First ever bear hunt
- Thread starter chinook
- Start date
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All I know is that I'm taking my winchester Siuox Carbine 94/30-30 to Bobcageon this weekend to shoot a big a$$ bear for yummy meat in the freezer and to help our enviroment! 
Bear bait is out/ stands are in. Got camera , got beer ( not for hunting of course)
Gonna be a great weekend
Bear bait is out/ stands are in. Got camera , got beer ( not for hunting of course) Gonna be a great weekend
chinnook personaly i use 50lb bags of dog food combined with table scraps , lots of used deep fryer oil* 5-10gl per bait trip, pastries an donuts galore and what ever sweets i can find this time of year they are loking to fatten up an ask any jenny craig graduates what the best foods for fattening up areand they will give you a good idea of what to use for bait.
momma bear good luck and watch out fer them kamakaze hornets and wasps
momma bear good luck and watch out fer them kamakaze hornets and wasps
- Location
- London,Ontario
mommabear said:All I know is that I'm taking my winchester Siuox Carbine 94/30-30 to Bobcageon this weekend to shoot a big a$$ bear for yummy meat in the freezer and to help our enviroment!
Gonna be a great weekend
I wish you the best of luck in your hunt mommabear
Take picture's!!!! And most of all, enjoy yourself
Chinook,
What MMA did you pick? I've hunted Portland Creek Area 2 before, as has CV-32. Great area for moose, bears and coyote!
Your .30-06 is fine for bear. I'd go with 180gr bullet. My choice would be the Nosler Partition. It is considered a "premium" bullet, actually the benchmark to which all others are compared! You don't need the XP3...pick yourself up 2-3 boxes of the Federal load with the Nosler bullet and hit the range. Sight in your rifle for the actual load you'll be using in the field. Get the trigger time in shooting from field positions, including standing, sitting and using your pack or shooting sticks as a brace.
My preferred shot on our super-large Newfoundland Black Bears is the shoulder shot. I try to break both shoulders to immobilize the animal and prevent it from running away. By October, your bear will be nice and fat, as a consequence, if you go for a standard behind the shoulder shot and the bear takes off, you won't find much of a blood trail. The fat and thick hide tends to close up pretty quick behind the bullet and as a result, prevents blood from leaking out. I have absolutely NO interest in beating the brush for a potentially wounded and very pissed-off 500-600lb bear!
As for bait, the more you can get the better. I usually get a buddy to save the stale donuts from the local Tim Hortons for me. Old cooking fat/oil from the local fast food restaurant is great. I often buy a couple of sacks of cheap dog food as a bulk filler and liberally coat it with the lard/grease/fat. Molassess is also very good and even bread. I also take along a few pounds of honey to do "honey burns". The smell can travel for miles and will draw a bear to you. All you need is a small can, fill 1/3 to 1/2 with honey and put it on a small sterno fuel camp stove. As the honey cooks and starts to burn, the sweet smell is carried by the wind.
I usually try to set up several bait stations to increase my odds for success. Bring along a pick and shovel and several plastic buckets or barrels to put the bait in. I like to dig a hole, put the bucket in and then place 4'-5' sections of 8" diameter trees over the bait. Too heavy for foxes or coyotes to move, so if you come back the next day and the bait is gone and the tree sections moved you know you've got a bear hitting your bait station. Some guys do the same basic thing, only they put the bait in plastic shopping bags and hang it up in a tree high enough so that the bear can reach it by standing on its hind legs. Only thing with this method is I find the whiskey jacks will get into the bait.
My last piece of advice is to expect the unexpected! You'll be surprised at just how quiet these monsters can move. They can creep up on you without you ever knowing that they're there, so be quiet while on your stand and keep movement to a minimum. When walking to/from bait stations, camp, etc...keep your rifle ready. You might bounce a bear just walking or spot one out on the barrens/bog when you least expect it.
Good luck with the hunt! We're heading out to the Dashwoods in a few days!
What MMA did you pick? I've hunted Portland Creek Area 2 before, as has CV-32. Great area for moose, bears and coyote!
Your .30-06 is fine for bear. I'd go with 180gr bullet. My choice would be the Nosler Partition. It is considered a "premium" bullet, actually the benchmark to which all others are compared! You don't need the XP3...pick yourself up 2-3 boxes of the Federal load with the Nosler bullet and hit the range. Sight in your rifle for the actual load you'll be using in the field. Get the trigger time in shooting from field positions, including standing, sitting and using your pack or shooting sticks as a brace.
My preferred shot on our super-large Newfoundland Black Bears is the shoulder shot. I try to break both shoulders to immobilize the animal and prevent it from running away. By October, your bear will be nice and fat, as a consequence, if you go for a standard behind the shoulder shot and the bear takes off, you won't find much of a blood trail. The fat and thick hide tends to close up pretty quick behind the bullet and as a result, prevents blood from leaking out. I have absolutely NO interest in beating the brush for a potentially wounded and very pissed-off 500-600lb bear!
As for bait, the more you can get the better. I usually get a buddy to save the stale donuts from the local Tim Hortons for me. Old cooking fat/oil from the local fast food restaurant is great. I often buy a couple of sacks of cheap dog food as a bulk filler and liberally coat it with the lard/grease/fat. Molassess is also very good and even bread. I also take along a few pounds of honey to do "honey burns". The smell can travel for miles and will draw a bear to you. All you need is a small can, fill 1/3 to 1/2 with honey and put it on a small sterno fuel camp stove. As the honey cooks and starts to burn, the sweet smell is carried by the wind.
I usually try to set up several bait stations to increase my odds for success. Bring along a pick and shovel and several plastic buckets or barrels to put the bait in. I like to dig a hole, put the bucket in and then place 4'-5' sections of 8" diameter trees over the bait. Too heavy for foxes or coyotes to move, so if you come back the next day and the bait is gone and the tree sections moved you know you've got a bear hitting your bait station. Some guys do the same basic thing, only they put the bait in plastic shopping bags and hang it up in a tree high enough so that the bear can reach it by standing on its hind legs. Only thing with this method is I find the whiskey jacks will get into the bait.
My last piece of advice is to expect the unexpected! You'll be surprised at just how quiet these monsters can move. They can creep up on you without you ever knowing that they're there, so be quiet while on your stand and keep movement to a minimum. When walking to/from bait stations, camp, etc...keep your rifle ready. You might bounce a bear just walking or spot one out on the barrens/bog when you least expect it.
Good luck with the hunt! We're heading out to the Dashwoods in a few days!
x-man I'll be in area 1. I know the area well as I grew up there. Was talking to a CO freind of mine and he has told me where there has been a big bear hanging out all summer and fall. He figures he's around 500lb+. Hopefully I can find him when I get up that way.
- Location
- London,Ontario
mommabear said:Thanks hun, leaving in about 2 hours!
Awesome.I hope you get yours! Like I said, take picture's!
Again, Good Luck!
Hey Guys...
I just got back from my black bear hunt, and personally I won't shoot black bear with anything but a crossbow, possibly a 12 guage slug..
I find that an arrow does more through and through damage than a rifle or a slug for that matter...
When I shoot bear,, I'm looking for double lung and a complete pass through. That arrow cuts a clean almost 2" tunnel through the entire chest cavity, allowing the animal to bleed out quickly.
My bear dropped a meer 15 feet from my arrow and was literally dead in seconds...
My partner shot his bear with a 300WSM and it ran about 60 yards..Granted his bear was 475lb and mine was only 175lb, I believe the arrow would have dropped him closer...
The bigger the exit hole,, the quicker tha animal will pile up..
Just my 0.2 cents
ttyle
Eric..
O/ST
I just got back from my black bear hunt, and personally I won't shoot black bear with anything but a crossbow, possibly a 12 guage slug..
I find that an arrow does more through and through damage than a rifle or a slug for that matter...
When I shoot bear,, I'm looking for double lung and a complete pass through. That arrow cuts a clean almost 2" tunnel through the entire chest cavity, allowing the animal to bleed out quickly.
My bear dropped a meer 15 feet from my arrow and was literally dead in seconds...
My partner shot his bear with a 300WSM and it ran about 60 yards..Granted his bear was 475lb and mine was only 175lb, I believe the arrow would have dropped him closer...
The bigger the exit hole,, the quicker tha animal will pile up..
Just my 0.2 cents
ttyle
Eric..
O/ST
- Location
- London,Ontario
How did your bear hunt go mommabear? did ya bag one?
