How confident are you Hunting Black Bear Over Bait?

You can have all the confidence in the world to see bears if…

  • You have wind in your favor.
  • You have maximized scent removal from you and clothing.
  • Never walk into the baited area. 
  • Use a tree stand to keep scent above the site. 
  • Minimize movement. Use eyes before you turn your head. 
  • Eat foods that do not produce gas. 
  • Use a pee jug. 
  • Stay alert. Listen.
  • Shoot straight.

Hunters- North American Black Bear Populations Are Thriving

There are official sources that estimate one million black bears (Ursus americanus) are living in North America. Not only are they thriving, they are growing and extending their ranges into towns that had few or none.

Range of the American Black Bear (Ursus americanus) #map #northamerica ...

Some hunters will simply not hunt them because they consider bear meat second to venison. The truth is, when venison is hard to get, bear meat begins to rise. And surprisingly, when dressed quickly and cooked properly, bear is first rate in a stew or roast, or as burger or sausage. 

In Maine, biologists estimate the population of 35,000 or more. In New Hampshire there are estimates of 5600 bears, Massachusetts estimates 5000 bears, Vermont estimates 8500 bears. And Growing! Thats, over 50,000 bears just in those 4 states.  A bears lifespan can be upwards of 15 to 20 years.  Old male bears will tip the scale over 400 pounds and upwards of over 600 pounds. Canada has perhaps very old black bears that exceed 400 pounds regularly.

Canada is still very wild. 

Bears are much like deer, they are crepuscular, meaning active in early morning and at dusk. Bears in wild away from humans often have diets of berries, grass, and insects but will eat meat and fish whenever available from carrion, fawns, moose, beaver and other wild young.

In the New England fall, bears are fat and if harvested at the end of Berry season, they have gorged on blueberries, raspberries and the like.

Bear meat at that time is quality to eat provided the meat reaches internal cooking temperatures of 160F or greater. Stewing bear meat at a slow boil both tenderizes the meat and kills bacteria and any parasites such as Trichinella (historically found in pork). 

And the fat is abundant to render for use in making pastry, soap, candles, waterproofing and lubrication.

In the spring, fat is gone but spring bears are lean and eat lots of grass.  Experts say bear fur is at its best in the spring. Canada hunts in spring. 

I am hoping my fall Maine black bear hunt this September brings me at least an opportunity if not a nice fat bear. I will be filming, photographing and writing too.

Hunting can be done with bow, pistol, rifle, muzzleloader and crossbow. Check regulations first. 

Good Hunting!

Bear Meat – Eliminate Trichinella?

I have been using Sous Vide water baths for cooking  game meat to a specific internal temperature. Below is the Sous Vide tool to heat water and food to exact temperatures. 

 

For example; my venison can be SV’d to 125F then sear on a grill for perfect rare venison. But now cooking bear meat to medium rare? How is that possible? 

 Bear meat, like pork has the possibility of containing Trichinella, thus for years, federal guidelines for cooking are at much higher internal temperatures usually 160ºF and higher. 

I read an article in Bear Hunting Magazine where the author now eats his black bear meat at 140ºF after using a Sous Vide (time and temperature technique in a water bath) perfected by Federal Government Food Safety Guidelines below to kill parasites like wild game born trichinella. See Table A1 for time and temperature in the website below to kill Trich.. 

https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC7033995/

The bear recipe article from Bear Hunting Magazine below.

http://www.bear-hunting.com/recipes?ID=8F8AB0C2-9C1E-49E2-AC48-B79ACA718A2C

I have not tried the Sous Vide method for Bear meat.

When in doubt cook to at least 160ºF internal temp. like in a stew. I pressure cook my bear for stew. 

Note; Steve Rinella of Meateater fame made a serious field cooking mistake in 2011 with Alaskan black bear meat. He cooked it over an outdoor fire but was not sure of its internal temperature. He and his hunt party ate it and came down with Trichinosis infection and all had to take antibiotics. It was no fun!

I don’t know what Steve was thinking but he already knew of the parasite issue?

He continues his bear hunts and eating bear but perhaps learned a very important cooking survival lesson.

If you have no way to accurately measure internal grilled bear meat temperature in the field, don’t eat it.

Many Indigenous people of North America  boiled or stewed bear meat. A few tribes roasted it on a spit but boiling long enough to stew and tenderize will kill both bacteria and parasites. See website below.

http://traditionalanimalfoods.org/mammals/bears/

Good Lesson!

 

 

Black Bear Taxidermy Thoughts

I learned years ago to check in with taxidermists before the hunt for costs and mounting options when I hunted Africa years back. Some of my Africa mounts below in my office.

Black Bear mounts today are better than ever. I like the half bear mounts because they have animation, rocks and shrubs around them. They look alive, don’t they!  Examples below at Sterling Taxidermy. 

Bear Taxidermy

Clete's Taxidermy Studio | Bear mounts, Taxidermy, Deer hunting decor

Other options include a bear rug or perhaps a skull mount below.

If you do some homework, you can get cost and mount styles before the hunt. Good Hunting!

 

 

 

 

Why Hunt Black Bear? Food, Conservation, Fat, Fur and Skull.

If you hunt in black bear rich habitat, such as Northern Maine, where I am hunting in September,  you are doing your part in conservation by control of the population. New Hampshire has bears too but a smaller, huntable, yet also growing population.

Hunters rely on biologists to determine the bear season. Maine has around 35,000 bears. Bear season typically begins in September. Check regulations for exact information. 

https://www.maine.gov/ifw/hunting-trapping/hunting/laws-rules/index.html

https://www.wildlife.nh.gov/hunting-nh/dates-and-seasons

But there has to be something that the hunter gets for bear hunting.

Among hunters and settlers, bear meat and bear fat has been a sought after commodity since the founding of America.

Bear meat, when cared for properly, is delicious. Bears need to be gutted and cooled promptly. Vacuum sealing the meat and freezing is one of the best ways to store bear meat.

Bear fat, when rendered, can make pastries, candles, lubricants, water proofing, and the fur makes a great rug. The skull can be sent out for cleaning and display the bears large jaw and teeth. 

Good Hunting!

Reflections of My October 2023 Newfoundland Moose Hunt

It is 2024 now and near mid June. I took some time to reflect on my Newfoundland Moose Hunt.

Ed’s Moose taken Sept. 19, 2023

I was able to bring all 300 pounds of my frozen moose meat home on the back of our Subaru Ascent. On return home, we crossed over to Nova Scotia from the Port Au Basque side. An 8 hour Ferry ride. We had a ferry cabin, and 2 labrador retrievers with us.

I was hoping for a bull, but here along the Gander River, there were very few big racked bulls but never the less a decent quantity of moose live here. Given my senior age, I liked the hunt on the back of a Quad to get me close to bogs.

Cost of the hunt was in the $7000 range in total. Weather in October is storm prone, so be prepared.

So lets see, my moose meat costs $23 dollars a pound. Is it delicious? Absolutely the best! My wife goes bananas over the moose burger with a bit of pork mixed with it. This is my third moose and thoroughly enjoying the wild experience and the meat. We have shared meat with friends and family and still have plenty on hand. 

Below is the Moose hunt article.

Newfoundland Moose Hunt Sept 2023 With Gander River Outfitters

Good Hunting!

Next hunt is for black bear in Maine, in September 2024! 

7mm PRC Velocities Vary?

Hornady’s new 7PRC owners are finding that the 175g bullet is not living up to its 3000fps advertising. Those that buy off-the-shelf 7PRC ammo have see a drop often of 100 to 150fps in lot to lot variation. Below is a video from “Big Game Hunting Blog” that helps to understand the variation.

In part it is due to powder shortages. Hornady’s use of different powders and lots of powder can cause measurable variation as well as rifle barrel length.

Hornady uses SAAMI 24 inch barrels. A 22 inch barrel will not cut 3000fps.  The key here is that the 7PRC was designed for long range accuracy, thus powders must deliver accuracy first. 

My Browning X-Bolt Speed in 7 Rem Mag achieves 3000 fps with a 175g Nosler ABLR bullet and a 26 inch barrel (9.5 twist) with RL 22 and Vitha. 560 hand loaded powder and sub-moa accuracy.  I did however, have to experiment with powder charges to safely optimize the loads. 

For 7PRC a lot of hoopla was made of improved faster barrel twist rate differences as well for heavier target bullets. The 7PRC rifle has a 1:8 Twist but my 7 Rem does equally well with 1:9.5 Twist with hunting bullets up to 175 grains. 

Good Hunting!

 

 

Time To Begin Reloading

I have been reloading for pistol and rifle cartridges for hunting and target for over 40 years. It is time perhaps to enrich your inner self and reload. It’s fun and saves money too…in the long run.

RCBS Rock Chucker Supreme Master Single Stage Press Kit

RCBS Rock Chucker Supreme Master Single Stage Press Kit

My African safari hunt utilized all my custom handloads.

 

Not only have I saved thousands of dollars over the years but customized loads to accurize my guns. I started with this RCBS kit above. At just over $500 dollars, you also need cartridge dies, powders, primers bullets and brass. 

Midway USA sells all you need.

https://www.midwayusa.com/product/1023389781?pid=345426

Check it out!