A lot of bear around this year.

[Troyfairweather]

In the orchard........View attachment 43362

I've walked up on one like that how hunting lol, reasons I don't like walking in early or out late now hunting. Looks good size

 

[Nameless Hunter]

I caught this one eyeballing my pikanik basket...

 

[hanshi]

In the orchard........View attachment 43362

Talk about a fat bear! This one looks like the one that came up almost in our faces in WV. My hunting partner and I were sitting on the ground next to a tree waiting for (maybe) a deer (doe) when this big, fat guy noticed us and came up to say howdy. It was hard not to laugh.

 

[nhmoose]

On this forum when you want to be sarcastic use [sarcasm/off] after the statement as many here are very challenged in reading comprehension and will complain like little girls. [sarcasm/off] See what I did there??

 

[Mad Professor]

Talk about a fat bear! This one looks like the one that came up almost in our faces in WV. My hunting partner and I were sitting on the ground next to a tree waiting for (maybe) a deer (doe) when this big, fat guy noticed us and came up to say howdy. It was hard not to laugh.

I never saw that one during the season but did track him a few times. He left a pile of poop that would overfill a 5-gal bucket.

 

[renegadehunter]

I've seen more bear this year then I have in probably the last ten years, I need to get some round balls ordered for my smooth bore soon.
I've seen a few bear this week during the day and a few at night driving to. Me and a buddy make a small hunting blind on his small property with a food plot, today he was back there discounting out and walked up on a bear. Nothing big but nice there hanging around

I've never shot a bear before, never even seen many in the woods even until the last few years.

I'd like to try and render the fat off it if I get one, anyone have a good reference on the proper way to do that or other uses for a bear.

The one my buddy took the picture of looks to be about 150 pounds to me but I can't size a bear like a deer. This Saturday are early bear season starts in the southern zone in New York, so hope I can get one.

View attachment 42685

While I've shot them before, I haven't had the opportunity in a few years and am also itching to try rendering down some bear fat. I put in a bait every spring but just haven't been that faithful to keeping it baited or hunting it the last couple of years. I do get a lot of pictures of them from this though.

A picture from that far away is hard to judge from, but your bear looks better than 150. They are deceptive since they get so stocky. A younger bear looks pretty lanky, the one in your picture is starting to go away from that lanky look and is getting that more stocky look of a mature bear. I think it would go 250 give or take as it stands. It is even harder to judge whether they are a boar or sow until they are more mature. A sow will be much more stocky in the hindquarters while a boar will carry a majority of it's weight in its chest and front legs. Your bear is probably in the 4 to 5 age range and I'd guess it is a sow, but I wouldn't wager any money on that. It is easier to tell once they get to be 6 or 7. It does look to have a beautiful hide with no rubbing. I will dig through my phone, I have a picture of a beautiful blond phase bear that I know to be within a year of 5 years old.

I've heard a crock pot isn't bad for rendering it, you want to heat it pretty slowly. I've also read that if you're a married fellow...and want to stay that way...then it is a good idea to do the rendering outside. I've also read that you'll never eat a better homemade donut than one cooked in bear grease.

As far as eating it. I'm not the biggest fan of it except for a few ways. It is very greasy/tallow'y. If eating it as a steak, don't fry it. Broil it or something similar so you can get the grease to run out of it and separate. I've heard of sitting it on a broiler in the oven for a bit at only 200 degrees to get the grease to run out of it, then season and cook as normal, especially if you do a roast.
In my humble opinion the absolute best way to eat it is to turn ALL of it into pepperoni or summer sausage. A garlic-onion brine or jalapeno-cheese brine are my favorites for summer sausage. (I have a local meat processor make this for me, they do an excellent job with it.)

 

[renegadehunter]

Here is the blond, it is within a year of 5 years old. Still not sure if it is a boar or sow.

And here is a boar that is around 8 or 9. Very stocky. The weird red dot is from the game camera flash, I’m not about to poach it with a laser scoped rifle. Just wanted that to be clear.

 

[Troyfairweather]

@renegadehunter .
Thanks for the info and cool pictures, it would seem easier to bait but we can't do it here. Most of the land I hunt it's rear to see bear, maybe during bow but never have I seen one just walking in the woods. I have walked up on a very large bear one time, I almost tripped over it.

iv e only seen bear with a small white patch never a blonde one, that sure is a pretty bear. I've seen a few albino and colbolt deer, they would make a nice mount but I've heard to may stories of guys shooting them and croking afterwords. Plus I have some Indian blood so I'm not taking the chance lol.

I have seen some big bear here, my friends son shot one a few years ago over 500 and that was it capped and no gutts. I've seen the as big at night driving, seen one in the summer walking across a field in the day. Maybe 300-400 yards, I thought at first the farm had a black Angus get out. It was that big.

Are early bear has ended, I didn't get out hardly so have to wait for rifle and muzzleloader to try and get one.

 

[GAHUNTER60]

It's gotten to where here in the north Georgia mountains, you are just about as likely to see a bear in the woods as you are a deer. In some places you'll see considerably more bears than deer, as our mountain deer population has somewhat collapsed over the last 20 years.

A lot of hunters here blame the collapse over the rise of the bear population and their predation on fawns. Biologists disagree, however. Yes, bears do take a few fawns every year, but coyotes take a lot more, and coyotes are now prolific in ever county in the state.

But the real culprit is the fact that the U.S. Forest Service, by far the biggest landowner in the region, has quit managing timber in a method that supports healthy deer populations. The tree huggers have gotten them to adopt a "hands off" approach to forest management in the area, meaning that there is no timber harvesting creating forest openings in which deer thrive. We are quickly approaching "climax forest" in the area. For whatever reason, bears are more suited to thriving in this type of forest than deer.

Bear hunters are happy with the recent turn of events; deer hunters, not so much!

 

[vintovka]

Here on the banks of Oregons Siuslaw river the bears are rarelly seen but the the large amount of their scat attests to their nocturnal visits. They seem to just eat the berries and sleep all day. The fawns seem totally calm and use our lawn for a bed with the Bear toilets in the brush less than 5 feet away. Looking at either a game camera or one of those "ring" floodlight cams near the front door. Dunno how big the bear are but "mr remington" is always behind the door for emergencies.

 

[Tom A Hawk]

We had a big Momma and three juveniles last year. So far this season I have seen a Momma and a cub.

 

[vintovka]

Ok you "scatologists" if bear poop is approximatley 2" in diameter (visual observation no dial micrometer). How big could the bear be?

 

[SDSmlf]

Two deer hunters near Edson, Alberta, Canada, shot footage of a grizzly and her three cubs on October 31.

 

[Patocazador]

In the orchard........View attachment 43362

Now that is a monster. Lots of rendered fat there .

My game cameras show 11 different bears (including cubs) on 150 acres. Obviously, they are roaming all around but it still makes me a tad nervous after dark.