Taking bait into Canada
Bears
Going on a spring bear hunt in Quebec in a couple of months and taking some donuts, grease, and other goodies for bait. Any recommendations for taking this stuff accross the boarder?
I take Donuts through Canada to Alaska I just tell them what I have and they have only looked one time.
I wouldn't leave the impression that you are going to dispose of this in Canada. Think of some script that steers away from garbage or disposal. Now, I don't know the regs in QC but if you require a guide why wouldn't you leave the bait thing in the guides hands (just a thought)? Donuts may be easier to expain than contaminated oil....I'd give some thought to that one.
I'll make you a bet. Go to the Quebec forum. Ask for help buying bear bait across the border. I'll bet for $50 you can buy all you need and it may even be free.
When I hunted Ontario, I picked up 300 pounds of bait in of all places, Fort Frances and they even loaded for me at no cost. It was candy bars, pastries and old bread. Mostly take out from vending machnes.
Good candy bars, too.
Last summer we took several 30 gallon drums of chocolate/peanut butter granola across the border at the Soo from Michigan into Ontario and had no problem.
Ibow, I think you were really lucky. Several 30 gallon drums should raised some concern at the border. We have a repeat client that upon arriving for his bear hunt, takes a trip into town to the nearest Tim Hortons and buys several boxes of donuts for his hunt....although the extra treats are usually for video taping after he has taken his bear.
My best freind lives in Sault Ste Marie, Ont. He has ran a bear camp near Chapleau since the early eighties. For him its become almost impossible to get pastry or meat scraps in the Soo. To the point he switched a few years ago to popcorn mixed with fryer oil and molasses. I used to take bait until 5 or 6 years ago. I had to leave two 55 gal drums of frozen donuts, pies, and cake at the border. You would of thought I was bringing in Hazardess material the way I was treated.
We may well have been fortunate to have not gotten into any border issues.
We had two vehicles and I think each one of us had 2 barrels ... When asked, I simply told him what it was and he waved us through, no problem. Not sure if it was not an issue with them in the first place or if at the time he just didn't feel like messing with it.
The bigger problem was that a week before we got there, our "outfitter" pretty much inferred that he had lost his local Tim Hortons source and at the last minute we scrambled and found this outfit near home where we could get that granola mix. As it turned out, it was a good thing we brought something with us. 8~(
I should add the big issue was because it was frozen. They were concerned there could of been something inside the frozen mess.I asked them if I waited until it thawed and showed them there was nothing else inside could I take it and was told NO. At any rate, it wasn't worth the interegation or the hour hold up at the border.
I really don't know about the border issue, but I am sure you can find a Tim Horton's or a Duncan Donuts on your way once your in Qc. We have donut shops everywhere, just don't look for one too far in the bush! To what region are you headed?
To be honest, it seems incredibly silly for some of these issues to arise between Canada and the US ... in so many respects we are so much alike. (LOL - I hope that doesn't offend any Canadians) You'd think it wouldn't have to be this way ... at least between the US and Canada.
A couple weeks ago my wife and I vacationed down south and we met and talked with many, many people from Ontario and Quebec all week long. It occurred to me that many of us have the same values, concerns and lives in general.
Sadly, I guess it's the times we live in.
Ibow, I agree when you say "It occurred to me that many of us have the same values, concerns and lives in general" and am certainly not offended we all want to try hunting on the other side of the border! You guys dream of bears, we dream of turkeys. It's always greener on the other side.
Let me give a tip to all...US or Canadian bear hunters. Find out who owns the vending machines in the area. All of the outdated products must be removed and usually thrown away. Contact them and see what you can work out. Candy bars are every bit as good a donuts and the little gooey filled pies and cakes are better.
Maybe you pay a little something, maybe not. I never did. Did buy the owner a bottle of smooth every year. I just called him a coule weeks in advance and he started saving stuff for me.
We take 5 gallon buckets full of grease from the Pancake fesival held in Beaver Co. Pennsylvania. Plus we take 4 or 5 bags of Donuts. to Quebec. I cant say they every asked what it was. Best thing is have your Weapon Dec. forms filled out before you get the border. If you are organized and act like you have done it before It should go pretty smoothly.
Timber
Qcbowhunter..We got turkey hunt now in Qc not as much as the US but can go for a drive in the truck whit out spotting a bunch of them.Biggest flock we saw here was 62 two spring ago.BUT NO BEAR...
Going north of Ft Coulonge. We are going to be pressed for time getting up there and won't have a lot of time to scout out "goodies" on the Canadian side before we need to be to camp, although I wish I had time to do that. Sound like that would be a lot less hassle. Thanks for the tips. Sounds like much of it may be based on what boarder guard you pull and what kind of a day he/she is having. dino
Dino,an easy wait to do it,stop at the grocery store an ask for the meat manager if you can take all the meat scrap(if you dont mind using meat).The bigger the market the more you should get. Good luck
The guide that we are using has meat available to bait with. He doesn't provide donuts or sweet stuff. That's what we are looking to cart up with us. If we can't get our stuff across the boarder for one reason or another, I probably will stop at a couple of grocery stores up there to see what we can pick up. dino
dont forget those passports
you do not need a passport if you drive across the border....only need if you Fly. You do however need a birth cert. if you do not have a Passport.
As far as bait goes .... last year we had 14 bait sites and everyone we had fish or meat did not get hit the entire week. every one that had donuts and bacon grease got hit. Bears like the sweet stuff.
Timber
I will agree on the fish in 7 years running bait for outfitters,saw many different ways of tinking,and only onces did fish scrap work't.I use fresh meat on all baits,and vanilla and chocolat cookies and most time big bores go for the meat.I keep the sweets for the end of season when tempature roth's the meat in 3 days.A 5 gallons pale of grease allways work,and I go true 4, 55 gallons of frying oil in a season.It works for me.
Mm
just curious, it sounds like you guys bringing bait are all using guides or outfitters would it not be wiser to use an outfitter who has the baits hitting eveyday due to good bait and baiting habits? or is it a cheaper hunt when you bait yourself? Just wondering why you would need to bring bait.
Carl,
We hunt just outside Kipewa Quebec. The Outfitter is primarily into fishing. I was invited to hunt the area by a friend who owns a cabin in the area and has befriended this outfitter. This outfitter gets 9 permits to hunt this particular area. Last year 7 out of nine guys harvested Bears.
We pay an unbelievable rate of 700 US to the outfitter plus license and expenses. I believe that last year the week cost me 1,200 for EVERYTHING. He gives us one of his fishing cabins. He begins baiting as soon as the snow melts which is usually late April or early May. When we get their in late May we are own our own. We access the bait sites via ATV and do every thing else ourselves. It basically is a do it yourself hunt. Last year I baited every day and hunted every day and put more than 30 miles a day on my ATV. The Outfitter would either Call us or stop by once a day to see how it was going. Last year was my first year but the guys that invited me have hunted there for 5 years. It is really a unique situation and one that I am lucky to be involved in.
Timber
I to have experimented with fish several times with little success the bears would actually eat the meat,bread and pastries but leave the fish.
Same thing with chicken. I've found bears won't touch it even when it's still fresh. As for fish,if you have a creek system where suckers are spawning black bears will readily go after them. A lot depends on what they have readily available to them in their normal range and if fish becomes a part of their diet in the spring, then you can count on them being there each season.
American bowhunters are good bait!!!
When I take bait into Canada I'm only driving through it on my way to Alaska.
The skins from smoked salmon are superb. Throw one up in a tree as high as you can. Great scent attractant. Fish nasties will work but not very well.
So wheny ou go this year, on the way back you spend the night in the largest town on the Canadian side of the border. You get up in the morning, get out the phone book and start calling vending companies. You lay the groundwork for next year and then you stay n touch all year.
Next year, 2-3 weeks before heading up, you call your man and ask him to start saving takeouts. But be warned, a bear does not like Zagnut bars. I fully understand that.
The last few years I have bear hunted, I used nothing but meat scraps, bulk peanut butter and grease and smoked salmon skins. Seemed to work pretty good.
I don't recommend taking powder sugar donuts into Canada. My hippie buddy got tore down and searched extensively when they spotted the white powder residue on his truck bumper.
Orion LMAO.
Everybody zeros in on the obvious like Tim Horton's or some big grocery. I'm telling you, all the prime bear you could ask for is being thrown away daily and you can get for free if do a little groundwork. Don't look right where you are hunting. Look at town before you get into bear country. In Sask. We had a reefer truck bring in 2,000 pounds of past date meat right to the camp.
Didn't Tim Hortons or one of those coffee places recently start locking their rubbish bins? Some corporate orders from above, the PETA folks know the old stock gets used for bear bait and complained? I remember hearing something like that last year.
???
If you're trying to bring in bait I would imagine how it's loaded would have a bearing on what problems you might have. If the candy or donuts or whatever was still in the cases, boxes, wrappers, etc. you might have a problem. If it was unpacked, unwrapped and loaded in garbage cans or bags so they know it wasn't being used for human consumption it might be easier. Either way, you might have the address of a close USA landfill handy. Good luck on your hunt.
I imagine Bigdan has his twinkies all skinned by now!
I've been bringing bait through the soo for 11years now. Only one time had a problem. It was the coffee can full of bacon grease.(not edible)We had garbage cans full of donuts and poptarts(edible). It cost us several hours by the time we returned to the US and disposed of the grease.Looking back I should have just eaten a handfull of grease, and told them i'm on a special diet. Jeff
