LTWL Hunter Online July 2014 | Page 26

OUT! T G A G ED Now’s when the work begins but not before the ever vigilant Mrs. Ruth reminds us that we have only one chance to capture this moment in pictures and video. Over the years I have learned (ok, I’m trying already!) that taking the time to get great quality pictures to capture a memory of a lifetime is as important as any other aspect of the hunt, and with a -1.7 foot tide at 10:17 and 03 sec pm (who’s counting? LOL!) We have plenty of time for pictures, skinning and a bush lunch before making the trek back to camp. If you’ve ever tried to reposition a 900 lb. brown bear on a side hill, you know what a task this can be and once moved these guys have a tendency to go where they will, but Andy and I managed to get him into position for pictures and skinning. Once pictures are taken, we begin the 2-hour chore of skinning and packing our bear up for the 4-mile hike back to camp. We finish in time for a bite to eat, a cup of coffee and evening siesta of our own before we begin the trek back, arriving back at camp in the dark at 1 am, tired and happy from a great day in the field. We must have slept a lot harder than we thought because the following morning we woke to find the largest set of bear tracks I have ever seen within 10 26 yards of the tent! Walking towards the head of the bay, we are hunting and from this point forward nothing less than this old boy will do. We spend the rest of this day glassing and hoping we can get a glance of this big old bruin. Unfortunately, Lady Luck did not shine on us this day and we find where his tracks head all the way into the drainage at the head of the bay, so we plan to spend the next day working beyond the bay and looking at new country. We begin early the next morning, putting in 12 miles with a lot of glassing time in search of Big Foot, but just like the legend of The Boggy Creek Monster we believe he is, he vanishes without a trace. Walking out that night we spot a bear across the bay and although he is a really good bear, I decide to pass on him. As we round the corner, we bump into yet another bear. This guy’s on our side, but the wind is not in our favour and he winds us about the same time I spot him. Like many good sized boars he’s used to owning his territory and he only climbs about 50 feet then locks up and turns to check us out. About this time, we’re all scratching our heads wondering why we’ve been walking all day only to discover two great bears waiting on our return and we spend the next hour stalking, watching and taking pictures of them. By now Click and Like LIVE THE WILD LIFE today!