Post by: bearpaw on September 01, 2014, 11:54:19 PM
We started our fall bear season today with a bang, actually numerous bangs! 13 bear spotted, several bear out of range so no shot taken, 2 bear missed, 3 bear wounded, 1 bear killed, 1 bear we hope we can find in the morning. It was an exciting day of hunting, lots of bear seen and plenty of action.
All hunters but 1 late arrival shot good on paper yesterday before we started the hunt and the late arrival shot good on paper today at lunch. There's something about putting a bear in front of a guy who has never killed one before that tends to destroy accuracy, it just seems to suffer.
Today the man who was spot on was duffer, a long time member of the forum, a great guy I've got to know and can call a friend.
We have another TV show in camp and I got them set up watching an orchard before daylight. Duffer and I headed for another property and checked a couple orchards and then went for a hike. We weren't out of sight of the truck and Duffer spotted a fresh bear track, then we saw where bear had been working the berry brush. Soon we had worked our way to one of my favorite spots and we sat down to watch.
We were only about 30 minutes into the hunt and we both had heard a squirrel running around in the bushes below and then suddenly a loud snap, pretty soon another loud snap! Awesome, we were on high alert, it had to be a bear to make that much noise. I glassed and scanned repeatedly, Duffer got up and moved a few feet to a better spot and before he could sit down I suddenly spotted a nice black obviously a boar bear standing out in the open. I frantically waved at Duffer and he immediately spotted the bear, dropped down to shoot, got onto the bear and whammo, bear rolling head over heals downhill, what a great sight.
The bear came to rest out of sight in some thick brush and we sat and watched for a few minutes in which we heard two moans, we both figured that was it. I went for the truck to drive into the bottom of the canyon and Duffer sat and watched from where we had shot. I made my way up the bottom of the canyon, pretty soon I was in the right spot, Duffer gave me a couple directions and I found our black beast. I had told Duffer it was a nice boar, but it actually was a little bigger than I had initially thought. Duffer came down and we sat and savored the moment for a few minutes as we notched his tag.
We took photos, gutted, and finally got the bear drug out and loaded and headed back to the house, in the meantime I got a text that the other hunter had seen a nice black bear but didn't get a shot. He would continue to watch while we took care of Duffer's bear. While we were skinning and cleaning up the bear the other hunter shot a nice cinnamon bear at about 100 yards, so we headed up to help look. Unfortunately there were only a few scattered drops of blood that played out as the bear headed up over the hill, we searched for a couple hours or so and had to finally give up. From the description of the shot and the lack of good blood I'm pretty sure it was a flesh wound, that bear will probably heal up and another hunter in the future may get a chance at him. This evening we spotted a smaller black but didn't get him either. It was lively at the dinner table tonight as everyone swapped bear stories.
Congrats to Duffer, his bear skinned out to an easy 6'1", the 6 to 8 year old boar was quite skinny, should have weighed 250-260 but probably was about 30 pounds lighter than that as you can see in the photos. A great shot by a great guy, I love it when a plan comes together!
It's bedtime, I will talk more bear stories soon.
Post by: K357** on September 02, 2014, 12:06:07 AM
Post by: carpsniperg2 on September 02, 2014, 12:12:15 AM
Post by: Duffer on September 02, 2014, 08:42:50 AM
I have never met a nicer group of folks and am honored to call them friends as well.
And these guys bust their buts to get us on animals! We were up at 3 am for a huge breakfast and some didn't return with their guides until 9pm ish. So we didn't hit our bunks until 10pm. Then dale updates posts and such, Tara is cleaning up dinner and the guides are organizing for the next days 3 am wake-up! !!! All season long!!! And they get up earlier than we do the next the morn! Just the lack of sleep would put me in the ground
I'll post more pics when I get back home down in my thread. Kinda getting misty eyed here.
oh yeah.... I get to fix my signature! No more "haven't killed a big game animal since the '80s"
Post by: Jacque on September 02, 2014, 08:57:46 AM
Post by: BOWHUNTER45 on September 02, 2014, 09:08:26 AM
Post by: Gringo31 on September 02, 2014, 09:27:40 AM
Post by: combs338 on September 02, 2014, 09:33:05 AM
Post by: h20hunter on September 02, 2014, 09:34:19 AM
Post by: Ripper on September 02, 2014, 10:39:49 AM
Post by: GotMyTag on September 02, 2014, 12:34:40 PM
Post by: HUNTINCOUPLE on September 02, 2014, 12:45:54 PM
Post by: wsmnut on September 02, 2014, 01:23:25 PM
Thanks! I always look forward to this thread.
Tell Ray to get busy! :chuckle:
Post by: hrd2fnd on September 02, 2014, 02:18:30 PM
Post by: bowhunterforever on September 02, 2014, 06:35:07 PM
I'm looking forward to this years thread. Best of luck to the hunters:yeah: :tup:
Post by: bearpaw on September 02, 2014, 11:14:35 PM
Dale,
Thanks! I always look forward to this thread.
Tell Ray to get busy! :chuckle:
I think Ray is looking forward to your hunt, I'm sure he likes the area you are going this year better. :tup:
Post by: bearpaw on September 02, 2014, 11:33:57 PM
Duffer, we were up above on the property where you killed your bear, near the top of the mountain. Hope you made it home safely. :tup:
This evening we had a yearling bear walk out at 40 yards, then we spotted another big bear we went after but couldn't find him. Saw lots of deer and turkeys today, another fun exciting day.
One of the other hunters who had not shot yet hit a bear hard just before dark at 50 yards. It ran down into a large brush patch and let out a death moan, they searched until long after dark but couldn't find it, super thick brush. They are headed back in the morning to hopefully recover that bear. A good cool night and raining, so hopefully it will be OK if we can find it.
The bear that was hit at dark last night never stopped walking, apparently another flesh wound, guide Ray said the blood trail finally played out. Only two guys in camp who have not shot at a bear, I just hope we start hitting them better, you gotta hit the vitals or most bear will not die. It's bedtime, my tail is dragging the ground, good luck to everyone else who is busy hunting. :tup:
Post by: bearpaw on September 03, 2014, 07:37:35 AM
Post by: idahohuntr on September 03, 2014, 11:46:54 AM
I had a hunter last year miss 4 bucks in a day and a half...I took him back and fired his gun from the bench to make sure it was on...but then I made him practice using his shooting sticks or from a kneeling position...replicating what shots were going to be like in the field without a bench rest. Next buck, 1 shot kill...not sure if really making him practice for an afternoon getting more comfortable with shooting in field conditions was what made the difference or not :dunno: "buck fever" is difficult to replicate in practice sessions :chuckle:
All hunters but 1 late arrival shot good on paper yesterday before we started the hunt and the late arrival shot good on paper today at lunch. There's something about putting a bear in front of a guy who has never killed one before that tends to destroy accuracy, it just seems to suffer.
Post by: bearpaw on September 03, 2014, 12:30:14 PM
Post by: elkoholic1 on September 03, 2014, 03:53:41 PM
Post by: Duffer on September 03, 2014, 07:21:35 PM
Post by: bearpaw on September 04, 2014, 09:41:12 AM
Post by: Gringo31 on September 04, 2014, 10:03:17 AM
Quote
my hunter does not have a cougar tag
NOOOOOOO!!! :bash:
Post by: bearmanric on September 04, 2014, 10:09:39 AM
Post by: bearpaw on September 04, 2014, 02:35:28 PM
One of the bear hunters just went to town and got a cougar tag, he will be up there this evening looking for felix! :chuckle:
Here's a pic taken at 40 yards with my pocket camera and then cropped to enlarge, the cat was on a game trail that went under that tree, looks like a young tom, also got him on the tv video:
Post by: bearmanric on September 04, 2014, 02:47:26 PM
Post by: bearpaw on September 04, 2014, 02:58:03 PM
This is cougar #8 seen while hunting this year, 7 in turkey season, WDFW needs to do something, even with mild winters the deer herd is declining in some areas due to the ridiculous cougar management in this state. :bash:
Post by: bearpaw on September 04, 2014, 03:23:06 PM
Yesterday afternoon guide Brian and his hunters had some fun times. After recovering the bear in the morning and having lunch they went out for the afternoon hunt. They were all in the truck headed to the hunting spot and a bear ran into the road, Brian slammed on the brakes, jumped out barking like a dog, and chased the bear about 6 feet up the nearest tree, then he grabbed a stick and encouraged it to climb farther up. Unfortunately the tree was literally right on the property line of private property so they had to leave the bear, but it was good fun and good for a few photos. I'll post a pic of the treed bear as soon as I get one from one of the guys.
They went around a couple corners up the road and there was another bear just off the side of the road, less than 100 yards, sorta caught everyone off guard, nobody figured on seeing two bear before they even got to where they were going to hunt, but they were on the right property so one of the hunters managed to get it together, get out of the truck, got into shooting position and whammo, he did a good job of educating that bear. Yep another miss, he said he got the fever! Needless to say there was some humor at the dinner table last night! :chuckle:
Post by: bearpaw on September 06, 2014, 08:01:44 AM
Post by: 7mmfan on September 06, 2014, 08:17:51 AM
Post by: Duffer on September 06, 2014, 08:19:59 AM
Did Baker get one? On camera?
Post by: bearpaw on September 06, 2014, 02:21:20 PM
That really is awesome Dale!
Did Baker get one? On camera?
Baker had to leave 1/2 day short and did not kill a bear. He wounded one that got away, missed another one, we passed a 306 yard shot on a big boar and they got at least five other bear, turkeys, the cougar at 40 yards, and lots of deer all on video. He incorporated another bear hunt into the show and said it would make a great show. I think he's going to try and come back for a fall turkey hunt and if there are any bear around we'll try to fill the bear tag then too.
The group from Tennessee all filled their tags, one guy got his bear the second day a nice boar, the young guy in the military who had missed a couple bear got the big boar in the end, it was sorta like it was meant to happen that way. His boar was probably 300ish, the hide measured 6'8". The dad killed a barren sow that was about 5'10", definitely one the biggest sows we've taken, her teeth looked like she was probably 12-15 years old.
It was the guy from Kansas that killed a bear last year who didn't see a bear this year, his dad wounded one that got away, but neither of them killed a bear.
Brett decided to stay another couple days so we still hope to get him filled out.
Duffer, your bear is still 2nd largest for the season. :tup:
Here's another bear taken by Bryan, he started hunting on the 3rd, we killed his bear the next day. Duffer, I posted him on the same farm exactly where you shot your bear, I took Baker to the top and we hiked in. Just before dark we heard Bryan shoot and we headed back to the truck to go down and help him. We got to Bryan and he explained that he had watched a sow and two cubs for a long time and then another bear showed up which he shot, it ran off but he was sure he heard it rolling down the hill in the thick brush about 10-15 minutes after he had shot. We were looking for the dead bear long after dark and ran head on into the sow and cubs at only 30 feet, the sow was mad and huffing at us, her cubs ran up a big fir tree only 30 feet from us, Will the cameraman got it all on video. I didn't have a gun so I pulled out my hunting knife, I wasn't going to face a mad sow with no weapon at all. Finally we ran them off and continued the search for the bear that had been shot. We could not find the dead bear after hours of searching so had to go back in the morning to search and found the bear in thick brush about 75 yards from where we had been the night before. Gladly the night was cold and we salvaged everything except the rib cage. Bryan was very happy to get his first bear plus we added a lot of good content to the TV show, I love it when a plan comes together. :tup:
Post by: bearpaw on September 07, 2014, 06:49:52 AM
Post by: bearmanric on September 07, 2014, 09:06:27 AM
Post by: Duffer on September 07, 2014, 09:16:06 AM
Brett just shot a bear, guide Daniel is waiting a few minutes then going to look for it. :tup:
Excellent! Tell him congrats from his one time roomie :tup:
Post by: bearpaw on September 07, 2014, 04:19:53 PM
The bear was missed, bullet recovered from the ground, does not appear to have hit the animal, no bloodtrail at all, they are out hunting again this evening! :(
Good News:
Rick you should find some good hunting, local taxi is taking in way more bear than last year and we have been seeing more bear everywhere than we did last year.
Post by: bearpaw on September 07, 2014, 06:44:49 PM
Post by: pd on September 07, 2014, 10:08:42 PM
Post by: bearpaw on September 08, 2014, 09:06:32 AM
Dale, tell us about "barking a bear up a tree." I am very interested.
:chuckle:
More than anything it's something that's fun to do. We happened onto the idea many years ago and since have barked many bear, coons, and even a bobcat up a tree. The idea is that animals are afraid of dogs, so when you see an animal at close range run straight at it waiving your arms and barking loud like a dog. It works real often on sows and cubs but will also work on an occasional lone bear too, maybe one in ten times, such as the bear that Brian barked up a tree the other day. I've treed numerous raccoons when I saw them in my headlights and even a bobcat one night. Have fun with it! :tup:
(Warning: Sooner or later you may get a dangerous reaction from a sow with cubs, some of them get pretty upset, I've been charged a couple times, if that happens you need to stand your ground, it would probably be a mistake to run, so far they have all been bluff charges, but one day it might get real! So be careful with those sows!)
Post by: JackOfAllTrades on September 08, 2014, 09:54:34 AM
(Warning: Sooner or later you may get a dangerous reaction from a sow with cubs, some of them get pretty upset, I've been charged a couple times, if that happens you need to stand your ground, it would probably be a mistake to run, so far they have all been bluff charges, but one day it might get real! So be careful with those sows!)
Women are always so unpredictable. They can be such teases! :chuckle:
(Sounds like a great bear season on the east side!)
-Steve
Post by: bearpaw on September 08, 2014, 06:22:16 PM
Post by: Greenhorn on September 08, 2014, 06:31:18 PM
Post by: RB on September 08, 2014, 06:38:18 PM
Post by: bearpaw on September 08, 2014, 06:41:44 PM
We had a fawn two summers ago that got hung up in a fence and ripped his flank open he ran around here for weeks with a 8 to 10 inch flap of bloody hide hanging from his side. Eventually we quit seeing him and I had thought the coyotes got him. Joshua's buck had a healed up flank and a ripped up nose, check out the picture of his nose, you can see the nose bone through the hole. It's amazing how resilient wild animals are and how well they heal up and survive. He also had some large growths which did not appear to affect the meat at all, they seemed to be growing on the outside of the hide.
Post by: bearmanric on September 08, 2014, 06:42:00 PM
Post by: Duffer on September 08, 2014, 07:03:31 PM
Post by: GUscottie on September 08, 2014, 08:46:07 PM
Post by: bearpaw on September 09, 2014, 05:32:14 AM
I had a great time. Dale and Tara are two of the warmest and friendliest people around. Their camp was very nice and the dinner and breakfast was great. I didn't get to stick around longer since Dale threw me, the only archery deer hunter, in his honey hole. I'll definitely be back in the future. Can't wipe the smile off my face. Thanks again!
Thanks Again and Good Luck on your elk hunt, I look forward to reading about it. :tup:
Post by: Blacklab on September 09, 2014, 07:09:28 AM
Post by: bearpaw on September 09, 2014, 10:24:23 AM
To: dale@bearpawoutfitters.com
Subject: BEST HUNT EVER!
Mr. Denney,
Just wanted to thank you again for the amazing hunt you and your staff provided. I hope to hunt cougars with Brian soon! Attached are a few pics.
Respectfully,
Mack Roberts[/quote]
Post by: rittem1 on September 09, 2014, 12:28:42 PM
Post by: Jacque on September 09, 2014, 07:39:55 PM
Post by: bearmanric on September 09, 2014, 08:42:19 PM
Post by: bearpaw on September 15, 2014, 03:53:20 PM
Good action for the hunters but I hope they put an arrow into the next bull. We spotted a big herd bull that we are going after tonight and again in the morning if we don't get a shot tonight, my fingers are crossed, I would love to post some photos of him and a happy hunter. :drool:
Post by: bearpaw on September 15, 2014, 06:08:28 PM
Post by: bearpaw on September 15, 2014, 06:32:45 PM
Still looking for the 2nd bull! :)
Post by: bearpaw on September 16, 2014, 07:54:25 AM
Guide Nick is busy packing out elk today for the brothers and their dad is hunting with guide Ray, they were on deer yesterday but didn't see any elk. We are really onto the elk so I think it's just a matter of time and dad will get an opportunity at a bull. :tup:
Post by: Killmore on September 16, 2014, 08:21:02 AM
Post by: bearpaw on September 16, 2014, 11:56:47 AM
The first bull a freaky 4x5 is at the meat locker. :)
Post by: wsmnut on September 16, 2014, 12:59:59 PM
Go Get'em Ray!
Wsmnut
Post by: bearpaw on September 16, 2014, 03:10:51 PM
Two bear spotted, shot fired at the close bear just before noon, bear did not act like a hit and we could not find any blood. The hunter shot her gun again at lunch and hit the target, hopefully she will have better luck on the next bear. :tup:
Another Bull Spotted
Going after another bull this evening, hoping it comes together again. :tup:
Photo from last night:
Post by: elkoholic1 on September 16, 2014, 04:46:28 PM
Post by: bearpaw on September 17, 2014, 09:12:22 AM
Last night Daniel and our lady hunter were set up on the same berry patch again and two bear were working the berries. One bear was the white muzzle 200ish pound bear that she had missed twice on the first day of the hunt and the other bear was a new bear we have not seen before. They watched and listened, every now and then they would get a glimpse of one bear or the other, finally right near the end of shooting hours Fitz had her chance at the new bear. WHAMMO she put him down, Daniel watched the bear as he kicked around and then headed in the brush after him. By the time they were set up for photos it was pretty dark and the flash didn't work on the camera so the best picture is the picture of the rug/hide this morning. The bear (a big old barren sow) measured right at 6 feet, probably weighed somewhere around 240-250 pounds, definitely one of the larger sows we've taken. The third time was a charm, congrats to Fitz, sometimes I almost think misses are meant to happen because in the end she got the best bear seen. :tup:
Post by: bearpaw on September 19, 2014, 07:21:02 AM
There were thunder showers overnight and it cooled down, with the weather cooling down it should be another good day. I'm hoping a lethal shot comes together. :tup:
Post by: boneaddict on September 19, 2014, 07:42:41 AM
Sent: Tuesday, September 09, 2014 9:07 AM[/quote]
To: dale@bearpawoutfitters.com
Subject: BEST HUNT EVER!
Mr. Denney,
Just wanted to thank you again for the amazing hunt you and your staff provided. I hope to hunt cougars with Brian soon! Attached are a few pics.
Respectfully,
Mack Roberts
Whoa, that's a nice bear.
Post by: irishevox on September 19, 2014, 08:12:40 AM
Post by: bearpaw on September 20, 2014, 06:32:19 AM
We got into elk again yesterday evening with the other brother Dave. Nick called and the bull slowly came in, first they could see the tops of the horns and then finally the bull was within sight, the 5x5 bull stopped and started to feed on a bush only 20 yards away, Dave released his arrow but it reflected off a small limb he hadn't seen, the bull trotted off 10 yards and looked back. Dave notched another arrow but just as he drew the bull trotted out of sight. The reality started to hit Dave, he had just watched bull number six walk out of his life, he wondered if that would be his last chance at an archery bull?
Suddenly they could hear another elk coming, they held their positions and waited. Dave only had two arrows left because he had lost numerous arrows earlier in the hunt, he knew if he got another chance that he had to make it count! As the elk came closer Dave could see horns coming so he knew it was a bull. As the bull moved closer Dave drew, another 5x5 bull stepped into full view and stopped to feed on the same exact bush as the last bull, this time Dave watched for a clear shot and released, the bull lunged forward and started to run but then slowed and stopped again only 30 yards away, Dave knocked another arrow and started to draw and then the bull slowly tipped over. Dave was overjoyed, he could hardly believe he finally had a bull down!
Last night was an epic night for the family, their first bow hunt ever and both brothers had killed bull elk. We had a huge dinner, king salmon, buffalo roast, bbq buffalo steaks, baked potatoes, salad, ice cream, and cheesecake. We stuffed ourselves and then ate some more. Everyone reflected on all the different events of the hunt, all the elk seen, bull moose, mule deer bucks, and misses, yes Michael got in a few more jabs about Dave's misses. :chuckle:
The dad, Dave senior, in his seventies and still hunting as hard as he can, said he couldn't be happier that both his sons killed a bull elk with their bows, he said he was done hunting that they don't have room for any more elk. They all said in their wildest dreams they never expected to see so many bulls and actually kill an elk with their bows. The fact that they had killed two bull elk was just unbelievable.
I love it when a plan comes together.
Post by: bearpaw on September 22, 2014, 01:01:38 PM
We had another bear hunter in Washington that started hunting last Friday with Daniel. The pressure was on because Antonio only had 3 days to hunt, we normally set bear hunts up for 5 days. The first morning was a flop with no bear seen, In the afternoon Daniel went to a different location and spotted a bear just before dark at a little over 400 yards, too far to shoot. On the second day, Saturday morning they hunted a different area but saw nothing. After lunch they returned to the same place they saw the bear the first evening and just before dark a different bear popped out of the brush at only 20 yards, Daniel whispered "bear", Antonio turned and quickly dropped the bear. Not a big bear, probably a 2 year old sow, but Antonio was very happy, he spent the night and headed back home Sunday morning with his bear. Congrats to Antonio, hope you can make it back for a cougar hunt this winter! :tup:
Post by: Duffer on September 22, 2014, 04:10:27 PM
Congrats to Antonio & Daniel :tup:
Post by: Lunchbox1981 on September 23, 2014, 07:01:19 AM
Post by: buckhorn2 on September 23, 2014, 07:24:11 AM
Post by: bearpaw on September 23, 2014, 08:45:17 AM
Sounds like this will be another great season with lots of happy hunters sure like reading about the hunts and especially the salmon dinners.
So far this has been an excellent year, better than most, with dozens of shot opportunities already.
I'm playing housekeeper, chief cook, and bottle washer this week! I have three archery elk hunters arriving today, tonight I think we'll have king and silver salmon (thanks to buckhorn2), baked potatoes, fresh corn on the cob, green salad, with cheesecake and ice cream for desert.
Been having mixed weather with quite a bit of rain the last few days, the elk aren't talking as much. I have a hunter in camp who had a good mature bull close yesterday but no shot opportunity and three spikes were spotted at long distance. I'm hoping the weather settles for a few days and the elk fire back up, we have several good bulls in mind but need them talking, other wise we might have to go after those spikes if things are tough, I think we can get into them without having to call them. There is another big storm coming next weekend so we need to get into some good action as soon as possible.
Post by: bearpaw on October 04, 2014, 01:50:10 PM
Rob arrowed this 5x6 bull with guide Ray on the 3rd day of his hunt. The shot was a bit too far back, Ray tracked this elk for about 2 miles before it expired. This was Rob's first elk hunt, what a great introduction to elk hunting, congrats to Rob!
Post by: bearpaw on October 06, 2014, 07:38:37 PM
Got a call from the guides, hunters are all filled out and happy, but guides were disappointed in the size of the bucks, lots of young bucks 3x3's, 3x4's, and small 4x4's, the herd is rebounding but it would have been nice to have killed larger bucks. Next year should be really good if we have another mild winter. I'm glad everyone got their buck and all are happy, I will post some photos when I get them.
I was told one huge buck, largest we've ever seen on the ranch, was missed. The giant buck went into a large thicket, guide Ray tried pushing him out but the buck kept circling around in the brush and eventually disappeared somewhere without being seen again. To date our two largest bucks off the ranch are a nontypical 24" buck that the hunter said gross scored 204 and a 32 incher that was old and heavy. I'm hoping one of the 4 remaining hunters later in the season will get the huge buck.
Here's photos of the two largest bucks off the ranch (so far) and a cougar kill we found after the mice found him:
Post by: KFhunter on October 06, 2014, 07:39:47 PM
Post by: bearpaw on October 12, 2014, 10:27:18 PM
On the first day Amy nailed this young buck and Ian began hunting. On the third day guide Brian spotted this buck at long range and Ian connected with his second shot, nice shooting Ian and congratulations to both of you on such an awesome wedding gift to each other. We wish you both many happy years together! :IBCOOL:
Quote
From: Amy
Sent: Sunday, October 12, 2014 8:41 PM
To: Dale Denney
Subject: Ian and Amy pics
We had an amazing time... Thanks to you and especially Brian for the great time!
Post by: jasnt on October 12, 2014, 10:36:11 PM
Post by: bearpaw on October 12, 2014, 10:39:31 PM
Post by: bearpaw on October 12, 2014, 10:59:28 PM
Everyone has been rooting for a young boy in camp to get his first deer, tonight it happened, he got his first buck! Congrats on the making of another hunter. :IBCOOL:
Post by: bearpaw on October 12, 2014, 11:01:41 PM
I have been guiding some guys from California, one of the guys "Jack" had a 3x3 and a fork buck at 90 yards but had some equipment difficulty and the bucks walked, we have a couple more days to find him another buck, his partner John sacked up this big wide mule buck yesterday morning right after daylight, John made a 178 yard, 1 shot kill, the buck only went a few yards and tipped over, a great shot by a great guy. This was a heavy buck, I figured he weighed pretty close to 275. Congrats John, it was my pleasure! :hello:
Post by: washelkhunter on October 12, 2014, 11:10:41 PM
Post by: hrd2fnd on October 12, 2014, 11:20:05 PM
Post by: Duffer on October 13, 2014, 12:53:43 AM
Gittin it done in 2014 :tup:
I'm working it hard to get together a group to do a drop camp in 2015 :IBCOOL: one more hunt to check off my bucket list :)
Post by: bearpaw on October 13, 2014, 11:02:41 PM
In Washington another hunter shot at a cougar but missed. We've shot at almost as many cougar as bucks since the opener. Predator management is totally out of hand in NE Washington, a pitiful state of management. This makes 10 cougar incidents while hunting this year in Washington.
Post by: KFhunter on October 13, 2014, 11:15:00 PM
Post by: bearpaw on October 13, 2014, 11:17:45 PM
10?? Dayamm
Just crazy, these cats are everywhere including right next to homes. WDFW needs to pull their head out before another kid pays the price of poor management while playing in the back yard. :twocents:
Post by: scoyoc5 on October 13, 2014, 11:42:52 PM
Post by: jasnt on October 14, 2014, 12:36:02 PM
10?? Dayamm
Just crazy, these cats are everywhere including right next to homes. WDFW needs to pull their head out before another kid pays the price of poor management while playing in the back yard. :twocents:
and folks think I'm nuts thinking I will get a cat 2 years in a row
Post by: bearpaw on October 14, 2014, 01:32:57 PM
Post by: Badge251 on October 16, 2014, 06:30:10 AM
On our last morning Nick spotted this mature 4x4 buck at nearly a mile away up on a hillside and the stalk began. After an arduous approach we were finally able to close the distance within my effective engagement range and I harvested a great buck, and even more importantly, I obtained a rewarding hunting experience which will last a lifetime – I’m already looking forward to my next hunt with Bearpaw Outfitters!
(https://hunting-washington.com/smf/proxy.php?request=http%3A%2F%2Fi173.photobucket.com%2Falbums%2Fw48%2FBadge251%2FIdahoBuck_zps880678f4.jpg&hash=bf081eb0faa92a78c73bdaa710d630a37f8789be) (http://s173.photobucket.com/user/Badge251/media/IdahoBuck_zps880678f4.jpg.html)
Post by: bearpaw on October 16, 2014, 06:49:24 AM
FYI
We got two more mule deer yesterday, the TV show got a 4x4 buck with Brian and they passed a spike bull elk. Watch for the show on "Brotherhood Outdoors TV". I'm hoping they find a bigger bull for a really great show.
Nick and his next hunter went after the big 6x6 bull yesterday, they spotted the herd at 500 yards and moved in closer, there was 4 bulls and 22 cows, they were right into the herd, a big 5x5 stood up at 50-60 yards and Nick whispered "shoot", "shoot", "shoot", "shoot", "shoot", finally the bull turned and took off with the rest of the herd and then Nick heard the safety come off. Apparently the hunter had forgot to take off his safety. :yike:
Same guy killed a buck later in the day with Nick. :tup:
I gotta go pack out a drop camp, will post more later.
Post by: bearpaw on October 18, 2014, 07:33:24 AM
We hunt from a very comfortable lodge so many hunters bring their wives. Lamont and his wife spent the last couple days recreating on UTV's and sight seeing. All their meat is ready at the meat shop now so they are leaving today. Thanks again Lamont for hunting with us. :tup: :hello:
(nothing like a Jacuzzi bath and a comfortable bed after a day's hunt, yes it has snowed already a couple times)
Post by: bearpaw on October 18, 2014, 07:46:33 AM
Guide Daniel had an afternoon off and went on a short hunt for himself, he sacked up a nice young good eating sized bear, congrats Daniel.
Post by: bearpaw on October 18, 2014, 10:06:57 AM
Post by: bearpaw on October 18, 2014, 11:25:55 PM
I still have a couple outfitter sponsored limited-entry mule deer hunts in southern Idaho. We want to do these hunts the last 5 days of October when the rut is usually starting. Should be a great hunt with a chance of taking a trophy class buck.
I still have 1 limited-entry mule deer hunt available for the last week of October.
Oops, back to having two of these limited-entry hunts available.
some Idaho bucks already taken this year....
Post by: bearpaw on October 19, 2014, 03:20:22 PM
I have one mule deer hunt and 2 whitetail hunts available this November for our central Montana ranch at Lewistown. This is an awesome hunt, we see 10 to 20+ bucks almost every day, we only hunt 4x4 or better bucks and shooting has been 100% for almost 10 years. I am running a special where you buy the hunt and I will buy your license. Save $995!
4-Day Guaranteed Hunt..........$3950
3-Day Mule Deer or Whitetail...$3250
some of last year's bucks....
Post by: bearpaw on October 26, 2014, 01:46:59 PM
Post by: bearpaw on October 26, 2014, 02:14:05 PM
Post by: bearpaw on October 26, 2014, 02:30:24 PM
Post by: bearpaw on October 26, 2014, 02:31:28 PM
Good luck to everyone out there hunting this fall. :tup: :hello:
Post by: niet32 on October 27, 2014, 07:15:41 AM
Question: I am going to be doing the late archery hunt in NE Washington (209/215) for mule deer. Was wondering if you guys have any unguided or trespass fee type land in this area.
We are doing the late Mule Deer archery season Nov 21-26.
Your spring bear hunts are crazy awesome! Love reading about those.
Post by: bearpaw on October 28, 2014, 01:51:02 PM
Love this thread as I just joined the site.
Question: I am going to be doing the late archery hunt in NE Washington (209/215) for mule deer. Was wondering if you guys have any unguided or trespass fee type land in this area.
We are doing the late Mule Deer archery season Nov 21-26.
Your spring bear hunts are crazy awesome! Love reading about those.
Sorry I don't have any private land in those units.
Post by: niet32 on October 29, 2014, 10:55:41 AM
Post by: bearpaw on November 01, 2014, 09:17:17 AM
Do you have any archery hunts open during Nov 20-26?
Yes, we can fit you in then. Send me a pm or call me with details of what you would like to do.
Post by: bearpaw on November 01, 2014, 01:10:30 PM
Tim shot two porcupines on the first day and a whitetail doe the second morning and then we concentrated on bucks. Tim wanted to shoot a mule deer buck this year but we didn't see the right mule deer buck so he shot a nice mature 4x4 whitetail on the last day. He has trouble holding the gun steady and didn't make a good shot. I tracked the buck a few hundred yards and we saw him once but he ran off without problem, then we tracked until almost dark and then lost the tracks, we circled in the timber hoping to see the buck but no luck.
There were only a couple minutes of shooting time left, I was giving up the search, suddenly I spotted large antlers moving in the thick brush, I pulled up the binos and saw it was a big buck that hadn't seen us and he was only about 70 yards away. He appeared to be 18 to 20 inches wide with the longer tines being 10 to 12 inches, I quick figured he was a 150ish buck. I got Tim on the shooting stick and pointed in the right direction but he couldn't see the buck. All of a sudden the buck started walking straight toward us. I whispered "Can you see him, he's walking straight toward us?" Tim whispered "No, I can't see him." The buck came to within 30 yards and stopped. I moved Tim's gun a little and he said "I got him!" Just then the buck ran to the left and stopped at 50 yards again. I pointed Tim and the gun in the right direction, Tim whispered "I got him." Just then the buck bolted again and disappeared into the thick trees. That was the end of our hunt as darkness was quickly closing.
I sent Tim following a small creek to the nearest road and I went back for the truck, on the way back I think I jumped the wounded buck at 20-30 yards in heavy cover, it ran off again without a problem. It was a good hunt, we saw lots of bucks, had lots of fun, but Tim only got to take home a doe this year.
See you next year Tim! :tup:
Post by: bearpaw on November 01, 2014, 01:17:24 PM
Post by: bearpaw on November 09, 2014, 06:11:12 AM
Post by: bearpaw on November 09, 2014, 06:40:07 AM
Post by: bearpaw on November 13, 2014, 08:34:07 PM
I had two hunters who shot 11 times at a 4 point buck chasing does two days ago, the buck was so intent on the does that he didn't care that the guys were shooting at him. In the defense of the guys shooting, they were shooting from 300 to 400 yards and had never shot farther than 100-150 in the past.
Yesterday we were on another 4x4 at close range in heavy cover, but he didn't give us a shot opportunity.
This morning one of the guys, Travis and I spotted a 3x3, Travis hit him in the front leg, then in the shoulder and knocked down, the buck got back up and the third hit got a hind leg and the buck's manhood, that was it, after that third hit in his manhood, the buck keeled over dead, he had no reason to live.
This afternoon Joe made a one shot kill on a 2x2, this was Travis' first deer hunt, congrats to Travis and Joe.
Post by: bearpaw on November 13, 2014, 09:06:45 PM
Post by: bearpaw on November 13, 2014, 09:08:35 PM
Post by: bowhunterwa87 on November 13, 2014, 09:12:36 PM
Post by: bearpaw on November 14, 2014, 06:42:08 AM
"Rattled him into 43 yards, raked some brush too. Three other smaller bucks came in first, this buck came in downwind but didn't seem to mind the scent. Pretty thick cover, lasted about 6 minutes, the buck went 80-100 yards after a heart shot with the bow."
Post by: HUNTINCOUPLE on November 14, 2014, 08:22:57 AM
Post by: bearpaw on November 14, 2014, 10:32:32 AM
Post by: bearpaw on November 14, 2014, 04:34:35 PM
Post by: carpsniperg2 on November 14, 2014, 05:17:57 PM
Post by: bearpaw on November 15, 2014, 06:28:32 AM
Post by: Ripper on November 15, 2014, 05:52:21 PM
Post by: bearpaw on November 16, 2014, 08:18:09 AM
Hey Dale, my friend Jerry and his son are hunting with you right now. I've been telling him for a couple of years to checkout/join this site and he hasn't done it. Make sure to give him a hard time about it. Lol I heard that he got a 5x4 whitetail today, Im happy for him.
Yes, Jerry whacked a 4x5 right at the end of the day. His son passed a smaller 4x4 earlier, I guess it didn't have much for tines. I will mention the forum to him. Here's a couple photos of the buck.
Post by: bearpaw on November 16, 2014, 08:59:55 AM
Post by: hrd2fnd on November 16, 2014, 09:37:22 AM
Thanks for sharing Dale,
Kenneth
Post by: bearpaw on November 16, 2014, 11:33:55 PM
I'm saving my change so that I can finally fill my deer and bear next year. I've followed your threads showing the success your clients have had since joining and every year I tell the wife next year. Should my dear friend and hunting partner of 20 + years some how by the grace of God makes it for 1 more hunting season you will have 2 new clients.
Thanks for sharing Dale,
Kenneth
Kenneth I hope you and your partner are able to make it over for a hunt next year. :tup:
Post by: bearpaw on November 16, 2014, 11:45:16 PM
Post by: hrd2fnd on November 17, 2014, 12:24:49 AM
unfortunately Dale it will be just myself as of 8:10 pm my friend lost the war as the cancer took his life. I just got back for the hospital and taking his wife home. I received a call from her while the Mrs. and I were checking out concunelly around 330 saying the doctor gave him hours to live. We speed out of their and about the time I hit I -5 I got the call he had passed on. 2nd guessing I wonder if I should have left town, but it was the last weekend with the wife before her surgery at 5am Monday. Did I make the wrong decision I'll never know.I'm saving my change so that I can finally fill my deer and bear next year. I've followed your threads showing the success your clients have had since joining and every year I tell the wife next year. Should my dear friend and hunting partner of 20 + years some how by the grace of God makes it for 1 more hunting season you will have 2 new clients.
Thanks for sharing Dale,
Kenneth
Kenneth I hope you and your partner are able to make it over for a hunt next year. :tup:
To me your clients seemed to have made some great decisions.
Post by: bearpaw on November 17, 2014, 01:29:37 AM
Best wishes to you and your wife that all goes well with her surgery, be strong, she needs you. :tup:
Post by: Ripper on November 17, 2014, 06:26:46 AM
Post by: bearpaw on November 17, 2014, 06:40:17 PM
Steve had tried hunting a few other places in the state with no luck, he arrived last night but only had one day to hunt before he had to get back to work. Daniel got him on a buck this morning but Steve missed, then they saw another buck but they weren't fast enough getting on the buck and he disappeared. This afternoon Steve got the monster trophy (a new Bearpaw record for smallest buck ever), but Steve was happy to take home some venison and we were happy to remove that little spiker from the gene pool, so everybody came out a winner.
All in all it was another good day of hunting.
Post by: bearpaw on November 26, 2014, 07:28:41 PM
Post by: bearpaw on November 26, 2014, 08:06:00 PM
Post by: bearpaw on November 29, 2014, 05:07:01 AM
Post by: bearpaw on December 08, 2014, 02:00:13 AM
We did another TV show in Montana with Brotherhood Outdoors. Daniel Lee Martin and Julie McQueen brought along Steve Lefaver from Illinois to hunt Montana Whitetails. They were the first guests to stay in the new cabin on the ranch. We saw a lot of bucks including 27 bucks one day, shot a porcupine, saw some coyotes but no good shot opportunities, missed a big whitetail, we were going to do a brush drive for a 19-20 inch whitetail that we saw and then we saw a mule deer buck that Steve was excited to put the smack on. (Steve had never seen mule deer before)
The show will air in a few months (I don't have a date yet), watch it to see the hunt unfold.
Post by: irishevox on December 08, 2014, 06:42:40 AM
Post by: Killmore on December 08, 2014, 03:07:49 PM
Post by: elkoholic1 on December 08, 2014, 05:01:16 PM
Post by: bearpaw on December 09, 2014, 08:25:06 AM
message received after trip
Quote
Dale,
Just wanted to say thanks again for the fantastic trip to Montana! Having my Son be able to bag his biggest white tail in the snowy mountains of Montana was incredible. I can’t say enough about Nick and what a part he played in making the trip perfect for both of us. We look forward to booking a trip next year!
Michael Ward
Post by: BOWHUNTER45 on December 09, 2014, 08:34:47 AM
Post by: bearpaw on December 12, 2014, 04:51:35 AM
Post by: _TONY_ on December 12, 2014, 05:24:19 AM
Post by: bearpaw on December 12, 2014, 06:50:50 AM
Each day I hunted a high mountain basin that has quite a few roads, this was probably the best snow in the area. I saw a few deer, moose, elk, and two different female cougar tracks plus a dead beaver the coyotes had caught, but no tom cougar. Brian hunted several lower elevation drainages, there was no snow in the bottoms and crusty snow up higher. Finally on the 5th morning of hunting Brian spotted some muddy tracks crossing some ice on the edge of the road in the bottom of one of the drainages. Upon closer examination he determined it was a cougar, but it was tough to tell if it was a male or female since all there was were a few blotches of mud from the toes because the cat had walked through the mud before it froze the night before.
We figured we had better try to catch this cat and see for sure what it was, Brian figured it was either a large female or young tom. Brian put the dogs on the track and began following them. The dogs weaved around through a big sage brush field with no snow, every now and then one would bark so he hoped they were doing the right thing. About half way through the chase Brian noticed a little blood every now and then in the tracks, he was thinking one of the dogs must have cut it's foot. The dogs worked their way up a long bare southern exposure slope and began moving the track faster. After an hour or so they got into some crusty snow up higher and that helped a lot, they began moving the track faster and it wasn't too long before they jumped the cat and treed him near the top of the ridge.
I drove the hunters as close as we could get and we set out on foot to meet Brian at the tree. The cat was treed about half way up a big fir tree. The first thing I noticed was the big head and knew it was a tom before verifying the black spot on his hind end. From the ground we could see his front legs were bloody looking. We found a good angle and shot the tom, he dropped out of the tree and hit the ground upright and running, I hollered "Don't Shoot" because it was somewhat towards the dogs, the cat was moving out pretty fast and when the angle changed I hollered "OK Shoot"! The hunters fired gain and dropped the cat as he sprang over a fallen log.
The hounds were going wild, we made our way to the cat and looked him over closely. It was a bigger cat than we had thought when Brian found the tracks, it had apparently made a kill or stolen a kill from another lion somewhere during the night, it had a full belly and had been in a serious fight. It's front arms had claw marks and deep bites with blood still oozing out some of the holes. The cat's head had been bitten pretty good too, there were holes in his head from the canine teeth of the other cat and one eye was handing out about two inches. Brian put the eye back in the eye socket for photos!
After lots of photos we got the cat off the mountain and took it to the taxidermist who began skinning it when we left. He called later and said the skull had been cracked pretty good from the bite of the other cat and the front arms were all chewed up worse than we had thought, he said the cat might have died from the wounds, of course that's hard to say, I've seen some amazing wounds that have healed on animals and the animal was doing fine after the wound healed.
At any rate, this was a really interesting hunt, the dogs did an amazing job, and we had some extra surprises along the way. I am still wondering if the other cat lived or died, most likely we'll never know. Congrats to Trey and Justin, two friends and business partners from Louisiana who both had a license and tag, both shot, but they had agreed before the hunt that they only wanted to kill one cat to put in their office. They got a great trophy and have an even better story to go with it!
(if you look closely you can see some of the scratches and wounds on the left eye, head, and legs)
Post by: Gringo31 on December 12, 2014, 09:26:23 AM
Thx for sharing
Post by: bearpaw on December 30, 2014, 10:53:19 AM
I am cow elk hunting this week, 3 friends and I hunted the last 3 days. I killed the first elk at 610 yards, I like the challenge of long range shooting. We killed another elk the same day at about 400 yards. Yesterday my other two friends killed elk at about 275 yards.
Now I'm waiting for my next cow elk hunters. We also have more cougar hunters coming in January. :)
Here are two of the four elk that we've taken so far.
Post by: kentrek on December 30, 2014, 11:08:38 AM
Post by: bugs n bones on December 30, 2014, 03:36:01 PM
Post by: Ripper on January 06, 2015, 12:30:05 PM
Post by: bearpaw on January 11, 2015, 11:05:54 AM
Are there any more cow elk hunts available in Utah?
Sorry, the elk tags have been sold out for months. You should plan a hunt before June 1 for next fall/winter in order to get a tag for Utah.
Post by: bearpaw on June 07, 2015, 02:22:26 PM
Post by: bearpaw on June 07, 2015, 03:47:33 PM
Sorry, we didn't have a camera when we found the buck. (FYI - It's legal to pick up antlers in Idaho so this is a more recent photo.)
Post by: bearpaw on June 07, 2015, 03:51:47 PM
Post by: bearpaw on June 09, 2015, 01:25:41 AM
The tracks on the left are the wolf tracks, deer tracks on the right!
Post by: bearpaw on June 09, 2015, 01:44:32 AM
We turned the dogs on this big tom at first light, there was only a skiff of snow and the hounds followed it over the top of two different mountains, he was really covering ground. I figured 150-160+ pounds, he was a dandy with a long stride, double stepping, and dragging his feet even in the skiff of snow.
In the bottom of the second canyon we ran out of snow, the dogs were still following but much slower, then suddenly they were moving a different direction. I went to the bottom of the canyon and met the dogs crossing the creek, I could see female tracks in the mud, apparently they got crossed up with a female track that was warmer and started following her. I leashed them up and hiked up and across the canyon trying to find the tom tracks in the mud, but no luck, finally after looking around for a while I had to give it up, I still don't know where the tom went?
The sun came out and our skiff of snow at the mid elevations melted that afternoon, we tried to hunt but it was pretty tough, we had better luck fishing in the late afternoon the next day and then the lady hunter had to go home before we got another snow. At xmas I was home for the holiday and another hound hunter we know killed a 175ish cat with a 15 7/16 skull in the same general area. I think it was probably this cat.
Post by: bearpaw on June 09, 2015, 03:22:38 AM
The dogs struggled, I had to help them through some bare ground and through some areas where the skiff of snow never made it down to the ground through the trees. The cat hardly left any marks on that crusty snow in many areas. The tracks had circled and the cat had crossed the road several times. After a few hours all the dogs made it over the big ridge and out of hearing and off my tracking grid. I circled around the mountain, I went out to the valley, but I couldn't hear the dogs or get a signal from their collars.
My hunter was an older fellow that probably had one good hike in him, so I told him I would hike into a big canyon and if I found the dogs with a cat and if it was a good cat I would come back after him. Otherwise I would just try to get the dogs and bring them back to the truck.
I rode as far as I could then headed out on foot up an old cattle trail into a huge rocky canyon. I hadn't gone far and I could hear faint hounds, I picked up the pace thinking I better get in there as quick as possible so I could get back to the get the hunter as quick as possible. The dogs were a couple miles up the canyon, they all made it and had a feisty old female treed. It was disappointing that she wasn't a young tom like I hoped, but i always enjoy catching any cat, so it was still good up until I reached for my leash in my pack! For some crazy reason I forgot to take a dog leash when I left on the snowmobile, that's like the ultimate sin for a hound dogger! :bash: :yike:
After getting one dog out of the tree I pulled my belt off and leashed up two of the four dogs with my belt and headed down the mountain. I made it maybe 80 yards and the cat jumped over the other two dogs and they headed after her. My two dogs on the belt went nuts, one got loose, I figured he would help the other two so decided to get the one dog back to the snowmobile and then would get a leash or rope and come back for the other three dogs.
As I walked down canyon I could hear the dogs tree the cat again, so I knew she didn't get too far. I was almost out when I met my son, he didn't have any luck where he was hunting and had come looking for me. He went in and to get the other three dogs and I headed for the truck. Brian said the dogs had treed the cat again in about 1/4 mile on the other side of the canyon. So it was a very good day for the dogs, considering the poor tracking conditions I was proud of the job they did.
Unfortunately that skiff of snow melted and much of the crusty snow melted, hunting got even tougher. Brian treed another female but we didn't shoot it either, we left it in the tree. So overall it was a poor cougar season for us. At least we had a great year on most of our other hunts. I guess on the bright side, cougar hunting should be good this next winter if it snows more, we certainly didn't kill them all last winter. :chuckle:
Post by: bearpaw on June 09, 2015, 03:48:28 AM
There is some pretty good fishing in the right places and the limit is liberal, if you like eating trout (and we had a couple trout feeds) you can keep 25 brookies and 6 rainbow one place we fished, another place you can keep two trout of any specie. You know the cat hunting is not too good when cougar hunters are wearing sun glasses and fishing in the winter! :chuckle: :bash: