Got me a Bear!!

[LongTatLaw]

Well, after several days of no hunting me and my buddy headed to the woods. Down near the Skook. Any way, got there late...no time to climb a tree. I start trying to call him a elk..and theres a young bull trying to bugle at me from 1/2 mile and not getting any closer...

I hear something 50-60 yards away...i whisper to my buddy to look for it..so he stands up (we were sitting against a log). He throws up his scope...is tracking some and whispers. Its a bear! I say shoot..shoot...shoot it...  he says he cant.

I stood up and see a bear 40 yards away walking slow in the open. I didnt mind taking the shot. 300 win mag started the job...he ran 10 yards and got stopped by a downed tree...when he began to crest it...shot number two put him down.

I dont have a pocket knife...no meat pack...no camera. We drive 1 hr home, get a buddy, and head back an hr drive.

Get there and my good buddy security guard opens the gate so I can drive to within a 1/4 mile of the bear. But he says i have less than an hr to get back out the gate before he gets off work... 65 minutes later with 1/2 a complete bear on my back Im back out the gate.

The rest was a late night stop by Michelle Nelson's Taxidermy shop.

Its a decent sized bear...not record book but beautiful to me. This has turned out to be a decent 1st year hunting in WA.

Thanks for reading.

dave

[LongTatLaw]

Some pics

[LongTatLaw]

More pics and Michelle at work on him in my personal album!!

[billythekidrock]

Congrats......where are you taking the meat for processing?

[Slider]

Nice Bear!!! Congrats

[addicted]

sounds like a good time

[saylean]

Grats buddy...sweet bear! I like it Glad to hear you enjoyed your first year hunting in WA...Thanks for the post!

Saylean~

[huntingnut]

Congrats on a nice bear.

[cohoho]

Excellent!  Gotta love getting those critters.   How are the rugs here, thin or half way decent?  A couple I have seen are very thin but might have been an early bears....

[Michelle_Nelson]

Longtats bear will make a nice rug.  The hair was not all the way prime but it was close.  It will deffinetly make a great rug. 

I must say for him never skinning out a bear for a rug he did a great job making the proper incissions and skinning the bear. 

[billythekidrock]

I think this bear will make a good rug. Not alot of "wooly" under fur, but nice long guard hairs. The pics don't do it justice. While the pads seemed small (split & salted) the skull is decent sized and it will square just over 6ft.

Definately a great first bear!

[boneaddict]

Well he's not your big 400 pounder hat you had cornered, but he is a Dadny.  Congrats on your bear and great year in Washington.  I'm glad this hunt was a little more trouble free compared to your elk.  Congrats to you!

[littletoes]

Nice bear!
And here I was thinking all the bears had denned up/1

Congrats! 

[sisu]

Good job.

[billythekidrock]

Nice bear!
And here I was thinking all the bears had denned up/1

Congrats! 

Not yet, on the westside, if at all.