I will never shoot a bear on purpose again

[The Nyack Kid]

Good job ! That is a nice bear !
Good to hear thate he will be good eating .

Now something I was wondering .

[QUOTE=
The only time I called one in, was a griz up by Cleft Rock, on the Tuchuck Road, just south of the B.C. border. It stood up in the pucker brush and looked right at me, at less than 30 yards. I had a longbow, some sharp sticks, and no gun. I slunk off as quickly as possible.
Do you use a regular predator call? I was using a cow call.

QUOTE]

What were you doing in the brush that far up the North Fork , with nothing more than some pointy sticks and a skinny wacking club ?

[Dale53]

I shot my bear a number of years ago near "Iron Bridge" Canada. I was bear hunting with a group. We each had an opportunity to collect one in a two year period. The first year, the last half hour of shooting light I discovered that the bear I had been hunting was a yearling. I put the crosshairs on him, took the safety off, and said "Bang!" quietly and let him live to get bigger. The next year in the same area I took one (single shot with a .375 H&H) at 25 yards. He only weighed a little over 250 lbs (a baby compared to yours).

I thoroughly enjoyed the hunts, ate every scrap of meat (and enjoyed that, also) but don't need to shoot another bear. Retrieval of my bear just took four of us (one leg each in a group carry) as I only had a half mile to go to the four wheel drive access road. It was still a load. I cannot imagine how I would have gotten my bear out (even as little as he was compared to yours) by myself. One of the beautiful parts of the hunt was we got to hunt in an entire township of wilderness that had been closed to hunting for fifty years. It had been logged off fifty years before and was not touched since (it was Crown land and the only use allowed was trapping). It looked like a primeval climax forest. Bears were everywhere. In the two years I got to view 50-60 "autopsies" of bear carcasses. It was VERY educational and instructive.

You are a heck of a man, Waksupi!

Dale53

[waksupi]

Good job ! That is a nice bear !
Good to hear thate he will be good eating .

Now something I was wondering .



QUOTE]

What were you doing in the brush that far up the North Fork , with nothing more than some pointy sticks and a skinny wacking club ?

Kinda dumb, huh? I was young and boolit proof back then.

Dale, those retrieval sleds are a lifesaver. And hunting closer to roads would help!!

[The Nyack Kid]

The truth comes out !

heheh I used to do the same thing , only I would be in nasty patches of #%&! so dang ugly that the black bears wouldn't even think of hiding from the Grizzlys in there .

[waksupi]

The truth comes out !

heheh I used to do the same thing , only I would be in nasty patches of #%&! so dang ugly that the black bears wouldn't even think of hiding from the Grizzlys in there .

It would probably surprise most here, just how remote an area that is. Less traffic than the Bob Marshall and Great Bear wilderness, for the most part.

[The Nyack Kid]

Yes it is overlooked rugged country . I really like the area . Nothing says "Off the Beaten Path" louder to me than the Wigwam / Upper Stillwater / Upper Whitefish/ Upper North Fork Rivers .
Is ol 'Whats-his-name ,still trying to make the area a new wilderness ?

[waksupi]

Oh, yes. The Forest Service even has a prospective map that they had on display at one time. It disappeared when people started figuring out what they had in mind.

[MT Gianni]

Ric, Do you mind posting your ham curing process? Did you just soak in brine then smoke or was it more involved.

[waksupi]

I brined it in a mix of salt, maple syrup, and water. I left it in the brine for five days. I then cold smoked it for about 12 hours, then hot smoked for about four hours, taking the internal temperature up to 150 degrees.

[DJWright]

Remember however, that the hunts that sometimes took the most effort, or caused the most headaches, are hunts that will be remembered for life. In the end, that's all we have. . . . are memories. With that in mind; that just may be the BEST hunt of your life. Congrates!

[waksupi]

Yes, it was a good hunt. However, the hunts I had with my dad will always be the best ones!

[waksupi]

For a comparison, here is a picture of the bear skull, along side of a coyote skull. In front of the skull is the oft times overlooked bear trophy, carried only by the bear, raccoon, and walrus, to the best of my knowledge.

[watkibe]

You refer to the "os penis", I take it, also known as the baculum. All male dogs have one too. I knew a guy that had a collection of fossil dire wolf penis bones...hey, I said I knew him, not that he was a good friend !

[6pt-sika]

You refer to the "os penis", I take it!

I met a guy in Maine one time who "collected" black bear bones !

He used them on his bar at home as swizzle sticks !

This guy also had a collection of taxidermist mounted groundhogs !

He didn't celebrate any holiday but Groundhogs Day !

[PatMarlin]

Now I know why you want a Rokon Ric. You coulda pulled smokey bear home.

What is the purpose of cold smoking first? How do you put up the meat when finished smoking, or do you refridgerate it and eat it til it's gone?

Can you take a pic of your sled?

[Linstrum]

Hi, Waksupi, your "bear bones" are pretty impressive, fer sure!

I'm curious how you cleaned up the skull to get all the meat, brains, marrow, and whatever out so it doesn't stink to the high heavens. I've done rattlesnake and squirrel skulls by putting them out for the carnivorous beetles and ants to do a good job, they get down deep into all the nooks and crannies. But snake and squirrel skulls are pretty tiny compared to your bear skull, that was a lot of meat to get out!


rl502

[waksupi]

Pat, the purpose of cold smoking, is to add more smoke flavor to the meat. It permeates deeper, it seems. The hot smoking is the finish part, bringing the internal temperature up to where it is fully cooked. After I smoke stuff, I wrap things up, and put it in the freezer.
I've put the sled up in the top of the shed for storage, or would taker a picture. It is about 4.5' long, 30 inches wide, with sides about 10", and an upsloped front. They are sold at Walmart, and the farm and ranch stores around here.

Linstrum, I boil skulls in salt water the first couple times, to cook the meat as fast as possible, and boil the fat out. After they have cooked for an hour or so, I pull them out, and pull and scrape off all the meat and connective tissue I can. Another use for that turkey cooker!
I'll then put it in clean water, with some washing soda, and boil a few more times, repeating the process of meat removal. Eventually, you will get it to where you can get every little bit from the nooks and crannies.
Once I reach this point, I may soak the skull in a water/bleach solution, if I want them really white, or stop at this point if I want a more natural color.
It is easier to clean up a big skull, than a small one.

[PatMarlin]

I smoke- slow cook meats all the time for dinner with Pear and manzanita wood. Just did a Lamb roast yesterday. Turkey and chickens too.

Is that a "Snow Sled" that kids would use?

[waksupi]

No not a snow sled. These are made of heavy duty black plastic material. I do believe their purpose is more towards getting hay to cattle and other livestock in the winter. They would work as a toy, but are made as a tool. I used a kid sled for quite a few years, until these heavy duty sleds came on the market. They are much better suited for the job.
I pulled it out of the shed for a photo op.

[ratherbefishin]

you gotta understand the diference bettween''nice bears'' [you can shoot those]and regular bears[look at bears]''Nice bears '' [shooting bears]are bears on logging roads-or uphill from logging roads.Regular bears[look at bears] are bears down hill from anywhere-you only make that mistake once[I did] I only shoot ''nice bears'' now...