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Hunting Quebec Black Bear: Perserverance Pays Off

Quebec’s black bears are highly sought after for their cunning and challenge. At a hunting camp, Pennsylvania’s Scott Seltzer watched as almost every hunter in camp had downed a beautiful black bear, leaving him with nothing. “Was I cursed, or just the most unlucky hunter in the world?” Seltzer asked himself. Little did he know, his luck would soon change!

Confessions Of A Bear Baiting Assistant

This is a day best spent lolling around in the shade near a swimming hole. But resolutely I follow him again into the woods, walking through shoulder-high grasses and brambles that hide the logs and rocks at ground level, the ones that have been skinning my shins and twisting my ankles. He is setting up his bear baits, and believes I am along to gather information for some future article. I am really here because I just plain want to hang out with him.

Little Black Books… And Big Black Bears

I always get a bang out of the unlikely mix of clutter in a ladies hunting camp — on a bathroom shelf a curling iron rests next to scent-killer shampoo; on the kitchen table a Danielle Steele novel vies for space with about seven kinds of hunting magazines. Our bear hunt in Maine was fantastic!

Stalking The Black Ghost

The bear hunter crouched in a log blind and was sweating profusely, but still intently watching his bait. The white 5-gallon plastic bait bucket tied firmly to a tall spruce had been strategically placed upwind of the blind in a relatively open block of trees at 70 yards. The stage was set and the magic hour had arrived. Out from the darkening woods behind the bait appeared something big, and black as coal.

How To Sit On A Bear Bait

I waited for the bear to settle in at the bait, and become totally involved and interested in feeding. I picked a spot behind the shoulder on the black mass and made myself breathe. When the bear reached forward with a front leg, I let the arrow go.

In Search Of The Black Ghost

For generations, the pursuit of black bears has been a Quebec tradition enjoyed by many. As darkness approached like a slow moving cloud on my last evening of the hunt, I watch intently over my bait-site. Suddenly without warning, an ominous black figure moved across in front of the bait like a ghost, in complete silence.

My First Bear Hunt

Before the bear came in, I didn’t understand why people would want to bear hunt year after year. I didn’t know how it felt, hadn’t experienced the vast difference between expecting a deer or expecting a bear. And then the bear came in … it was a twin jolt of emotion!

Hank Mason’s Grizzly Bear

The inscription on the headstone read, “Hank Mason. Killed by a bear. May 19, 1893.” The author did some research and discovered the tale of Mason and the grizzly was incredible.

No Hunting

I’d tripped struck my left knee on the floor. I learned later that when you break your kneecap in two, the muscles attached to the top and bottom contract, pulling the pieces apart. The house — and the phone — were about 50 yards away and up a grassy hill. I knew I had to get there before I passed out.