Story and Hunt from September 2015:
Last Friday, myself and three friends departed for someplace in Minnesota for an adventure. Little did I know it would turn into an exercise in mind over body and a true exploration of what makes me tick.
The other three members of the hunting party left last Friday morning so they could get an extra night in the stand on Friday evening while I elected to wait until after school to save a personal day. In route, I received a flurry of texts, as two of the guys filled their tags before I even got out to bear camp. I was both excited for them and kind of questioning myself at the same time. This would not be the first time in the experience where I felt a sense of both regret and apprehension.
Saturday was a day filled with trail cam checks, baiting, and scent showers and a huge blast of anxiety and adrenaline. I had never been in close proximity to a Black Bear. I also had only been in a tree stand once before and that one was about 10 feet up. The stand I would sit in would be 20+ feet up. I was brought to the stand at 2:30 in the afternoon, knowing that the bigger two bears on this bait weren’t showing up until after 7.
Now, if you knew me at all, when instructed that in order to have a chance at either one of these 2 bears I would have to remain very still and not move for 4 hours, YIKES!
Well, I did not know if it was in my make-up to do so. It was well over 80 degrees. I was sweating. A lot. I’m kind of a sweaty guy when you turn the heat up. Normally this would be an inconvenience.
There was one good side effect though, no peeing.
I don’t know how it is possible but I guess 300 pound animals can cross miles of leaf litter without making a sound, because at approximately 6:44 that 300 pound bear was just there. The shot of adrenaline to my system was borderline overwhelming. It was also probably part of the downfall of my first night in a bear stand.
I was unable to close the deal on that majestic animal and it would haunt me the next night in the stand as I sat through a thunderstorm. That lost opportunity also strengthened my resolve to return in a week to try to close the deal on what I was starting to think might be a doomed experience.
The 4-day week would be shortened to 3 for me as I would take a personal day Friday and meet up with the other member of our party, who also went without filling his tag.
Fast-forward to this past Friday and you would find the two of us sitting in stands again over bait of granola, peanuts, cashews, and used restaurant oil. Around 7:15, I heard the sound that I was both hoping for yet dreading at the same time.
The resounding echo of Josh’s rifle.
I just prayed that he connected. We regrouped at his stand and started in on the blood tracking experience that we had undergone barely a week earlier. If you have never attempted to track a wounded bear, in the woods, in the dark, with a headlamp, you must try it sometime, it’s fun!
The only problem with this blood tracking experience is……there was none. We removed ourselves from the woods with heads down and sprits dim. We discussed returning the next morning for a more thorough search, but realistically I think in all of our minds we had conceded the fact that it was another missed opportunity. That night the two of us enjoyed pizza with our hosts and I showed pictures of our water fowling exploits that Eric and a few of his family members were looking forward to being a part of in a couple of weeks. When we returned to our cabin, things were quiet, real quiet.
