My First Bear

[TheObserver]

Started the day early up at 3am, as I wanted to be at a certain spot for first light. When I went to this place last year to look for a BT area I noticed Bear sign was everywhere so I figured I have a good shot at seeing a Bear but my main intention was to find a good place to put a salt lick for BT. The wind was perfect going in and was going slow stayin hidden and glassing but nothing was in the cuts so I moved on to where I wanted to push up the mountain to look for a good spot to put the salt. But this place is pretty high up and I won't be able to do that for another month, after another route I tried to get up there I was beat up pretty bad and figured i'll just come back later in May when the snow has melted more, off to another area I went where I already had a perfect place to set up a lick and see what Deer show up in that area, much lower, no snow.

So I headed over that way and when I arrived and the time it took me to hike into there it was around 5:00PM. I actually hunted this place last November a little bit and though I didn't lay eyes on a Blacktail, I know there is a good amount of Deer there and rutting concurrently (found lots and good quality sign) so I have been wanting to put some cams up. On the way up to this one bench in particular where I know they are spending time and bedding and feeding close by, I notice the ground was kicked up and the trails were most likely being used daily and I found some fresh beds just like in November so I thought great this day is actually turning around and I will probably have Deer on the cam tonight.

So I put the lick down set the camera up and I walked over about 30 yards towards the end of the bench to the darker timber to look at a nice rub I found fresh last November. Not bringing my gun and of course that is when something always happens, I figured nothing was around after I just tore the ground up and made some noise. But I heard rustling up above me about 60-70 yards and immediately I looked up and on the next bench up I seen a Black Bear.

I sneeked back over and grabbed my rifle and binos and tried to confirm that it had no cubs around, but couldn't see well enough from the bench I was on to the bench above. But I had suspicions it was a lone Boar as I didn't hear anything else or see anything else. So I started making my way up there while thinking of the best plan of attack. My wind indicator was down below and I figured he was heading down the bench which slanted downhill slightly and away, so I decided to go straight up at him and I figured by the time I get up there, he will be about 20 yards away from me down the bench. Trying to remain as quiet as possible, was pretty quiet until about the half way point when the ground got really noisy with a bunch of leaves and blowdowns, it was impossible to keep really quiet, but now I am about 10 yards away from the bench and can tell it is alone and I thought at that moment, man this thing has got to have heard me by now..... right when I am thinking that he pops over the edge of the bench looking straight at me and with no hesitation he starts coming right for me full tilt starting to hop over logs, I yelled at him and aimed and fired 1 in his chest quickly with 300WM 180 grain accubond. It knocked him mid flight back on his butt and he started to bite his hind leg, then he fell over face first and landed 3 yards away from me. The shot I took was 8 yards after I rangefinded the spot he was in right after he started coming for me and I shot. The bullet went into his chest through the heart and cavity and into his hind leg, I recovered the bullet while I was skinning him, it is my first recovered bullet from an animal as well.

I have a new found respect for Bears and their true power when you get your hands on one! Man are the solid, heavy and strong! I would not want to have to scrap one of these things with a knife. I thought at first okay I will pull him up to this bench he came off since were only 10 yards away, nope haha (I was alone). I had to roll him down to the bench I was on when I first saw him, after working on him and getting him back to the truck 3km away (first 1/3 of that felt like 50km), it was 11:30. Just glad it wasn't raining. Man am I tired.

Hope to see some more stories and hope you guys fill your tags! If I get another opportunity I will take another one. Going to try to every year from here on out after finding out just how many fawns/calves these guys take out.

That's how he fell right beside me
https://i.imgur.com/Db6n4FA.jpg

https://i.imgur.com/UQTbk9J.jpg

https://i.imgur.com/68ZpEjQ.jpg

26" barrel for size reference
https://i.imgur.com/tyoArBE.jpg

https://i.imgur.com/vsyhSi5.jpg

[TheObserver]

https://i.imgur.com/Ne4yacp.jpg

I seem to make some game look small as i'm pretty big, but I was surprised at his size it was actually pretty good

https://i.imgur.com/qqP8Moo.jpg

Here is a picture of the entry wound as he was coming at me
https://i.imgur.com/MBdWcJV.jpg

https://i.imgur.com/8YiEi5O.jpg

[TheObserver]

It was a pretty unreal day, from going to the other place first. Then coming to this spot and the timing of everything right when i'm setting up a lick there's a Bear, of course don't have gun in hand had to go back then sneak up there. This thing had no hesitation and came straight for me as soon as it saw me when I knew it was listening to me it must have thought I was some kind of prey forsure and then came to the edge and was looking down at me, looking back I was pretty fortunate to have landed that shot when and where I did.

[moosinaround]

beauty first bear man!!! Good caliber for a bear too, andd excellant choice for bullet!! Fat bugger too!! Moosin

[HappyJack]

I bet that puckered you up, nice bear congrats.

[browningboy]

Congrats on your bear! Looks healthy and make some fine sausages!

[BradC]

Nice work! Congrats

[decker9]

Heck yeah congrats to you!! Good shooting on the fly!!! Cheers to a very successful day!

[DannyO]

Fair play to you man!

[BeerMan]

Great bear! Great story! perfect reading with my first cup of coffee, Sunday morning. Thanks!

[ghost]

Awesome way to go!

[high horse Hal]

Great bear! Great story! perfect reading with my first cup of coffee, Sunday morning. Thanks! ...........x2

[savage10]

Great story man, congrats on the first bear.

[Noreasny]

Congratulations on your first bear!

[Steeleco]

Well done, it's not even May yet. You've got time for 1 more!!

[RyoTHC]

Time to get entered into the bear derby !

congrats sir.

[Arctic Lake]

Way to go Observer ! Does the hide seem to have a brown tinge to it ?
What are going to do with the meat , sausage ?
Arctic Lake

[srupp]

congrads on a fine bear.
Steven

[jlirot]

Holy Shite! Great story for any bear - even better for a first bear!

[ruger416]

A 300 win. mag. at that distance shows what Nosler bullets are all about. I know the partitions very well but have just started to shoot the Accubonds. Time to start bear hunting in the PG area.

[Chopper333]

Well done, congrats on a great bear. Thanks for the story.

[hawk-i]

Congrats, hopefully you'll have many more in the future :)

[B-rad]

Huge congrats on the bruin,,,,lots of awesome meals ahead

[IronNoggin]

Great story & Pix!!

Congratulations & nice shooting on the fly alright!

Cheers,
Nog

[ElectricDyck]

Exciting times, good shooting and congrats on your first bear! Let us know how it tastes and if there's salmon spawning nearby...Im always hesitant on shooting region 2 bears..

[Mark-R]

Awesome bear! Congrats. Good reminder to always be ready for anything, especially when stalking in on a bear. Let us know how that first burger tastes!

[Ubertuber]

Congratulations on bagging a nice bear, well done. It's always a treat when you find your bullet.

[TheObserver]

Thanks guys! I edited the second post for anyone that is interested you can see the entry wound on the Bears chest as I was skinning him

[TheObserver]

Well done, it's not even May yet. You've got time for 1 more!!

I'm out every weekend so I think I should be able to connect on another one. Would be nice to get an inlander when i'm checking on my Elk area I heard they taste really good

[TheObserver]

Way to go Observer ! Does the hide seem to have a brown tinge to it ?
What are going to do with the meat , sausage ?
Arctic Lake

A slight brown tinge yes more up towards his back. Definitely pepperoni and some salami, not to sure about what else I hear burger is pretty good so probably some of that some sausage and not sure maybe roast. Wouldn't mind some jerky

[TheObserver]

A 300 win. mag. at that distance shows what Nosler bullets are all about. I know the partitions very well but have just started to shoot the Accubonds. Time to start bear hunting in the PG area.

It is a fine killing machine, I love that rifle! I got it last year first time shooting a .300. I got a Wolf and Buck and now this Bear with it and all 3 stopped in their tracks. The Deer though I think I will opt for something lighter from here on out lol. The Accubonds are just down right lethal!

Hopefully I can test her out on an Elk this year

[TheObserver]

Exciting times, good shooting and congrats on your first bear! Let us know how it tastes and if there's salmon spawning nearby...Im always hesitant on shooting region 2 bears..


Awesome bear! Congrats. Good reminder to always be ready for anything, especially when stalking in on a bear. Let us know how that first burger tastes!

You bet! i'll post back here when I have the first meal and let you guys know

[TheObserver]

Congratulations on bagging a nice bear, well done. It's always a treat when you find your bullet.

Yeah it was cool I was skinning the hind quarter and tink, something metal hit my knife and then it dropped out onto the hide. I went no way cool! All the Deer I shot over the years never recovered anything and now I finally got one!

[ekul246]

You bet! i'll post back here when I have the first meal and let you guys know
My first bear I bagged out at Harrison on Remembrance Day 2012. He was chomping on a dead salmon when I shot him. Had chorizo sausage, breakfast sausage and maple sausage made up.
Was the most foul tasting meat ever. Tasted good for one second then the salmon flavour overpowered it.. Ended up having to chuck it all out after numerous attempts to eat it.
I flinched hard every time I tasted a bite of chorizo anything for years after that.

[TheObserver]

My first bear I bagged out at Harrison on Remembrance Day 2012. He was chomping on a dead salmon when I shot him. Had chorizo sausage, breakfast sausage and maple sausage made up.
Was the most foul tasting meat ever. Tasted good for one second then the salmon flavour overpowered it.. Ended up having to chuck it all out after numerous attempts to eat it.
I flinched hard every time I tasted a bite of chorizo anything for years after that.

Brutal! Reminds me of a Buck my Dads buddy took back in the day a big 3X4 that actually came running at him. Thing stunk so bad tasted so bad he couldn't even give it away.

Did that Bear smell bad when you guys were working on him? Or did it smell bad before/during cooking?

[ekul246]

Brutal! Reminds me of a Buck my Dads buddy took back in the day a big 3X4 that actually came running at him. Thing stunk so bad tasted so bad he couldn't even give it away.

Did that Bear smell bad when you guys were working on him? Or did it smell bad before/during cooking?
Just smelled like a bear. A bit salmon-y, but it had been eating a rotten salmon when he died. It was a huge disappointment, meat-wise. But a trophy nonetheless. Have the skull on my dresser and the rug downstairs. 5’11” chocolate boar. I posted up the story back then. Here it is: http://www.huntingbc.ca/forum/showthread.php?107506-My-First-Bear-Story

[Arctic Lake]

I have only had black bear meat in breakfast sausage from a bear taken just above tree line in September , far , far , away from town , it was delicious . I don’t really fancy a salmon feeding bear or one that could possibly feeding on garbage .
Arctic Lake

[HarryToolips]

Well done man, he's a good size bear for sure, congrats! I too have been bluff charged, I had pretty much the same scenario as you one year except the bear turned and ran off when it noticed I stood my ground, definitely puckers a person up.. it's amazing how quick they move..

[wideopenthrottle]

great job...nice looking bear...enjoy all that meat...

[Antwonmh]

Great story and awesome bear! Nice work.

[Bigdoggdon]

Awesome job, way to git 'er done. Great Story thanks for sharing.

[Vortex hunter]

Good job �� We always remember our first bear.. vortex

[caddisguy]

Holy smokes that is a fine story right right there, and a nice timber bear to boot. Region 2 bear hunting, things often happen up close and personal I find. Thanks for the write-up and pictures. Sure made for a great morning read. You must be feeling it a bit now eh? Bears sure can be a lot of work

Wondering if I might have saw you this weekend. You happen to see a couple weirdos camped in a blue Jeep TJ? :cool:

[TheObserver]

Holy smokes that is a fine story right right there, and a nice timber bear to boot. Region 2 bear hunting, things often happen up close and personal I find. Thanks for the write-up and pictures. Sure made for a great morning read. You must be feeling it a bit now eh? Bears sure can be a lot of work

Wondering if I might have saw you this weekend. You happen to see a couple weirdos camped in a blue Jeep TJ? :cool:

Yeah man it was somethin! Your welcome glad you guys enjoyed it, Later that night I was extremely exhausted and slept in good the next morning thats for sure! Back was a little sore yesterday but today i'm good. It was the most work i've had so far as far as post kill work, it was a lot.

I'm not sure I'm usually on a mission when i'm out there so I probably wouldn't have noticed hahah I didn't stop and talk to anyone on Sat.

[BeerMan]

Are you butchering? Or.... Just wondering how he is going to taste. I have yet to have good Bear meat, but have only tried other peoples. Looking forward to see what you think. Spring bear hunt would be right up my alley, just don't want to waste it.

[RyoTHC]

Are you butchering? Or.... Just wondering how he is going to taste. I have yet to have good Bear meat, but have only tried other peoples. Looking forward to see what you think. Spring bear hunt would be right up my alley, just don't want to waste it.

guess there is a reason they are giving it away…

I’ve now personally shot, and consumed 13 bears and every. Single. One. Was delicious. Though if you tried to cook them up into chops steak or any other fine cut that was your mistake. Bear is exclusively ground, sausage, stew meat and smoked meats, and not because it tastes bad but because it ends up tough as shit.

[TheObserver]

Are you butchering? Or.... Just wondering how he is going to taste. I have yet to have good Bear meat, but have only tried other peoples. Looking forward to see what you think. Spring bear hunt would be right up my alley, just don't want to waste it.

No not going to butcher this one. I think he will taste good, no funny smell and looks super clean. I will post back here when I try the first meal. I will be getting a lot of pepperoni and salami for sure, not sure on what else yet probably ground for sure. Will be taking him in tomorrow.

[BCHunterTV]

congrats on the nice bear

[B-rad]

Are you butchering? Or.... Just wondering how he is going to taste. I have yet to have good Bear meat, but have only tried other peoples. Looking forward to see what you think. Spring bear hunt would be right up my alley, just don't want to waste it. if all else fails,,,just put it in the slow cooker/crock pot for at least 6 hours,,,,,forsure with all the potatoes and carrots,,onions,,,,you will definately change your mind,,,,i also make TONS of jerky with it

[TheObserver]

guess there is a reason they are giving it away…

I’ve now personally shot, and consumed 13 bears and every. Single. One. Was delicious. Though if you tried to cook them up into chops steak or any other fine cut that was your mistake. Bear is exclusively ground, sausage, stew meat and smoked meats, and not because it tastes bad but because it ends up tough as shit.

Ryo, you ever make your own Bear jerky?

I smoke my own jerky with Bucks I get, I might not give it all to the butcher and make some jerky

[bottles]

Congrats. Thanks for taking the time to write it up. Great looking bear.

[Greenthumbed]

Man, that’s a great story! Nice bear!
I shot my first bear under 20 too after a 5 minutes stare down. It was kinda intense, but it wasn’t coming at me. Good shooting.
I agree. Bears are surprisingly solid. Muscles everywhere.

[hparrott]

That's a nice boar. Good sized noggin on em!

[Bado20]

Nice bear, well done!

[TheObserver]

Exciting times, good shooting and congrats on your first bear! Let us know how it tastes and if there's salmon spawning nearby...Im always hesitant on shooting region 2 bears..


Are you butchering? Or.... Just wondering how he is going to taste. I have yet to have good Bear meat, but have only tried other peoples. Looking forward to see what you think. Spring bear hunt would be right up my alley, just don't want to waste it.

Picked him up Friday, i've only eaten the pepperoni and salami so far. It is really good, can't leave it alone good