This year i got all my papers to do some legal hunting and went out for a black bear. went on a few trips in the pouring rain and the bears seemed more discouraged than us. The other day, some friends and i are in the hills, looking for bears and finding lots of sign. We see a bear in a cutblock across the valley from us, so i start jogging over there with my gun and my friends head off to get our packs and meet me there. I start stalking up on the bear when im right below him at the base of a hill. sneak along the ditches where he cant see me, but he can smell me, i cant quite get into range (i dont use a scope). he is sitting on a stump hanging out, curious. he sees me and moves to another stump. i realize that i am going to have to wrap around the hill and come down at him along the treeline, and start heading back down. as i turn around, i see a dude on an atv at the base of the hill with his gun out, and he begins shooting the bear, and continues shooting. after an awkward hour or so with this dude calling the bear a big “cocksucker” and a ramshackle travois hooked up to the back of an atv, and a 7k run down the mountain, i have a bear. been processing him for a few days now, and am in awe of the bear, the ammount of meat and fat, and the enjoyment of processing a large animal. the strangest hunting experience ive ever had…
So he shot it, but gave it to you?!
Being an Aussie I really can’t imagine shooting a bear, would be like shooting a wolf. I see both as sort of kindred spirits. I have read that indians ate them and they aren’t threatened at all, so i it’s something I would have to get over if I ever make that trip into the wilds of alaska/canada. Anyway, congrats.