Quebec Bear Hunt--2 Bears Arrowed on Video--added pg 42!!

[Ray Hammond]

Can I film it for you?

[JC]

6/23/07: cont'd The long trip was a good time to get aquainted...and see if you could sleep with someone's elbow in your ribs    :rolleyes:  

Licenses in La Tuque, where beleive it or not my cell worked, last message home before heading to the bush. An hour and a half down a gravel road found us at camp. Warm, dry cabins with propane fridges, a shower house with hot water, on a beautiful lake with constant breezes made it one of the most comfortable camps I've been in.

The great thing about this group was the universal pitching in....we had camp set up quickly and everyone unloading/putting away their gear. I will say again, and many more times to come, Tom, Lloyd, Allen and Eric did the lion's share of the work. Most of it, before we even got there on their numerous baiting trips. Thanks again guys, you just let me know if there's ever anything I can do for you.

Eric and I were chompin at the bit...while the rest of them rested in camp and continued with the chores, Eric and I suited up and headed out for the first sit. My palms were sweaty, my heart beatin fast, ADD was running rampant...my first date with a bear    

[Arrowslinger]

Keep it coming Joe.  I am loving this.

     

[JC]

We did a few rounds baiting with Tom, checking each stand site. It was pretty amazing for a guy who might see 2 bears a year with hard hunting here in North GA. There were trails everywhere...most leading to/from the baits. Trails that looked like minature logging roads. Made by bears? It was almost inconceivable there were that many bears to effect the landscape in such a way...

 

All the baits had been hit hard, we refilled and discussed our choices. I was particularly interested in a stand called "mile marker 42" (though it was really kM42)...thankfully, Eric chose "The Glove". We were both happy with our choices and excited about what was to come....

[JC]

My stand overlooked a creek, not only picturesque but the gentle babble made for a peaceful atmosphere. This truly was beautify country....more rainforest than I had expected to see. It has been so dry here at home, and my usual forays to Texas made the dramatic scenes of moss everywhere that much more surreal. It reminded me of something out of Lord of the Rings...

 

[tippit]

Ray,  You bet...you're the filming director    Doc

[d. ward]

Where the heck is wonder boy Eric been hideing.The man that fell asleep while shareing a bedroom with Uncle Barry durning Uncle Barry's topic on Mountian Loin hunting I believe.How do you fall asleep durning that.Eric help me out here?????????????????? bd

[JC]

As I've heard Ray say 100 times, I think the guy that invented the therma-cell should get the Nobel prize. It was truly an essential peice of gear in this part of the country. The bugs were so bad, I learned quickly that the best place for the therma-cell was strapped to your leg as you sat on the seat. Any further away and you were assaulted by every form of flying/biting insect known to man. You knew within a few moments if you canister or pad ran out. I even supplemented with some canadian bug spray.

Comfortable, I settled in with great anticipation. The stand was close, probably 8 yards, maybe 7' off the ground. I practiced my best imitation of moss...hoping I could be still enough for the animals that would be so close.

A few minutes after I settled in I was entertained by a constant procession of red squirrels, Canadian Jays, and chipmunks hitting the "sweet" barrel. I even had one come up into the stand with me and sit briefly on my head. He quickly retreated to the bush, knowing something wasn't right, but I was convinced my camo and my lack of movement would be fine at the close range.

[JC]

It was a pleasant sit...though difficult to stay still with all the adrenaline running through me. I was finally here! You know that moment when all the preparation and planning come down to reality...it was certainly a sweet moment of reality.

I was slowly moving my head, watching a red squirrel and scanning the terrain...when I looked up at the main trail and there sat a bear! It just appeared...absolutely silent, unmoving, watching the bait area intently. It slipped around behind the trees, constantly checking the wind through curled lips, glancing over it's shoulder every few seconds...no matter which way it happened to be facing.

Slipping into the bait, it was very difficult not to take the first shot offered. Tom had given me very detailed descriptions of how they would act and when the best time to shoot would be. I was not used to mulitple opportunities in a season so I was pleased with my self restraint. The bear grabbed a mouthful of sweets and bolted for the brush. That's it, I thought...I've missed my chance. Funny how you look back on your thoughts and think how silly they were after the fact....

[JEFF B]

and!! come on jc are you eating more cookies?          

[Ken Sorg]

Originally posted by Barry Wensel:
Yep... that looks like the one that assalted his girlfriend and didn't like me. Note that's a 55 gallon drum in the background. bw

Imagine the girth of that bear in the fall  :eek:

[Pinecone]

These are great pictures, guys!  The stories are equally wonderful.  Jeff, I think you would do your friend a great honor to hunt with one of his bows next year.  There is just someting about hunting with an artifact from an important friend or family member that makes the experience of the hunt so much more gratifying...and very difficult to describe.
I hope you kill one with that selfbow next year that looks like a Volkswagen!

Claudia

[Shell]

I have to agree with you Claudia        
Jeff, that is a wonderful way to celebrate a friend and one of the main reasons it's such a pleasure here on Tradgang for me especially...

Finding wonderful friends like you.      

[2fletch]

Great storytelling guys. You have me checking back several times a day. The pictures are great also. I've been around bear only a few times, but I know what it's like to smell them and have the hair standing up on your neck. A really good bear trail will make you feel real eerie.

JC that moss covered hill does look like something out of Lord of the Ring. Looks plum medieval. Did you feel really that you were back in time?

Write on, I'm listening to the magic.

[JEFF B]

hey jc can ya spot and stalk the bears or do ya have to be up a tree?

[Ray Hammond]

Spot and stalk is difficult perhaps impossible in areas where cover is so thick. Coastal areas, or open mountainsides found out west are more conducive to s/s type hunting.

I do not believe you could ever sneak up close enough to a bear in the thick cover of Quebec with a bow to make it an effective alternative to using bait.

Additionally, baiting is useful because it allows you to make sure you are not taking a sow with cubs - you cannot see the sex differences in bears unless you have a lot of time to examine them- and even then its not cut and dried that you won't make a mistake..so baiting under these circumstances makes the most sense.

[d. ward]

Well said boom boom,I personaly don't think I would even see a bear in that bush.When you have to use a hatchet and long blade to fallow the blood trails.It's a jungle,bd

[JC]

The bear came in 3 more times, each a time a bit less shy and staying a little longer. After getting a good look at the bear, I decided to pass up on the shot. It was large enough, actually quite large...but the hair was rubbed badly in multiple spots. My ultimate goal was to take a bear with a nice coat, size was secondary.

A huff from the trail the bear came down sent him careening off in a 90 degree turn. A second bear slipped through the brush in a circuitous route toward the bait. This one was a bit smaller but a much nicer coat. This bear was a bit bolder, still sitting watching the bait, but much closer than the previous bear. It walked towards my stand, never looking up, but obviously interested in where I had walked in. Circling the stand behind me, it finally came in to the bait. A tentative mouthful and off it ran...again I was afraid I had missed my chance. I had already decided I would shoot this bear if it gave me a shot. Finally the bear stayed at the bait, literally sticking it's front half into the barrel. I slowly rotated my torso for the shot...picking a spot mid/rear ribcage for the hard quartering shot as it reached in the barrel. Staying seated so as not to draw attention, I drew and released. The short distance made the flight nothing more than a blur, the bear exploding from the drum and turning an almost right angle to tear off down the trail...20" of shaft waving in the air.

The bear growled at the hit but moved so quickly I wasn't sure...it looked perfect...and the amount of arrow sticking out of the bear boosted my confidence...but a nagging feeling stayed. Too high maybe? No, it just couldn't be with where the shaft went in vs. where I thought the exit was. I heard nothing as it ran off...other than a crash 75 yards or so away. Was it down?

A very nervous half hour later I climbed down, checked the impact site for blood (none), and slowly crept up the trail the bear had disappeared down. 30 yards from impact I found the front 3/4 of my arrow...covered in blood. I slipped about another 30 yards and found no blood or bear. As it was close to dark and I had no desire to track a potentially wounded bear in the dark by myself, I crept back out to the pickup site.

[Doc Nock]

Good gracious. I'm going to have to reimburse my boss for time lost reading this wonderous tale. So very cool, guys!

I've only met Barry once at a PBS deal in B-more but what a genuine man to a perfect stranger.

Having so enjoyed corresponding with JC and Ray a bit, I can only imagine what a hoot camp must've been like.

This whole tale is what dreams are made of for me. Thanks for sharing the ride folks!  

[keith brimmer]

by the amount of sightings you guys had the population of bears is incredible.or does the bait just concentrate the bears in the area.i know you all were in big country(1-1/2 hours on a gravel rd)how close were the baits to each other?