Somebody has a story to tell....AND now the story....

smokin joe · May 29, 2024, 05:20:05 PM

The Shot....

Thursday was slow. All there was to watch were birds and squirrels until well into the evening.

At about 8:50 PM a bear comes in. He immediately lays down to eat off of the ground for a while. he was facing me on the far side of the clearing. The bait barrel was between us directly in line. Eventually he decided to stand up and approach the bait barrel. He was very confident and walked straight to the barrel and started eating off of the top. Except for his head and shoulders, his entire body was behind the barrel.

As he was eating, another bear approached but stayed in the bush. That bear started huffing and walking back and forth, but the bear on the bait was clearly in charge and unwilling to give any ground. He just kept eating.

The bear in the bush started to circle and make noise. The bear on the bait reacted by looking toward the interloper, and then turning away from him as if to say, "You are not the boss bear here. I am"

That gave me a good view of the bear at the bait. He was almost as tall as the bait barrel, but he was not carrying a lot of fat. He had a big, blocky head.

And....he was BROADSIDE with all 4 feet on the ground. He turned a bit to look over his right shoulder at the other bear. I picked a spot and let the arrow go.

The arrow hit exactly where I was looking. The bear ran about 25 yards. Then a moment of silence. Then he let out a moan and it was over.

No blood trail was needed. I could see the lighted nock clearly. It was 9:33 PM.

When we skinned him there was not an ounce of fat on him. It was clear that the rut had started and he had already run off all of his fat.

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Wudstix · May 29, 2024, 07:01:57 PM

Nice looking bear.

elkken · May 29, 2024, 11:50:12 PM

Congrats Joe ... mighty fine bear, Stickflingers in a great outfit and Ryan is first class.

Flingblade · May 30, 2024, 12:01:43 AM

Great story Joe, congratulations! I hunted out of a camp that was just a few miles from Minitonas about five years ago. The Duck Mountain provincial park is a beautiful area. I had a full mount done with the bear I shot and my wife nicknamed him "Mighty Minitonas". Fun to read your story about the area. I'm hoping to get back up there soon! I bet your bear will be real good eating even if he didn't have any fat left on him!

supernaut · May 30, 2024, 07:27:06 AM

Congratulations on a beautiful bear Joe!

Thanks for the pictures and the recap they were great.

glenbo · May 30, 2024, 08:33:31 AM

Congratulations! Beautiful bear. Sounds like a great trip

smokin joe · May 30, 2024, 09:52:05 AM

Thanks for the compliments. There are a lot of bears in Manitoba -- even color-phase black bears. I intend to go back to Stickflingers every two years as long as I am able. Ryan runs a classy operation.

I will start grinding the meat up tomorrow, and I will make a pot of bear chili early next week.

rastaman · May 30, 2024, 09:59:56 AM

Thanks for sharing your hunt with us Joe. Beautiful bear! Congratulations!

smokin joe · May 30, 2024, 10:19:07 AM

A note on equipment for this who are interested:

The bow is a Centaur Triple Carbon Elite Takedown. It is 60 inches and 45 pounds.

Quiver is a Selway Mini 4-arrow strap on.

Arrows:
The shaft is a 500 spine 3-Rivers Traditional Only cut to 29.5"
The nock is a red light-up Halo Nock
The wrap is a 6-inch custom wrap from One-Stringer
Feathers are 4-inch Tru-Flight
Broadhead is 125-grain original Wensel Woodsman
The adaptor is a 100-grain brass glue-in-glue-on from Ace Archery Tackle
The footing is a 5-grain carbon collar from 3-Rivers

JamesD · May 30, 2024, 11:00:44 AM

Congratulations Joe! Watching the bear go down had to be nice. Especially after that adventure we had two years ago tracking a bear together.

Pappy 1 · May 30, 2024, 11:44:18 AM

Congrats, great story and mighty fire bear, thanks for sharing. Pappy

huckbuck · May 30, 2024, 11:47:30 AM

Very Nice Bear Joe, congrats on a fine shot!

stagetek · May 30, 2024, 02:47:17 PM

Congrats Joe. Nice looking bear, and a great shot.

frassettor · May 30, 2024, 04:45:46 PM

Congratulations on a great bear!

Pete McMiller · May 30, 2024, 05:39:59 PM

Congratulations Joe, a fine bear and story.

Kodiak Fan · May 30, 2024, 07:28:41 PM

Heck of a bear Joe. Nice shooting. JV

ESP · May 30, 2024, 08:05:33 PM

Congratulations

Wudstix · May 30, 2024, 08:17:10 PM

I'm going to have to get serious about bear hunting.

doubleo · May 31, 2024, 12:15:22 AM

Good story and nice shooting on a great bear! Congratulations!

smokin joe · May 31, 2024, 08:08:19 AM

Thanks. When the guide saw the bear he said, "Wow. That was a perfect shot...a perfect shot."
I think waiting for the broadside presentation was a good idea.