TallTines Week at Manitoba Stickflingers--Fantastic!

[Manitoba Stickflinger]

Can't wait to see how this turns out!......Oh yeah, I was there!

[Bel007]

Cigar... check.
Nice beverage... check.
Drooling with anticipation... absolutely !!

[Steve O]

Sorry fellas, I just got in.  My travel on this trip was a nightmare.  My "free" ticket ended up costing me lots of extra time and a one way rental car fee of $330    :mad:

Will get some pictures loaded up in the morning.

[Hud]

That is too bad; I hate those kind of surprises, not much you can do about it now. Looking forward to your story.  

[2treks]

Can't wait to see how it all went Steve, I am glad you all made it home safe.
Your FRIEND,
Chuck

[Steve O]

Chuck, thanks...I  have noticed.


This whole hunt started 3 or 4 years ago.  I can't remember exactly how Ryan and I started conversing, but it was probably me asking a question about one of his many whopper whitetails or bears. Anyway, his bowhunting knowledge impressed me very much and one of our conversations ended with me saying, "If you ever ended up getting your own guiding area, I want to be the first client."  

Well I'll be darned if last spring Ryan didn't end up realizing his dream and ended up buying a bear concession in Manitoba's Porcupine Hills, a historic area for big black bears.

We both remembered my request and I told him to block me out the whole camp for one of the weeks, I had some good friends that were going to want to be in on this!

[2treks]

[Steve O]

So, I assembled a group of the best hunters and finest men I know.  Brian Wessel and his father Mark, Mike Mitten, and Gary Wissmeuller jumped at the chance to be the first hunters at Stickflingers Manitoba Bowhunts.

We figured we were going to get in on the ground floor of something special.  Ryan knows bears, BIG bears.  His area had not been hunted by the previous outfitter for three years.  Before that, it was hunted  very lightly.  The concession borders Saskatchewan and the bear outfitter on that side only hunts the western half of his area.  All that reads to basically NO pressure and a high probability of mature animals.  We figured right.

I had some frequent flyer miles and the rest of the crew coordinated to meet up in Minneapolis to make the drive to Winnipeg together.  Last Saturday, the MSP airport lost power and my flight to Winnipeg was cancelled.  I rented a car and told the boys I would be a bit behind them.  They would not hear of it, they were going to wait for me in Fargo and we would all cross the border together.

After that travel nighmare, we pulled into Winnipeg and stayed the night at a hotel.  Early the next morning we met at Ryan's, drooled over all his massive trophy buck and bears, then packed up for the 7 hour ride northwest to the hunt area.

It did not take long to unpack the new lucky touques and start shooting!

 


 


 

[Duckbutt]

Giddy up!!!!!!!!

[Steve O]

Camp was a cozy little cabin with a giant wood stove and good screens to keep the bugs out.  Just right.  We also ate like kings!

 

No matter what, Ryan made sure we had all the comforts of home.  Here is the detached  heated  shower room.  


Ryan was a great host, he doesn't care how ugly you are      

 

[Steve O]

Ryan is a bowhunter thru and through.  His outfit is bowhunting only.  He'd like it if everybody shot stickbows, but doesn't want a guy not to be able to come to camp with a group of friends just because of his choice in bows.  

How could you not want to come to camp with a guy that shoots like this:

 


He has great taste in bows too.  All of us in camp last week were shooting a TallTines recurve or longbow, even the outfitter.  Just a few weeks before, Ryan had, other than poundage, been delivered a 3 piece longbow identical to mine.  Macassar Ebony riser, Myrtle limbs, and antler tips.  That guy can pick 'em!

 

All the stands are set up just perfect.  Just the right height and distance from the bait site.  All taking into account the prevailing winds with alternate trees pegged to jump in with one of the camp Lone Wolfs.

[jcar315]

I got up just it time this morning!

[Steve O]

I know why Mike Mitten is so successful...while we were getting our stuff organized, he was sucking up to the guide to get the best stands!


 

Seriously, he was getting the lay of the land.  His handle should be "PASSION" instead of "Herdbull".  I have never seen anyone put as much effort into hunting as Mike.  He is truly an animal.

This is what he looks like going out for a couple hour sit:

 

[Jack Shanks]

Can wait to hear the rest Steve!


PS
Glad to see Gary finally got his teeth fixed. They were looking pretty bad before.

[Steve O]

Everything Ryan had set up showed he knew what he was doing.  Bait sites were not full of garbage, everything was in great working condition, he knew pretty much the size and color of every bear coming in to each stand and how they were doing it!  


 


 


Bears beware:

 


 

[Steve O]

Well, the wife and kids are calling for me to be Dad now, so while I wait for a couple of trophy photos to trickle in I will leave you with this shot I took out of a  very pivitol stand site.  It's old name was "ladder".  Its new name is  "TallTines"...


 

[zipper bowss]

 Great pictures!
Bill

[Yohon]

AWESOME!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

[Bonebuster]

Thanks for taking the time to post up your pictures!

Glad to hear everyone had a safe trip.

Looking forward to more!  

[Herdbull]

Ryan could not have picked a better grew. His father, Ron, was the camp cook, but this man has done it all as far as guiding and hunting moose and bear. So, talking with the camp cook was very enlightening. The guide, David Heppner, was a young energetic man who was willing to do what it takes to get the hunters to the stands, and to make every suggestion or alteration of stand placement regarding wind and evidence of bear movement toward bait. A very likeable guy! I really do respect him and his work ethics. All of the stand set-ups that I saw were perfect for traditional shooters.
 

I did not see as many bears as the rest of the guys, but there was plenty of big bear sign in the form of pod-trails and paw prints in the over 6 inch range. I passed up a real nice 6 foot male the first night waiting for the big guy who made those tracks. Eventually I did have a huge boar come in one evening about an hour before dark. Unfortunately he did not present a very good shot angle (mostly straight- or quartering-on) during his feeding.  I judged him to be over 7 foot as he was very tall and wide. His head was very long, but large. My video camera broke after the third day and I was not able to film him. Here are a few set camera photos of him taken during the following day and evening.
Ryan has a great operation going with many high quality bears. Everyone saw at least one large bear, and a bear they would love to take regardless of the outcomes. There was high percentage of color phase bears represented. Ryan is very knowledgeable and I learned from him and his tactics. He has a strong focus on wind direction and stand layouts. Being that this is his first time hunting this new area, I’m sure it will only get better. I hope the guys that follow us have a successful hunt and find a bear for them. The guys I hunted with got along well and were very helpful to each other. Even though I have known them for years, it was our first time to hunt together. Lots of laughs and good times were had. Weather and time are huge factors for success. I did not take my bear, but I had a great time with many highs and lows as every hunting adventure should be. I even found a set of moose sheds. I certainly do recommend this hunt and plan to return. Mike