Trad Gang

Dave, who were the 3 that killed yesterday?  I hope chad didnt call you, that cracker was supposed to call me!

"You can forget your bow and still have a good hunt - but don't forget your Thermacell"  

Joe Coots   :readit:

Who hunted the "blow down" stand the 2nd week? I hunted it the first week and had good action and passed up 5 different shot opportunities during the week in hope of finding a bear that would be closing in on Pope & Young . I think the best bear I was seeing was between 200 and 215 pounds but it did not seem to have all that big of a noggin.

(http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v488/Shortbldtr/IMG_1065.jpg)

Bob, The 3 were Zach, Larry or Greg and Paul
Chad did call me but he found my scent smoker I left and wanted to thank me for the gift.

Way to go Paul!!

looking good PV looking good and thanks dude you da man this week bd

Alright Paul, enough of that.
Out with it man!!!  :readit:    :readit:

Half way between La Tuque and Bear Camp Looking South.

(http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v493/novaln1975/DSC_1523.jpg)

S.

Looking North

(http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v493/novaln1975/DSC_1522.jpg)

S.

The 1985 SAAB 900 survived the trip one more time.

(http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v493/novaln1975/DSC_1524.jpg)

S.

No Time for story telling today Whip. Promise to get to it when I get the time. Way it looks long about Monday. bd you the man to keep so many happy with not much to work with in the way of a KITCHEN!!!!!!!


I will say the the mutual admiration society of Marty,Mike and Barry was a thing to behold......

*******Remember guys, we have some younger folks reading along********


Catch you guys later....

Congrats to all for another great trip,great stories and pics only wish I would have been there.I am signed up for next year already.Paul very nice ,cook and bear killer all rolled in one among many other talents.Tell your wife thank you for tip where to eat.Legal Seafood was great wife and myself loved it as did other couple and we enjoyed Boston a bunch.Simon nice pics cannot wait to see it in person again.Will sit back and enjoy rest of second week adventures.I did not hear from Jay but I saw his pic in group where you at Jay.Kip

Where's Waldo?

(http://i571.photobucket.com/albums/ss153/brill16hockey/PICT0026.jpg)

He probably left because of that bloody Pink arrow sticking in the ground.

Whats up guys i just got home long trip 1100 miles. Bob i will give you a call tonight and fill you in on the last day. I had a great time meeting all the guys and the hunting was good also. gonna go unpack and love momma up before i get put on the porch.

You mean this pink arrow?

(http://i571.photobucket.com/albums/ss153/brill16hockey/PICT0038.jpg)

Nah, those pink arrows arent man enought to scare any bears away ;-)

Chad, sounds good buddy, cant wait to hear from you.

Any word from the last evening of hunting on the 2nd week.

GOOD JOB on the bear PV and thanks again for the great meals and company!!!

That pink arrow looks like its at the moose tower stand. Good job PV you got redemtion.

By the end of the 2009 Bear Quest, Bear Quest III, I was exhausted from spending 52 hours in a treestand over a 6.5 day period. All of my muscles ached from trying to remain motionless for such a long period of time. To help alleviate the aches I rotated from seated positions to standing positions every ½ hour. This helped in the beginning but after a few days this began to loose its effect. I'm sure many on here have experienced days much like what I described and can attest to the struggle we as hunters go through to remain in the treestand, but it doesn't keep us from coming back for more. After awhile it becomes a challenge if not an obsession and in my case it made me determined. By spending so much time in the stand I missed out on a lot of the camp camaraderie, but I wanted a bear and that wasn't going to happen if I wasn't in my stand. Anyway, I left the Rothman camp last year a little disappointed and a little frustrated, but also determined to return the following year to Bear Quest IV to try again. It wasn't that I didn't see any bears or have opportunities to shoot. I set my goal for a 150# bear or bigger. Determined to stick to that goal, I left Canada empty handed, but filled with one more adventure to tuck under my belt and pictures to add to my memory book to remind me and to show others the adventure that I had.

It was like Déjà ve, one year later I found myself crawling out of bed at 03:00 in the morning after only three hours sleep from the night before to begin the marathon run to LaTuque, Quebec, Canada. A hunt that I had eagerly signed up for before leaving the Bear Quest camp in 2009. At the end of the morning's flight Tippit, who graciously offered to pick me up and transport me back to his home before we departed for Canada, greets me at the Boston airport. After a few last minute stops we arrive at his home where I meet Jeff's wife Molly and Trad Gang member George Galan AKA xroadshunter. After introductions and greetings we were off to the backyard for some traditional archery fun.

  (http://images.imagelinky.com/1277511945.jpg) (http://images.imagelinky.com/1277511945.jpg)

  (http://images.imagelinky.com/1277512018.jpg) (http://images.imagelinky.com/1277512018.jpg)

  (http://images.imagelinky.com/1277512085.jpg) (http://images.imagelinky.com/1277512085.jpg)

A short time later Paul Van Vaerenewyck (thank goodness for copy and paste I could never spell this last name on my own) AKA PV arrived and Jeff took us into his "man" area. All I can really say is that Jeff may have a problem. In a 10' x 10' (I'm guessing on the size) den there was traditional archery equipment everywhere. It was overwhelming there are bows, bows and more bows. You name it and I bet, whether he knows it or not, he's got it. I made the comment to Jeff "you must get one bow a week in the mail" Paul replied back with " you may want to refigure that timeline when you see the basement."

Not knowing what to expect and taking Paul's comments as over exaggeration, I followed my host and the rest of the gang down the wooden staircase leading to the basement. Now I don't remember the words that fell out of my mouth as I stood their like a slacked jawed mouth breather, but I'm sure they can't be recited on here without causing me problems.

The basement is unreal! It is a private museum. There is memorabilia and traditional archery history in every nook and cranny in the room. The upstairs room was either an overflow area or a staging area for stuff that is eventually going to be moved to the museum. There are bows on top of bows, arrows, quivers, mounts, hats, pictures, magazines, books, sheds, strings, flyrods and God knows what else. Years and years of history in one small area, there was too much to take in at once. It was fascinating! I found myself walking from one end of the room into another room and then back to where I started.  I followed this path over and over and saw something different with each pass. I kid you not, HIS BASEMENT IS OVER THE TOP AND OVER WELMING! Jeff, thank you so much for showing me your private collection and allowing me to share the photos with the rest of the gang. Like most photos, they don't do the actual room justice. The camera, unfortunately, just can't pickup the detail and depth of all of his collection, all I can do is stress how fantastic it is.

  (http://images.imagelinky.com/1277514112.jpg) (http://images.imagelinky.com/1277514112.jpg)

  (http://images.imagelinky.com/1277514168.jpg) (http://images.imagelinky.com/1277514168.jpg)

  (http://images.imagelinky.com/1277514206.jpg) (http://images.imagelinky.com/1277514206.jpg)

  (http://images.imagelinky.com/1277514275.jpg) (http://images.imagelinky.com/1277514275.jpg)

  (http://images.imagelinky.com/1277514319.jpg) (http://images.imagelinky.com/1277514319.jpg)

Atta boy Tom, I've been waiting for this to start! You're stories are always the best and jam packed with pictures. Keep it coming!  Ben

Regarding Jeff's Man-Cave.. Molly said one time she stopped counting his bows at 500. And our wive's think we're bad? Thank you Jeff!UB

 (http://images.imagelinky.com/1277514363.jpg) (http://images.imagelinky.com/1277514363.jpg)

 (http://images.imagelinky.com/1277514412.jpg) (http://images.imagelinky.com/1277514412.jpg)

 (http://images.imagelinky.com/1277604504.jpg) (http://images.imagelinky.com/1277604504.jpg)

 (http://images.imagelinky.com/1277604579.jpg) (http://images.imagelinky.com/1277604579.jpg)

After the tour we headed upstairs where we eventually met up with Barry and Marty

 (http://images.imagelinky.com/1277514799.jpg) (http://images.imagelinky.com/1277514799.jpg)

 (http://images.imagelinky.com/1277514844.jpg) (http://images.imagelinky.com/1277514844.jpg)

 (http://images.imagelinky.com/1277514877.jpg) (http://images.imagelinky.com/1277514877.jpg)

and set down for a meal that Jeff and Molly had prepared for us to give us the energy that we needed for our journey north. Molly is an excellent cook and gracious hostess. I felt welcomed from the beginning. Thank you very much, Molly for your hospitality.

 (http://images.imagelinky.com/1277515074.jpg) (http://images.imagelinky.com/1277515074.jpg)

Sounds like a great was had by all ! Jeff's basement is incredible.

Barry, just by looking I guessed the bow count at 700, but I'm know I didn't see them all.    :eek:  

Yeah...thanks,Jeff. You make us all look good. I can always point to you and say "see I'm not that bad!"   :biglaugh:

For the most part the drive to La Tuque was uneventful and dark. My road companion was Paul. He is a great traveling companion and we traveled in style in his brand new, 4000 total miles on the odometer, still smells new, Toyota pickup. This truck will be broken in after bear camp for sure. The most excitement we had during the journey north was when we all were standing on the side of the road with our tally wackers hanging free taking a leak. 02:30 in the morning and we hadn't seen a car in miles, but guess who shows up. Canadian Highway Patrol and not just any CHP, but a female cop. To quote Barry "I had to cut it off in mid stream."

 (http://images.imagelinky.com/1277602645.JPG) (http://images.imagelinky.com/1277602645.JPG)

"Keep moving you can't park here" was all she said.

 (http://images.imagelinky.com/1277517419.jpg) (http://images.imagelinky.com/1277517419.jpg)


 (http://images.imagelinky.com/1277517359.jpg) (http://images.imagelinky.com/1277517359.jpg)

After getting somewhat settled in we all drew the stand that we would be hunting. I drew the Long Trail. I remembered this stand from last year and wasn't too excited about my pick. I like a stand that offers a little bit of a view and The Long Trail's views are limited. The foliage is so thick at this stand it doesn't allow the hunter to see very far into the timber. So the chances of seeing a bear prior to it entering the bait area is pretty slim. For me, confidence in the setup means a lot. The more confidence I have the more effort I'll give the hunt and the more time I'll put in the stand. Never the less, this was the stand I drew and I was going to make the best of it.

 (http://images.imagelinky.com/1277517295.jpg) (http://images.imagelinky.com/1277517295.jpg)

Time to change clothes and head out for our first bait run.

 (http://images.imagelinky.com/1277519555.jpg) (http://images.imagelinky.com/1277519555.jpg)

 (http://images.imagelinky.com/1277605654.jpg) (http://images.imagelinky.com/1277605654.jpg)

 (http://images.imagelinky.com/1277605694.jpg) (http://images.imagelinky.com/1277605694.jpg)

 (http://images.imagelinky.com/1277605768.jpg) (http://images.imagelinky.com/1277605768.jpg)

I didn't hunt the first night. The sandman was calling me and after 36 hours of no sleep I needed a couple of hours of shuteye and did exactly that.

The following, day we were on another bait run. My bear baiting partners were Marty and Barry. To say each trip out was interesting is an understatement. Marty was very interested in knowing as much as he could find out about me and was relentless with his questions. The only thing missing was a dark room and 100 watt bulb hanging over my head as he grilled me with each mile of the drive. Actually, I enjoyed every trip out. The stories that Barry told and the songs that Marty sang kept me chuckling the whole time.

  (http://images.imagelinky.com/1277520902.jpg) (http://images.imagelinky.com/1277520902.jpg)

  (http://images.imagelinky.com/1277520947.jpg) (http://images.imagelinky.com/1277520947.jpg)

  (http://images.imagelinky.com/1277521018.jpg) (http://images.imagelinky.com/1277521018.jpg)

  (http://images.imagelinky.com/1277606705.jpg) (http://images.imagelinky.com/1277606705.jpg)

  (http://images.imagelinky.com/1277606759.jpg) (http://images.imagelinky.com/1277606759.jpg)

The Long Trail turned out to be a bust for me and when the opportunity came up to draw another stand I was ready for it. My new stand would be the Glove....

Continued on page 53

Were any nice bears taken on the "Bird" stand during week TWO? I saw about 18 during week one, but I know Marty took one of them that moved over to his bait the last evening. Thanks, Mike

DISCLAIMER:

Gatekeeper is Exaggerating about my basement!!

I keep telling Molly I only have TWO BOWS!  This is the same story my dad used to tell my mom when when she'd ask my dad when he'd come into the house from his woodworking shop...

"Victor how many Beers have you had??"

With red nose a glow, his standard answer was "Two!"  Knowing that he couldn't get away with just saying One   :help:  Doc

Line from Molly over dinner: "Jeff told me that ALL you guys had a lot of bows-it was just a necessary part of being in the sport!" and Jeff's exclamation when hearing of Molly's fall down the stairs into that basement: "You might have broken a bow!"    :biglaugh:

Wow, thanks for the pictures of the "Man Cave". I am showing my wife those pictures as it SSOOOO gets me off the hook on too many bows. Its all about perspective, isn't it?

Thanks Man!!!

I don't think Gatekeeper is exaggerating at all.I have been there, seen that and I think it is the truth. My buddies give me grief about having 20-30 bows and I just tell them about Jeff.
Jack

Awesome stuff guys.  I enjoyed it all.  If I still lived in VT I'd have to try and join in on these trips. Congrats to everyone.    :thumbsup:

How about it Tom,Larry,Jay,or bill give us a update on fridays hunt. hope yall got home safe.

Chad (Country)

That's no excuse Randy.  Bowdoc flies right over the top of you on his way every year.  I'm sure he could stop and pick you up  ;)

Hey guys, we got home safe. I think L.D. & Mark were flying home today & Jay's probably still on the road, he was going to overnight in Albany with them.
Can't wait to hear how they did Friday afternoon.

The truck's unloaded, Momma's got the wash going on right now. Yogi's nicely trimmed up, packaged and in the freezer chest.
I'm waiting for my grandson so I can post a couple pics.

We've been on a couple camp hunts, but this one was the topper of them all. Tom makes it a super experience for everyone. After the first day it felt like we've known each other for years.

Great people all. It was a real pleasure to spend a week hunting with each and every one of you. You all (or y'all) made it a very special week for Greg & especially me.

Lord willin' & the creek don't rise we'll be back for BQ V.

Be back in a little bit with some pics to share.

Larry

A couple pics we took from week 2.
At camp behind the scale with the OPP (old phat phart)
       (http://farm5.static.flickr.com/4115/4739184143_34ff150512.jpg)
The hero shot of Greg's first bear
       (http://farm5.static.flickr.com/4116/4739814568_a3a2b2faf3.jpg)
Takin a breather draggin' him out from the hill behind Grouper
       (http://farm5.static.flickr.com/4142/4739813874_c04f0bfb6c.jpg)
Greg one handing him over a couple logs
       (http://farm5.static.flickr.com/4134/4739177323_ef5e4b93e7.jpg)
Me about 5 minutes after the shot . .that one made me see spots for a while    :eek:    
       (http://farm5.static.flickr.com/4120/4739168563_0fc8d1eb68.jpg)
Tom in our home for the week.We loved it!!!!   :D  
       (http://farm5.static.flickr.com/4139/4739137257_c6e7ba32e0.jpg)

The rest can be found here. Please browse through them.       http://www.flickr.com/photos/lar43/  

Thanks again everyone!

Larry, it was a pleasure meeting you and greg this past week. I'm glad yall got a bear, out of everyone there i was hoping yall were fortunate enought to harvest a nice bear. I know how much it must have ment to both of you being able to share those memories with each other, I'm sure greg will never forget them. Keep in touch and i will hopefully see yall next year at Bear Quest V.

Chad Tomlin

Chad,
I can't put into words the emotion & feelings. Memories for a lifetime! I'm not real religious, but I am surely blessed.

I sincerely hope all you guys that hunt with your kids get to experience it some day too. That's something that can't be bought at any price!

We could almost feel you rootin' for us each time wel left for a stand. Again, a heartfelt thanks.

Larry & Greg

Larry & Greg,

Out of everyone in week 2, you had alot of people praying that you guys would get lucky.  I was so pumped to hear that you finally did it.  I wish I could have been there to hear the story, but with everything I have going on at home, I had to get out of there a little early.  I hope that we can meet again someday, you were both great people.

Bob Brill

Awesome for all you fellas.I swore Id never kill another bear but you all got me scratching my head.Congrats to all.   :clapper:

Hey Greg and Larry, great to hear you scored, I echo Chad and Bob's comments, it is great you got to share the hunt and the harvest, I wish you many more.

Larry and Greg are 2 of the best folks I've ever had the privilege to meet.

Always looked forward to seeing them every year at the JLMBH. Guess I might have to wait a couple years now, but I hope not.

So happy to see "your" success guys   :clapper:

David, what day are you coming down to ATAR, i saw where your getting a room if you want your more than welcome to stay with us it will save you the cost of a room. I will call you sometime this week and fill you in.

Chad

Yea, give me a call, I will come down Thursday and leave Sat. afternoon, Lord willing (and work)

Larry, I can't tell you how happy I am for you and Greg. I really enjoyed the time we spent together in camp. You and I "turned the lights out" after good conversation each night. The "Grouper" was good to us. Still can't help but wonder what was back there at the "Bucket Brigade". That site was demolished each day we baited it. Loved all your pic's. If that Centaur ever needs a new home I know who I'll call. That shot of you and Greg by the lake is the topper.

  :clapper:      :clapper:      :clapper:

Congrats Larry & Greg!  Very neat to see father and son combo.  Just like last year, we were all rooting for Randy & Thomas Reeves!  Doc

Larry, I'm glad it happened for you and Greg and the rest of 'us first timers'.  Sorry about the delay in posting, but I came home to hear that my mother had some major health issues and is now in a nursing home.  When I get that business all taken care of, I'll give 'my side of the story'.  Larry, it was a pleasure chatting with you.  Later.
Shick

Larry great to see you guys had a good time. Tell Greg I said congrats on the harvest.

Larry Greg I wish I could have been in camp its almost an electric feeling when someone gets a critter.Thats what traditional archery is about right there pass it on.It don't get any better any where any time.Outstanding read guys and looking forward to breaking bread with you next year bowdoc

Really happy to see everyone had fun! I think that's a given any time tradgangers get together! I am particularly pleased to see the first timers get theirs! The thrill never goes away boys! Congratulations to everyone!

Continued from page 51

Going off of memory, I think I put in 13 hours at the Long Trail and during that time I saw one small bear that approached the bait on the trail that I walked in on. I was in the stand leaning against the tree as the bear was coming in from behind. Being unaware of its presents I moved my foot and the bear spooked off the trail and into the timber blowing all the way...game over.

The Glove was a stand that I had only heard its name being said. I had never been to it or remember any stories about it. Tom told me it is the furthest stand to the north of our camp. The Glove had not been hunted so far because part of the road north of camp had been closed due to the fires burning 50 miles north of there.

After baiting the Black Label, Roller Coaster and 41 we (Paul, Darrel and I) turned off the main road into a secluded parking area that would lead us to The Glove. From this point on my pictures run a little thin. I didn't take any pictures of my stand setup or the area that surrounds The Glove.

The Glove got its name because a glove was found hanging in a tree next to the trail that leads to the crib. When we got to the crib we saw that the donuts had been hit a little and the meat was all cleaned out. Paul's reply was "the bears that are coming here are meat eaters." With the help of Paul and Darrel, the site is quickly baited, the stand was hung and the background cover was rearranged for me a left handed shooter and trail camera were set. I climbed into the stand, cleared out any obstacles that may interfere with my shot, visualize myself making a shot from different angles and admire the view from my new perch. Perfect! I had confidence in The Glove. With everything set we quickly exited and headed back to camp.

Around 4:15 I'm dropped off at that secluded parking area and wish my hunting partners good luck before we part ways. As I quietly walk down the narrow two track I hear the fading rumble of the gravel road as Paul's truck puts distance between us. Quickly the rumble is gone and the only sounds around me are those of nature. I leave the two track and pick up a newly made trail through chest high weeds. If I hadn't been shown this trail I would have never known it was there. The weedy trail is short and it leads me to a small dark opening into the spruce forest.

With awareness I cautiously peek through the darken doorway and then let the shadows consume me leaving the radiant warmth of the sun behind. The trail angled away from the forest's edge taking me deeper into the bear woods where shadows, tree trunks and deadfall control the landscape with a ceiling of spruce branches above that occasionally allows sunlight to slip through. Walking on the trail is like walking on foam. Centuries of decaying spruce trees and the needles they drop make up the padded forest floor that is carpeted in a thick layer of green and yellow green moss. Walking silently is easily done on the trail that reveals itself as depression on the forest floor. While walking can be silent a stumble or heavily placed footfall could send a vibrating thud that can easily be heard through the forest air and felt through the forest floor. So being aware of ones foot placement is still very essential.

After a hundred feet or so I see the crib ahead. I stopped and examined the crib from afar looking for a black form or any movement in the crib or in the forest around it. Confirming that the coast was clear I push forward continuing to scan the surrounding forest for any approaching bears or bears that may be lying down in the immediate area. Confident that I was alone I approach the end of the trail.

The trail I was on ended at the opening of the crib. The surrounding beauty of the forest is interrupted by the man made mess of the crib. This is the only downfall to spring time bear hunting and one must overlook this part of the hunt and the smells that accompany it and concentrate on the excitement of the task at hand. I looked around to see if any of the bait that was put out earlier in the day had been touched and saw that nothing was missing. Following the advice of Barry, I put out several small piles of bait outside of the crib when we came in to bait that morning. By doing this it offers the bears a variety of places to feed and get comfortable and offers me a variety of possible shot opportunities. The multiple bait piles also opens the area up for multiple bears to feed.

After a few minutes of trying to get organized, I finally was settled in. So there I sat. The view was exactly what I wanted. I positioned the stand so that the bait was to my right (NNE) and I faced west. To the south, my left, and to the west and northwest the vegetation grew low and dense, but the rest of the area around was open enough to allow me to see 50 or 60 yards into the timber. The bait site set on a small plateau that stretched out behind the crib to the northeast for several yards. From the plateau the terrain rose to the west and dropped off to the northeast and east where it connected into a live stream.

The temperature was pleasant, I wore a long sleeve shirt and knew by evening I would need a sweater to keep the cool air at bay. Somewhere to my north chaos was erupting. On our trip to my stand the distant views were shrouded behind a hazy curtain of blue smoke and the low areas were blanketed with what appeared to be an all day fog. As I set my stand fine partials of gray ash rained down on me and the smell of the smoldering wood filled my nose. The forest was burning somewhere in the distance and the refuse of its energy was being deposited around me.

Time ticked away. The wind was out of the west and blew my scent to the road. This was a good thing for hunting but hell for me. My stand was about 5.5' off the ground and about 10' away from a full bucket of brown fish chowder that hung about 10' above the ground. For those of you that have not experienced fish chowder, put some fish in a 5 gallon bucket, seal it closed and set it in the sun for a month. Then pop the lid off after a month and take a whiff. That's fish chowder. God-awful!

Around 5:45 sticks started breaking in the thick foliage to my left. After spending plenty of time listening to squirrels scurrying about I knew the sound I was hearing was bigger then a squirrel. With my heart racing, I stood, flattened the stand seat against the tree, got my bow in hand and turned on my camera. I pressed my back against the tree and peeked through the background cover leaning against my tree. I was ready. Slowly a brown muzzle came into view. BEAR! Remaining motionless I watched the bear's every move. My excitement level was over the top! My hearing was deafened by the pounding of my heart in my ears as I watched as the bear come into full view about 12 yards away. Sizing it up, I guessed it to be 130 – 150# with a perfect thick black coat. As far as I was concerned it was a shooter. The bear stood at the transition line between the thick growth foliage and the more open timber and then slowly lumbered forward towards the crib. At around eight yards away the bear glanced up at my tree and froze. Then ever so gingerly it lowered its head and slinked back the way it had come from and disappeared in the thick foliage. I remained poised and listened as the bear climbed the hill to my west and I caught glimpses of its broken form as it appeared sporadically through the timber until it eventually melded into the forest away from me. What a rush finally a bear sighting! This boasted my confidence the Glove stand even more. The rest of the night was quiet and I left The Glove under the darkness of night and excited for the next day's hunt.

Thanks everyone for the kind words & congrats.

Bowdoc, we're already workin' on a third generation trad bowhunter. My youngest grandson is into it in a biiig way. He texted my son about a dozen times while we were driving home from LaTuque. They're more like brothers than uncle & nephew. Greg takes him under his wing every chance he gets. When we got in he went through the camera . . . more questions than we could count. He's on the right road.

Hey Mike, we sure did turn the lights out all week didn't we? I really enjoyed speaking with you. You're right on about that sweeeet Centaur, if you ever decide to release it I'd sure like dibbs on it.

Dennis, a prayer & all best wishes for your mom. Hoping everything works out for her.

Curt, we'll share a camp or meet up again somewhere. Greg speaks about you alot. Enjoy the times you're having with Cade. Time flies & everything you're doing is building a concrete relationship that will endure forever.

LD, Mark & Jay are probably draggin' butt after all the traveling they had to do with airports & such. Sure hope at least one of them got to drop the string on a nice one.

Again, a big thanks to all from Greg & myself & a really huge thanks to Tom Phillips for putting this together.

Larry & Greg

The following day's camp routines were pretty much the same as the previous. After returning from the bait run I eagerly checked my game camera cards. The cards showed a bear was on the bait yesterday about one hour prior to my arrival. I told Tom Phillips, "I need to get out of here ASAP" and Tom graciously loaned me his truck.

A quickly change into my hunting clothes, filled my water bottles and grabbed a snack to get me through the afternoon until I got back to camp and then I was out the door. I left a bellowing cloud of dust behind me as I raced to my stand. Wait... let me rephrase that "Due to the dry conditions, the dust from the road rolled from under the vehicle as I carefully drove Tom's truck to The Glove." There that's' better.

I arrived at a quarter till three and slipped into the timber in the same way as the day before trying to be stealthy as I approached the crib. I carefully picked apart my surroundings to confirm that there were no bears and then scrabbled into my tree to begin the wait. Tick – tick – tick went my wristwatch. With every full sweep of the minute hand the shadows slowly move around on the forest floor without any sound or sightings of bear.  With no activity I had plenty of time to think about the images from the trail cameras. The cameras showed bears had been in the area but none of the bait had been hit. "Why is that?" I wondered silently. I also realize that the ground squirrels were keeping their distance from the crib. I wondered if the fish scattered in front of the bait was keeping the animals away. The only thing attracted to the crib was an ever increasing swarm of flies. There I sat for almost seven lonely hours without so much as a snapping twig. The only sound was the constant drone of the flies on the scattered fish carcasses.

With the falling sun came a chill in the air and above me clouds were starting to take over the sky and from the clouds a light rain began to fall. As the darkness robbed my vision of the details around me, I conceded to forces working against the limited time I had left and climbed down to the ground and pointed the truck back towards camp. Two more days left and doubt was starting to creep into my thoughts.

Continued on page 55

Tom P that is some fine writing and I am anxiously awaiting the  next installment. Good double clutch on the part about the truck belonging to the other Tom P. Could not stand the suspense so I cheated and looked at your MY PROFILE page and saw a trophy pic - Good Hunting!

Tippit, I told my lady friend Marsha that I though I had 20 or 30 bows - she burst out laughing. Guess I'm gonna have to work on my presentation.

Great story Tom, looking forward to the conclusion!

I will give you guys a brief break down on my trip but must go to work soon. Could have not asked to meet a a better group of guys during the week 2 group! Tom busted his rear-end to make sure we all had a good time and were comfortable and I appreciated that. I did not see alot of bears but my baits were being hit! Twice I bailed off a stand and the next guy who sat in my stand connected!! Ahhhh, such is life!! I now have a new found dissss-taste for Little Debbies, snack cakes, cup cakes or anyting sweet in a package! Unpacking 5 or 6 (may have been more) 50 gallon barrels into usable plastic bags was not for the faint hearted! I truly do not think I will ever eat a Little Debbie again!!   :(    

Larry Dix, thanks for dinner on Saturday nite, your are a stand up guy and I truly enjoyed your company! Jay thanks for driving and your friendship! Your vehile took a pounding and I appreciated it! As for me, I was lucky enough to work the water baits! God I love being on the water late in the evening without a ripple on the lake moving the boat from bait to bait! The haunting sound of the Loons will live long in my memory!! Got to go to work and will be back soon!

Great story so far Tom. I hunted the "Glove" 2 years ago, thanks for taking me back.

Keep her coming Tom!!!!!

Don't know if anyone told you but Tom P was able to go in and get your cameras even though the area was still closed.

Did anyone take a bear on the last night 2nd week????????????

Hey Mark, how about the haunting sound of the putt putt putt of the engine dying!?!?  ahhhh hahahaha, that was the best!  ROW, ROW, ROW!

Yes, Big Bill (AKA Sasquatch) took a 100lb sow on the last night. Larry, Jay, and I saw nothing but were really pumped for the last nites hunt! Listening to those bear pop there teeth when it was close to dark made that 100 yard walk down hill something to behold! I easied out quiet as I could expecting something to pop up at any moment and grab me from the darkness! Then the sound of a Loon eased my tension and as I made my way to the boat! Many memories for me on this trip!

Good to hear that Big Bill scored!  He certainly has paid his dues, both on stand and helping out Tom with the baiting duties....GOOD JOB, Buddy!

Were you shootin' those telephone poles through that Schafer Cannon?

 :clapper:

OK, OK, OK! ROW! ROW! ROW! and ROW some more! It's off to camp we go!!LOL!!

Ya'll just keep laughing at me!!!!  
I manned up and somehow managed to get the boat back to port while Zack did his best immitation of Larry! He did nothing but cheer me on!!LOL!!

As for Bill's bow, he was using a new Schafer Longbow which was sweet! 71# at 31" draw! Heck I could even shoot the thing! Very nice bow!

All right Bill!!  :archer:    :clapper:    :clapper:  That's great news! He really deserved that bear.
He was in constant motion all week. Always had something to do.
He's definitely one of the camp corner stones for sure.

Sorry LD, Jay, & you, didn't get to take a shot Mark.

Headin' off to work  . . . not near as nice as heading in to a stand.

Thanks for the update.
Later,
Larry

congrads Bill, Mark I can't help but envy you and Zach, that must have been such a nice peaceful ride across the lake without that noisy old moter. Look on the bright side at least when we are picking on you we are giving someone else a break, "Trust me"   :goldtooth:  
It was good meeting you, shoot straight.

Thanks for the update Mark.

Congrats Bill  :thumbsup:   :thumbsup


The bear story.....

First off I would like to thank all for a great 2 weeks. Reconnecting with old and making new hunting companions makes this trip special for me. Too many highlights and memories for a lifetime for this two fingered peckerer to post.

Although I've got to say the look on George's face was priceless.......

I hunted the longtrail for 6 nights seeing bears one night and hearing their displeasure at my ground blind a few others. The last night there were lake baits open. I'd baited them in years past but never hunted any. Zack dropped me off at the "cove" around 4pm. The stand was set up for a righty with a tree blocking any lefty shots. After moving the stand to another tree I settled in for a pleasant evening.It was my 18th bear stand this year and with the noise I made changing tree's I did'nt expect any action.

As a product tester for Team Tippet I had the third generation Tippet head on the rest of my "Nor'Easter" longbow. I had planned to use Jeff's 2nd generation head that I had taken my bear with on BQIII. It only seems to work in Quebec but that's another story......

At 8:15 a bear came in cautiously from my right. Took some time to settle down. He would snatch a bite and run off 20 yards or so and come back a few minutes later. He finally settled in and started to feed. I prepared for the 4 yd shot with a little mantra that keeps me from shooting to fast. "Savor the Moment"
(http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v488/Shortbldtr/Trad%20Gang/IMG_1064.jpg)
Sometimes I even get all the way to the "T" in moment.
The bear traveled 20 yards and stopped did the "I don't know what happened" and tipped over. A few moans later it was finished. Less than 30 seconds from start to finish. As I thanked the bear and the creator I reflected on the long,long journey I have traveled to this place in my life.It's been one heck of a ride!!

(http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v488/Shortbldtr/IMG_1078.jpg)

After dragging out the bear,taking a few pic's I sat back and savored the evening as night fell.
Zack arrived at dark with a bear in the boat. His first!!!!
(http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v488/Shortbldtr/IMG_1091.jpg)
To say we where elated would be the understatement of the year. Could not have scripted a better scenario!!!

Way to go PV...looks like Team Tippit had  pretty good success in the La Tuque bush.  I talked to Tom on his ride home and it appears that my bear won the tippit knife.  

Now I have to admit...I had an unfair advantage over week 2.  I enlisted Daryl to root for Mr Bigger  ;)  Consequently the tippit knife belongs to Daryl.  It's in the mail...Doc

What was the weight of your bear Paul? Did you guys collect money for the heaviest bear in camp? If who won the pot?

 :thumbsup:

Knife couldn't be going to a better place Jeff!!


Tom

The pot was won by Chad"cracker" Tomlin.
I believe the weight was around 140#?

Bear had a great coat.It was 1/3 the weight of Tippets bear @ 109#. Going to be another couch throw as well as BBQ at the Poke and Hope next month.

Here is a picture of "BIG COUNTRY" on the way home with his bear! He was one happy camper!!

(http://i20.photobucket.com/albums/b218/huntlucky/BQ4018.jpg)

Now that's a great Pic! Nice going there Chad.

What is Zack's handle on TG?

I wish I could jump in that water right about NOW!

S.

Congrats to everyone on week 2 for getting bears and memories and a big " High Five " to Daryl for winning the Tippit knife ! I admire Daryl and Bill , both from Illinois , for their calm enthusiasm . Both rock solid , glad to have met them . And Paul , you stayed too calm all week , you knew something we didn,t ?
Now come on Tom and finish telling your story !
  Fred

Fred that wasn't calm, it was exhaustion from trying to keep up with Tom "the energizer bunny" Phillips  :)

PV- 8:15 last evening- sounds familiar! Way to go- good karma for giving me LongTrail my last day! You are a closer!

Way to go Paul.  Congrat's on the bear.

Another great hunt, great guys to share camp with. Tom, as usual, did a great job again. Thanks to you and Bill for making the bait runs.
 I started out this hunt with great expectaions. I knew there were some big bears there, and Tippet's performance again this year, just reaffirmed it. After drawing the Resurection last year, I knew that that stand would be hard to beat. When we met the week one guys in LaTuque, and Mike Mitten said he'd seen 18 bears, I was pumped! Low and behold, I drew the Bird. Man this was gonna be good! The first night I hunted, Sunday, I had a good bear come in about 3:30. He had great hair, I guessed about a 160ish bear. The week was still young and I knew I'd have to go some to even have a chance at getting close to Jeff's bear, so he walked. Then Monday came, bait had been hit, signs were looking good! Monday night, me and the squirrels had a wonderful time, for hours on end. What the heck, no bears? Tuesday night, same thing. Oh no, I'm thinking, I broke the Bird! Wednesday night, yeah baby, here we go. Had a smallish bear come in. Nice fur with two big white blazes on his chest. But he was reluctant to come to my side of the crib, and he was a little smaller than the first one, but it was a bear! Look out now, here they come. Little did I know, that was the last live bear that I'd see. So I guess I'll have to go down in the history of the Bear Quest as the guy who broke the Bird!
 All in all, it was a fantastic time, with a bunch of great guys. Can't wait till next year. Look out Jeff, I'mm gunning for your record!

Congrats to all the guys who took bears home with them. It was a priviledge to be involved with the recoveries and great to see the first timers get their first bear.

Larry and Greg, man I was pulling for ya. Couldn't have been better. You two really have something special.

Big Bill, ya finally did it! Awesome!

Till next year fellas, we'll do it again!

LD


LD

Caddo,
Records are only meant to be broken.  I'm hoping for someone to bring in a spring 400 pounder!  Congrats to all the second week guys...Doc

LD,

Thanks for "totin" my bear out of the Quebec bush. I plan on returning the favor with your bear on Bear Quest V...Mike

Congratulations to you Paul and everyone that killed their bear. You did an outstanding job with the camp duties and we all appreciate it. Thanks for all your hard work.

Energizer Bunny! Thats the best description yet I've heard that describes Tom. He is a go getter!

Continued from page 53

Thursday, June 17th

The light rain had continued throughout the night, but the following morning camp was greeted by the bright warm rays of the rising sun. I was told the day's forecast was calling for warmer temperatures than we had experienced in the previous days. The rule of thumb that Paul recited was "when there's bugs there's bears" so with warmer temperatures plus the rain from the night before, we should have plenty of bugs.

After the bait run I again check the SD cards from my cameras. The bait at my stand had been hit at some point from the time that I left the previous night and the time we re-baited the area on this day. Two of the four piles I put out were gone but the bait in the crib looked untouched. I was hoping the camera caught the rascal with the sweet tooth.

Yep...sure enough the cameras showed two nice size bears had visited the area. Both looked to be in the 150# range. One had a beautiful thick black coat and the other had a hide like Charlie Brown's head. "Great" I said out loud. That's probably the bear I'll see. I didn't want to take back a bald bear. I knew the people back home would never let me live that down. We had missed the two bears captured by the camera by an hour. I again let Tom know that I would like to go out early again and he again offered me his truck.

By early afternoon I'm in the truck and starting to pull away. Tom say's "keep the rubber side down." Oops... how does he know? Later in the evening I was going to deploy a different tactic for this hunt. Tom set me up with everything I needed to do a honey burn. The honey pot, a one gallon coffee can, had a little bit of honey, bacon grease and vanilla in the can. There was just enough of the mixture to boil and then smolder letting the wind carry the aroma of the smoke through the forest.

I got to the entrance of the trail leading to The Glove around 3:00 and like the earlier hunts I slowly crept up the path towards the crib. When I was able to see the rusty barrel lying on its side in the crib, I stopped and began to dissect the forest around the crib. Something looked different. "Are the shadows playing tricks on me?" I quietly wondered within myself. "Is that a rock? I don't remember a rock being there." As I continued to silently question my eyes. I wanted to see a bear so bad that I believed I was starting to see everything dark as a bear, but this was different. A thick black bear coat is like nothing else in the forest. It is such a rich black, it seems to steal the light from everything around it. The way a black hole does in space. What I was staring at was a black of that quality. So there I stood, waiting to see if it might move and ever so slightly it did. BEAR!

With excitement my pulse quickens. As I maintain a fixed stare on the bear, I slowly lean my bow on the nearest tree and then begin to undo the buckles on my All-Day pack. Gently I release the hip buckle and then the sternum buckle and quietly free myself from the shoulder straps. Seeing that the bear hadn't moved from its original spot, I divert my eyes away to focus on setting the pack down without rattling the metal honey burn pot holder strapped to the pack. With that task behind me, I grasp my bow and nocked an arrow. The arrow on the string was tipped with the broadhead that had killed the pig I shot in Texas two weeks prior to this hunt and I was hoping for a repeat performance on this bear.

I checked the feather tied to the tip of my bow and it showed that I had the wind in my favor. With that knowledge I advanced up the trail to the crib and as I changed locations so did the bear. This was the first good look I had at it and I estimated the bear weighed around 120 130#. If given a shot opportunity, I was going to take it. Unaware of my presents, the bear moseyed into the crib. I couldn't believe my luck! The bear was in the crib only a few yards away, eight yards at the most. The only thing that separated us was some scraggly brush. "WOW IS THIS REALLY GOING TO HAPPEN?" I screamed inside my head. Without a care the bear walks up to the base of the tree I had been hunting from, puts his nose to the ground and then looked up at my stand. Knowing that I wasn't in the stand, he turned and casually walked to the trailhead of the trail I was on. Had the bear offered me a quartering away shot at any point while it was in the crib I would have shot, but as it happened all of the bears movements kept it quartering to me or facing me head on.

As the bear neared the trailhead I let my eyes dart around looking for a place where I could step off the trail to keep from being seen. There was no place I could go and be quiet about getting there. I was in a pickle. Moving would alert the bear of my presents whether I was quiet about it or not. It was too close for me to reposition myself. So staying put was my best option. My mind was running through scenarios as I tried to figure out the best way to close this deal. All I needed from the bear was for it to walk past the trailhead. If it does that I will shoot as soon as its front leg swings forward. With my bow raised, I stood ready to shoot. The bear's head appears from behind the scraggly brush and then its neck and then the shoulders. A few more feet and I'll launch the arrow. My heart was racing and I could feel my pounding pulse in my neck and ears. Something was going to have to give or I was going to explode.

At six yards the bear stands quartering towards me and it makes the move I was hoping it wouldn't make, it turns to me and starts walking down the trail towards me. **** NOW WHAT? In situations like this there are no "phone a friend" opportunities this is a pick an option and go with it moment. The only shot I had was a headshot or between the shoulder blade shot. Neither of them appeals to me but I was running short of options, time and more importantly real estate. Even though the situation was a little tense I was dumb founded that the bear hadn't seen me yet. "Damn man I'm standing right in front of you!" I was thinking to myself. At four yards...yes 4 yds I load the arrow with the force of the bowstring and prepare to shoot if things get ugly. With the drawing of the bow, the bear looks up at me with a (can you believe this) surprised look on its face and in a blur it blows, whirls around and disappears into the forest. "Damn" I whispered, "that was worth the price of admission!" Taking a few moments to regain my legs, I went back retrieved gear and head to the treestand to start my evening hunt...

Great reading Tom!!

Great job Tom! I know how it ends and I'm still sitting on the edge of my chair. UB

That's cause your chair isn't big enough.  :biglaugh:  

Tom your story telling is excellent! Are you wearing THE hat while writing?

Wow    :scared:    :clapper:

More good stuff Tom - is it the hat? Hey Whip, do you stock bowler hats?

Would this work?  

(http://i3.photobucket.com/albums/y80/Jlasch/Derby.jpg)

Comes in brown too  :scared:

Wow, everytime I walked into the stand I was hoping to be able to put a stalk on a bear that was standing there... not so much now after reading that!  Great story!

I'm really enjoying this Tom!

Great job, guys!  Enjoyed the stories and pictures!

What a story Tom! Keep it coming.

Great story telling. The young ones on this site reading that should be inspired. The best way of recruiting new hunters that I know of.

Keep up the good work, Tom!   :thumbsup:

Awesome, Tom!  Great read, keep it coming!

Thanks everyone.   :notworthy:

I have a little bit more to go with a great ending. I'll add more tomorrow morning with a few stills from a video and then the climax.

I added that last word for Martha.   :laughing:

Gatekeeper,
Great story tellin.I liked when you rolled into camp and I ask you "Any Action" and you said something like "Naw same thing as last night ONLY I have a Bloody Arrow " !!!!

"Martha"       :bigsmyl:    :jumper:

Gatekeeper, add a few commercial breaks to this story and you'll have 26 week TV series. Looking forward to the next episode.  :thumbsup:

Continued from page 55

The whole scenario of my close encounter lasted about 15 minutes from the time I spotted the bear until it blew out of sight. That was the most exciting thing that has ever happened to me while hunting. The coyote I shot in Utah will always remain very high on my list and the pig I shot a couple of weeks ago was definitely a hard earned hunt that I will always look back on with pride, but standing face to face with a wild bear at four yards just took the covenanted position as my number one all time most exciting hunting encounter! The only thing that can top it is a dead bear of my choosing by the end of this hunt.

I sat in my stand replaying the encounter over and over in my head. I was glowing with the excitement of being able to tell people about the experience I just had. The people back home will think I've lost my mind. If only they knew what they are missing.

The wind was fickle that evening. It blew from every direction, this maybe a good thing when I start the honey burn. The fish chowder was exceptionally rank because the rain had agitated the liquid enough to break the film of dead flies that float on top. So once again there I sat with rotting fish wafting into my nose and to add to the glory a cloud of bugs swarmed outside the protective bubble that the Thermacell provides with an occasional Kamikaze darting in just to piss me off. Yeah...if only the people back home knew what they were missing. If bugs are the key to bear activity, tonight should be the night for an explosion of bear sightings.

From the time I settle in the tree until 7:00 o'clock I saw nothing although the ground squirrels were more active. They still wouldn't come into the crib but there were four of the little rascals making their presents known at the bait piles scattered outside of the crib. At 7:00 I decided it was time to start the honey burn hoping the Sterno fuel would last until at least 8:30.

It didn't take long for the goo in the can to start bubbling and popping and then a steady stream of white smoke churned from the can's top. The smoke drifted with the sporadic wind currents in every direction. As the day grew later the wind began to settle on a constant direction and the smoke primarily drifted to the east. A full hour and fifteen minutes had passed when a black head finally peered over the plateau to the NNE about 50 yards away. Finally a bear!

This bear was very leery about coming to the bait. It looked to be about the same size as the bear I stood in front of a few hours earlier. Slowly and cautiously it inched into one of the bait piles that was the furthest out, looking up at me several times before it snagged a bite to eat and then slinking away. After finishing that morsel it returned for another bite and repeated its exit strategy once again except this time it didn't go as far. The third time in must have been the charm. The bear continued to glance up at me on occasion, but its level of boldness must have jumped a notch or two, because this time the bear stayed and felt comfortable enough to lie down and eat.
     (http://images.imagelinky.com/1277816272.JPG) (http://images.imagelinky.com/1277816272.JPG)  
Like a glutton the bear laid in front of the pile of donuts raking the food into its mouth and licking the forest floor until the pile was depleted. Not having its fill yet, the bear, which was feeling a lot more comfortable with its surroundings, moved to the next pile of food and began to feed.
     (http://images.imagelinky.com/1277816330.JPG) (http://images.imagelinky.com/1277816330.JPG)
Perfect this is exactly want I was wanting. Now all I needed was to wait for a quartering away shot opportunity.

After consuming about half of the second pile the bear turned to begin its exit stage right. I was amped up but I felt confident. I estimated the bear to be 12 yards away. I had my bow up and my fingers on the string and ready to bring my hand to anchor. Right before it turned to leave the bear gave me one last hard look
     (http://images.imagelinky.com/1277816174.JPG) (http://images.imagelinky.com/1277816174.JPG)
     (http://images.imagelinky.com/1277816208.JPG) (http://images.imagelinky.com/1277816208.JPG)
and then swung its body to the left. When it made the full 180 degree turn its left front leg (the leg nearest to me) was back.
     (http://images.imagelinky.com/1277816418.JPG) (http://images.imagelinky.com/1277816418.JPG)
As soon as it moved that leg forward I planned to shoot. S-W-I-N-G batter. As the left leg stretched out I drew and when it was planted on the ground I relaxed my string hand.
     (http://images.imagelinky.com/1277816485.JPG) (http://images.imagelinky.com/1277816485.JPG)
With the thud of the bow I instantly knew I blew the shot. **** I didn't pick a spot! My only chance to shoot and blew it by looking at the whole bear rather then concentrating on where I wanted the arrow to strike. Someone was either looking out for that bear or looking out for me. Either way, that bear was not meant for me.
     (http://images.imagelinky.com/1277816577.JPG) (http://images.imagelinky.com/1277816577.JPG)
     (http://images.imagelinky.com/1277816611.JPG) (http://images.imagelinky.com/1277816611.JPG)

I shot high. Slowing the video down, I could see that the bear heard the arrow before the arrow made it to the bear. Just before the arrow passed over its back the bear loaded the muscles of its back legs squatted and launched itself into the forest.

  (http://images.imagelinky.com/1277816673.JPG) (http://images.imagelinky.com/1277816673.JPG)

  (http://images.imagelinky.com/1277816708.JPG) (http://images.imagelinky.com/1277816708.JPG)

  (http://images.imagelinky.com/1277816735.JPG) (http://images.imagelinky.com/1277816735.JPG)

P-f-f-f-f-f..."you just blew the only shot you had you Dope!" I was mentally flogging myself for such a poor performance. I seem to repeat this mistake time and time again will I ever learn?...

Continued on page 57

Barry- did you get a bigger chair yet?

Great story Tom. Still a creepy avatar picture though- did you get that hat from Whip? Looks like you work at the cemetary.

WoW, Tom. That was awesome, good story telling.

OK ready for the next installment....


Mike, it was my pleasure.

Doc, just trying to earn one of those world famous Tippit knives!  :)


LD

Chim-chiminy...

 :saywhat:

HELL YEAH bd

Thank you all for another fantastic Bear Quest.  Thank you Tom, Paul, Bill and Bill for all your efforts on the bait trips and putting everything together.  This was my third and for all those that have yet to make the trip, you are missing out.  Great people and good times!

(http://inlinethumb17.webshots.com/44752/2559263270049059966S600x600Q85.jpg)

Keep those stories coming fellas.  Congrats Tom, it looks like you had some up close excitement!

QuoteOriginally posted by Marty:
Great story Tom. Still a creepy avatar picture though- did you get that hat from Whip? Looks like you work at the cemetary.

Reminds me of the movie: "A CLockwork Orange!"      :scared:     I kinda like it though!     :D  
Now on with the story Tom!
Where are you other guys that went-everybody post?
What were the weights of the bears?

Back from another great hunt with Tom what else can one say great hunt with great people and pleanty of bears. I saw a lot of bears thru out the week but just couldnt get a clean shot so I held out more for the perfect shot than a bigger bear then at 8:55 PM friday I got my chance after a nice bear worked around the bait site for about an hour in and out a smaller bear came in and finaly gave me a clean broadside shot and smack!!!!! my first bear laid 25 yrds away not a big bear by any means but it sure was a trophy in my book. I met a lot of new freinds on this hunt and got to see some from last years Bear Quest it was just an awsome week cant wait till next year thanks to all you guys who make this such a great hunt.  

(http://i165.photobucket.com/albums/u68/bobalack/DSC00683.jpg)

My bear was 141# killed on sunday, I hunted a short hunt Sat and sat 10 hours on Sunday and killed that eve. I was 2# below Chad's bear's weight.

great job, Bill, happy for you!

Hope to see you next year....

 :campfire:

Congrats Bill and Tom you both deserve it with all the time put in.   :wavey:      :campfire:   Hope to see a bunch of you next year also.Kevin you to.Kip

Have really enjoyed this Bear Quest post. Good people, good bears and good times had by all. The "Gatekeeper" has us all on the edge of our seats. Does he get another chance or does he go home empty handed.   :dunno:

Bill, super job on your last minute bear. After all the hard work you put into making this hunt special for all of us you deserved it. Your baiting runs were beyond memorable, something I will never forget! Thumbs up   :thumbsup:      :thumbsup:      :thumbsup:  

 (http://i39.photobucket.com/albums/e173/Yellowdog3822/P6200070.jpg)

 (http://i39.photobucket.com/albums/e173/Yellowdog3822/P6220128.jpg)

wow would you trust that guy with your kidds ???????????? yikes thats scary bd

Bowdoc, I'm not responsible for that picture. Bill was going the thru the pic's on my camera and got himself, we'll call it a "self portrait".  :biglaugh:    :biglaugh:    :biglaugh:

Nice pics, but I still ain't buyin' his truck!!!  :eek:  

Larry

Continued from page 56

After reviewing the video I was glad I missed. Maybe it was the position of the camera but the arrow looked too far back in the footage. In the field the shot's windage looked good it was the elevation that was screwed, but in a time of such high excitement what actually happens and what your eye's and mind tells you may be different.

Anyway, the 130# bear zips back to where it had first appeared on the plateau. The place where it was confident danger didn't exist. At the edge of the plateau the bear milled around a bit, picked up a bone or something, carried it a few feet away and laid down like a dog with its prize. "Hmmm... maybe it's not over" I thought "Maybe I'll get another shot at this bear."

A few minutes later a larger bear tops the plateau coming from the east and passes within a few yards of the bear lying down. The new bear looked to be on a mission. It didn't glance at the 130# bear or pay it any attention. The larger bear kept its nose pointed west trotting across the plateau and was out of sight in the blink of an eye. "That was odd" I thought to myself.

Seconds later, another big bear summits the plateau with its nose to the ground following the same path as the bear that just hot footed itself to the west. BOAR! I whispered. The first bear through was a sow; he has been pestering her that's why she looked so determined in her passing. "This is a nice bear" I thought to myself. My eyes were glued to it as I watched it's every move and I began to try and will it to move to me.

As if the boar had hit a wall it stopped at the trail the 130# bear had run out on and sniffed around a bit and then like magic the boar turns in my direction and begins a slow torturous walk to me. The time was 8:20. Undoubtedly the bear had picked up the grease scent that other bears had tracked into the forest as they left the crib. There is grease or used cooking oil poured on the ground in front of the bait barrel for the sole purpose of making bears step in it and track the scent throughout the forest.

This bear has a different demeanor; it has a swagger to its walk. As if to say," I'm bad and I know I'm bad."  I would not have wanted to encounter this bear at the trailhead as I had the smaller bear earlier in the day. I believe this bear may have stood his ground. He casually strolls the trail behind the crib picking up donut bits that I had thrown on the trail to help lure the bears in closer. With envy, I examined the bear from nose to tail. He is the one! I wanted this bear...BAD! His coat looked perfect and his ears looked small and set to the side of his head. I sized him up to be a 150 – 180# boar. Perfect! This was the bear I have been holding out for. "Now, please just give me one opportunity" I silently pleaded.

       (http://images.imagelinky.com/1277856385.jpg) (http://images.imagelinky.com/1277856385.jpg)

The closer he got the more detail I could see and when he was about 15 yards away I saw that he had a limp. His left front paw was turned upside down. He was walking on his wrist and the pads of his paw were pointed up. A handicapped bear... surely no one will give me grief about this.

       (http://images.imagelinky.com/1277856481.jpg) (http://images.imagelinky.com/1277856481.jpg)

By 8:40 he had F-I-N-A-L-L-Y closed the gap between us to about 10 yards. At that point I wasn't sure how much more of this I could take. Something was about to pop because I was so amped up! My muscles were cramping, my heart was beating so hard I could feel the blood pulsing through every major vain in my body, I was breathing as if I had run a marathon and my mouth was dry. God I would have loved to have a drink of water. My mouth was so dry. The bear had been quartering to me the whole time and remained that way when he lay down at the small bait pile 10 yards away stuffing his face.

He lay there, according to me video clips, for approximately 20 excruciating minutes. He looked up at me several times and seemed to look right through me. As if to say "What?"

       (http://images.imagelinky.com/1277856637.jpg) (http://images.imagelinky.com/1277856637.jpg)

There was a half hour of shooting light left and the way he was moving I thought I was going to miss that window. At last, he finished the pile of bait and heaved his body off the ground. Still no shot as he stood with his head pointing right at me nine yards away. Come on go to the other bait pile I silently chanted "go, go go... come on go" and he did. He moved broadside about nine yards out but slightly quartering to me, still no shot. He stood two yards from the other bait pile and glanced at it and then turned away from it and walked closer to me. I was almost there! No matter how much I wanted this to happen I couldn't force it. I was on his time not mine so I had to play by his rules.

The smoldering honey pot got his attention and he moved closer to investigate it. The move to the honey pot was a quartering to me move and the investigation of the pot put him 6 yards away with his head pointed straight at me. This was intense! I'm reaching up to grab the preverbal brass ring but it is just out of reach. I'm tapping the brass ring with the tips of my fingers but I can't quite hook my finger around it. That's how close I was to shooting this bear.

Too close of an inspection brings heat to his nose and he backs up with a surprised look. His body language told me he had had enough of that as he pointed his muzzle to the easy pickings of the small bait pile. His turn puts him broadside to me for a brief moment and then his vitals pass behind the trunk of a 12" diameter tree. He comes around the other side of the tree and turns towards me once again to look at something else that caught his attention. Slightly quartering to me at eight yards and with the light fading I was about to come unglued, but I felt the moment of truth was about flash before me so I needed to stay sharp and I asked God to help me make a clean kill. Whatever the bear saw apparently didn't hold his attention for long. The scent of the donuts up wind was calling his name.

My buddy Chris Kinslow and I play a game where one of us draws our bow and the other decides when to shoot. It sounds simple, but at 20 or 25 seconds I begin to quiver holding back the weight of my 55 pound bow. This simple game came into play on the night of this hunt. While the bear stood quartering to me he turned his head to his right towards the pile of donuts. This in turn diverted his eyes away from me and I brought into play the game that Chris and I have played while practicing. I draw the string of my bow and hold its weight in my curled split fingered grip. The next move belongs to the bear. At times like these seconds seem like days. I stand solid with the middle finger of the glove anchored in the corner of my mouth. As long as he doesn't change his mind and turn back towards me, I'm golden.

Where the head goes the body must follow and the head is going to the bait. The bruin slowly swings the front half of his torso to the bait and in doing so he opens his whole left side up to me. I let my vision burn a hole to the leg on the opposite side of his body and when he lifted his left front leg to move it forward, I relaxed my string hand.

The string of the 56" pronghorn is ripped from the Martin glove and the 650 grain, 31.5" Carbon Express 250 arrow tipped with a Wensel Woodsman head is launched. The thud of the bow and the sound of the arrow smacking the bears hide were almost in unison because of his close proximity. With a single grunt and the eruption of rustling foliage on the forest floor, the boar tore away and headed for the hills. In a blur he was gone, crashing through the now muted colored understory of the timber. I watched his black silhouette against the lighter subdued background as he ran in a confused line, mowing over anything that stood in his way. The run was brief and the line turned into a tight left handed arc as he expended the last of his energy on his feet in one last attempt to escape, but it was all but over for him. I watched him collapse as he entered a shallow depression on the plateau behind the crib and saw the last movements of his legs as his muscles moved without the control of his brain and then he lay still about 30 yards from where I was standing.

This all transpired in a matter of seconds. I stood in the treestand shaking uncontrollably like a junky coming off of my adrenalin high. As the bear made his last dash into the shallow depression, I turned my video camera towards my face to record my reaction. My breathless voice quivered as I spoke into the camera trying to explain the events that had just taken place. I was visibly shaken after the shot. Recording my reaction is something I always try to do so I can relive the moment in the future. As I whispered (I don't know why I was whispering) to the camera the bear began to do a death moan, which I was expecting, but what I wasn't expecting was multiple death moans that lasted a full minute. Horrible, horrible absolutely HORRIBLE! It was one of the most haunting sounds I have ever heard. One moan, I could have handled two moans okay, but a full minute was torture! I wish I could show my reaction but the death moans are way to graphic to broadcast over the Internet.

As I whispered to the camera, my body was coming out of the adrenalin trance that it had been in for the last 30 minutes and I was beginning to feel the crash. I don't know what a heart attack feels like but I think I may have been damn close to having one. I winced as I talked and I doubled over and exclaimed "God I feel like I'm going to have a heart attack." How I didn't fall off the stand I'll never know. Anyway I did it. I DID IT! I killed my first bear and it was the bear I really wanted. I set my goal for a 150# bear and I shot one. To say I was very emotional is an understatement. Last year I spent 52 hours in a treestand and this year I spent 30. After 82 hours I finally have my trophy!

After my little video I crawled down and hurried over to put my hands on the long coarse hair of my prize. As I kneel by his side I thank our creator for the bears life and I pat the bear's side and thank the bear for his life. The Indians considered the bear to be a very powerful sprit creature and after spending time around them I can see why.

The last word in my video sums it up WOW!

       (http://images.imagelinky.com/1277864943.jpg) (http://images.imagelinky.com/1277864943.jpg)

The End

Special thank you to Tom Phillips for putting this hunt together and all the work he does to make things run smooth. I would also like to thank Fred and Brandan for helping me drag my bear out and a thank you the Dick and Bill Langer for helping me skin my bear.

Here are a few pics of some happy guys.  

Hill Hunter and his bear.
(http://inlinethumb56.webshots.com/42615/2668698680049059966S600x600Q85.jpg)

Dennis and Bob bringing home the bacon.
(http://inlinethumb55.webshots.com/28918/2798239770049059966S600x600Q85.jpg)

Yellow Dog retrieved his first bear.
(http://inlinethumb09.webshots.com/44104/2714123570049059966S600x600Q85.jpg)

One of my favorite moments of the week from a father and son team!  Larry and Greg combined efforts to bring his bear home.  Truly an experience to remember...good stuff!
(http://inlinethumb10.webshots.com/2505/2080504190049059966S600x600Q85.jpg)

Gatekeeper, Another tale extremely well told my friend! With each hunting tale you seem to tell them better and better! Congratulations on a fine animal! This is indeed your year for hunting. Great pictures as always. Good hunting,  Ben

Does anyone else feel that Tom's writing is some of the best hunt story telling yet on this site? Dang, that is good stuff right there. Kudos on the hunt and extra special thanks for the telling Mr Gatekeeper.

I just might read it again.

BRAVO my friend! That was one of the best reflections on a great hunt I've read in a long time. The way you were milking it out made me wish I sent you my book one chapter at a time though. VERY good job Mr. Porter. When the big one started to come in I could hear you saying "I want THAT one Daddy" (private joke). Hugs.. Uncle Barry

Thanks for sharing!  Really enjoyed your chapters Tom.  Thanks for taking us along!

Thank you, Shaun!

   :laughing:      :laughing:      :laughing:   Damn I loved how you got that jab in, Barry!     :laughing:      :laughing:      :laughing:

Well Done Tom!  Congrats on your bear!

Way to go Tom! Congrats!   :thumbsup:    :thumbsup:

WOW! is Right!
Wow for a great story Tom!  Congratulations on a perfect ending to your hunt, and thanks so much for the effort you put in to share it all here.  Incredible!

Great hunt Tom, and to all hunters, thanks for taking us along.   :)

Tom,
Wonderfull story!!  I think I was more on the edge of my chair reading this than when I shot Mr Bigger...well almost.  Congrats again...Doc

:clapper:    :clapper:    :clapper:  Tom!!

Great story telling!!

You've got a rare talent.I could hear your voice in the story. Definitely worth a second and perhaps a third read.

Nice job my friend! Dang, I didn't realize that Lamb had ask you to step in for him while his wrist is mending up.  Does this qualify you for an degree from the Charlie Lamb school of storytelling? I was enjoying every minute of it as well and I've heard it all first hand.

Well done and a great looking bear! Can't wait to go with you, Ben, and Kevin next year.  It should be a great time!

Tom, Great story!

You did good Tom! This is better than most hunt recounts I have read in any magazine! You might have a new additional career in writing should you choose to pursue it. Congratulations!

Congratulations to all of you Bear Questers...what great fun.

Tom...Super story telling my brother!!But then that's what I've come to expect from you. Good stories always come from the heart.

Anyone who's ever told a complete hunt story with pictures will appreciate the time it takes to put it all together to share with us here. Bravo!!
  :clapper:  

I look forward to seeing the video this fall.

Really an article for a magazine.

The descriptions of the sights, smells & emotions are as accurate as they can be without actually being there. It really puts you in on the hunt. One of the best accounts I've ever read.

Having been there & done it, I think it reflects what we all felt. Only a very few have the gift to put it into words like you did.

Great read & story Tom!

Larry

QuoteOriginally posted by Charlie Lamb:
Congratulations to all of you Bear Questers...what great fun.

Tom...Super story telling my brother!!But then that's what I've come to expect from you. Good stories always come from the heart.

Anyone who's ever told a complete hunt story with pictures will appreciate the time it takes to put it all together to share with us here. Bravo!!
   :clapper:  

Exactly!!  Awesome read!

Hated to see your story come to an end, well done Gatekeeper.

Congratulations to all you Bear Questers; I'll bet everyone had a good time. Tom and his crew do a heck of a job.  :thumbsup:

Congrats Tom. Job well done. Great story telling. You kept us on the edge of our seat. Thanks for sharing.  :thumbsup:    :campfire:

WOW WOW WOW!!!!  Great stuff guys, and congrats to all of you for a successful hunt in so many ways!

 :campfire:

:bigsmyl:    :thumbsup:    :campfire:

I just read through all of this and want to congradulate all of you!

Great adventure!

Todd

Great job Tom. Congrats on your fist bear. Really enjoyed your company in camp!
-Bill

Tom you have a real talent with the pen,glad I was able to help you with the skinning.

Tom you are truly a gifted writer, thanks for bring out our feelings to the guys who could not be there! I could have not said it better with a ghost writer!

TomP my goal next year is to try and make you smile a little more while you are busting your assets making sure we all were happy! Thank again for all your hard work!

LarryD it was a true honor sharing camp with you. Not only were you funny but a ture Texan to boot.  You made me feel guilty about not making pancakes but greatly enjoyed them when they hit your plate hot. Thanks for making me laugh! Next time Frenchy tries to run  our little boat over we will have to show him how the guys in Texas/Ga handle a royal pain in the a@#$! Thanks again for dinner and sharing a room on Sat nite! Dang that kind of sounds funny!!LOL

Jay (AKA Mr.Gadget) I appreciated you driving and your friendship. You listened to me run my mouth for extended periods at 2:00am when I was suffering from Monster overload. I know I was the only guys setting up his bow at 4:00am while everyone else was sleeping in there trucks! I loved watching the sun come up at 3:45am and I obviously had to much caffeine in my system! Oh yea, when you did get out of bed in the morning you somehow managed to eat my pancakes! Thanks for your friendship!

Big Bill- you were a stand up guy who busted his butt for us all day long. I want to personally thank you for the all the guys in the second week group!! Bill was the one who made all the bait runs up with TomP and that added up to alot of time, energy, and work! Thanks again! I was very happy to see you get your bear on the last day of the hunt. What did we say when we left that evening? Bottom of the ninth, two outs, and some body needed to step up to the plate and hit a homer! Congrats!
PS: Be careful while riding with Bill in Canada, his next career is a Nascar driver!

Chad (Big Country)- Great guy who was more concerned about his buddy Zack getting a bear than himself. Dang good shot with a Widow and one hell of an accent to boot!! Big Country was the Man!! Look forward to chasing some elk with you in the future dude!

Zack-To this day I will not forget the night I picked you up in the boat and you were standing in knee deep water. Seemed Zack had a couple of big bears come in right at dark and one liked him so much that it followed him all the way down to the waters edge! I think there popping of teeth, woofing, and other excited bear sounds had poor Zack on the edge! Can you say the pucker factor was high and the tone of his voice was priceless when he jumped into the boat!
Congrats on your first bear Zack!

Bill (AKA Bobby Bouchie/Hollywood)! When I first met Bill he looked like a fish out of water!! With his body builder biceps and his rock star sunglasses he intiminated all us older men! Once in camp he quickly turned into one of the guys and I greatly enjoyed his humor. However on the third day of the hunt he quickly proved that his PITA themed arrows were not working! So he broke out his HOT PINK arrows and man did they do a job on a great bear. Congrat on your first bear dude! Oh ya, I want a re-match at HORSE archery!!!!! LOL!!

Greg and his father Larry! I do not think I could have asked to meet two nicer guys to break open 15,200 Little Debbies with! After three hours of chocolate covered fingers I was glad your Dad was there to keep us laughing! I was also glad to see the two of you team up on a great bear toward the end of our hunt! The look in your proud fathers eyes was priceless and it was one of the high-lights of my trip.  Funny how the little things stick out in your mind later on!

Paul (the Cook)! Paul was a quiet guy who said little but when he talked people listened! Paul was one hell of a talented bowyer as he took his bear with a bow he made and a Tippet arrow head. Made one heck of a nice knife also! Sorry I stole your kitchen a few mornings but felt the need to do something being a morning person! For all you guys that did not make the second week trip, Paul gave me the responsibility of cooking three packs of bacon on the grill one morning! Turns out one grill worked great and the other one sucked. Well after cooking two packs of bacon on Tinfoil I had a heck of alot of bacon grease building up in the lower left section of the good grill. That was due to grill being unlevel but I have to blame it on something!! Soon grease was spilling over on the flames and we had one hell of a BIG grease fire! Thank god the fireman (Chad and Zack) came to the rescue and put the fire out! So much for that last pack of bacon!LOL!!! Sorry guys!

Mike (Yellow Dog) once again the guys you meet on Tradgang go out of there way to help someone they do not know. Mike was nice enough to provide me with a new fletching cover and we  had never met before in person. I appreciated that! Not only was he was a dang good shot in Horse Archery but he also took a very nice bear! Look forward to meeting you again in the future!

Dennis-He was one of the nicer guys in camp who also took a great bear. He was also one of the guys that was a wealth of archery information! Later he dragged out one of the prettiest old 70's Bear Takedowns I had ever seen and it had a little Bowdoc work on the shelf and grip. Great shooting bow and he shot it well in Horse Archery! Another guy I look forward to sharing a camp with in the future!

Well it is late and I know I am leaving some of the guys out! Sorry as my old memory banks are running low but the fellowship was great! Good Nite everyone!

I always learn a lesson when I hunt with Barry Wensel- sometimes it's about hunting -sometimes not. Today's lesson was not. Upon arrival at the Lodge of the Bear, I learned that(no- we all learned) that our legend (loser) had forgotten his socks and underwear at his sister-in-laws house. The sad part of this is that I happen to be near his size even after losing weight so I offered up 3 pair to get him thru the week. I caught sight of him from behind during one of his runs to the outhouse and reminded him that he could and should keep the tightie whities. Well he doesn't listen well and today-all wrapped up in a nice package- he returned them to me in the mail- you guessed it- NOT WASHED!!!The mailman may never speak to me again.
Sorry, I know this isn't as good as Tom Porter's story, but I did the best I could with what I have.

Here's what killing the biggest bear in camp will do to a guy.

 (http://images.imagelinky.com/1278015149.jpg) (http://images.imagelinky.com/1278015149.jpg)

I'm starting to get a following.

 (http://images.imagelinky.com/1278015209.jpg) (http://images.imagelinky.com/1278015209.jpg)

"Allen Badilion Trahurn"

Mike he even looks like  James Caan !?!?

I'd be kinda worried if that was "following" me....don't stop to pick up any change.....  :scared:

Great read Tom! Congrats on a great bear! I'm really happy for ya. You earned it.

Congrads to all that when up,looks fun.

Marty: I'll have you know those tightie whities WERE washed. It's just that some stains won't come out. Give them the sniff test if you don't believe me. Thanks again for the loan. Oh, and by the way... those socks you loaned me, you better wash them too because I have a very contagious foot fungus. XOXO Uncle Barry

Marty, I recommend passing on the sniff test and burning them all downwind! It might start a stampede though so pick the right area!     :D

had forgotten his socks and undies at his sister in laws ? wow I'd like to hear more about what UB was doing naked at his sister in laws ? and where the heck was Gene ? geezs sounds like I really missed out on some great story telling this year UB bd

Well boys I hope everyone is unpacked.I just about have everything back in it place.I now have some hides to bring to Taxidermist and some Bear meat products to get made..... More to follow.

Tom your're a Superman , must be the hockey training

Thank You Much For the story,  I read this to my Kids. I believe they would fall asleep, as they do with other books, They couldn't wait to see the pics, Great bed time story for my kids. Well done
.  Thank you , Cant  wait to see Mr. Langers new video.

TG BQ4 Bear Killers,please keep us posted on how you prepared your Bear meat steaks,chops,burger,sausage,Brats etc.

Mr. Warberg it should be out in March 2011!!

Hey T.P. little Ricky is making bear stew for July 4th party at my Aunt's...
Will let u know how it went.
-Bill

Bear Stew sounds good !!!

Two bags Green Bear meat, One road killed possum. One slightly pavement heated skunk back side. Two heads brown lettuce, four black carrots, one bag brown with spuds potatos. Throw in pot add the juice from one sun bloated Racoon leave on roof for two days. Lastly serve to guests!!!
That's Tom Phillips Chowder!!! I've smelt on my way to the baits!!!

Mike I'll donate the green bear meat the rest is on you .

I saved yours, I just couldn't let meat that good go to waiste!!!  :)

For those who left their Bear Meat with me I am planning on hooking up with Wapiti-Mike this Saturday to drop off the meat at Butchers in Hartford,Ct. to have some goodies made.
Will keep you posted.

                  Tom

Tom, did you get my PM about my bear meat?

Great looking pic Tom I love it man you look good bd

Thank you Mr Langer and Congrats to  All,,

Has anyone got their pictures developed from hunt ?

Bill Langer- how was the Boo- Boo Stew?

How any of you Bear Questers are going to Denton Hill ?

You guys aren't really gonna eat that stuff are you????

Marty, you look like that Chuck Adams dude sitting 15 feet behind that Kudu.

The bear stew was great, a real hit on Independence Day!

Ricky did a fine job with his first bowkill.

Eat any of your's Marty?

Bill- not yet- Tom is having that smoked sausage made for me- lookin forward to it!

Biggie- you're just used to making ALL animals look small- we average sized guys don't fo that!

Wow, Marty has an avatar!!!!   :clapper:

Lookin' good buddy!

That is not Marty in his Avatar,that must be one of the handsome PH's that was babysitting him !!!

Who's Marty? Was he one of those week one guys?

He was "THE Week One Guy " Calmly stayed the course and ridicule and pulled it out on the eleventh hour . He's right up there with Mike and Barry .


How's that Marty ?

Yeah- he was Tom's whippin boy during the first week.

Greyfox, I'm on your side the first sign of trouble!

Fred, that was one super bear you arrowed at the "Grouper". It was an honor to take a bear out of the same stand you sat in during week two  :goldtooth:

Yellow Dog even though you beat me to Michigan I'm glad to have kept  the seat warm for you . George was gracious to leave it for me .
 Good deal Marty , Keep both eyes open !

Fred, sorry about the Michigan thing. That was a tough decision, hunt Michigan close to home with a bunch of fine Michigan Trad guys or pursue the Pike County hunt that you did last year. I made the right choice sticking with my bidding and locking in that St. Jude Michigan hunt. It'll be a great time hunting with that bunch in my "backyard".

QuoteOriginally posted by Greyfox54:
He was "THE Week One Guy " Calmly stayed the course and ridicule and pulled it out on the eleventh hour . He's right up there with Mike and Barry .

I'll second that!  Can you hear LOSER NO MORE?

Whoever said Marty was a LOSER ????

After he mmmmmmissed a booner in KS a few years ago, someone wrote it (loser) in ketchup on his omlete the next morning...can't remember if it was me, or Barry or Gene??????

Knowing you three, Big, you each wrote a couple letters!!!! You guys are HARSH  :bigsmyl:    :biglaugh:    :laughing:    :nono:

I know Marty is a LOSER in the USA,didn't think it hit Internationally yet !!

The whole painful and hysterical story is in Barry's latest book and if you haven't bought or read it-you should! All great stories in there!   :thumbsup:

Things are already in order for BEAR QUEST 5 2011'. Can't wait already !!!!

Well I just got a partial workout for today,trying to Tippits,Marty's,Fred Gimble & Gatekeepers  Bear Hides & meat out of my freezer !!!!!!

Guys,
I am missing 2 Rapid Rails,did they end up in anyones vehicle when we packed up ?

ttt

Souvenir's no doubt!

I ened up with an extra thermacell in my truck Camo,missing the bottom piece.

Well the 2 Rapid rails are not mine I only had 1 of the 3 to give back so .......

yap that thermacell is mine Paul hang on to it until next spring for me and don't be using up my fuel and yes I got the other two Rapid Rail Tom here at my place.Gees not sure how I ended up with them.....ok ok so I just got my pc working again and thought I join in the fun bd

Tommy will fill you boys in, but! You guy's that left your meat with him are some lucky dogs!!!

Getting packed for Denton Hill, I realized I forgot to thank Larry Surtees for the belt buckles he made for the Largest Bear taken on each week of BQ4.  

I'll be wearing mine proudly.  Thanks Larry...Doc

 (http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v110/tippit/Quebec%20Quest%202010/BQ4BiggestBearBuckle002.jpg)

Nice!!! You should be proud.

wow thats super nice guy's great job Larry and Doc bd

Second Week Guys! My XL Cabelas MT-50 Rain Jacket did not make it back with me! Please check and see if any of you picked it up by mistake! Thanks!

What beautiful workmanship!

I will provide belts to go with the buckles if the 2 "largest bear shooters" want.  Shoot me a p.m. with belt size, and I'll tap out.

Larry thanks again for the beautiful buckle. I will be wearing mine with PRIDE, and if you do it again for next years BQ I will be planing on winning my 2nd one, Ha. Ha. I'm looking for tippits record. This year I will be hunting with primative bow, cane arrows, stone points I can't wait.

That is a true work of art. I wish I had those skills.