Bear hunters-Am I wrong?

[dwarven1]

Mmmm... Twinkie-fed bear. Yum!! Even better'n corn-fed deer!

 

[PatMcD]

Arlow is 100% correct. If you aren't sitting over a bait, you aren't going to shoot a bear.

Does anybody here sit near an apple tree or a clover field during deer season? What's the difference?

When the anti hunters rear their heads, it's always against bear baiting. That's the one issue they might be able to sway enough votes to enact a ban. Once they get that, they will go after something you care about.

 

[pupchow]

So, those that filled tags in Mass. must've been a cheatin'?

I've just begun the bear hunting thing, but I can appreciate how tough a task it can be. And while spot & stalk may not yield a bear as easily harvesting over bait, I enhance my woodsmanship skills everytime I'm in the woods. I don't feel less the hunter for not having taken one.

 

[arlow]

So, those that filled tags in Mass. must've been a cheatin'?

.

Most of them that are succussfull do cheat. Many of them do continue to bait.


Or they are lucky enough to know a farmer that has problem bears trashing their corn fields. Thing is with corn fed bears you can walk right up to them and shoot em. The corn ferments in their bellies and they get hammered off of it. That is why they become so destructive in the cornfields. They roll around dragging all the stalks down to them and tear up huge swaths of the fields in each "feeding".

Just face it, Mass is f***ed up! I applaud you on your efforts and methods, just dont plan on me betting on your success anytime soon.

 

[MMF]

I get the munchies when im drunk too, i see why they like the twinkies.

 

[Deer_KiLLer]

.

 

[arlow]

.

I agree.

 

[Patriot]

I'm watching this canned bear hunt on Outdoor Channel. They basically fill up a drum with twinkies and when the bear has his head buried in the drum they blow him away from a protected tree stand.

I have no problem hunting bears or any other game, but this just seems a little lame to me. It doesn't strike me as hunting. It seems to me that if you are going after something that magnificent you ought to at least get on his level.

I'm not criticizing, just wondering if I'm out to lunch on this.

Bear hunting is kind of tricky. Bears do not follow a standard pattern and they are big
wanderers. Bait is usually the method of choice since dogs (which are used in the south)
are frowned upon in the northeast. I couldn't shoot a bear at all since 1) I wouldn't eat it,
2) I'm not interested in a trophy, and 3) they are pretty fascinating creatures. I have run
into them in the woods while deer hunting and have had a sow with two cubs meandering
along the road to my camp in Vermont. I would rather take a pic of them with my camera.
They can be huge nuisances though, mostly due to the bad habits of people who are
careless with the trash and garbage in bear country.

Along those same line I watched a show on TV about hunting mountain lions with dogs
and this guy shot him out of a tree with a bow. That to me was a freakin' shame. I
am in the predators corner most of the time, except when they become a pain in the
arse and pose a threat to men.

 

[Patriot]

Most of them that are succussfull do cheat. Many of them do continue to bait.


Or they are lucky enough to know a farmer that has problem bears trashing their corn fields. Thing is with corn fed bears you can walk right up to them and shoot em. The corn ferments in their bellies and they get hammered off of it. That is why they become so destructive in the cornfields. They roll around dragging all the stalks down to them and tear up huge swaths of the fields in each "feeding".

Just face it, Mass is f***ed up! I applaud you on your efforts and methods, just dont plan on me betting on your success anytime soon.

I don't want to check this but I do believe that most of the bears taken in Mass are taken
during the deer season by deer hunters stumbling upon them, or vice versa, in the woods.

 

[arlow]

I don't want to check this but I do believe that most of the bears taken in Mass are taken
during the deer season by deer hunters stumbling upon them, or vice versa, in the woods.

Bear season is a split season. The first half is in september, no deer hunting then. The second season was nov 2 thru the 21st. Only archery hunting for deer then. I am sure a few are talken off of deer stands in Nov but the bulk are targeted specifically in september.

Here is a little corroberating evidence

http://www.mass.gov/dfwele/dfw/recreation/hunting/bear/bear_hunting_home.htm

Most bears are taken in the September segment; however, some good-sized males have been taken in November.

 

[mainehunter]

None of you have hunted bear over bait before, I have and guess what ive never shot a bear, shot at one. Its not that easy, you have to sit absolutely still for hours, your scent has to be gone. when deer hunting from a stand you catch a deer walking by, bears know this isnt normal they are very aware of your presence so if you dont blend in or you cant keep still for hours you wont tag a bear. Also ive even tried baiting myself, tried for 6 yrs, set bait near know bear sign, the last I did it I had a bear hit my bait and he or she was coming in at 11pm hmmm cant shoot after 7pm. so I didnt get him. I was with a guide this one time, he limits the huners per week, there was 8 of us. Of the eight 2 saw and shot bears the rest of us didnt see anything. I probably shouldnt have written all of this, all I needed to say is how many bears have any of you seen out hunting or on a walk in the woods? that should answer your question on should you bait bears. Ive spent alot of time in the woods, even the north woods of maine, have been hunting for 22 years and Ive seen 1 bear in all my life that wasnt over bait. total in 32 yrs of my life so far including over bait = 2 bears. Maybe im just unlucky but I think its more the bears are hard to hunt.

 

[biff44]

These are specious arguments. If you are looking to control the population, how about opening up the season to run from Sept 1 tthru Dec 5th? That way you CAN hunt bear while hunting deer, and you can time your hunting to when the bears are out depending on the conditions of that year.

Also, how about allowing scenting attractants for all hunters, not just those rich enough to pay for guide to allow baiting in Maine!

 

[vtrj]

My brother and i did our first bear hunt in the "08" season and will do our second this year. althogh we did not see any bears we did find lots of scraped trees and tracks and scat, lots of scat. So hunting a place we'd never been before i think we did good and this year i will be in all the good spots with the sunrise and the sunset and i think i have a good chance of tagging a bear without bait. Scouting is the key not baiting, be where he is not where you want him to be.

 

[ARowley]

i passed on a bear hunt this year because it was over bait.

 

[FlexibleDogma]

My brother in law bought a bear hunting license a few years ago when buying the stack of required licenses for MA. So when bear season finally rolls around, he wanders into the woods with pretty much zero scouting and surprises a bear, which stands up to look at him. He takes a surprised step back, then remembers that he is actually out there to SHOOT a bear, and does so. So while bear-baiting gets results, I don't think its really REQUIRED.

(Also, while I love him like a brother, when it comes to his luck in the woods some days it's hard not to hate his guts. )

 

[Deer_KiLLer]

I agree.

yea,

something just told me that, this is going to be like telling the Brady Bunch why there stupid, and then expect them to understand anything.

somethings cant be fixed, ignorance is one of those things.