Northern ont bear hunting dead in the water.

[coyoteman]

Sturgeon river outfitters, near geraldton Ont.The outfitter I guided for many years.The owner,tells me they have only 29 bear hunters booked for the fall hunt.A trend throughout the whole area. The camps 3 million acres of allocation,was once a hugh lumber operation.This prime net work of woods roads will be now claim by the alders.No real explanation can be given,except an overall decline in hunter interest.--Ok AB--BC-time for some serious angling.

[marky_mark]

I don’t think fall bear is as popular as spring
Too much competition in the fall

[coyoteman]

I did a lot of spring hunts,before the closure.With 4 guides,and 100 plus hunters.The success rate as expected very high.This spring Terry had only 3 hunters.The cost of operateing a remote camp,very high.This coupled with the fact,that the booked fishing trips alsodown.Looks like the death knell for many camps.The govt, at one time estimated, That bear hunting generated 40 million dollars,into the much needed northern Ont economy.

[NCC]

My thoughts on bear hunting: most guys will shoot a deer every year, yet after killing one or two bears, never shoot another one. Non residents will come back year after year for deer but the majority only shoot one near in their life.

The guys who actually guide bear hunters may be able to provide more accurate information.

[calgarychef]

Probably if people actually start eating bears they’ll hunt them more. Bear meat is good but I don’t hunt them for meat ...strange as it is I like ungulates but they don’t taste any better than bear.

[Bearbreath]

Originally Posted by calgarychef

Probably if people actually start eating bears they’ll hunt them more. Bear meat is good but I don’t hunt them for meat ...strange as it is I like ungulates but they don’t taste any better than bear.

Hunters need to take their bear meat and have it made into sausage and pepperoni.

It's perfect...just as your sausage supply from the falls harvest is dwindling, you add in a spring bear. Yum

[marky_mark]

Originally Posted by NCC

My thoughts on bear hunting: most guys will shoot a deer every year, yet after killing one or two bears, never shoot another one. Non residents will come back year after year for deer but the majority only shoot one near in their life.

The guys who actually guide bear hunters may be able to provide more accurate information.

I agree
I think the govt of ontario has pushed the hunters to other areas like here and sask
or they might even be staying in the us and hammering those big pigs that come from the carolinas

[coyoteman]

yes I think you are right--nowthat the bear hunting is on the decline-I myself begin looking into hog hunting in the US. Seems in many states they have a real problem with feral hogs.I think after the deer season in AB I will find an outfitter and see whats its all about.

[Torkdiesel]

Originally Posted by coyoteman

I did a lot of spring hunts,before the closure.With 4 guides,and 100 plus hunters.The success rate as expected very high.This spring Terry had only 3 hunters.The cost of operateing a remote camp,very high.This coupled with the fact,that the booked fishing trips alsodown.Looks like the death knell for many camps.The govt, at one time estimated, That bear hunting generated 40 million dollars,into the much needed northern Ont economy.

A hundred plus hunters per spring in one area, in Ontario to boot. I can only imagine what the trophy quality was like for the bears being killed.

30 hunters per fall is busy enough, if you’re offering any sort of quality hunt and experience that is.

[coyoteman]

The camp success rate very high,and for sure I helped skin many hundred bears over the years,some very large.I dont recall any makeing the record books.The average bear for the most part dont go much over 200lbs.When heavy baiting spring and fall,the bear pop on our 3 million acres was very high.We attracted a lot of bears in.And bears with a secure food supply will have more offspring.The spring closeure was on called for,because the female let the cubs come into the bait first,it was rare indeed for a wet female to be shot--The tree huggers won.

[35 whelen]

Yes back in the 80s there used to be lots of Bear Camps run by Americans that brought in lots of Americans not so much anymore I'm guessing.

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[coyoteman]

Originally Posted by 35 whelen

Yes back in the 80s there used to be lots of Bear Camps run by Americans that brought in lots of Americans not so much anymore I'm guessing.

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The camp for many years run by a Canadian Walter Fleming--That was the high volumn days,when he got to old he moved on,and a American took over Terry Huber.Matter of fact I did many shows for walter throughout the Mid west,during the winter.Signing up many clients that I guided in the spring and fall hunts.It was big business