How far between baits?

[cedarsavage]

How far do you guys typically go between your baits? Is 1.5 miles enough?

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[Bearman13]

Plenty.

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[cedarsavage]

What's the minimum distance that you usually go

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[Freelance Bowhunter]

I try to put all my baits at least two miles apart but even then you will have some boars that will visit several baits. I know of several cases of male bears that have been seen on baits 4-6 miles apart and one case of a bear that was at one bait early in the day and another bait 14 miles away later in the same day. (Spring Rut)

[Mike Foss]

How far do you guys typically go between your baits? Is 1.5 miles enough?

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I have two baits right now that are 1.5 miles apart and are being visited by two different bears each day but they are staying longer at one than the other. The one they are staying longer at is in the morning, then later in the evening they hit the other stand. The breeding season is now and things definitely will change by August. So important to have trail cameras out. Bears definitely prefer one bait station over another for what ever reasons, its up to you to figure which ones.

[Bearman13]

I try to stay a mile apart. I'm in big country tho. I do have baits on opposite side of forest roads that are way less then a mile apart and clients shoot bears the same days all the time.

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[dan]

I used to feel they needed to be a mile away or more, but starting to come to the conclusion its situational. As mentioned by Jim, roads can be boundaries. I also have baits on opposite sides of openings or on totally different swamps that are no where near a mile apart and have totally different bears on each.

But my style of baiting is a little different than others... I try to find a spot where a big bear will hole up close to the bait and guard it. I have had a decent bear on each bait at three baits all within the same block of timber... Yea, I get some bears that wander from bait to bait. But not as much as you would think. I have also had a bait that had 10 or more bears all hitting it so I set up a bait a 1/4 mile away and it never got hit at all... Position is everything in my way of hunting...

[Freelance Bowhunter]

I try to stay a mile apart. I'm in big country tho. I do have baits on opposite side of forest roads that are way less then a mile apart and clients shoot bears the same days all the time.

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This brings up an important point. The terrain can have a lot to do with it. In open terrain where bears can really move, they can cover a lot of ground. Where I hunt in Northwest Ontario, there is a lot of granite, ledgerock, swamps and lakes. The undergrowth is thick. They don't move as far in this habitat.

We tend to forget that bears, like people, are individuals. Some are more homebodies, and some really cover a lot of ground. I think some big mature bears pretty much go where they want and don't really even have a "home range" so to speak, they just have preferred feeding areas and they may be miles apart. They may check them a couple times per year or if they find lots of food there, they may come back a couple times a week.

The more I know about bears the more I realize how much there is to learn.

[olivertractor]

I gotta believe that situational is a key word here, there's a lot of variables that could go into distances. Making it efficient to run a set of baits (If you can't effectively bait each station due to great distances what's the use?), could be totally different swamps and/or home territories, mating season great time to figure out what's around and if they find it they'll travel a great distance back during kill season even if they're not regulars (downfall to not being able to bait early in some states). Obviously one could have some mile or less apart stands to hunt depending on wind for the day, especially targeting a certain bear.

[cedarsavage]

This is what I've got in mind. I'm thinking put a stand where the #1 is with my back to the meadow to prevent them from circling downwind. And another stand and bait for the opposite wind at the island where the #2 is. I don't think dog traffic will be too bad but bird hunter traffic will probably be heavy if I can't kill one in the first 5 days. I've been boots on the ground to number 1 but not #2. I'm planning on scouting all day Saturday and hopefully figuring out where I'm gonna bait. Thanks

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