I wish we had a huntable population here. I killed my first one this spring in Idaho and I loved it. I do wish I could've done spot and stalk instead of bait hunting, but it was a cool experience anyways. Plus the meat has been fantastic.
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Bear Hunting without Bait
- Thread starter ADKMtnTrapper
- Start date
suicyderider
Well-Known Member
wanna sell that book?I was in the same boat this last fall and finally got lucky and made it happen. There's a good book I read called "No Bait Just Bears" that gave me some great insight.
Good luck man
Derbooze
New Member
WI bear season starts in two weeks. I imagine the woods are a bit too thick to spot and stalk here. I would love to know if anyone has good tips for hunting bear without bear for us flatlanders.
I hate getting a book your kind of excited about and finding spelling errors. It's always makes me question the quality of the information. A little unfair because we all make spelling mistakes. But still feels like a let down.
jbogg
Well-Known Member
- Joined
- Nov 26, 2018
- Messages
- 392
Here in North GA there is no baiting for bears allowed. In early bow season White Oaks are Key, then they will switch to Red Oak acorns once the Whites are gone or have rotted. In late September and October bears will enter hyperphagia which means they will feed almost constantly in preparation for winter when they will hibernate in up North. Down here they don’t truly hibernate, but will den up and slow down their metabolism to the point where they won’t even defalcate for months.
Bears have a very inefficient digestive system with a short intestinal tract. As a result they must feed almost constantly in the fall since they are not able to extract fully all of the nutrients from their food since it passes so quickly through their system. Another result of their poor digestive system is their need for water to help digest their food. A large black bear may require 2 - 4 gallons of water per day during hyperphagia so the food source will typically be within 1/4 mile of a water source.
Believe it or not during the early weeks of bow season we actually hunt bears like squirrels. They will begin climbing the White Oaks to get to the acorns even before they begin falling. As a result you can actually hear them breaking limbs as they bend them towards themselves to rake the acorns into their mouths. I have a buddy who shoots a Trad bow and he likes to slip up on them when they are feeding in a tree and then waits for them to climb down. I prefer to find fresh climbing sign and then wait on the bear to return to the tree. Underneath the tree will look like an ice storm has hit with limbs of all sizes littering the ground. If the leaves have already wilted and turned brown you need to keep moving until you find a tree with fresh green leaves on the limbs since these are the trees the bears are still feeding on.
You may want to call your local DNR and ask to speak to the Bear biologist. He can probably let you know the primary fall food sources for your area, and then it’s just a matter of burning lots of boot leather to find the food that they will be using in the fall. Good luck!
Bears have a very inefficient digestive system with a short intestinal tract. As a result they must feed almost constantly in the fall since they are not able to extract fully all of the nutrients from their food since it passes so quickly through their system. Another result of their poor digestive system is their need for water to help digest their food. A large black bear may require 2 - 4 gallons of water per day during hyperphagia so the food source will typically be within 1/4 mile of a water source.
Believe it or not during the early weeks of bow season we actually hunt bears like squirrels. They will begin climbing the White Oaks to get to the acorns even before they begin falling. As a result you can actually hear them breaking limbs as they bend them towards themselves to rake the acorns into their mouths. I have a buddy who shoots a Trad bow and he likes to slip up on them when they are feeding in a tree and then waits for them to climb down. I prefer to find fresh climbing sign and then wait on the bear to return to the tree. Underneath the tree will look like an ice storm has hit with limbs of all sizes littering the ground. If the leaves have already wilted and turned brown you need to keep moving until you find a tree with fresh green leaves on the limbs since these are the trees the bears are still feeding on.
You may want to call your local DNR and ask to speak to the Bear biologist. He can probably let you know the primary fall food sources for your area, and then it’s just a matter of burning lots of boot leather to find the food that they will be using in the fall. Good luck!
jbogg
Well-Known Member
- Joined
- Nov 26, 2018
- Messages
- 392
I sent a Marine buddy of mine a text last week telling him I wanted to kill a bear and it was his duty to hook me up since he lives in our mountain bear zone. Today he sends me this....
That’s a big boar!
jbogg
Well-Known Member
- Joined
- Nov 26, 2018
- Messages
- 392
A buddy of mine’s coworker snapped this pic in his backyard last week. His property backs up to one of the WMAs I hunt here in North GA. Battle scarred Bruin!
MrTumnus
Active Member
- Joined
- Jan 8, 2020
- Messages
- 117
Way late to the game on this, but I've been binging on Clay Newcomb's Bearhunting MAgazine Podcast. This episode is really good for understanding how to hunt those critters (what to look for, what sign to focus on, how to set up)
sportsmensnation.com
Beginners Guide to Bear Hunting with James Brandenburg
Guest James Brandenburg from EP. 34 is back and interviews host Clay Newcomb with a long list of questions from people who have never hunted black bear.
sportsmensnation.com