Calling Bears ??

[ghosthunter]

Are you guys calling non stop. Or calling a bit and stopping?

[Bango skank]

i wouldnt say non stop, but not stopping for very long

[hunter399]

Are you at full volume or what.
Sometimes coyote calling I start out soft.
I guess it's hard to explain online.

[ibuyre]

I’m on call attempt #8 or 10. I feel pretty confident some bears have at least heard me but the wind is never perfect. Might switch from fawn in distress to rabbit for awhile see if that works any better. I know one of these times it’s going to work but man I feel like I’m just scaring them away at this point.

Man I know this feeling. Last year, I had a spring bear tag for a area. I know the area OK, and in my scouting in the spring (from the year/years before), I know where a real beast is, my hand, with fingers spread will fit inside his prints, with space all around. In the spring he hangs out in a swampy thick nasty area, with grassy meadows around it. At night he comes out of the thick to eat the grass. I spent that entire spring bear season trying to call him out of that swamp in daylight.... like 20 tries, e caller. At dawn, at dusk, mid day... was always mindful of the wind, and wouldn't call if my stink was getting blown into the swamp. He NEVER came out in daylight... When normal bear season starts, he's gone, he moves onto someplace else, I don't know where...

He might be gone now though, a friend in the area, told me that someone hunting on a farm in corn fields , latter that year, about 20 miles down river from that location shot a 600lb+ bear. It was coming out of the river and eating corn at night. I think he said he caught it coming out of the riverbed at dusk.

[dilleytech]

I called in my first bear yesterday and arrowed it at 20 yards. With a jack rabbit in distress hand call. Took all of about 3 minutes for it to come running in. Pretty exciting.

Did you see it first, or were you cold calling?  Good job.

Cold calling

[dilleytech]

My first bear called in. Won’t be my last.

[Okanagan]

Am no expert but have called close to 20 black bears and half a dozen grizzlies, plus observed another dozen or more blacks when they could hear a calling sound. I'll reply to some of the questions in this thread, strung though the experiences here.  I've never shot a called bear, though have called them for others in Saskatchewan, over much of BC and both sides of WA.

Intermittent or non-stop? I had called half a dozen black bears with intermittent calling before I heard that non-stop is better. It may be but intermittent works. My grandson called one to 58 yards on opening day this year using a minute of jack rabbit spaced between five minutes of silence.  I call more now than I used to but don't call non-stop unless using an electronic call. My usual is 15-20 seconds of sound with a minute or maybe 2 of silence.

What sound to call bears?  Most any prey sound, with jack rabbit distress my first choice.  Most of my bears have been called with hand calls, the majority with an old Weems jack rabbit sound.  Have called some with a sweet Rainshadow fawn/hare call, with lip squeeks…  When a bear is close I whimper the call rather than blow it loudly.  I've had two blacks and one grizzly come to rifle shots that killed a deer or elk.

Time on stand till a bear arrived within range has been from 30 seconds to 40 minutes, and I usually don't stay more than half an hour on stand.

How bears approach:  Some bears run toward the call sound, some sneak, some mosey in and some feed on their way in and act/pretend as if they do not hear the call, but they are working closer all the time.    Most will work their way downwind of the call sound.   

Then there are the bears that will not come to a call.  Some of those, like a huge one in the North Cascades, were in the middle of a superb berry patch and would not leave it to cross a basin to the call sound.  That one would look longingly at the fawn/rabbit distress sound, sigh and keep on eating huckleberries.  With hand signals from my son, my nephew stalked within 40 yards of that one and killed it in the best berry patch we found on the mountain.  I've seen a few bears bolt and run at the first sound from a predator call.  Either they are inconsistent and unpredictable in calling contexts, or there are unknown factors we haven’t figured out when it comes to calling bears.  I suspect the latter.

[Bango skank]

Then there are the bears that will not come to a call. 

Met one of those this year.  On september 2nd i was hunting a new area.  Parked next to a rocky cliff with a draw full of elderberries below.  Tried hunting but the wind was so bad i basically hid in another rocky outcrop for several hours hoping the weather would straighten up, then i gave up and decided to bail.  Got back to my truck and took my pack off, and as i had my key in the door unlocking it i heard a bunch of brush moving around in the draw.  Walked like 20 yards to the edge and a big boy was ripping up elderberries, but the brush was too thick for a good shot.  Watched him feeding away and finally decided to try calling to him.  He completely ignored me.  Once he was out of sight for a bit and i couldnt hear him anymore i thought you know, the road loops around down there.  I should tiptoe down it.  Started to but thought naw, i wont see him.  Ill just go back to my rig and drive down the road to see what things look like that way before i head home for the night and clean up.  Wouldnt ya know it i get maybe 1/4 mile down the road and that jerk was standing broadside in the open about 20 yards from the road watching me drive by.  He just didnt seem impressed with me at all.

[saylean]

Ive heard of a book that discusses all this....it was Ultimate something...
 

[Jpmiller]

What time of day are you guys calling? This is my first year and the only responses ive gotten are coyotes and whitetails in the morning. Very limited sample size though.

[Bango skank]

Any time.  Theyre active all day

[Okanagan]

Then there are the bears that will not come to a call. 

Met one of those this year. 
…

  He just didnt seem impressed with me at all.

 

[dilleytech]

What time of day are you guys calling? This is my first year and the only responses ive gotten are coyotes and whitetails in the morning. Very limited sample size though.

I called mine in at 3pm

[Jpmiller]

Any time.  Theyre active all day

That's about inline with what I was seeing on the cameras my dad runs at his place. The things were wandering by at noon when it was 95*

[SpicyTacos]

They don’t pick up my calls...one day I’ll get one to answer.