drahthaar
Active member
Well, I finally got it done last night. Been kind of rough around our house with some seriously sick youngsters and the death of a friend. Was just awesome to get back out in the world and get some air this week. Been hunting near home where I did great last year. This year was definitely different, not seeing near the bears. I feel the light winter was actually a detriment, as more area greened up quicker causing the bears to disperse a lot more than last year with much much more snow.
I did get the wee one out with me for a day, which was great because she has been the sickest. She loves to hike and see what she can see. She put on about 3 miles with me that day, but we didn’t see a single bear. But we got some good glassing in, and some track identification. A good week of hunting, but only one bear spotted.
On Friday, I decided to head to “the spot”. It’s an area that I discovered on a fluke that black bear seem to literally flock to in the spring. It’s like something I have never seen or heard of. I don’t know what is there or why they go there, but it is crazy. We got there late after work. Brought the boy up with me hoping he could get an eyeful of some bears or be there for a kill. But alas, we only saw 1 bear, a little lite brown sow, I believe.
Saturday morning I was back up there early, I saw the same little sow, even got a picture. I also saw a bear that my first thought was, I am going to shoot. It was a caramel colored bear with black highlights. Bar none, the coolest looking bear I have every seen. It had the longest hair I have ever seen as well, it just flowed when it walked. I was set up on it, but the more I glassed it, the more I didn’t want to shoot a 4.5-5 footer.
Saturday evening, I picked up a friend and we were at the top of the good clearcut by 530. Really early, but it was fun to sit there and BS while looking over this awesome country. Sat there until 715 when we spotted our first bear. It was making its way out of the creek bottom into the unit. It was this that got us to realize the winds were beginning to shift downslope. So off we went, down the road to get below the clearcut and get the wind in our faces.
We spotted the bear right away, as he had not gone far, too busy filling his face with all the luscious grasses. We moved in to get a good look. Great bear, jet black, 5.5 foot, but…… mites. His face was rubbed all to hell. Dang! I really wanted a black one because this area seems to hold more color phase. He fed out into the clear cut, he kept glancing back to the creek bottom, when all of sudden he bolted up slope to the top of the clear cut. I looked over and saw a lite chocolate bear coming into the open, smaller than the black, but followed by another black about the same size. Must be a sow with her 2 year old cub? She was an awesome color. Didn’t really know why that other bear felt that threatened though. They also worked their way into the middle of the clearcut about 150 yards out from us. Then we noticed them peering, staring, over to the timber.
Then the black one bolted up the hill, followed by her. What in the world??? I was thinking some stupid G-bear was going to come out of trees. Then I spotted movement just over a rise. Blackie. He fed out of the depression, lifted his head, and then I got excited. What a pumpkin headed bear!! Told my buddy I am killing this bear. He just wouldn’t offer a good shot, only 100 yards away and I can’t get a good shot. It’s so damn hard to move anywhere when you are in such close quarters and the sticks are crunchy and there is a minefield of doug fir pinecones everywhere. The wind was fine, but that brown sow was up the hill getting pissed. She was working her way back down the hill all bowed up. I asked my friend what the odds are of her running this boar out of the clearcut??? He said, not good, but I was getting nervous. At one point she walked through my scope view behind the bear. He finally moved away from her, up out of the depression right to me, offered a broadside shot, and I pounded him. The .325 wsm did its job and he piled up a short distance from the timberline. My first animal with that gun!
There was no ground shrinkage, he is every bit as big as I thought when I was staring at him. Even while we were taking pics and ogling over this bear, another bear came into the clearcut. Plus a bull elk came out to boot!
We made short work of this bear, made a couple trips to the truck, as it isn’t very far, but it is a little nerve wracking with as many bears around as there is there. Grizzlies by the piles too.
Here is the last trip out.
“The spot” just never disappoints.
I did get the wee one out with me for a day, which was great because she has been the sickest. She loves to hike and see what she can see. She put on about 3 miles with me that day, but we didn’t see a single bear. But we got some good glassing in, and some track identification. A good week of hunting, but only one bear spotted.
On Friday, I decided to head to “the spot”. It’s an area that I discovered on a fluke that black bear seem to literally flock to in the spring. It’s like something I have never seen or heard of. I don’t know what is there or why they go there, but it is crazy. We got there late after work. Brought the boy up with me hoping he could get an eyeful of some bears or be there for a kill. But alas, we only saw 1 bear, a little lite brown sow, I believe.
Saturday morning I was back up there early, I saw the same little sow, even got a picture. I also saw a bear that my first thought was, I am going to shoot. It was a caramel colored bear with black highlights. Bar none, the coolest looking bear I have every seen. It had the longest hair I have ever seen as well, it just flowed when it walked. I was set up on it, but the more I glassed it, the more I didn’t want to shoot a 4.5-5 footer.
Saturday evening, I picked up a friend and we were at the top of the good clearcut by 530. Really early, but it was fun to sit there and BS while looking over this awesome country. Sat there until 715 when we spotted our first bear. It was making its way out of the creek bottom into the unit. It was this that got us to realize the winds were beginning to shift downslope. So off we went, down the road to get below the clearcut and get the wind in our faces.
We spotted the bear right away, as he had not gone far, too busy filling his face with all the luscious grasses. We moved in to get a good look. Great bear, jet black, 5.5 foot, but…… mites. His face was rubbed all to hell. Dang! I really wanted a black one because this area seems to hold more color phase. He fed out into the clear cut, he kept glancing back to the creek bottom, when all of sudden he bolted up slope to the top of the clear cut. I looked over and saw a lite chocolate bear coming into the open, smaller than the black, but followed by another black about the same size. Must be a sow with her 2 year old cub? She was an awesome color. Didn’t really know why that other bear felt that threatened though. They also worked their way into the middle of the clearcut about 150 yards out from us. Then we noticed them peering, staring, over to the timber.
Then the black one bolted up the hill, followed by her. What in the world??? I was thinking some stupid G-bear was going to come out of trees. Then I spotted movement just over a rise. Blackie. He fed out of the depression, lifted his head, and then I got excited. What a pumpkin headed bear!! Told my buddy I am killing this bear. He just wouldn’t offer a good shot, only 100 yards away and I can’t get a good shot. It’s so damn hard to move anywhere when you are in such close quarters and the sticks are crunchy and there is a minefield of doug fir pinecones everywhere. The wind was fine, but that brown sow was up the hill getting pissed. She was working her way back down the hill all bowed up. I asked my friend what the odds are of her running this boar out of the clearcut??? He said, not good, but I was getting nervous. At one point she walked through my scope view behind the bear. He finally moved away from her, up out of the depression right to me, offered a broadside shot, and I pounded him. The .325 wsm did its job and he piled up a short distance from the timberline. My first animal with that gun!
There was no ground shrinkage, he is every bit as big as I thought when I was staring at him. Even while we were taking pics and ogling over this bear, another bear came into the clearcut. Plus a bull elk came out to boot!
We made short work of this bear, made a couple trips to the truck, as it isn’t very far, but it is a little nerve wracking with as many bears around as there is there. Grizzlies by the piles too.
Here is the last trip out.
“The spot” just never disappoints.
