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Thread: Spring Bear 2023

  1. #1
    Join Date
    Apr 2018
    Posts
    30

    Spring Bear 2023

    Species: Black Bear
    Date of Kill: 2023-05-16
    Region:6 Skeena
    Harvest method: 150gr Accubond from a 280 Ackley Improved


    Short Story:
    I had a couple of days off and I was flat out of ground meat so I figured I would spend the day out chasing black bears. Unlike ungulate hunting, I woke up bright and early at the crack of 9am, ate about 17 lbs greasy mountain goat sausage (it's important to fuel for success), and headed out the door. We were in the middle of a heat wave with some flooding, so I spent the morning in steep country where I had seen bears previously wallowing in the small swamps created by runoff in the bottom of the various gulley's. Apart from a wayward porcupine, it was a quiet morning with no bear sightings.

    I headed down to the lake to make some dinner and relax before heading back out around 7pm to go for the night bite. This time I decided to focus my efforts on a grassy powerline strip with some longer glassing vantage points. The heat of the day was starting to subside and I was optimistic that the bears would be moving once things cooled down. I spent the evening glassing and exploring some of the offshoots that went higher up the mountain, scheming for a summer goat hunt. There was plenty of fresh sign and lots of feed, but still, no bears. After glassing from dozens of vantages I decided the next vantage point would be my last. I hiked up to the vantage with about half an hour of legal shooting light left. After glassing for 20 minutes and seeing nothing, I was ready to pack it in.

    I decided to take a quick peak down into the alder gulley directly below my glassing knob before heading home. As I glanced over the crest I was surprised to see a boar staring back at me 72 yards away. There were only 7 minutes of shooting light remaining. Both of us froze, eyes locked on one another. Slowly, I eased my 280 Ackley Improved off my shoulder, removed the scope cover and gently eased a round into the empty chamber. The bear was sharply quartering two me, twisted around in the way only bears do. I raised my rifle to my shoulder, steadied my cross hairs, and heard the bark of the rifle in my ears. the bear spun and ran off into the nearby alder thicket.

    I allowed the bear 20 minutes or so to die and could hear it thrashing in the brush and moaning below. Finally, in the near dark using my headlamp to follow a generous blood trail, I waded into the alders. The thicket was dense, with only 3-4 feet of visibility, and I nearly stepped on my bear before I saw him. Fortunately, I was able to drag him back to the open easily and the ATV did the rest of the packout for me, with a brief stop to winch after getting stuck in the floodwater. A late night of butchering later and my ground meat problem was no more. An informal autopsy revealed the bullet had entered through the humerous and front shoulder, pierced a rib and the vitals, punched through a dandelion and grass stuffed stomach, and came to rest on the hide on the other side. Bullet weight retention was 69%.



    photo last:

    The forum keeps saying the file is too large so there are photos at the link below

    Photos of Bear and Tag









    Last edited by Bado20; 05-24-2023 at 02:42 PM.

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  3. #2
    Join Date
    Sep 2021
    Location
    As far back as my feet will get me.
    Posts
    1,832

    Re: Spring Bear 2023

    Quote Originally Posted by Bado20 View Post
    Species: Black Bear
    Date of Kill: 2023-05-16
    Region:6 Skeena
    Harvest method: 150gr Accubond from a 280 Ackley Improved


    Short Story:
    I had a couple of days off and I was flat out of ground meat so I figured I would spend the day out chasing black bears. Unlike ungulate hunting, I woke up bright and early at the crack of 9am, ate about 17 lbs greasy mountain goat sausage (it's important to fuel for success), and headed out the door. We were in the middle of a heat wave with some flooding, so I spent the morning in steep country where I had seen bears previously wallowing in the small swamps created by runoff in the bottom of the various gulley's. Apart from a wayward porcupine, it was a quiet morning with no bear sightings.

    I headed down to the lake to make some dinner and relax before heading back out around 7pm to go for the night bite. This time I decided to focus my efforts on a grassy powerline strip with some longer glassing vantage points. The heat of the day was starting to subside and I was optimistic that the bears would be moving once things cooled down. I spent the evening glassing and exploring some of the offshoots that went higher up the mountain, scheming for a summer goat hunt. There was plenty of fresh sign and lots of feed, but still, no bears. After glassing from dozens of vantages I decided the next vantage point would be my last. I hiked up to the vantage with about half an hour of legal shooting light left. After glassing for 20 minutes and seeing nothing, I was ready to pack it in.

    I decided to take a quick peak down into the alder gulley directly below my glassing knob before heading home. As I glanced over the crest I was surprised to see a boar staring back at me 72 yards away. There were only 7 minutes of shooting light remaining. Both of us froze, eyes locked on one another. Slowly, I eased my 280 Ackley Improved off my shoulder, removed the scope cover and gently eased a round into the empty chamber. The bear was sharply quartering two me, twisted around in the way only bears do. I raised my rifle to my shoulder, steadied my cross hairs, and heard the bark of the rifle in my ears. the bear spun and ran off into the nearby alder thicket.

    I allowed the bear 20 minutes or so to die and could hear it thrashing in the brush and moaning below. Finally, in the near dark using my headlamp to follow a generous blood trail, I waded into the alders. The thicket was dense, with only 3-4 feet of visibility, and I nearly stepped on my bear before I saw him. Fortunately, I was able to drag him back to the open easily and the ATV did the rest of the packout for me. A late night of butchering later and my ground meat problem was no more. An informal autopsy revealed the bullet had entered through the humerous and front shoulder, pierced a rib and the vitals, punched through a dandelion and grass stuffed stomach, and came to rest on the hide on the other side. Bullet weight retention was 69%.



    photo last:

    The forum keeps saying the file is too large so there are photos at the link below

    Photos of Bear and Tag









    Congrats man!! Thank you for the story, appreciate it! I also recovered the Bullet from the one I got in April was so cool when my knife tinged when it hit the metal I knew what it was right away.

    Many fine meals ahead

  4. #3
    Join Date
    Apr 2018
    Posts
    30

    Re: Spring Bear 2023

    Quote Originally Posted by TheObserver View Post
    Congrats man!! Thank you for the story, appreciate it! I also recovered the Bullet from the one I got in April was so cool when my knife tinged when it hit the metal I knew what it was right away.

    Many fine meals ahead
    I was pretty impressed with the bullet performance, it went through a lot of bone and penetrated through nearly 3 feet of bear. Nosler advertises 70 percent weight retention, which was bang on.

    What are you planning on doing with with your April bear? I did a decent amount of ground with this one because I was almost out, but probably my favourite bear dish is to slow cook a roast using a beef dip recipe and then pull the meat to make sandwiches and eat it with the au jus. I saved a few big roasts to brine and make hams out of as well.

  5. #4
    Join Date
    Feb 2017
    Location
    Maple Ridge
    Posts
    207

    Re: Spring Bear 2023

    Nice Bear, nice work. If there was a thumbs up on this site, I would give you a few!

  6. #5
    Join Date
    Jan 2007
    Location
    Victoria,BC
    Posts
    6,398

    Re: Spring Bear 2023

    Nice!!
    Thanks for the share.
    kenny
    I love it when the seasons change.
    Fishing to Hunting.

  7. #6
    Join Date
    Jun 2020
    Location
    Chilliwack
    Posts
    227

    Re: Spring Bear 2023

    Awesome story, congrats on the bear!

  8. #7
    Join Date
    Mar 2006
    Posts
    4,368

    Re: Spring Bear 2023

    nice bear, thanks for sharing your story

  9. #8
    Join Date
    Sep 2021
    Location
    As far back as my feet will get me.
    Posts
    1,832

    Re: Spring Bear 2023

    Quote Originally Posted by Bado20 View Post
    I was pretty impressed with the bullet performance, it went through a lot of bone and penetrated through nearly 3 feet of bear. Nosler advertises 70 percent weight retention, which was bang on.

    What are you planning on doing with with your April bear? I did a decent amount of ground with this one because I was almost out, but probably my favourite bear dish is to slow cook a roast using a beef dip recipe and then pull the meat to make sandwiches and eat it with the au jus. I saved a few big roasts to brine and make hams out of as well.
    I got mine with nosler accubonds as well, mine went in the chest through the whole cavity and then I recovered it from the far side hide of the hind quarter. I started shooting them last year and have also taken a Wolf and a Muley Buck. I really, really like them! If they weren't so expensive (and hard to find for some calibers) I would use them for more than just one of my rifles. Probably will start using them for another caliber of mine that they aren't so hard to find. I hadn't even thought of checking retention but i'll do that and see what it retained.

    It was my first Bear, I didn't get creative kept it pretty simple I just got pepperoni, salami, and the back straps I might make some Jerky I got some hickory and cherry chips sitting here so over the summer i'll do some of that. Next Bear I will be saving some roasts I hear them in the slow cooker is real good, i'll do a lot of ground for burger, tacos, shepherds pie etc, and some more pepperoni/salami/jerky.

    Very impressed with the salami and pepperoni, it is very good. Only tried Bear once before this guy.

  10. #9
    Join Date
    Oct 2012
    Location
    region 9
    Posts
    11,528

    Re: Spring Bear 2023

    Great bear, congrats! I love the writeup as well...

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