Rookie Hunter
01-05-2017, 06:09 PM
We just submitted a LEH application for spring grizzly bear in the Kootenays. We've hunted this specific area before and know there is a healthy population of bears. This will however be our first time hunting these majestic beasts and we'd like some advice from anyone that has been part of a grizzly hunt.
For us, it's important to make use of as much of the animal as we possibly can, so what are your experiences eating and processing spring grizzly bear. Any good recipes or cooking techniques you'd recommend? Sausages, jerky and smoked hams sound like good options from what we've read and been told... Trichinosis will definitely be a consideration when cooking!
Bears in general seem to get mixed reviews on taste and from what we understand, diet is the biggest factor when considering quality of meat. But it'll be June if/when we go, so roots and green vegetation would likely be the bulk of their diet. We've heard some guys say grizzly bear is a mix between beef and pork, and others who say that it was absolutely disgusting and would never eat it again. A diet of dead/rotten fish in the coastal regions or during spawning season seem to be the culprits for poor tasting meat, but what other factors should be considered when choosing a bear?
Beyond cooking, do you have any hunting tips, butchering and field dressing advice, areas to focus on, things to look for? Any and all comments would be very much appreciated!
It's been said that every hunter should experience at least one bear hunt, so we're looking forward to this no matter what the results are in the end. Worst case scenario, we'll have done some scouting for the fall, seen some beautiful country and gotten some great exercise. We're lucky to call BC home and to have these opportunities available to us!
For us, it's important to make use of as much of the animal as we possibly can, so what are your experiences eating and processing spring grizzly bear. Any good recipes or cooking techniques you'd recommend? Sausages, jerky and smoked hams sound like good options from what we've read and been told... Trichinosis will definitely be a consideration when cooking!
Bears in general seem to get mixed reviews on taste and from what we understand, diet is the biggest factor when considering quality of meat. But it'll be June if/when we go, so roots and green vegetation would likely be the bulk of their diet. We've heard some guys say grizzly bear is a mix between beef and pork, and others who say that it was absolutely disgusting and would never eat it again. A diet of dead/rotten fish in the coastal regions or during spawning season seem to be the culprits for poor tasting meat, but what other factors should be considered when choosing a bear?
Beyond cooking, do you have any hunting tips, butchering and field dressing advice, areas to focus on, things to look for? Any and all comments would be very much appreciated!
It's been said that every hunter should experience at least one bear hunt, so we're looking forward to this no matter what the results are in the end. Worst case scenario, we'll have done some scouting for the fall, seen some beautiful country and gotten some great exercise. We're lucky to call BC home and to have these opportunities available to us!