Bear Quest 6 Start Your Engines!!!!

[Huntrdfk]

Great thread, love reading this!!!! Congrats to those that took bears already, and looking forward to the coming stories.

I have never seen a bear rubbed that bad Larry, wow!  


David

[Kip]

That rubbed bear looks just right for bowdoc.Another succesful Bear Quest wish I was there maybe next year.Congrats to all involved.Kip

[Larry Surtees]

I had a hard time sleeping that 3rd night wondering if my shot might have hit in a place that would have taken this bear down.  It was the biggest bear that I had seen.  It made the bait bucket look small.  

I was anxious the next morning to get out and see if we might be able to track down the big critter.

5 total folks helped in the tracking.  About 10 yards from the hit, we found the end of my arrow -- a piece about 6 inches long that had good blood on it.  About 25-30 yards later we found blood.  Trailed it for about 100 yards and then nothing.  Which way would it have gone?  So we spread out and combed the area.  After an hour or more of tracking, we called it a loss.  I hate to leave a wounded animal.  

But I do have more to tell.

[awbowman]

Bears have BIG LUNGS or so I see!      

 

[Missouri CK]

Kip I was thinking that would be the biggest trophy Bow Doc could ever take...a bear with hair just like his.
love ya Bow Doc

[Larry Surtees]

I did feel bad about not finding the bear.  But I hunted again on the 4th evening and saw 3 bears.  None of them would come into the bait.  I think there was just too much activity durin the tracing of the bear. But at any rate, now I had skiddish bears that wouldn't come to the bait.  The same thing happened the next night, except there was no citings.  So I switched water baits and hunted the Hillbilly.  

I was determined that if a bear came in on the 13th and it had a good coat that I was going to take it for Chris (the 13th was an anniversary date of his death).  

I sat in my sand watching the ground squirrels playing or almost 2 1/2 hours.  Then I did hear a crack and then another, and finally the black object immersed into sight from the woods.  The bear was on the small side, so I let it pass.  Then I had another and finally just about last light when I had 10-15 minutes left, a nice bear came in.  The coat was in excellent shape and the bear looked to be a good one to shoot.  I let it get into position and it presented a good broadside shot.  I raised my bow slowly and picked the spot and I don't even remember getting to full anchor when I realized that I had put the arrow right dead center of the spot I chose.  I don't think it was but 2 - 3 seconds later, I heard the death moan and I knew then that the bear was down.  I had a complete pass through and the bear was only 38 yards away.  

 

[awbowman]

NICE!!!!!!!!!!!

[Jason Kendall]

[Larry Surtees]

Here are some random pictures taken that ya'll might enjoy.

Our Hero -- Tom Phillips.  Thank you for a great time!!!

 

The Real BowDoc -- One fella that could never be replaced!!!!!

 

[Kip]

Wow the camp has been cleaned up and painted since last year.Bowdoc looks the same though.Kip

[Larry Surtees]

 

 

[Larry Surtees]

 

 

 

[Larry Surtees]

 

 

 

[Greyfox54]

Things had been getting a little out of hand at home so I was very excited about heading to Mass. to meet up with Tom for my third Bearquest adventure . I was not disapointed . I rode up with Bill Terry who is a bowhunting and bowfishing fanatic , we had a lot in common and the trip to La Tugue didn't seem as long .
    The first evening in camp we can either hunt or relax and settle in , I had to hunt . Picking stands out of a hat can be trying , by helping with the baiting during the past 2 hunts  I know which stands look good so I  have personel preferences .  To say I was excited when I drew "The Resurection " stand of Uncle Barry fame would be an understatement .After climbing into the stand first night I only had to wait about 20 minutes before the first bear came in .

[Larry Surtees]

 

 

 

[Larry Surtees]

I'll keep adding pictures later.

Thank you

[awbowman]

If you can't be there, you can't beat lots of pictures.  Thanks Larry.

[gregg dudley]

Nice bear, Larry!

[JJB]

Great stories and pictures, looking forward to more.
-Jay

[Greyfox54]

Larry that last pic of Bowdoc could pass for Jack Nicholson's brother !
     
     Let me start by saying that trail cams can be a two-edged sword . Sat. evening I went to the Resurection stand with the highest hopes . I carefully hung a trail cam about 15 feet from the bait . I hunted till dark and saw 3 bears and quietly snuck out at dark . Next morning around 11 am I was tending baits and when I came to my stand I changed sd cards in my camera and thought nothing of it . I hunted that night and saw 5 bears , some pretty good but I'm a little fussy , some say stupid . You can decide for yourself . After coming back to camp around 10;30 that night I asked Larry Surtees if he could load my pics on his laptop . Being Larry he said " of course " . The camera was set on video by mistake and showed the 3 bears before dark , then overnight they were coming and going pretty regular . Then to my surprise the camera showed sunlight in the back ground and bears were still coming in when all of a sudden Bearzilla showed up . He was there sometime between daybreak and 11 am . I was hooked before I realised what was happening . After dinner and stories I went to bed around 12;30 . Borrowing Tom"s alarm clock I was up at 3 am and out the door by 3;15 . The stand takes about an hour to drive to and I was up the tree at 4;30 . Legal shooting time is 4;25 but under the canopy of trees I needed a flashlight to get to my stand and couldn't see well enough to shoot till about 4;45 .