I loved him like a brother
Oregon double take
PreSeason Scouting in Appalachia
Bear Fat lye soap
The bear hunting authority for 21 years
Grizzly with a .22 caliber How Bella Twin killed a world record
Clay Newcomb’s
New Podcast
May/June 2021 US $5.95 CA $7.95
Ma y/J une
202 1
two hound bear pack
May/June 2021 Volume 22 - Issue 3
Magazine
Cover photo by Shutterstock
by Tim Fowler
A Clear-Headed Woman with a Rabbit Gun
by Matt Taylor
10
I Loved Him Like a Brother
16
By John Baugus
Off Season Scouting in the Appalachians
24
Use of Leashed Tracking Dogs
By Danny Boppe
Two Hound Bear Pack
By Sami Jo Endicott
28
by Christie Holmes
About a Bear Hunt
Double Take
32
by Steve Fielder
42
By Kolby Morehead
4-Ingredient Bear Fat Lye Soap
By Timothy Fowler
Bear River Tazz
44
A Peek in my Pack
38
54
Columns
Cuddeback Trail Camera Contest Winner Win a Cuddeback Camera!
56
Sportsman’s Alliance by Brian Lynn - Huntervationist
58 Bowhunting Bears by Bernie Barringer - Bear Guru
60 Western Bear Hunting
“Countryside Stroll” John St Evola New Jersey
To enter, submit a unique Cuddeback photo to editor@bear-hunting.com or post to our Facebook page Bear Hunting Magazine
by Brian Strickland - Western Hunter
62
Bruin Desinations -
64
Fleshing it Out -
by Al Raychard - Bear Hunting Veteran by Timothy Fowler - Renaissance Man
66 In Hot Pursuit - Guest
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Bear Hunting
5
In 1953, Bella Twin killed a world record grizzly with her Cooey Act #1 .22. The best weapon you possess is your wits and clear-headed thinking.
10 Bear Hunting
May/June 2021
A Clear-Headed
Woman with a
Rabbit Gun By Timothy Fowler
@timothydfowler
B
ella Twin was a calm, quiet, clear-headed Cree woman with a trap line. May 10, 1957, she killed a massive grizzly bear with her Cooey Ace #1 .22. That was near Slave Lake, Alberta, and the bear Twin killed turned out to be a world record that stood for a good long time. That was seven years before my dad held me for the first time, a five-foot-nothing woman who lived on the land squeezed the trigger on her single-shot rabbit gun and put a .22 rimfire round through the eye of a grizzly bear at close distance. The bear dropped dead, but because Twin knew what she was up against–– put seven more rounds into the bear skull––seven insurance shots. Smart lady. There has been a lot of speculation over the intervening
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Roland Eben-Ebenau and Larry Loyie (Grandson of Bella Twin) pose with a photo of Bella Twin (Auger) some years ago. She killed a world record grizzly with a .22. Photo Courtesy of Constance Brissenden.
Bear Hunting 11
I Loved Him
Like a Brother A deep appreciation for the ellusive black bear in the mountains of Arkansas. By Matthew Taylor
B ear hunting ain’t easy! In fact, the possibility of even seeing a black bear in the wild is absurdly rare.
I am an Arkansas resident, a passionate hunter, and an outdoor enthusiast. I spend most of my hunting time pursuing whitetail deer, turkey, or squirrel, and occasionally enjoy a raccoon hunt. Hunting is a big part of life for me and my family. My sons (Jaxon, 17 and Weston, 14) are pretty good, dedicated hunters. My oldest daughter (June, 6) has spent countless hours as my hunting sidekick in the woods and my wife (Melissa) and youngest daughter (Kate, 3) help process, cook, and consume our harvests. Despite living in bear country and spending nearly three decades hunting the rolling, rough mountains of western Arkansas, bears have mostly eluded me. It wasn’t until the fall of 2020 that I experienced my first “real” bear hunt. Let me quickly define the use of the word “real” in that last sentence. Bears are always on my mind when I’m in the woods, but I wouldn’t define any hunt that I’ve ever had as a bear hunt. When I’m scouting 16 Bear Hunting
places to deer hunt in my beloved Ouachita Mountains, I look for deer sign and incorporate those observations in my final stand selections, but what I’m really looking for and am hoping to find are overturned rocks or bear scat. And while I’m on the deer stand, I often pass the time wishing for a bear to emerge from the brush, hoping to catch a glimpse of black fur approaching from over the ridge. Though the majestic bear never reveals himself, he knows exactly where I am. He smelled me the minute I got out of the truck. He is incredible at utilizing his senses to avoid danger and has earned my highest respect. In his wild setting, he is just so much better at evading me than I am at pursuing him. I’ve only seen two bears in my 28 years of hunting the Ouachita Mountains. It is not due to a shortage of bears here. In fact, they are thriving. I see their sign. I catch them on trail cameras. They are just so much better than me. My first experience with a bear occurred in the fall of 2005 when my long-time hunting partner and friend Russell and I were hunting the muzzleloader deer season opener in the Ouachita National Forest. We May/June 2021
A beautiful scene in the Ouachita Mountains of Arkansas provided a fantastic backdrop for a bear hunt over bait. Below: hauling bait into a remote bait site was key to killing this bear.
were hunting independently at that time, fixated on a whitetail buck. Neither of us were thinking anything about bears, but that morning, as luck or fate would have it, we both chanced upon a bear and took advantage of the opportunity. What are the odds? Both of us seeing our first bear simultaneously and taking the majestic beasts. I don’t want to get too far off track here, but this is one of the most beautiful parts of the hunting experience, the shared adventures and stories with friends with a mutual passion. Following that experience in 2005, I didn’t see another bear for another 15 years! Here’s the story of that encounter. On a Friday morning during archery season in the fall of 2020, I was sitting in my office when I received a text from Clay Newcomb: “Wanna go bear hunting over bait with me?...leaving at 11 a.m.” I replied with something like “Man, I’m swamped at work. I’ll be there!” I have never made an attempt to bait any animal but was very familiar with this tactic for
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Bear Hunting 17
Early April found me slipping quietly along
the top of a hardwood ridge looking and listening for any sign of wild turkeys. At an elevation of
3000 feet, some of the trees had small green buds preparing to burst with color, but many of the larger oaks still looked as dormant as they did in the dead of winter. As I paused to lean against a large white oak tree I noticed multiple oak limbs covered with shriveled brown leaves strewn about the ground around me. Gazing skyward I found the middle and upper canopy of the tree to be a tattered collection of twisted, brown, leaf covered limbs dangling from their perch 60 feet above me. Although it had been eight months since a bear had climbed and fed in this oak, the sign was still as evident as if it had been made yesterday. While there is no substitute for in-season scouting, paying attention to the sign that is visible year-round can provide lots of useful information which an attentive hunter can
take advantage of in the fall. With my attention now focused skyward, I noticed another White Oak just 20 yards away in the same condition. And just like that I had forgotten completely about turkeys. For as I continued to ease my way down the lead (ridgeline) I would count over 15 white oaks with upper canopy’s demolished by bears last fall. Based on the destruction, it was clear that one or more bears had spent a considerable amount of time in this small area. For a couple of weeks in late August and early September the bears of the Southern Appalachian mountains will climb 60 to 70 feet into the upper canopy to attain the coveted white oak acorns that have ripened to the point of being palatable, yet not matured to the point of releasing to the ground. After climbing, they will chew and twist the acorn heavy limbs snapping many of them as they devour the carbohydrate-rich acorns. Many of the limbs will fall
Off-Season Scouting in the Appalachians
24 Bear Hunting
May/June 2021
to the ground below, while an equal number will dangle from the treetops for many months afterwards, long after the season is over and the woods have grown silent. There are many variables that impact acorn production, and while you can’t count on the same tree bearing mast every year, you can usually count on the fact that bears are creatures of habit. While it’s impossible at this point in the year to know for certain if these trees will produce acorns in the coming fall, it is a safe bet to assume that the bears will return to this location the next time there are acorns to be had. Winter seems to last forever at the high elevations, with many of the new green buds not even leafing out until May. Once the green-up gets going strong, it’s fun to spend an evening watching over a green clover plot on one of the local wildlife management areas to get an inventory of the bears in the area. Bears seem to be very aware of the hunting season calendar, and during late spring and summer they can be observed feeding four hours in some of the wildlife openings
Expert tips and a timeline for what to look for in the Eastern Deciduous Forest. Get started now to find where bears want to be this fall. By John Baugus
Hunting bears in the East without bait or hounds is a great challenge. The author gives some great information on how he scouts for bears in the off season. Above: The author stands next to a snapped sappling in the spring. Boars do this during the rut to display dominance, mark territory and disperse scent.
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Bear Hunting 25
Understanding animal fat soaps by kolby Morehead
My grandmother always said, “cleanliness is next to Godliness.” It’s a fun saying that simply communicated the importance of being clean. Throughout the Bible you will find many instances of people bathing and how valuable fragrances and perfumes were back then so maybe she was on to something. Being clean and smelling good has been valued throughout time. Tallow (animal fat) based soaps have been around as long history has been recorded. Originally used for cleaning clothes, it eventually became something that we found fitting to use on ourselves. The image of rubbing animal fat on our bodies doesn’t seem that inviting and would be greasy which is why we combine lye with bear fat to take it through saponification. Saponification is the reaction that turns fat into a fatty acid salt known as sodium tallowate that is odorless (or has a very faint fatty smell to it.) Sodium tallowate cleans your skin and hair by helping water mix with dirt and oils so you can easily wash them away. Lard soap is more compatible with the cells on our skin. Our skin is largely composed of saturated fats just like that found in the fat we render down. This can help our skin dry out less than using plant-based soaps which are monounsaturated fats. The resulting bar of soap will typically have a good hardness, making it longer lasting. They are also known for creating a good lather when mixed with water.
38 Bear Hunting
May/June 2021
4-ingredient
bear fat lye soap Photos & Article by Kolby Morehead @kolby_morehead
Supplies: 1. Bear Grease (rendered bear fat) 2. 100% Lye (sodium hydroxide) 3. Water 4. Essential oil scent
Directions
1) Figure weight of the bear grease and input the weight into this calculator http://soapcalc.net/. 2) Put the suggested amount of cool water from your recipe calculation in a non-aluminum container and add the suggested amount of lye and stir. It will become very hot and may even steam. It will appear cloudy initially, stir until it becomes clear and let sit 10
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minutes once clear. (do this outside) 3) Make sure the bear grease is at 100 degrees Fahrenheit and add the water lye mixture. 4) Use a mixer of some sort (even a paint mixer on a drill) and mix the components together until it gets very thick and achieves trace (You can see where your mixer has been). 5) Add whatever scents you would like to the mixture 6) Pour into molds (can be anything lined with wax paper or actual silicone molds). 7) Cover the top of the mold with wax paper and wrap in a towel (you want it to cool slowly) for 24 hrs. 8) Remove from mold and cut into desired bar sizes. 9) Keep at room temperature for roughly four weeks to cure.
Bear Hunting 39