Popcorn is bought at sams club in Wisconsin for about $26.00 us. This year we bought 30 bags of 55lbs each. About 1600lbs of kernels. Still have about 1000 pounds still to pop.
Along with 5800 pounds of cookies and cookie dough. From Otter Lake Outfitters from Gilman Wi.
Still to arrive is 3600 pounds of gummie bears and about 3 tons of dairy ration that I mix with a thick cherry syrop.
I start baiting next week for this Fall season.
All that popcorn is mixed by sticks with Resturant oil, brown sugar and strawberry or cherry jello powder. Then stored in a cool place.
Before hunters arrive I bait sites every day.
Once hunter arrives he baits every day. Baits are maintained by the hunters after they are shown the bait site.
Hunters drive to the sites with their own vehicle. This allows them to leave from camp to hunt at their pace. Allowing them to fish on the way to the baits, or just photograph moose or any other animal they see.
Baits are from 1.5 miles to 55 miles. All good roads. Gas station 1 mile from camp which has diesel, minnows, hunting supplies licenses and export permits.
I have 9 large bear management areas 2 of which are solely for archers.
We have no openings left for bear in 2015. We have openings for 2016 at this years prices.
Beavers build their dams on the high side allowing for the dams but still allows passage. Where this picture was taken, access is now available. This year for the first time in 3 years all the roads are fixed up ready to go.
The new LLWC's open up 2 more bma's for us to hunt this year.
This is an example of our worst thing you will encounter, with the roads.
Here is one of our 2 bedroom cabins.
Huntcell, we don't use safety harnesses for ladder stands when setting one up in a spruce tree full of branches.
I recommend all my hunters wear them when sitting on stand. Whether they use a harness or not is up to them. Thanks for your concern.
In the Fall we use all sweet bait, no meat.
Last year bugs were as bad as they were during spring hunts. This year they won't be as bad, if there are any at all. I suggest to my hunters to bring up head nets and light weigh gloves for the mosquitoes. Just to be prepared.
Nothing is as bad, when it comes to bugs, as what we encountered in the Outback of Australia. Had to wear head nets just to walk down the streets of Uluru, with 112F temps to boot!!
They still hit baits during daylight hours but too much movement in the stands or too much mosquito spray or taking pictures of the little bears while waiting for the big one will make large bears nervous.
They could be standing at a distance watching you with a belly full of BLUE BERRIES and you don't even know it. Possibly changing them to night time activity at the baits. Berries by day baits by night.
I mentioned to my customers arriving this fall, to look at bowsite.com for this thread to give them insight into our hunts. Hope others don't mind!!
Any rumblings/rumors up there re this coming spring? (2016)
They are talking of dealing with the predators (bears) starting next year, 2016. I hope that means bringing back the spring hunt.
Also a CO asked me if I would offer a spring bear hunt if they had one next year, I politely said, that's a dumb question. I wondered why he would ask that question.
There's lots of talking on everyone's part here in Ontario. If it doesn't happen in 2016, it never will!!
Residents are now wanting to get rid of the bears as they are killing our moose.
I know some non-residents that will partake in a spring hunt though!!!
In the meantime, guys like Spike Buck and Skull do a pretty good job up there in Ontario with their fall hunts. In fact, a REAL good job.
Best wishes Chris. Looking forward to your thread this fall.
Our archery sites offer archers a 15 to 23 yard shot.
Most are about a 200 - 300 yard walk in from the road or atv trail. Atv's cannot get right to the baits.
My trail cam showed this bear was a regular so he waited patiently for him.
Had to gurney the bear about 3/4 mile as there was no raod access.
He watched us for a while then went back to the berries. We passed him up.
I sure hope they open that spring hunt up this coming year for non-residents. It's high time they did. Ontario has so much to offer.
I put cameras out, as I have 1 bait with a cinnamon bear hitting it.
Good to hear Skull's doing great.
We skinned it on the spot and carried out the meat and bear skin.
Same hunter took a wolf the day before his bear.
Bear had a white patch on his chest. That's how he knew it was the same bear.
***69 days till our 41rst bear hunt***
Rifle and under 18 must hunt with an adult with them.
Price will be $1295.00. Baits, treestands, 1 month of prebaiting. Cabin is wired for the grid but is run by a generator.
Must track and retrieve own bear. There will be a fair sized bait run for the hunters staying at the cabin.
1 cabin at the site, with walleye fishing included. Boat and motor at the dock. Only cabin on 22 miles of river.
Previously used as our whitetail hunting outpost. Will be considered "DO IT YOURSELF" bear hunt. Guide visits once every 3 days. Cell phones work off deck to call main base.
Set a couple of beavers there today.
67 more days till Ontario Fall bear hunting!!
One site of mine, right now shows bears hitting the bait every hour of the day.
Evening Bait.
140 more bags of corn to mix.
2016 bear hunts are 6 day hunts.
Plan #1 includes buffet suppers and boat and motor. Includes cabin. Price $1595.00 us. SEMI GUIDED Main camp.
Plan # 2 no fishing and cook your own meals. Includes cabin. Price is going to be $1295.00 us. SEMI GUIDED main camp
Mutrie, river outpost that's mentioned above, will be a price of $1295.00. Includes boat and motor for walleye and Northern fishing. Only 2 to 4 hunters at a time at the outpost. DIY outpost
How many hunters are told by their outfitters that mornings are not productive on baits??? This bear shows up mostly morning hours.
Evening Bait.
Black Bluff Bait.
This bait has a minimum of 8 bears hitting it.
Clay Lake Bait.
Chips Bait.
Black Bluff Bait.
Clay Lake Bait.
55 more days till Ontario Fall bear hunting.
Heard on CBC news that biologist are going over data now to decide on whether or not to bring back the spring hunt. Not enough residents taking part in the spring hunt. Cross your fingers!!!
There's about 12 different bears hitting this bait all during the day now.
Evening Bait.
We have 9 baits out right now. By the end of July we will have 75 baits out.
Black Bluff Bait.
Wood needs to age a bit.
Before I pick a spot, I scout out an area many times before deciding where to set up.
Camp has 9 large bear management areas. Some of my BMA's borders a provincial park, no hunting within parks boundry.
A couple BMA's that border us are unassigned, great for reproduction.
Baits are from 1.5 miles from camp to 55 miles. West, North and East Of camp.
Season opens September 15th. Your wolf license includes a small game tag giving hunters an oportunity for a feast of grouse.
Hunters on plan #2, can do a little grouse hunting instead of fishing.
These are just a few of the critters I have encountered recently while working in the great outdoors!!
Chips Bait.
Chips Bait.
Chips Bait.
Double Dam Bait.
Obviously whatever you are doing is working but just curious about your baiting routine. Thanks and again, great pictures.
The bucket is filled with a mixture of a granola I mix up that includes licorice, gummi bears, cookies, oats mixed with a thick cherry syrop and dough. With some popcorn.
Baits are checked and rebaited every day.
We have been hanging baits for about 20 of the 41 years of bear hunting.
The hanging 5 gallon bucket and stand is the only thing at the bait site, keeping the bait site as clean looking as we can.
Bear biologist from Dryden district go on bait runs on a regular basis with us. They like our hanging bait setups.
I look forward to answering your questions as I'm sure many others are wondering the same.
We look for hair on the tree, to see if there are coloured bears hitting.
I just bought 3 new Moultrie cameras today to add to my collection.
For instance, we know the bear taken was not the large resident bear or a coloured bear moves in. I have to have a good reason for hunting it once again.
While hunters are hunting, baiters will have their bait runs to work. Allowing for stand-by bait sites for the hunters if they need to move to another site.
We discuss each evening and over 5 pots of coffee in the morning, what the hunters have seen and discuss any concerns the hunters have. If I suggest a hunter stays on his bait for another day, I will give him a reason as to why, but the hunters will make the final decision on moving to another site.
It's important that hunters in camp talk to us and ask lots of questions while here in camp as it is a SEMI GUIDED hunt. Some of their success depends on communication between baiters, me and the hunter.
I always enjoy talking bears!!!
I'll post a picture of a ground blind when I start a ground blind up in about 15 days.
Totally enjoying this thread. It shows just how much time and effort goes into it from an outfitters perspective when it's done right.
8 were still being used when I took over the bear camp from my dad in 1998.
Now we have six cabins. We replaced 3 dedmolished cabins with 1 new one.
I helped skin a bear the first day out. I was now hooked on bear hunting.
Our first customers in 74 were Tennesseeans. They came here to run bears with Plott Hounds. They invited me to go with them when ever I was out of school. They stayed almost a month.
Been guiding Bear Hunters ever since!!!
Double Dam Bait.
Last year there was a sow at this bait with 2 cubs.
Should call the bait Bear Factory!!
Just so happens that we have just built a permanent tree stand here for 2, last week, out of green treated lumber.
New camera needs adjusting I see.
Bridge Bait.
Some pretty good bear picts to. 8~)
Includes cabin, treestands or ground blinds, active baited sites ( grains and mineral licks), tracking and retrieval and suppers.
1-800-757-2241.
Successful Louisiana hunter with Saxon the guide.
Outpost also open for last week of muzzle loader season.
Do it yourself, $1295.00 for 7 days. Baited sites ( grains, salt licks and deer cane pits), treestands or ground blinds.
Hunt exclusive, gated, private land along with hundreds of acres of land locked crown land
Gated land.
Miles of ATV trails.
My very first bear hunt was in Ontario, a spring hunt back in the early 80's and it's a hunt I'll always remember. I've been to Manitoba and Alberta bear hunting several times over and the bear hunting was/is amazing but I have to admit, Ontario is where my heart is. I love Ontario. The scenery, the fishing, all of it...
I hope to make a trip up this fall to see Skull over there in Sudbury but for now, I'm just glad to see an outfitter in Ontario who works hard, does it right and is so successful. Ontario has amazing potential.
So enjoying this thread.
My teachers of the bear trade were the American bear hunters that hunted out of our camp in the mid to late 70's.
When they closed the spring hunt, unlike many other Ontario outfitters, We were already conducting Fall hunts. Fall hunts are not easy for bear outfitters.
For instance:
The heat reaches up to 90F on a regular, almost daily basis when we are baiting pre-season. Usually when the hunt starts August 15th its cooling down. We start baiting NOW for August.
Last year we had to wear an upper body mosquito net every day of the pre-season and during, in 90F temps.
Blue berries, wild sassperalla, mountain ash and massive amounts of hazel nuts. All these natural foods are here when fall bear starts.
*** We are successful because we use all sweets for our baiting to compete with the berries. Along with starting up our sites over a month in advance of the Fall hunt.
A Fall bear outfitter must be committed to working HARD pre-season and during the hunt. A 3 month commitment.
A spring hunt is so much easier on the outfitter for many reasons, such as no natural foods other than clover.I know this as I Spring hunted for 2 1/2 decades. BUT, I find it quite rewarding and enjoy the challenge of a Fall bear hunt.
If a hunter chooses Ontario as their Fall bear destination I recommend they pick a bear hunting only outfit, as fishing camps are too busy working with their fisherman when they should be getting ready for their hunters success. Many Ontario fishing camps do not start baiting until the week or 2 before the hunt.
I have hard working baiters and guides, as all sponsors of bowsite have. They enjoy the outdoors and enjoy the smile on the hunters faces. If I didn't enjoy bear hunting I would not have been in the business for over 4 decades.
Our bears have great potential for P&Y and B&C.
I went over to talk to them and the gentlemen, who was from MO. said he hunted with us in 82' and just wanted a picture of the cabin he stayed in when he was hunting at Pine Acres.
I thought that was pretty cool!!
Pipeline Bait.
Bridge Bait.
When the truck died on the road in the mid 60's, they just left it almost in the middle of the old road. Plate says Sept 1967.
I started baiting this site in 1980. It has been a VERY successful site.
I started this bait up 5 days ago and is now being hit hard. I will put a camera there tomorrow to see whats coming into the site.
From the looks of the times on those trail cam picts, at a lot of those stands your guys would be just as well off hunting in the early morning as they would in the evening.
Enjoying this thread!
Not a very big sow.
There are 2 other bears visiting this site besides the sow and 2 cubs.
Ibow, we will have a few hunters hunting at day break August 15. Many of our bears are taken during the morning hours.
Pipeline Bait.
It's about 30 yards from a lake shore.
Pipeline Bait.
Truck Bait.
Might just have to give some serious consideration to giving up down here and coming to hunt with you! Looks like you got it down pretty good!
Of course you might not be able to hang buckets in Mn.
Bears looking in the direction of the baiters trail.
Bridge Bait.
