Submitted by Christine M. Connors, KNOW Publications Coordinator
We headed across Lac La Croix on a small round-bottom boat in the early
afternoon for our first day in the field hunting the Great American Black Bear.
On our way, I thought of the research I had done prior to our hunt, the time
Dave and I had spent together planning the trip, and enjoyed the anticipation of
finally getting the chance to hunt this amazing animal.
Pulling into a small cove, Dave left me on the bank with my 30-30 rifle,
pack, a kiss and a wish of good luck. My stand was about a eight-minute walk off
shore up a steep path of slippery pink sandstone. I began my quiet walk up the
hill holding my gun at bay and listening to the sounds of the forest. After
reaching the pinnacle, I nestled myself in the crook of a young pine on a
comfortable tree stand and began to recount some of the bear facts I knew. Of
all bear species in America, black bears are the most docile. Unlike their brown
cousins, this bear will generally shy away from human contact. The most
important thing to remember when encountering a non-shy black bear is to make
yourself appear bigger than him—hold up your jacket, yell, kick, throw rocks.
Black bears are fond of
vegetarian foods including berries, mushrooms, flowers
and grasses. If this type of food isn’t available, the bear will eat meat.
Although I would have preferred to set up near natural food sources and bear
sign, guides had set up baits a few weeks prior to our arrival to entice bears
into the areas we were to hunt. Sweet honey, molasses and dog food were used in
"honey pots" affixed to a tree. In addition to this, some of the other
hunters added bacon fat, strawberry jello mix, and powdered sugar donuts—sounds
like breakfast to me! Black bears have advantages of excellent smell and hearing
so if you’re going to hunt or observe them, be sure to wash well with
non-scented soap, use a natural cover scent, move in quietly and sit as still as
possible while waiting for them. Black bears have approximately the same vision
that we do. Once they know where to look for you though, be assured they will.
If they see you, you can count on them remaining ghosts in the woods.
Wandering in my thoughts about black bears, I almost jumped out of my stand when one popped through the thicket opposite me. Within seconds, two small bears came out as well—cubs! I watched them eat and listened to them whine and growl at each other while lapping up the honey pot Mamma had knocked to the ground. All at once, the sow stood on her hind legs—a full six feet tall—and began sniffing the air while the cubs scurried up the nearest trees. I hoped she wouldn’t catch scent of me because I did not want to harm her or the cubs. She decided everything was well and went back to eating with her babies. Momentarily, a third cub appeared from the thicket to enjoy the afternoon feast as well. After cleaning the honey pot, the ground, and everything around it, the family sauntered off into the woods on the right. How exciting! I learned a lot from watching the lunch in the forest. Cubs sound much like a cat mewling and the Mamma will let out small grunts letting them know where to go, when to come down from trees, and generally, who’s boss. When a cub is scared, it will jump and run up the first tree it sees and Mamma will remain on the ground. Black bears are QUIET! I didn’t hear a sound as they approached or left. The only sound I heard from all four of them was the mewling while they were eating.
About a half-hour after Mamma left, I noticed a bear stalking out of the
woods where she had gone in. I thought it was her again, so I left my gun on my
lap. After a few seconds, I realized that it wasn’t but by then it was too
late—my bear was heading back into the woods because all of the bait had been
devoured. I had a perfect walking shot that I am sure would have laid him down
easy, but I didn’t get my gun up in time. I took some razzing for this later
back in camp, but I felt better about myself for not just taking the first shot
at whatever came by—I wouldn’t have been able to live with myself knowing I
had caused three cubs to be abandoned. Oh well, I thought, he didn’t even know
I was here so he’ll surely come back tomorrow to look for food again.
Later, as the sky grew dark, I decided it was time to come down and head back to the bank where Dave would pick me up. As I crossed the clearing on my way to the path, I heard a growl then barks and scratching as three cubs clamored up three trees not more than fifty yards in front of me. I stood still and began to yell while Mamma yelled back at me. One more fact popped into mind at this moment—a sow with cubs is a dangerous bear. Arggh! I knew she wasn’t going anywhere while her babies were in the trees, so I gave my hiding spot away as I eased back to the knoll where my tree was. She made a few quick barks to the cubs to come down from the trees, then they ran into the woods. By this time, my heart was beating faster than I ever though it could and I practically ran down the slippery trail, and yes, I fell a few times, to meet Dave just as he pulled in. If he ever was a hero, he surely was that day!
By the time we reached camp, I had calmed down enough to explain to the guides what had happened. They said I did the right thing, except the turning and going back to my tree part because the bears now knew where I was "living" and would most likely check for me before coming to feed. We decided to keep the stand where it was in hopes that my bear didn’t know, but by the end of the week it was clear that he did. The very last day, I moved to another bait and Dave took mine over—he hadn’t even seen a mink that week—with hopes that we would have better luck. We didn’t, but three of the other guys did so we brought home some of their meat and wonderful memories of a great time.
For this hunt, we stayed in Canada at Zup’s camp on Lac La Croix. Although
Zup’s is dedicated to the fisherman and canoe outfitting, they offer bear
hunting packages for a limited number of hunters in the fall. Upon arrival, we
were treated kindly and everyone from the dock boys, the girls, to the Zup’s
were friendly, helpful, and informative. Our guides, Stew and Lynn, went out of
their way to set baits for us,
teach us about black bear, and drink beer with us
after a hard day’s hunting. We stayed in a neat cabin with a hot shower, clean
towels, and a microwave, and ate some of the best food I’ve ever had in my
life—I haven’t weighed myself yet because I’m afraid the scale may break!
I strongly recommend Zup’s for fishing, canoeing, and bear hunting for
singles, couples, and families. For more information, you may contact them at
(218) 365-4018 or visit them on the web at www.greatresorts.com/zups.
