Bear Season 2015

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Markus
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Bear Season 2015

Post by Markus »

I saw my first bear track on a trail near the camp about 2 weeks ago and it really got the blood pumping. I think bear hunting has become my favorite hunt of the year.

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I had to do a bit of scouting this week at my 2 regular sites. I dont like to start baiting too early because it just uses up too much bait and come sept, bait is hard to come by. I dropped 1 bucket of compost at both sites and sprayed them down with some caramel scent. I stopped by both of them today, the first hasnt had any customers yet, but it's just a matter of time...this is our favorite site.

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I dumped another bucket of compost, sprayed it down again and headed to the other site. I didnt have a cam at the second site, but I saw a good sign on the trail leading into it. lol

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I had a spare cam with me, so I have it cam'd up now. The bear had licked up the compost, so I dumped a fresh bucket and sprayed it down too. I've got 1 more site to get set up. My daughter ants her own site and it's always good to have a 3rd spot in case you need to make adjustments in season.

We've been gathering bait steady. It's the most important part of the whole process. We go through a 60gal barrel every 2 nights per site once it starts. I grabbed 5 more boxes of donuts today to add to the stock pile. We'll do our big bread run this week and get it all in the freezer.

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We'll star adding better bait closer to the end of the month and the about the first week of Aug, we'll start filling the bait sites with all kinds of treats for 5 or 6 weeks until opener. Now that I know we have a bear coming, I'll dump some fryer grease next trip in as well. Cant wait to see what we hav for bears this year.
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Re: Bear Season 2015

Post by Wallyboss »

Lot's of work to put in to have a successful hunt.
When hell freezes over, I'll be there icefishing!!!

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Please feel free to stand in front of them!!!

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Re: Bear Season 2015

Post by RJ »

Really going to try to get Birdee down for a hunt with ya!

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Markus
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Re: Bear Season 2015

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I'd love that RJ. The 3rd (new) site we're adding this year is going to be killer. We set up in this spot for deer 2 seasons ago and we had to abandon it because it got over run with bears. I'm expecting great things from it.
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Lvace
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Re: Bear Season 2015

Post by Lvace »

Wow never thought all this work went to get a successful hunt!! Great post, I learn a lot !!! Thank you!
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Doug
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Re: Bear Season 2015

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Do you get the donuts and baked goods for free? I was using butcher scraps that I got for free, but they do get stinky......................and stinky is OK at the bait sites but not so OK in the house. Donuts would be a nice alternative............

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Re: Bear Season 2015

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The donuts are hard to come by. most Tim Hortons have a policy about their waste and dont allow others to take it, but if you know a manager or 2, they dont mind helping you out. Currently I'm picking up 1 box of donuts per day at no cost.

Today we made our "bread" run into the local bread factory outlet. They sell their seconds to us. We picked up a 1000 loaves of bread for $60 and it should be enough for the season. We box it all in banana boxes and freeze it and it all fit into 52 boxes once we got it home and packed up.

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We could use all the meat scraps and fish we wanted, but we've found it's the very last thing they want. Plus, it's very unpleasant to hunt a sight the stinks of rotten fish and meat. I usually hang 1 beaver with castor intact at each site...they go nuts over beaver. We string em up high to get a few pictures.

I'm going to run some bread and fryer grease into the 2 sites we have active tomorrow and we're looking at setting up our new 3rd site on Wednesday.
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Doug
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Re: Bear Season 2015

Post by Doug »

You must have one serious pile of freezer space!!!!! Like a walk-in maybe?

Yes I agree, hunting over stinky baits is sometimes unpleasant, but having the wind in your face when you are looking at a bait site is a positive thing when a bear comes in.

Good luck with the blackies!

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Re: Bear Season 2015

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Yes Doug, we use a walk in. We're lucky to have access to one. We stock pile our bait early so we're not competing with others for it later on when it's sparse.

I took a bit of bread and grease into the 2 sites today and we have bear action at both already. Here's an overlay to help judge size...he was the best of them so so far.

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I put a good soaking of fryer grease on the ground so they can track it out onto their trails and get the message out to their friends.
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banjo
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Re: Bear Season 2015

Post by banjo »

Holy... it took me two re-reads to notice the word OVERLAY. I thought you were nuts feeding a bear by hand ... :shock: :lol:
That is cool for comparison for sure. I don't do the bear hunt here mainly due to not having the property. It certainly adds to the hunt to be able to make all the setups and hunt them your self. I see on TV they do a honey burn, ever try doing that closer to the actual season? There must be bee keepers looking to get rid of honey for cheap, or for bear steaks :)
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Re: Bear Season 2015

Post by Fishoholic »

It's really cool watching you set up all your different hunts throughout the year on here. Thanks for sharing I really enjoy these posts!
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Re: Bear Season 2015

Post by Supernova224 »

I'll second that, always enjoy reading your reports Markus.
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smitty55
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Re: Bear Season 2015

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Markus wrote:We could use all the meat scraps and fish we wanted, but we've found it's the very last thing they want. Plus, it's very unpleasant to hunt a sight the stinks of rotten fish and meat.
Couldn't agree more Markus, but I'm a bit surprised that as a trapper you haven't tried a beaver carcass as a special treat. For the most part the only time I use meat is for my call bait when first setting up a site. Once bears get used to sweets and grease I find they aren't too interested in meat unless its fairly fresh. Saying that, I had good luck using goose carcasses last year. They disappeared pretty quick at two sites last year but not the year before. Unfortunately, I only had a sow and three cubs at my bait last year and she kept all others away for the most part. Wrecked my year, as I wasn't about to shoot her, but got lots of fun pics and vids.
Lots of folks do use meat, but they are mostly ones in remote areas who don't have access to all the goodies, so they don't have much choice, besides paying big dollars for dog food and grains, which can add up pretty quick at an active bait. A good "shaker barrel" works great to keep them around for long periods and makes the bait last for days or even a week sometimes, as it's just a small square 3" hole. Using them in conjunction with other baits you can go longer between refills if you don't have the time to visit often.
Wallyboss wrote:Lot's of work to put in to have a successful hunt.
You got that right. It sure can be. Between rounding up bait, hauling it into sites regularly for months, setting up stands and sites, loading and offloading trucks and quads, there is also a lot of time to put in. And expensive too, depending on what you have access to. Even though I had access to free bakery waste products from a grocery store or three at times, I still spend good coin on vanilla, jello powder, syrups sometimes, marshmallows, anise oil, dog food, popcorn, bags of grain (usually whole corn, but sometimes cob), and then there's the gas involved. One year I spent good dollars on making up three gallon sized bear suckers that I thought would work great but turned out to be a flop. Then there are loads of super concentrated bears scents you can buy as well

Then when you get a bear down, you better have some helping hands, specially if it's big, and doesn't drop close to a trail. It can be a huge pile of work. If I recall, Markus got a 200lb one a few years back and it was all he could do to manage that one on his own, and it dropped in a great spot. It's almost like handling a big blob of jelly. You bend over to grab a big handful of fur and when you stand upright the damned bear is still on the ground lol. I have a car hood rigged up to use a a sled that works well once you get the critter strapped on tight.
Doug wrote:Yes I agree, hunting over stinky baits is sometimes unpleasant, but having the wind in your face when you are looking at a bait site is a positive thing when a bear comes in.
You're right there Doug, you always strive to set up your bait downwind, but quite often the big lads will always try and circle downwind before coming in to the bait anyway, which is why, as you know, it's always good to try and have some barrier behind you to prevent that, like a cliff or swamp or even an open area that they avoid if they can. But they can get used to your scent if you're the only one baiting it. I've had bears go nocturnal when a strange scent was introduced.
Doug, I would start hitting up any grocery stores in your area and ask them if you could takes their waste bakery products off their hands, as it costs them to dispose of it. But tell them it's for a pig farmer you're helping out, as you'll have far less chance of being rejected for being a bear hunter. I leave a new plastic full size garbage can in the back room of my main store, with a good supply of quality garbage bags and ties. I use a marker on the lid to label it "waste bakery" and also my name and number on it. I check every couple of days anyway, but sometimes I'll get a call saying it's full. Works well, but without cooling some stuff gets moldy after a while and then it's totally useless. I had three stores come through real good around the same time one season and I was giving it away, and that was with 3 baits. That's how I met HooknShoot from this site. Good lad there.
banjo wrote: I don't do the bear hunt here mainly due to not having the property. It certainly adds to the hunt to be able to make all the setups and hunt them your self.
Banjo, there's nothing like bear hunting, man. It's a totally different rush than deer hunting. Hard to describe, much more intense. Plus the bear population is quite healthy, and the meat is excellent, there's many a hunter who will say it's the best.
If you have a buddy or two that wanted to try bear hunting too, I know of a hundred acre property with a nice house/camp sitting empty. It belongs to Jimmy1. http://www.fish-hawk.net/viewtopic.php?f=84&t=48107 From what I gather, it would be the perfect setup. I know for a fact that there is a history of bears there, as the tenants had some probs a few years back and then shot one the next year. If you were serious about it I'd have no problem helping out to shorten your learning curve. I wouldn't mind visiting the place anyway. :) Bear hunt starts in September, so it doesn't have to interfere with the deer rifle hunt.
Markus wrote:Yes Doug, we use a walk in. We're lucky to have access to one. We stock pile our bait early so we're not competing with others for it later on when it's sparse.
Markus you guys really have it made out there at the Hell Bear. It's been a pile of "work", and quite satisfying I'm sure, but it's all come together real well for you, your family, and the hunt gang. When I found you on Bears East I had no idea you were a member here until you posted pics of RJ visiting the camp.
I too enjoy seeing your hunting reports here now, as there haven't really ever been many on FH over the years. Specially bear related. Neat to see some non hunters showing interest too.
Hey, how do you find the chains work? Are they strictly for the birds? :wink:
I figure you're probably aware of the shaker barrel concept Markus, and I can highly recommend it as a great tool to add to your bear baiting arsenal. It's all upside, I really can't think of a downside to it. It even rings the dinner bell if you want. :) Couple of different bait options you can use as well. Any questions feel free to ask.
Not sure if I posted this here before, but here's an example. I had a better vid but I can't find it

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Good luck this year. I'm back at school full time this year so there will be no bear season for me, so keep this thread going. Hopefully I'll find a bit of time for deer bow hunt
RJ wrote:Really going to try to get Birdee down for a hunt with ya!
Rob if you can manage that I'm sure Birdee will love it. Then she'll be really hooked. Seeing as you already have bears in your back forty I could also see a bait site set up there in the future hehe. Once you try bear sausages you'll be encouraging her, lol.


Cheers
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Markus
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Re: Bear Season 2015

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Smitty, we use the shaker barrels and you can see them in the pictures. We use beer kegs....drill some holes and fill them with grain. We dont have it set up yet...later on we'll fill them.

We wanted to get our 3rd site set up last week. This is a new site in a new area and we have high hopes for it. We have a back up site, but we like to have a back up for the back up. lol We lugged a barrel and some bait into this spot. It's located along a creek and is a hardwood clump thats in the center of a big mature spruce woods. The forest floor is all moss here. We like our barrels slightly raised and we angle the front barrel door in a direction so we'll have the bear approach broadside. Once strapped on, we added some bait, grease and sent.

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We hung a cam as well and we're heading back tomorrow to see if there's been any customers. We'll take a double seater adderstand back to this site once we have enough action to commit to hunting it. I'm really hoping it pays off, hands down this spot has the nicest view. With the moss ground and trickling creek...the bears will just appear.

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Hopefully have an update tomorrow.
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Re: Bear Season 2015

Post by Markus »

We made it into our 3 bear sites yesterday and refreshed all the scents and re-baited the barrels. Our 2 traditional sites are both seeing bear some small bear action, but the new site hasnt had a hit yet.

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We're hoping something finds the new site this week.

The rest of the day was spent working on 2 deer sites. Both these sites needed the stands relocated and pushed back, so we went to work with a chainsaw and a spacing saw and both are ready for the early sept season now.

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After that was done, we headed for the camp to cut up some hardwood and have a late lunch. Deer kabobs on the bbq hit the spot. Tim whipped up some sweet potato hash while i grilled them up.

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Next on the agenda is to get a few blinds and stands set up and secured.
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