So, I have booked a trip to Saskatchewan at the end of May 2027 to hunt black bears with a couple buddies and my son. Steepbank Outfitters, out of Prince Albert, SK. We're staying at Eagle Bay resort, located at East Trout Lake, SK.
It'll be the first "long travel" hunt that I've ever done. I've never hunted bears before, but have been around them on my property up in NW PA, & some of them have VERY come close to me -within 10 yds while I was on the ground hunting deer or turkeys. A few have been big ones, I'd estimate in the 250-300 lb range. I've never panicked when they've showed up, and every time they finally discovered my presence they've made haste to leave the area ASAP!
So I feel that I'm fairly comfortable around Black Bears.
The big ones up in Saskatchewan will go 350-400 lb, says the outfitter. He said he can accommodate my desire to hunt on the ground, either in a synthetic blind or one made from natural materials (I'd prefer the latter-unless it's pouring rain! ;)) it looks to me to be a "typical" spring bear setup, with bait stations spread out in small clearings and shots no further than 20 yds.
Because of the possibility of being in a synthetic blind, I'll be taking 2 of my shorter bows on the trip-a 56" Hill Country Bobcat longbow (48#@28",) and a 58" Widow PCH recurve (44#@28".) Current bowhunting regs up there require a minimum draw weight of 40#@28", so by their regs,I should be good with those bows.
They both shoot the same arrows, so I'll be taking my aluminum 2016's, 30", 565 gr total weight with 190 gr Simmons swamp Sharks up front-the same arrows that I use for whitetails. I figure a dozen of them, 6 with field points for practice, & 6 with broadheads. The outfitter said that most whitetail outfits are good for their bears.
So I have some questions for all of you more experienced bear hunters who have harvested a big one like what's mentioned above, on the ground:
1- I'm considering shipping my bows/arrows & other gear that will fit into a Pelican Vault case ahead of our arrival-the lodge that we'll stay in does accept shipments like this, and I wouldn't have to deal with any lost luggage. I'm just not sure how it'll go with that kind of gear crossing the Canadian border-I would lock the case with TSA compatible locks as I've read that Canadian customs inspectors have keys for those locks. What are your thoughts on this-am I being paranoid over lost luggage?(note- one of my best buddies (who is also going on the trip) has made multiple trips to Canada has multiple horror stories of how his compound bow case got "lost" for a day or 2, delaying his hunt-he said that several outfitters have told him that some airline workers are notorious for being "less than friendly" to hunters coming from the states...)
If I decide to ship, I'm considering shipping 1 bow and 6 arrows in the shipping case, along with half of my hunting clothes and the fly rod/reel/flies, and taking the other bow, half of the arrows and hunting clothing with me in a suitcase.
2-Clothing-Note- the outfitter said that camo really doesn't matter-bears either hear you or smell you.QUIET clothing is most important. I plan on pre-treating some lighter hunting clothes (first lite obsidian pants, & wick long sleeve shirts-2 each for a week-long hunt, fusion camo, because that's what I have) with Permethrin repellent & taking a Thermacell or 2. The outfitter said that butane refills for thermocells are available at a store close to the lodge. Fair weather hat will either be a wool crusher (if the weather is cooler) or a Tilley hat if it's gonna be warm. I don't plan on taking any thermal underwear-see rain gear below. Is this a good idea and is it enough outfits?
3- footwear- I'm considering either my uninsulated 8 inch Bean Maine Hunting shoes or a rubber & neoprene Muck boot. (outfitter recommends rubber boots) Either way, I'll be wearing light to medium merino socks.I prefer the Bean boots because they fit snugger than the Mucks & I fel that I can move more quietly with them than I can with the Mucks. Which one would you recommend & why?
4-- rain gear- the outfitter said that it needs to be QUIET. I'll go with my Pnuma 3-element pants & coat. It'll also work as an outer layer if it gets cold. I'll wear my oilskin crusher hat on the trip out, so that'll be my rain hat (I despise hoods on jackets) Is this a good choice?
5- binos- Since it's so thick up there, I'll prob go with a compact set of 8x32's (Vortex Diamondbacks) or maybe an even smaller set of 8x25's (Nikon Trailblazers-both are waterproof) since I'm told that you really don't see the bears until they come out into the small clearing. I don't see a need to carry my larger heavier pair of range finding binos that I normally have when deer hunting, since the binos on this trip will probably get more use in the morning when we're fishing & I see an eagle or some other wildlife that I want a closer look at. Are either of these good choices, or is there another recommendation?
6-backpack-I figure that the pack needs to hold the rain gear, first aid kit, thermacell & refills, extra bowstrings & glove, binos, headlamp, seat cushion, a couple protein bars or trail mix and a 1 or 2 L water bladder w/hose. I'm thinking a frameless day pack, either my Badlands Monster or Super Day. What are your thoughts?
7-fly rod-The outfitter recommends bringing "some" fishing gear. He stated that he has some as well. We'll be fishing in morning, hunting in the evening. I'm looking to get a bigger Northern Pike on my fly rod than the one I got on our last fishing trip to Ontario. My 11 wt rig & flies should fit in the same case as my bows, so I'll put them in there. Any specific fly recommendations for that region of Canada? (I'll also be asking the outfitter or lodge folks.)
8-(and you'll probably think I'm crazy on this one) Trophy/taxidermy-So, I'm going on this hunt to share an adventure with my son and 2 other good, good friends. I really don't care about getting a bear. That being stated, if a big one lumbers out of the woods, it'll DEFINITELY be GAME ON! But I'm not that sure about getting it mounted-see, we have a small kind of "empty nester" house now with not alot of room, & I don't know that I would want to put up a bear mount (unless it's a big cinnamon, then, well, I'll find a spot... ;) ) So assuming that my son & buddies talk me into mounting it, what is the smallest sized mount style that I should look at (I'm not sure about a clean skull, but I guess it's an option,) and what kind of gear would I need to have (or ensure that the outfitter supplies) to get it home?
I posted this on Saddlehunter as well.
Thanks in advance!
Fly to Minot, North Dakota, rent a van and drive ? Likely about a ten hour drive . Might be more cost effective.
Long original post. Here are some thoughts. Black bears are giant raccoons. You are 1000% more likely to get in a car accident next week than to get into trouble with a black bear. You should be more scared of the neighbors German shepherd than a black bear. Practice out of a treestand at 15-20 yards. If you have your heart set on the ground blind deal find out how big the shooting holes are and practice that. Almost everyone I've went with wanted to hunt from the ground till they got there then they just used the outfitters tree stands. It's a pain in the ass to set up a ground blind specifically for one guy. Also if you leave a pop up blind at a bait overnight in any decent bear population area it will be destroyed by the next morning. Black bears are jerks and they break stuff up for fun. Shoot him in the middle with a big broadhead, stay off the shoulder. Ask the outfitter for size judging advice. Easiest way....if you couldn't shove him in the barrel he's a pretty good bear.
Have fun, bear hunting is a circus!
R