IMO you can't pattern a bear because they are not considered "creatures of habit".They will roam endlessly for food so they can build up their fat reserves.Unlike deer that uses the same trail every year.bears wil not.Even if you place a bait pile will not not quarantee the same bear will show up more then once.or any for that matter. Bears are far more reclusive than deer are.Specaily in a area of heavy hunting pressure,and the only time people really see them is when their natural food sources didn't get a good production because of early frost or for some other reason.they start hitting garbage cans the bird feeders.And like last years success rate was around 20% using bait stations.If they bannned it the success rate would drop and the pop. would get out of control.The state says we can only sustain up to 30,000 bears and if pop. goes beyond that their will be more human,bear conflicts.Even when they tried the two bear permit two years ago the success rate was no better.using the bait is not by means easier then someone thinks. A bear will not just walk in the pile, he'll cicle around once or several times before coming in the pile,and if he feels that something is not right he won't come in and will not probably come back at all. Like the saying goes if it ain't broke,don't fix it. hope this answers your question, good luck for next season.