The Forestry Forum

If one is planning on scouting, or hunting, or trying to attract bear, can't one call it all as a group Bearing? Like Mushrooming? I'm saying "I'ma Black Bearing." ;D

For the first time since we put the roof on the cabin in da U.P, in 1994, I drew a permit to buy a bear license. This year I plan on doing everything I can do to increase my odds of getting a Black Bear and that means lots of time afield. I've had several forum members ask me to keep them posted on how its going so thats the purpose of this thread I guess. :) 

Last week was our first excursion to the cabin. We left on Monday and did not come back until Sunday afternoon. My Sister Leeenda (Lynda) and I spent 4 evening of that time sitting in a blind that has produced several bear in past years. We are hunting with bait. Anything works for bear bait but the more odoriferous the better. We are using old meat, Salmon entrails and heads, bread soaked in Strawberry jello, and what ever else we can scrounge. So far we have some "things" hitting the bait at night but no proof that we have a bear coming in yet. It could be most anything where we are at. Whatever it is it has the strength to carry the carcass of what was probably a 30lb salmon over 20 yards.  We have a trail cam set up that did record some photos. Mostly of my brother in law Pete and I hauling in more bait, but it also took some other photos.  Problem is while Leenda was trying to rewind the film, it accidental got exposed. :-\

Were having a good time at the cabin. Its been years since I have committed this kind of time to some of the things I have always loved to do. I will be on the forum only hit and miss probably clear through September. We are leaving again Thursday until early next week. I'll be hitching a ride once again with Leenda and Pete. You may see me logged on like you did last week, but that will be Stacy or Tammy getting my messages so they can take care of any needs that you might normally have with me.  I don't thank them enough, but my fellow admins are truly the saving grace for the Forestry Forum. Without them I would worry every minute that something was broke or something or someone needed looking after, but with those guys on your side, I know that all our needs are met and I get this chance to be just the old Jeff for a month or so.

I thought I would give you some photos we take as we are up at the cabin Black Bearing. :)  Not all have to do with the act of bearing but they are taken because we are here doing the black bearing.  :)


Shortly after arriving Monday and unloading the bait we hauled up, getting ready to take it back in da U.P. woods.
(https://forestryforum.com/gallery/albums/userpics/10001/bear_hunt_1.jpg)

View down my shooting lane to where this bait station is. KEVIN! You know right where this is. Its the blind you donated blood for. :D
(https://forestryforum.com/gallery/albums/userpics/10001/bear_hunt_2.jpg)

My Seester Leenda on one of the quads.
(https://forestryforum.com/gallery/albums/userpics/10001/bear_hunt_3.jpg)

Roughing it. On the way to the bear blind. Packing Heat and a T.V.  :D
(https://forestryforum.com/gallery/albums/userpics/10001/bear_hunt_4.jpg)

View toward the bait station out the blind window.
(https://forestryforum.com/gallery/albums/userpics/10001/bear_hunt_5.jpg)

Fire Tower off of Tower road.
(https://forestryforum.com/gallery/albums/userpics/10001/bear_hunt_6.jpg)

Our Friends Lyle and Peggy from Stalwart said to come over and see the pups. One of their labs had 9 babies. Peggy was trying to tell them I was their uncle. All I had to say was OH OUCH! Not THERE!
(https://forestryforum.com/gallery/albums/userpics/10001/bear_hunt_7.jpg)


(https://forestryforum.com/gallery/albums/userpics/10001/bear_hunt_8.jpg)

Will 50 lbs of salmon entrails a day bring a bear our way? I dunno, but it sure makes you appreciate an east wind or a calm day. PEW!
(https://forestryforum.com/gallery/albums/userpics/10001/bear_hunt_9.jpg)

I took this photo of this lab at the elevator in Pickford. He seemed right at home looking out that window.
(https://forestryforum.com/gallery/albums/userpics/10001/bear_hunt_10.jpg)

One of many photos I took of Sandhill cranes. Lots of them up north this year.
(https://forestryforum.com/gallery/albums/userpics/10001/bear_hunt_11.jpg)


Me and Leenda lookin for Bar.
(https://forestryforum.com/gallery/albums/userpics/10001/bear_hunt_12.jpg)

Here is a convenient little Yooper style facility along the gogamain swamp.
(https://forestryforum.com/gallery/albums/userpics/10001/bear_hunt_13.jpg)



(https://forestryforum.com/gallery/albums/userpics/10001/bear_hunt_14.jpg)

(https://forestryforum.com/gallery/albums/userpics/10001/bear_hunt_9.jpg)


I can smell that bag o Fish from here :-X  :)
Are there a lot of berries available to the Bears right now? The fish should draw them regardless.

Very few berries this year. Its been really dry up there. Were counting on the pond being close as another attractant to the area.  Hopefully we get the bear to come around. We always have in the past.  Sometimes it only takes a couple days, sometimes a couple weeks. 

I have a video clip to upload but I either gotta edit it for on word or give you a warning due to potty mouth pete. :D  I think I'll just warn you. ;D

Good luck with the bear hunt.We bait bear here in Maine too.Not much done in this area.Seems to be more up north from here.

Hmmm...I've never exposed the film while rewinding on my digital game camera. ;D

All I know is used a pin to push the little button that causes the film to rewind before all the photos are taken, It acted like it was done, and when she opened the case there was about a foot of film hanging out of the thing. Its thier camera, I know nothing about it except that it ate the first roll of film. :)

That looks like a good time !  I have a vcr video of bowhunting for bear and in it they set bait just like you did but they also have stop watches tied to cans and everyday they know exactly what time the bears are tripping the bait .  I dont think I could kill a bear just because it reminds me of my black labs . Neighbor goes to alaska every year for grizzly .  Hope you get a big beer Jeff  :D

Jeff try donuts as bait. The game commision uses them as bait here to trap nuisance bears here. Good luck
Have a big beer after you shoot the big bear

Find a fast fry joint and see if they will let ya pick up some pales of discarded grease. Find a farmer with a dead calf or sheep. Maybe even a pile of ripe apples will help to, just cut up a few so they ferment in the sun. Bears won't touch dead fish, but the smell will bring them and they will probably paw through them. And even the donuts as suggested or discarded cakes from the grocery will bring bears. They love that junk food.

Just some other bait ideas. ;)

When I lived in Arizona there were tough rules on what could be used for bear bait. But my buddy seemed to have the worse luck with horses. Whenever he got drawn for a bear tag, and he was out scouting on horseback one of his old $40.00 nags would come up lame and he would have to shoot it in the outback, always a few days befor the season started.
Good place to sit on opening day.

Great post Jeff, so is your seester packing heat in case of bear attack or if you get out of line with her. ;D

She aint comfortable being out in the bear woods without a gun. I think she prefers the 22 when she is walking and the 44 when she has the quad to carry it. :)

 Best of luck to ya Jeff. I have been bear hunting once, had a bear just out of shooting range. Buck fever has nothing on boar fever :o
mh

I'd say "Good Luck" But I'm not honestly sure whether I'd be saying it to you or the bear...  :-\

I DO hope you have a good time, though.  :)

asy :D

Video Clip. Beware contains one swear word uttered by my BTL referring to what my sisters dog did. :o :D

DanG Good Bait. (https://forestryforum.com/media/dang_good_bait2.wmv)

Thanks for the clip. You dun good bleeping. Did anything eat the bait? 
Any pix of critters caught in the act?

We are going up tomorrow and hope to find a trail cam full of photos.

Pretty slim pick'n for the barrs when the hunters end up eat'n all the grub. :D :D :D

Off to bear camp again! See ya'll Monday!

How long is bear season for?

How long do you get to sit in the little hut? :D

asy :D

Quote from: Jeff B on August 21, 2006, 07:42:04 PM
If one is planning on scouting, or hunting, or trying to attract bear, can't one call it all as a group Bearing? Like Mushrooming? I'm saying "I'ma Black Bearing." ;D

Sounds like Redneck lingo to me. 8)

Back home to recharge and take care of some web work before heading back on Thursday. Bear season for me opens the 10 of September and this next stint I may stay for the duration.  We have been scouting some new areas away from the cabin so I have some alternatives. The next couple photos are are taken about 100 yards from the bait station we set up about 2 miles into the Cranberry Floodings. Some beautiful country.

(https://forestryforum.com/gallery/albums/userpics/10001/bear_hunt_15.jpg)


(https://forestryforum.com/gallery/albums/userpics/10001/bear_hunt_16.jpg)

You seeing many geese there Jeff? They seem to be getting antsy around here. At one guys house he has a pond out front and one of those long knecked honkers took off from the pond and slammed into the side of the house and died. Ralph thought a truck struck a hydro pole out by the drive way, it shook the house so. :D

Lots of geese. We had to stop while a half dozen waddled across the road right at the Big Mac Bridge Toll coming home. Good thing they were crossing the road and not the bridge. not sure they could pay the toll other then in, well you know what geese do. :D

I had to stop and see my buddies at Lyle and Peggy's

(https://forestryforum.com/gallery/albums/userpics/10001/bear_hunt_17.jpg)

Speaking of Lyle and Peggy, we had them over to thecabin for ice cream one evening and that big pale of carmel we brought up for baiting the bear was just more then I could take...
Another video clip
https://youtu.be/NDYT9qqg8-I

Grandfather raised english cocker spanials for years and they were cute as pups. He raised them and trained them for bird hunting. Looks like you have a handful.  ;D

Really cute. About a month ago we bought a English cocker spaniel down here for 70 dollars - His name is Silky. Wonderful dog - and learns very fast. Good stuff like being house broken, and then there is learning how to get treats...

Fo some reason I was thinking there were 9 pups. There are 11. Here is a picture of a couple more of the gang.

(https://forestryforum.com/gallery/albums/userpics/10001/pups.jpg)


Here is a picture of me stumbling around one early morning out in da bush. I'm armed, but for some reason my eyes were so allergy swollen that morning, but I could still see well enough to shoot if I needed to.
(https://forestryforum.com/gallery/albums/userpics/10001/bear_hunt_19.jpg)

One evening we were setting out near a newly planted food plot and had this pair of Sandhill cranes touch down to raid the seed.

(https://forestryforum.com/gallery/albums/userpics/10001/bear_hunt_20.jpg)

You know Jeff - in that picture you look a bit like a bear yourself... don't go dressing in black or anything like that...  :-\

I imagine some of you will recognize this view. I snapped the photo of the north tower as we passed underneath on the way up to the cabin this last trip. That reminds me. I have photos on the camera I took on the way back as well. Not quite as clear on the way home. :)

(https://forestryforum.com/gallery/albums/userpics/10001/bear_hunt_22.jpg)

(https://forestryforum.com/gallery/albums/userpics/10001/bear_hunt_23.jpg)

(https://forestryforum.com/gallery/albums/userpics/10001/bear_hunt_24.jpg)

(https://forestryforum.com/gallery/albums/userpics/10001/bear_hunt_25.jpg)

Good pictures, Jeff.

I don't know what the fuss is over this bare hunting.  I think you are daft.  It gets cold up there and a pair of Carharts and a long sleeve shirt would be mighty comfortable. 

We have some beaches down here where tourists hunt bare.  I never saw the sport in it myself.  Some of the people that hunt there really should do something to cover up.  Maybe bare hunting in the UP is different since you use blinds.   I don't think I would want to see most of those guys, in their all together's, that early in the morning without some kind of blinders either. For goodness sakes, don't put any pictures on the forum.

 :D :D :D :D Protect the innocent, eh Tom?  :D

Oh man, Jeff, there is nothing cuter than a lab puppy! I want one.  :)

 Patty
   Ya gotta get two , you would not be able to seperate that pair , I know you couldn't do such a thing , A yellar one and a black one . 
  I have a yellow lab , a friend has a brown one ... I want a brown one to go with my yellow one .  :) 

They look just like my little Boo-Boo.He has his summer coat on now.His hair will get long by the time snow flies here.He is 4 years old.

Marcel, we have a yellow lab ourselves. I want to get her bred to a black lab either this fall or next sprng so we can have blacks and yellows. Lab puppies are so cute!   I am thinking I could take those two in Jeff's photo to join the family farm, you know, the more the merrier!  :)

Jeff, we've never used anything but fat & grease for baitin' da baaars up here.

It's a guaranteed thing too! Dey don' read da' diet books I figger.

Get as much beef fat as ya kin at da butcher's, if yer BBQ has da fat drip bucket, put the meaty bits on dat an get em all' charred up some, keep all da fat dat drips out too!! Boil up da rest ina big ole pot for as long as ya kin stand da smell.

Den ya put da BBQ'd parts on a piece of scrap plywood, and drizzle all da fat over it all. Den take da pasty grease from da biolin' and smear it all over da rest of da plywood, cover as much of a half sheet of plywood as ya can do.

A coupla days out in da sun, an I guarantee yer gonna have da baaars fightin' over it an ya can have yer pick of new rugs!!  8)

Our bears  dont seem to be around right now due to the dry conditions. A bear needs water and I think many of the bears that are in the usual vicinity of the cabin are elsewhere right now. We do have a small pond now, and I am sure if the bears come back they will stay, I just think they are near the bigger waters right now and not ranging as far as they might if it were not so dry.

We have a wall full of successful bear hunt phtos I'll have to take a picture of. We know what to feed them in this area (anything  :D) because we have been doing it since 1993 with pretty fair results. Anything with an aroma will get thier attention. Carbs are what they want now, not so much protein. They want fat for winter.

Boss,

(More questions from me, sorry!)

Does the permit give you a specific area that you can 'wait' in? Could you move to somewhere they're more likely to be???

asy :D

Uh, boss?  In looking at the picture of you armed, it is either a sawoff, or sub.  some pictures should never be posted.  Curiosity has got me.

Looks like a single six to me ,Don.  I'd say he's legal ;D

Quote from: Texas Ranger on August 30, 2006, 12:26:05 PM
Uh, boss?  In looking at the picture of you armed, it is either a sawoff, or sub.  some pictures should never be posted.  Curiosity has got me.

Its a  ruger 44 mag in a holster. :)
(https://forestryforum.com/gallery/albums/userpics/10001/44mag.jpg)


Here is a photo of me showing Lynda where my two site in shots from my 35 remington were located. One under my finger and one under my thumb. Close enough for me.

(https://forestryforum.com/gallery/albums/userpics/10001/bear_hunt_18.jpg)


On a different note, here is a photo I snapped at the rest area just north of the big mac bridge on the way up last trip. I'm packing stuff up right now for the next trip up. I'll be dropped off this time and be there for awhile. I'll try to send a photo here and there by cell phone for someone to post if I can.

(https://forestryforum.com/gallery/albums/userpics/10001/bear_hunt_26.jpg)


Speaking of cell phone photos, here is the one I sent to Tammy. ;D

(https://forestryforum.com/gallery/albums/userpics/10001/elephantman.jpg)

I saw that 'target' man in the gallery, and figured da Boss was showing us a five-shot grouping der, wit two close together.  :)  Glad he clarified that up for us.  ;D  (still thinkin it might be five).

You shooting the bear with the 44 mag,  but targeting in the 35 remington?

Have a great time. We will too.  :)

Shooting with the 35 and carrying the 45 for protection and or destruction against any kind of vermin that might care to mess with us. ;D  The target has been in the closet for years up there. I had to duck tape over all the holes in order to track my shots. I really wasnt siteing in, just verifying the gun still was. I usually only shoot it once but Pete insisited I shoot 3 times so I split the difference. I'll be carrying my Dad's old 38 colt once season starts for a side arm. Carrying a 44 is like carrying a rifle. :D

Well, it looks like I am off here in a moment or three. See ya all again when I'm good and scruffy. ;D

Whew, gotta give my glasses checked.

Jeff called me from the Tractor Supply parking lot, up in the UP. He and Tammy are trying to devise a solar shower so that he can get rid of some of the smell of the bear bait every evening.  I'm pretty sure that he is spending his days in pretty rancid air.  :D

They found some black plastic containers that bulk chain was delivered in and asked the manager if they could have one.    "Yes", he said, "but, if you take one you have to take both.  And if you take those two then you have to take the four out in the dumpster.  And if you take the four out in the dumpster you have to take the .....".   

Jeff said the guy had gotten up to about sixteen containers, but it was all a joke.  He took the two and they bought some PVC pipe and valves and shower head and he is going to mount them up on the shed roof, in the sun, with a hose from the well pump to fill them. 
"It should at least take the chill off of the water", he said.

I figure it might get a bit hotter than he expects.  That old sun can do a number on contained water.

Anyway.......

He and his brother-in-law, Pete,  and his sister, "leenda":D   were two-tracking in a spot that Jeff and I had ridden when he and I were at the cabin.  They had found a "for sale" sign for 40 acres and were curious where it was.  He said that they kept going further and further back in the woods and the ground kept getting wetter and there were cattails all around so He got out and walked in front of the truck to make sure the road was solid.  It was dark and he was in the headlights.   Soon he saw the "for Sale" sign.  There was a two car garage there and everything just like the sign had said.   

He was looking at the layout when he heard Pete and "Leenda" yell a warning,  "JEFF!"  Something was running toward him from behind.  He could hear the footsteps.

All he could think of was bear.  He turned toward them, expecting to be confronted by a big bear and was almost bowled over by a Buck fawn.  They actually made contact as the buck tried to dodge Jeff at the last minute.  He said that it didn't take but a few seconds, but it sure got his adrenalin up and his heart pumping.

I'll bet that buck is telling a wild story tonight too.  :D


Jeff's all excited about the second bear spot.  It's another place near where he and I were two-tracking.  On the second page of this thread is a description of where it is.
(https://forestryforum.com/gallery/albums/userpics/10001/bear_hunt_15.jpg)

Its the one that is fairly close to this cranberry bog.

Jeff and Pete found their bait pile torn all up and scattered everywhere.  They had put some caramel and other sweets on a stump there "....and the stump is gone!" , Jeff exclaimed.

"It must have been a pretty good sized bear to have removed the stump", I said.

"Yeah, or a Scratch crotch..  I mean a Sasquatch :D", he replied.

"If it's a Sasquatch, you better use a net.  You need to take it alive.  It might be worth a lot of money".

"well!, what if it has a net."

"I 'spect y'all will have a big fight."

"He might take me back to  Sasquatch town with him".

"Yeah!, You might be worth something tool ".  :D


So Jeff's having a ball and Tammy will soon be leaving him alone in the wilds of the great North to fiend for himself in a cabin full of Oreo cookies and peanut butter.

If he gets a chance to be where his cell phone will get out, he'll give us another report.

Thanks Tom
Good to hear about what he is up to. 
Does he hafta roll around in that bait stuff, so's he needs a shower?  ;D

Not sure why he doesn't just jump inta one of them nice lakes ta wash up. We used to do that 'til the middle of October in the Hayward, WI area. On the cool side then but now they shouldn't be bad at all. At night with a bar of Ivory soap and all is well.  :)

I wonder how many folks know da reason fur da Ivory soap, and not some udder brand.  ;)

I think I remember 8) 8) 8)---------it's 99 0/0 fat free ;D ;D ;D

and it floats ;)

These recent posts kind of got me puzzled ??? ??? ???  if everyone stinks,  why would you need to take a shower?  You shouldn't be offending anyone ::)

 :D Jeff is by himself, Br'er Noble.   I think he is surrounded by so much stinking stuff that he can't stand himself.  :D

Noble yer one brillant dude.   ;D   Yup it floats.    :)

I was plannin' on stoppin' by da cabin later dis week, but I think I may wait ta see if dat solar shower thing-a-ma-bob works first.  :-\  I got a very sensitive nose ya know.  :)

At a fly-in camp we set up we used big water jugs that had them valves on them and we piped water in from a spring coming down a sidehill. We found an old plastic pipe down along the ocean on an old landing site. Sometimes we would heat up a big pot-o-water on the propane stove and add it the the cold  ::) spring water. Had a rack made from cedar poles and ropes with a big tarp for a curtain around. I think we also scrounged an old pallet from the landing for standing on when showering. Just turn the valve on the water jug when water was needed. ;D Oh, the highlight was when we used the chain saw to make our bench seats and table. Some of the guys wanted to bring the table back, all I wanted to do was get my but out of there after 10 days. This was after already spending 10 days at the logging camp. We did see one bear and cub together on our last day, but one blast of the 12 guage defender put the end to that. :D :D We had to burn everything left over after meal time in a big pit we dug to keep the critters away. Had to sleep in the moss with the banana slugs.  ::)

Black water barrels will work fine but it's better ta use the water before the sun goes down... I still like the 5 gal pail on a rope more betterer ;) ... ya can even use it in the dead of winter... all's ya need is a stove ta heat with...

Humans are a strange species, eh?

We pride ourselves in having left the cave for stone and brick and then log and then lumber homes.  We talk about moving the privy indoors.  The kitchen has been moved from the backyard to the house and we started bathing once a day instead of once a year.  Made ourselves more attractive to one another with lighter and frillier clothes, and painted our faces for love instead of war.

Then....

We pay big bucks to devoid ourselves of all of that stuff, put on unattractive and dowdy looking clothes, spray ourselves down with buck urine, heap a bunch of rotting foodstuffs up in a pile close to the living area, sleep in the dirt, bath in ice water (or not at all), eat minimally prepared food, try to harvest one unlucky animal and take pictures of all of this so we can enjoy it later.   And all of this so far from civilization that we could die from a briar scratch before we could get to help.

Ain't this fun?
Yep! we're a puzzling species.

Well da mini Sasquatch was going to go hunting for Jeff, figured I could just follow my nose, but the trip to da UP has been canceled......... for another year! >:( :'(


Um, if Jeff don't shower......... is he simply a walking bait pile ??? ??? ;D

Tom already told you about how we made a shower for the UP cabin. I have included the following pics.

Here is the water supply for the UP shower.
(https://forestryforum.com/gallery/albums/userpics/10009/shower1.jpg)

Here is the shower head.
(https://forestryforum.com/gallery/albums/userpics/10009/shower2.jpg)

Here is the completed shower.
(https://forestryforum.com/gallery/albums/userpics/10009/shower3.jpg)

The shower curtain rods is made of pvc pipe with a joint for the curved part and then attached to the wall by drilling a hole in a piece of scape wood. The shower head is a watering wand for a garden hose and garden hose connecting the water supply to the shower head. The tanks are filled by putting the hose into one of the tanks then slowly filling the tank, the tanks will equalize them selves and both tanks fill.

We took 5 showers and still had water left.  It was very refreshing.  Jeff will now smell much better... :D

One of my favorite shows when I was kid was Gentle Ben  ::)

Oh well , goodluck anyways  :D

 Hey Buck ... dont worry , Ben is safe he was a brown bear .. Jeff is looking for a black one . sling_shot   ;D :) :)

But, we aren't supposed to discriminate based on color...  ;)

The fines are pretty high if you shoot the wrong ones Fred.

Recalling the Farside cartoon of two bears, one with a big white circle on it with a black center, like a target and bullseye. The caption of the other bear saying "Heck of a birthmark you got there".

Fines are pretty heavy here if you shoot ANYTHING.

Usually it is three days of jail...

Do they let you have firearms for self defense?   Looks like it would be a good idea, seein' as how y'all are so close to those unstable, governments and drug lords. :-\

Yes - all you have to do is pass a mental examine - just to make sure you aren't some kind of loon.

There are areas you can hunt, but not a lot. The population of animals has been depleted considerably by lose of habitat. And, since Ecotourism is one of the most important exports of Costa Rica (number one or two) they sure don't want it to get any worse.

Costa Rica really doesn't have much issue with the unstable governments - a warplane can be here from the USA in 20 minutes - and they know it. This is within the Marshall Plan - it would be suicidal for some tin horn dictator to even try.

Besides, Costa Rica is rich compared to its neighbors and would be impossible to conqueror quickly.

A sad thing happened yesterday in our little town, a boy and a girl were playing with grampa's gun - it was loaded. One is dead, the other will probably never be the same.  :'( People are pretty shaken up.

I am not for gun control as in you can't have one - but I sure am for gun control - as in make it impossible for youngsters to get at them.

Oh Fred,

That's just AWFUL.

I feel for the family and community.

Here, if you own a gun, ya gotta keep it in a locked gun cabinet (basically a steel safe). You can't keep it in a display case unless the firing mechanism has been disabled (I believe). It's a good system. Saves rash pick-up-a-gun-and-shoot type arguements, and saves kids getting to them.

asy

Kids need to be taught that guns can hurt and kill.I never touched my fathers guns until I was quite old.I never thought about sneaking into the bedroom and taking a gun off the rack if he wasn't around.I would never play with a gun.I have 3 brothers and boy were we active,but we never thought of touching his guns.I have a grandson that I have to hide the gun on.Can't leave it out or he'll head right for it.He father takes him hunting but it has not sunk in that guns are dangerous.

This is an interesting discussion.
The idea of removing all dangerous things from kids, vs when is the good time to introduce them to the dangerous 'things'.  Are they better knowing very early on that certain things are dangerous (like guns, like sharp edges to run into, like stairs to fall down, etc.)?

Why I bring it up is a result of watching some video shown last evening on the Steve and Teri Erwin hassle that Steve was getting when he took his baby son in the feeding area while he was feeding the big alligator for the thrill of the TV, media, and many spectators. I guess they were shocked that the reaction of many was it was 'stupid' and too dangerous for their son (holding him in one hand while handing or tossing food to the alligator with the other).  The video was an extensive interview with both Steve and Teri about their thoughts of why it wasn't 'stupid'. One point they made was that their son needed to grow up knowing alligators were dangerous from a very early age. That it was better they know early rather than wander into a dangerous situation not knowing.  (I didn't quite follow this logic, but Teri in particular was quite adamant about how they planned to educate the kids about danger very early in their lives). 
I suspect the feeding episode which was done for TV and the audience was less dangerous than it looked, but it is in line with holding food out to any wild creature and wonder why they took ones arm off rather than just taking the food.

Just seemed to me that this gun discussion seemed parallel with the alligator feeding. I have my own opinions about guns and children, and my parents didn't have their guns locked up where I couldn't get to them. But I wouldn't have thought about touching them without Dad's permission, as I knew how much noise they made and what they would do to a rabbit, squirrel, or pheasant. Also knew how fast the pig and horse went down from the 45 pistol. I also had a lot of respect for how Dad would react if something happened that he didn't approve of in advance. I learned that respect VERY early in life, believe me. And that's a fact.  :)
PS  And I was no angel of a kid.

Oh come on now...I'm sure you were a perfect angel :D :D :D

I can remember getting caught by my Mom walking through the house, on my way out to hunt, with a .410 / .22 over under I had at the time, I was probably about 12 years old.

When she hollered for Pop I figured I was in for it. All he asked was if the gun was loaded, I said it wasn't, and when he asked what I was going to do with an empty gun I opened my other hand, in which I had the rounds.

He just smiled and said I should carry the gun properly, pointed down and resting in the crook of my arm, not clenched in my fist and pointing up.

His atitude was much the same with alcohol, teach us respect for it, proper use of it, and trust our judgement.

Worked Ok for me so far.  ;)

Found this online tonight, thought it was funny:

In light of the rising frequency of human/grizzly bear encounters, the Montana Department of Fish and Game is advising hikers, backpackers, hunters, and fishermen to take extra precautions and keep alert for bears.

We advise outdoorsmen to wear noisy little bells on their clothing so that the bears are not startled unexpectedly by a human's presence. We also advise outdoorsmen to carry pepper spray with them in case of an encounter with a bear.

It is also a good idea to watch for fresh signs of bear activity. Outdoorsmen should recognize the difference between black bear poop and grizzly bear poop. Black bear poop is smaller and contains lots of berries and squirrel fur. Grizzly bear poop smells like pepper and has little bells in it.
[/color]

asy :D

Yup. ;D I tell my friends who hike every year in Montana that thier bell is just a dinner bell ;D

Well if I remember right, the season opened today.
Anyone hear anything from Jeff ???

Well haven't heard from the bear hunter yet.

I did....How do ya like skunk burgers :D :D :D :D

Ba boom! :D

That's what happens when you eat all the bait.  :P

 :D :D :D
You are in soooooo much trouble Paul! :o

Eat the bait, that's funny!  :D :D :D :D :D

Quote from: Paul_H on September 14, 2006, 07:34:08 PM
That's what happens when you eat all the bait.  :P

Then ya gotta sit quietly on a little log in the woods...  JINGLING A BELL.  laugh_at whiteflag_smiley dangle_smiley

asy :D  :D :D

He did say that he had one of the biggest coons on trail cam that he's ever seen ;D ;D

I told him that's cuz the coon has been eatin' donuts and caramel for the last month :D :D

He didn't say how big the skunks were.......I'm sure they were eatin' size though :D :D

I'm home for three days!   No bear yet. In fact only two that we know have had been checked at the east end check station in Detour Village as of this past Friday. I'm seeing all kinds of willdlife but no bear. Many people I know that live in the area that saw bear in the spring are not seeing them now. Thats O.K. though, I'm Bear Hunting which is not nessesarily bear killing. I'm having a grand time just trying to find one and not get sprayed by a skunk while doing it.  The shower works really good but it dont work that good. :)   I'll try to get some photos up before I head out again but I have a ton of other things I need to get caught up on before I can go back up to Bear camp on Thursday.  Burlkraft is coming into Michigan that day and stopping by to give me a ride back up and to stay a night at the cabin.

When does the season end?

October 20th.

Tom, reminds me of a saying.  If we are the most evolved, smartest creature on the planet, why are we the only ones that need toilet paper?

Ya know a bears favorite seasoning?   pepper spray!  Makes hunters taste delicious.

Just got done watching National Geographic Explorer.
They did one on bears and the difference between Polar, Grizzly and Black bears.
Good show!

Gonna be another looong month eh Jeff! ;D

Lounging in da cabin back yard. ;D

(https://forestryforum.com/gallery/albums/userpics/10001/hunting_bannanas.jpg)

I thought that was supposed to be a rocking chair on da front porch.  :D

Oh wait, mebbe dat's Kentucky.......  ::)

It is, Murf, and Jeff has'm on the front porch of the shed at home.  I almost wore one of them out at the pigroast.

This is a picture of Jeff touristing beside the #1 green at Pete's famous UP 1hole Golf Course.

You have to be "prepared for bear" when you play there. :D

It's just like the big golf courses, with the clubhouse at the 18th hole, 'cept Pete ain't got 18 holes.  It's still the 19th hole though.  They just had to put it behind the #1 green.  See the refreshments and the mascot?

There must be a heat wave.  He has his Forestry Forum Jacket hanging in Pete's forest? :D

My Sister has been asking for a lawn in the back of the cabin. Lat week while Pete and I went out to go drive some two tracks looking for bear sign, we found where a sod truck lost some pieces along U.S. 48.  So we picked them up and made Linda a nice little lawn. ;D   We have had our first freeze up there. The trees are turning faster then you can keep track.

I'll start posting a few of the critters that have entertained me and kept me company during my so far futile attempt to snare a bear.
Got a clue what this beautiful creature is? Its a rare site and there were 11 of them together.
(https://forestryforum.com/gallery/albums/userpics/10001/sharptail_1.jpg)



(https://forestryforum.com/gallery/albums/userpics/10001/sharptail_2.jpg)

Bulwinkle walked by my bait station in the Cranberry floodings but I just missed him.  :)

(https://forestryforum.com/gallery/albums/userpics/10001/moose_tracks.jpg)

(https://forestryforum.com/gallery/albums/userpics/10001/sharptail_2.jpg)


That's the biggest quail or the ugliest chicken I've ever seen in my life.  :D

Is that what you folks call a Grouse?

Thats one of the three type of grouse we have here. This is one of the two that are protected.

Well, I found two protected Grise...  Grees... Grouses.... Grouse(?), a Spruce Grouse and a Sharp-tailed Grouse.  See'n as how this'n has a pretty dull tail, is it a Spruce Grouse? :P

Looks like a Sharptail to me.  Good eating too.  Used to be a season on them by our cabin up there

Looks like he's got a corn-row hair-do. :D

They is Sharptails. :)

This little Varying Hare greets me right by the outhouse every evening as I come out of the woods. He is one of probably 20 of little medium and big snowshoes that are living right around the cabin yard. 

(https://forestryforum.com/gallery/albums/userpics/10001/varying_hare.jpg)

Hey Boss, you need rear vision mirrors on the deck chair...

Just in case the Barrs have got tricky and sneak up on ya from behind...

Looks like real hard work, by the way.

asy :D

Oh, I had my sister and her dog Libby looking out for me. While I was hard at work hunting from the easy chair she was on duty. Here's a picture I tool of her.

(https://forestryforum.com/gallery/albums/userpics/10001/leenda_shovel.jpg)

I gotta tell ya about Tammy and Lynda's day of going on a safari with the Quads. Actually not about the safari but about getting a picture of them as they got ready to leave.  I tried to get them to give the now popular "cool" sign for the camera. You know the one, where they stick out thier four finger and pinky finger? Well, first Lynda give me her first ackward attempt. Its not what you think, thats a backwards bird.  :D  She was trying to do what Tammy was doing and was very embarrased to know that I caught her in mid gesture. ;D. Whats funny is the video taken right afterwards. She was still trying to make the sign. I'll post that in a minute
(https://forestryforum.com/gallery/albums/userpics/10001/lynda_bird.jpg)

Heres the video clip. (https://forestryforum.com/media/lynda_tammy.wmv)

Here are a couple of trail cam pictures. The first one is of Racoonzilla. He's a bigun.
(https://forestryforum.com/gallery/albums/userpics/10001/trailcam1.jpg)

The second needs some explaining.  Last week a car hit and killed a deer on the corner of 48 and north caribou lake road. Being the good citizen I am and not wanting to have to burden the powers that be with picking up another road kill, I drove one of the quads down and lasooed her by the hind feet and drug her the mile and a half back to the cabin then made a big loop out through the woods, then laid her to rest next to one of the bait stations. THis way she wont offend the noses of Mr and Mrs Joe citizen who's driveway she was laying near and just might draw a bar in for me.  Problemm with the new menu item it that she will draw many other critters that live in this nick of the woods as well. We had wolfs there two nights before this photo. I hope they keep on going. They were howling so loud we guessed them to be no more then a hundred yards or so from the cabin. The photo below was taken the night we added the road kill. Meet Peppy Petunia and little Squirt.  I got a few skunk stories to tell yet from the last week or so to tell but I aint skunked yet on the hunting as I still got time!

(https://forestryforum.com/gallery/albums/userpics/10001/not_skunked.jpg)

What is hunting time dawn until dusk ?  You putting your hunting clothes in a bag of pine limbs or leaves at night ?  Aftershave? No it wouldnt be that  8)

Well maybe I should find that bowhunting video on bear hunting I got somewhere , I suppose if you leave your guns behind and go out for a walk then there will be bears everywhere , usually how it goes !  No bears around here except last year a neighbor shot a big black bear in self defense as he was walking through his cornfield to his deer stand he come across it next to a big bear den in his cornfield . Goodluck  fire_smiley

Hunting hours are one half hour before sunrise until one half hour after sunset. We have a trail cam out and we have ove 100 skunk and raccoon photos. One photos I think shows 5 raccoon in one frame.

Tammy thinks I'm becoming a real yooper. I told her that aint possible cause, well, cause it just aint possible due to certain conditions, but she says the next video clip is making her think it is.

What a Yooper might do? (https://forestryforum.com/media/kitty_kitty.wmv)

Not sure what's funnier, your falsetto "kitty kitty"ing, or the critter hightailing it back to the woods.

Sure made for fun watching. Both times.

Lynda and Tammy's video was funny.

asy :D

Quote from: Jeff B on September 18, 2006, 03:15:21 PM
Lounging in da cabin back yard. ;D

(https://forestryforum.com/gallery/albums/userpics/10001/hunting_bannanas.jpg)

What I find most remarkable, is your ability to relax no matter where you are or what's goin on.  You da King of relaxin!   :D

Quote from: Tom on September 18, 2006, 06:00:53 PM
... a Spruce Grouse .....

Dey sure is smaller den da Spruce Goose is, I seen dat one, it's a whopper!!!!   :D

Dat Howard Hughes feller shore din't spare da plywood on dat one!!!

Looks like da little barr snucked up daBoss an was waterin' da flower fer him....  ::)

I had my volume turned up to high, that "here kitty, kitty, kitty" broke my water glass!

   Hey Jeff,
       I'm headin out for Maine Saturday the 23rd.I will be bar huntin with the hounds.They have a 95% success rate and I;m hoping I aint in the 5% group.
     Have you seen any bear sign at all at the cabin? I'd like to see you get a bigun. :)

Saw Miller, if you don't get a bear in Maine (especially using dogs) then ya better just give up. ;D

Gosh.

I read the NEW JOKE (https://forestryforum.com/board/index.php?topic=21064.msg302987#msg302987) posted in the joke thread, then came here and read this.

Having a bad head cold is my excuse for reading this line:

"I will be bra huntin with the hounds."

I was wondering how you were gonna get away with it, and what sort of permit was required. Then I read it properly.

asy :D

   If you hunted bras with hounds you couldn't keep abreast of the situation ;D ;D

Quote from: SAW MILLER on September 19, 2006, 08:06:21 PM
 
       I'm headin out for Maine Saturday the 23rd.I will be bar huntin with the hounds.They have a 95% success rate and I;m hoping I aint in the 5% group.

SAW MILLER where about in Maine ya headed???

I snapped this picture from the Neebish Island Ferry Dock that is not to far from the cabin.  Here is a Link To Learn about Neebish Island. (http://hunts-upguide.com/neebish_island.html)

(https://forestryforum.com/gallery/albums/userpics/10001/neebish.jpg)

  Pappy,
     
       I'm hunting near newportland with Bounty hunters guide service.
  How far is that from you?

SAW MILLER,

I live at the tippity top of the state which is about 200 miles north of Bangor... I see New Portland is out around Sugarloaf... I might to far ta have a meetin'  ;D...

Nice link Jeff, sounds similar to some of the islands off the coast of Maine quite remote... Ya back from a huntin' ya get ya bruin yet ??
 

No Bear yet but I'm not "skunked"yet although the following trailcam photo may make you think different. Steve (Burlkraft) and I will be heading back up this afternoon and we should both be smelling like peach cobbler. Steve said he always wanted a skunk skin hat so I wanted to post the picture so everyone knew that he has a real opportunity to get one. ;D

(https://forestryforum.com/gallery/albums/userpics/10001/burlkraft_skunk_hat.jpg)

Then again he could opt for the more traditional coon skin cap.

(https://forestryforum.com/gallery/albums/userpics/10001/burlkraft_coon_skin_hat.jpg)

SAW MILLER make sure you go to the wire bridge.Quite a enginering feat.Good luck with the bears.I'm only about 45 minutes from there.

Jeff, you need to head for my yard.  Just down doing a little mowing around the grapes and ran over a big pile of bear sign.  He's been down eating fallen apples.

Two years ago I had two of them that hung around for several weeks, virtually destroyed one of my apple trees, pulling down branches to get at the fruit.  And so much bear crap that I couldn't mow until Spring.

Just called a friend who is anxious to have his grandson get his first bear, see if they can get this guy before he starts climbing my little trees.  I've still got all my guns, but just not a lot of interest in hunting anymore.

   I GOT HIM,
             I got a male bear..about 150 pounds.The young males can out run a pack of hounds pretty easy.
     We ran him two days before he treed on top of the mountain.He had absloutely no fat on him.I will have a rug made and the fur is long and silky with no rubs.
   I did stop  at the wire bridge but I didn't drive on it.I watched a truck slowly cross it.It looked kinda scarry as it swings a little under a load.Max. load 3 tons.
   Pappy lives in some beautiful country. :) :)

Congrats on The Baaaarrrr there sawmiller ;D ;D ;D

"Har is whar I killed a bar."  8)

10 bonus points for who wrote it.........

Off the top of my head, Daniel Boone?

Yes Woodcarver!  You get the bonus points!   8)

Tell him what he's won Bob.................

Quote from: Roxie on October 04, 2006, 12:03:16 PM
Yes Woodcarver!  You get the bonus points!   8)

Tell him what he's won Bob.................

After a lot of cogitating, I think that I have figured out Woodcarver has won the bonus points. 8) As  to what the bonus points are, I have no clue.  :(
Bob

I can use all of the points I can get.........whatever they are.  8)

Bear Signs. A large western "yooper bear" leaves claw marks and broken limbs on local apple tree.

(https://forestryforum.com/gallery/albums/userpics/10002/bear_claws_apple_tree.JPG)

Jeff has moved his attention to a new spot that he calls "down by the beaver pond".

(https://forestryforum.com/gallery/albums/userpics/10026/tom-jeffs-blind-beaver-pond.jpg)

Looks like good potential. I see brachen fern there and softwoods. I'll bet there are some wild raisin for the bears near by.  mmm yum yum.  fire_smiley

Wild Raisin  (http://www.macphailwoods.org/shrub/raisin.html)

Are there any beech stands up that way? Tell Jeff to look up, there in the canopy after the beech nuts.  If ya see any tree nests, mr bear has been there. ;D

Ya, dat look like a good spot fer da bahr to come dar :)

(https://forestryforum.com/gallery/albums/userpics/10180/bear%20stand%20Jeff_b.jpg)

Jeff must have found some good bear signs.

(https://forestryforum.com/gallery/albums/userpics/10002/bear_scat.JPG)

which one's jeff's, and which one's the bear's?

:D

Quote
Jeff has moved his attention to a new spot that he calls "down by the beaver pond".           

:D :D :D :D  Don't you just know those bears are back over at Jeff's first blind having a party :D :D

What if dem bahr's have a connection to da internet ?.........  ::)

Dey could jess be playin' with da Bossman, we got any new Yooper sign-ups?  :D

I dunno guys, it ain't look'n good. We might have to go up there to find out the real situation behind not tag'n a bear. I think that the cabin is to warm to leave and Jeff's got a full house at the poker game. ;D

Starting to get a bit worrisome - Jeff hasn't posted for a while. Perhaps a bear has him treed or something.  ::)

He's probablly sick from eatin' all that ice cream.......... ;D ;D ;D

err... maybe someone's apple crisp.  ::)

Well he only has about a week left.
Thinking we may all need to go up there and herd a bahr to Jeff.
Other wise we are going to have a real bahr on our hands here to deal with. :o

He should be nice and relaxed when he gets back.....fer about 5 minutes... ;D ;D ;D

I've still got one in my yard.  Broke the center branch out of my green gage plum tree, ten feet away from the end of the garage, sometime last night.  Then spend the rest of the night down around the apple trees at the bottom of our drive.  Destructive pests.

Neighbors have dogs, maybe 100 feet away from those apple trees.  They said they barked most of the night last night but apparently didn't bother the bear at all.

Bear Bait Set.Molasses, strawberry filling, and choclate cookies. The bulk of the bait is in a shallow pit covered with the 4x4 pieces to keep other culprits off the bait. A small amount is placed on top for attaction scent.

(https://forestryforum.com/gallery/albums/userpics/10002/bear_bait_set.JPG)

I guess I could never hunt bear - I'd be eaten all the bait  :D

The Bear hit after dark and didn't leave anything. :D

(https://forestryforum.com/gallery/albums/userpics/10002/bear_hit_on_bait_set.JPG)

This is what Jeff is up against now.  Sitting on that 4-wheeler is going it be uncomfortable, not to mention the snow in his face as he heads out to the blind.

(https://forestryforum.com/gallery/albums/userpics/10026/tom-jeff-snow%20at%20the%20cabin.jpg)

WOW ............. SNOW!  The only time we get to see snow is when we scrape our fingernails inside the deep freeze.

It was in the 80's today. I sawed about 900 BF of 2X4's and was sweaty from head to foot. I tried to set up in the shade, but about 2:00 PM the sun found a hole in the trees and burnt me good.  >:(

Jeff oughta be able to see the baar real easy easier with the white background. I'd prefer it that way. Deer hunting much more fun in the snow (for me anyway) :)

Unless those big white bears show up.  He might need more gun if that happens. :-\

Nah, they are all out here on the wet coast keeping the anti logging asparagus chewin latte sippin beemer drivin wackos entertained ::) :D :D

Ya got pictures??    That sound entertaining.  :D :D

If this weather keeps up the bears are gonna say to heck with it and go to sleep  :D ;D ;) :)

He won't have to lead them so far if they do that.  :D

Ya know, since the boss aint here, and wont be till after the bears have done et all his bait, I reckon JeffB will be asleep before them bears.  Some how the cold wet seat of a four wheeler in the wee hours of the morning just dont sound attractive, when compared to the covers pulled up round my nose.  Maybe I just have lost interest in interfeerin with the wildlife under adverse conditions.

We are expectin our first day of winter, down here in east Texas, sposed to get into the '50's. 8)

I'm think'n JeffB wishes chet was along with his chains about now.  ;D :D

You guys to the south might think it's early, but up here that is normal weather. We've been having this abnormally warm weather in my area for the last 6 or 8 years now. I've been hunting grouse with grandfather in years past and wake up Thanksgiving to 8 or 10 inches of the white stuff and have to haul the trailor home. Our thanks giving is around the 8 or 10 of October. The snow normally doesn't last this early as the ground ain't froze deep and a little sunshine melts it off in a couple days.

4 plus inches of the "white stuff" here and still snowing. Good tracking snow to follow the bears as they look for their den sites.

Well, we haven't had any snow down here yet, must be global warming or something...  ::)

Or something! ::)

Fred, you get snow I am really gonna get paranoid. ;D

Quote from: SwampDonkey on October 08, 2006, 05:29:54 PM
Wild Raisin  (http://www.macphailwoods.org/shrub/raisin.html)

Nice link SD  8)



Got snow  :o  :o  :o
taken a couple winters ago looking from the shop toward the house... I really like walking to work... 8)
(https://forestryforum.com/gallery/albums/userpics/10691/termite%20March%2005%20blizzard%2003.jpg)
And here's the shop..
(https://forestryforum.com/gallery/albums/userpics/10691/termite%20March%2005%20blizzard%2002.jpg)
I'll take the lower 50's we're supposed ta get tadey as that stuff is just around the corner!! Bringing da sled (snowmobile to ya folks below the Mason Dixon line ;)) to the dealer for the seasonal servicing next week!!!!!  8) Bring it on!!!!


Thanks,
Tim the ramblin hermit

Well I do belive today's the day.
Any word other then sku.... ???

I would consider it a positive thing if the bear wasn't hunting...

Come to think about, isn't true that a bear would always go bare hunting?  ;)

Hey, guys, any day in the woods beats any day at work,,,,,uh, I work in the woods, so I guess, well never mind.  I hope the boy has shut down everything but the woods, the hunting, and the family.  Get the batteries recharged, all that.  But, if he got skunked, who is going to be the first to rag on him? ::)

I ain tellin who already gone and did that..........pret near..... :)

Hope he didn't get sku..... ???

I thought of Jeff the other night.A bear run out in front of my truck on the way home from work.Must of came out of someone driveway.Had to ran across thier front lawn.First time I saw a wild bear.

Was Jeff chasin' it  ???   ??? :D  :D

that wouldn't be so bad, Burl,

Just so long as the Bear wasn't chasin da Boss!!!   :o :o :o

asy :D

Quote from: Texas Ranger on October 18, 2006, 08:25:46 PM
Hey, guys, any day in the woods beats any day at work,,,,,uh, I work in the woods, so I guess, well never mind.  I hope the boy has shut down everything but the woods, the hunting, and the family.  Get the batteries recharged, all that.  But, if he got skunked, who is going to be the first to rag on him? ::)

Is that what Texans call a retorical question :D :D :D
Who but you........... ;)

To quote Charlie Brown (known for calling the teacher Daddyo) "Who? Me?"

Falsetto " Ya you" :D :D

Jeff just called to say he didn't get a bear but he doesn't consider himself skunked either. They will be cleaning up and picking up around the cabin and will be heading home sometime tomorrow.  8)

That much time in the great out doors sure isn't the same as getting skunked! :)

  I have never felt skunked , when out hunting . I came back from moose hunting without a moose  :-\  I was out in the woods every day , walking and finding places that where of interest to me , took a pile of pics of burls and trees , I even got to learn how to use my new GPS  :) 
    I took a lot of time while out at my camp hiking , would leave in the morning and come back in the evening , just me and a peice of iron  ;D well I did take a few things to eat  ::)  cant expect a guy to go all day without food . I saw some moose , but we where only allowed bulls and calf this year , I did not want to shoot a calf , so I let it go by . There was a couple of times that there could of been a small bull with some cows , but from the distance it was hard to tell .
  There was one moose that came to the door of the camp during the day , of course we where all out a mile from there .  ::)  I took pics of the track , and the camp in the back ground .
   There is more to hunting , to me , then the amount of meat one brings back . 

I like the moose-to-the-door story.
My wife's brother in law used to hunt here. He is a beer drinker.  About 11am he would come traipsing out of the woods to get a beer.  After that and a snack he would go back to his stand only to find that his footprints had deer tracks all over them. :D

When I first started deer hunting,  I had a hunting buddy, Peck Watkins.  I was telling Peck how I was sure I would get a deer the first morning because i was seeing all kinds of tracks.  He told me he fried up a pan of tracks one time and they tasted just like mud :D :D

I took this photo from my blind behind the cabin the last week of season. Rough job eh? The second photo is the view to my left.

(https://forestryforum.com/gallery/albums/userpics/10001/bear_blind_2%7E1.jpg)


(https://forestryforum.com/gallery/albums/userpics/10001/bear_blind_3.jpg)

Welcome back Jeff,

sorry to hear about your gun stock. Even tho you diden't get a bear it sounds like you hade a great time.

Jon

Ya reckon Jeff has cable in da blind? ???

No but I get 5 channels and one of them is Canadian CBC. ABC, CBS, NBC and a PBS station. all pretty clear on that little 5 dollar yard sale T.V.  We have it hooked up to a lawn tractor battery.  8)

The Baar probly hid out after hearin the laffin and cryin from watchin the "Soaps" on dem channels.  ::) ::)

Or perhaps the bear was watching over Jeff's shoulder from another window... which would explain why Jeff never saw him in front.  ;)

The last 2 years at Elk camp my grand dad was recovering from cancer so he stayed at the camp while we all went out.  He told me at 11:00 to get up, walk around, eat some of my lunch, take a good stretch, walk out as far as I could see from where I had set up to check for an elk hanging out just outside of where I could see. 

Both years he shot an elk at camp between 11:15 and 11:30.   :D

I'm still dealing with a couple of bears around the house.  Finally went down yesterday in the pouring down rain and picked the last of the apples they have been working on.  Today I go down and they have pulled the cap off the pipe that covers my drain field distribution valves.  This thing is two feet in diameter and screwed down, they just flipped it off.  Based on the sign, appears to be one big one, one small one.

They are using trail up the hillside behind the house, accesses thousands of acres of timber.  Beginning to wonder if I shouldn't start packing, I hike up there nearly every day.  Can't tell how far up they travel during the day.

Jeff needs to bear hunt close to home!

One of my clients told me today that a farmer near Big Rapids, MI got this bear last Friday with the combine. He was combining corn in a neighbor's field and fell into a big hole. The combine was stuck, and the hole was about 5 feet deep. He thought that it was a badger hole until a big black paw came out and pretty soon a head appeared.

The bear was trying to dig out from under the wheel but could not get out. They then knew for sure that it was no badger and he wasn't very happy either.

The DNR told them to shoot it. It dressed out at 287 pounds, and was a male.

 

How's that for bad luck.You're having a well deserved nap and some farmer runs you over but some how you manage to survive.At first you're irritated but then you remember to count your blessings because you survived a combine accident for Pete's sake. whiteflag_smiley
                                           go_away

As you're busy counting and taking stock of damages,the sodbuster brings out a rifle and puts one between your eyes smiley_dizzy

It would be diificult to Bear  :)

In October there was a bear den in the middle of our thinning operations. But, he never appeared. It was probably too early, but I would think he would be hanging around close.  :o