Fire and Bears

[barf_fly]

If you are processing a kill into the night where there are grizzlies, is it advisable to light a fire to hopefully keep predators at bay? Some of these recent attacks are making me nervous.

[604ksmith]

From what I've heard fires are more for the hunters sense of ease then actual protection.

I've had black bears come check out my campfire when there was no food around. They didn't get close, but fire made them curious not afraid.

[J_06]

Bears are no different this year, just the amount of people posting on hbc. I bet 95% of bear encounters go unreported. Light a fire if it makes you all warm and fuzzy inside. Like 604, I've had bears come into camp with fires going.

[barf_fly]

Thanks guys...probably, simpler to get it done quickly.

[StuBrown]

There was the story earlier this year where the bear came and took the guy sleeping beside his fire up in Mackenzie. I don't think fires matter at all.

[benevs]

It is definitely nerve wracking trying to gut an animal with only headlamps on and the forest starts coming to life all around you. Me and my dad had taken a moose and it was well after dark when we found it. We decided best thing to do was gut it and prop it open for the morning so there was no run ins with Grizzlies (had seen a silverback earlier that day as well...) Maybe im crazy but we have found that leaving a sweaty shirt or a couple dirty socks on/ near the carcass may deter a bear from taking a bite out of it? We have done this a few times or even just when we have hung our meat in camp never have had a problem...east kooteneys, liard river, and Vanderhoof just a few places where we have done this and had no bears around the next morning trying to stake a claim. We could just be very lucky as well :smile:

[caddisguy]

I wouldn't make a fire. We had issues (well not really but it hung around eating grass and became immune to the air horn) with a bear and other unidentified critters while working on a bear and hauling meat throughout the night back in the spring. I don't think fires deter critters at all, but they can impair your night vision beyond the fire, as well as your hearing. It will give you a false sense of confidence (which is great in most cases because in most cases you wont have a problem) but in the rare case a problem animal is around, you want the ability to hear those early warning snaps/cracks and look where they are coming from. With the fire you may as well be deaf and vision impaired.

While doing up your animal in the dark, just keep your senses sharp and confidence high. You whacked that animal, you're the boss and if any critter is going to threaten you it will be their problem not yours. You're not a coyote or bird scavaging ready to bolt when something bigger comes. Good luck and happy hunting. May you be the dominant critter at the kill site and may the odds be ever in your favour :)

[high and to the right]

Take out what you can and if you have to leave some quarters behind, just before you leave fire a couple of shots (in a safe place - into a big tree, etc), leave the casings on the ground, leave some clothing on or by the meat, urinate around the area and then put a stick in the gut pile or ribs with a flag on top. That way when you come the next day you will know if a bear is on or near the meat if the stick is not showing. Over the years I've had several grizzlies watching me cut up a moose and after doing the above, so far I've only had one griz lying by the gut pile when I returned the next day.
But hey … when your ticket is up it won't matter if you slip in the shower, get hit by a truck or eaten by a bear. Be cautious but enjoy life and freedom!

[huntinnut]

I've helped out with quite a few animals in the dark and we've never had a problem. I think it's better to work at moving all the meat away from the carcass a hundred yards or so, and then oack it out the rest of the way from there. It seems that the critters go for the guts most often. I don't like comming back to the carcass in the dark for the second and third trips. If you have to leave some meat until morning then it's not beside the gust and probably won't be touched. I ALWAYS set myself up with my gun laying against my pack an arms length away, and ALWAYS put my bearspray on my belt before I start gutting so that I can get it quick if I couldn't get to my gun for whatever reason.

[ACB]

The one bad experience I'v had with last light hunting was in MU 7-31. At last light myself and my hunting buddy were walking up a power line back to our quads when I spotted a bull at the edge. I brought up my bino's real slow and told my buddy it's more than legal,{5pt. on side 4pt. on the other brow tine} at the shot the bull wheeled around and headed down hill definitely hit and thats where every thing else went down hill too. After giving the moose about 10-15 min. with the light fading quickly we started the bull follow up, it was no problem following the blood trail. Found the moose still alive about 4-5 hundred yards off the power lines, turns out my buddy only hit 1 lung. We gutted him out using flashlites and head lamps and opened him up and got his back off the ground as much as we could. We had to leave him over night and yes we left something with our sent on it. About a 100yds. up the slope I heard some thing behind us, to me I'v heard the sound before; the popping jaws of a bear. I said to my buddy what the hells that and he said lets get the faulk out of here. We both knew what it was. The next morning we decided to go sneak in and see what was left of our moose. So off we went , each of us with defender shotguns no plugs and a chain saw in case the moose hadn't been touched to carve a track for the quads . When we got down there my buddy was leading and he say's what the Fu#K. He puts down his defender and chain saw to get his camera out to get a pic. theres the moose almost one quater almost all eaten and the rest of the moose buried. Like I said he put down his defender to get a pic. I could have kicked him in the ass. I was standing there like Linda Blair in the Exorcist ,my head was whipping around so fast. I said lets get the FAULK out of here buddy. The lesson learned by me was in Grizz country at last light if you know can't get it out that night leave it be. Because shit can and will happen.

[elch jager]

My friend is a first time hunter and has limited outdoors experience - so is VERY paranoid about what goes bump in the night. He said he was looking into night/thermal vision goggles.

These - https://www.armasight.com/night-vision/night-vision-goggles and the 45/70 - he can stand sentinel while I field dress the game in the dark...

[two-feet]

I certainly think a guy should have a fire beside the carcass, how else are you going to roast some choice cuts? I carry a bit of sea salt for just this.
Of course always be careful, but the odds of ending up dead from crashing your truck on the drive to the hunting grounds are probably higher than getting killed by a bear

[elch jager]

... the odds of ending up dead from crashing your truck on the drive to the hunting grounds are probably higher than getting killed by a bear

but not mauled... just ask Chad.

[barf_fly]

Thanks for all the good advice. Got to remember lots of water and pee everywhere.

[.330 Dakota]

Bears will eat in a burning garbage dump,,,,fire doesnt deter them a bit, griz or black