2023 - Issue 6 - November/December

French Canadian Black B A Bait to Remember

an ozark baiting experience

Charged by a grizzly

Black Bear Reproduction

717 lb bruin

The bear hunting authority for 23 years

Giant Bears

& How to Hunt Them

Hound Dogs and Black Bears

No v/D ec

202 3

Third Time’s The charm

Legendary Bear Hounds Part 45

www.bear-hunting.com

Bear Hunting

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Nov/Dec 2023 Volume 24 - Issue 6 Cover photo by Carolina Psalms

By Josh Kirchner

3rd Time’s the Charm

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By Kolby Morehead A Bait to Remember | An Ozark Baiting Experience

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By Dan Parrott

Bear of a Lifetime!

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Use of Leashed Tracking Dogs

By Dawson Smith

In Memory of Gary C. Colvin

By the Skin of my Teeth

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By Timothy D. Fowler Recipe: Bear Confit Sandwich

Hound Dogs & Black Bears

By Stephen F. Fielder

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By Bernie Barringer

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By Al Raychard

46

Giants

Legendary Bear Hound: Part 52 Little Buck | The Hound That Rode Bears

Destinations: Massachusetts

Columns 46 Bowhunting Bears

Bear Hunting Magazine Trail Camera Contest Winner Win a Moultrie Mobile Camera!

by Bernie Barringer - Bear Guru

Class in session

48 Blood, Sweat, & Bears

-New York-

by Douglas Boze - Bear Dude

50 Black Bear Biology

by Dr. Jenn Ballard - Animal Doc

52 Western Bear Hunting

by Jana Waller - Western Hunter

54 Bruin Desinations

by Al Raychard - Bear Hunting Veteran

Submitted by: Frank Spartano

To enter, submit a unique trail camera photo to info@bear-hunting.com or post to our Facebook page: Bear Hunting Magazine

56 Sacred Pursuit

by TL Jones - Hound Pro

58 In Hot Pursuit

by Barry ‘Bear’ Siragusa - Hound Dude

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54

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Bear Hunting

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Bear Grease

Kolby got one of his target bears on opening day in Arkansas this year. You can read about the hunt on page 16.

The Editor’s Note

Kolby Morehead

@kolby_morehead

This year I set out to pursue bears in as many different methods as I could. May found me in Manitoba hunting over bait with an outfitter. In August, I was in Oregon with good friends chasing good ‘ol Smokey on a spot’n’stalk hunt. In September I killed a bear over a bait I setup here in Arkansas. The following week, I was in Maine trying to foot snare a bear while congruently hunting with hounds with Great Northern Outfitters.. I’m a bear drive shy of trying all the methods in the same year.

While not all pursuits were successful they all had one thing in common. Every hunt required a lot prep, effort, perseverance, and understanding. I walked away with a deep appreciation for each method of hunt. Each method comes with its own set of challenges when trying to target a mature bear. It’s by the sweat of their brow, the blood of their knuckles, and the testing of their will that any bear hunter finds their quarry, period.

It’s time to put away childish comparisons in bear hunting. Focus on the way you want to pursue bears and give the upmost support to all other hunters in their pursuits. If you want to keep chasing Ursus, you better get on board and give all hunters a good name. This is a soap box we’re all going to have to stay on until all hunters support each other.

On a side note, Bear Hunting Magazine’s own Caleb Mashburn (below) killed his first bear! If you’ve called the office or sent in an email it’s more than likely that Caleb is the guy you dealt with.

We wanna congratulate him!

I’m excited for the future of our sport and look forward to next year’s pursuits of the coolest critter in North America. I want to wish you all a Happy Thanksgiving, a Merry Christmas, and a Hopeful New Year! Until next year my friends!

Kolby hunted with Dan Wagner (left) of ‘Great Northern Outfitters’ in Maine.

Fellow hunter Tom Algozzine got this heavy bear!

BHM’s own Caleb Mashburn (right) killed his first ever bear opening weekend!

SUBSCRIPTIONS: 1-Year (6 issues) subscription rate is $37.00 for U.S. address, $54.00* for Canadian address (in U.S. funds). 2-Year (12 issues) subscription rate is $57.00 for U.S. address, $89.00* for Canadian address (in U.S. funds). (*rate is higher to cover extra postage) For more information, call us at: 479-839-4335, write to us at: Bear Hunting Magazine, P.O. Box 168, West Fork, Arkansas or E-mail us at: info@bear-hunting.com Copyright © 2015 Bear Hunting. All rights reserved. Articles, news items, advertisements or other print media do not necessarily reflect the views of the publisher. Bear Tracks Media, LLC is not responsible for injury/loss during the implementation of content. Bear hunting is a potentially hazardous activity and people should take extreme caution when hunting.

Bear Hunting (ISSN 1553-2488 and USPS 019-451) is published bi-monthly by Bear Tracks Media, LLC, 1506 N Cannondale Dr., Fayetteville,AR 72704. Periodicals Postage Paid at West Fork, AR and additional mailing offices.

POSTMASTER: Send address changes (form 3579) to Bear Hunting, P.O. Box 168, West Fork, AR 72774.

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Third Time’s The Charm

by Josh Kirchner

Idaho Backcountry Bear Hunting

For 18 hours, I drove solo in the truck. I can still feel the butterflies after all this time. Backpack hunting for black bears in Idaho was something I had wanted to do for years, and it was finally happening. Nervousness, excitement, and curiosity all flowed through my veins. What an adventure it turned out to be, too: eight days in the mountains looking for bears with basically just my own thoughts for company. I ended up missing a great bear on that trip, but left with a smile on my face, eager for the next year. That was three years ago in 2021.

The following year, in 2022, I was accompanied by a good friend. We packed in for eight days and experienced all manner of weather, most of which kept us tent bound.

Still, we were able to find bears every day and, in the end, I unfortunately made a bad shot. It resulted in a fruitless blood trail and a sick stomach. Not the high note I was hoping to leave on, but a driving force to get better for 2023.

Those memories are ones I cherish. They kept me company during the 18-hour pull I was currently making for the 2023 spring bear season. Each of them was filled with lessons that have hardened my mind for the better. And despite the empty cooler coming home in the past, they made me a better bear hunter. Every gas station I passed and every cup of coffee I sipped, I hoped that the third time would be the charm and I’d finally lay my hands on an Idaho black bear.

Packing In Solo hunting is a love of mine, but I won’t lie, it’s nice having someone along for the ride—someone who can share the experience of calling a small piece of civilization in a wild world “home” for a short time. My buddy, Dillon Flint, joined me at the trailhead as we loaded our backpacks for eight days in the backcountry. I had a rifle in tow and Dillon had a camera. Both of us have a potent love for backpack hunting as well as bear hunting. Needless to say, we were pretty dang excited. All that separated us from camp was about six miles and 2500 ft of elevation gain.

The weather was the hottest it had ever been in the few years I had done this hunt. The hike along the river felt more like August bear hunting in Arizona than Idaho bear hunting in May. It was muggy, it was hot, and both of us were feeling it. I’ve never felt like I was gonna Ralph before on a hike, but this one nearly had me there. After doing the brunt of the elevation and grabbing a quick snack and water, we made our last 800 foot push to camp. It was a welcomed sight and looked—quite literally—exactly how I left it the previous year. Home sweet home.

First Evening, First Mountain Goat Our camp was set, dinner was eaten, and we were finally behind the glass scanning for little black dots. On the surface, you’d think a bear would stand out like a sore thumb with its color and all. On the contrary, they blend in extremely well. Shadows, burnt stumps, and rocks are all things that I have mistaken for bears in the 10

Bear Hunting

Nov/Dec 2023

@dialedinhunter www.bear-hunting.com

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After gettting camp setup, the author used his Onyx Maps to come up with a game plan.

past. Just as I was being reminded of that, something caught my eye. It wasn’t a black dot, though, it was a white dot.

This may be the Arizona in me showing, but my jaw was on the floor. Never before had I seen a mountain goat until now. “What an interesting animal,” I said to Dillon. A lone mountain goat fed across the way from us and I was drinking it in. The long fur, goofy beard, and how almost outof-place it looked captivated me. I then remembered I saw a giant, jet-black boar standing right where he was the previous year. Then, it was back to the bears for me, but no bears showed up that evening. That was okay, though, because we were there and that made sleep come very easy that night.

First Bear Mornings in the backcountry are something I look forward to on every backpack hunt. There is just something nice about sitting in camp in the middle of nowhere drinking a hot cup of coffee. It’s times like these that remind me hunting is about far more than just hunting. Dillon and I spoke of the previous day and days to come, which made the coffee go down even quicker in our eagerness to get started behind the glass. It didn’t take long before we spotted movement below.

I was trying to brainstorm some ideas for photos with Dillon when he abruptly stopped me as he looked through his binoculars, and said, “I think I got a bear.” He directed my eyes to where he saw it, and sure enough there was a strawberry blonde bear feeding in the lower 1/3 of the basin. “That color!” I exclaimed. Right off the bat, I could tell that the bear wasn’t a giant by any means, but goodness it was pretty. And just like most bears, it never seemed to stop moving until it disappeared. We saw that bear at 7:30 am.

10:30 am. rolled around, and we still hadn’t seen the bear come back out. I had an educated hunch that the bear was bedded right around where we last saw it and that it would surely come back out in the evening. So, we filtered a bunch of water to keep at camp, grabbed our stuff, and started making our way over to the bear.

A good pair of binos with a carbon tripod are a great idea for a western hunt.

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The Stalk The bear wasn’t terribly far away from us. As the crow flies, it was only 3/4 of a mile. The problem was the country that separated us was partially impassable and Nov/Dec 2023

Trekking poles can extend your hunt and increase your ability to carry a heavy load.

would force us up 1,000 ft over and then back down another 1,000 ft. It gave a new meaning to “only 3/4 of a mile.”

Throughout the entire hike, I envisioned making the push in the dark back to camp and how that would be. Some of what we were working through was knee-deep snow at the tops of the mountains. And most of it was, of course, very steep through very dense brush. With each step, the word “adventure” kept popping up in my mind and with it, my smile grew bigger.

The Wait After 2.5 hours of hiking, we reached the outcropping that would put us right over where we last saw the bear. It was a great little spot with a shaded saddle behind the edge. Dillon and I set up shop and chatted about life. A few hours later and out of nowhere, the bear materialized down beneath us. My eyes were glued to the bear: how it pinballed its way around, how it delicately grabbed its food, and how the wind negotiated its way through its fur. I was hooked, but I didn’t know if I wanted to pull the trigger yet. We shouldered our packs and started making our way down for a closer look.

The Shot It took quite a bit of looking around, but we finally found a suggestion of a flat spot for me to lay down and possibly shoot from. I had my rifle out in front of me on the bipod and my bino harness topped with the pad I sat on for a rear rest. It wasn’t perfect, but it would work. Once that was set, we relocated the bear. It hadn’t gone far.

Bears mesmerize me. How they effortlessly move through treacherous landscapes is admirable to say the least. Through the daze this bear put on me, I saw something. The bear walked over a small bush and rubbed its downstairs on it. I had seen this in the past and every time I had seen it, the bear turned out to be a boar.

I believe it’s them marking their scent. The decision was made and I got behind the gun.

This was going to be a tricky shot, as the bear was working his way in and out of sparse timber. Lots of opportunities to hit a tree instead of a bear. After what felt like an hour (probably 15 minutes), the bear finally came into a small gap quartering away, standing still, and feeding. This was it. My turret was set to 500 yards and I slowly pulled the trigger as Dillon took pictures of the bear. The shot broke, I lost sight, and Dillon said, “Josh, you hammered him. He’s down.” I couldn’t believe it. Finally, after three www.bear-hunting.com

The author used a 6.5 Creedmore on this hunt. This short action caliber has become a popular western round with its great ballistics and low recoil.

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The author’s third trip to Idaho is a hunt to remember with this beautiful cinnamon bear!

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Nov/Dec 2023

years, I had an Idaho bear down.

The author tears down camp and heads to the truck for the long drive home.

Recovery and Pack Out Walking up on this bear, I was hit with waves of memories from the previous two seasons. So many miles were hiked throughout them, so much elevation gain and loss, and a little bit of heartbreak happened, too. I’ve killed far bigger bears than this one, but I can tell you something right now: this bear meant way more than his size, and I had a grin from ear to ear laying my hands on him.

We shot the bear at 5:00 pm and had to drop another 1,100 ft to get down to him. That put us in front of him at 5:30 pm.

By 7:00, we had him all worked out and in our packs. Now, we’d have to ascend 2,100 ft back up to the top of the ridge, over “only 3/4 of a mile,” and then back down 1,000 ft to camp.

That hike put us back at camp at midnight. In that time, we trudged with heavy packs through knee-deep snow, ran out of water, and even had an avalanche greet us near the top of the mountain. Luckily, it was off in a chute to the right of us, but it was spooky hearing that snow coming down the mountain in the dark.

Upon arriving at camp, both of us were having mobility issues. Our legs were done, and so were our minds. There would be no alarm the next morning and no wake-up call.

The Hike Out Come morning, both of us were in a much better place mentally and physically. We were hydrated, recovered, and our spirits were high. It was time for hot coffee all around and reflections on the night. Through our chats, I kept looking around us. We were camped on the top of a lonely ridge and the surrounding landscape stunned both of us. We are lucky that we get to put ourselves in these wild, unforgiving places. It’s a pleasure pushing our mental and physical boundaries. It’s also a reality check that there’s more to life than a little screen. We hadn’t even left yet, and I already missed this place. All good things come to an end.

The best part about that is there is a new beginning around the bend. Until next year.

www.bear-hunting.com

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A Bait to Remember An Ozark Baiting Experience

by Kolby Morehead | @kolby_morehead

To bait where the bears traveled, Kolby would have to hike bait in on his frame pack.

I had no idea what I was in for. In August of 2023 I was ready to hunt a big bear, and that led to a litany of experiences both exciting and treacherous while I packed and managed a bait in Arkansas. Sometimes sweat or tears or both were responsible for my drenched attire as I hustled to make the dream of a big boar come true. The 2023 archery bear season is one for the history books for me. It set me up for some wild adventures baiting bears; like a child being thrown into the water with no rope, it was my time to sink or swim.

It all began last summer when a buddy told me that I could bait bears on his property and that he had several bears on his trail cams. Bear hunters hear that same old story all the time and it often turns out to be a farce; regardless, I found some hope deep inside, grabbed hold of it, and started counting the days until I could try my hand at baiting boars.

Touring the Property In Arkansas, we can begin baiting 30 days ahead of the season opener, so a few weeks prior to that my buddy took me to his place to give me the lay of the land. As I saw more and more of the property, I knew this was bear country and expected to have a bear on the bait quickly.

The land had everything going for it: it was very remote, it 16

Bear Hunting

was bordered by large blocks of public land (unfragmented and unbaited wilderness), it had matured hardwoods with a dense canopy, and it had water at the bottom of the drainage that ran through the middle of the property. I chose a spot to bait on a bench three quarters to the top of the mountain that acts as a natural funnel for wildlife. It was an ambitious spot to choose because I’d have to make multiple trips with a frame pack to fill the bait. But I liked this spot because there were clearly bear trails going through the bench already!

The Method of Attack There were a few main things I liked to focus on when I was baiting. 1) I wanted to make sure and go in midday without fail to get in my stand. 2) I didn’t want the bait to go dry; if a bear shows up, there should always be something to eat. 3) I wanted to focus on variety. I intended to have a new type of bait each time. 4) I wanted to make noise when going into the bait so the bears knew I would announce my presence when approaching (maybe they’d be less on edge). 5) I wanted to use a lot of commercial scents (Northwood’s Bear Products) so that the bears would distribute the scent throughout the drainage.

The Baiting Circus When it was time to start baiting, I had everything Nov/Dec 2023

I needed—including help from a good friend—and we began hiking bait down the mountain. The gravity of the mountain was light as we made the quarter mile round trip with weight on our backs. After moving hundreds of pounds of bait down the mountain, we headed back to civilization wearing a badge of honor from the hard work we had just put in. Everything went as planned.

Once the bait was all set, I came back four days later, and all the bait was gone. The bears had wiped me out. I was pumped to check my trail camera but found that it had died. I didn’t put in fresh batteries. Oh, how I lamented my rookie mistake! Not ready to give up, I got the batteries swapped out and re-baited. The next few days I could hardly sleep; I was so excited to go back to check my camera.

I had another friend reach out that wanted to help me bait one time in hopes of seeing a bear (since he had never seen one). I veiled my excitement concerning free labor and he met me at my house. We got to the property and quietly looked off the edge of the cliff, face down into the bench, and saw a bear. He saw his first bear in the wild and it was worth the price of admission. We were pumped as we made our way back to the truck.

We were about to put on our packs when I looked back and noticed a bear 30 yards behind us coming towards the truck on the same trail we had just come from. I started talking to the bear and it sat down, not caring about what we were doing 15 yards away. An odd move for sure.

I tell my friend that this bear is going to break into my truck if we don’t run him off. I put a little pressure on the bear, and he bluff-charged me. The bear was too comfortable with us there, so I pitched a rock near him to startle him and walked towards him to run him off. We locked up my truck and headed to the bait. Later, we came back to the truck and found the bed cap had been broken into, there were scratches around my driver’s door handle, and a bag of dog food missing out of the bed of the truck. We spotted the bear about 60 yards through the woods, so I took off after him in the name of justice! My buddy probably had the same look the Israelites had when David took out Goliath, a mixture of shock and excitement over what he just witnessed. We finished www.bear-hunting.com

Kolby had an odd standoff with this bear 15 yds from his truck before running it off.

The bear came back and tried breaking into Kolby’s truck. The bear broke into Kolby’s bed cap and stole a 50 lb bag of dog food.

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Kolby used this Eberlestock frame pack to haul all of the barrels and bait down the mountain.

baiting that day without any further mishaps.

I ended up taking multiple friends to the bait over the next few weeks and another buddy witnessed me get within 15 yards of a bear before it would leave the bait. It wouldn’t take no for an answer. My buddy then sat on a boulder and watched a bear for a while on the bait while I made the last trip. He told my wife later that day that her “husband is a wild man!”

The next time I baited, I ended up getting swarmed by yellow jackets and got stung multiple times. The trip after that I was by myself and had to push a bear off the bait. Later, I came back to two bears climbing into the back of my truck after they had already pulled out a bottle of fryer grease with Northwoods in it. I chased them off and found a greasy paw print on my passenger mirror and grease all down my passenger side door where the oil was dripping off one of their muzzles. I proceeded back down the mountain with another load and chased another two bears off the bait. Finally on my last trip out, I saw a bear coming down the edge of the ridge towards me. This bait site was super successful, and the bears were acting weird.

Since I was seeing bears most of the time I baited and most of my friends had fun experiences, my wife, Joleen, thought it would be great to go with me. I got her set up on top of a huge tenfoot-tall boulder, so she’d feel safe, and she had a good book with her in case things were slow since it takes me several hours to bait. Before I got down off the rock, I already saw a bear coming in and the excitement began. She watched me push the bear off the bait multiple times and now she has great memories. She also witnessed how much effort goes into baiting.

This became the most active bait I had 18

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This is one of many times Kolby had to push bears off of the bait when baiting.

Kolby getting ready to pack his hang on stand for the first hunt.

Nov/Dec 2023

Kolby had up to seven bears at one time on his bait. It became a struggle to keep it baited.

The bait had several large boars on it throughout the thirty days. This was the biggest one!

This big boar with the ‘V’ on his chest is the bear that Kolby would end up taking.

Kolby has thousands of videos from this trail cam over the 30 days of baiting.This pair would come in together 45 minutes before last light on opening day.

Kolby sat 20 yds from the bait with a boulder partially blocking the bears’ view of him.

ever seen, and I had to bait it multiple times per week, often in weather north of 100-degrees. There were multiple videos on my trail camera of six and even seven adult bears on the bait at one time. I saw several shooter bears, including a monster bruin. I had all the hopes in the world that it was going to be a memorable hunt. With all the time, work, and money put in, I wanted a bear more than ever.

The Hunt I decided to bait one last time and made a couple of trips with a buddy who was hunting with me before setting up for the hunt. Once in the stand, it didn’t take long for the first bear to come in and then another showed up. A little while later, two more came in. The trend continued all day.

We had over 20 bear interactions and saw at least 13 adult bears and two cubs.

45 minutes before the legal shooting light ended, I saw a big ole blocked head emerge from the depths of the mountain. This was one of my target bears, and with him

came a chocolate bear that was regularly on the bait with him.

I didn’t have to wait long for him to give me an opportunity. He was the big man on campus and he stopped almost on cue in the perfect pose between the two barrels for the mystical flight of the arrow.

Thwap!

The arrow hit its mark and the bear took off. As I replayed the shot in my head, I worried that it might have been a little far back. We got down and inspected the arrow, and it was the prettiest saturation of red I’ve ever seen. The crimson told the story that the Iron Will tipped carbon missile hit the right spot, and the hopes of recovering my prize were reignited. I looked to see if there was a blood trail; boy, was there one! At times you could almost walk at a steady, slow pace and find blood on rocks, dirt, and leaves. I followed the blood for a short distance and once the trail got more difficult to follow, I began walking the ridgeline, looking down and hoping that he didn’t go any deeper into the holler than my eyes could see. I saw a

Bear after bear came in through the day. In all Kolby and friend Rick saw at least 15 individual bears.

You can see the arrow entering the bear inside the green circle. It was a great shot!

The bear was wide and blocky. It was the type of bear Kolby wanted to take off this bait.

The arrow passed through the bear and left a great blood trail. The bear went 78 yds including the 30 yds it rolled down the mountain.

The hard work paid off!

Kolby took this big bruin off of a very memorable bait!

www.bear-hunting.com

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shadow at the base of a tree that looked odd and pulled up my Vortex rangefinder for verification. It was him!

I worked harder for this bear than any critter I’ve ever killed. He’ll always be special to me. This experience taught me that you can dream all you want about killing a big bear, but it’s not likely to happen unless you hustle and grind out the work to make that dream a possibility. Not to mention that you may have some crazy, unexpected adventures while doing so. I had many unexpected moments during this experience where I felt like I was drowning, but I refused to give up and kept swimming. I coldn’t have done it without my community of friends supporting and cheering me on along the way. I’m glad I was able to share my journey with others in my chase for Ursus.

It was a long night but Kolby and Rick quartered out the bear and hauled him to the truck.

The bear filled up two large ice chest full of deboned processed meat and fat!

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Nov/Dec 2023

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@firstlitehunting / firstlite.com

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Bear of a Lifetime!

A 717LB North Carolina Giant

by Dan Parrott

Throughout our lives, I believe we all have sets of experiences that so greatly exceed our expectations that we find ourselves woefully short of enough time or diction to accurately describe them. Their impact is monumental to our lives in many ways. Such was the morning of December 10, 2022 for me.

The story starts with me reaching out to the Combat Warrior Bear Hunt organizer, Chris Milligan, after the first 2021 hunt. The Combat Warrior event, in close cooperation and fraternity with Stormy Ridge Outfitters, has been pairing combat veterans and bear hunters since opening day 2018 (with the exception of COVID impacts on the 2020 season). Each year since the inception, the Combat Warriors Bear Hunt network grew with the interest of combat veterans outpacing the ability for Combat Warriors, Inc. to sponsor more hunters; but that hasn’t stopped multiple Marines from paying their dues to be a part of this phenomenal hunting experience, complete with comradery and a sense of brotherly understanding. Unfortunately, the events were booked for the year and for the first hunt of 2022.

Luckily, on a random mid-November day, Chris reached out to let me know of an opening in the December portion of the North Carolina season.

Every day between Chris’ text and my arrival in Engelhard, NC, I studied bear anatomy, memorized the North Carolina regulations, watched and rewatched applicable episodes of MeatEater, listened to nearly every episode (again) of Bear Grease, and generally attempted to prostrate myself on the altar of greater learning. I found everyone I knew who had ever hunted bears and plied them with rifle and caliber combinations, effective shot placement, questions on what animals were “shooters” and what were not, and random tips or lessons learned. In a strangely comfortable way, the preparation—a balance of focused effort and nervous excitement—felt very similar to my first deployment. Although I have purchased North Carolina bear tags and even applied to and received special tags for bear hunting in public game lands, this felt completely different.

I met with the hunting party and hosts for dinner on Friday night at Martelle’s in Englehard, North Carolina. The fact that I arrived nearly a half hour early betrayed my anticipation of the entire event. I departed early from dinner to go check and recheck my gear, download OnX map data, and toss and turn in an otherwise very comfortable hotel room before waking up to recheck gear, rifle, and cartridges again.

The hunting party met in small groups and clusters on the dirt roads throughout the private land owned by Phil “Rabbit” Ferguson before daybreak on the crisp, but not cold morning. Those early hours have always been my favorite time of day as the dark hours transition to early light, what Roosevelt referred to as “the wild surroundings, the grand beauty of the scenery”, and Steve Rinella once referred to as watching a jazz band warm up before the show. Chris and my guide, volunteer Billy Barber, joined another Combat Warrior hunter, Scott Johnson, and I—retired Marines all for the morning walk in just after legal shooting light.

At a separate nearby location, Rabbit and Jimmy Henderson set the hounds loose on fresh scent. Rabbit has been hunting bears his whole life and over the decades has acquired and cultivated his bear haven in Hyde County.

Rabbit, along with friends and family, have hunted as a club over the years and take on guests for a nominal fee to compensate for the cost of baiting, maintaining, and owning such a large tract of land. They adopted the name Stormy Ridge Outfitters (an appropriate name that reflects Rabbit’s North Carolina mountain roots and his profession). Rabbit is assisted every year by the entirety of his family and good friends, Jimmy Henderson and Justin Key, who hail from western Virginia. This trio each have their own pack of hounds to rotate through and pack in on the bears, ensuring success year after year.

Seemingly within seconds of the hounds finding the trail, the radios came alive in staccato bursts of shorthand, nicknames for locations and cardinal directions from familiar places on well-known trails. With this soundtrack setting a cadence, Chris and Scott moved to a predetermined position.

About 200 yards away, Billy and I did the same, slightly deeper and hand-rail24

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ing a large drainage canal. Just as the sound of the hounds added to the chorus of the radio chatter, Billy spotted the bear about 50 yards away in a mix of oak, gum, cypress, and loblolly pines and it was moving from right to left. Without any hounds on his immediate trail, the bear was moving at a leisurely pace and paused to look in our direction for a split second. I settled in my Marlin Model 336 30-30 on the bear’s shoulder and was surprised at the difficulty of finding a point of aim on the deep black fur. After transitioning from iron sights through my open scope rings to my 3-9X scope set on its lowest setting, I rested the crosshairs on center of the center, then forward a little and worked for the smoothest trigger pull possible.

The 175-grain bullet hit slightly forward of my intended point, but put the boar immediately down on his right side without another step.

Both Billy and I quickly closed the distance to the bear to ensure a clean and respectful end. Almost simultaneously, the hounds pushed another bear right to Chris and Scott. Within 15 minutes, two bears were harvested by our collection of hunters and all hounds were safe and accounted for.

Only when standing next to the bear did I get an understanding of his size. His thick black hair, scarred face, and sheer size were immediately objects of my awe and disbelief. In hindsight, I believe it was a true gift to have just Billy and me sit quietly with the bear until the rest of the hunting party could start to filter in to assist with extraction. Perhaps because of our similar, if not shared background, Billy and I just understood that moment and didn’t talk much. As a matter of fact, I don’t recall a single sentence that didn’t focus on that exact instant; we were completely in the present, and we were sharing a moment with the most magnificent specimen that either of us had ever seen. I believe the bear had been down for less than three minutes when I first heard him utter, “Bear of a lifetime.”

Extraction started in earnest about an hour afterwards with friends and family arriving in groups of twos and threes to first look, then assist in whatever way possible. With the aid of some heavy equipment, a little woodsman ingenuity, and a lot of helping hands, we got the boar back to the cleaning station. It was in the movement from the truck to the cleaning station that we put the bear on a scale for the first time and saw 717 pounds, a best for all involved but an unbelievable number for me on my first real bear hunt.

The mentorship of Stormy Ridge Outfitters, particularly their years of experience, was of immense importance during the cleaning and processing stage. Thus far, I have rendered approximately eight gallons of bear grease, a few hundred pounds of bear now resides in my freezer as both ground meat and steaks, and the hide is in transition to become a full body mount. I truly believe that the full body mount will demonstrate the majesty, the strength, and, by extension, my respect for this bear, particularly to guests and visitors to my house that have never seen a bear up close. Maybe that’s the best way to encourage non-hunters to hunt or reinforce the many positive aspects of our interactions with these phenomenal resources. As Fred Bear once said, “If you are not working to protect hunting, then you are working to destroy it.”

Nov/Dec 2023

Dan Parrott (left) and guide Billy Barber (right) with Dan’s 717lb bruin.

The author checking out the massive paws on his North Carolina monster.

It is difficult to fathom the sheer size of this massive bruin.

www.bear-hunting.com

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By the

Skin of my Teeth

Getting charged by a wounded grizzly & living to tell the tale!

By Dawson Smith | @bndproductionsca

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Grizzly hunting takes hunters into some spectacular landscapes.

I suspect the late novelist Ed- was there until it came through the last ward Abbey was musing about life’s batch of berry bushes about 30 yards above where I was kneeling. At the instant overall journey, however I had moved, its eyes and his hypothesis above ears locked on me, and pretty much summed “May your trails be the bruin altered its downup our late September crooked, winding, hill race toward safety to hunting trip. Over the lonesome, dangerous, where I stood. My partprevious two weeks we leading to the most ner, Thane Davies, was had experienced all amazing views, and on a little rise about 400 the adjectives, and, as yards away watching and may your mountains if we were following a videotaping the event. script, there was a grizrise into and above We were indeed on zly bear—loud, angry the clouds.” a mountain, the trail had and wounded—running been crooked, winding, full tilt down the hill-Edward Abbeyat times lonesome, and, side towards me. I was at the moment, things down on one knee and were ramping exponentialhad my rifle, with one shell loaded, safety off, and the jittery ly up the dangerous scale. Lastly, I guess crosshairs of my scope were trying to it could be said that Thane had a view find a home. The bear hadn’t known I that could be described as amazing… www.bear-hunting.com

Bear Hunting

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Thane, Bill Cash, Tom Johnson, and I were camped on a high plateau in northern BC in late September where we “Bear!” I whispered to Thane. were hunting caribou, moose, and grizzly bear. The days had been full of adventures for all of us, the weather was perfect “Where?” he asked. (cold in the morning with cool afternoons and evenings), comradery was as good as it could get, however our hanging “Third basin, right at the top,” I told him. pole was still empty. The colors, smells, and sounds of fall in Through my geo-vids, I watched as the big bruin fed northern BC are exquisite, almost as though nature is offering on berries high in the basin. It was a classic spot for a grizzly to a cornucopia of visual, audible, and olfactory treats before the long, dreary days of winter set in. One can sit on a hillside be. The bear was on a steep hillside covered with berry bushes, a few stunted evergreen trees were scattered lower than the glassing a valley and see all the vibrant fall colors, hear nature’s characters prepare for the winter, and smell the red- bushes, and the bottom of the basin had a small creek running through it. High above the treeline, quietly feeding in a patch of olence in the air. It is one of the best times to be afield. Bill and I had hunted the area in the past many times, but it was berry bushes with a noisy creek that should also draw the morning air down, the bear was in a perfect place for a stalk. Even at Thane and Tom’s first time. Our routine was similar througha far distance, it was easy to tell this was a big bear because it out hunting camps everywhere: we would get up early, have was dark and blocky. a cup or two of coffee, perhaps a porridge, and then load packs for the day and head out.

“How far is that?” Thane asked. By cutting the distance in pieces Thane and I were sitting in a high mountain pass and using the rangefinder in my binoculars, I estimated the that we had found earlier in the week. We had sat in the distance. same rock pile the morning before and had seen a herd of caribou in the distance. There were two bulls in the group, but neither were legal. It was that and the sheer size of the area “About 3 ½ klicks,” I said to Thane. “Probably be there by noon if we take off now.” with its tremendous glassing that brought us back. We whispered back and forth in the predawn darkness anticipating We methodically unloaded our backpacks, took what seeing caribou, hopefully a legal bull would be in the mix this was needed, and stepped off. Our trail would take us down off time. Dawn crept slowly towards us as we waited for better light. It was a crisp and still morning, but the red tinge to the the pass we were on, across and down a flat drainage, then up blossoming sky lent suggestions to what the day would be. As through a spruce stand into the basin. Thane and I backpacked together a lot, so quietly and with intent we set off. A few hours daylight provided we glassed further up the set of draws.

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later, we pushed over the last steep section into the basin.

“Let’s stay up on the left side and just sneak through the trees,” he said.

We couldn’t see the bear, or where the bear should be, but there was a rock outcropping at the top of the basin that we used for visual reference. Staying on the left side, partway up and sneaking from tree to tree, we quickly closed the distance. We would stop by most trees, glass and whisper— our excitement was palpable. Almost to the top, we stepped around a small tree and saw the bear down at the creek about 200 yards away. It had moved down from where we thought it should be but was working back up.

“There it is!” Thane whispered.

“Ya, I see it,” I replied. The bear was moving back uphill towards the berries.

“Let’s sneak in closer,” I said as the bear moved away.

As we went down the hill, Thane said he was going to find a place to sit on and set up his video camera. I told him I wanted to get across the creek and hopefully sneak within a hundred yards. He stopped and I kept going. As expected, the rushing water took the breeze and any sound with it. Using the sparse trees as cover, I snuck closer and closer. The bear had reached the berry patch and was sitting on its rump raking berries. I edged even closer.

“150 yards,” I quietly whispered as I ranged the bear from behind a small tree. ‘A few more trees closer,’ I thought.

The trees were thinning out and, if my memory was correct, the next patch of three little trees would be the last before the open alpine. I snuck closer.

The air was still on the bear side of the creek, a few late season dicky birds noisily fed and cavorted in the high basin. Arriving at the last group of trees, I slid my backpack off

and slowly—binoculars raised—peered around the tree. The bear was up to my left at about 10 o’clock at 105 yards. It was sitting on its rump feeding, quartered towards me, and I slowly eased back behind the tree. Looking around, I saw that to my right about 10 yards away there was a hump in the ground. If I could crawl to it and lay my backpack over it, I would have a perfect shooting position. Just before crawling and as quietly as possible, I loaded a shell in my rifle. I had two more shells in my pocket and three more in my backpack. I was confident with one, though.

Thane and I had been shooting all summer and my Weatherby .338-378 shooting a 225 grain Accubond was pushing tacks.

I took one more chance to look back hoping to find where Thane was, but I couldn’t see him. I got down on my belly and crawled, pulling my backpack along while keeping an eye on the grizzly. Any worries I might have had of being spotted were without merit as the bear was engaged in eating berries. I slowly pushed my backpack over the hump, laid my rifle over it, and situated myself behind it. The bear was huge in my scope. It was quartered towards me, though, so I watched and waited. A couple of times the bear got up off its rump to shift to a better berry spot, and both times I waited for it to take a step uphill to open up its downhill side, but both times it swayed left but didn’t step. Finally after about 20 minutes it stood up, and I centered my crosshair. I watched through my scope as the big bear raised its head, looked over the high country, and drew in lungs full of air through its nose, testing the airwaves.

The bear swayed uphill. I found the spot with my crosshairs…

Boom!

In the high basin the shot echoed back and forth, I watched in my scope as the bullet hit and the bear rolled sideways out of view. I was just ejecting the spent case when I heard wshhhhh, whsss, crack, humphraaa, whsss, shwshhh, crack!

Turning to look up the hill, I saw bushes moving and heard hummmpha, humpha, hummmpha-rrrrrr!

Choosing the right hunting partner on longer hunts is pivotal and in this case life-saving.

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Just as the bear came out of the bush, I saw it. As soon as I moved, its eyes locked on me. I remember clearly seeing its ears lay back, eyes narrow, and its bearing straight downhill changed to 4 o’clock to where I stood. It was 30 yards away, running full tilt: loud, mad, wounded, and probably just as surprised as me. I placed a bullet in my rifle and closed the bolt, went down on one knee, tried to settle while in the crosshairs of the running bruin, and somewhere in my mind a thought said, ‘nope, you have one shot and one shot only. This isn’t the time to use it.’ So I stood up and thrust my rifle out like a spear. The plan was simply to wait until the bear was right on me, jam my barrel in its mouth, and pull the trigger. I have no idea where it came from or how I came up with it.

It was surreal. The sight, the sounds, and the size of that bear at such a close distance (and closing that fast) was inconceivable. I didn’t have time to consider the predicament I was in and didn’t have time to orchestrate a plan. In fact, I didn’t even have time to be scared. I simply reacted.

Just as the beast got to me, I skipped uphill and jammed the end of my barrel in the bear’s side, pulling the trigger as I did. Its mouth was open wide, teeth bared, ears laid straight back—the sight, smell, and noise was incredible.

Its eyes followed my leap uphill but, luckily for me, its body didn’t. As the bullet tore through its body, the bear rolled over my backpack and piled up about 10 yards below me. I was back peddling and trying to get my fumbling fingers to find the last bullet in my pocket and load it, all without taking my sight off the bear. It gathered its wits and came up on its hind legs, its beady eyes bored into mine and roared loudly with murderous intent. So scary!

The big bruin lunged towards me as I let my last bullet fly. It rolled backwards but got right back up again coming towards me. I was out of bullets so I turned uphill to run and heard boom! Looking back, I saw it roll again as Thane’s shot hit it. It was badly wounded but not

dead. The sound amplified and the aggression shook the air.

I looked uphill to run then looked back at my backpack which was halfway back to the bear. It was rolling around, roaring, and fiercely tearing up the ground. I am not sure where the nerve came from, but I ran towards the bear, grabbed my backpack, then ran uphill about 50 yards away, all the time tearing at zippers to get my spare bullets out. I found them and got one loaded as the melee of noise and perspicuous energy settled down. I started to go down to where the bear was, but chickened out and took a big wide circle to get to the other side of the creek and meet up with Thane.

“Holy crap!” he said when he walked up. “I was up there wondering what you were thinking when I saw you stand up. Oh man, that was wild.”

“It was that,” I replied.

We snuck over to a clearing where we could see the bear and watched it for a while. The bear died there.

Thane and I sat down and replayed the whole event.

I told him why I didn’t shoot from the kneeling position. We watched the video over and over while we marveled at the beautiful bear. It was an ordeal, but a good friend of mine and fellow bear hunter, Dave Phillips, always says “grizzly bear hunting is not for the weak of heart.” His words could not be truer.

The trip out with heavy loaded packs was uneventful.

Later, as night took possession of yet another glorious day, we went over the story time and time again with Tom and Bill around a crackling fire. Laying in my sleeping bag that night, I wondered where the decision to save my last shot came from and I marveled at the experience. I have hunted grizzly bears many times and respect the animals’ size, strength, and ferocity immensely.

I wouldn’t want to go through that experience again, but feel fortunate to have come out alive. It was only by the skin of my teeth that I came through unscathed.

The author is lucky to be alive after this Grizz charged him. His hunting partner was instrumental in

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1-year subscription United States $36 USD Canada $72 CAD

2-year subscription $65 USD $138 CAD

Hound Dogs and Black Bears Dedicated to the Memory of Gary C. Colvin May, 1986, issue of Full Cry magazine.

would soon strike a bear.

It was a warm August evening as I sat in my pickup About 3:00 my eyelids started taking first place away waiting to go on my first black bear hunt. I was waiting for Gary Colvin. Now, to give you an idea of just who Gary Colvin from my excitement. We had roaded the dogs about 15 miles and hadn’t struck yet. I’d scooted down in the seat to find a more is: he hunts hound dogs and from what my friend, Lowell comfortable position so that I might get a few minutes’ sleep.

Stroup, had to say - he could make a bear dog out of what most.hunters look right past, and, boy, was I excited to be able Well, you know how it is in fishing. Just when you don’t think you’re going to catch anything, bang, you get a strike. Hound hunting is to go with such a capable houndsman. I had two dogs that I had only hunted a couple of times which I had brought along. a lot the same way. Just as I started to fall asleep, Gary said, “I I was looking forward to them seeing their first bear almost as think they’re going to strike! Look!” I sat up and what I saw was astonishing. much as I wanted to see mine.

Three dogs dancing on_ their hind legs with their noses It was about 10:30 when Gary got there. We loaded high in the air. They were smelling bear. They ran down the my two dogs into his box. I grabbed my coffee and flashlight and we were on our way. I could feel the excitement growing road about 40 yards and up the bank in the brush and disapinside of me. The hunt had finally begun. We were headed peared. We stopped the pickup and jumped out just in.time to towards an old railroad grade at Wolfan Meadow Junction in hear the silence of night shattered like plate glass from the loud the Stanislaus National Forest. bawls of the hounds as they moved down the track.

It took us about 45 minutes to hit the first dirt road.

Gary quickly unloaded the dogs in the box. I hurried to Hunting at night in the forest is like walking into a whole differ- show my dogs where the others had gone up the bank. The dogs ent world. Everything changes. Owls instead of bluejays. Kan- now were barking every breath. The hair on my neck was standgaroo rats and field mice scampering across the road just in ing straight up. I was almost breathless. It is like opening your the realm of the headlight beam. I had always been a daytime adrenaline valve, absorbing everything like a sponge. The dogs hunter and the contrast alone was very exciting to me. were headed up the ridge behind us. Gary had told me to wait Just about that time, Gary pulled the pickup over and and listen while he turned around. As I listened· I could not hear we got out. He dropped the tailgate and opened the dog box. my dogs. I wondered what had happened. The other dogs were Out jumped a big Bluetick Hound. Right behind him jumped a barking more intensely and excitedly. Their sounds were piercing Walker-looking hound. His box was divided and has two my ears, I could tell, straight to my heart. While Gary was turning doors. Gary opened the other door and, being careful not to around, my two dogs had come in to the sound of the pickup. It let out my two hounds and a gyp female Walker of his, he let took him about three minutes to get back to me. The dogs were out the third dog-a red brindle Plott. Instantly they went to almost out of hearing, so we hurried back down the road making hunting down the road in front of us like shadows disappearing sure not to lose them. in the dark. These hounds were veterans and they knew just We went about a mile and a half and stopped to listen. what to do. We jumped in the pickup and took off. At first we As I got out of the truck I could hear them about halfway to hurried to catch up. The dogs had hunted here many times so the top of the ridge and in front of us the hounds were burning they were already hunting their hearts out to find where a bear up the track. Now Gary had said that they would be looking had passed through. at the bear soon. All I could think of was how hard these dogs On the way in, Gary had told me that this was a,very were running. We moved up the road about two more miles and good place to find bears. Well, we caught up with the dogs the dogs had stopped. It seemed like just one long bawl. Gary and as I watched the dogs in the headlights, I began to see was telling me, “They had it jumped and were baying it on the and feel a proudness from them. I began to think - here is a ground.” By this time, I was hyperactive. I was having a hard time dog that runs endless miles through the forest, fights the fierc- believing the dogs actually had a bear. After five minutes or so the bear took off running. And before I knew it, they ran clear out est of creatures and for what? Just to give pleasure to its master. This must be a great sport – not to kill the bear, but to of hearing. They went up over the ridge and into the next canyon.

We drove around the road as fast as we could, hoping train the hound to catch it. Gary had told me of many they wouldn’t move out of there before we could get around. It successful hunts in this area, so my hopes were high that we 32

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took us about 20 minutes to get around the ridge and up the canyon, where we thought we would hear them again. As I got out of the pickup, I could hear the dogs. They were above us and their barks had completely changed from long, deep bawls to short, constant chops.

Gary instantly said, “They’re treed.” I said, “Alright - let’s go.” Boy, I was going nuts hopping and jumping around like a crazy man. I’m sure I must have looked like a real greenhorn. Gary was grabbing his leashes and flashlight while I was still listening and trying to believe I was going to see my first black bear. He told me to get my flashlight and let my dogs out of the box so they could go to the tree.

It was almost straight up and through brush so thick that I thought that the animals must go around it - but not us!

We headed right through it. My dogs stayed with me until we got about halfway to the tree, then they went on up. We stopped in a hole between the manzanita bushes to rest. It hadn’t seemed this far to the tree when I was listening from the road. Gary said that we should come in to the tree from the uphill side. It seemed like we would never get there. The dogs were still telling the story - saying we’ve got it in the tree, hurry up! The closer I got, the more excited I became. All I could think of now was seeing that bear as I got to the tree. As I got to the tree, I circled around to come in from the uphill side. When I walked through the brush to the base of the tree, I felt an intense feeling of fear, but that only lasted a moment. Because when I looked up that tree and saw that bear, I had stepped into another world.

The king of all North American animals was lying sprawled out on three large limbs staring back down at me and the dogs with a look as if he wondered, “What’s going on here? Just an hour and a half ago, I was eating acorns and minding my own business. Now I’m in a tree with a bunch of hounds barking and staring at me with blood in their eyes.” I got to watching the dogs and in between barks, they were chewing at the bark on the trunk of the tree and the brush where the bear had rubbed against it. I had never seen such a desire to please and raw instinct in a dog before.

It didn’t take me long to start watching the dogs more than the bear. I could not believe what I was seeing. They were taking turns running up to Gary for praise and then back to the tree to work even harder to please. We watched the bear and the dogs for an hour or so. The bear didn’t do much moving around up there so we decided to leash the dogs up and go back down to the pickup.

That was when I learned that there was hard physical work to this kind of hunting. It had taken us about 30 minutes to get to the tree and a good hour and fifteen minutes of solid work pulling the hounds downhill to get back. When we left the bear in the tree, the dogs figured they should still be under it. When we got www.bear-hunting.com

back to the pickup, I was one tired hunter.

We put the dogs back in the box and 1-year subscription 2-year subscription collapsed.

We sat there the ground trying to cool down from the sweat we had United States $36on USD $65 USD worked up and drinking Pepsi. My mouth must Canada $72aCAD $138 CADhave been working overtime. I couldn’t seem to shut up about the dogs on the bear. We cooled off and decided to go down to the creek so the dogs could get a drink.

While we were at the creek we decided to hunt back out to the main road. And if we didn’t strike anything, we would go on home. By this time, I was ready for a warm bed and a long sleep. The ride home was twice as short as the ride out and that was disappointing. Before I knew it, the sun was rising and we were almost home. It was already a very nice day and one of the most exciting days of my life. I will never forget that day. It literally changed my life. That hunt was the beginning of many hunts as I hope this story will be the beginning of many stories of bear, cougar and bobcat hunts I have experienced since that August evening when I learned about hound dogs and black bears.

The above story is reprinted from the May, 1986, issue of Full Cry magazine.

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Legendary Bear Hounds: Part 52 Little Buck: The Hound That Rode Bears

by Steve Fielder

@stephen.f.fielder

Owner, Homon Fielder

When hound men or hound women reach my juncture in life, they realize the value in making memories. As one ages, the memories become the essence of the sport when physical limitations dictate the degree to which we may be involved in this sport that, for many of us, has been lifelong. Fortunately, my storehouse of memories spans more than 70 years and I still have the ability to follow hounds, just not at the level or intensity that was once common for me. As this article goes to press, I’ll be journeying to the Appalachian Mountains, my birthplace and origin of manifold memories, to make more of the same.

Having been blessed with a father that was the consummate outdoorsman and lover of hunting with hounds, my storehouse of memories is well-supplied. I reach into that storehouse this month to share a tale of an exceptional bear hound that I call “The Dog that Rode Bears”.

My father, Homon Fielder, was born in 1920 in middle Tennessee. His background with tree dogs began with a pair of all-purpose cur dogs named Pat and Mike.

Some 250 miles to the northwest lived Everett Weems in Salem, Illinois, who was the same age as my father. My dad and Everett began their journeys with the Plott breed at about the same in the mid 1950s, Everett in Illinois and Dad in West Virginia. Some 20 years later, they would learn that the foundation stock for each of their bear packs came from the same source. Unbeknownst to each other, each man developed a love for hunting bears with hounds and made breeding bear dogs the central focus of their efforts going forward. They eventually met in the early 1970s at the National Plott Hound Association’s annual Plott Days event. It was there they learned of the similariBear Pen Plott, Little Butch, ties in their breeding programs and ultimately settled upon with his owner, Homon the idea of breeding their personal hounds together.

Fielder.

Everett produced a litter of Plott puppies that would influence him to repeat the mating at least four and maybe five times in early 1973. Each mating proSusie was the reason Weems’ Plott, Jill, was bred duced outstanding bear dog individuals. My dad, through to CH Weems’ Plott, Butch, in keeping with Weems’ desire his arrangement with Everett, acquired a female puppy to family or line breed his hounds. Jill was sired by a hound he named Bear Pen Fancy and was so pleased with her named Ursus Rowdy Plott. Rowdy and Susie were litterabilities as a bear and raccoon dog that he purchased mates. The cross of Butch to Jill featured Rowdy in the an additional male pup from the third litter of the cross, second generation and Susie in the third. Cold-nosed which has now become legendary among fanciers of the track dogs with exceptional speed and drive as well as Plott breed. The parents of the litter were CH Weems ’ being strong-mouthed, stay-put tree dogs were characPlott, Butch, and Weems’ Plott, Jill. Early on, Everett and my teristics of hounds from within this family line. dad learned the benefits of line or family breeding Plott The first litter of Butch and Jill puppies was born dogs. on April 5, 1973. Afterwards on February 25, 1976, the third Weems’ Plott, Butch, was a bear dog with exceptional litter was born. Having seen the results of the first two looks and speed. He gained the respect of many hunters litters, Homon Fielder acquired a male pup from the third in Michigan and Wisconsin where Everett hunted bears. He mating that he would name Bear Pen Plott, Little Butch. produced his Butch dog by breeding his stud dog, Weems’ Little Butch gained the distinction of being one of the Plott John, to a Plott female owned by a Ferdinand, Indihardest fighting bear dogs in Bear Pen history. ana Plott breeder named Leroy Haug. Mr. Haug earned Little Butch matured into a 55 to 60-pound, brown, brinlegendary status within the Plott breed for his Swampland dle-colored male with a small white spot in his chest. He line of bear dogs. He recently passed at the age of 100 had the classic look of the Weems’ bred hound of that years old. Weems’ Plott, John, was sired by Bluff Creek day with a flat-crowned head, dark, pleading eyes, and Drive and his dam was Weems’ Plott, Susie. the trademark frosted muzzle. He was hunted on coon as 34

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a young dog and proved to have a cold nose and a clear to catch bears no matter the circumstances. bawl mouth on track. True to his ancestry, he was a strong, Once while hunting bears in the Cold Knob region stay-put tree dog. He would open good on a cold track in Greenbriar County, Bronco cold-trailed a bear into a and tighten it up as the track got better. He was definitely hollow tree. I went to him thinking he had treed a coon. The a “run-to-catch” type of hound. Little Butch was hunted a other members of the party turned some dogs loose and lot on bears with NITECH CH Bear Pen Plott, Bronco, who after a while, the hunting party and several dogs were at was born 11 months later than Butch in January of 1977. The the tree. The late Harry Honaker, a bear hunting friend and two young hounds learned to tree coons and to run, catch, houndsman of great reputation, began to beat on the tree fight, and tree bears while hunting with CH Bear Pen, Fan- with a big rock. The unmistakable sounds of claws scratchcy—who was doing it all at two years of age herself. ing bark preceded the emergence of a sow bear from a I shot a remarkable photo of Little Butch and hole above our heads. Wishing to take advantage of the Bronco fighting a bear in a frigid creek on a cold and opportunity to show some young dogs their first bear, we snowy December day, the last day of the West Virginia cut the dogs loose and over the mountain toward the hollow far below they went. As soon as the dogs disappeared, bear season. Ice is floating in the stream as the Pentax captures Little Butch and Bronco pulling a 130-pound sow two cubs weighing about 40-pounds each came out of the tree and down the mountain, going in the direction of bear off her feet and over backwards, while ice water flows over their backs. Bear hunter, Oliver Smith III, famous Mama bear and the dogs. We knew we didn’t want to harm for his Cascade Timber dog (among others), called it “the this family of bears and struck out in the direction of the roaring dogs. The sow turned right-handed and came back best action photo of Plotts fighting a bear” that he had up the mountain to the south of us and treed. The action ever seen. The dogs were caught and the sow released unharmed, but no less wise to the ways of bear dogs bred was repeated several times as the sow would pick a tree

Little Butch at home in Beckley, West Virginia.

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Homon Fielder (left) and his longtime friend and legendary Plott Hound breeder, Everett Weems.

and vacate it almost as quickly. Finally, we were able to retrieve the hounds and restrain them from the chase, relieved that neither Mama nor her cubs had been harmed. In the midst of the fray, Little Butch was seen on the bear’s back, shaking her by the scruff of the neck.

That’s the kind of bear-fighting hound he was. After the hounds were restrained, the bear came out of the tree for the last time and ran straight at one of the hunters, causing him to sidestep from under the cowboy hat he was wearing. The hunters had a good laugh about that.

As a reproducer, Little Butch was bred only once to his niece named Bear Pen Blackie. Blackie was a top producer of good hounds, having been bred to Little Butch, to Bronco, and to Everett Weems’ Plott, Punie. One of the pups sired by Little Butch was owned

by Tennessee bear hunter, Ron West, a longtime hunting friend of Homon Fielder. I hunted with Spike on a combination hog and bear hunt in east Tennessee with West and Rodney Burris in the fall of 1982. Spike sustained an injury by the hog and was seen sailing over a small pine tree as he was going

Steve Fielder (left) with Ron West and a Russian boar caught by Little Butch’s son, Spike, in Tennessee.

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into the bay. Despite being injured, Spike quickly closed on the hog again until the shooter’s gun found its mark. Like his sire, Little Butch, Spike had no shortage of grit.

Little Butch died an untimely death at the age of five. Ironically, he did not die fighting bears.

He was stricken with a heart attack as he was eating.

I was there, and when Dad set his feed dish down he took one bite and dropped dead. There was no choking, coughing, or any indication that there was any cause other than that his heart stopped. His death was a terrible blow to our hunting plans for the future.

Many memories survive the short life of Little Butch. He was a hound that could be restrained on the lead until dogs that were released on a strike had crossed one of those high mountain ridges and were nearly out of hearing before he was released. When the dogs were next seen or they crossed a road, he would be in the lead more often than not. He and Bronco ran neck and neck, and were judged to be nearly as fast as Fancy on track. Fancy and Bronco would be recognized by their induction into the National Plott Hound Association Hall of Fame. Had he lived longer, perhaps Little Butch would have gained that recognition too. He was a good dog that we will always remember, despite his short life.

Many of Little Butch’s siblings were recognized to be in the upper echelon of Plott bear dogs in their day. Plott dog icons, Joe Hudson and Larry McKenzie, and a host of others owned, hunted, or otherwise witnessed their exploits in the bear woods of Michigan and Wisconsin in their day.

I’ll never forget Little Butch. I clearly recall his commanding, clear mouth on track and his extreme desire to catch his game. He sometimes frustrated me because he would cease to bark as the track warmed up and the catch was eminent. I’ll never forget the hopelessness I felt as I picked up his lifeless body and compressed his ribcage in an attempt at CPR. Air moved effortlessly in and out of his lungs. His brave heart, the heart of a hound that rode bears, had simply ceased to beat. He’s legendary to me.

The Paper Trail

Sire:

NITECH Bluff Creek Drive (NPHA HOF) NITECH Weems’ Plott, John (NPHA HOF) NITECH Weems’ Plott, Susie (NPHA HOF) GRCH Weems’ Plott, Butch (NPHA HOF) Brandenburger’s Cherokee, Joe Haug’s Swampland, Star (NPHA HOF) Frake’s Swamp Queen, Sally Bear Pen Plott, Little Butch

A bear that Little Butch rode, holding onto the scruff of its neck

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NITECH Weems’ Plott, Dan Ursus Rowdy Plott (NPHA HOF) Brandenburger’s Sashay Moon II (NPHA HOF) Dam: Weems’ Plott Jill (NPHA HOF) Congo’s Bayoo, Pantha Weems’ Little Punch Burnett’s Punch Bear Hunting

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Black Bear Confit

by Timothy Fowler

@timothydfowler

T he goal of this fall’s bear hunt was to resupply our stock of confit bear meat. A package of bear confit added to fried onions yields a deliciously satisfying snack, and it is a good way to get your pals onto the let’s-eat-some-more-bear ramp. Just fry the onions in a bit of excess bear fat from the sous-vide bag. Once the onions are caramelized, add the rest of the stock and let this cook on medium-high until the stock thickens to the consistency of syrup. At this point, you can serve it on a slice of bread, or a fresh-baked pretzel with mustard and sauerkraut for a German-inspired lunch.

This confit has pink curing salt added, giving the bear a distinct hammy flavor. Confit is one of our favorite ingredients in game cassoulet and can be added to anything from mac and cheese to soups and stews for a luxurious addition of texture and taste.

Worth the Effort I have written previously about bear confit.

What follows is a recipe adapted from Michael Ruhlman and Brian Polcyn’s book Charcuterie: The Craft of Salting, Smoking, and Curing. The original recipe was intended for pork. In some ways, I think bears are much like pigs but with bigger teeth and better fur (and more delicious). I use this book like a textbook, referring to it every few months for sausage making, game curing, and for making confit. Because my son tagged this bear in September, I still had a garden full of fresh herbs which I used for this recipe. If you have fresh herbs, use them. Otherwise dried herbs will work too, just use about 1/3 of the weight of fresh.

Equipment • 25-pound scale • Gram scale • Vacuum sealer • Vacuum bags • Spice grinder • Food processor • Large stainless mixing bowl • Fridge • French knife • Paring knife • Cutting board • Anova Sous-vide and suitable container (I had to do this one in two batches) • Container suitable to hold 8 packages of bear at at time • Colander

Ingredients • • • • • • • • •

8 kilograms or 17.6 pounds boneless bear shoulder or leg 105 grams of sea salt 10.5 grams of pink curing salt 10 dried bay leaves 14 garlic cloves, peeled 70 whole black peppercorns 2 bunches of parsley (50 grams) 3 bunches of sage (25 grams) 125 grams of peeled and chopped shallots

Method 1.

2.

3.

4.

Bone bear shoulder or leg, leaving at least 1/2 an inch of fat covering on the meat.

Dice into 1/2-inch cubes.

Mix the dry ingredients and salt, place in a spice grinder, and pulverize into powder.

Mix the pulverized spices and salt with shallots, garlic, and herbs in a food processor and blitz with a blade to a very fine texture.

5. Toss the bear meat and seasoning/cure in a large bowl; cover and refrigerate for 24 hours.

6. At 12 hours, mix and turn the bear meat and seasonings again to ensure the bear and cure are well incorporated.

7. After 24 hours, remove the meat, rinse in cold water, and drain well in a colander.

8. Place the desired amount of rinsed and drained bear in vacuum bags and seal (I used between one and one and a half pounds per bag).

9. Place sealed bags in the Anova Sous-vide container and set at 180 degrees F for 14 hours.

10. When cooking is completed, submerge bags in cold water. Once chilled, dry the bags and refrigerate for up to five days or freeze for future use.

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When curing meats, use weights for measuring ingredients and calculating salts and seasonings.

Dice the bear into bite-sized pieces; leave some fat on the meat.

Add the seasoning/ cure mix, cover, and chill in fridge 24 hours.

Cook 14hrs in a sous vide at 180F. Chill in fridge for up to five days or put in freezer.

Black Bear Confit Sandwhich Equipment

Ingredients

• Frying pan • Stove • Chef’s knife • Cutting board • Toaster • Wooden spoon

• • • • • •

Serves 2-4 depending on how much your guests like confit 1 pound of bear confit 1 large onion peeled and sliced Hot mustard Sauerkraut, rinsed with water and drained Bread, bagel, or pretzel of your choice (one per person)

Method 1.

2.

3.

4.

5.

Peel and slice the onion and add a couple of tablespoons of bear fat from the confit into the frying pan.

Sauté the onions on medium-high.

When the onions begin to caramelize, add the rest of the bear and stock and turn the heat to high.

Meanwhile, toast the bread, bagel, or pretzel; rinse and heat the sauerkraut.

Slather the bun/toast with hot mustard and as soon as the liquid in the frying pan thickens to the texture of syrup, turn off the heat and assemble your ‘sandwich.’

We shared this bear, so I only got to keep half of this batch of confit. Even that is already disappearing from the freezer. Good thing I have two bear tags. I hope there will be more confit (and sausages and ham) before the season closes!

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Bear Hunting 39

Visit our website for one of a kind bear hunting tees! www.bear-hunting.com

to support each other; we have to reach across the aisle and engage with each other. We can no longer have this division of houndsmen and those who don’t, bait hunters vs. spot and stalk.

The American Bear Foundation put over $70,000 on the ground this year, I am so proud of what we have been able to accomplish in such a short time. All this and we are still an all-volunteer organization! I cannot thank our members, volunteers, chapter leads, and partners enough for their sacrifice of time and money to help out the American Bear Foundation. From collaring bears for population studies to hound abetment studies, bear-proof storage boxes to electric fences, and everything in between. If it’s one thing I have learned very quickly is how hard it is to do it all. I’m impatient and competitive, I want to be able to fund every project, fight every fight, and be everywhere all at once. While I realize we simply cannot do that I am confident that in 2024 we will expand our reach and be able to support more research projects on black bears as well as continue our efforts on conflict mitigation and hunter opportunity and recruitment. Some of our projects have been annual commitments and while we intend to keep those, we hope to increase our commitments to new and exciting areas. To keep this short and sweet, I will not list out every single project, hunter recruitment, or hunter advocacy program we completed in 2023. I would be happy to visit with anyone who wants to do a deep dive into our projects, partners, and programs.

Our 3 chapters are thriving and representing bear hunter in their respective states. I encourage you all to check them out and support them and their efforts. We hope to expand into several new states in 2024, specifically, those 2023, What a year. For the American Bear Foundation, it states where bear hunting may be under the microscope and marks another year of growth and a record year for putting money on threatened. Reach out to me to get the process started. the ground for bears and bear hunters. We have more members than Our chapters retain almost all the revenues they generate to ever and almost half of our members are life members! Reaching these ensure the money raised in that state stays in that state. There goals and metrics is great but if there is one thing, we have learned over are many states with very strong bear hunting organizations the last 15 years we are barely scratching the surface of what needs to and we are not looking to replace or compete with those. We be done and just how much more work we have to do. Now more than would love to work in conjunction with them and support their ever before is predator hunting under attack, not just on one front but efforts, no sense in reinventing the wheel! We specifically several. are hoping to grow in areas where there are no state-level What started out as an effort to end spring bear hunting in organizations representing bears and bear hunters. If you live Washington has now turned into a flat-out effort to end all predator in one of those states, we encourage you to reach out. hunting in Washington State. Colorado is on the verge of losing all I want to leave you all with a challenge for 2024. cougar and bobcat hunting seasons, lawsuits on bear hunting, baiting, We are living in a crazy world right now and for some of us, and the use of hounds continue and it seems that the challenges facing our escape from all the chaos lies in the outdoors and our hunters are popping up in every corner of the US. It’s not all bad though! pursuits in wild places. I believe all of us sportsmen and womAt the time of writing New Jersey is having a fall bear hunt, Montana en have the ability to share our passion with others and help now has a hound hunting opportunity for bears, efforts in California to them understand what it is we so enjoy about the outdoors. stop bear hunting were stopped, and an effort to ban bear baiting on What I enjoy the most about my involvement with ABF is the National Forests in Wyoming and Idaho were stopped in the courts. At ability to help others, it’s my passion. I love taking people present there are several other issues across the US we are monitoring hunting, teaching them what I know about bear hunting, anand working on, this is a war that will not end, we must not let our guard swering questions on bears, or simply just sitting down with a down one bit! I want to give a huge THANK YOU to Sportsmen’s Alliance, non-hunter and telling them why I am so passionate. SomeSafari Club International, and HOWL for Wildlife for all their work advotimes we get so caught up in our own goals, priorities, and cating for hunters in the US. If you’re not supporting them you should be! achievements we forget about the simple things that really Much of what they do goes unnoticed and unappreciated. make us happy. Now more than ever we cannot lose that. Just Our efforts this year were heavily focused on coordinating tonight I spoke to a group of young kids at a library about the and organizing efforts to defend bear hunting and support our partner difference between black bears and grizzly bears. I was reorganizations in the challenges they were facing. A big emphasis of ours minded after that 30 minutes just how much I love bears, those is to develop chapters in each state so we can better be prepared when little kids had so many questions and were so excited. Moissues arise and proactively build a community of like-minded sportsmen. ments like that are so pure and enjoyable, it’s why we do what I have seen a groundswell of support in the hunting community that is we do at ABF. Find things like this to center and refocus on very welcoming. Different sportsmen user groups put aside differences your passions. Take a kid hunting, maybe someone you know is to support each other and the goal of protecting and developing our struggling…. take them outside, help a fellow hunter with their hunting heritage. I saw this firsthand at our annual banquet back in goals, learn about a different hunting method, be engaging, January. Trappers, outfitters, guides, houndsman, spot and stalk hunters, be interested, and be a role model for future generations. bait hunters, state and federal agencies, and non-consumptive users from all over the United States in one room, talking, working together, Until the next time. enjoying the opportunity to connect and learn about each other’s pasJoe Kondelis sions. That is what we have to strive for if we are to realize the dream President – Founder of our kids and grandkids enjoying the same experiences as us. We have American Bear Foundation

www.bear-hunting.com

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to establish 200 grizzlies within 60 to 100 years. The big difference is plan C allows for the removal of nuisance bears when they kill or wound people, livestock or exhibit other nuisance like behavior. But this leaves future management of an aggressive apex predator in the hands of a game commission who thinks the Let me start off by saying, I am not against grizzly term “recreational” hunting is offensive and doesn’t realize you bears in the least. In fact, not only are they a bucket list crea- need a trapper’s license to take a beaver. These are the people ture for this aging bear hunter, but they are the epitome of in charge of wildlife hunting policy. The term “incompetent” what encompasses a bear when I think of them. Large, fierce, comes to mind. So, I have little to no confidence that this species strong, the definition of magnificent, and suitable for their of bear will be managed by anything other than social science Latin name, “Ursus arctos horribilis”. I think little can stop them (that they agree with) and personally held beliefs, not sound sciin the wild, and they know it. For that, I love them. ence provided by the department biologists. I’d trust gas station But do I think it is a good idea for the federal govsushi over the idea that grizzly will be managed properly in my ernment and national park service to reintroduce them into state. the North Cascades of Washington state as they are currently So, where would that lead us? Over the summer there proposing? No, I do not. Here is why. For one thing, grizzly have been numerous attacks through the western states on bears are already here. The latest confirmed sighting of a hikers and hunters, some fatal, some not, some avoidable, some grizzly bear was just outside of Rockport in 2011, by photonot. We can also look back at what has happened to states that graphic evidence. So right there, it tells me that grizzly bears try to manage recovered griz populations with highly regulated are roaming around. Secondly, if a grizzly bear wanted to be hunting and they are met with lawsuits and sympathetic judges in the cascades, they would. There is absolutely no physical who never have to deal with a grizzly killing their livestock or othbarrier in those areas that the grizzly cannot overcome, there er nuisance or deadly situations. People who speak the loudest are no walls, fences, anything. It is wide open, wild, untamed against proper management of bears rarely ever deal with them land for the most part. in the city. It is the cattlemen and women, the farmers, the huntWith that wild landscape, however, comes a lot of ers, those who actually live and recreate in grizzly territory who recreationalists in the spring, summer and fall. In fact, you are left holding the bag with the issues of what such an animal cannot drive along highway 20 which cuts right through the can bring. It is the exact same situation with wolves in Washingmountain range, without seeing lines of cars parked along the ton. Farmers in eastern Washington, particularly the NE corner highway as an overflow from hikers. There are areas of the are left to fend for themselves and wait for wolves to kill their North Cascades that are very busy. ‘But they were here first!’ I livestock before a state employee shoots the wolf and tosses it in will hear people say. Well, they were also in the San Francisco a landfill. All the while, city dwelling, special interest groups who area, shall we relocate some in the suburbs there? likely never see wolves except in a zoo are halting any sort of The proposal by the feds has three options: Plan A: basic delisting (which would still have the wolves protected). no action. As the president of the Washington chapter of the Allowing grizzly to naturally migrate down from the now American Bear Foundation, this is the one that makes the most non-huntable population in BC would allow the local ungulates sense to me. As established, they are already in the area, they to slowly become accustomed to the new predator. But they are don’t need our help and if the area is appropriate for their still dealing with our cougar, black bear, wolf, coyote, bobcat habitat, why mess with it? Allow nature to take its course. If and other predator population issues. Of course, if we were you don’t agree that the picture proves they are there, how to reintroduce grizzlies, they would come from Wyoming and about the fact, we as black bear hunters, must pass a grizzly Montana (and BC), but each bear would be considered a loss bear identification test every year provided we are hunting to those populations, further lessening the chance of proper in the game management units of the North Cascades or NE management of those populations. Although, in Wyoming and corner of the state. This is required by the WDFW. You don’t Montana’s defense, I am sure they would be more than willing to see duck hunters having to pass a flamingo test in Washington. send some our way ...I guess I am ok with it ...if they drop them That’s because we don’t have flamingos. off in Olympia.

Plan B and C are similar: They both want to transplant Please take the time to search for “grizzly bear reintroduction 3 to 7 grizzlies over 5 to 10 years with the goal of 25 grizzlies north cascades”, click on the www.fws.gov link and comment with your before switching to adaptive management. The overall goal is thoughts on the matter at the comment portal.

Is Grizzly Reintroduction in Washington

By Doug Boze | @bozeandbears a Good Idea?

Photo courtesy of Jillian Garrett

This recent trail cam photo of a grizzly was taken in Washington state. This bear was reaking havok on a farmer’s chickens.

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Bear Hunting Bear Hunting 43 43

Wisconsin Bear Hunters Association Inc. Nov/Dec 2023 The Wisconsin bear season has wrapped up, and of course there are issues that will need a lot of attention from the WBHA. The DNR is trying to sell the idea that wolves should not be managed to the agreed number of 350 wolves. 350 wolves were the goalpost set by the Wisconsin DNR and now they want to move that number up again. Just remember that the original number when wolves were introduced to Wisconsin was 85. Part of the problem is the habitat has expanded south to a range that has increased by one third, which brings us to two thirds of the state. The DNR’s wolf range numbers were put out without discussion with the WBHA, I can only assume that there were other stake holders or individuals that the range was discussed with but conveniently keep out the WBHA. The WBHA sits on two committees “Wolf Harvest Committee” and the “Wolf Policy Committee” you would have thought that we would have been asked for our input? As a result, we are not supporting the DNR’s planned range. We will keep you posted as this moves forward.

The next issue is a big one, we were emailed the DNR’s harvest total’s as of September 26th and they are reporting that the harvest at this time is at a 10+ year low, the worst being Zone D which has a quota of 1800 bears and have only killed 480 as of September 26th which is 27% of the quota with 2 weeks to go? We know that they are not going to meet their goal. What this means is they are selling more tags for bears that do not exist. To set the record the WBHA has been consistent, the harvest has been too high since the current bear plan was released around 3 years ago. There has been a steady decline in bear harvest for 3 years, but the DNR has been persistent to appease a handful of farmers in Rusk and Sawyer County to kill more bears and the constant call to hunters that want to have more kill tags issued. Kinda sounds like deer management in the northeastern part of the state. You will hear the usual excuse that there was an abundance of natural food this year that would impact baits being hit, don’t be fooled!

The last thing we need to cover is the Center for Biological Diversity has come up with 416 Wisconsin signatures to ban training and hunting with hounds for bear in the Nicolet-Chequamegon National Forrest. Of course, all other forms of hunting and use are okay for now until they decide to get rid of deer hunting, bird hunting, camping, berry picking, riding electric bikes!

What these people don’t realize is after they are done with bear hunting, they will come after them. We need to unite all hunters as one force and build a bigger army, and that will start now. We are working on the solutions to these 3 issues as I write this letter and will keep you posted and how WBHA members can help.

Save the date: • The Northeast Town Hall Meeting will be held on Saturday October 28th, 2023 at the Old Town Hall in Townsend WI. • The Southwest Town Hall Meeting will be held on Saturday December 9th 2023 at the Pittsville Lions Club, Pittsville, WI • The Southeast Town Hall Meeting will be held on Jan. 13th 2024 at the Berlin Conservation Club, W898 Whiteridge Rd, Berlin, WI • These Town Hall Meetings are “member’s only” events, with memberships available at the door. These events will include guest speakers, legal updates, door prizes, raffles, silent auctions, and a good place to get to know your WBHA Board of Directors and Officers. Doors open at 1:00 PM

Thank you.

Carl Schoettel WBHA President 44

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A pilot program that pays private bear check stations in Michigan’s Upper Peninsula to submit registrations electronically is producing near real-time data on the 2023 season, which has been marked with large bears and several hounds killed by wolves.

Until recent years, the Michigan Department of Natural Resources has relied solely a paper process for mandatory bear registrations at DNR service centers and private businesses, such as taxidermists and sports shops, collecting the data at the end of each season in a process that takes several weeks to produce harvest results.

In the last several years, DNR officials have encouraged those businesses to convert to electronic submissions, but only about half have done so.

“The real change is this year we’ve gotten funding and we’re paying private stations $20 per bear, but to get that money they have to … submit their registrations electronically,” DNR bear specialist Cody Norton said.

“We’ve went from half in the UP, to virtually all.

“That saves us a ton of staff time,” Norton said, because with paper “we have to have people manually enter it in.”

The effort is also expected to reduce mistakes DNR staff are forced to fix each year, he said.

“The electronic system has things built in … that won’t let them submit without the information in there,” Norton said.

“This year, we’re kind of treating it as a pilot year and it’s only in the UP. We’re getting more real-time data, for sure.”

Typical turnaround time from registrations has been about three to five days after a bear is killed, he said.

“Some have had issues,” he said, “but we’re working through the kinks.”

“This should really help streamline the process for us,” Norton said. “It will help inform the Bear Forum, staff and other stakeholders to develop recommendations” for regulations.

So far for the ongoing 2023 season, “everything has been very positive” in the UP, with most check stations reporting results similar to last year, or slightly above or below, he said.

“We’ve also had some really nice weights coming out of almost all units,” Norton said, noting that includes the Gwinn and Newberry Bear Management Units where hunters have complained about smaller bears in recent years.

In Newberry, registrations showed one bear at 507 pounds, and another at 437.

“It seems like now we’re starting to see some of the larger bears show up,” Norton said.

Weather, meanwhile, has been good, and acorns plentiful in most places in the UP. “We’re still seeing a good harvest even with a lot of natural foods on the landscape,” Norton said.

In the Lower Peninsula, where the late archery season is concluding the final week of hunting, “it looks like most of the units are below final harvest numbers from last year,” Norton said.

While “most of the input we’re hearing has been positive,” he said, “in some areas bears are smaller than what (hunters) might have been used to,” particularly in the Red Oak BMU in the northeast. www.bear-hunting.com

Also, in the state’s most popular Baldwin BMU, where the DNR has aimed to increase the harvest to stabilize the population, “we’ve heard people might not be finding as many bears as they’re used to,” he said.

“That’s actually a positive things for us to see, since we’re trying to stabilize that population,” Norton said.

Despite those developments, several check stations in the Lower Peninsula are reporting bears over 400 pounds, including one over 450 and a few over 350 in Cadillac, others in Traverse City and Gladwin, and a 412 pound bear in Atlanta, among others.

“We’re still seeing some really nice bears coming out of Red Oak and Baldwin,” Norton said.

Wolf attacks on hunting hounds have also continued to be a problem in the Upper Peninsula this season, with at least four hunting dogs confirmed killed in three separate events, as well as some pets.

Those attacks occurred in August in Houghton County, in September in Marquette County, and in October in Alger County, much later than in previous years when most attacks occurred during the training season or closer to the season opener, Norton said.

“It’s kind of interesting, we’re not sure why it’s picked up later in the season,” he said. “That’s not when we typically see conflicts.”

“This time of year depredations are very rare,” Norton said.

While the timing is unusual, the number of attacks is in line with reports of five or less dogs killed each year over the last five seasons.

“It’s right were we have been,” Norton said.

Data on the DNR website shows a total of 78 dogs have been killed and 39 injured by wolves in the Upper Peninsula since 2009, which includes 67 hunting dogs and 11 non-hunting dogs killed. Those events span the peninsula from Wisconsin to Canada, with the most reports in Chippewa County with 17, Mackinac County with 16. There’s been seven or less in a dozen other counties.

While numbers have fluctuated over the years, dog deaths from wolves hit a peak of 16 in 2014, before declining to three in 2015 and remaining below five until this year, when hunting and domestic dog depredations have increased to a total of six.

The DNR website allows hunters to track the general area where attacks occur, with information about the type and number of dogs killed or injured. In addition to the four hunting hounds killed so far in 2023, others dogs have been killed or injured in attacks in Keweenaw, Iron, Menominee, and Delta counties.

“The continued wolf attacks on both hunting hounds and domestic pets underscores the need to restore state management of wolves in Michigan,” MBHA President Keith Shafer said. “It’s the latest evidence to support our pending petition to the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service to remove gray wolves from federal protections in the Great Lakes once and for all.”

Join MBHA to make our voice stronger, and receive our association’s 16-page publication, The Bear Facts, four times a year, plus Bear Hunting Magazine, with its MBHA column, six times a year.

To get your membership (worth $20) and magazine (worth $25 more), send only a $20 check, made out to MBHA, to Phil Hewitt, and his address is 7796 Ainsworth Road, Lake Odessa, MI, 48849. Please include your name, address, email address and phone number.

Bear Hunting

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The Strategic Bear Hunter

by Bernie Barringer

Giant Bears

Photo by: Carolina Psalms Let’s spend this column talking about the giants and how to beat them. I’m not talking about the New York Giants or the San Francisco Giants; I’m talking about big, giant male bears. The kind that turns heads everywhere bear hunting is discussed. The kind everyone wants to kill, even the meat hunters that say they aren’t interested in targeting big bears. It might surprise you to learn that there are a few people who consistently kill giant bears. The biggest bears in the area are in danger when these guys find them and target them. I’m going to tell you a little bit about those guys, those bears, and how they kill them.

First of all, there are four guys I know personally who have consistently killed some huge bears. I am not talking about 350-pounders; I am talking about 500-600 and even larger adult male bears. These four guys do things differently than most of us. I am not going to give you their names other than one guy, because he agreed to allow me to use his name and some photos.

With one exception, these four guys do not know each other; their only connection is that they are people who I know. The only other thing they have in common is that they know how to find and kill huge bears. One of them is a guide, but he is not a traditional guide. He does not advertise his guide service, he does not have a bear camp, and his price is the highest I know of. He takes one person at a time, and when that person kills the giant bear he targets for them, he calls the next hunter, and so on. His baits 46

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may be 200 miles apart. He might sleep in his truck while he is between baits. Giant bears are not behind every tree, and he will look anywhere for one, literally anywhere. He might find one giant in a county on one side of the state and another four counties away. He’s not exactly your traditional bear hunting guide.

Jesse is one of these guys. He killed the overall Minnesota State record bear in 2017. In 2022, he also killed the second largest bear in the state ever killed with a muzzleloader. It just missed the muzzleloader state record by 1/8-inch. The last three bears he killed averaged 580 pounds. I did a YouTube video interviewing Jesse about some of his strategies. Do a search on YouTube for “How to Hunt Giant Black Bears with Jesse Koskiniemi.” Trust me, it’s worth your time to watch it.

While talking to each of these friends separately, I have been fascinated by the fact that even though they do not know each other, their techniques have so much in common. They have refined their hunting strategies by learning what works and what does not on these giant bears and, not surprisingly, the bears have taught them each some of the same lessons. So what are these guys doing differently than the average hunter? Let’s look at some things they have in common.

THEY HUNT THE FRINGES

Not all giant bears live in classic bear habitats or the big woods where we imagine traditional bear hunting. All four of these guys hunt the edges where the bear habitats meet agricultural land. There may be patches of woods only a couple hundred Nov/Dec 2023

Jesse Koskiniemi with the third giant bear in a row he has killed.

This one weighed over 600 pounds and is the second largest ever killed with a muzzleloader in Minnesota.

ment, sketchy winds, or noise is not the way to hunt giant bears. No opening day sits for these guys unless it all comes together.

It may be days or even weeks before the conditions are perfect and it’s time to make a move. They hunt with precision, not volume.

THEY DON’T MIND EATING A TAG SANDWICH

If you’re going to target giant bears, you’re going to have to accept that you might come up empty-handed. While these guys do consistently kill the giant bears, that means they are ignoring even what others consider the big ones. And that reduces your chances of getting one at all. This kind of hunting isn’t for everyone.

It may or may not be for you. But I thought I would dedicate one of my columns to this topic because I thought you would find it fascinating. I sure do!

Here’s Jesse with his Minnesota State Record bear; it weighed more than 600 pounds and scored 2210/16ths.

acres—or even less—surrounded by pasture, hay, oats, soybeans, and corn. Huge bears live in these areas. There is little hunting pressure, so the bears can grow old and fat. These big bears are reclusive creatures that don’t spend any significant time in areas where the bear population is high. These giants are loners, living out their lives on the fringes of typical black bear habitats.

THEY TARGET INDIVIDUAL GIANT BLACK BEARS!

While most of us are out looking for an ideal bait site and then hoping to have a chance at a big bear that would come to a great location. These four guys are doing it differently. They are out looking for a giant bear and then baiting for that specific bear. That’s right, they are finding the bear first and then targeting that one specific bear. They spend their summers walking the edges of woodlots where these bears enter the cornfields, looking for huge tracks, piles of scat the diameter of a pop can, and areas where corn and oats have been flattened by bears.

Once they find the giant bear, they begin to learn as much as they can about it. They use trail cameras and personal observations to figure out where these bears spend the bulk of their time. Then they choose a bait site that will be right in the bear’s core area. It’s hard to get a giant bear on a bait site during the daylight, so the bait location needs to be right on the bear’s front porch. This is usually a thick, nasty, damp bush that is difficult even to walk through.

They do not strike until the moment is perfect You don’t just go hunting for a giant bear when you feel like it. You don’t park yourself in a treestand day after day. The wind must be right, the bear activity must be right, everything must be perfect before they make their move on these big bears. You’re likely to only get one single chance, so taking unnecessary risks with movewww.bear-hunting.com

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Blood, Sweat, & & Bears

Counting Myself Lucky

with Doug Boze

@bozeandbears

Shot

It’s Tuesday, October 10 as I write this, and I am freshly back from a four-day hunt for bears and cougars in eastern Washington. I drove over Thursday to grab a spot for my family, which included my dad, my brother and his daughter, my brother-in-law and two of his boys, and a couple of hunting buddies. I wanted to secure a camping spot since Saturday was the opener for muzzleloader elk season. While I have an archery tag for elk (and hence could not hunt elk during muzzy season since it is weapons specific here in WA), I still wanted to just get out and enjoy all that is hunting camp.

I arrived on a gorgeous day with clear blue skies, mid 60s in temp, and a light breeze. I have been coming up to this area for well over 20 years, and have taken many elk out of the steep canyons or helped pack them out. After setting up my meager camp of the American flag and a tent, I decided to do some predator calling. My plan was to use an electronic caller during the weekend in the hopes of enticing a cougar or bear, of which there are plenty in the area.

I set up in a rugged canyon with ravens calling high above, seemingly in anticipation of the feast that was soon to A dugout log and wasp come this weekend in the form of gut piles by the successful nest are tell tale signs hunters. In front of me, the canyon broke free of the slope of of black bear activity. the hill and gave way to scree fields and wind-twisted pines, and far below near the creek that seeped out of what seemed to be solid rock, birch eked out a living. It was a quiet aftermore sign around? I want to learn as much as nature can teach noon, and I knew the sound would carry far and wide, so I had me, but I must be open to listening to the story and slow myself a good feeling about the set. For an hour I called using deer down. fawn distress of varying degrees, but to no avail. Except for the I headed back to camp and by then my family had occasional hawk dive bombing or raven circling and landing arrived, so I helped my dad set up camp. It took time, but by while trying to figure me out, all was quiet. the end I had time for an evening call session. I crossed a large After another set of similar results, I headed to camp sage flat riddled with the remnants of an ancient eruption (lava and made a dinner of mule deer hamburgers while contemrock covers the ground and does not allow for any sort of even plating my plans for the morning. I went to bed, listening to walking). Every step seemed to want to roll my ankle or stub my the elk bugle and mew in the woods that surrounded me as toe, but this is life in this region. I once again followed another the coyotes sang nearby. The symphony of the night was a creek bottom which rounded a finger of a hill and then plummetwelcome solace from the burdens of modern life. I fell asleep ed deep into the canyon below. This is where we’ve often found gazing at the stars. elk bedding down for the day. I could hear them below, bugling The following morning, I went to another creek bottom as the rut slowly came to an end. I was surrounded by bearthat, once again, seemed to start just bubbling out of rocks torn stumps of varying sizes. A few years ago in this very gully, I from some unforeseen buried garden hose. It trickled out and watched a bear skirt an elk herd within 70 yards and the elk did supplied enough water to turn the ground into a wallow soup not even react. where elk would frequent and bears would eat what we call This time around I was going to use a hand call, one I “rosehips”. It drained down into a mature stand of trees that had not used before called a javelina distress. I sat against what were choked with brush and brambles, which looked very promremained of an ancient pine tree, tucked myself into the shadising. Placing my back against a tree, I had a great shooting ows, and began to call. I started off slow and then increased my lane of a game trail to my left and right and could see a pace as time went on, while magpies and blue jays confirmed decent distance down the drainage for at least 75 yards or so.

I sounded like dinner. They landed around me, cawing and This time around, I used a rabbit distress call and remained as squawking, adding realism to the scenario, and I grinned silently still as possible for over an hour. But once again, nothing came to myself. Now and again, I could hear a squirrel chirping his in. alarm and I hoped that he was not yelling at me, but scolding a Now, the beauty about calling—or hunting for that predator he was looking down upon. But alas, another bust. matter—is that you are not always successful. So when I have As time went on that weekend, I would find similar ara set that doesn’t produce, I tend to not get frustrated. I just eas: brushy draws with water, ponds, or basically any spot I could head off to greener pastures. Throughout my wanderings from think of that contained some sort of water. I would set up and set location to set location, I’ve come across various signs call for over an hour. With each set, my anticipation grew greater of bear activity from torn up stumps to rolled logs and rocks. and greater, the odds increasing in my favor as time passed.

Anytime I find signs of bear action, I tend to stop and analyze it After all, I have about a 30% success rate calling bears in, so by for a few moments. How fresh is it? What was it after? Is there that logic I was getting close to some action.

I returned to camp and listened to my brother-in-law 48

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describe how they spotted a nice black bear first thing in the morning, and he and his two boys (12 and 8) spent the rest of the day playing cat and mouse with it. The boys loved it, despite no shot. The excitement in their voices was worth the trip alone. It seemed that our destinies had somehow been switched as they saw a bear and I had seen elk—each of us seeing the target animal the other was after.

Once again, we were greeted with an amazing night sky void of light pollution. The glory of the universe unfolded before us as we once again heard an elk bugle in the distance and a lone coyote give out a rather lonely howl. No response came to him. My days were spent going from place to place, calling where it looked good, keeping quiet where I thought I should just watch, and wondering what I was doing wrong. It was in these hills, after all, that I called my very first bear using nothing but a cow call while I was archery elk hunting.

Once I returned to camp again, I was bombarded with more tales of bears from my brother and our buddy, Gary. While looking for elk, my brother and my niece were hiking and came upon a nice chocolate black bear running head-on towards them. It ducked behind some trees and then, instead of coming out where my brother was anticipating, it went behind some brush and continued to walk about 40 yards broadside (not running, but at a fast walk). My brother used his judgment and didn’t shoot at a moving target. Afterall, he was teaching his daughter how to hunt, and we all know that a stationary target is always preferred. Avoiding a wounded animal is a priority. So, the bear walked to safety.

Gary was working a brushy draw when under 40 yards a bear stood up in the brush. As Gary raised his muzzleloader, the bear turned and bolted. So, another bear got another free pass. I listened to the stories with envy but excitement for each party. Seeing my niece smile and retell what happened about the running bear was a delight. The light in her eyes and broad smile painted the The author hoped a bear or lion would have been close by to this elk carcass.

picture of a memory I am sure will last her whole life.

And so, we came to the next to last day. My little brother found what is often called a “dead head”, meaning an animal (usually a deer or elk) that has died one way or another. Tucked into a small cove of dark pines laid www.bear-hunting.com

a very nice 7-point bull elk. The ground was cleaned of pinecones and needles from all the bear and scavenger activity. Much of it had been picked clean while a jerky-like hide remained, covering what was left. He marked it and let me know the location due to the possibility of some bear returning. So I paid it a visit the following morning. They had sat on it the evening prior hoping for a bear themselves, but no luck.

The author watched this bull and some cows feeding while waiting for a bear that never came.

The next morning was cloudy and cool; a change in weather could be felt and seen. I crept slowly into the area, and a coyote appeared not 40 yards out. He looked at me, ran about ten yards broadside, and stopped. I pulled up my rifle and had him in my sight, but I hesitated. The rifle I was using would leave a large exit wound on the yote and, in reality, I wanted to get close to the dead elk to see if I could catch a bear having breakfast. As he trotted off, I realized he was there with purpose. Not 70 yards further from him, I snuck up to a bull, about 10 cows, and a few calves. The bull was easily within 40 yards. I watched them eat and meander as I stood motionless for several minutes before the wind kissed the back of my neck and they trotted off.

As I came upon the bull carcass that my brother had found, I was amazed how hard it was to find, even with an OnX pin drop for the location. The shadows of the pines blended perfectly with the antlers and low hanging branches. I was told there was a very nasty smell to the creature, which is how my brother found it from over 200 yards out. But, thanks to Covid, I can’t smell much of anything since 2020. At least I was blessed with that superpower. You could see where bears had been around it, but it appeared to have not been messed with for a while. Regardless, I set up and called about 80 yards out from it, with the hopes of calling in an orbiting predator.

But, once again, ravens and birds of prey appeared to be the only thing interested in my calls. I thought to myself as I went back to pack up camp, “I could use a little luck. Any luck.” And that is when it dawned on me: I was lucky. I got to spend time with undisturbed elk on numerous occasions that weekend. I watched as birds circled over my head singing various songs and calls. I listened to the serenade of the coyotes at night while contemplating life and existence as I gazed upon the endless vastness of space. I saw the joy in my niece’s and nephew’s eyes as they hunted with their dads, listened to my father’s aging laughter around the campfire, and spent time with hunting partners I rarely see. So, if I was gauging my luck in success as far as tags filled, it would have been a low score.

But if success was in things that are intangible and truly mattered, it could not have been measured. My hope is that your season is met with as much success as mine has been so far. Happy hunting, my friends.

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Black Bear Biology

Under the Baby Moon

with Dr. Jenn Ballard @arwildlifevet

Black Bear Reproduction

Sows bred in the summer may produce anywhere from zero to five cubs depending on their age and nutritional condition, but for bears with reasonable food availability, the average litter size is two.

As the last leaves fall from the trees and the air turns crisp, autumn is fading into winter and black bears are transitioning to a new season as well. Their autumn gluttony nearly complete, well-provisioned bruins now meander toward a season of rest; but for some, that rest will be interrupted by the improbable act of giving birth during the least hospitable time of year. The Osage (Wahzhazhe), who traditionally mark months according to social or natural features, call December the “Black Bears Give Birth Moon,” and rightly so. Bears stand out as the only group I’m aware of that gives birth during winter dormancy. In preparation for this, pregnant sows will be the first to start the winter denning cycle in late November or December, though that is not where their reproductive story begins.

Black bear breeding season occurs in early to mid-summer, usually June and July. While most wildlife time their reproduction to ensure young are born into optimal resources, bears follow a rhythm all their own.

They seem to squeeze breeding into their busy schedules between den emergence and fall foraging, while their bodies put off actual pregnancy until much later.

During the breeding season, most sows will experience multiple ovulation or “heat” cycles. Interestingly, these cycles seem to continue even if the female is already pregnant. This provides sows with ample opportunities to mate, and may afford them the advantage of breeding with multiple males. Giving birth to cubs with different sires in the same litter increases genetic diversity in the offspring, which can improve the odds of adding healthy new bears to the population. This polyestrous (multiple cycles) strategy would be problematic if it produced pregnancies at different 50

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stages, but bears accommodate with an adaptation known as delayed implantation.

Implantation is the process during which a developing offspring attaches to the wall of its mother’s womb; once there, a physical connection develops with the mother to exchange nutrients. Delayed implantation is exactly what it sounds like—a gap of time between when an egg is fertilized and when this connection develops. In the case of black bears, fertilized eggs develop into blastocytes, or a cluster of a few hundred cells, organized around a fluid-filled sac. Development then pauses completely. Potential offspring remain in this state of suspended animation for up to five months. Even pregnancies produced later in the summer have plenty of time to catch up to their peers before development begins again in earnest.

As late summer rolls into fall, black bears devote all of their time and energy to eating as much food as possible, a behavior known as hyperphagia. This helps them build up fat stores they will use during denning, when they will not eat or drink for months at a time. The body condition of sows during this time is closely linked to their reproductive output later in the year, but the exact mechanisms are difficult to study.

It is believed that if a sow has insufficient resources to sustain herself and multiple cubs through the winter, her body may not allow all of the available blastocytes to complete their development. As a result, sows bred in the summer may produce anywhere from zero to five cubs depending on their age and nutritional condition, but for bears with reasonable food availability, the average litter size is two.

It’s a common misconception that black bears give birth while sleeping, but they are actually not true hibernators and rouse periodically during denning, including to birth and care for cubs. While the total time from conception to birth can approach 210 days, the duration of true pregnancy following delayed implantation is around 60-70 days. That is similar to the gestation of a domestic dog, and, like a dog, bear cubs are born naked, blind, and only a fraction of the size of their mothers.

They are not truly premature because they have completed the normal Nov/Dec 2023

Black bear cubs are born immature in the den relying on warmth from their mother’s heavy winter coat.

development for their species; instead, they are born immature (also called altricial) and need significant parental care. They will spend the remainder of the denning season nursing and sleeping in the relative security of their den and the warmth of their mother’s heavy winter coat.

When spring arrives, new mothers will be some of the last to emerge from their dens to ensure that their cubs are strong enough to climb trees and escape danger before venturing out. The cubs will remain with their mother for their entire first year, learning and benefiting from her protection. While caring for cubs, sows do not participate in the following year’s breeding season. Instead of producing a litter annually, female black bears den with their yearlings for a second time. It’s not until their second spring that mother bears force their yearlings to disperse and establish their own home range.

Male offspring tend to be pushed farther away, while young females may be tolerated to remain in the area but not directly in their mother’s company. After their yearlings disperse, female bears will again participate in summer breeding and begin the process anew.

While early breeding has been documented in some cases, most sows do not participate in the reproductive cycle until their third summer, and they can continue to reproduce into their late teens and early twenties. Nonetheless, this process of late maturation, biennial breeding cycles, and small litter sizes results in a low reproductive potential for individual bears as well as slow population growth. High levels of maternal care are an adaptation intended to compensate by increasing cub survival. Wildlife species with low reproductive rates can be vulnerable to factors that reduce recruitment or increase adult mortality, and their populations may be slow to rebound if issues arise. Black bear managers in particular take this into consideration, looking at harvest rates, sex ratios, food availability, denning success, and many other factors to inform the goal of sustainable harvest.

Black bear managers in particular take this into consideration, looking at harvest rates, sex ratios, food availability, denning success, and many other factors to inform the goal of sustainable harvest.

References:

Bridges AS, Vaughan MR, Fox JA. 2011. American black bear estrus and parturition in the Allegheny Mountains of Virginia. Ursus 22(1): 1-8.

Burns, LF. 2004. A History of the Osage People. The University of Alabama Press, Tuscaloosa, Alabama, pp. 210-211.

Himelright BM, Moore JM, Gonzales RL, Mendoza AV, Dye PS, Schuett RJ, Durrant BA, Read BA, Spady TJ. 2014. Sequential Ovulation and fertility of polyestrous in American black bears (Ursus americanus). Conservation Physiology 2. DOI: 10.1093/conphys/cou051.

www.bear-hunting.com

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Western Bear Hunting

Being Selective

with Jana Waller @skullboundtv

Jana hunts with a Desert Eagle .429 pistol from Magnum Research.

I’ve said it before but I believe it deserves repeating, bear baiting is truly one of the most misunderstood forms of hunting. Bear hunting in general is often misunderstood by the general public, but it’s also under scrutiny at times from the average deer or turkey hunter. Many of its critics are people who have never personally baited and who have misconceptions about the process. You can assume when you read comments on social media such as “baiting is cheating” or “it’s like shooting fish in a barrel” that the ‘warrior’ behind that keyboard has never been a player on the field. Like many things in life, it’s easy to criticize the game from the bleachers.

Bear hunting is not only a necessary part of wildlife management and an important key to healthy ungulate populations, but bear baiting is the best way to determine the right bear to take.

Size and sex of bears is often hard to tell at a distance, but when you’re only 25 yards away it takes a lot of the guesswork out of the equation.

Baiting allows you to know what’s in the area with your trail cameras, but also gives you time and opportunity to be selective.

It’s been almost 14 years since I was first introduced to bear baiting. A friend was nice enough to let me tag along on their Idaho bear hunting adventure and I was excited about the possibility of seeing a bear up close! I remember watching my friend’s kids sit on their garage floor and unwrap individually packaged stale and expired bakery goods one by one and put them into buckets. Large 50 pound bags of dog food were strapped to pack frames and gallons of old grease were loaded into their pickup. After hiking over a mile to their bait site, I can still remember thinking, ‘Whoa, this is a ton of work!’ And I didn’t 52

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Waiting for the Right Bruin have to carry in the tree stands or barrels; that was already done on a previous trip. We loaded that site as well as two other stands and went back the following week to hunt. During that week, we hunted multiple stands and saw a total of one young bear. That was my first true understanding of the amount of work that goes into bear baiting and the undeniable fact that it is unpredictable. While you can often pattern bears and have your eyes set on a specific bruin, there’s no guarantee he’s going to show up with you in the stand.

Fast forward to the present day, I have learned so much from the incredible bear hunting opportunities I’ve had in the last decade plus. I’ve learned a lot from many of my friends who bait bears as well as some Canadian and Alaska outfitters. I’ve been blessed to notch my tag on 17 bears, all of which have been unique and special, from their colors and size to the overall experience of the hunt. Along with the misconceptions about the practice of baiting comes the popular notion that bears are simply a “trophy animal”. For some reason, the general public can stomach the idea of eating deer but often I get a look of shock when I’m explaining to non-hunters that bears produce more delicious meat and usable fat for rendering than most other big game. I’ve often thought about how fun it would be to have a fancy dinner party, one that could rival Martha Stewart’s, and announce after dessert, “Surprise! You’ve just enjoyed mountain lion, bear, and wild hog!”

I’ve been running my own baits in Idaho with my business partner, cameraman, and all-around great friend, Heath Helgert, for the past six years. Heath is a lot like myself, a self-proclaimed bear addict. We have so much history with the bears on our sites and often see the same ones year after year. We do a lot of filming and often find ourselves digging through the archives of footage to see if it’s a repeat customer. We’ve watched cubs grow up and have a few old giants that continue to tease us with a midnight trail camera pic or two.

This Spring, Heath and I loaded our sites with our favorite concoction of stale trail mix, candy, and pretzels garnished with a plethora of Boarmasters “raz-donut” and “carnivore candy” sprays. We always add Boarmaster’s concentrated scented oil to our grease that we pour around the site

The author’s target bear nicknamed ‘Fatty’ came in 30 minutes after dark like clockwork.

Nov/Dec 2023

so the bears track the scent back into the woods. Nick from Boarmasters also had tubs of orange frosting for sale this season, so we topped off our delicious menu with the best part of birthday cake. When we are done, the forest always smells like a giant candy factory that’s hard to resist.

This year I was after one bear in particular.

“Fatty” made an appearance just a few days after we set up the site—a daytime photo in fact—just twenty minutes before dark. He’s a beautiful jet black boar that we believe has visited our bullet a few years in a row. It can be hard to be positive that it’s the same bear since he doesn’t have any distinctive markings, but he’s big. He’s got a blocky head and he’s very nocturnal. It’s been my experience, however, that even the big ol’ smart bruins make a mistake every now and then and simply let their bellies override their brains.

The best part of bear baiting is the opportunity to simply watch bears. They are such amazing animals with their own unique personalities. Some bears come bouncing in without a care in the world while others take 30 minutes from when you first catch a glimpse of them sneaking through the woods. There’s a reason some get nicknames like “Crabbypants” or “Karen”. But most of the bears we see in Idaho are quite cautious and timid. I believe it’s because of the high amount of hunting pressure versus bear baiting in Canada or Alaska, where it’s much more remote with less people. I always consider it a successful night if we get to watch a bear. It’s the evenings when we get skunked that are long and frustrating, but it’s also that unpredictability that makes it fun.

Despite the long bear hunting season, I personally only had one week to hunt this year due to a crazy schedule. We had a lot of bears showing up while we were in the stand as well as on the trail camera at night.

That first evening, we watched a couple of different bears come in and actually fight over the bait. That low rumble warning sound bears make is one of the coolest noises in the animal kingdom. My target bear was a no show but like clockwork, Fatty waddled in and got his photo taken about 30 minutes after dark, his huge sagging belly making him stand out among the others.

There are a few key factors that seem to make a difference when it comes to a bear hitting the bait during daylight hours. Young bears, of course, are simply not as smart. They’re often the ones to come charging in to gorge on the goodies. They always know we’re there, staring up at us in the trees, but they often can’t resist filling their bellies. They also want to avoid the larger bears, which tend to hit in the dark, so they get in and get out when the coast is clear. Weather, particularly high winds or rain, tend to make bears hunker down and elusive. Strong wind direction carrying your scent towards the bait can be a deterrent as well. Like deer behavior, the rut is another important determining factor. While some boars disappear during the bear rut, going on long distance walkabouts to find a sow, others can lose their common sense and follow a sow right in during daylight hours. I was hoping that would be the case with Fatty since one of our trail camera pictures clearly showed the rut was in full swing. Cue the Marvin Gaye music.

Fatty continued to show up on the trail camera for a few days, always within an hour or two after dark.

He was big for a reason; he was nobody’s fool. Heath and I continued to hunt hard for the remainder of the week. We watched a total of nine bears come into the www.bear-hunting.com

bait, including a favorite old cinnamon sow who showed up to indulge in the orange frosting. We have seen her multiple years in a row and believe she’s an older, dry sow.

If she shows up next year without cubs, that will be three or four years in a row, determining she’s most likely past breeding age and would be a good bear to harvest. We also watched a beautiful rusty-colored pine marten hunt chipmunks that were hanging around our bait. That was worth the time in the woods alone.

Unfortunately, time simply ran out and Fatty didn’t show himself. In fact, he disappeared after a few days on camera like the previous years. It’s his MOA. He shows up early, gorges for a few days, then disappears. I’m hoping, like other years, he simply moves on to other parts of the mountain and will return. There’s a chance another hunter notched their tag with Fatty, but I like to think he’s still out there. That’s part of the alluring mystery with bear hunting. Sometimes they’re predictable, sometimes they’re not. But a week of sitting in the trees watching these amazing animals is considered a successful hunt in my book.

To watch this episode of Skull Bound Chronicles, go to CarbonTV.com or their free app and look for season 5, episode 10.

The Eberlestock F1 Mainframe pack with Batwings is a great choice for carrying heavy loads and keeping gear organized.

Photos By: Heath Helgert | @h2o_films

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ry

Great Hunts

Bruin

Destinations

Massachusetts Bay State Bruins

by Al Raychard

Massachusetts is the third most populated state in the country, so it might be surprising to learn the commonwealth has a sizable black bear population. Recent and ongoing research by MassWildlife indicates bear numbers are increasing and bears continue to expand their range to some of the more populated central and eastern regions of the state. Bears are known to be present and breeding in Worcester and Middlesex Counties and perhaps Essex County in the northeast, and wandering males and some breeding age females have been reported east of Route 495. As a result hunting seasons have been expanded and more Wildlife Management Zones have been opened to bear hunting, providing hunters with more opportunities.

But it wasn’t always this way, at least not in modern times. Following the Second World War, just a few hundred bears roamed the Berkshires along the western border with New York, supported by an unknown number of occasional transients from neighboring New Hampshire, Vermont, and New York that border Massachusetts to the north and west, respectively. Due to fledging numbers the first regulated bear season wasn’t initiated until 1952. A total of three bears were killed in 1975 by permit holders.

Along with reducing the hunting season to six days, a one bear per calendar year was put in place in 1970. Ten bears were killed in 1981, a record number at that time. As bear numbers continued to increase, reaching an estimated 1,500 in the 1990s and 3,500 by 2005, the split hunting season in September and November in the western and central regions of the state had gradually increased to 35 days by 2006. A total of 148 bears were killed that year, the second highest since a record harvest of 153 in 2003. In 2014, the bear take surpassed 200 for the first time and has exceeded 200 bears annually every year since reaching a record high of 325 in 2020. In 2022, the statewide total was 223.

In 2015, biologists with the Massachusetts Division of Wildlife estimated Massachusetts was home to 4,000 to 4,500 bears. That statewide population estimate has not changed, but with human/bear conflicts on the rise and more bears being observed in the eastern portions of the state, regulation changes were in order. Starting that fall eastern Wildlife Management Zones were opened, allowing bear hunting statewide for the first time. The hunting of bears was also allowed during the late November-early December shotgun deer season, giving hunters three seasonal opportunities to bear hunt.

While the entire state is now open to the hunting of bears, traditionally the western counties have been the leaders in the bear take. Typically, Berkshire County in the far west tops the list, followed

by Franklin County along the southern border with Vermont, Hampshire County to the south, and Hamp54

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den County bordering northern Connecticut. Worcester County smack in the middle of the state typically comes in a distant fourth. The primary reasons are that the western counties offer the best bear habitats and are the least densely populated. Much of the terrain consists of rolling hills, swamps, and the largest tracts of woodland in the state. More than thirty state forests are found west of the Connecticut River. October Mountain State Forest in Lee— the largest in Massachusetts—covers some 16,500 acres, the Tolland State Forest in Otis is 15,000 acres, and the Beartown State Forest in Monterey another 12,000 acres, to name but a few.

But, there are plenty of places to hunt east of the Connecticut River, too. In all, the Massachusetts Division of Parks and Recreation manages over 285,000 acres and the Division of Fisheries and Wildlife another 140,000 acres, mostly in the form of wildlife management areas. Many of these are located in the central and eastern regions where bear numbers are increasing.

There are also other factors that make the western and central counties such bear hotspots. There are over 7,700 farms in Massachusetts; a good number of them are growing agricultural crops that are attractive to bears.

These farms cover more than 520,000 acres and a good share are in these counties. Franklin County has over 780 farms covering more than 90,000 acres, Hampshire County some 800 farms covering nearly 55,000 acres, Hampden over 580 covering almost 40,000 acres, and Berkshire County is home to more than 500 farms covering more than 60,000. In the central region, Worcester County has over 1,500 farms covering more than 100,000 acres. While many of these farms are small, they are a magnet to bears during years when natural hard and soft mast supplies are low.

Hunters gaining access to these areas often find some of the best hunting opportunities in the state.

Nov/Dec 20230

Massachusetts

Estimated Populations: 4,000-4,500+/Bag Limit: One bear per calendar year Areas Open: Open statewide Spring Season: No Fall Season: Yes-First Season: September 5-23, 2023. No blaze orange required.

Second Season: November 6-November 25, 2023. Blaze orange hat required on WMAs during pheasant and quail season.

Shotgun Season: November 27-December 9, 2023. 500 square inches of blaze orange required on head, chest, and back. These dates coincide with the shotgun deer season. Special rules apply. Check MassWildlife website.

NO HUNTING ON SUNDAYS Baiting Allowed: No Dogs Allowed: No Popular Hunting Methods: Spot and stalk and hunting near natural food and agricultural sources License Availability/Licenses: Permits Required-Online, vendors statewide, and at MassWildlife offices Resident Hunters: Hunting or Sporting License and Bear Permit Non-resident Hunters: Big Game License and Bear Permit. Check with MassWildlife for the current fee structure.

Legal Weapons: • First Season - Rifles-.23 cal. or larger** | Handguns-.357 mag and larger | Muzzleloaders-.44 to .775 cal.** | Archery-min draw 40 lbs. @ 28” draw • Second Season - Rifles, muzzleloaders, & archery gear • Shotgun Season - Shotguns, 10 gauge & larger, slugs only Contact: Massachusetts Division of Fisheries and Wildlife/1-(508)389-6300/ www.mass.gov/orgs/division-of-fisheries-and-wildlife

Overview

Bear Questions/Answers With Al Raychard

Q - I recall reading somewhere that New Jersey has a bear season again. Is that true?

A - Yes. In September, the New Jersey Fish and Game Council unanimously voted to reinstate the hunt after Governor Phil Murphy reversed his position, which ended the hunt on public lands back in 2018. My understanding is under the new management plan hunts will continue for five years and will be revisited in 2028. Hunts are initially allowed in designated areas of seven northwestern counties. The first hunt took place in September this year. If a quota was not met, a second hunt will take place December 4-9. New Jersey’s bear population is estimated at approximately 3,000 animals, up from 1,500 in 2018 when the hunt was canceled and is expected to increase to 4,000 in the next two years.

Q - Will Florida ever reopen its bear hunting season?

A - In 2019, the FWC Commissioners approved an updated Florida Black Bear Management Plan, which includes a section on regulated hunting, indicating hunting is a valid management tool and could be allowed in the future. But I wouldn’t hold your breath. If a hunt is approved at some point, it undoubtedly will be met with controversy and wind up in court.

Q - With bear numbers apparently increasing just about everywhere and conflicts with humans on the rise, I find it interesting that more states don’t have a spring season. Why not?

A - There are a number of reasons, including political and social ones. A common concern and reason animal rights groups use in www.bear-hunting.com

court is spring hunts increase the threat of killing sows with cubs, although all states with a spring season prohibit the killing of sows with cubs or cubs. In some states, the misinformed general public is simply against a spring hunt, generally for the reason just given and other non-factual or scientifically supported propaganda issued by anti-hunt and animal rights groups. And in some states a spring hunt would require legislative approval, which is difficult to get these days. Another reason is not enough hunters stand up and fight for it. My personal opinion is if a state wildlife department says the population can stand a spring hunt based on their research, a spring hunt should be allowed. But the real world doesn’t always work that way.

Q - My hunting buddy and I have different opinions concerning, which is best, spring bear meat or fall.

What do you think?

A - I’ve eaten both and have had both good and bad taken in both seasons, although generally I have found spring bears are nearly always excellent. They carry less fat, so the meat is leaner because the bears have been feeding primarily on fresh greens. Fall bears that have been feeding primarily on berries, acorns, and other soft and hard mast are fine eating as well, although the fat content is much higher. I also tend to sway to the belief where a bear is shot, how it is tended in the field, how fast it is cooled down and skinned, and how it is cooked makes a major difference, regardless of the season. I was once on a spring hunt and a hunter let his bear hang for four days in the hot June sun. I wouldn’t have touched that meat with a ten-foot pole.

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Sacred Pursuit with TL Jones

Hound Hunting @TLJonesHVP

When people call us wanting to go on their first

bear hunt, the #1 question is, “What kind of gun should I use”?

In this article I’m going to share my answer to that question.

Please understand that I’m not saying my way is the only way; I’m not a firearm or ammunition expert. Bears are killed all over the world with all kinds of firearm/ammo combinations.

This article is written to encourage debate amongst experienced hunters and to explain my personal answer to those who are preparing to take their first hound hunting with us and our dogs.

There are several considerations to take into The opinion I share is not account when choosing based on technical ballistic studthe best firearm for a ies. I do reload ammo and underhound hunt. stand some of the things included in those types of literature. What I’m sharing in this article is based solely on my personal experience and observations over a lifetime of hunting with hounds. I’m not attempting to be the pharmacist who explains the chemical content of a medication to you; I’m attempting to be the buddy who took the pill and is telling you that it stopped my headache.

We Recommend Something Light Hound hunting requires walking. A lot of this walking takes place in Hell Holes. You should plan on being afoot most of the day and sometimes way into the night. You’re going to be leading dogs, carrying a backpack, and possibly dragging out a bear. There is no reason to add unnecessary pounds to your trip with a heavyweight gun.

We Recommend Something Short Rifles with barrels under 20” are handier than a 36” goose gun. Expect heavy brush and close quarters in shooting.

Most of your shots will be under 20 yards. If the bear is on the ground, your shot will be under 10 yards with some shots being point blank. Extremely long guns are going to create problems for you all day long.

We Recommend Something Reliable Please don’t go buy a gun the day before you hunt.

Use a gun that you’ve shot a lot. Make sure that it cycles your chosen ammo over and over and over without fail. Some guns are picky about the type of ammo they prefer. Shoot it at five-yard increments from five yards to 75 yards. If you

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What Kind of Gun Should I Bring? can accurately shoot it at short yardage and it cycles every single time, you’re cooking with bear grease. Generally speaking, we do not recommend semi-automatic firearms for practical and safety reasons for new hunters. We prefer a new hunter to have to consciously cycle a second round into the chamber. Single shot rifles are a great option, especially for youth hunters. Whatever action you choose, make sure it’s tested and reliable.

We Recommend Open Sights Your shots will be short; a scoped rifle for hound hunting isn’t necessary and can be extremely detrimental. On a moving or bay-up bear, the dogs will be close. You’ll have a near impossible time getting just the bear in the scope. The safety of the dogs is paramount and you need your peripheral vision working. If you’ve never used open sights then practice, practice, and then practice some more.

We Recommend Moderate Calibers with Proper Ammunition Anything from .30-30 and above will work just fine so long as the ammunition is wisely chosen. The most common calibers in our particular region are .30-30, .35 Remington, .30-06, and .44 mag. Bullet weights and construction are important, so avoid hollow point bullets. Stay with something solid and jacketed.

Remember that it’s not the firearm that kills the bear, it’s the bullet.

Having the right gun with the wrong ammo is a terrible mistake.

Magnum rifle calibers like a .300 Winchester are obviously effective, but in close quarters can create pass through issues—bigger is not always better in hound hunting. When choosing ammo, consider using offerings in round nose bullets.

We Don’t Recommend Handguns Handguns are effective in the right hands, but in the wrong hands they amount to wounded bears and injured dogs.

Since we have no real way of testing a new hunter’s skill with one Have a hound topic you want covered?

Email requests to: sacredpursuit@protonmail.com Nov/Dec 2023

under stressful conditions, we prefer for them not to use them. We absolutely forbid anyone hunting with us to use a semi-auto pistol. If you absolutely must carry a sidearm, then I recommend a .44 mag revolver loaded with heavy solid jacketed ammo or cast ammo. Using hollow point ammo in a handgun is forbidden for those hunting with us.

If you haven’t picked up on it by now, I absolutely detest hollow points for hunting bears. Most of us carry a revolver but limit our shots to extremely close range (point blank to 10 yards).

A Word About Shotguns Tons of houndsmen use shotguns with slugs and they kill a lot of bears with them. The men who use them swear by them, and I’m not going to debate their success.

If a shotgun is your chosen firearm make sure the slugs you use will penetrate hide, fat, and bone. Also, make sure you can shoot one like a rifle and not like someone who is accustomed to wing shooting—bears are not quail, and a slug doesn’t throw a 40” pattern. Practice enough to know how your shotgun shoots slugs out to 75 yards on five-yard increments.

The author prefers guns with iron sights when hunting bears with hounds.

I’d personally buy if I were starting from scratch. There are countless more worthy options, but these are legit in all criteria: • Winchester 94 .30-30 • Marlin 336 .30-30 or .35 Remington • Marlin 1895 .444 or .45/70 A Word About Bows • Remington 760/7600 .35 Remington, .30-06, .308, .35 A well-placed shot with a bow is extremely Whelen effective. If you’re strictly a bow hunter and want to kill a • Ruger 77 .44 Magnum bear with a bow while using hounds, then your shots should • Ruger Redhawk .44 Magnum be limited to treed bears. All the dogs should be tied back, • Smith & Wesson 629 .44 Magnum and a backup shooter should be allowed to finish the bear off if it doesn’t fall out stone dead. We wouldn’t allow a Killing a bear over hounds is hair-raising. It also carries bear to be bowshot on the ground for safety reasons. Still with it a great deal of responsibility to the game, the dogs, and hunting is a different story, however. your fellow hunters. Making sure your firearm and ammo combination is effective is the least any of us can do to make sure the hunt Getting More Specific Sometimes new hunters don’t want general infor- ends well. If the houndsman that you take your first hunt with has a different recommendation, then take his advice—he has the right to mation, they want to be told exactly what to get and use. protect himself and his dogs his way.

So, let me make a few recommendations of firearms that

www.bear-hunting.com

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{Hounds and Bears} Column

IN Hot PUrsuit

By Barry ‘Bear’ Siragusa @thehuntinghound

When Disaster Strikes Preparing for the Worse While Hoping for the Best

The author’s neighbors lost everything due to flooding. He began preparing for the worst.

I grumpily rolled out of bed, struggled into my clothes, and stumbled into the kitchen to start the coffee maker. The hounds heard me, and I could hear them start to shuffle in their crates. Once the smell of coffee hit their nostrils, they began to whine. They know that the only thing that could get me up that early in the morning is a catastrophe or the promise of a new day of hunting with them (and I usually don’t take the time to make coffee during a catastrophe). I let them out of their crates and opened the front door to let them outside, and we were greeted by autumn’s first hard frost. The water bowls were frozen, the grass crunched and broke underfoot, while the whole world glittered in the morning sun. My youngest hound had never seen snow or ice in her short life and found the entire experience blissfully fun and exciting. While they relieved themselves and ran in the frost—sliding and tripping as much as running, to be honest—I looked around at the frost-covered remains of the summer.

Summer 2023 in my neck of the woods was a natural catastrophe from start to finish. We began the year with a severe drought, which destroyed the grazing for all our animals both wild and domestic, and was dry enough to kill off many of the rodents and small mammals that feed our foxes and other predators. Just when it seemed like the ground couldn’t get drier and we were all going to choke to death on the dust in the air, the drought finally broke in June with two of the biggest rain storms we have gotten in over 100 years. Groundwater rose, dams collapsed, and we experienced the worst flooding 58

Bear Hunting

in recorded history. Bridges fell apart, houses were swept away, and roads simply vanished. My house and kennel are fairly high up the steep valley side but, while we didn’t have any immediate worries due to flooding, the landslides on the valley side took roads and filled rivers even more. I woke up one night to hear massive boulders crashing down the mountainside 150 yards from the house. Too close for comfort.

Natural disasters such as floods, tornadoes, wildfires, and hurricanes are not as infrequent as they once were. In some places they are downright commonplace! It seems like Louisiana is always either cleaning up from or bracing for a storm. Canada has been burning merrily all summer. The high plains areas of Nebraska and Kansas are a lightning strike away from total incineration. It would appear that natural disasters are something that we just have to accept as an unpleasant reality for many of us now. Evacuations on short notice are becoming a distinct possibility. For houndsmen, the issue is further complicated by the reality of needing to move an entire pack of hounds out of the path of nature’s fury. Not to mention the additional challenge of not being able to just roll up to a Motel 6 with 15 bear hounds and expect to be accommodated.

This summer was a wake up call for me. It was sobering watching my neighbors lose almost everything and wave to helicopters as they passed over the house for the umpteenth time, flying to evacuate another family. I had no prior plan for such eventualities with my kennel. How would we get out? What would I do with my hounds once we were safely away? Where Nov/Dec 2023

It’s a good idea to have backup routes planned in case roads wash out.

would we go? Do I have what we need until we can return home?

These are all questions I have spent time chewing on the last few weeks since the floods. I’m not done yet, but here’s a list of the hound-related things that, looking back, I wish I had organized before the dog doody very nearly hit the fan in spectacular fashion: • A box or bag with the minimum basics: bowls, tethers/ drop chains, a few extra collars, and some extra bedding.

• An agreement with a friend or family member that is willing to accommodate my family and our hounds on short notice in an emergency.

• A predetermined evacuation route: Where can I drive that will keep me out of the path of destruction?

• A decent first-aid kit: My hounds get mighty unpleasant with each other after too much time in the truck. Dustups between bored and cramped hounds are a reality during even a temporary transient existence.

• My GPS collars, handhelds, and chargers (that junk is expensive).

• A bag of dog food and a jug of water.

This list is bare bones, but would have certainly made me breathe easier if I had squared it all away before I almost needed it. The wife and kids and I know what to do in the case of an emergency; we drill it at home. The logistical and practical realities of evacuating the hounds was not something I was prepared for. Luckily, we came through in one piece and were no worse for wear. I have made some changes and have prepared for the next catastrophe, and we are headed into this winter and next summer better prepared. I encourage you all to do the same. Make a plan, be prepared, and keep you and yours safe when disaster strikes. www.bear-hunting.com

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George Martin New Brunswick Spring 2023 Father & Son Hunt

Marshall DesJardin Idaho Spring 2023 10 Years Old - 1st Bear!

Dennis Miller Idaho Spring 2023 6’ 11.5” Square!

Joseph Hilger Manitoba 2017

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Bear Hunting

Nov/Dec 2023

Hunter Fuhrman Fall 2023 391 Lbs

John Hennis Maine - Fall 2023 First Bear!

Northern Pride Lodge

Colton & Caleb Boone West Virginia Spring 2023

Find us on

Michael Southworth & Son Wisconsin - 2023 1st Bear - 408lbs!

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Photo Gallery

Email your high resolution bear photos to info@bear-hunting.com or mail a copy to PO Box 168, West Fork, Arkansas 72774. We reserve the right to not publish photos based on image and photographic quality. www.bear-hunting.com

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