Bear Season @ the HellBear

[Markus]

Only 12 days until opener.

We've been working hard in the woods and have established 5 sites this year. It's crazy, but despite the hunting pressure we put on the bears, we have more bears this year then any year past. Just a great mix of bears of all sizes.



We've had a big bear we call "ScarAss" coming to our sites for years. We've always wanted to take him but have never even laid eyes on him. He usually dissapears just as the season opens.



Whats cool is....we recently learned he is a major roamer. A good buddy of mine has his bear site 21km's from mine and has recently been getting pics of this bear too. We couldnt believe it and then we got pics of another bear with a distinguished mark. Hard to believe they travel so far. He makes the 42km round trip twice a week.

We're looking forward to opener and we'll update ya's with any success.

[Hammer]

Wow that is a heck of a trip.
I knew they traveled but that's a good distance.
Great pictures.
Good luck this year guys.

[Troutskiii]

Good luck with the hunt and very interesting the distance that bear is travelling, I wasn't aware they travelled so far at all.

[Markus]

Im having a hard time wrapping my head around it myself, but the pics are telling the story.

Here's 2 comparison pics of 2 bears from my site and my buddy waynes site...21kms apart.



We're not sure what the object is around the one bears neck. I've been in touch with my buddy at the dnr and there's no collared bears presently. So it's an old snare, plastic bag rope...or something. We're hoping for some day pictures of this bear so we can get a closer look.

[CBB]

Real nice bear and cool the one with the tracking collar. Best of luck on the hunt

[cgates]

Very cool. I cant wait for hunting season. the one bear with the thing around its neck must be strong because you'd think it would rip it off?

[Markus]

We're on the board with our first bear in the cooler.

My camp partner and good buddy Tim got things rolling for us last night. We headed into one of our favorite sites yesterday afternoon shortly after 2pm. I was joining him to try and video his hunt so we first needed to hang a second stand with the other one. We quietly got it up and settled in for the afternoon hunt. Around 5pm we had a small bear come in. He then left and a second bear came in...just slightly larger then the first one...and then the 1st small guy returned as well. Then in a flash, they both scattered out of the area and we figured something a little larger was moving in. I caught a glimpse of a good bear passing behind some cover and whispered to Tim that a big bear was moving in. He thought I was joking. lol Then he saw him approaching from behind the barrel. His gun was already up and the instant he had a broadside shot....the Tikka chirped.

We could see him hobble back the way he came and then heard a short quiet death moan....always a good sign. After about 25mins, we decided to climb down and pick up the trail. He only went about 20 yards and piled up. Tim hit him with a perfect double lung placement.



Even tough it was a short drag, it was still a bit of a struggle, but we had him loaded up and were off to the cleaning room to put him in the cooler. We had some good friends show up to help with the muscle work and enjoyed a good post hunt evening with a few drinks and smiles. Great hunt to kick off our 2016 season.

[smitty55]

Way to go guys. Congrats on a nice bear. They sure are a ton of work once they're down, that's for sure. Having available help is paramount if the bear is any decent size.
Did you get a weight? I hope you were filming, it would be nice to see a video.

Cheers

[Markus]

Took me a bit to figure out how to get the video from my phone uploaded. Here's a short clip of the hunt. Sorry I jumped. lol I wasnt expecting him to fire so quick. I thought he was going to let him come around front first.

[RJ]

I know someone who is excited...

Nice Bear for Timmy!

RJ

[CBB]

Congrats on a nice bear

[Hammer]

Congratulations guys.
Looks like a good size , beautiful Bear.
Heck of a paw on it.

[Markus]

I finished up Timmy's bear skull last night. Scored 19.25IN's.



I had lunch at the camp today and added it to the shelf. Looking forward to adding one myself soon.



Opening day for me is this monday the 12th.

[Markus]

We put another bear in the meat locker last night.

Our season has been open for 2 days now. First night, I passed on 5 bears and Roger didnt see anything. Last night, I didnt see anything, but roger had a tubby beer we have on the hit list come in at last light. Roger hunts with a traditional bow, so he wanted to get this bear inside 12 yards to insure a solid shot placement.

We figure this bear is a cranky one, because it's the only one at this site. It empties an entire 70gal barrel itself every 2nd night. And it's fat. lol

Last shooting time was 8pm last night and Roger saw it coming at 7:45. He said watching that bear wobble its way up the creek is engraved in his brain. lol At 7:50 it was broadside at the barrel and Roger let one of his giant arrows fly from the widow maker. He texted me to let m know he had a good hit and I was on my way to meet him. He had already blood trailed him and recovered him 75 yards away when i got there. We called in my uncle and a friend and went to work getting "her" out. Turns out its a giant dry sow....we have never seen a sow this size.



Just passed midnight we finally had her out, skun, and hug in the cooler. Great night.

[Markus]

Punched my bear tag tonight. I wasnt holding out for a giant. I told myself i'd be happy with anything 200lb'ish if i got an opportunity.

Around 630pm, a nice bear dropped over the bank and started down to the barrel. I sized him up and decided this was one i'd like. He turned broadside and i squeezed a round off....he darted off. No death moan. I texted the crew to let them know i took a crack at one and was gonna give it time. Two of my buds teamed up and headed straight down.

I gave it 20 minutes and went over to look for blood. None. Took a few steps in the direction he went...still no blood. Didnt need it...there he was. Went 12 yards. The boys showed up and we put him in the sled and were off to the cleaning room. Easy recovery, easy drag. We were thankfull for that because the skies opened up into a downpur shortly after we reached the trucks.

Fun night....i couldnt thank the boys enough for their help....having good buds there assisting makes the experiece 10x better!



Here's a short clip of the bear as he came into the site.