Bearhuntings Quiet Times

The umbrella branches of the big pine tree kept me sheltered from the rain, which had now turned to a drizzle. All but my knees were dry and now they began to grow cold and numb from my rain soaked pants. After a short 30 minutes of this spring bear hunt, I was quickly warmed by my first sign of wildlife. He came in slowly at first; circling fifteen yards from the tree my stand was securely attached to. He then approached my stand, I sat motionless as he came closer and closer...a sudden snap of a tree branch from behind me sent this "chipmunk" I had been watching scurrying quickly out of sight. Not knowing what had made the noise, I slowly turned to see a large black figure moving cautiously through the heavy underbrush.

This was my first trip to the magnificent Saskatchewan wooded country. We had previously hunted Ontario, harvesting several nice bears, but changes in the hunting regulations had brought us to this new Canadian brush country.

At the time of this hunt, Canadian hunting regulations allowed bear hunters to hunt and bait on their own. The areas we had chosen had little hunting pressure and a high population of bears. We took advantage of this and pre-baited the area a week prior to our hunt. Upon returning we found several active bait sites and we had high expectations for harvesting some quality trophy bears. My hunting partners Steve Feist and Scott Faiman, whom I had shared many hunting memories with, were now in their stands, hoping the earlier rain did not wash out the bait scent and I was now focused on the task at hand.

The large bear approached steadily but cautiously, stopping every few steps to test the wind that may carry with it any warning of oncoming danger. As he closed the gap my level of excitement drastically increased. I found my opportunity to ready myself when his approach took him behind a downed tree. The moment I was out of his line of sight, I slowly stood and positioned myself for the best possible angle when he reached the bait. The bear's slow stroll brought him to within ten feet of my stand. With each silent step the big bruin would test the air, look toward the bait, and then stare at me as if I were his next meal.

This was not the type of bear that we thought was hitting this bait site. Earlier while examining the bait site we found small claw marks on a nearby tree and thought it was a medium sized bear or possibly a mother bear with cubs. As I looked at the bear in front of me, I began telling myself how Scott and Steve are never going to believe how big this bear really is with his huge head and think coat.

The excitement of the moment had my nerves frazzled. My pulse was quickening and my heart seemed to throb inside my chest. Throughout the adrenaline rush I kept telling myself to wait for the good shot and not to try anything foolish, like attempting to spine shoot the bear, even though the big target was right below me less than five yards away.

The bruin finished staring me down and began to turn his attention toward getting his next meal. He silently walked closer to the bait, testing the air as he approached the hidden grease covered sweets. To my disbelief he almost walked past the bait tree, when he suddenly stopped and turned his large frame in a motion as if it was his first time there.

I had anticipated him turning toward the bait and drew my bow. He gave me a perfect quartering away shot as I settled my sights behind his left front leg. Releasing my arrow, the Rocky Mountain Razor Broadhead "zipped" through the bear making him bolt from the bait site as quick as a whitetail. At first the shot looked like it was a little far back, with my head in my hands I began thinking that I just gut shot the biggest bear I've ever had an opportunity to harvest. I could see my arrow buried at the base of the tree near the hidden bait and my thoughts were quickly reassured when I heard the infamous "death moan" of a bear's last breath.

I had anticipated him turning toward the bait and drew my bow. He gave me a perfect quartering away shot as I settled my sights behind his left front leg. Releasing my arrow, the Rocky Mountain Razor Broadhead "zipped" through the bear making him bolt from the bait site as quick as a whitetail. At first the shot looked like it was a little far back, with my head in my hands I began thinking that I just gut shot the biggest bear I've ever had an opportunity to harvest. I could see my arrow buried at the base of the tree near the hidden bait and my thoughts were quickly reassured when I heard the infamous "death moan" of a bear's last breath.

After waiting several minutes to regain my composure and calm my nerves, I climbed down from my tree stand and waited for Steve to arrive before searching for my trophy. When he arrived we set out in search of the large black bear and quickly found the bruin less than thirty yards from the bait and after trying to move him we realized we would need Scott's help with this heavyweight bruiser.

Back at camp we celebrated my success, took several pictures and measured the skull. This old bruin had no front teeth, but the skull still green scored well over the 18 inch minimum for the Pope and Young record book.

The following year we returned to this Canadian backwoods and again we were blessed with the opportunity to harvest good bears. Scott and I both took beautiful tan and brown colored hears. I have since found success stalking bears in Montana.

There are several basic tactics we use that we think help us to be successful in baiting bears:

1. Good bait site location! Look for good sign along the edge of waterways bordering thick heavy cover.
2. Make noise when entering and leaving bait sites. This will make bears aware that you are coming to the bait and when you have left. Once a bait site is active, a bear will sometimes stay close by waiting for an easy meal. (The tan bear I shot came in as soon as the vehicle that had dropped me off drove away.)
3. When entering the bait site, the person dropping off the hunter and refreshing the bait should avoid the tree stand. If you are entering the bait alone, walk to the bait first and then to your stand. We found that this method provided the most successful opportunity for a good shot by having the bear follow the scent to the bait, not the tree stand.
4. Make sure you have a good backdrop behind your tree stand. Bears don't see very well, but they will see a silhouetted hunter. The big blacky I shot stared directly at me, but with good camo and backdrop, he could not figure out what I was.
5. Silence! A bear's greatest defense is their ability to hear. There is an old saying that says, "If you are in the woods and a pine needle falls, a whitetail will "smell" it hit the ground, a turkey will "see" it hit the ground and a bear will "hear" it hit the ground." So we take every precaution to be silent in the tree stand. This includes noisy bows, clothing, and squeaky tree stands. The Mathews SoloCam Bows are very quiet, fast and their lightweight compact construction allows for great maneuverability in the stand. We even use lubricant on the arrow if it makes any noise as it slides over the rest.

Whether you hunt bears over bait, in open country, with the use of hounds or by spot and stalking remember success is not measured by the size of the animal harvested. Success is the cherished moments in the outdoors shared with family and friends. It is these memories that will be forever burned in the memories to be stored and shared for years to come.

Whether you hunt bears over bait, in open country, with the use of hounds or by spot and stalking remember success is not measured by the size of the animal harvested. Success is the cherished moments in the outdoors shared with family and friends. It is these memories that will be forever burned in the memories to be stored and shared for years to come.

Editors Note: Wayne Muth is an educated outdoorsman who has fine tuned many skills while using archery equipment to harvest various species of big game animals in the upper Midwest and Canada. Wayne credits his Mathews SoloCam and Rocky Mountain Razor broadheads for many of his successful hunts.

Top Photo: Wayne Muth with the Saskatchewan black bear that was harvested in the article. Middle Photo: Scott Faiman with a nice tan/brown bear taken the next year in Saskatchewan. Bottom Photo: Wayne Muth with a tan/brown brown bear harvested in Saskatchewan the year after his successful black bear hunt.