2018...A Year of Firsts

For the first time in a long time, I did not harvest anything during the fall season and I didn't kill a bear at home in the spring- but looking back on the year, it was an amazing year. Not just for me but my family. This truly was a year of firsts for us.

The spring season started off with bear and turkey here in BC. I have never killed a turkey, although it wasn't for lack of trying lol. But this year I was lucky enough to get my very first one! And to top it off, Kyle and I doubled on them- a first for us.

At the beginning of May, Pheonix turned 10- legal age to hunt in BC. From then on we were on the hunt for her and her first big game animal, she wanted a black bear. We had a few plays on different bears but she just wasn't quick enough. Then we went to Saskatchewan (unfortunately the age there to hunt is 12) for a week and a half to do some bear hunting with friends. It wasn't long after we got home that she was able to fill her first big game animal! And it was a dandy bear. She got the enjoyment of being able to watch him interact with a sow and they had no clue she was even there. Kyle was with her when she pulled the trigger and was hanging back with Easton. Her first hunting season ever and she got her first big game animal and her first bear. She was over the moon.

In Saskatchewan, I was able to accomplish a first for me as well. We had been there 2 other years previously and each time I left with just a tag. This year was different. The very first night we were there- Pheonix and I sat in a stand and waited patiently. The very first bear that came in was the one I took. I knew he was a decent bear but I wasn't expecting for him to grow in size when I walked up to him. 3rd time...or year...was the charm apparently. And he is my biggest bear ever, he even beats Kyles grizzly bear! We both came home with beautiful big bears.

The fall season came along and I was 100% dedicated to getting Pheonix her first buck. She had so many opportunities but she just had troubles getting on them quick enough or was picky about what she wanted. When the doe season opened for youth she was excited to be able to shoot a buck and a doe, so of course when the first doe she had an opportunity at came she took it without hesitation. It was just the kids and I hunting when she got her first deer. It took a bit for her to get set up, but the doe wasn't concerned with us. She missed her first shot, and I was keeping an eye on it in my binos. I was very impressed and proud of her on how she didn't even miss a beat when I told her to shoot again. She adjusted her shooting sticks and shifted over and reset up like a pro in one swift movement. Perfect shot and she had her first deer.

When she shot her first deer, Kyle was away up north hunting for moose with his cousin. His first time hunting moose up north. He was successful with a beautiful tri-palm. His first moose ever.

For the 2019 season, Pheonix already has her sights set on a cougar! We will see....

 

Saskatchewan Bear Hunt 2018

It has been 3 years since we were last in Saskatchewan chasing the giants of the woods. Well this year we made it back to hunt again with Warren and Kerwin in north-central Saskatchewan. The last 2 years just didn't work out with Kyles schedule for Rescue Competition season. This year it did, so we took advantage. We planned to be there on the 20th of May and stay for 7 days. Kyle had to be back to work the 28th for rescue training. So we packed up the kids and dropped the dogs off with his mom and dad and we were off. We made it to Kerwin's late on the 19th and stayed the night, unfortunately he wouldn't be able to come hunt with us until later in the week. We all had a good sleep and left in the afternoon. It was another 2 hours before we would get to Warrens family ranch.

When we arrived we noticed they were having a big family gathering, Warrens sister and husband were there with their 2 boys as well as an aunt. The kids were excited they had someone to play with. It was so nice seeing Warrens parents again, they really make you feel like you're at home on the ranch. After we visited for a few hours, Warren asked if we wanted to sit for the evening because if we did we needed to get a move on. We only had about 4 hours until dark! Warrens mom offered to watch Easton, he could play with Warrens nephews and Pheonix decided she wanted to sit with me in the tree. So we got our gear on and set off to what Warren calls the "pasture", from there we quaded in to our stands and went our separate ways.

Kyle was sitting alone and Pheonix and I were cuddled up on a double ladder stand. I helped her get in to the stand and made sure she was tied in good, this was only her second time sitting in a tree- the first time was 3 years ago with Kyle. She was nervous- the wind was blowing pretty good and it was moving our tree around- so I couldn't blame her. Now if you have ever met Pheonix, you know she has no off switch...like at all. She talked non-stop the whole night, with multiple reminders to keep her voice down from me. It was nearing 8pm now and the wind started to die off, and get really quiet. There weren't even birds chirping, although a squirrel had me all excited and scaring Pheonix for a while. Now when I'm in a treestand I don't stop searching and listening the entire time im in the stand. I heard the slight snap of a twig off to my left and it had me swinging my head over and full attention scanning the bush. It took a few minutes until my eyes locked on black through the trees, But the bush was thick so I couldn't be sure. I sat staring, straining my eyes to catch some type of movement from the black. Pheonix knew I could see something and went very still, and repeatedly asked me if it was a bear. I wasn't sure so I just told her I didn't know. Finally movement, after what felt like forever, I was able to catch part of his face pass through and opening while he was smelling the air. I quietly told Pheonix it was a bear and she finally went quiet haha! I had my rifle between my legs so it was easy to get it up into position. I waited to see what we he was moving before shouldering my gun. He was coming straight in, but very slowly. So I shouldered my rifle and watched him come in through the scope. From past experiences, I knew that if the bear was a boar he would be very wary of coming into the bait and might not give me lots of time to get a shot, or he would skirt the outside of the area- never coming into sight. I held my rifle up in my shoulder waiting...and waiting...he would take a couple steps, stop and smell, and look around before coming a few more steps. He repeated this the whole way into view. Just when he got into my view he stopped and stood up on his back legs- he was looking into the bait without having to come in. Checking for sows. After about a 30 second sniff check on his back legs he dropped down again and changed his course of direction. Instead of coming into the bait he was going to skirt around it- he wasn't interested in food, just ladies. So I followed him with my scope until I had a good broadside shot. He wasn't walking fast, but he wasn't stopping either- so once I had an opening I took it. Pheonix had her ears plugged from the moment I put up my rifle. I took my shot and it was perfect. He ran about 10 feet and piled up- unfortunately he did quite the death moan, my first bear to do one and Pheonixs first time ever hearing it. It scared her and I had to reassure her he was dead and that some bears do it when they die.

We stayed in the stand for a few minutes to make sure he wasn't going anywhere. I messaged Kyle Bear down and he was floored. He asked me how big of a bear was it and I told him it was a decent bear but nothing like "double chin" (a giant of a bear that Warren has been hunting for for a long time). After talking to Kyle I told Pheonix to stay in the tree while I climbed down to check him. I clambered down the ladder, shaking uncontrollably, and walked over to my bear. He had a skinny back end, but once I got closer to him his back just kept going, then I got to his shoulders and head- I had underestimated this bear! His head was so big I couldn't lift it and he had massive muscular shoulders. I texted Kyle saying I was wrong and he was BIG, I wouldn't be able to load him onto the quad...at all. So Kyle said stay there I'm on my way. He had called Warren and told him and he left his house and was on his way in too. I helped Pheonix come down just before Kyle showed up. He was speechless when he seen my bear. Even him and I wouldn't be able to load the bear and there was no possible way he would fit on a quad. We got some pictures and then Kyle had to go meet Warren with the Quad and pick up the quad trailer too. It was starting to get dark now and I felt uneasy being on the ground next to the bait- hidden in the brush. Pheonix was freaking out too. So we hopped on our quad and headed out of the trees out into one of the big open fields to wait for Kyle and Warren. I left the quad running so we had some light but she was still crying and scared-I gave her my phone to play a game and that helped calm her-kept her mind busy. We probably waited out there for a good 30 minutes before they showed up, we followed them back into the bait to load the bear. It took Kyle, Warren, Nat and I to load it into the trailer that was laying on its side. We took it back to Warrens house and skinned it out there. Warren was starting to wonder if it WAS double chin, for the next 2 weeks the guys poured over every photo of big bears that they got to figure out if it was. Kyle is positive it isn't him.

And just like that, my week of hunting was over! Kyle continued to hunt, sometimes solo and sometimes with Pheonix but it had slowed down and there were just little ones coming in. I hung out with Easton and sometimes both kids- took them to the lake for some swimming. Kerwin eventually showed up, he got his bear the same night I got mine where he lives, so the night he came in he went and sat the stand with Kyle. Sure enough a big lanky bear came in, Kyle passed him up twice that sit before he decided he was going to take him right before dark. They came in with the bear loaded in the trailer like mine and pulled into the carport- holy hell did that thing stink! He was definitely a big bear, younger than mine and full of scars. His hair was really thin too. He was obviously a scrapper. As we were skinning him the smell turned to a rank smell- rotten almost, and it was all we could do to finish the job.

Warren was hunting the whole week as well. The mornings we spent helping him with checking his beaver traps, which the kids found fascinating! Our last day there, Kerwin had headed home and warren suggested we all go fish for some walleye and pike. It was slow but it was the perfect night to be on the water. The kids each caught a pike and that was it lol. And they got to see a beaver up close- one came off the bank by the boat and went swimming across the lake.

I love going to Saskatchewan to hunt. Not because of the chance to kill a monster bear (ok maybe a tiny bit lol) but because I have so much fun watching them around the bait. How they interact with each other, their personalities, and the cute little cubs. I was hoping to spend more time in the stand- mainly in hopes of being able to get some decent photos of the furry critters....but alas....maybe next time!

Saskatchewan Bear Hunt 2015

Our 2nd annual trip to Saskatchewan to hunt with Kerwin and Warren, this time with the kids. We left at midnight on the 30th of May planning to drive through the night in hopes the kids would sleep the entire way. Easton did...Pheonix not so much. We made it to Edmonton 2 hours  before Cabelas opened, so we went for breakfast and waited. We managed to find a youth harness that fit Pheonix and myself so she could go up in the stand too. She was excited, mom not so much, but I didn't hold her back.

We got to Lloydminster that afternoon and had a chance to relax a bit and get a good nights sleep before heading to Saskatchewan with Kerwin in the morning. We got our tags bought in the morning and were off to Warrens families ranch. Warren wasn't due home until later that evening so we hunted the families property for the evening. Kerwin and I only had one little bear come in, Kyle had 3. He had one little one and a sow with a decent boar. I would have taken him if he came to my stand. Kerwin and my hunt unfortunately was interrupted by a couple wolves. The neighbors had their cattle out in the pasture next to us and you could hear them mooing all evening, but close to dark 2 wolves lit up howling. They were in among the cows, and after there was some silence and then a single cow started calling again-but it sounded in distress. We thought maybe a calve was taken, so that night we told Warrens dad about it and he was pretty worried, he was taking his cattle out there the next day.
The stayed the night at the ranch and the next morning we got everything packed up and ready to head north. It was another couple hour drive to get to where we wanted. Once there we set up camp and got ready to hit the stands. I hunted with Kerwin again and Kyle on his own. Warren wanted to do a fish fry for dinner so he offered to take the kids fishing with him, of course they were ecstatic. Later I received a picture of them and Pheonix had caught her first pike all on her own. They had a lot of fun. Kyle had one bear come in that night and Kerwin and I had 5- including big red. It was a pretty cool night and I had all my layers on minus my thick Oncatherm extreme shirt on, and I was wishing I had it on too. We had little bear after little bear come in. Then we seen this big red colored bear come in hopping on 3 legs, at first we thought he was a sow because you could hear him popping his jaws the whole we in, he stopped just in the trees before one of the black boars put a run on him. Then just before dark he came hobbling back to the bait but really on edge. I was standing ready for him to come in as soon as we heard him popping. I had one really good shot opportunity but I couldn't draw my bow, after sitting 6 hours in the cold and getting stiff- I just couldn't get my bow past the wall. And once he heard me draw, he was gone like a shot. I was really mad. I could not believe I just missed out on that big boar because I couldn't get my bow back.

Next day Kerwin and I hunted the same stand, hoping big red would come back in. He had come back in at 3am that night, but I wasn't very optimistic about him showing up in daylight again. Again we had 5 bears come in. 3 were the same little ones from the other night and 2 new ones. The one new one was a bigger boar, not as big as red but decent. He had a nice head on him and that was about it. He was skin and bones and his hair was patchy and rubbed right off. He came in very cautious and he came straight to the stand to check it. When he walked under me he stopped and looked up, I had a wave of Deja vu hit me, like I had seen him before- those eyes and his face...but I couldn't quite place it. He didn't stay long, he put the run on one of the 3 little ones (a little 3 year old boar with big attitude) then never came back. Just before dark the little boar got spooked and ran to our tree, he huffed and made a ruckus and then we had a big black come in, he was about 4 inches above the barrel and the little boar came right up the tree under our feet. I was watching the little boar and Kerwin trying to shoo it down with his hat. He didn't know who he should take his chances with, us or the bear. When I drew back I couldn't see him in my pins, we had ran out of light. So we waited a minute and he just wandered through. We also had the little boar with attitude watching us from another tree and a sow watching from about 60 yards out. When we started down out of the tree the little boar took off, the sow just stayed put. She was only 10 yards from us sitting at the baits, she did not care we were right there. So we made our way out and sat at the truck. As we came out we noticed a bear standing about 30 yards from the truck making its way to the baits. Kerwin had a trailer on the back which smelled of meat so we went to check if the bear had destroyed anything. Nothing was ruined but he was definitely in the trailer checking everything out, you could smell him like he was standing beside you.

Kyle was hunting with Pheonix, and Easton went fishing with Warren. Kyle had apparently shot a bear. It wasn't the biggest bear but it was a good experience for Pheonix. Apparently she also got to see this years cubs during her sit with daddy, and got a good nap in ha ha. Kyle had to keep her from jumping up and down in the tree every time a bear came in. He shot it well before dark so had retrieved it and loaded it up with Warrens help. When they pulled up about 20 mins after we left the stand we told each other our stories.

The next 3 days were very quiet. We only had 2-3 little ones come in, but we did see some rut action. A real young shaggy boar was charming the 2 sows that were hanging around. We had a chocolate sow come in and try to get our attention in a frisky way. She laid back under our ladder watching us, rubbing a stick on her...same thing Warren and I had last year, except this little sow wanted to share her stick and wanted to come up the tree with it. We watched the boar chase the sows and wrestle with them...but we never had any good bears come back in. During the slow days the ugly boar kept come back to me in my head, the same picture over and over of him looking up at me....and it clicked. I think he was the beautiful black I shot at and missed the year before. It was a different stand this year but same location, and this one didn't have the high arm rests like the year before.  Warren also took a night to go back to his families ranch to hunt, there was a big bear there he was after. He didn't see the big boar that night but he did have quite the entertaining night. He had a cinnamon sow come in with 2 new babies, both cinnamon. They came into the bait and the cubs made a B line straight for Warrens tree. They shot up the tree and momma came to investigate what they were doing. He videoed them coming in and when mom decided to come over, you can hear him say Oh f*** when she makes her way to the tree, ha ha. Lucky she was a laid back sow and she just made a couple grunts and they scooted down and she went back to the bait to eat. As soon as she was eating though, one of the little ones went back up the tree to investigate Warren again. He managed to get almost up on his platform with him. Mom didn't even look at him again. The other little cub went to join his mom for a snack and apparently she pancaked him with her paw...flattened him right to the ground and the little guy just howled. Warren said it was the funniest thing he had ever seen.

We ended up staying a day later then we had planned, hoping that maybe some thing big would come back through. We woke up Sunday morning and was able to get packed up and leaving by 9:30-10 am. We had to stop at Jeanettes on the other side of Edmonton for a visit...mainly a business one that turned into a socialization...for 8 hours. We were able to meet Todd Brick, one of the hosts for No Limits TV, so it was a nice visit...but made for a real long drive home. We had to stop twice so Kyle could sleep and ended up home at 9:30 am Monday. It was another good year, had its ups and downs, but we had fun and so did the kids. Their last night they did some more fishing with Warren and his girlfriend, Natasha, and they caught 27 pike but kept 7 for dinner. So overall another awesome trip, and we look forward to next year.

*** 2 weeks after we left***
I get a text message from Warren sending me pictures of a massive red bear that showed up at the stand Kyle had shot his bear from, a week after we left. It was Red, and the left foot gave it away. He was still alive and hopefully he makes it to next season.

Nikita

Saskatchewan Black Bear Hunt 2014

What an amazing trip we had! We were gone for a total of 8 days and 6 of them were spent hunting. It was a long drive! 12 hours there and 12 hours back. We got home at 2:00 am this morning.

We had decided to leave a little early and stay an extra day as well. We left when Kyle got off of night shift on Sunday (May 18) and decided to take our time. We did stop in Jaffray (30 mins out of town) because we seen a friend of ours out in his field hunting gophers with his bow, so that added another hour to travel time. Then in Calgary we stopped at the Bass Pro to do some shopping. We got to Edmonton at about 10:30pm and made the trek over to Jeanettes place to crash. We got to Jeanettes at midnight and spent the next 4 hours talking about hunting and the Extreme Huntress Contest since we are both in the 20 semi-finalists. It was really great meeting her and Travis, especially when we are both in the contest. I cant wait to see her again in June and hopefully in Texas in July!

The next morning we headed out and went back to Edmonton to check out the Cabelas. We did some shopping and I picked up a hoodie and we picked up a new pack frame. Then we went for lunch and I bought a new phone. We managed to get out of Edmonton at a decent time and were on our way to Loydminister to meet up with one of the guys we were hunting with that we met on Twitter...along the way hoping they weren't serial killers lol! We made it to Kerwin's at around dinner time and had a good visit and meal with him and his family. In the morning the 3 of us were on our way to Spiritwood to meet up with the other guy, Warren. We got to Warrens familys' ranch (which was gorgeous) and started loading the quads right away. We were heading for the family cabin.

It was a bit of a quad ride to get there but it was beautiful. The cabin was on a hill over looking a lake surrounded by poplar trees and croaking frogs in the marsh. It was very wet, so we got a little muddy and the frogs were everywhere! You could see them hopping out of the way of the quad. We dropped our stuff off in the cabin and we geared up to hunt the evening.

Hunt Day 1
The guys decided that while we were hunting they would go and check the other baits they had set up and sort of organize the camp area. So they took us into the stand where there was a big cinnamon boar coming in and was dubbed "Charra" because he was tall and gangly. So Kyle and I climbed into the stand which was only 18 yards from the barrels and played the waiting game. After a couple hours we had a coyote come in but he was nervous. So he didn't come right into the bait. Then about an hour after that this little blond cub came wandering into the bait and plopped his chunky butt down and started eating. He was only there for about 30mins when he took off running-there was another bear coming. A cinnamon sow with 2 cubs, a cinnamon one and a black one with a white V on his chest. She didn't stay long, she seemed agitated. About an hour after her and her cubs left she came back, but this time she had the little blond cub with her. She right away seen us up in the stand(it was on a poplar tree, so not much for cover) and was nervous. She let her cubs go and eat at the barrels but she would circle and try to catch our scent. Thankfully the BUCKED seemed to do its job and she never scared off, but she knew something was off with the tree we were sitting in. She was a gorgeous healthy bear and big! We named her The Queen. Eventually it started getting dark and we needed to spook them away, it didn't take much- just us talking. She took her cubs and left.

Hunt Day 2
In this area it seemed the bears only hit the baits in the evenings and during the night so we slept in. We got up and had breakfast then went out to check cameras and baits. Nothing had hit either baits. Warren was dumbfounded and frustrated. So we had to go to the back up plan- going to the forestry (government land). There were 4 different areas in the forestry we could sit in. We were put in one  that had lots of activity including a really large boar. Again Kyle and I were sitting in the stand together but this one was only 12 yards from the bait. It felt like we were sitting right on top of the barrel. It wasn't long and we had 2 small bears come in, brothers. A beautiful black one and a rubbed out brownish black one and both of them came up our tree to check us out. The black one came right up the tree on my side to get a closer look, then after he was done the rubbed one came up the tree right under our feet. After they were bored with us they went back to the bait. The bait had a barrel and 2 yellow crates tied together and it had a beaver in it and we watched the black one try to pull it out with not much success, his brother came over and popped it out in no time and took off with the beaver. Leaving us thinking, well great there goes the bait! We probably wont see any more bears.... We did see one more bear come in, again another small one just before the thunderstorm hit. The trees were blowing and it was pouring, but it only lasted about 20 mins and it cleared up. Just before dark we had 2 more small bears come in but never seen one that was a good size.

Hunt Day 3
In the morning we got up and went to check baits again. One was hit but it was just a small

cinnamon, nothing worth staying in the area so we went back up to the forestry. Again we sat in a new area that had a lot of activity that included some big bears. Kyle and I sat in the stand together again and again the stand was only 12 yards from the bait. After a few hours a little boar came in. He went straight to the bait without paying us much attention and started filling his face. He started rolling around after he ate a ton of oats and gave us a good look...that yup he is a boar haha. After about an hour he slowly made his way away from us and the bait. At around 8pm a big bear came in cautiously. I got up and got ready. He came from directly in front of us and walked to the barrel smelled the top of it where Kyle had touched it ( he was the same height as the barrel standing up), walked to the ribbon that Kyle had tied and followed the same path Kyle took to the tree. He smelled the ladder and looked up at us then walked over to the tree (on my side of the stand...of course!). The whole time I wasn't worried...he was a big bear...big bears don't climb trees...I was wrong! He came up my side of the tree, right up under the stand...smelling the bottom of my boots. I was shaking so bad, just staring at him and he stared right back at me. He was beautiful...and big. After he decided to climb down, after what felt like a full 10 minutes, he walked away from the tree on my side so I turned and got ready just in case he gave me an opportunity. He stopped and turned broadside, I pulled back and....my bottom cam hit the stand when I released and my arrow flew above him. The smell of metal burning my nose and my mind freaking out that I damaged my bow. The treestand we were in had very tall arm rests, above my waist while standing. I was leaning over with my bow on the other side, but I must have naturally shifted after I pulled back and not realized. I missed him completely and after that he left. He came back to the stand a couple days later, he showed up on the camera but I never seen him again. I was really upset that I missed that big bear and possibly damaged my bow.

Hunt Day 4
Right away in the morning I checked my cam and limb. It wasn't damaged, just a small dent and some of the finish was taken off. I shot it and it was performing exactly the same as before so I decided it would be ok to keep hunting. This time I hunted in the same stand as the night before but had Kerwin sitting in the stand with me. It was a stressful evening! The first bear that came in for us was a sow with 3 black cubs. She did not like us being in the tree. The cubs went over and started eating and she came over to the tree looking up at us. You could tell she wasn't curious about us, but that she didn't want us there. All of a sudden she huffed at us and grabbed onto the tree to start coming up, Kerwin and I both stood up and started yelling at her and stomping our feet on the platform of the stand. She got off the tree and slowly walked out of our sight where you could hear her bluff charging our stand. I was freaking out. After the little show her one cub was curious about us. He came over and started climbing the tree...just what we needed. So we did the same thing. He didn't leave...and wasn't scared of us at all. He came back to the tree multiple times and I was starting to feel like I was talking to a naughty puppy telling him no.
After they left I was freaked out. I told Kerwin that if she would have came back to the tree I would have called it quits for the night. She scared the crap out of me. Later on we had another sow come in with 2 black cubs. The cubs came in to eat and she was walking in slowly behind them until she seen us. She stopped and turned around and left. She never came in closer then 40 yards from the stand. Her cubs weren't as brave as the ones before either. The one came to check us out and we were shooing him away and he just stared at us. Kerwin huffed at him and he came over and swatted the ground underneath us. He had some attitude. They would come and go until dark but the last time the came back in a friend had followed. The cubs gave him away. The one took off instantly and the other was hanging onto the side of a tree huffing at the other bear. There were trees in the way but if I leaned far enough over I could see the other bear. He was a big bear with a white V on his chest. I got my bow ready, feeling protective of the little cubs. Momma bear made her way over and bluff charged the boar and the boar took off
about 40 yards back. After he ran the cubs took off and mom followed them. The boar circled around back through all the blow down and followed her and her cubs. Rut was starting. By the time the 4 bears were gone it was time to climb down from the tree. Just before Kyle and Warren pulled up a bear had ran across the road in front of us in to where the bait was. Warren wanted to pull the memory card from the camera to see what was on it so him and Kyle went to retrieve it. We told them that there was a bear in there right now but they still went. A few minutes later you could hear yelling coming from the trees...apparently the little guy had some attitude and was not willing to give up the bait. But they came out unscathed! Afterwards we told Kyle and Warren about our night. They then told us about their night. They had an interesting night as well. A sow had chased a little boar up their tree. He came right up beside Kyle and stopped...and Kyle being Kyle he tried to pet it. So it moved to the backside of the tree and started heading up above them, so he slapped its paw. Warren was freaking out that he was going to piss it off. The bear scooted up the tree another 20 feet above them and stayed there the whole night. It also pooped on Warrens bow and pack!

Hunt Day 5
I did NOT want to go back to the same stand, so Kyle and Warren went to it. We went to the stand from the second night hunting. We sat and sat and never seen one bear the entire time. Kyle and Warren were having better luck then us. They had the sow and 2 cubs come in again and the same boar that followed them the night before. He gave Kyle a shot and he took it. After he shot the white V bear a bigger one took off that was coming in with it. They stayed in the stand until just before dark hoping Warren could get one but no luck. So they climbed down to deal with his bear. Warren couldn't do too much thanks to his broken leg so Kyle decided to pack the entire bear out in one shot...whole. They rolled it onto the pack and kyle laid on it to put it on. Warren had to help him roll over and he crawled over to some blow down to help get him up on his feet and walked out. We got to Warrens family farm and weighed the bear and started field cleaning it. It weighed in at 232lbs and was 6'1'' tall. The rough score on the skull was 18 1/2 Pope and Young. Kyle was happy, that was what he wanted- a P&Y bear.

Hunt Day 6
Our last day to hunt and it was pouring rain. Kerwin had to head home so it was just the 3 of us. Kyle tagged out so it was up to Warren and I. We sat in the same stand Kyle shot his bear from and the aggressive sow was. Kyle set up a hanger off to the side of us to video and Warren and I sat in the main stand. It was another slow night. Eventually we had a little sow come in. She was tiny and goofy. She was a character. Trying to pull the barrel down on top of her while she was laying back..sitting back on her haunches and she lost her balance and just flopped over like a dog. She tried pulling the trail camera off the tree and was rolling around on the ground. Warren and I were trying not to laugh to loudly. She heard us and came over to the tree and was moaning at us. She then sat on her back end and started playing with a stick and then the wrapper Warren had dropped from his Reeses Peanut Butter Cup. Both of us were just giggling. She then found an oil soaked napkin, came over, laid back and started rubbing the napkin all over her belly, starring at us the entire time. We were laughing so hard. I looked at Warren and I whispered to him "I think she likes your man scent" lol. She had to be in heat the way she was acting. I'm not sure if she thought we were a bear up there or what but we got quite the show! She hung out with us for at least 2 hours. It was a great way to end our hunting trip, even though I never tagged out. She was quite the bear.

We stayed the night at Warrens parents that night so we could shower and clean up. We loaded up in the morning and started the long trek back home to BC. We stopped for a quick visit with Kerwin and told him about our last night. We stopped in Edmonton again. Kyle wanted to show me the West Ed Mall because I had never been. It was huge. Went back to Cabelas then started our way home. We were both exhausted by the time we got home at 2am. It felt good to be home after the long drive.

Get Ready! Archery Saskatchewan Black Bear in May

We are very excited to say that come the middle of May we will be venturing out of BC for a hunt for our first time! And to hunt my favourite animal...Black bear in Saskatchewan! Going for the monsters! I will be testing out some new products and gear while there: BUCKED scent eliminator, my new SOS Gear bow sling and my new Cabelas pants and jacket. So be sure to keep a watch on the Ladies in Camo page and website for product reviews. If I have phone service or internet while I am there ill be updating through out the week on facebook and twitter. And be prepared for a story from us when we get home.