Tman and Grizzly95 mis-adventures in bear hunting

[Grizzly95]

So it starts with another member (Tman) and I shooting a few messages back and forth about wanting to get our first bears last week. We text a few times then a few phone calls and finally on Monday we are able to get schedules to match up to try to hunt bear. I get up Monday morning and head north for our "blind date" as my wife calls it since we have never met in person. I meet him at his place somewhere between 7 and 8. I know, that seems a little late; but since I am the one not working in my house I needed to wake up the kids and make sure everyone is capable of going to school since one of the 3 little monsters was feeling sick the day before. Anyway, we head up to a spot he had seen lots of sign and got a pic of a sweet bear. Keep in mind, I am beartarded, I really know nothing about bears, sign, habitat to look for, or even how to tell different berry bushes apart. I grew up in orchards and asparagus in Yakima valley, so I can tell you the difference in a fruit tree by the leaves and such, not a berry bush though. Tman showed me how bears will peel a tree, first for me! So we get into an area that every 20 to 40 yards there is a peeled tree, stumps torn to hell, set up a call and wait.........nothing. We spend the rest of the day exploring all over looking for more sign, setting up the call, moving to another place, calling some more.......finally dark thirty is setting in and we have not seen a bear, and only a handful of deer. We are about ready to start killing squirrels, if we killed every one of them that we saw we would have about enough meat to fill a crock pot. We are convinced that when we see a fricken squirrel we need to move to another area, bears and squirrels must not inhabit the same areas. So far at least a couple newer members have met and started a new hunting bond, soon enough we will have our day...stay tuned.....

[high country]

good that you found a compadre'. it seems many of the wetside guys are pards, perhaps we damn near idahoers need a meet and greet.  FWIW, I have killed several bears, but most of my usual haunts are dry of them this year.....it is an odd year for my area.

[bighorns2bushytails]

Guys squirels are the doorbells for bears!  When i got my bear the squirrels were going crazy!  i could hear the squirells far away and the sound of the birds and squirrels just got closer and closer... dont fear the squirrel! 

--BH2BT

[Grizzly95]

Now the song "don't fear the reaper" is in my head only ad-libbed to squirrel! An eastside rendezvous would be great.

[Tman]

Another trip like that and the squirrels will be haunting my dreams.   Before the season started, bears were all over in the area we hit Monday,  I couldn't go in there without seeing a bear.  We haven't gotten any response to the calling, not a cat, coyote... NOTHING.  Either they all moved to the city, or are harder to find now that I have a tag in my pocket... 

[Grizzly95]

OK, so we tried another another day last week with nothing (as far as bears). We saw a decent little buck that stood still long enough for the 2 of us to notice and decide to try for, we put a mini stalk on him but he was one step ahead and peeled hooves and moved on.

  Tman came to town tonight and we went in on a Foxpro Spitfire. Tomorrow we will see if ya'll are feedin us a line of **it!!!  We are gonna try a spot we checked out lasst week, lots of sign but no bears sitting in the tracks. We both agree that we should spend a day just walking the area and calling. You guys have been great of the tips, but we have have come to the conclusion that bears are really a pain in the ass to hunt. I hope that tomorrow night we are posting pictures of us with a bear.

   At first I am sure we both were sitting there listening to the call thinking " I hope I shoot first, it's my bear" now we just want to see one. Even a sow with cubs that we just have to sit out will do. Stay tuned.....

[markts]

Good luck on your future unbearable hunts-it will come together

[bearhunter99]

Keep in mind, I am beartarded,

Now that's funny right there.  The one thing I have learned with bears is that persistence will eventually pay off.  Keep at it and you will get one!

[Buckmark]

I get up Monday morning and head north for our "blind date"
*
Tman came to town tonight and we went in on a Foxpro Spitfire.
*
Wow 1 blind date and 6 days later your buying community property together...

[markts]

Things seem to be moving along quite fast

[bighorns2bushytails]

good luck, took me 4 seasons to get my first bear.  itll happen but itll be sweeter after youve put some honest time in.  good luck!

--bh2bt

[Grizzly95]

Well we went out again yesterday and covered some ground. Got up on some old skid roads that circled some clear cuts on the high side and nasty thick drainages on the lower, tried the foxpro at our first spot a to no avail. We shut the call off and just sit and listen for a bit, then crash, crash, look up and just see something dark smashing through........Bullwinkle! We had this bull at about 15 - 20 feet. A little staredown ensued, I was hoping it wouldn't decide to stop us into the dirt, I am sure Tman can out run my fat arse! After a few the moose turned and blazed a trail through the brush.

 Off we go wallking around the area, Tman hears something below us! We look and BBBBBBBEAR! We look at eachother, the bear, eachother, the bear, finally convinced we are not hallucinating we watch him for a few..........I will let Tman finish.

 All in all a good day, saw a bear, a bull moose, a monster bull elk, and several does.

 What sounds should we get for the foxpro? We were just using the ones it came with, mostly coyote and rabbit calls. We used the rabbit calls yesterday. The whitetail buck fawn bleat sounds wierd, not sure if it was a good one to use or if we need to download some different ones.

[Gutpile]

NOT COOL!!!!!!!! Suck us in and just let us hang like that?? thats just downright mean to treat fellow bear nuts like that.

[Grizzly95]

Sorry guys, I had to let a little out on the story. I don't think Tman likes to type as much as me, plus he has a job and I don't start for another week or two so I have nothing but time. Time to lick my wounds today, my legs are all kinds of sore; but it was a great day to be in the woulds.

[Woodchuck]

Come on, come on, did you guys whack the bear or no?