Hey guys, as the title says, I'm looking for anything and everything I can on bear hunting.
Next fall will be my last year in college, after which I don't know where I'll end up. I've got more than enough points to draw a first season bear tag up here, and plan to take advantage of it while I'm still here. I have zero bear hunting experience, although I see them up here on occasion. I'm planning on doing a baited hunt, and have another buddy who is applying as well so we can split up baiting duties. That being said, what should I be doing? Any baits that you've had particular good luck with? How to go about establishing bait sites? Running them? I know it's a lot of questions, but any advice that any of you have will be greatly appreciated! I haven't decided whether or not to hunt from a tree or not yet. I think hunting from the ground would be exciting, but my buddy wants to film it and I know he's not going to sit on the ground with a bear. Either way, it's something new and I'm looking forward to giving it a try!
Never baited for bear....if you were hunting them on foot...I could chime in. Sorry I can't help
..want to go to stickflingers and bear quest bad though.
Check out the bear hunting magazine podcast. Clay newcomb did a few on the basics of baiting.
You tube is loaded with how to's...some good some not so good...have fun with the planing and prep...if the videos don't answer ur questions u can pm me and I'll try to help ya
Talk to people who sell bait in the area. They will tell you what's popular. Trail mix is usually pretty good. Usually things like donuts, popcorn or bread withe coolaide powder or cherry juice work pretty good early but when acorns start dropping you had already switched to protein like peanut butter and trail mix.
Good luck. Oh and start doing homework for a taxidermist now. Visit their shop and see examples of their work. They can probably give you tips.
If you wait till after you killed something, its possible the excitement will cause you to make a poor choice. If you end up not needing it, not much is lost.
Best advice I can give is to hunt all day. They are a lot like mature bucks and will move more mid day than most people think. And the more secluded the better. I shot mine around 3:00 in the afternoon but saw it several times mid day.
And for some reason my bear preferred skittles over everything else. Lol
Thanks for the information so far guys, I'll look into all of those resources! I plan to go talk to the grocery stores this week and see if they'd be willing to sell me all the day olds from the bakery or something. I'm sure I'm not the only one with that idea so I'd like to get on it early. I know a couple DNR officers up here so I'll reach out to them as well and see how willing they are to share some information and what not.
I'll look into taxidermists, but I'm afraid mounting a bear would not be in my budget at that time unfortunately. It would be very cool to have on the wall though.
I'll log some hours in the stand then for sure Crittergetter. I'm glad you said that, because I've always been under the impression that bear hunting was more of a late afternoon thing.
As far as baiting goes, how careful are you guys with human scent? I've been reading that some guys want as much human scent as they can get so that the bear gets used to it and starts associating that smell with food.
ive baited about ten years or so. i dont get concerned with scent while baiting. i do when hunting. i spray cover scent on the barrel when i bait and then on myself when i hunt. try not to ever let your bait run out. i just use popcorn, dogfood, and used cooking grease. and boarmasters
Once you start baiting, make sure you put trail cams up on the baits. There is a lot of great info you can get, multiple bears, time of day, size of bears, etc. Where we hunt, it's unusual to have one come in much before dark. The more bears coming in will force them to start coming in earlier. When you are sitting at the bait, always a good idea to bait with something that they can't grab and run with. Popcorn or candy or something works pretty good. I watch videos of bear hunting up in Canada and places where there are really high numbers of bears and they come in all times of the day and many different bears at many bait. That is not my experience but that all depends on what kind of numbers you have in your area. When they come in, it's amazing just how silently they can come through the woods! Also, even on a good hit, that thick hair on there body really soaks up the blood so I hope you're good at blood trailing.
If you have a bakery outlet in town, talk to them. All the expired stuff will get sold cheap. We picked up a truck load for 20$
You are right, there is a lot of competition for bait. My lil bro bought 3 or 4 popcorn makers from good will. He would sit up in his garage making a garbage bag of bait.
The stores by me are not allowed to give out or sell the expired stuff. It was explained to me but I wasnt listening. Something about taxes and lawsuits
And think about what your hunting, by and large a bear is a predator. Their sense of smell is as good or better than any canine. It is often the case that they have circled the bait, and you, know where you're set up, then try to sneak in anyway using cover to get to the bait. And like everyone says, they are QUIET. It is nothing like hunting white tail.
And as a side note, when you're sitting in your stand, watching the bear, holding your bow, never forget that if the bear decides to pluck you out of that tree there is not thing one you can do about it. :scared:
My first Bear was harvested in Copper Harbor, so I know a little about your area.
1) natural food sources can mess up even a good bait. High berry production years can mean hit or miss on bait sites.
2) Find a good spot where you can enter and exit with predominant wind in your favor.
3) dog hunters can mess up your hard work in a hurry. Try to find a spot off the beaten path. Hound hunters will use roads and two tracks to travel with their strike dog mounted on front of the vehicle to cover a lot of terrain trying to hit a track. It sounds like you have the first hunt period before the dog hunting starts for real, but they can train dogs up until a certain number of days before your first hunt starts and affect your work done on baiting up until that time by running a bear off.
4) if you're hunting a tree stand, find a pine tree with good cover in your bait area and then set up your bait site close to it on upwind side. Keep your stand low as you want to keep shot angle low to make sure you get both lungs. A double lung bear is down in less than 80 yards, a one lung bear will go miles. Trail camera on bait is nice if you have access to one. Make 'V' out of logs at the bait to direct the bear in position for a broadside shot. If bear is coming in at dark you don't have 10 minutes to wait for him to turn into position. Dig a hole to put bait into and cover with logs to keep wolves and raccoons out. Cover the logs with bacon grease. When bear goes to move logs off bait, what he didn't lick off logs will get on his pads and he'll lay a scent trail in woods for you potentially attracting more bears. Competition at bait site is good.
5) With competition point mentioned, once your bait is being hit, start tapering off food so there's not a gorge going on. You want competition to bring bears in earlier so it's not nocturnal. Big bears may have an every two or three day pattern, but that's ok. This is where trail camera is helpful. Bear will get used to baiters scent. Don't have your buddy bait for you right before you hunt if he's not been there all along.
6) Don't hunt with wrong or marginal wind. You'll spook a bear out totally or make him nocturnal. Again, multiple bears working a bait help. Having two or three bait stations out in different areas is best, but this becomes more expensive on travel and bait cost if you're purchasing.
7) bear season can bring warmer temperatures and bear meat can spoil in a hurry. It is fabulous table fare, but must be cooled quickly. Get the hide off and in coolers asap if it's warm.
Some more great information guys. Really appreciate it! I'll add it to my notes!
I have several cameras so I'll put those out on the baits. I also bought one of those cellular cameras specifically for the purpose of bear hunting, and one of those protective metal cases for it, although I'm not sure how bear proof it actually will be. I figure I don't necessarily need the cell camera since I'll be in baiting every day or so, but if I can avoid touching the camera with bait on my hands and can have the pictures sent to me, I'm hoping that might keep my camera from getting eaten. Just a thought I had haha.
The bears that I've seen have always surprised me with how quietly they show up. They sure don't seem to be worried about making a racket when they take off though!
I'm not super worried about one climbing the tree to keep me company, but I suppose it could be a possibility. Every bear encounter I've ever had they've turned and run as soon as they knew I was there.
Ray, that's a lot of good information! Especially since you have experience hunting this area! I don't think I'll make it all the way to copper harbor, but I'll be poking around in that direction. I see quite a few dog hunters up here, so I'll definitely be looking for some off the grid places. I'm really not sure what the bear density is up here. I see tracks fairly frequently which is encouraging. As far as size, I've never had a "big" bear on any of my cameras set for deer, but maybe one will show up once I start baiting. I'm really not super picky about size as long as it's a legal adult bear.
Keep it coming!
Trenton, Ray's advice is spot on, I've hunted the U.P. twice for bear with a good buddy, we were hunting around Naubinway. I was lucky the first time we went, and he got one the second time we went. I was able to get day old donuts from the local grocery store, I shot sporting clays with the store manager, and he would bring them to me already frozen in a big garbage bag at no charge!!! We also used bacon grease on the logs covering the bait, and on the ground around it, used cooking oil would work also if you could get some from a local restaurant, they'll step in it and get it on their feet and as they walk around leave a scent trail for other bear in the area to follow back to your bait. I also used anise oil mixed with a little water and sprayed it on the trees, to help add some scent, and also tried to cover our scent a bit, vanilla would work also as a cover/attractant. I have also heard of people using the bacon grease to do a burn with a small camp grill, and metal coffee can just to put the scent into the air, we never tried this.
I have also gone to New Brunswick and hunted with an outfitter, and the advice about the bears getting used to the baiters scent is spot on also. My hunt was a 5 day hunt which started on a Monday, we arrived Saturday evening, had breakfast Sunday morning and met the guides, there were 3 hunters per guide, and went with them as they baited. We were only allowed to go as far as the treestands so we knew where they were, and climbed in to make sure everything looked ok, the other 2 hunters waited at the truck. They are allowed to use barrels there, so as they were baiting, they were banging the buckets they used for the bait around and banging the barrel, they would do this as we were going in to hunt also. While we climbed into the stand they would freshen the bait, and it wasn't long after they left that bears would start to show up.
Also, a point on clothing, bug tamer suit or something equivalent, and a thermacell or two. I actually used two while in New Brunswick, I would use 2 when I got in the stand then shut one off after 10-15 minutes and use one up then start the other when I needed it. I also used black nitrile gloves for my hands, they'll make your hands sweat but the mosquitoes, and black flies couldn't get through them. Good luck on your hunt when it gets here and keep us posted as things play out for you!!!
Jason
Bear proof box is good. If you dont have enough bear proof boxes put the camera up high and out of the way. Dont touch it with bait hands. Fresh rubber gloves is a good idea. Bait can be expensive but my family had 4 cameras chewed up this year. One still kinda works.
Jason, thanks for the info!
I will have to figure out a way for my buddies and I to split up baiting duties, maybe a designated pair of baiting boots and clothes that we share or something haha.
I've seen the oil on the bait logs come up a couple of times now, so I will definitely be giving that a try. I've also heard about banging on the barrels and what not to make noise and let the bears know that food is there. I'm thinking I'll have someone drop me off when I'm hunting, do the baiting and leave while I'm getting up in the tree.
Hopefully the bugs aren't too bad, but it can definitely be warm and buggy that time of year!
I've had them spin my cameras around but luckily never had one destroy a camera. I know a buddy who lost a couple though.
Just a couple of things- On a baited, guided hunt I found the bait that was placed in the morning was gone when I got there in the afternoon. I decided to hunt the same site the next morning just after the bait was placed, and took a nice boar about 10:30 in the morning. Lastly, if funds are not in great supply, consider having the hide tanned. Later when you have a bit more pocket change you can have your rug made. Good luck.
Stevem, would you recommend doing my baiting in the afternoon then if I'm unable to hunt mornings often? I want to keep it consistent, and with registration for fall semester coming up, I need to determine how to schedule my classes in order to make this work. I usually try to get my classes out of the way early in the day so I have the afternoon free. I never considered tanning and getting a rug made. I might look into that! I found a couple of taxidermists in the area. One was pretty reasonable, but his bears looked kinda like odd...
Trenton, baiting afternoon is fine. Consistent is probably best. I've baited and hunted same time before. Getting hide tanned and then finish down the road is good plan. May want to have the better taxidermy person do that portion as well. Whomever you're planning to do it with, talk to them up front about hide care from moment animal is down. Also, look into having skull done. My taxidermist who was also an old friend had a guy who had the beetles that cleaned skull. It doesn't hurt the skull at all. Here's mine from 2008 bear taken in northern lower peninsula. 18 3/4" which would qualify for P&Y.
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And you'll appreciate this one. My first Michigan bear taken in Copper Harbor in 1986. I skipped a week of classes at Michigan State University to go up there with my buddies and we camped at Lake Fanny Hoe campground (they were all 100 level psychology and sociology classes in 200-600 seat lecture hall's, but MTU and upper level engineering classes are a whole different story so no cutting classes recommended !!)
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Oh, and don't count your chickens before they're hatched (I didn't mean to imply you should already be measuring up your taxidermist and rug!!). I'm batting about 25% on Michigan bait hunting bears. Hunted Ontario once for baited bears in fall (and learned a lot from guide but my chance was foiled because of new scent at bait). Also shot a cinnamon phase bear in Montana while stalking for elk and mule deer and that was a adrenaline rush. Enjoy the experience even if you don't harvest a bear, the whole process of picking out spot, baiting runs and every little sound or movement while sitting on an active bait becomes a bear in your mind.
Nice bears. They look good! That's really cool that you came all the way up to Copper Harbor and got one! I saw a sow and two cubs up there two falls ago. It sure is a fun area!
If nothing else I will definitely have a skull mount done. That's what I have done with most of my deer.
I'm definitely not going to go into this thing with unrealistic expectations. Just being able to try something new is going to be worth the work, even if I never even see a bear (although I sure hope that I do!) I figure it's just like any other type of hunting, nothing is guaranteed, especially with a trad bow. (Have to figure out which one to use I guess haha.)
With regard to skipping classes, I'm usually pretty good about that haha. It's too difficult to make up for whatever you miss!
Trenton, bears die easy, when they are hit properly. Any whitetail setup is plenty for black bears. I've killed three total and been on four other tracking job. Blood trail was not an issue with 32, 60 and 25 yard recovery on my bears. My buddy had 40 and 50 yard trails. Two other acquaintances I helped with had unfounded bears that went over a mile due to poor hits. Use your most accurate bow, close shot with low tree stand 8-10 feet with good cover, and any sharp broadhead of your preference. Review bear vitals charts carefully
One of my buddies shot one up here with his compound this fall that I helped him track. It left a decent blood trail but not a ton. Went maybe 80 yards with a double lung shot. It went through some pretty thick nasty stuff which made it exciting.
I plan on using my whitetail setup, but am debating between the VPA's or the Grizzlies. I'll probably stick with the 3 blade to give a better blood trail hopefully.
I'm going to try and keep my shots around 15 yards or less, but I feel confident past that if I need to. Been toying with the idea of hunting from the ground as well. I've only got one tree stand so if I've got multiple baits that would have to be an option at some point. I'll try and make the baits with logs that would force a slightly quartering away shot if possible.
We can't hunt over bait here in NY, but I will say this... A predator call works GREAT!!! :thumbsup:
Set up in your tree stand, (or on the ground) and blast a distressed fawn call for about 5 minutes.
Keep your eyes open! (especially behind you) he could end up in your lap.... :scared:
I've thought about calling, but there are a ton of wolves up in the areas that I hunt and I've had enough uncomfortable encounters with them that I don't care to call any of them in. I've heard they can ruin a bait site as well which has me a little nervous.
Hey Trenton. Here's a thought about tanning your hide. You can flesh it yourself. Either the old way on a beam scraping the meat/fat off, or you can use a pressure washer (be careful though cause you can put holes in the hide, but it strips fat off easily). Then just salt and dry the hide and ship or drive it to a tannery (the tannery is where a taxidermist will send it anyway). They tan and shave the hide til it is soft and ship it back to you. It will be ready for a throw or blanket. I used a local taxidermist the first 2 bears and she showed me how to skin them better and how to flesh them and use a tannery. Then I did the next 2 myself and shipped them off to a tannery and they came back great. I tanned another with the stuff you can buy from cabelas. Then this last bear I brain tanned the hide; I'm still working on softening that one. Each method gets progressively cheaper. But the ratio of expense to work is inverse :) However, tanning them myself is fun, more rewarding, and less harsh chemically.
Have fun bear hunting, it is a blast.
Trenton, I've heard the same thing about the wolves coming in and ruining the bait site, they will basically run the bears off it and they wont come back. Hope that doesn't happen for you!!! Neither of the bears I shot were with traditional equipment, my U.P. bear I used 125 grain 3 blade Muzzys and had a good blood trail and it only went 40-50 yards, but it was an interesting blood trail, my buddy and I were tracking, I was on the blood, my buddy was off to my side watching in front of us, we were about 20-30 yards from another bear, made for a few tense moments as it decided to move on thankfully!!!. My New Brunswick bear was shot with a 3 blade also, but had really thick fur, and my guide and I were on our hands and knees finding pin head drops of blood, but this bear only went 50-60 yards, both shots were double lung, the N.B. I heard the death moan and knew it was close, I never heard it from my U.P. bear.
My buddy got his bear the second time we went to the U.P. he was using his Shaffer Silvertip with a steel force broadhead, when he shot it, it was 5 paces from the base of the tree we were in, I was filming the hunt for him, he caught the shoulder blade and got one lung, his went about 100 yards, we waited and went back in the morning for his after we watched the shot over a couple times after we went back to where we were staying.
I had planed on going back to N.B. this spring and trying for a bigger bear with my long bow, but with everything going on I decided to cancel my hunt and reschedule when this settled down a bit. Good luck and keep us posted with your progress!!!
Jason
Preston, thanks for the advice. I might end up doing that if I get one. Maybe I could get one of the local taxidermists to show me how to do it.
Jason, I hope so too! I've had more than one deer spot ruined by them! I'll do some playing around with my setup this summer and see what I come up with. Probably will just shoot my deer setup and call it good.
I don't know much about hunting bears. I see them while deer hunting and got a small one this year during the archery deer season. For whatever reason, I always see them and their sign near water. Where I am, I'll see deer cross near water but they like to bed up higher where they can see that food and water source before coming down to eat or drink. And the deer can sometimes be high on the ridgetop, a mile or more from the nearest water source. I've seen some bear sign up in these same bedding areas but I see way more down in the creekbed or very close to it. Sometimes, during warmer spells, I'll find them IN the creek itself.
Here, hunting bears with bait or dogs is illegal. There is no spring season either, though I've been told that Southern CA bears don't hibernate anyway. Couldn't tell you anything about MI bears. But if I want to find a bear around here, I go to water first.
Started hunting NJ when they opened an archery season 4 years ago and allowed baiting. It is a bunch of fun. We have done pretty good for a bunch of beginners. Two of us have killed 6 bear in four years. My bait of choice is donuts spiked with Molasses. The area we hunt is loaded with bears and we started baits about three weeks before the season. Last year we started a week before. Next year I am starting the day before the season. The last three years we had bear on the baits the same afternoon. This is one that was on the bait within 3 hours. [attachment=1,msg2952925]
Guess I'll bring this back up to the top with a few more questions.
How tough is it to get them in close to a stand? Ideally I'd like to have my shot around 15 yards or less but I'm not opposed to shooting out to 25 if I have to. I just like as little room for error as possible.
I've never butchered a bear before. In assuming it's pretty much the same deal as a whitetail? Or do you cut them up differently? I know they have a lot more fat, so I assume I'll be doing a lot of trimming. (Maybe I'm jinxing myself by asking how to cut one up before I get one but figured it would be good to know haha)
Ok, third and hopefully final question. I'm sure there will be more later in the year but this is it for now. I know its important to keep a consistent scent in the area when baiting. I have another buddy who is getting a tag and we were planning to alternate baiting days so that we didn't each have to go every time. Would having two consistent baiters be a bad idea or would that be alright?
Thanks for the help!
Trenton,
Hope your school year went well. I don't see an issue alternate baiting as I've done that with my buddies here in MI on several different occasions and years and we've been successful. I think the situation where you're going into a bait for first time that has been baited exclusively by another is maybe asking for issues.
Keeping a bear carcass cold is your first priority in excellent table fare. I shot my 2008 Bear on a 70 degree evening here in Traverse City. Fortunately I have a buddy who had a walk-in cooler and on the way to his cooler I stopped and got three bags of ice from a gas station and stuffed into body cavity. Unlike deer, I don't think aging Bear meat is necessary because I'm making burger, roasts and steaks (for Swiss steak), all of which are used in low temperature fully cooked with moisture meals. Houghton definitely has cooler temperatures so hopefully you can get the hide off and cool the Bear down. Don't try to stuff a bunch of warm fresh Bear meat in a cooler with a little ice, the inner meat won't cool and will spoil.
As for bait shot distance myself and my successful friends keep shot distance less than 15 yards and stand at 12 feet high OR LESS. Keep your shot angle low. Pick your bait site in a spot that works for your convenience in keeping predominant winds in your favor for both entry and sit. Also pick a tree with good cover so you're concealed at lower levels.
Good luck!!
Trenton, Like Ray said, pack ice inside it and get the hide off to help cool it down, my bear from the UP I was able to get into a walk in cooler, and able to keep it cold until I got it back home to process it, I made some burger, but canned most of it, it makes great bbq, and have used the canned meat in homemade soup and stew.
Jason
If you end up with a bear, a cheaper taxidermy bill can be had by doing a shoulder mount which is kinda nice, I think. Also, the taxidermists I've worked with have been ok with making payments. I usually figure out how much I need to pay a month to finish when the mount is ready (usually about a year). I want to warn you though, bear hunting can be addictive but fortunately BHA is there for you. If you find yourself so afflicted, check in to your local Bear Huntaholics Anonymous for help.
Thanks for the advice guys! I'll definitely make sure to keep it cool. Season starts September 9 so theres definitely a possibility for some warmer weather that I'll have to pay attention too. I have never scanned meat before but maybe I'll give that a try. We'll see if I can steal some of mom's canning jars haha. Good to know on the baiting thing, that will really help. Unfortunate school is a priority I guess as much as I wish it wasn't, so not having to go out and alternating the baiting schedule will definitely make things a bit easier. I'll look for a setup that let's me stay fairly low to the ground with a good backdrop as well. I might even sit on the ground. Doug, if I send it to a taxidermist I would probably just go with a shoulder mount like you suggest. I love the 3/4 mounts coming out of the wall but those are pretty pricey.
I see its a fall hunt. I was going to suggest finding someone that traps Beavers. Best bait for Bears.
They will eat just about anything. A buddy that guides has a converted electrical cement mixer he pops popcorn in and mixes in molasses while its spinning. Cheap no name brand dog food, donuts, candy etc. Get some liquid smoke and put it in a spray bottle. Has a strong odor. Spray it on trees around the bait.
I used a thawed out Turkey after a freezer quit on us. Hung it up on a branch out of reach. Bears would come lick the maggots off the ground under it.
Then while I was sitting it one afternoon a 2-3 yr old Boar came in and figured out that the string was tied to the top of a sapling a short distance away. He stood up and bent the tree over and tried to snap at it with his mouth. Took him four or five tries but he did get it. Walked backwards until the line snapped. (Sounded like a .22 shot)
He trotted off a short distance and devoured it. I cringed a bit watching that but wished I had the whole thing on film.
Good luck with your hunt. Bears are fun!
Trenton I'm from up here and hunt them (or help track etc) every year I can. You have had some good advice. I live near Amasa if you need any help, let me know. I have a friend who drew this year (he is also a troll) and should be on my land for his hunt. I may have an extra barrel if you need one. Good luck.
Two of my kids and I drew for the Carney unit this fall, 3rd season. If anyone knows of a guide or someone who would run baits, please let me know. Good Luck to all!! Mark
Thanks for the tips Gun, I bought some liquid smoke from my buddy who got one last year and I plan to use it quite a bit. Along with bacon grease and whatever else smelly stuff i can get my hands on.
Yooper traveller, I'll keep that in mind if I need some help, thanks! I'm not allowed to use barrels on public land as I don't have access to any private land, but I appreciate the offer! I'll just be using heavy logs and stuff to cover my bait.
Good luck Mark!
Quote from: Trenton G. on July 08, 2021, 10:11:10 AM
Thanks for the tips Gun, I bought some liquid smoke from my buddy who got one last year and I plan to use it quite a bit. Along with bacon grease and whatever else smelly stuff i can get my hands on.
Yooper traveller, I'll keep that in mind if I need some help, thanks! I'm not allowed to use barrels on public land as I don't have access to any private land, but I appreciate the offer! I'll just be using heavy logs and stuff to cover my bait.
Good luck Mark!
Thank You T!!
I drew a coveted Baldwin tag in 2019 and used a honey burn and also a bacon grease burn. Both smelled wonderful to me sitting on stand, but didn't yield a single bear sighting. I spent 52-54 hours on stand that week, and never even saw a bear. It was sunny and 86-90 degrees everyday, so I'm sure that came into play. On top of that, the guy I had running baits for me was in there too much I think. We had trail cam pics of at least two bears that I know would have gone over 400lbs for sure, and several smaller ones, but all at 1-4am. That's how it goes, never know the weather, berry or acorn crops, or other guys/dogs, etc... I did have a nice 8-point under me I would have liked to have shot, but season wasn't open yet. Also, saw my first bobcat in 39-seasons hunting Northern MI.
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Quote from: Trenton G. on July 08, 2021, 10:11:10 AM
Thanks for the tips Gun, I bought some liquid smoke from my buddy who got one last year and I plan to use it quite a bit. Along with bacon grease and whatever else smelly stuff i can get my hands on.
Yooper traveller, I'll keep that in mind if I need some help, thanks! I'm not allowed to use barrels on public land as I don't have access to any private land, but I appreciate the offer! I'll just be using heavy logs and stuff to cover my bait.
Good luck Mark!
That's a fine method. You will discover how strong the coons are that way. I took a 400plus pounder as he was rolling s logs.
The first time you walk in to the bait and it looks like a stick of dynamite blew all the logs out you'll know.
Hey guys, another quick question, really for anyone in the northern Michigan/Wisconsin area. I really hate to count my chickens before they're hatched, but I'd just like to be a bit prepared should I need to be. Any recommendations on a good bear taxidermist? I've looked at lots of taxidermy websites and I have seen very few bears that actually look really good. It just seems like the faces always have weird expressions, disproportioned features, etc. Any suggestions within a reasonable distance would be appreciated! Again, I hate to get ahead of myself, I'd just like to have a game plan lined up in case I end up with something decent.
Trenton, I've never been a fan of snarling/growling black bear mounts. They're a secretive, sneaking animal in my experience. My buddy has a half body standing (coming out of the wall) diorama and I have a rug mount. Both have closed mouth configuration and I think they look great. Here's my mount and the same Bear the night I harvested him.
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That's one of mine. Michigan wildlife gallery did that one. Mount Pleasant MI. Honey I don't know of anyone up here that does them well.
A lot of good info here. I've taken two bear with a bow. 48# recurve and a 53# recurve. I used two blade Stos brand broadheads.
My experience was the first bear went about fourty/fifty yards.
yards. The second one, a Pope and Young qualifying bear that was nearly 7 ft square only went about fourty yards. Both bear were shot through the lungs. I heard the death moan from the second one.
I have been within 12 yards of two big bear and probably fifty smaller bear. I have had one climb the tree I was in and one stand up on the ladder and look at me. I think mainly they are more curious than actually coming after you.
The one time I got pretty nervous was when I had a sow with two Cubs come in. She was nasty and very defensive about the Cubs. That is one time where it would be nice to have bear spray with. She attacked any bear that came into the clearing. And I saw about eight that night.
The kicker was after she sent the Cubs in a neighboring tree she went to the bait and ate. When she had her fill of food, she went over to the tree with the Cubs and laid down.
Now, I don't know for sure what would have happened if I climbed down when it was getting dark, but I feel pretty sure I'd have at least been bluff charged. Fortunately a guide came back in to check on me and the sound of the quad scared her and the Cubs away.
So have fun with your hunt! I am hopefully going next spring.
Both of those bears look really good! Thanks for the pictures! I've heard of the wildlife gallery and have seen brochures for their work. It would be a trip to get it down to them but it would probably be worth it to get a good quality mount.
MnFn sounds like some pretty exciting experiences! I would love to have one walk up to the base of the tree, that would be really entertaining as long as that's where he stayed! I've wondered what I would end up doing in a situation like yours with the sow and cubs. With deer I normally just wait them out before climbing down. With a bear I really don't know how long they'd stick around and if is be able to bump them off the site in order to leave. I have a can of bear spray, not sure if I'll carry it or not. Might be something worth thinking about.
Trenton,
Hope the start of your school year is going well. If you get a moment, we'd love to see an update on how things are going.
Quote from: Ray Lyon on September 13, 2021, 08:34:18 AM
Trenton,
Hope the start of your school year is going well. If you get a moment, we'd love to see an update on how things are going.
Hey Ray, I actually shot a bear Saturday afternoon. I will try and get around to typing something up this afternoon/evening and get it posted on here!
I killed one that went 410# a few years ago. I'm not a fan of the open mouth/snarling look so I wanted something more natural. Very pleased with this mount
Trenton that is fantastic!!!! Will love to hear the story and details of what worked for you 👍👍
Here's a quick (or not so quick) update on how this season went. First off thanks to everyone who contributed ideas and offered advice. I utilized a lot of it and it ended up paying off well! Disclaimer, I can not fully count this as a traditional archery kill, but I'll post it anyway. If it needs to be pulled, I understand that.
I began running baits the day after I got up to school, which would have been August 27. I originally had two spots that I was working to keep baited, but one was not getting hit and after a week and a half I stopped baiting it and started at another spot. My first bait site however seemed to be the most active, with a sow and three cubs starting to hit it fairly consistently right away. After a few days a bigger lone bear which I took to be a boar started showing up as well. Another sow with a single cub as well as a smaller lone bear would also show up periodically. Almost all of the activity was during the day which had me excited. It got to be quite a time commitment to bait every day on top of going to class, senior design meetings, and homework, but I did my best to make it work and keep things consistent. Every day after my 11:00 class I would run home, change into my baiting clothes, then drive out and freshen baits. If I hurried I normally would have enough time for lunch before my 2:00 class. All the while bears continued hitting the site consistently during daylight, which gave me high hopes of at least seeing a bear while hunting.
Opening day came and went with a pretty steady parade of bears coming through and hitting the bait site. It was super entertaining watching the sow with cubs as they were feeding and rolling logs out of the way. I also had another smaller lone bear come in a couple of times but it was so small I didn't even consider shooting it. The second day of season I went out again and had the sow and three cubs come back again. They were there for maybe an hour. Later on the sow came back by herself and stayed until well after dark, causing a bit of excitement when I tried to get out of the tree. She bluff charged once and then followed me out the truck popping her jaws and huffing the whole time. She stayed about 25-30 yards back though and never came any closer. The boar I was after didn't come in during either of these first two hunts, although he was there midday while I was in class.
I wasn't able to hunt the third day but the fourth day being Saturday I planned a pretty long day in the tree. After looking at the pictures on my camera the days leading up to season, I noticed that the boar I was after generally came in within an hour or two after I baited. I always made it a point to come in upwind and make a lot of noise when baiting so that the bears would learn that noise usually meant food. I believe that boar got pretty well conditioned to that and would wait until he thought I was gone to come in and feed before the sow and cubs would come clean it up. With that in mind, I decided Saturday I would go bait like I normally do, make a bunch of noise, then drive out and park the truck a ways away and sneak back in. It was in the 70's, and by the time I got to the stand I was sweating like crazy in my camouflage. With it being so warm and sitting partially in the sun, and combined with staying up late to get some assignments done the night before, I started getting tired. I would nod off and take 2 or 3 minute naps, then scan around real quick and go back to sleep. At 12:30 I was doing one of these scans when I noticed a bear walking in about 30 yards away. It took a second for me to register what I was looking at and then I realized that it was the boar I was after. I slowly stood up and got set to shoot. He looked up at me for a second, then continued on to the bait site. When he got there, he laid down with his back towards me offering no shot. By now I was starting to get the nerves a little bit, and the longer he made me stand there and wait the worse they seemed to get. Finally after about 5 minutes a chipmunk ran through the leaves off to my left and he stood up and turned broadside to look.
Now I'd love to be able to say that all that summer practice paid off and I made a perfect shot on this bear, but the fact is that I didn't. I drew back, anchored and shot, and I distinctly remember looking at the entire front end of the bear and not one spot. Left to right was perfect, but I was about 8 inches high and ended up hitting him in the spine. He went down with a snarl and started spinning in circles and snapping. I felt sick and quickly got another arrow nocked as he started crawling off through the brush. There was a lot of blood coming from the wound and I thought that I had hit the artery that runs along the spine. I drew back again when he was at 25 but my elbow hit the tree I was in causing me to short-draw. I should have let down but was so focused on trying to get another one in him that I let it go anyways. Again left to right was perfect but I was about 3 inches over his back. I got my third arrow and looked for one more opening in the thick brush he was now in. There was a hole about a foot in diameter at 40 yards that I knew he was going to go through, and as he approached it I forced myself to draw and focus on what I was doing. When he hit the opening I shot and watched the arrow arc in through the gap and hit him, unfortunately just low enough that it missed his vitals.
By now he wasn't moving very fast at all, and I felt certain that the first arrow was starting to take effect, but I wasn't sure how long that would take or how far he would go before it killed him. I called my roommate and asked if he would bring my rifle out for me. My sister, who also attends Tech, is always asking if she can be involved with tracking when I shoot something, so I called and asked how adventurous she was feeling. She was excited to come out as well. I didn't want anymore than 3 people going in after a potentially wounded bear, and made sure that when they both got there that they understood to stay behind me and go slow.
We got on the track and followed it into the thick brush, going very slowly and scanning ahead carefully. It was easy to follow the broken down brush showing where he had gone, but the blood was less than ideal. The trail zig-zagged back and forth with multiple beds within a 15 yard stretch. I was looking at a scuff mark in the leaves when my roommate said "Uh, Trenton". I looked to my right and the bear was laying tucked under a log on the ground about 15 yards away. At first I thought he was dead, as he didn't move and we had spent the past 15 minutes within 30 yards of him. However, he then slowly raised his head and looked at us. He was right on the verge of dying, and could barely move his head. I'm confident that another few minutes and he would have been dead. However, I didn't feel that it was right to let him lay there any longer than he had to just so that I could claim it as a traditional archery harvest, and I gave him a round in the chest with the rifle to finish him.
It wasn't how I wanted it to end, and it's unfortunate that that's how it ended up, but I'm still extremely grateful that we were able to find him and finish him off as quickly as possible. All told he only made it about 60 yards, and actually ended up circling back to only about 40 yards from my stand. The brush was so thick I couldn't see what he was doing.
He's not a big bear. When getting him registered I was told between 150 and 160 pounds. However I'm not complaining at all as I never expected to be successful during a first time bear hunt. The freezer is full and I'm looking forward to enjoying bear steaks and roasts throughout the winter.
Again thanks to everyone who contributed to this thread! I read and tried to utilize every little bit of information that was shared on here.
I used my Stillwater Aberdeen recurve, 57@29. GT 500's with a 200 grain 3 blade VPA. Arrow weight was around 525 grains.
Not sure why that picture at the end is upside down...
Photoshoot with the small bear opening day
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Congratulations Trenton. Enjoy your bear!
CONGRATS!! Great story!!
CONGRATULATIONS, Trenton!!!!! :clapper: :clapper: :archer: :clapper: :clapper:
Don't feel bad, even Fred Bear had a few that had to be put down with a rifle.
Thanks guys!
There's nothing to be ashamed of or feel bad about for doing the ethical thing finishing him off with a rifle. Too many people get caught up in the idea that they have to finish it with their trad bow, meanwhile, it's the animal that suffers. Great job and it sounds like you have a promising future of being a quality hunter ahead of you.
Yeah it definitely wasn't worth letting him lay there anymore. This was the first big game animal that my sister has seen get killed. I felt pretty bad that that was her first introduction to it. Not a very good example but she seemed to understand what was going on.
Great story, Trenton. Don't feel bad about the ending. Next time will work out better.
Congrats on a nice bear Trenton!
Congrats Trenton. Thanks for the story, glad you made time to hunt
Congratulations Trenton. Hunting bear can be hard work, if you do everything yourself can't it?
Gary
Yes, its definitely a lot of work! I really enjoyed the whole process though. It was nice having an excuse to go to the woods for a bit every day!
Congrats!!