I get to go again. My wife was kind enough to let me go again, she's a good one. Anyway I played the age card, "I'm not getting any younger." So here's the story A friend and friend and myself are attempting to bait a bear in Western Wyoming, all by ourselves. This portion of the story takes place from the Friday before Memorial Weekend through Memorial Day. Also the state of Wyoming is about as accommodating as can be to sportsman. Thank you WYO Game and Parks.

Anyway it takes about 8 hrs. to get to our hunting area where we have registered baits. We are loaded for bear as they say.



The trip was uneventful and when we arrived there was a lot of running water. The rain just stopped just like the weather app. predicted. At the trail head we (actually just me) had the idea of using the bikes to carry the load.



It didn't work well too many downed trees across the trail to use a bike. Anyway we next came up with another method and got some of the load up the mountain.



The next morning it was sunny, and we understand the task at hand, kind of.





Beautiful country. We used lick tubs as bait barrels. We nested them together and you can put popcorn and marshmallows and syrup and Kool Aid mix and sugar and a cookstove. I did some research on YouTube and found some bait recipes. It has been a lot of fun planning this adventure. Also I had started training for a 5K with my daughter, I'm glad. The other guy packed a 50lbs bag of dog food on his pack frame.

We saw bear tracks in the snow, lots of snow, lots of water running in the creeks.



We basically haul bait up and walk back to the truck to get the next load of bait for the next site.

Lots of snow up high, like lots of snow hard packed 4ft deep for a long way in places.

This is facing south east from my bait site.



I'm going to spend some time right here, about 60 yards to the bait.

Anyway anyone who says baiting bears is easy has never done it. I was a worn out camper by the time we were done.



We had a simple camp for This phase of the hunt, everything tastes better cooked in the mountains.



Any way we are going back at the end of this week to hunt over our baits. I hope I have bait left when I get back, it was heavy going up when we were putting out the bait, that's my worst fear

Beautiful country.



Now I just have to remain calm until we the weekend. I am excited and a black bear is my dream animal. I missed one last year, but I don't want to talk about it.

Have fun and good luck.

George

Looks like a blast!

Good Luck!

I did a lot of DIY bait hunts in MN; IMO, you need to check/dump bait every day - every other day at a minimum, but then, I never tried baiting a week ahead of time and then trying to hunt. Good luck - some beautiful country.

I am here, at bait site. Barrel was empty. Now rebaited and sitting until dark. Just heard thunder.

Best of luck to you!
Mind the growly bears

good luck.....cool post and great-looking country

It is the last day of season. Still going baits are being hit. My buddy shot a really nice boar on the third evening. I'm getting in really good shape hiking up and down the mountain also. hopefully have a good story to tell.

Bearfefe!

Can you post a photo of the boar?

Where to start? Well we arrived back at our hunting location on Saturday, June 10th late afternoon. We quickly set up camp so we could go check and see what had happened at our baits. Once again I want to mention how much I really wanted to seal the deal on a black bear, my favorite NA animal.

Anyway, basecamp.


Then it's up the mountain with some popcorn and grease and syrup and probably some marsh mallows to restock the baits: Oh and of course one needs all the items required to spend the night on the mountain-just in case. Heavy pack but there was excitement in the air. Beautiful country takes approximately 2 hrs to get from the trail head to my bait- up hill all the way.



This is what I found at the top! Bears exist!

I saw nothing on the first evening sit but my buddy saw a sow and cub.



Second night I sat at the same bait in the thunder and hail. No bear sighting for me but my buddy told me when I arrived back at the vehicle at 11:30ish that he was almost ran into by a bear and didn't know whether to use his pepper spray or his rifle- I know what I would have used but forget it.

Evening three I go to a different bait and enjoy a wind storm that was snapping trees of both live and dead, I had nowhere to go as no forest was better than the other, trees were coming down everywhere. I put on a heavy duty Helly Hansen rain gear, I call it a body condom, and just laid down behind a big tree and got snowed on. On the way back that evening my buddy shot his bear. A Real nice one IMO. Sorry no pics, it was getting dark and my buddy doesn't seem to care about getting photos of bears.

We are having a wonderful time by the way, beautiful country, variety of weather, soreness...

Saw this little guy. Deer and elk everywhere with a smattering of moose. This pic is on a relatively steep slope with these green plants growing all over them, they get a yellow flower on the top when they mature.



I walked up this slope everyday, our camp is just beyond that road you can see on the left, and the parking is way down below me in those trees. Beautiful country.



So the third day of the hunt my buddy gets his bear the that day we also sweetened up the baits a little.

Fourth day nothing, but good times. No bears.

Day five, sat at buddies lucky bait site. Nothing. Now I'm thinking, "Is it me?"

Our camp site is down by the stream.



Last day of season, I am feeling well. The weather is perfect and I am just really enjoying myself. There are bears here, they have hit my bait every day. It only takes a second for things to change. I throw some gummy worms and agave syrup in the barrel and walked away for a while; it was maybe noon.

I walked to about the highest point on the trail and just hung out for a while and enjoyed the scenery.





This is what the shot basically looked like, I was lying down with my gun on a bipod. All I have to do is crawl behind the gun and aim. This picture is actually from the first time I snuck up on my bait the first day, this is what I found. I cleared out those twigs in my line of fire. It was snow when I put the bait in.



Exact same location only a week and a half earlier.



So it's 5:00 now, I settle in and for the last sit. I get comfortable and I am wearing the "body condom" so I just lay down on the ground and use one of those cushiony thermal sit on pillows as a pillow. I had my pack in front of me and I was totally concealed, and the weather was nice. I was very comfortable and apparently tired as I kept falling asleep. Just for short periods- but still.

On previous occasions, the bear kept coming in after I left in the evening so tonight I decided to try something different to get a bear that may be just hanging out in the distance until it's dark, to want to come in a bit earlier. At about 7:00pm I walk over to my bait barrel, rattle it around, bang on it a couple time with my walking stick, and returned to my nest. I am hoping the bear will think another bear is eating all the goodies.

The sun is starting to get lower and shine on my location under this evergreen tree, but only for a few minutes. All I had to do was move my gun a little so there would not be a reflection off the scope. Anyway I'm nodding off occasionally and one time I look and there it is a bear.

This part happened way fast as you all know. I slid behind the gun as practiced and I watched the bear for a few moments to make sure it was alone and pulled the trigger. 7:40.

Congratulations on the bear!

Thank you for the great write-up. I felt like I was along for the ride.

A few fun facts:
They were doing a recreation of the "Pony Express." This Photo is 5 mi. E. of Farson, Wyo.



More fun facts:
Rifle- Ruger Alaskan in 375R
Bullet- 250 gr. Sierra
Powder 72.5 gr. Re 15

quote:

This part happened way fast as you all know. I slid behind the gun as practiced and I watched the bear for a few moments to make sure it was alone and pulled the trigger. 7:40.

Yes it can happen fast a good reason not to give up until the last minute of legal shooting time on the last day.

One can spend hours or days then the game is there.

Good job nice bear.

Really good story; thanks for posting.

Yes, great story and photo's!
Congrats on the bear!

ravenr, Good to here from you. Finally, a bear. Too much fun. Already thinking about the next hunt.