Trad Gang Fall Bear Hunt (We're Back!)

[swp]

Well we pulled an all nighter to drive back from the great white north. Had a great time, we will get some pics and stories up after we get some sleep.    

[Curveman]

Can't wait! I know the feeling as we do that allnighter from Quebec when we go!  

[BUFF]

waiting

[frassettor]

[swp]

Sorry, with a weeks worth of work backed up I had to get busy on it first. Let's see where to begin. Oh yeah, Doug & Scott (Doug 77 & KY Archer) are two of the nicest Trad Gangers I have had the pleasure of hunting with. Great guys and good traveling mates.
I met up with the guys in Des Moines, IA on Saturday about 9 AM and we pointed Dougs rig north. Drove nine hours and stopped in Grand Forks, ND for the night. Early on Sunday morning we made our push for the border where our northern brothers at the border guard greeted us.

[doug77]

Scott you are doing so good with this i think i will just sit back and let you tell you story and when you are done i will tell mine, but it will be short like the tracking job. PS Scott ( KYArcher) did a 24 hour drive sat. night till sun. night. Scott sent you some pic's tonight. and yes it was some of the best company i have had on a hunting trip.

doug77

[swp]

The border guard asked us several questions, one of which was did we bring any pepper spray or bear spray. Well it just so happens that KY Archer had brought along some bear spray (to appease his wife that he wouldn't get eaten by a mad bear, or was it to protect himself from Doug and I if we were serial killers?). So anyway during the rapid fire question session Scott says he brought pepper spray (whoops its illegal in Canada) so off we go to meet another security personnel to determine if we would get to visit the Great White North. Well luckily we were allowed to enter Canada without a full body cavity search and off we headed towards Winnepeg and with a slight turn to the right we were soon in the Whiteshell Provincinal Forest and at our digs for the week. Here is a picture of the view (Winnepeg River)from our front door.
 

[swp]

Monday's hunt was a wash...right before we started towards our stands Doug says "I don't think it is going to rain". About 5 minutes after that it starts to shower (I see a bright future for Doug as a TV weatherman). Tuesday started with some fishing on the river and then it was back to the stands. When we got to my stand I could see that it hadn't been hit, all the goodies we had dumped the night before were still there, so I wasn't looking foward to the sit. Well I sat there and watched squirrels steal my bear bait until about 6 PM and then had to stand up so I endend up hooking my bow on the bow hanger and leaneing my left shoulder against the tree and looking towards the barrel. About 7:20 I hear a rustling behind me and decide to turn and see what this squirrel looks like. I grab my bow and it squeaks against the rubber on the hanger. So I slowly turn to see a nice looking jet black form standing about 50 yards away testing the wind out and trying to figure out what the big squirrel in the tree is doing. Well the bear comes down the trail and ducks in the trees behind me, then comes back on the trail, stops in front of me at about 10 yards and then walks to the bait and grabs some bread and heads back up the trail past me. At this time I am thinking that he is a GOOD bear and will shot him but want to see him up against the barrel (to judge his height). So in a minute here he comes back and stops again, at 10 yards, to lick the aniese (sp) that the guide sprayed on the ground and leaves as he left. And then he heads toward the barrel.

[swp]

Anyway he grabs some more bread and finally gets to the back of the barrel where I see he is a shooter. So I quickly decide if he give me a shot I am taking it. About that time he puts a leg foward and opens up for a shot. Picking my spot right behind the shoulder I draw anchor and release and watch the arrow blow through him what I think is back and high. Well Mr. Bear isn't sticking around to let me do anymore looking and crashes off into the brush in a semi circle and I hear a final crash about 100 yards behind my stand. Now I only have to sit and wait to be picked up by my guide, while waiting another bear about the same size comes in and backs quickly out. When the guide gets there we check the shot site and find a very bloody arrow and a blood trail but we decide to give him the evening to expire. Tuesday morning we take up the blood trail which didn't look promising to me (very little blood) after working the trail out for about 96 yards something black appears in front of us.
 
My bear died on the run from the looks of it and my shot double lunged him, about 6 inches back of where I wanted to put it. For my first bear I couldn't be happier!!!!

[Izzy]

[vermonster13]

Congrats!

[Skinner]

Give us the specs on that backwardz PSR & your arrows swp!

Congrats on your bear!

Skinner

[swp]

PSR is 56" 59# at 28". Arrows are 29" Ramine wood arrows tipped with 145 gr. STOS broadhead.
PS Skinner, It is a well know fact that lefties are better hunters. If you don't beleive me just ask Doug77.

[bbassi]

Originally posted by swp:

PS Skinner, It is a well know fact that lefties are better hunters.

Amen Brother! Nice Bear!  

[tradtusker]

congrats nice bear      

[Over&Under]

Good Shooting!!!!!    
By the smile I assume you had a great time!!!!!  

[doug77]

OK I am next but not tonight have friends from out of town coming over for supper tomorrow night for sure, but Scott forget 1 thing the fishing on the catch and releace lake come on Scott tell us how much fun we had

doug77

[doug77]

I do have time to tell you 1 thing the first 3 nights were a bust for me also

doug77

[swp]

Oh man! Talk about a late night and an early morning. I will let Doug tell you his story to tie the pieces together but our butts were dragging so bad we were begging the walleyes not to hit our bait (this lake was a world class walleye lake where it is not unusual to land 100 fish per boat). Doug and I weren't even trying to catch fish and still managed to catch around 30. We would reel them up to the boat and then try to shake the barbless hook lose without removing the fish from the water. Doug is an expert at it.  

[doug77]

4th  night in the stand started off the same way 2 hours of canada geese flying over my head tree top high honking like their was no tomorrow. my stand was placed on a narrow strip of the bush as the cananidians say about 3/4 of a mile long and only about 100 yards wide with swamp on 2 sides and lord know how many acres of bush to the north of me. Our outfitter told me i should here the bears coming through the water to the north of me. at exactly 7:01 P.M. it started somthing was splashing in the water headed my way, after a few seconds i saw  flashes of black coming through the bull rushes and shortly their was a black bear looking my way about 50 yards away. coming my way he walked straight towards my tree and once at my tree she stood on her hind legs and looked straight up at me her nose only about 8 feet away from my feet after a long 30 seconds she droped down and walked straight away for me again funny how they can be so close and never give you a good shot then she made a large circle and headed for the bait once at the barrel i could the she was good enough for me I waited for a shot she was standing broad side about 16-18 yards away with both front feet up on the barrel knocking food to ground to eat the shot was not the best i have made but it was a short tracking job and i had my bear. SWP our guide and I came back about 9:00 PM and did the pic's,skining and got the meat were done be about 10:00 PM then spent till 3:00 looking for another hunters bear it was a really short night.

doug77