Minnesota black bear?
Bears
Thinking of trying a Minnesota black bear hunt. Has anyone hunted bears in Minnesota? Recommend any outfitters? I thought about Wisconsin but it looks like that is a 4 year draw minimum and I don't really want to wait. It's about a 9 hour drive to the Canadian border so I could potentially scout and try to do it DIY if I could get some tips on where would be a promising area to start looking.
East central Minn. between Interstate 35 and Wis.border. East of Sandstone, Hinckley area should be the non-quota area and lots of state and county land. Don't remember how far north the non-quota goes. Maybe one could find private land too? Have no idea how much hunting pressure there is on public land.
I live in area 12, it generally takes 3 years to draw here.
I know people in Wisconsin zone c that are drawing tags with 1 point
Here’s a link to a Minnesota bear hunt from a couple years ago that you might be able to glean a little info from.
http://forums.bowsite.com/tf/bgforums/thread.cfm?threadid=446065&messages=127&forum=6
Thanks Ibow. I was just going to post that!
NEIA pm sent
Guy from Roseau shot this monster last fall, 721 pounds.
NEIA if you want to PM me we can talk, don't want all the places in NE Central non-quota area all over the internet.
A diy is very possible given you have enough time and location picked. Here's a clip of a small bear that came into my bait the first hour on stand. To me the fun part of bear hunting is the baiting process.
Here's my chocolate.
Here's my chocolate.
NEIA-You should try Clearwater Bear Stalkers, just north of Bemidji. I have hunted with them a few times and will be going back again at some point. I know that the hunting has been really good there the past few years.
The outfitter, Dan Hendrickson, is a great guy and there are a lot of bear in that part of the state. He is listed on the MN DNR website as a registered guide and you can reach him at [email protected]. He usually puts a ton of baits out, and has cameras on them all. I took a nice chocolate bear up there a few years ago. My friends went 2/2 there 2 years ago and last year, the one that went got a bear the first day.
I haven't hunted bear anywhere else so I don't have much to compare it to, but it is a really fun hunt. He does a slide show with all the different stands and bears hitting them on the first night, and then a fantasy football style draft of the stands with all of the hunters, so you get to pick out which bait that you want to hunt in about as fair of a way as possible. There are enough stands that everyone gets put on baits that are getting hit.
He has quota areas(usually 1pt to draw there) and non-quota areas. I got my chocolate in a non-quota zone. In his camp, it is usually an afternoon-evening hunt, then dinner when you get back. He usually has the hunters stay in a bunk house, with access to a shower and bathroom in the main cabin, which is right next to it. There are a bunch of lakes nearby, and you can go fish if you want in the mornings. That said, I took my boat twice and never fished.
It's been a lot of fun every time that I have gone and would highly recommend that you reach out to him for more info. The hunt usually starts on Labor Day but I think the draw date is coming up. Good luck!
Thank you all, I atleast have a place to start my search. Was fun to read that link, thanks ibow. Haven't found much shed hunting this year, so might as well plan a hunt.
Yes... that thread was a lot of fun to follow. Best wishes for your success in finding a spot and hunting it. I think the most fun is the prep. I’ll be passing thru MN on my way north this spring!
Thanks guys. It certainly was an adventure.
The biggest challenge is getting a tag. What used to take a year or two, now takes four or five. Our DNR is continuing to reduce tag numbers yet they don't have a clue as to the real bear numbers we have. We have a lot.... I have good contact up around Ely is you want. I have sent other BS people their way with good success. PM me if interested. TODDY
