Thinking of doing a spring bear hunt. I live near the Canadian border, ( western NYS ), and would like to hear from the folks that have done spring hunts. Thanks, Smoker13 AKA Smoker1

Where do you want to go?

I'm going to New Brunswick May 21st for a week, then on the way home, I'll be dropped off in Montreal, where I'm flying to Alberta for another week of BB hunting.

hi Doc, should have been more specific. Would like to have a spot whithin reasonable driving distance ( ~500 miles ), from the canandian border at Buffalo or the Thousand Islands. Been to Maine a couple of times over the years and wasn't too impressed. Smoker1

One of my friends that is going to NB killed a nice bear just north of you in Canada. His cost was 1400.

I will email him for info and post it for you.

Thank you doc. Smoker1

I have an opening in New Brunswick, at Renous, for a spring hunt. It's a 6 day hunt for $1300 and includes the bear tag. There are plenty of bears there, no resident pressure.

Thanks Ann, a little futher than I want to travel. Smoker1

Smoker13:


You indicate that you live in Western NYS. Ontario Province has banned spring bear hunting. That leaves only Quebec or New Brunswick for you. Ann's proposal for NB doesnt sound half bad. (Nearly 20 years ago I paid over $1000 for a spring hunt in NB) Quebec is going to charge you some real money, believe me! Also when you mention about not wanting to travel. In Quebec you may have to go well north to hunt BB - In NB you can be hunting BB within a hundred miles of the US border.

BTW, spring bears are smaller than "Fall" bears (often by as much as 50-75 lbs) although the fur is in much better shape for a spring bear. There are the flies - and they can get bad enough to need to wear a head net. I freely admit that I'm shilling for Fall BB hunts. I did both for nearly 20 years and, believe me, it's better in the Fall! Those flies are murder - and they are gone by mid-June or so. (Timed right you can get in some bird hunting too in the Fall.Bird season in Ontario opened in my time on Oct. 1. Bear season closed by Sept.30) Just my thoughts.

My friend emailed me the info but it's on my work computer. I'll be there on Tuesday.

Again, he only paid around 1400 and shot a bear the first night that weighed around 250. This was in Quebec.

Seems like I just recently heard somewhere that Ontario is opening it's spring bear season again. Am I wrong?

Doc:

You are right that there is a slight movement on in Ontario to restore spring bear hunting. This is already December and so I doubt it will be restored for the 2006 season - if ever. A Quebec hunt for $1400 is quite reasonable - but a 250 lb black in Canada is nothing to write home about. Blacks of that weight are routinely shot in NY Adiroundack mountains in Fall hunts - and considerably bigger on occasion.

We hunted last spring in Renous,NB with an outfitter named Big Paw Outfitters. Paid $1200 for an all inclusive hunt. We'd go back in a heartbeat. Also, my cousin shot a real "Hog" in the Adirondocks outside of Tupper Lake that was >550lbs.

Afro:

Congrats to your cousin on his 550lb black. I perked up reading your post that he was shot near Tupper Lake. This old guy (75) first hunted near Tupper Lake in 1949 and it was real wild country then. By 1975 (visiting friends in summer) I was amazed by how much the area had been settled (summer cabins) Your cousin shooting such a large black (In my day we called them "monsters" rather than "hawgs") near Tupper Lake proves what a Canadian lodge owner told me once. He had a college degree in wild life biology - and said that animals living in cold climate grow bigger. I saw deer in NB and in Ontario that astonished me in size. I even saw a porcupine by the roadside in Canada- a critter I knew from childhood - and almost didn't recognize him - because he was almost twice as large as the porcupines I had seen in the States. The lodge owner told me that animals living in northern climates had to grow bigger in order to develop body heat to survive the cold temperatures. The Adiroundacks are cold! Getting such a big bear before he went into hibernation in NY is really an accomplishment! I know there was a big black that hit over 600 lbs as a record holder but your cousin's bear sounds like he was very close! Again, my congratulations to your cousin.

Gerry,
Being from the "wilds" of the northern Chicago suburbs the area around the lake side of Tupper is still pretty remote. My family owns a "boat in" camp on the sw side of the lake and asides from our camp the only other place within a mile is some "rich broads camp" which has to be >15k square feet for the main house. One day this woman, and her 12yr old son motored over to meet my cousin. Once there my cousin suggested that her boy and his son go and catch some frogs. She corrected him and said her son isn't into that sort of thing, He's into Equesrtian !!! What a Hoot !!! She probably thinks we're the cast from " Deliverance" Anyway, if you have a chance to bear hunt in that area I'd do it. BTW the largest Black bear taken was just over 900lbs and it was taken in NB.

gerry375, you wrote in part:

quote:

Quebec is going to charge you some real money, believe me! ...In Quebec you may have to go well north to hunt BB

With all do respect, since I am from Quebec, I'd like to comment on this. What do you mean by 'real money'? Who did you use in Quebec and what experience(s) did you have? I know for a fact that really good black bear hunts can be had in Quebec for under 1200USD- for residents using same outfitter services we can even get great hunts for about $900 Canadian. Avg. Quebec black bears weigh about 200 pounds (about 16"+ skulls), with about 1 in every 60 shot going over 400 pounds.

You also do not have to go well north in Quebec for good black bear hunting. I can hunt black bears about 1h30 min. outside of Montreal.

I'd suggest you contact the Quebec outfitters association or the Ministry of fauna and the environment for the hunting regulations and list of outfitters.

EDITED:

Finally, a non-resident can hunt Quebec without a guide or outfitter below the 52nd parallel, but the regulations have changed for Black Bear and Woodcock Other species like Moose and Deer are still permitted without an outfitter.

quote:

Black bear and American
woodcock hunting:
non-residents must make use of at
least two services of an outfitter,
including lodging....

CanadianLefty,
What are the regs regarding US folks establishing bait sites? In some NewEngland states,the sites must be registered with the Fish and gane folks.Also,are there suitable public/Crown lands available? Thanks,Dave

Please see my edited comments above. The regulations have changed and now the only big game that you can hunt without an outfitter is Moose and Deer

Food substances may be used as bait for black bear in the zones and during the
seasons mentioned in the following table (partial list):
1 (excluding reserve) to 9, 10 east, southern part of 10 west, 11 to 19, 21, 23, 24 and 26 to 29:

May 1 to June 30

Northern part of 10 west:

May 1 to June 10

10 east and west:

September 11 to November 14

Yes, there are suitable public/crown lands available: thousands of sq. miles of it all pretty accessible for Moose and Deer. Make a few calls to the places that I mentioned above and they will point you in the right direction. Then P.M. me if you wish to discuss further.

Afro:

Of course, the lady thought you were right out of "Deliverance"! There is something else that p....s me off about that lady. So her son is an "equestrian"? I am the son of an "Equestrienne" (No, she never heard me use that word about her!) She had cups and ribbons galore and was so good that,for fun, she would take a hunter over a 6' barrier - while riding sidesaddle. She never opposed my hunting (and I was shooting a 22 under supervision when I was 8) and would be ticked off at the idea that a son of hers could not be a shooter and hunter - and also made to learn how to ride. Too bad she didn't let her son have the experience of going for frogs. I learned to go clamming at age 6 in Connecticut at Westport- My mother told me when I was grown that my father delighted in telling her that "Your son wants to be a clamdigger!" Anyway I'm glad to hear that Tupper Lake still has some wild country. (I haven't seen it in perhaps 25 years) Thanks for an interesting post.

CL,
Thanks for the current regs.Now you've got my attention with th moose info.Have done 2 DIY hunts in the past,NH and Maine,so it's doable for me.Of course,I'm not getting any younger either.Will have to look into it.Thanks again,Dave