Bear baiting station checklist

Author Brian Watkins has had plenty of success drawing bruins to his bear baiting setups and says it boils down to three things: “Hard work. Time. Patience.” (BRIAN WATKINS)

EFFORT PAYS FOR BAITERS

LURING IN BEARS WITH FOOD IS FAR FROM A SLAM DUNK – HERE ARE 5 TOP TIPS FROM TWO HUNTERS WHO GO THE EXTRA MILES TO ENSURE SUCCESS

BY BRIAN WATKINS

After another successful spring bear season, my pal Trevor and I were sharing a couple celebratory beers and talking about our accomplishments. Trevor had just taken his fifth consecutive bear and I had taken my biggest brown with a bow.

Every spring we get similar questions regarding our success. And we talked about how we have come this far.

People often mention how easy baiting bears is. I agree that it alleviates the challenges and mistakes with stalking, but it is a lot more work. And that seems to be the key to success. Hard work. Time. Patience.

Bear baiting is an awesome change of pace from hunting the mountains the rest of the year. I’d like to share some tips for better success.

DON’T GO CHEAP I see posts and hear people talk about loading up on bear bait. And it’s pricey. Whether you skyrocket your electric bill by popping popcorn or go to Walmart and grab a pallet of dog food, don’t go cheap.

Some hunters will drop two bags of dog food on their site and wait for the bears to come. Instead, load up your site with five to 10 bags. If it’s a new site, five should suffice to get you started. But when you hunt over a matured site, set out a mountain of food. Once a site runs dry, bears can leave without return. Keep it stocked!

Even on a tenured site, put tons of

Don’t get to your stand too late in the day, as it can spook bears. Seven p.m. is as late as you want to push it, and then hunt till a bit after sunset, advises the author – who also acknowledges walking out in the dark can be “terrifying.” (BRIAN WATKINS)

scent out. Use different attractants; sprinkle sugars on the ground; spray vanilla extract in the trees; lay pastes all over the area. If you try to save a couple of dollars in this area, you’re wasting the rest of your time.

GO THE EXTRA MILE People like hunting close to home. Everyone does – and that’s the problem. The further you get from a big metropolis, the better the hunting.

We spend way too many hours each spring in our trucks pushing the limits of our sanity. But I look at it this way: I could spend that time in a stand without bears or use it to travel somewhere I will see a ton of bears. It is a daunting task, but it breeds success.

Rule No. 1 in Watkins’ book: Don’t go cheap when it comes to purchasing bait. Buy that extra bag or two of dog food, as it might do the

trick. (BRIAN WATKINS)

Tree stands aren’t known for comfort, but investing in one you can stay in for long hours can pay off. A buddy of Watkins killed a record-book bear after 36 hours in just HUNT ALL NIGHT Alaska has a short window of complete darkness. It's worth investing in a comfortable stand that you can stay in for eight-plus hours. A priority for us is to bring a sleeping bag. Wrap yourself in the bag and take a nap – always be sure to use a harness!

When there are big bears on camera, we will sit for an infinite number of hours. A friend of mine once waited for 36 hours and took the 54th largest bear on record. If you can get yourself comfortable enough, then it shouldn’t be a problem.

Honestly, I couldn’t do 36 straight hours. My longest sit was 16 hours, I didn’t kill a bear during that period, but that’s what it takes sometimes.

DON’T GO INTO YOUR STAND AFTER 7 P.M. I cannot stress this point enough. People always talk about how hard it is to get to a stand earlier in the day with work schedules. If you cannot get to your stand by 7, don’t go at all. Going in after then will drive bears away, or it will make them come in only when it's too dark.

Bears will be able to pinpoint where your stand is and check the area before committing to coming in. If there’s a will, there’s a way. Ask to leave work early or work extra the day before so you can make the logistics work. I typically sit between 7 p.m. and midnight. If a bear is on camera, I’ll sit from 7 all the way to 10 a.m.

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“If you’ve hunted brown bears long enough, you know how hard it is to consistently get a giant,” Watkins writes. “But extra effort will boost the chances of success.” (BRIAN WATKINS)

Along with that tip, don’t leave a stand until it’s too dark to shoot. I won’t leave until 15 minutes after sunset. I won’t be able to shoot that last half hour because of the dark, but it keeps bears from being spooked off when they’re most likely to come in. I will, however, agree it is terrifying to leave in the dark.

KNOW YOUR BEARS As I’ve mentioned, going the extra step will increase your odds of killing big bears tenfold. A large brown bear is one of the hardest animals to kill, even while baiting. They are smart, cautious and know how to survive.

There’s a false notion that brown bears are aggressive monsters. The truth is they are quiet, cautious and spooky. If you’ve hunted brown bears long enough, you know how hard it is to consistently get a giant. But extra effort will boost the chances of success. It may seem daunting, but in the end that minute of pure adrenaline is worth every ounce of effort. Good luck, my friends! ASJ