Jon Boy
WKR
- Joined
- May 25, 2012
- Location
- Paradise Valley, MT
My hunting partner and myself have had a very rough bear season here in south central Montana. We hunted every chance we got and despite me starting a new job and working tons of over time I went out at least two days a week. We back pack hunted, truck hunted, long day hunts, called, mornings, evenings and glassed and glassed. The weather didnt want to cooperate very much and it rained and snowed most days but we still went out. We had some amazing experiences and shot some awesome footage but never even saw a bear, until yesterday evening.
I made a hell mary trip up to the Beartooths by myself and started glassing. Picked up a beautiful color phase bear right away in an avalanche chute at the top of the mountain. I took one look at it and the area it was in and the stalk was on. In order to get to where it was I had to go through 6 foot jack pines filled with hellacious dead fall that you couldnt see from the road. As soon as I started I new I was in over my head. But, I charged up the mountain and kept telling myself it was now or never and Ive waited all season for this moment. I pushed on to the point of nausea but didnt give up It was the hardest stalk Ive yet to be on. I pushed so hard to get up there knowing if the bear left the chute I would never see it again in the thick pines.
I finally made it to the nob that over looked the chute just 100 yards away after only 30 minutes of sprinting up the mountain. As soon as I crested the nob to take a peak I felt what every hunter fears, wind at the back of my sweating neck. I saw the bear and made sure there werent any cubs around, that wind hit its nose and it was moving quick and up into the jack pines, it popped out on a fallen log and was walking up it when I steadied my cross hairs in between its shoulder blades, clicked the safety off, but something didnt feel quite right, I waited a few seconds and two small brown pieces of fur hopped up on the log with there momma and they disappeared into the brush.
I was incredibly disappointed after all of the hard work ive put in to this bear hunt all season and the grueling stalk I put on, but I couldnt help but smile as I watched those cubs follow there mother up that log playing with each other the whole way.
Either way I cant be too disappointed with the season, I learned a lot about bears, a lot about myself, and hunted harder than Ive ever hunted before. I have a whole new set of limits and expectations for the upcoming archery season and cant wait for opening day. Heres some pics of our season.
I made a hell mary trip up to the Beartooths by myself and started glassing. Picked up a beautiful color phase bear right away in an avalanche chute at the top of the mountain. I took one look at it and the area it was in and the stalk was on. In order to get to where it was I had to go through 6 foot jack pines filled with hellacious dead fall that you couldnt see from the road. As soon as I started I new I was in over my head. But, I charged up the mountain and kept telling myself it was now or never and Ive waited all season for this moment. I pushed on to the point of nausea but didnt give up It was the hardest stalk Ive yet to be on. I pushed so hard to get up there knowing if the bear left the chute I would never see it again in the thick pines.
I finally made it to the nob that over looked the chute just 100 yards away after only 30 minutes of sprinting up the mountain. As soon as I crested the nob to take a peak I felt what every hunter fears, wind at the back of my sweating neck. I saw the bear and made sure there werent any cubs around, that wind hit its nose and it was moving quick and up into the jack pines, it popped out on a fallen log and was walking up it when I steadied my cross hairs in between its shoulder blades, clicked the safety off, but something didnt feel quite right, I waited a few seconds and two small brown pieces of fur hopped up on the log with there momma and they disappeared into the brush.
I was incredibly disappointed after all of the hard work ive put in to this bear hunt all season and the grueling stalk I put on, but I couldnt help but smile as I watched those cubs follow there mother up that log playing with each other the whole way.
Either way I cant be too disappointed with the season, I learned a lot about bears, a lot about myself, and hunted harder than Ive ever hunted before. I have a whole new set of limits and expectations for the upcoming archery season and cant wait for opening day. Heres some pics of our season.
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