Any other chickens out there?
 

Hello all i am usually talkin turkey' s and havent posted in the deer section although i do read alot of posts on here. I don' t think anyone has ever posted this before or brought this up so i thought i would. As bow season approaches here in WV i can' t wait till im in the woods. I think the only thing i hate is walkin through the woods in the dark in BEAR country with only a bow and a mag lite. I just always get this un easy feeling when im doing this not so much though with my 7mm during rifile season:D. Anybody else have that same problem each year?

RE: Any other chickens out there?
 

we don' t have the bear problem here in Fla; but I think I can see what you are talking about.
they say make a lot of noise when in bear country.that goes against all the bow hunting rules,so what do you do?

wish I could say I would worry about bears in our country...(sorry I can' t help on that" )[:-]

RE: Any other chickens out there?
 

Question for ya, when was the last recorded black bear attack? These things arent just sitting in the woods waiting to maul hunters. Dont worry.

I have a rule, any large game within 15yds, has my crosshairs on them, any within 5yds(and moving in my general direction) has a bullet in them.

RE: Any other chickens out there?
 

SwampBuck, I like your way of looking at the problem! :D

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RE: Any other chickens out there?
 

We have a few black bear where I hunt, I have never seen one, but I have seen their sign. I will be honest and say that it has never bothered me, if I saw one it might, but all I have seen are a few tracks and a tore up sign tree!

RE: Any other chickens out there?
 

I also agree with SwampBuck, the bear can smell you comming and chances are he wants nothing to do with you. Bear atacks are so rare, but we still seem scared in the woods especially at dusk/dark. I' ld worry more about unsafe hunters then I ever would about any wildlife.

RE: Any other chickens out there?
 

I used to get freaked out in the dark years ago. I would rush to my stand and get up fast. It wasn' t bears, just me being chicken. Now I realize and I get to tell my ten year old, there is nothing here in the dark that isn' t here in the light. And it will not act any differently because you can' t see it.

Greg

RE: Any other chickens out there?
 

Hi LIL E,

I' ve worked in black bear country as a logger in the Catskills most of my life, and have seen hundreds of bears up close when working, hunting with bow and rifle, and just hiking/camping.

Black bears are very shy and afraid of people. When they hear you coming they prefer to melt away into the woods and you usually never get a chance to even know they were there.

The two instances when black bears can potentially become a threat are:

1. When you encounter a mother with cubs. (I' ve seen plenty and they just take off, but if you weren' t making noise and surprised/cornered them maybe then, but just walking in the woods you make enough noise. And I' ve been very close to mothers with cubs (100 feet or less) many many times. They ignore you or run.

2. If you walked up on a sleeping or distracted bear and surprised it (Again, slim chance. I' ve surprised many bears sleeping in downed tree tops and against fallen logs and the first time you know they are there is when you turn to see what the ruckus is and it' s a bear running away).

My uncle shot the biggest bear ever taken in the Catskills a year or two ago (970 lbs.) and the bear just wanted to get away. My brother was walking along under a ledge and noticed some leaves raked out from a hole onto the snow. He looked in and didn' t see anything so kept walking, and the bear sprang out of the hole less than 10 feet to his right and barreled away down the mountain to get away, where he was shot by my uncle. True Story!

Pepper spray is more effective against grizzlies, but works on black bears to a certain extent. They issue pepper spray to the forest rangers up there to keep the bears away from the state campgrounds. My friend is a ranger and I' ve witnessed black bears who were used to this treatment getting sprayed in the face from 10 feet away and just standing there or ambling off, no aggression whatsoever.

Don' t worry about it, I see them all the time before first light. If he gets too close stuff him behind the front shoulder with an arrow, many are taken with bows. But don' t shoot him if he is facing towards you unless you have no choice, bears tend to run in the direction they were originallt facing when they get shot!

Hope this helps and Good Luck this season!

Mark
http://www.buckhuntersecrets.com

RE: Any other chickens out there?
 

Somebody has to make up the 1%!!! I sometimes get a little spooked, too. I know a lot of it is in my mind but sometimes I get a little spooked anyway. It adds to the excitement, though. Around us, there are plenty of bears that aren' t exactly afraid of people. They break into houses to get food. Our log house has chunks ripped out of it and claw marks in the logs and on surrounding trees from bears marking their turf. Darn right I think about bears.

Scott Meier
White Oak Lodge