Keith Lusher 06.30.25
A Wisconsin hunter has formally claimed the world report for the biggest grizzly bear ever killed by a hunter, taking down an enormous boar in Alaska that measured an astounding 27-9/16 inches in line with Boone and Crockett Membership requirements.
Brian van Lanen shot the large grizzly close to Norton Sound, Alaska, in September 2024 throughout a mixture moose and grizzly looking expedition. What began as a selective hunt for trophy animals changed into a once-in-a-lifetime encounter with a bear that looking consultants describe as actually distinctive.
The record-setting hunt started when van Lanen and his information Lance Kronberger noticed a big bear working alongside a riverbank. As they moved nearer to evaluate the animal, a second huge boar appeared, triggering a territorial dispute between the 2 giants. When one bear started chasing the opposite away from a primary fishing spot, the hunters realized they wanted to behave shortly earlier than shedding sight of their quarry.
At 400 yards, van Lanen took his shot with a .338 Lapua Magnum rifle. The bullet rolled the bear onto its facet, however the wounded animal headed for close by alders. A number of follow-up photographs have been required earlier than two ultimate photographs close to the riverbank introduced down the large grizzly for good.
The traditional boar confirmed clear indicators of its previous age, estimated to be between 20 and 25 years previous. Battle scars lined its huge body, its backside lip was utterly cut up in half, and its tooth had worn right down to mere nubs from a long time of survival within the Alaskan wilderness. These bodily traits indicated the bear was close to the tip of its pure lifespan.
Boone and Crockett scoring is predicated completely on cranium measurements, not physique weight or general measurement. After the necessary 60-day drying interval, official measurers confirmed the cranium scored 27-9/16 inches, surpassing the earlier hunter-killed report of 27-8/16 inches set by Brian Park in 2018. The brand new report beats the previous mark by simply one-sixteenth of an inch.
Remarkably, this achievement represents solely the second-largest grizzly cranium ever recorded by the Boone and Crockett Membership. The general report stays with a 27-13/16 inch cranium found by Gordon Scott in 1976, discovered as stays from a bear that had died naturally.
Van Lanen, who had been selectively looking grizzlies since spring 2024, emphasised the significance of his relationship together with his guides. He credit Lance Kronberger and the group at Freelance Out of doors Journey as important companions in reaching this milestone, describing them as brothers slightly than merely skilled guides.
The report was formally confirmed on the thirty second Massive Sport Awards Judges Panel and represents the biggest hunter-killed grizzly for the reason that Boone and Crockett Membership started sustaining information within the Nineteen Twenties. The cranium is presently on show on the Wonders of Wildlife Museum in Springfield, Missouri, the place it’s going to stay by July twenty sixth.
