mrbb

yeah if only one donut is missing, that doesn't sound to me like a bear was at the bait at all, maybe some other critter got it as its rather rare for a bear to find a stash of any human goodies and NOT eat there fill on things,
unless something spooked them off it(maybe even you when you went in to check)
bear scat is a good sign, but doesn't mean there working the bait site, bears travel and a smart bear will investigate a bait site and some will even move on if they smell a lot of human scent there!
the first bears typically on a bait are the young and inexperienced that dont;'t associate bait with danger!, older one's then to learn fast, easy meals can lead to trouble LOL
but there also the one's that tend to NOT pass up easy meals, as in if they found 1 donut, and more were there, they don;'t tend to leave the rest behind unless they have a REAL reason to leave!(bigger bear or fear of something)


I again also recommend adding a trail cam if the budget allows, there fun to have and worth buying when you can
as this will tell you what is happening at bait when your NOT there, takes a LOT of guessing out of things!
just keep at it, its hunting, more you do it the better you will get and its a NEVER ending learning game! so don't ever feel bad about not knowing something, that's just part of the game!

jnicholes

I already got the trail camera. It’s arriving in the mail tomorrow. Now that I think about it, you could be right. One donut does not mean a bear hit the site.

Anyway, I would post pictures of all the signs I am seeing, but my laptop is out of commission. Power port broke. Getting repaired. I can’t seem to get photos here on my phone.

As soon as I get my laptop back, I will post the pictures of what I’ve been seeing. A friend of mine in North Idaho did confirm it was bear scat, though.

jnicholes

Excellent news. I found a place near where I live that has agreed to sell me 5 gallons of fry oil/grease for $10. I’m going to pick it up Friday and then I will put it in the bait barrel.

mrbb

well I guess that's not a bad price, but up my way, places GIVE it away free, , as most pay to have it taken away, so when someone WANTS it, and well, NO one complains(some places think or find it ILLEGAL to do so,a s they worry folks will EAT it somehow get sick and sue???0
but if you keep looking to might find some for FREE

which is always a nice price to get something HAHA!

jnicholes

I completely understand that. Truth be told, everywhere I looked, they couldn’t give it except for this one place. Even then, it’s $10. I also told them that it was specifically for bear hunting and not human consumption.

It is the best I could do, and you got to do your best with what you got.

on a sidenote, I got to put off the bear hunting again. On the 10th, I’m heading to Wyoming for a fossil dig. I’ll be back on the 11th, then I will get the oil/grease and install it in the bait site.

yes, you read that right. A fossil dig. Paleontology is one of my hobbies, and this place allows you to dig and discover fossils.

mrbb

I never dug for fossils , but found a lot over the yrs,
I did however used to go searching for arrow heads and indian/native american artifacts, had several friends that were really big into doing so and tagged a,long on many trips and even went ion many solo searches
have a lot of old heads, ax heads and so on too
can be pretty fun activity as long as someone finds something now and then, other wise, I have to admit, I got bored after a few hours of NO one finding anything!

but been a few yrs since I went looking,. my main buddy I went with passed away a few months back, so, have less motivation now than ever!

so have fun, its just another form of HUNTING , if you ask me!

Bocajnala

Agree! Same thing for getting mushrooms here.
-jake

jnicholes

So, I went to set up my trail camera, and I discovered that a bear hit my barrel last night. Barrel was tipped on its side, all the bait was missing, a bear hit it.

Bocajnala

That's exciting!
-Jake

jnicholes

Captured a bear on the trail cam. I can’t post a picture due to my laptop being out of commission, but I will as soon as I can.