With this fall winding down and winter conditions fast approaching, I knew I needed to get out soon if I was going to have a chance. I had a day off and with the help of Rose, we were able to find someone to watch Ella for the day. It was still dark when I left the house and as I drove I thought about a game plan for the day. I'd start glassing hillsides from all the spots I knew of and then think about hiking in somewhere if that didn't pan out. There was already snow on some of the mountains, even down to the highway in one spot.
After glassing all the spots I could think of, I'd seen nothing. I stopped in a little market and grabbed a snack and thought about my options. I knew it was early and there was a good chance that bears were still laying low until it warmed up a little bit. So I didn't expect to really see much first thing in the morning. Yet, I knew of a spot that was a real good bet, but it was a good hike to get in there and being by myself would prove to be difficult if I got a bear. I'd been in there countless times and seen a lot of bears.
My buddy Matt and I had talked earlier in the week about getting out and he said he was heading into the area. He said he was heading in on Thursday with two guys and going way in to a cabin. I received a text with a picture of a bear they ended up getting Thursday night. So here it is Sunday and I figured, well they probably went out the other side to another trailhead and are probably out by now.
I decided to go for it. It was my last chance likely for the year and I needed to go big or go home. After loading up my pack I started up the trail, which ascends 1000 feet over 1.5 miles. It was cold out with temps being right around freezing. The hike was going pretty quick and tree line wasn't far off. I was hoping that I could spot something quickly since it was already almost noon.
I started glassing the open hillsides that I could see and was kind of surprised I wasn't seeing anything. But, I still had a ways to go and a good bit of country to glass. The trail finally topped out and I had a good view of the hillsides ahead. I started glassing everything around me and then looking further out. Standing out like a beacon was a lone black bear high above the valley about a mile and a half away.
Knowing how quickly they can move, I wasted no time and began moving fast towards the bear. It wasn't long before I was directly beneath the bear by about 1000 feet. I pulled the spotting scope out to get a good look at it. I guessed it to be a good bear, it looked pretty big with a good sized head and I thought it was a boar. I quickly stashed everything I didn't need, in order to lighten my load going up cause it was going to be STEEP!
I chose a route based on the wind and terrain and felt I had a good plan. The wind was a cross wind and I would be approaching mostly down wind. The going was pretty good and I was able to avoid a lot of the alders. Towards the last half of the stalk, it got really steep and thicker. Finally though, I was able to poke out of the brush and into the open, not far from where the bear was last seen. I was inching upward slowly, trying to spot my quarry. Suddenly out of no where, there it was, feeding on the hillside. I could hardly believe it! I was within shooting range so I quickly dropped down and slipped off my pack. I ranged the bear and came up with 278 yards. I could feel the wind shifting around and new that bear would likely smell me soon. I laid down and used my pack as a rest. The bear was now behind a bit of tall grass and I waited, ready for it to emerge on the other side.
I started to see bits of black through the grass and knew my chance was coming. As soon as it cleared, I picked a spot behind the front shoulder and squeezed. The bear instantly reacted to the shot by biting at it's shoulder and running. Not even a second passed and I already had another bullet chambered. On the bear again and it was running. I hit it again and it dropped, cartwheeling down the hill.
I gave it a few minutes and began moving up the hill, finding it piled up on the only flat spot on that mountain. I was so excited that I was finally able to put together a hunt on a fall black bear and have it all come together. The bear wasn't as big as I thought it was and it ended up being a sow... So much for my black bear judging skills. The hair on it was almost 4 inches long in places and it was just a big puff ball. Judging by it's teeth, looked like a pretty young bear too.
It took me about two hours to skin and remove all the meat from the bear. By now I was getting cold and it had been spitting snow and blowing on me the whole time. I loaded my pack up and was afraid of how heavy it was going to be. But it wasn't as bad as I thought it would be. I quickly started descending and it was very hard going. Slick, wet, rotting vegetation, with snow here and there, made it really hard to stay on my feet. I fell more than a few times but wasn't too bad getting back up on my feet. The alders were a mess. I couldn't find the route I came up on, it all looks the same. It turned into a nightmare trying to get down.
What a feeling of relief though, when I broke into the wide open. I reached my gear stash and collapsed. I laid there drinking a bottle of water and thinking about the stalk, looking back up the mountain where I'd just come. Then thoughts turned to getting the rest the way out. Surely, if I could do that I can walk the trail 3 miles out of here. Well, I might as well get to it!
I started loading up the rest of my gear and as I was finishing, I glanced up and saw three guys coming down the trail. No way, I thought! They all three were wearing camo and it looked like Matt from a distance. As they got closer, I was sure it was him. I called out his name and sure enough it was him.
They walked over and offered to carry some of my bear since they'd already packed theirs out, they had some extra room. Boy was that a welcome offer. Plus just to have some company on the hike out. We ended up hitting the trailhead at about 5pm. Not bad for starting out on the trail at about 10am!
Well, the meat turned out great. I trimmed it all up and ground into bacon burger. We had burgers the other night and they were fantastic!
About the shot... My first shot hit the bear right behind the front shoulder and went in and out. My second shot was at a sharp angle and came out just in front of the off-side hind quarter. I didn't need the second shot after seeing what the first one did. But I wasn't taking any chances and didn't want to chase a bear in the alders.
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