Contributors to this thread:
For a person that is going to bait for themselves and hunt on their own, what kind of goodies that you use for bear hunting. I have heard of anise oil, popcorn, rolls, etc. I have also heard of using perfume also. Im not so sure about that. Anyone use perfume as an attractant too. Thanks.
Licorice, they like licorice! And candy corn!
We use Molasses Donuts and Grease.
You can get molasses from most feed / grain stores.
We collect donuts from donut stores. The balk of our “sweets” if you will, come from a Hostess Twinkie bakery. Every Tuesday the plant throws out all their out of date bake goods. However, for 8 dollars we can fill up a pickup truck with all the cup cakes, Twinkies, snow balls, etc. that we want.
We also supply a Maple syrup festival with 5 gallon buckets in exchange for all the bacon grease we want.
Timber
If you have the source. Big Bears love fresh meat better than anything.
Dan
Beavers by far the best Everthing likes beaver. And old fryer grease, meat scrapes is great. Don't use perfume.
Beef and pork fat cut into small sizes..
Donuts, pastries....anything sweet.
I use the cheapest dry dog food covered in fake maple syrup and jello, chocolate or karo syrup. Do honey burns. Hang anise and vanilla scent.
from what i have seen it is far less about what you bait with an all about making sure you bait with A HECK OF A LOT of whatever it is you bait with.
when it comes to bear bait quality does NOT make up for lack of quantity. you want to make sure the bait is stoked heavy, kept heavy, and never runs out. it will create a bait station that will hold many bears and annually be a hot spot.
i have hunted with guys who used meat, oats, donuts, bread, popcorn, and even candy. in the end the best results have been with the guys who focus on heavy heavy baiting.
If you're not hunting baits that are loaded with two or three loads like this DAILY you're not hunting heavily baited baits.
5 GALLON BUCKETS ARE FOR SISSIES!
Sugar cookies were the bait in NW Saskatchewan that our outfitter used. Just received his news letter that said they had 28 fall bear hunters and everyone got their bear.
I live 350 miles south of where we are going to be hunting. We are going up in Mid-August to bait 2 baits. THen returning 2 weeks later to hunt the opener. We plan on having a lot of bait there.
Threre are too many to list. Most politicians, PETA members, actors. I could go for 2 more days before I even started on my ex-wife and her family but I think you get the idea. Andy
Beaver is to a bear what filet mignon and a glass of fine wine is to a man!
For a light load that will keep bears coming in - I vote for popcorn ( I pop it up in an electric wok) and covered with jello mix ( strawberry and cherry are favorites of the bears). I can end up with a trash bag full like in Bou'bounds picture... but its light.
For a really good bait; that is fairly cheap and always available; get some cheap dog food and buy some gallon jugs of cheap maple flavored syrup. I pour one gallon on a 50 pound bag. The bears will keep coming into that.
For an Attractant:
You can buy some cheap vodka; put some in a seal able jar - like a mason jar; and add some fennel or anise seeds. By the time the season is here; you will have scent to spray around the bait that will encourage them to follow their noses. DO NOT KIDNEY FILTER BEFORE SPRAYING !
Also 'liquid smoke' is a good thing to spray around.
I also do what few men have dared to do.
I have sprayed every time I bait - on the tree just above my stand..... OFF or whatever mosquito repellent is my 'debug of choice'.
Any thing sweet tasting you can put on the bait is good.
Your bear will taste better for it !!!
Best baits are baits the big bear can't tear off and eat somewhere else... like popcorn or dog food... small stuff.
Trail Cameras, burn Honey, and all or any of above. they have one thing on mind (FOOD)
Milt
I bought a ton of pearsons salted nut rolls from a dude a couple years ago and it worked awesome, but was nasty stiky!
michael
Other than beaver, once the bears stomach get conditioned, their is nothing better than a fresh beef or horse carcass. The next best thing would be the quarters or the body mius the quarters.
Donuts are great bait and especially early in the season, but if you are not hunting in an area with a high bear density, then by all means try to use a carcass. It will be as good as any bait or concoction you can use.
Have a great bowhunt. BB
Animal Killer.....WHere you gonna be hunting? IF there are brown/grizz in the area like there is here in Alaska, forget carcasses or meat. Those things attract the brownies fast.
Even the sweets get brownies in on them, but not as fast as rotting meat.
The best bait for giant boars is a hot sow. Hunt the rut for your best chance at a monster black.
Will be hunting Northern Minnesota if we get drawn.
Animal killer, Where do you go if you get drawn ? We go north of Big Falls 30 miles south of International Falls . We got skunked last year but did have 21 different bears hitting 12 baits only the cams saw them though.
Most likely near Grayla, Mn. I think thats how you spell it. ITs but 40-50 miles NE of Thief River Falls.
Some big bears up near Grygla, thats were I hunt.
You hunt public or private land? we hunted the wapati WMA in 2006
I used to own a trout farm and guys would come and get my fish guts at the end of every weekend in the fall. They swore by them as the best way to get bears started on the bait. They also used old doughnuts and bread and stuff too but the scent of the fish guts really traveled.
"You hunt public or private land? we hunted the wapati WMA in 2006
Public too. Near fourtown about 10 miles east of Grygla, lot of good state land around that area.
Some big bears for sure.
Last couple of years has been hit or miss though. Try get one 1st couple weeks if you can, gets tough to find them after that has been any way.
Bou - Even from the back, that feller in the picture is familiar....
iowaPete
We hunted on the west side of that big dam or dike thing. THere is a lot of water bag there isnt there. How far back does that go?
Love these bait tip treads..
"Anyone use perfume as an attractant too" I tried my daughters "cotton candy" perfume last year and had some good luck with it... Got to watch both Elk and Bears come in and take a good look at the tree I had been spraying. For the money liquid smoke is hard to beat.
First you need to check state laws and find out what is legal to bait with and how much bait can be placed at one time. Baiting one time and then going back two weeks later while I won't say that you won't get a bear by doing this you would be far better off finding a local from the area and pay him to bait for you to keep the baits active and going if your serious on getting a bear.
I have great luck with corn on the cob.Leave the husks on of course.Its a little heavy to carry but it doesnt spoil for a long time.If you can bait one raiding a corn field you'll get lots of action.
Drop Tine brings up a very valid point. Some states, thanks to the input of the anti's have a limit to the amount of bait one can place. But in area where you are not restricted and especially in areas were the bear density is not high, the placing of a good pile of bait, left over long periods of time have been very beneficial to me over the many years I have been baiting (over 25).
I know some guys like to personally limit the bait they place for one reason or another. I don't. I like any bear in the area to have plenty to eat every time he/she comes to the bait. I also appreciate their help in spreading the scent around, to help attract other bears. I am a big believer in the more bears you can get to your bait, that are well fed, and that ALWAYS find bait there, the more bears you will end up seeing. I spare no bait!
And for the same a grizzly will be attached to a carcass, a black bear will too. If it’s legal in your area to use carcasses and you’re not doing it, then you are missing out on a great opportunity, not only to see more bears, but to see larger boars. At carcass to a big ole boar has the same effect that a magnet has to metal filings.
The photo above is one my typical baits early in the season. Once the bears get their stomachs acclimated, then I would prefer a carcass or at least some quarters be on the bait too.
Have a great bowhunt. BB
Here's a photo of the same bait, taken in 2008, a bit later the same evening, and being visited during good shooting light by a medium bear.
Have a great bowhunt. BB
And on that same evening, at about 8 o clock I had this sow and cub of the year come into the bait.
I know in some areas its not unusual to cubs of the year, but in the areas I have hunted, over all those years, its the very first time I have seen a sow bring in a cub of the year.
When I took this photo, the shutter noise scared the mom and off they went.
Here's a the next two photos I took. The top photo shows them taking off and on the bottom photo you will see the young cub stopped and almost decided to climb a tree, but then changed its mind and followed his mom up the steep hill.
Have a great bowhunt. BB
"We hunted on the west side of that big dam or dike thing. THere is a lot of water bag there isnt there. How far back does that go?"
Couple miles if its the one im thinking of. Look at google earth give you a good idea.
Bowbound who is that long haired dude ??? that spot looked good .STEVE
Do you guys think that carp will work?
Everybody knows the best bear bait is picanic baskets, BooBoo.
This was a truck load I picked up for my guide Taz . STEVE
Bou: My bowhunting friends, family and clients have killed a wack of 19's, a whole bunch of 20-plus and several 21-plus-inch bruins over the past 20-odd years by using less than a five gallon bucket of bait per day. Location and technique trumps quantity. Cheers; Rob (Big Sissy) Nye.
... and they love the fact that my bait sites look clean and natural. The bears seem way more relaxed as well.
Junkie, I've used carp in the past and it works good to get a lot of scent in the air, but it does not last long and they will pack it off if the can get to it. Last year I hung 3 from ropes 10' in the air and they made it a month before the bears figured out how to get them down...Be careful not to hang them up wind or to close to your stand... They do stink
Rob I watched a show where you were guiding bears and implemented your technique. But what about the hunters who can only bait once a week?
Different story there r_j. I bait every day or every 2nd day. Have had storms come through that lasted several days and bears kept coming around. Use lots of french fry oil from restaurants, it really keeps bears coming around after the food runs out.
Donunts. But I was wondering if any of you Burn? I have tried it minimally with zero results. Hanes' Backcountry Bowhunting book has a recipe for a burn in it. Anyone use it or know someone who did?
TODDY
I once had a guide tell me his favorite bait is a horse. He told me he would get an old nag that is almost dead. He'd walk it to the bait site and put a 44 slug between its eyes. He told me that bears are always trying to get protien. And this way he didn't have to carry the bait in to the site.
heck using a horse for bait it can carry YOU to the site for cryin' out loud!
you just have to be prepared to walk back out on your own
I seldom ever hunt a bait that I don't burn it. I hunt in an area where there are very few bears and if one wants to see bears, he has to use techniques that will draw bears from great distances. I have found nothing works better to get bears in than a good grease burn.
I have a secret way I burn grease. I've made a neat contraption that works great, but I keep it a secret because most guys are not willing to take all the precautions than need to be taken.
You can see in the photo above the smoke from my grease burn.
Have a great bowhunt BB
Here a bear checks out the grease burn.
Phil, I've heard that fresh turkey meat is the best to bait large bears with, Especially ones from South Dakota................................................jk
A really good quarterback.
Besides my own operation over the years I guided for several outfitters who had very different baiting styles and I learned that all sorts of bait will work just fine. The 2 key elements are either don't let the bait run out or bait on a very regular, frequent basis. Like Rob Nye is saying he can get away with baiting with a small amount as long as it is done every day or two, the bears get used to that and will compete for the food. He doesn't need 20 bears at the site just the right bear or 2.
The other way is big volume and variety and it never runs out, doesn't need to be checked every day. We run our baits this way because we are spread out all over our zone with a ton of bait sites and just can't get to all of our baits every day. With our 2 bear limit we are also tracking and skinning too many bears to run into each bait and put out a 5 galloon bucket of goodies each day. We use beavers, oats and grease, a variety of candy and beef and pork scraps, a 600+ lb. initial baiting smorgasbord at every site. Virtually none of the bait types ever run out. We now have refined our operation so we use barrels with small holes and metal, mesh cages to limit the eating a bit but mainly to stop bears from wandering off with a whole beaver carcass or a 50 lb. brick of licorice or something. Hope you guys don't mind me bragging a bit here but our baits become a bear bonanza, as dependable as a garbage dump. Every bear in the area comes there to eat, from the young to the old, often 15 to 20 bears at one spot. We've had 10 bears in at a bait at one time, they get fighting sometimes, it's awesome! We rarely shoot more than 2-3 bears at any one bait each year, sometimes none get killed and we just run them for the next year.
Please excuse my lengthy post here but personally one thing we have tried A LOT and I am not a fan of is burns of any sort. I've never seen a big spike in activity when a burn was lit up. I don't know what other guys have experienced but I've also seen bears freak out when they saw the smoke? They'll be wandering in and then see it and start woofing and popping their jaws, climb trees or even leave. Also as soon as the burn is put out it's not doing anything any more, it's also limited to only working downwind of course. If you need a quick hit at a bait I prefer to make scent trails into the bait, drag a beaver carcass or chunk of meat. That scent lasts for days. I understand that is tough to do though in a place with no trails or a jungle like Prince of Wales. Burns are a fire hazard too, especially in a dry year. Just my opinion though. Good luck this spring everyone!!! Post the pics when the big boys hit the dirt.
If you are going to bait once for a two week period might I suggest something that is small and enclosing it in such a way that they can only get a little bit at a time. I am not an expert like Rob or BB, etc., but when I was in the same situation I hung a something stinky (such as a beaver) high in the tree so the bears could not get to it and then put one small hole in a barrel and baited it with Hostess snacks (the local outlet sold shopping carts of random stuff for $3) and dog food covered in fryer grease, oh poured grease around the bait too hoping that bears make the scent trails for me. It seemed to work for just shy of two weeks and according to the pictures on the trail cam there were several bears on the bait or at least multiple visits per day (I won't claim to be able to distinguish individuals reliably). Good luck you have some real heavy hitters giving you advice up above.
Mike U.
Your right that burning honey or bacon; or marshmallows and jello; or whatever your secret ingredient is- you have to be careful of how you do it; as even in the early spring; fires are an issue.
The forest service here has already done some controlled burns; and as a volunteer fireman; we have had to help fight out of control fires. (even though the road to where I bait is to deep with snow to get through: at about 5500 feet in elevation.)
BB has been baiting and burning with success - but do note that he has a way of doing it; and the longer you read here about him; the more you know forest fires are not going to emanate from his burns.
You have to be really careful when burning. It works; but there is a danger. There is also the possibility that another hunter might find your bait this way.
I am not being critical or disrespectful in this: 'Mormans' keep a supply of goods in their homes for emergencies. Sometimes that includes honey in three gallon containers. It crystallizes over time; but is still good. So; check with your local 'Morman' leader. Some older people have not checked their emergency supplies in a long time; and expired honey works for bears as well as new honey.
And I think we all would be hunting with honey: if we had to choose one substance over all others. (provided there was a supply of it).
Another trick is to take a drill back into the woods to your bait. Fallen trees where you want the bear to be can be drilled out with a 1/2 inch or so wood bit; and then you take a dowel and hammer jelly beans into the holes. The bears will work on that- and give you a shot; and it can hold them if the rest of the bait runs out.
Anyone up for a dumpster diving competition ??? :)
I have always heard BEAVER worked best?? I have not yet hunted bear but plan on it in 2010...
I know this if a bear is 1/10 attreacted to BEAVER more than I am then it should work great :o)
Meat scraps I feel are the best because it is a natural scent they are used to. I have tried almost everything I have heard of. Someone told me I would try it. But over the years have fell just on meat scraps. I also use cow heads for scent. I will take a cow head throw it in a garbage bag and drive a piece of rebar threw the eye sockets. Then when I haul it to the bait site I take rope and use the rebar to tie it to the tree. Then once it is tied off I pull the plastic bag off. Bag is so it does not drip on you and get that stink all over you. Put the head in the sun and got stink. Something about them they like because they tear them out of the trees before they mess with the pile. Here is a pic of how the head thing works.
Supersider34: first off where the heck is n/a county !!
Good grief you have shot some monster mulies there !
Was that elk you shot last year on the way down in antler size ? Its head looks as big as a calf elk..
People click on his name; this is the guy to avoid if you wake up a big buck someday !!
Elfking those are some of my archery mulies. I only archery hunt them. Just lucky.
Elk was a youngster. Young bull. Just a 4x4.
Supersider34: work on your spelling ! 'skill' is spelling SKILL not 'LUCKY'. :)
I just bought a commercial popper so that I don't have to carry heavy bags of corn. Now only if they could make a grease that is light weight, lol.
I like the idea of a horse for bait...can't think of a better use for one.
