Home Forums Hunting & Shooting General Big Game 76 dayz till....spring bruins in Big Sky country

yeah yeah, but you might not think so if you knew the far left one's hind feet were dangling right behind that 8X10 frame.

I have a one nice one that's rugged and hanging in my den, but some of those hides there would make better rugs.. just nowhere to put them - and I like the wall of bear. I've given a couple away to family. I'm looking foward to the 2010 addition.

Greenie,

That is one of the coolest pictures ever!

I love the suit coat hanging in the right hand corner to give perspective.....great shot.

That's a cool way to display, especially when you're out of room. I have an outfitter pal on Vancouver Island who did something similar, only the hides are hung in this order: black bear, wolf, mountain lion, black bear. It definitely gets your attention.

This is one helluva thread, with credit going to Dober and a whole lot of great posters. And it is also a great antidote to the winter blahs.

Thanks to all, and especially Dober, for creating one of the best threads on the Fire.

Steve

Well, they come in all sizes!

Forum member Bearhuntr has a wall like that.

Mine is smaller but developing.

These are some pictures of a Bear I got in BC.





Yeah, I like spring bear hunting.

Well, I just found out that I drew my spring bear tag here in Oregon!
Hopefully I'll post some pics in a couple months...

A few thoughts on calling bruins, I've called in a few now (bit over 60) and so I think I've got and idea or two to share.

In no particular order:

Try to spot the bruin first, make and determination if you wanna take it or not b4 you start calling. Many of the bruins that come to the call for some odd reason or another look really big even when they're not if they're coming hard and fast. So decide if you're gonna shoot it b4 you begin you calling.

Another nice thing about spotting the bruin first is that ideally you can keep an eye on him and see how he reacts/responds to your calling when you begin. If he doesn't react, try blowing harder/softer, try another call. Keep trying till you get his attention and hopefully comes your way.

Once in a while when I begin to call the bruin will up and leave the country so if it's a bruin that I wish to take I try to set up in shooting range just in case he decides to make tracks.

But the key here is to get him moving your way and I've noticed that about 1/3 of the bruins will pay you no attention at all, no matter what. And I've found that 1/3 of the bruins will sort of come in but at their own time and pace and really just sort of out curiousity more than anything else. And the last 1/3 is the ones that get the juices flowing. This third will come now and fast and hard!

If I loose track of the bruin after I begin my calling, I'll generally give it another 30 minutes or so of calling. I've had them give the appearance that they're not coming only to show up again and normally much closer.

A thought or two on to cold call or not (calling without spotting the bruin first). My experince has been that about 75% of the time sows with cubs will scoot the lil buggers up a tree first and then come to the call. For this reason I am not a big fan of cold calling for bruins.

When I don't mind cold calling is say when I'm after a particular bruin and I just can't locate him that night. Then if I'm in an area I've seen him a lot I'll call as I am only looking to take that particular bruin. And in the fall around the berry patches is another time I'll cold call. As then I've walked the patches and have a fair idea as to what kind of bruins may be around via the different piles of scat that I found. But, for the most part I'm not an advocate of cold calling for bruins.

For obvious reasons don't try to call to a bruin that has a major obsticle in the path (IE canyon or creek/river they can't cross)

And once I start calling I normally try not to stop if at all possible. This is where it's nice to be calling with a partner cause as soon are you're about played out (generally about 45-60 seconds is all I can handle as hard as I blow the call) then he/she can take over. Now when calling by myself which is what I've mainly done it makes it a bit tougher but I just do what I can do. But, I'd enoucourage you to not call for a couple of minutes and then wait a couple of minutes or something you'd do with yotes.

Cats/yotes/wolves can and will come to the call as well so be mindful of that. IMO especially the cats as they're big time sneaky buggers! Although a couple of times I've had bruins come in from behind while I was watching one come from the front. And both of those times they had a good snoot full of my smell, but they came anyway. The one came to 8' b4 I sorted it out that I felt like something was watching me. I turned around and a small bruin (5', maybe 150 lbs) sat there on his hind legs trying to sort me out.

I have had better luck with my calling in the fall(they're feeding about 20 hours a day then), but I do call in my fair share in the spring/summer as well. Around the time of the rut I seem to notice that they big boys will be a bit more apt to come my way when calling.

Hmm what else, can't really think right now I've got the crud and so aint quite with it.

I have called in bruins with a cow call while elk hunting but I don't count those as I wasn't really in the bruin hunting mode. But each and every fall I talk to friends who were bow hunting and cow called in bruins.

Lastly about calls, I mainly use the proptypcial dying wabbit call, but I did use a peacock call once and it worked. I am not a fan of cub calls and I told this to a company a few years back when they sent me a couple of prototypes to try. Reason being is that the boars may come but often times it's the mom's as well and I am not a fan of taking sows if one can avoid it. Plus some of those moms that come to the cub call will be leaving cubs to come and you might take out a mother.

I love the calling of game like Pat does as it really gets me going when I can make game come my way. I've been a student of bruins for a long time and I really enjoy just getting out and watching them, observing them and seeing how they respond to calls etc. I can watch them for hours and like Brad mentioned earlier I'd just a soon watch them than to shoot them. I'll probablly take a few more b4 I am done but for the most part I am more than comfy with just watching them do their thing.

Gotta run, take care and it aint that far away...53 days or so...grin

Dober

Thanks for sharing the info, Dober! I'm really interested in trying to do some calling for bears here in PA, as I think it could be productive in the areas I hunt. If you get the time, could you elaborate a little more on your experiences calling cold and/or where cover is thick? Sadly, we don't get to do much "spot and stalk" here, and any info you have would be greatly appreciated!

Also, what are some of your favorite calls to use when calling bruins?

Pretty cool info Mark, Thanks.
I gotta ask though, you recommend spotting the bruin first, and setting up in shooting range before calling.

So basically, calling them in is more a way to add excitement to the (and I'm sure it's gotta be a really awesome experience) than it is a way to really increase your odds of killing a bear?

I'm definitely going to buy a call and keep it in my pack after reading you guys talk about it though.
I can see in fall how it could really be an advantage too. I watched my bear feed into a creek bottom this year, and spent over an hour picking through the brush before I could get a shot, would've been pretty cool to just set up on the hill and try to call him out of there.

I'm getting the fever. Just found out I got drawn for G bear as well. Going to be a great spring!!

Mark, Good stuff. Thanks for takin' time to share it.

Calling one of those in could get interesting.

I can borrow you the epic beard man for protection!

It does.... An Elk Bugle in September does wonders for G Bears.

I should've said earlier, I've never called bears on purpose




Mark, how similar is your routine to say, calling coyotes?

Scorpion-while I've not tried it yet I'd love to try it back in Minnesota where I grew up. I would for sure try to find an area where a mature bruin was working over the food pretty heavily.

The thing about this that gives me a bit of pause is what if...a sow puts here kids up a tree and then comes. It'd be fairly easy to have some orpans out there if one wasn't really careful.

Dober

Rl11-I do like to get within say 400 ydsd for a couple of reasons. Main one being much further away and the bruins will be less apt to respond and come. The other reason, if he's a brute and I really want him then if he doesn't come then I can take him out.

Like I said b4 for me bruins anymore is just plain enjoyable for me to get out and get amongst them and I don't feel a need to kill them anymore. So, for me the calling is it, I just get a giggle out of making game come to me.

And, when you get your first bruin to come in to 5-20 yds mach 4 with his hair on fire you'll get what I mean as well.

I've had em as close as 5 yds and once I even called one in and bounced a snowball off his beak at very close range!

Its a good thing to have to fall back on as well as some kinds you see the critter but your losing light and you may not see him again b4 it's too dark to shoot.

I can think of two good bruins we'd of not gotten if I hadn't called them out to play.

I remember the first bruin I set up to call. He was a good sized bruin and no punk bear. He started to come and then he noticed a lovely brown phase lady friend that he decided he wanted to get to know better instead of coming to my call. Long and the short of it he ambled over to her and she got him on his back, and then she proceded to absolutely pound him into the dirt. I mean she tore into him like a porcupine into a balloon! Quite a sight to see for sure. She was maybe 150 lbs and he was 2x that and she just turned him into swiss cheese.

Dober

Dober, this is partly why I'm hesitant to go looking for a bear. I need to get out with somebody familiar with 'em before I'd feel comfortable squeezing the trigger. I need a guide....(hint,hint....grin)


And how's (spring)bear meat to eat?

In MT you're required to save all of the meat correct?

Mark, Sammo...thats the best reason in the world to spot the bear before you call....IME sows DO put their cubs up a tree ASAP...then they come..
If you see them do that, you can get off the call..which usually stops them...and back out of the AO...

BTDT

If you don't see them do that, then Dober is right...problem on your hands...

Ingwe

Yeah, no doubt Ingwe.

It'd make a guy absolutely sick to screw up and shoot a sow with cubs.


And how's that bear meat?