that were UNable to bring their Bears home - were requested to “pay a Bribe” and refused….so the bear hides were confiscated, then they eventually released the hides. It sounded like a nerve wracking mess and convinced me to avoid Russia and go to Alaska for Griz

I used Coppersmith expediters to get my hide and skull home and had no problems UNTIL it got to the US, then the fun and games began. So glad I had Coppersmith, also had a legitimate outfit..Denny Grenick (sp?)

 

[NIGHTHAWK]

What an amazing hunt and story you have!

My Kamchatka Moose and Bear hunt deposit is also a write off! Booked for 2023 just before the war broke out.

After considering flights through Seoul Korea and other risky methods to get there, I just gave up. Glad I did…

 

[NIGHTHAWK]

I’ve also done way to many contract jobs for the government and or related agencies. I’d probably still be in prison…

 

[BryceM]

Wow. Somehow I missed this story the first time around. A few years back a friend and I were planning on making the trip to Kamchatka to hunt bear. I was close to making a deposit when COVID hit and the war started. I noped-out bigtime at that point. I think my friend is still planning on the trip.

There is a 0.000% chance I'm going there right now. I read the State Department's website. Not a single solitary chance. Imagine if you somehow misplaced a shell and tried to board a plane with it. Imagine if there was a language misunderstanding and they assumed you were trying to bribe a judge. 10 days just as easily could have been 6 months or a year. The state department is very clear that if you get in trouble there, you are absolutely, positively, hopelessly on your own..... unless you know how to dribble a basketball......

 

[dlmac]

Wow. Somehow I missed this story the first time around. A few years back a friend and I were planning on making the trip to Kamchatka to hunt bear. I was close to making a deposit when COVID hit and the war started. I noped-out bigtime at that point. I think my friend is still planning on the trip.

There is a 0.000% chance I'm going there right now. I read the State Department's website. Not a single solitary chance. Imagine if you somehow misplaced a shell and tried to board a plane with it. Imagine if there was a language misunderstanding and they assumed you were trying to bribe a judge. 10 days just as easily could have been 6 months or a year. The state department is very clear that if you get in trouble there, you are absolutely, positively, hopelessly on your own..... unless you know how to dribble a basketball......

The language barrier was with the guide, we used a handwritten cheat sheet provided by the booking agent. Just pointed to what you wanted and hoped for the best. There was man at the airport who worked for the booking agent, found out later he had some skin in the outfit, he spoke good english. The original company was setup by an ex-editor of Outdoor Life Magazine with a couple of ex KGB agents.

 

[dlmac]

I’ve also done way to many contract jobs for the government and or related agencies. I’d probably still be in prison…

If you have worked for people like KBR and such in Russia, then you are well aware of how good their word is verbal or written in a contract. Never going back.