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Tips for the Best DIY Road-Trip Bear Hunt
If you’re not interested in an expensive guided hunt or crave the satisfaction that comes from doing it yourself, here’s how to pull it off.


By Bernie Barringer

I sat 15 feet up a thick jackpine perched atop a long-running ridge, enjoying the late afternoon sunlight on my face. A hundred yards over my shoulder was a sparkling wilderness lake made even more beautiful by the deep blue sky. The thrill of anticipation made me feel alive as I eagerly analyzed every bit of my surroundings. 

A loon called from the lake behind me. For a moment, I took a deep breath and drank in the atmosphere that draws me back to places such as this over and over again. I cannot get enough of the environs in which bears live and the adrenaline rush that comes from hunting them in these wild places.

A squirrel amused me by freakishly stuffing his distorted cheeks with cashews from the array of trail mix in front of me. My senses snapped back into high alert as a black head with a brown muzzle materialized from the thick brush to the right of the bait. 

That head was soon followed by a 300-pound body. The hyper-cautious bear slowly surveyed his surroundings as it approached the bait, step by silent step. This was definitely the one — the bear for which I had travelled so far and put so much time, expense and energy into. My heart surged as I slowly reached to take my bow off the hanger. 

Just 10 minutes later and 40 yards away, I clawed through thick brush and knelt beside the bear that had consumed my thoughts for weeks. The moment was made powerfully more rewarding by the fact that I was seven hours from home and I had done it all myself. From the site choice, to the baiting and preparation, to the analyzing of trail cam photos, this bear was totally mine. 

I’ve baited and killed a lot of bears in my home state of Minnesota, and I’ve had the pleasure of putting many friends and family members onto bears as well, but lately it’s been getting darn difficult to draw a tag near my home despite an abundance of bears, so I’ve been taking my time and money elsewhere between resident bear tags and have found that being successful in a new area is not as difficult as one might think. 

Done right, in the right location, you can get bears coming to a bait in a hurry. I have found that if the right location is used, a quality bait provided and a good scent strategy employed, I can be ready to shoot a bear within a week, just about anywhere I have gone. 

Choosing The Right Location

Most western states offer over-the-counter (OTC) bear tags. Not all of them allow baiting, but many do, and some, such as Idaho, have really low-cost bear tags and even some zones where you can shoot two bears per year.

Spend some time researching the state laws, speak with the bear biologists in those states about top locations and then get online and research aerial photos in order to find potential bait site locations so you will have a handful of options to look at in person once you arrive. 

Midwestern states such as Minnesota, Wisconsin and Michigan award tags in a draw system. Most zones in Minnesota take three to five preference points to draw a tag. Minnesota also offers a no-quota zone, most of which is poor quality bear habitat, but tags are OTC and many bears are taken in the no-quota zone each year.

Michigan’s tags are available every two to six years in most areas, but their three seasons and zones are somewhat complicated. Some premium tags in some seasons and zones can take as many as 10 years of applying to accumulate enough preference points. Wisconsin offers tags that can be drawn every other year in Zone C, and can take 10 years or more in Zone B. You’ll need to do your research. 

The northeastern states mostly offer OTC tags and a variety of seasons. Be aware that many of those states have little public land and it can be harder to find a place to hunt. 

Most of the Canadian provinces distribute their tags through outfitters, which all but eliminates DIY hunting of bears. There are a couple exceptions in eastern Canada, and in Ontario, tags are OTC but you must hunt in an active outfitter area. An outfitter must verify your tag by allowing you to hunt in his bear hunting concession area. I have found an outfitter who will sign off on my tag for a fee so I can do a DIY hunt in his bear hunting concession. I have killed several bears and baited bears for two dozen friends and family that way.

Most of us choose an out-of-state hunt close enough to home where we can bait on the weekends or go on a bear hunting road trip for a week or two. That means you’ll need lodging or camping and lots of bait along with your own equipment. I pull a small utility trailer with a 4-wheeler and a chest freezer on these hunts. Pick a place to go, and just go hunting.

Choosing The Right Site

If you’re new to baiting bears you might think that a guy can just toss out a pile of donuts and a bear will walk up just asking to be made into sausage. It’s a heck of a lot more complicated than that.

In a nutshell, you must choose a site and create an environment where a mature bear will feel comfortable approaching it in the daylight. It doesn’t matter how many or how often bears are eating your bait if they won’t come in during the legal shooting hours. 

Because bears don’t like to cross open areas during daylight, you want to choose a site that offers them thick cover in which to approach the bait. Learn where bears like to spend their days, then get a bait in the thick stuff nearby.

Another vitally important aspect to choosing a good site is the proximity to water. Most bear hunting is done during May, June, August and September. Those are warm months for the bears that are walking around with a thick cover of fur and layer of fat. Cool damp areas and water are big parts of their daily routine.

Keep in mind that bears are in a state of hyperphagia, meaning they are eating 20,000 to 25,000 calories a day. It takes a lot of water to aid in digesting all those carbohydrates. Their daily routines involve water, so it stands to reason that the proximity of water will mean the bears will be lying up nearby and are more likely to come to the bait in daylight if they do not have to travel long distances to get there.

Choosing, Using The Right Bait

Bears can be startlingly picky eaters; this is especially true in the late summer when the woods are full of natural foods. If you’re going to get bears to come to your bait with any regularity, you better offer them high quality, carbohydrate-rich foods. They tire of sugars quickly, so it’s best to include some sweets but don’t rely totally on them.

Pastries are one of the best options for bringing the bears in and keeping them for a few days; but if you want them to move in and set up shop, you’ll need some things that offer them what their bodies are created to seek out to fulfill their cravings. It’s hard to beat trail mix or granola for that. 

By far my most successful baits that collect and hold bears are a mixture of pastries, meat scraps and abundant trail mix. I have also used granola when I can’t get trail mix, and that works well, especially if it features a high percentage of sweetened oats. Be aware that some baits are not legal in all areas, so make sure you know the state laws before you put them out. 

The questions of how much bait and how often you supply bait is ruled by what has become my fundamental guideline in bear baiting: Don’t disappoint them. I have tried varying amounts of bait. I have tried baiting every day and baiting just on the weekends. I have reduced the amount of bait in hopes of creating more competition. I have tried just about every trick in the book and I have become convinced in 20 years of doing this all across North America that the No. 1 rule in baiting is that when a bear shows up at the bait, he should be rewarded with something good to eat — no exceptions. 

That means if I am baiting seven hours away from home, I want to put out enough bait so it will last until I come back in four days, a week or whenever I’ll be back. If I am camping and baiting without going home, I will put out enough for two or three days before checking the bait and the trail camera.

I’ll resist the temptation to violate the area by spending my days fishing or whatever. When the bears are consistently coming in during the daylight hours, I will make my move on them, but not before. Once again, this is dictated by state laws. When hunting Wisconsin for example, I’m limited to two 5-gallon pails of bait, so I must check the baits more often. 

Choosing, Using The Right Scent

If you’re on a bear hunting road trip, you have a limited time to make things happen, so you better make the place smell good enough to have the bears come rolling in, tripping over their tongue.

It’s hard to beat the array of great commercial scents for this. I like the fruity and sweet-smelling sprays for fall hunting and the more curiosity based lures for spring. Some of my favorites are raspberry and blueberry for fall hunting. A sow in heat scent can be good in the spring and I’ve had fantastic success with a beaver castor spray. 

My absolute favorite that I use every single time I open a new bait is a concentrate made by Northwoods Bear Products they call Gold Rush. It comes in a 4-ounce bottle and I mix it with used fryer oil. Just one ounce of this powerful stuff makes five gallons of oil smell so incredible it’s hard to describe. I have yet to find anything that beats it for bringing the bears in quickly.

I like to splash the oil around the bait and on the ground so it gets on the bears’ feet. I use the sprays on leaves and brush around the bait, paying special attention to where the bears walk so the sweet smells will get on their fur. I spray it up high as well so the breeze will carry the message far and wide. We need the bears to find the bait quickly, and using good lures along with good location is an important part of the strategy.

If you have an appetite for the thrill of bear hunting and you want the satisfaction of doing it all on your own, a DIY bear hunt away from home can fill all those cravings. Do your homework and plan to put some sweat equity into the job; it’s hard work.

But the rewards and sense of fulfillment that comes from this endeavor is just as great as the heart-pounding excitement and wildness that comes from entering this large predator’s domain and facing him head-on.

But be forewarned; it can be intoxicating and addicting. 











 

Giving coyotes a free pass during

deer season



By Steve Piatt

We’re right smack in the middle of deer season now, and chances are pretty good that at some point I’ll encounter a coyote during a whitetail hunt.

I won’t shoot the pesky canine, though, for several reasons.

While some hunters will immediately turn their deer hunt into a coyote hunt if the opportunity presents itself, I can’t make that transition, primarily for fear of disrupting my deer hunt – and likely Paula’s since we’re sometimes in a two-person stand and, if not, she’s set up not far away, certainly within earshot of my .270.

I can understand the disdain hunters have for coyotes. They undoubtedly impact deer and likely turkey populations, worse in some areas than in others I’m sure. While they often get blamed for a lot, they’re certainly not blameless when it comes to fawn predation.

And I can also understand a hunter’s rationalization that removing even one coyote from their hunting landscape can only help things. But biologists say that’s not necessarily the case. In fact, given too much hunting pressure and harvest, coyotes are capable of thumbing their noses at us by producing more pups to offset our efforts. Coyotes, it seems, are known as a “compensating species,” which basically means they’re here to stay regardless of our efforts.

But the main reason I don’t pull the trigger on a coyote – although I did once in the Adirondacks, and regretted my clean miss as well as even my attempt – is that I don’t want to disrupt our deer hunt in any way. And while I might be able to get away with shooting a coyote without hindering our chances at a whitetail, I can’t be sure of that. So the coyote gets a free pass.

I’m probably in the minority on this one, given Facebook posts and the hunting fraternity’s general hatred of the canines. If you get the urge and it’s legal to do so, fire away. Me? I’ll let the ‘yote walk, figuring there might be a buck in the area, and removing one from the landscape isn’t going to make much of an impact.



 

Time for the late-season rooster roll call
By Tony Peterson
The most challenging (and rewarding) time to hunt public land pheasants is from now until the end of the season. While it’s not easy, hunters willing to work will find plenty of roosters.

When it comes to pheasant hunting success, particularly on public land, there are a lot of wild cards to consider. Standing corn is a big one, and this year, the amount of water out there on the landscape is a major issue. While we should be freezing up soon, that’s not always the case for anything with a little flow to it, which means the roosters might be across a waterway from you and, in general, pretty safe.

Pheasant populations are another wild card, and while we aren’t at last year’s numbers, we aren’t without a few birds to chase around, either. The numbers are definitely good enough to justify a few days in the field, although I wouldn’t count on easy limits.

I never do, and when they occasionally come my way I’m always surprised. Mostly this time of year, it’s a matter of hunting from the moment legal shooting time begins until sunset, and then hoping there is some heft in the game bag for the effort. There usually is if you keep at it and spend your time shadowing a decent dog in good cover.

That might be the most important piece of the puzzle right now: good dogs in good cover. A great dog hunting the CRP grass where the roosters spent their time in the early season doesn’t do you much good, just as a mediocre dog in the thickest stuff on a given property isn’t so great either.

A good dog that works with you in gnarly cover is usually the key to sussing out birds on heavily hunted ground. It’s not the mowed paths and uncut milo fields of high-dollar hunts, but it sure is rewarding for anyone willing to put in the miles. As the season progresses, you’ll probably have to put on more miles and wade through thicker stuff, but the upside is the birds are easy to locate and most of your hunting competition will either stay home or hike the easiest routes.

Use that to your advantage for the remainder of the season.





 

Eastern equine encephalitis virus found in ruffed grouse
by Minnesota DNR Reports

(Photo by Bob Drieslein)

Three Itasca County ruffed grouse that appeared sick have tested positive for a mosquito-borne virus called eastern equine encephalitis (EEE), marking the first time the virus has been confirmed to cause illness in a Minnesota wild animal.

“Now that we’ve found the EEE virus in Minnesota grouse, we will continue to monitor grouse populations for signs of the disease,” said Michelle Carstensen, wildlife health program leader for the Minnesota DNR. “It’s too soon to say how widespread the EEE virus might be in grouse populations because we only have one year of grouse sampling results from 2018.”

EEE is a rare illness in humans. People bitten by infected mosquitoes seldom develop any symptoms but the virus can be serious if they do.

The hunters who harvested the grouse brought them to DNR staff in late October after they noticed abnormal behavior in the birds – they didn’t or couldn’t fly away. When field dressing the birds, the hunters also noticed reduced muscle mass.

The DNR submitted samples from the birds to the University of Minnesota’s Veterinary Diagnostic Laboratory (VDL). Tests concluded two and possibly a third were infected with EEE virus. The third grouse – suspected of having the virus, also had inflammation in the brain, providing further evidence that it likely also suffered from EEE. All birds tested negative for West Nile virus.

“It is rare for us to find EEE in Minnesota, but this year we’ve diagnosed the virus in these grouse and a horse,” said the VDL’s Dr. Arno Wuenschmann. “I initially suspected that West Nile virus caused the encephalitis but molecular tests conducted on the grouse in collaboration with the Animal Health Diagnostic Center at Cornell University proved EEE virus was to blame.”

The EEE virus is typically found in the eastern United States and along the Gulf Coast but also has been found in other states, including Michigan and Wisconsin.

Prior to this discovery, the DNR had confirmed that wolves and moose in northeastern Minnesota had been exposed to the virus but never found animals of either species sick with the disease.

In 2018, the DNR began asking hunters to submit grouse samples for West Nile virus testing. Samples collected the first year showed 12 percent of the birds had been exposed to West Nile virus but none had been exposed to EEE.

“We’ll keep testing samples that hunters submit for both viruses,” Carstensen said. “Hunters who harvest sick grouse also can help us by contacting a nearby DNR area wildlife office so they can submit those samples for testing, too.”

As with any wild game, care should be used when processing the animal to avoid cuts that could cause potential infection. Any game that appears abnormal – either in the field or after dressing – should not be consumed. Hunters with questions about what they harvest can contact a nearby DNR area wildlife office.

Grouse sampling information can be found on the DNR website.



 

NEAR 300-POUND DEER TAKEN IN DULUTH NEIGHBORHOOD DURING CITY HUNT

By Brad Smith (October 2017)

Now this is one big deer. 

Duluth, Minnesota has a lot of deer. They have so many deer in fact that once a year, the city opens up to a public deer hunt to help reduce the population within city limits.

One hunter partaking in this city hunt, Leif Birnbaum, was positioned in a treestand in a purposefully unnamed neighborhood. Then, all of a sudden, a cow-sized buck came walking right into his range and Birnbaum let his arrow fly.

"I couldn't believe how big it was," Birnbaum said in an interview with the Duluth News Tribune. "I'd never seen a deer on the ground that big. It was the biggest body I'd ever seen. We just stood there thinking, 'How are we going to get it out of here?'"

After field dressing out to 260 pounds, this deer could have easily topped 300 pounds on the hoof. Birnbaum does not plan to get his big deer mounted. As he stated, he didn't think the antlers were particularly big. It was just the size of the body that made this deer so special.

With that being said, the hunter does plan to get a European mount made instead.

Goodness gracious, what a land-cow!





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