Spooking them off

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john1984
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Spooking them off

Unread postby john1984 » Sun Apr 20, 2014 10:48 am

Say one of your target bears comes into the bait just a wee bit too late and it's too dark to shoot. What do you do? If you climb down when the big one is near will he be spooked off for good ? Or do you just sit in your stand all night and wait for them to give you the allusion that they left?

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Mike Foss
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Re: Spooking them off

Unread postby Mike Foss » Sun Apr 20, 2014 12:01 pm

Some times braking a small twig will simply make them nervous enough to move them off the bait, but when they do they generally only go a short distance, sit down, watch and listen, so don't be fooled, he's not that far away, tip toe out of there. Don't yell or make any unnatural sounds, that will really spook a mature bear. Like you stated you could sit in your tree and wait him out to leave but it could be a long night for you. Have someone come in at closing, bait the bait station while you quietly descend from your tree stand. When you get the jump (spook) on a big mature seasoned bear, most likely he will turn nocturnal or even stop visiting that bait station all together.
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john1984
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Re: Spooking them off

Unread postby john1984 » Sun Apr 20, 2014 12:18 pm

Well I'll be hunting in a low bear population but low hunter numbers also. But I know the bears are there. I just wonder if I should try and kill the first legal bear I see or hold out until right after sunset for a bigger one . Thanks for thee advice

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Re: Spooking them off

Unread postby Mike Foss » Mon Apr 21, 2014 8:28 am

A car salesman once told me, when you see the vehicle you want you will instantly know it, same with bear hunting. If you are successful, Big or small bear.... just take it all in and have fun, its your trophy, a story that you can and will tell many times over and while that beautiful animal is laying at your feet, give thanks and enjoy the bounty.
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Re: Spooking them off

Unread postby ihookem » Mon Apr 21, 2014 12:54 pm

ON 2012 opening day bear season in Wis. my son had a tag. He was 15 at the time. A bear came in about 5 min before closing. It was a real bruiser, a good 300 pound gutted. I should say it was 450 like most would say, but an honest 300, maybe 350, hard to tell. He was very tall. He came in and knocked the logs off the bait and walked into the brush about 5 minutes. One minute before close he came back but it was just too dark to take a chance with a kid with ne experience with shot placement with a bear sitting down like that. He sat there eating and moving logs, and we could hear him taking deep breaths in the pitch black woods. About an hour later,, 8:45 PM he walked away. We waited 5 more min. and got down quickly and quietly. He cam back again @ 1:00 am and 4:00 AM. that night. He never came back the next 2 days. On the 3rd day my son got one that was most likely about 2/3 the size. It came in at 206LBS gutted. A trophy for a 1st bear. That big bear is hard to figure. They are there,,,,, and then,,,,,, disapear. Very little pattern to them. The big bear may have detected us but If he did I don't think he would have come back in just 4 hours later.
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Re: Spooking them off

Unread postby dan » Mon Apr 21, 2014 1:04 pm

If possible I would wait him out "if he is a shooter"... My observations and cameras show me they don't spend a long time on the bait. I don't think they go real far when they leave though, so like mike said sneak out quiet...

Ihookum, In your case my thought is the bear did not detect you the night he came in and left, but may have the next time you hunted there. A lot of the big bears I have watched approach my baits tend to scent check the area 1st. Although, like you said, some bears just move in and out for no apparent reason... On my cam's I have noticed the same big bear come in 3 or more days in a row with nothing changing except me being there the bear dissapears... I don't think this is a coincidence because it happens to often to be one.
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Re: Spooking them off

Unread postby ihookem » Mon Apr 21, 2014 1:21 pm

Dan, that could very well be. The bear didn't circle , he came in on a straight line from cross wind. The next time he came in at night he could very well have circled. I know they circle. There is something about the woods when a big bear is circleing the bait sight. One time I was hunting bear and about 1 hr before dark, two fawns came barreling flat out from down wind and heading right to me . I have no doubt an older bear was coming in, or circling. Something scared the heck out of those 2 does, or fawns, but they got the heck out of there and I didn't see anything that night except those 2 deer. The evening before I saw a nic 8 point buck, the night before,( opening day ) I had a buck walk down the bear trail , right past me at 18yds broadside. It was an 11 point with a droptine on the left side. Must have been a local deer cause it was Sept. 12, . I never saw that deer before or after. Just a side note..
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Re: Spooking them off

Unread postby Bearman13 » Tue Apr 22, 2014 4:12 am

We make our clients wait them out up until a certain time, then we will go in an get them. This is what we do if there's no cell service. No client is to walk around looking for a bear unless it's dead at the bait or very close. The lost factor is very real where I live and guide for someone not from the area.

When the sit is up or they kill we pick them up at pre determined spots. If the hunter is not out we assume bears on bait and we give it 20-30 minutes. If the hunters are scared of the dark we go in and get them from stands.

Chuckle away but we see it every year.

If I'm hunting I wait them out. Only if there's a shooter coming in or held up. If it's smaller bears I just get out.

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Re: Spooking them off

Unread postby Schultzy » Thu Apr 24, 2014 5:04 am

I guess it depends on the hunters mentality. If he can handle it wait it out. If not do what Mike said and break a branch lightly up in the tree stand. I did this last year with a cub and it worked ok. I know a few bear hunters who could never do it and if they did they'd be freaking out on their walk out once the bear left. As for me I'll hold out no matter the size of bear. If he's not big enough for me maybe someone else in my hunting party would be happy to shoot it. Years ago if the bear was to small for my liking and when it got dark and he/she was still there I'd just get down and spook them off. Every time I did this NEVER did that smaller bear ever come back again to said bait. Big or small allot of times that's all it takes and their done. So my days of spooking them by crawling down are done.

This reminds me of a great story 17 years ago. It was our hunting party's off year (we got drawn every other year). A friend of ours wanted to bear hunt for the 1st time so my dad and I showed him the ropes. We helped bait every weekend and such. Come hunting season I went back up with him. He was a little nervous on hunting by himself so he asked if I would go with him. I was all over it and said you bet I'd love too!! Our 1st morning out a 200ish pound bear came in. He caught my buddy in the tree drawing his bow back and off he went. I told him he's gotta slow down. He was terrified! ;)

That evening we went to a different bait. An hour or so before dark here comes in a 80 to 90 pound bear dressed. 1st year away from its momma. I looked at my buddy Tom and said what you think? He said nope, too small. So we waited and waited and waited and this bear wouldn't leave. A half hour after dark I whispered to him are you sure you don't want to shoot him maybe another day and he said nope. So I then said alright lets get down then. I snuck down the tree as quietly as I could. The bear never heard me and was only 10 yards away from me at the bait. I looked at Tom and said you're turn. He pointed at the bear and shook his head no!! I damn near busted out laughing right there. Here's a description of Tom- He's 6'6". He's in that 270 pound range. Solid muscle. A 2nd degree black belt. :lol: So I picked up a branch and throw it at the bear. Up the tree it went and then back down it came and off it went. Tom then finally came down. I still give him crap to this day about that. Good times!! :dance:


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