success

[D-man]

         Bear down!  An experience that has eluded me for nearly five years.  Five years of big game hunting filled with many beginner blunders, close calls , and no kills.  Then four years ago my hunting buddy, shanevg, began to get fired up about bear hunting.  We spent four years becoming familiar with the local hills.  The past two years we became radical, logging in hundreds of miles on our boots and thousands of miles through our glasses.   Our knowledge of the hills finally came to a pinnacle as we both bagged beautiful bear last week.
    After going to extreme lengths to get into the backcountry we ultimately got weathered out and opted for a relaxing car camping trip filled with a little fishing and a little hunting.  On the fifth day of the trip my friend and his fiancée had to go home early for some family stuff.  So I figured I would head down from the mountains too, but shanevg convinced me to check out a spot off the road on the way home.  So I asked if I could borrow his fiancés friend so I wouldn’t have to go by myself and we headed off on one of the many forestry service roads.  About thirty minutes down the road I looked up between two trees into a clearing and noticed a brown log, but one with ears.  I drove past the clearing and thought to myself, “ wait a minute that could be a bear.”  I rolled back to the spot and sure enough the “bear log” was indeed a brown black bear.  In no time flat I was sneaking my way through trees to the edge of the meadow.  After what seemed ages I found the perfect spot and just before the bear stepped into the woods I fired.  The bear just took off into the forest.  Since I had never seen a big game animal killed in the field I thought once hit an animal would simply roll over dead, jump up in the air, or do something other than run off.   So I convinced myself I missed.   But to make sure I waited 25 minutes and trudged up to the spot where I had shot.  I look closely around the ground for any sign, but to no avail, not one drop of blood, footprint, or broken twig.  I took one step into the trees and there the bear was folded over in a hole next to a stump.  I had officially killed my first big game animal.  I have to admit the bear looked a lot bigger than what it really was.  It was small enough that I was able to gut it out and basically throw it over my shoulders and carry it to a switch back in the road, about fifty feet away.  But for my first bear and big game animal I am okay shooting a smaller one, especially a unique color phase black bear.  I brought the bear home whole and I called up some of my friends to ask for help.  To my surprise I had more of my close gal friends come to help me bone and butcher the bear than guy friends.  So with one successful hunt under my belt I have been chomping at the bit to get more, and now my eyes are set on my first deer. 

            For my hunting buddy and I this has been an amazing bear season we have sneaked up on four bear, shot at four bear, and have killed three.  Finally all of our hard work is paying off.  Besides bear hunting we have also been committed to deer hunting.  I have never shot one but have been deer hunting for five years.  Now I go to school in Spokane and am having a heck of a time trying to find a good spot.  I have done some scouting and know of really only two areas to go to so if anyone could help me out that would be fantastic.  Anyways enjoy the pictures and good hunting to all.

[yelp]

my close gal friends come to help my bone.....  This is where spelling/grammer can get you in trouble. ..LOL Good Job.

[75johndeere]

i cant see any pictures

[saylean]

Grats on the hunt man. Good work. Thanks for posting...now where B the pics.

[hunterbuilder]

Way to go Dman! Congrats on the bear and that's cool you've got chick friends that'll help you out. 

[BENCHLEG]

nice job but remember one thing. ALWAYS DO A FOLLOW UP AND CHECK EVERYTHING ESPECIALLY WITH A BEAR THE HIDE HOLDS A LOT OF BLOOD. BE A RESPONSIBLE HUNTER, AND HAVE FUN. J

[Ridgerunner]

Your first critter is an awesome feeling, I bet you are on cloud 9.

[Timber]

Congratulations D-man! That is very cool. The first of many big game animals I'm sure!

[hard hunter]

Congrats on the bear that is great.  As for the deer you might try a little north like Deer Park or above and just talk some farmer into letting you hunt for your "first" deer or maybee have one of your gal friends bat their eyes and ask for you.  Good luck, maybee next year try and draw a doe tag-- it gets you access to land easier

[bucklucky]

That would make a nice pillow  !

Congrats on your first bear. Know that you got one under your belt go find its dad! Pretty color too!!

[shanevg]

Congrats on the bear Daniel!  Since it took you so long to finally get your story up (he shot the bear on August I better post some more pictures or else they'll never be up.

[shanevg]

And here's Sarah...

[D-man]

you stole my thunder, I was just going to put those pictures up...

[robb92]

Congrats on the nice color phase bear!!!

[tlbradford]

Way to go.  It sounds like you already had caught the fever, but now it only gets worse.

[GoldTip]

Congratulations, thats a good looking bear, hope your going to at least an the hide.  Have you checked any of the public land area's up around Springdale and Hunters area for deer hunting.  Also, any of the backside of Mt. Spokane holds good deer numbers as well.

[Intruder]

Congratulations, thats a good looking bear, hope your going to at least an the hide.  Have you checked any of the public land area's up around Springdale and Hunters area for deer hunting.  Also, any of the backside of Mt. Spokane holds good deer numbers as well.

+1

Try knocking on some doors South of town too.

[Machias]

 

[Michelle_Nelson]

COngrats on the nice color phase bear. 

[bowsandhose]

nice work

[bucklucky]

I will be haveing all my bearhides dry tanned from now on and hang them from the nose like BC chaser did. Looks like he had a coathanger on the wall with 5 bears hanging on it.

[D-man]

I sent the hide in to be tanned, but i think thats as far as i will go with it.  Some of my friends think i should make it into a body mount give it a picnic basket and name it "Boo Boo."  About the deer hunting... I have spent two scouting trips running around the Colville national forest.  Opening day last year i went back on  some of the roads and they were gated with a fence.  I couldn't walk through it or around it.  there was a sign about having to be a member or a guest to access the area.  To say the least i was upset.  I have also been talking to some farmers north of town.  I have permission to hunt on one small ranch, but the last two years the farmer has only let me use my shotgun, and plus the deer herds seem to be all does.  Maybe i will scout out Mt. Spokane this weekend and see whats up.  Thanks for the info.

[RightPlace-RightTime]

How long did you wait to see if there was momma around before you shot?

[flyguide]

NICE JOB!  Your first bear and big game animal, that is cool.  And you did it after sticking with it for a few years and it sounds like not much help from an "old timer".  That is rewarding, stick with your hunting and getting those girls involved too is a good thing. Teaching other young people (myself too) that it is ok to go out and 'earn some meat' the hard way is a good lifestyle and an important thing to do.

[shanevg]

How long did you wait to see if there was momma around before you shot?

What would it matter? The regs say nothing about shoot yearlings with sows.

[S.O.B]

How long did you wait to see if there was momma around before you shot?

+1

[cohoho]

Great job on your first, no matter what, the first is always the most memorable.  Great to see you got the ladies involved in the experience also.  Always good to have new folks getting involved into the sport...  Good luck for future game...

[ebusa]

Congrats on the Bear!  Hopefully I will be able to bag one of them some day.

Pick up that rifle off the ground!!!  hehe

[timber tiger]

How long did you wait to see if there was momma around before you shot?

+2