bear hunting

[thphm]

Years ago when I was a lot younger and a lot stronger, my neighbor   who I was hunting with shot a bear between 250 - 275 pounds my neighbor was no weakling either, the bear was shot down in a gulley and we had to carry it up hill. first it was like a bowl of jelly,flopping all over, second  I almost puked my brains out from the stink.Well that day I made up my mind never to shoot a bear,I have had many chances to take one some up to 600 pounds and had them walk past fellow hunters near me who also let them walk.

If you get one I would gut it skin it out very carefully If you want it for a rug and come back for the rest if you want it latter on. Have Fun.

[rustin9989]

Im going to research more of the areas i plan to hunt and possible other areas as suggested by others. From what everybody is saying it doesn't sound like i have s chance in hell in dragging a bear out by myself and like another hunter said i definitely don't want to go tracking a bear by myself in late afternoon before dark. I'm definitely interested in the rug as well as the meat. I'm most likely going to wait till 2014 to go bear hunting so i can do this right and safely but by all means please keep the comments, suggestions, tips, and advice coming because it is has been extremely helpful and educational and i thank you all for the input!

[G-Man]

if your postponing it look into a spring bear hunt in maine or new brunswick. fairly inexpensive , guide servies are good there and the guide will assist in skinning butchering and retrevial. new york is more of a chance into a bear state. jmo

[rustin9989]

That's a really good idea, something i wansnt interested in before but I'm going to look into that. Biggest issue i have with that is price but maybe i can make it happen with about a year of saving

[d-bone20917]

I think someone said it earlier, but learn how to skin and quarter them in the field.  I see a lot of discussion on dragging them above and that is a big PITA.  It is much easier to pack them out even if it takes multiple trips.  I've never killed a bear, but I know that is the case with other animals.  

 

I've always wanted to do a spring bear hunt because that tends to be the time of year when there is nothing else to hunt. I have been looking at going out west, but maybe a DIY public land hunt in Maine is worth looking into.  

[G-Man]

most hunts I have been on have been 1000-1500 or so,,thats only 25-40 a week. bear hunting is probably the most affordable hunt there is.

[Cabin Fever]

Or if you really want to go this year, find a couple other hunters to go with you. It would make it more fun and a hell of a lot easier too! It could be as much of a scouting trip as hunting and you would have a better idea for next year too

[rustin9989]

That's not bad at all. Starting tomorrow IM going to put 25 out of my check for a spring bear hunt. That's a great idea and I'm going to look into that immediately!

[NY Yote]

Rustin you should plan on hunting this year. My suggestion is to target an area find a trail or landmark that is easy to find and slowly venture further off. I would use a map/compass and gps.

As far as bear hunting find food and you will have a better chance. I have seen 3 sows and 6 cubs over the last 4 years. While I could have shot them I did not. None of these bears were in the same area so guess I may have got lucky. I'm hoping this year ill see a big boar.

I hunt alone so I wouldn't worry about that. If you get a bear deep in the woods, you will have to quarter it out. I would just plan on that.

I'm from the Albany area if you want to chat shoot me a pm.

I do have pictures of the bears, I'll have to post them.

 

 

Edited August 19, 2013 by NY Yote

[sweet old bill]

I called the DEC years ago and asked is there a report of areas that have had bear to cars accidents for the big woods area of upstate NY. I found thru research that by 3rd lake they had a lot of open land from a paper company that had bear problems. SO off I went with 3 other bow hunter to try to take a bear.

 

We found a bar that had room to rent at a low cost, within a 1/2 hour drive of the area we wanted to try.

 

I found number 1 thing to  have with you was not your bow but a compass. Lots of big woods.

 

We went back there for several years and had a great time and did see tracks and bear dropping but never a shot at a bear, The last time we were up, as we came out to our trucks, we found a single hunter walking the road , asking for help to get his bear out, we 4 went into the woods for about a 1/2 mile from the road and spent another 10 hours helping drag the bear out, and found we all said never again. A bear is not like a deer and you can not slide it, every little thing you hit you have to stop and lift it over. Now guys this was in the 80's prior to a lot of the hunter having a 4 wheel to get game out with.

 

We also had one guy in the our group who  felt he was a woodman and did not need a compass, at the end of the day hunting we would have to wait on him and who he was with as he could not find were he left his truck.

 

good luck and let us know how you make out.

 

you may at night get a 6 pack and go to the dump to see the bears,

 

[vaniya]

very informative post ,thanks for sharing

 

[mmkay]

I'm taken a few beers on guided hunt in maine and NB.  the guides all use heavy plastic sleds (guide sled).  These are not childerns toy's but heavy duty firewood and big game moving devices.  One man can easily drag a 250lb beer out of the woods with one of these.  I've done it many times (no snow over grass) and i'm not in the best shape. 

Edited August 19, 2013 by mmkay

[PostedBoys Gallego]

Hey Rustin,

 

I am/have been in the same situation as you for the past couple years. I've been up to the Dacks public lands in search of deer and bear. Last year I did an exclusive early bear hunt with the bow. The problem I found was that in Sept 14 which is early bear opener, the woods are still too thick. I mean I couldn't see past 20-30 yards in most places. This is a tough way to stalk anything with the bow.

 

I've scouted plenty and found trails and scat but doesn't mean I would see a bear with their range and the amount of land. Food sources are extremely hard to find up there. Forget about Acorns depending on where you go, very little. Beechnuts not easy to find at least for me. I still need to work on finding good food sources up there.

 

It is definitely an adventure and I did it by myself. However, I did my homework in the areas I went to and did not venture past what I knew. 2-3 miles deep max for me and I had printed out topo maps of the areas I was going. I had a gps with an extra battery and a compass of course. I studied google maps/earth/topos and did scouting on late spring trips. Coming from Queens so its not something I can easily get to and its costly.

 

Spoke to locals and other bear hunters who were going at it with rifles and its just really a tough hunt that could be like finding a needle in a haystack up there. However do not let that deter you because like it said, its an Adventure!

 

I am considering doing a rifle hunt this year for the opener or second weekend but not decided yet. You can see my boring bear hunting video on my youtube page in the link below.

 

Btw, I found this video that helps you learn how to properly skin/quarter out a bear for a rug. You would definitely have to quarter it out depending on the size, distance and help you have. I go at it knowing I am going to quarter it out in multiple trips. Not like I am going to get one

 

Video to skin:

 

Being in your same shoes, I would definitely recommend going at it with the rifle your first year. I also wanted to get one with the bow, but with the thickness of the foliage, it will be extremely difficult and frustrating, from my experience.

 

[BillatAlbany]

Glad I read this, you guys have made some interesting points. I am planning on going out in the western/southern region of the 'dacks for an early hunt this year, I don't have any experience bear hunting (though I have quite a bit of experience wandering around/camping in the areas I plan to go). My thoughts if I had managed to get one was to quarter it out in multiple trips, even with a friend. I had a visit to my camp already once this year from a questing bear, and managed to find one dead that had fallen over a waterfall just the other weekend. As of the last few weekends the foliage up there was still too thick to really see anything (except in the marsh areas as was wisely pointed out). 

 

Here is a picture of the bear that had fallen by the way.

 

Edited September 10, 2013 by BillatAlbany

[PostedBoys Gallego]

Good luck to all going for the Early Season Bear in the northern zone this weekend! I'll be up there. Hoping even a glimpse at a bear. I'll worry about the rest after that

[Moosemaple]

I will be leaving for the Adirondacks on Friday Morning, Big Moose area. Good Luck....

[Jafo]

I am heading up into the dacks too tomorrow.  First time early bear hunting.  Any tips?