Big Duane

In Arkansas, you can bait bears on your own land. I have a big bear visiting my land and eating my Dad's cantelopes ! I'm about 120 miles from where Dad lives, and where the land is, but I can drive up every weekend and Dad said he'd do the baiting, which starts Sept 1st

#1 - what can I use for food ? Every bakery and deli around donates their leftovers to churches. It doesn't look like I can find any scraps from restraunts etc - what can I buy that won't cost me hundreds of dollars ?

#2 - any special tips to help my bait station ?

THANKS !

Chris_H

catch and fillet some fish.

Big Duane

then what ? do they like the rotten or fresh or ? I could do that, freeze them, then my Dad could place the fillets or fish leftovers while theyr'e freshly thawed ?

Champlain Islander

First check to see if it legal to bait bears there "Duane". If there are planted crops in place andthe bears are eating them that should be more than sporting IMO. Getting them hooked on donuts and molassis is certain death for them. They are really a pig with fur and killing one over a donut pile is easy....kind of like shooting fish in a barrel or ......canned hunting. Remember that one Big Duane? Bears are a great game animal and deserve to be hunted fair chase.

Big Duane

Champlain Islander have you ever baited bears ?

Baiting bears was passed several years ago because people were not killing enough bears - they were becoming quite the problem and still are. Batiing isn't allowed on public ground - they ARE allowed on private grounds. The AG&F wants them killed to try and keep nuicance bear problems down.

In the thick national forests of northern AR its impossible to spot and stalk. The AG&F knew that after the bear populations got too high. Baiting allows people to kill a few more bears, which helps control the population which allows humans and bear to better co-exist.

As for it being canned ? LOL ..... no it isn't, there are no fences to contain them, they are 100% wild bears. Baiting is not as challenging as spot and stalk or still hutning, which is almost impossible in that area as I've explained, I'll not argue that. Its not, however canned.

I've read many a hunter sitting for days, and no bear show. I've read about the dozens of hours, maybe even hundreds involved in getting the bait, putting it out, trying different areas (i've got seveal parcels of land to bait). Might be sows and cubs only come in, who knows ?

Again, its not comparable to spot and stalk, but then when you consider I've never baited bear, I'll be hunting them with either a recurve or longbow, I've never shot one and especially an Arkansas black bear ........ sounds like a pretty fair chase hunt to me.

I remember full well the canned hunting - hundreds of animals in a high fenced pen, pick and shoot, remove ear tags and go to brunch, I've been there and done that debate and still hate canned hunting.

If you're really trying to compare black bear hutning over bait to canned hunting ? I don't think so. I'll let you know if I get a bear this fall, and if I do how I feel afterwards. I figure after pouring in many hours doing it, trying to find a boar, sitting for many hours, trying to catch him as he's coming in, etc it'll be a good hunt. If its ridiculously easy ? Then there wasn't a whole lot of hunt there, your'e right. Still not remotely compareable to canned hunting though.

XTP

Another key advantage with baiting is it allows the hunter time to evaluate the animal, something that you would never have even if you actually managed to stalk a blackie in the thick forests and bogs up here. Is it a mature bear ? Is it a boar or a sow ? Are there any cubs ??? Especially for somebody new to bear hunting, these questions are not ones that can be answered by a quick glance. A bear pre-occupied with a bait stand gives that hunter the time to decide if he/she wants to take that animal and then also to wait for the optimum shot opportunity.
I agree that all animals deserve a fair chase hunt, but hesitate to put this in the same catagory. I mean, if that was the case then wouldn't hunting deer on a food plot or crop field be pretty much the same thing ? ... kinda splitting hairs then if you ask me.

billybob1234

Duane,

I would check with someone from the g&f dept near by where you intend to hunt. most of the time the wardens will have some good advice. its also good to double check the local laws with a warden just to be safe.

a 55 gallon drum and a chain is a good start. also there is a product called "bear bait" its red and looks like a bottle of shampoo, i havent used it personaly but i hear it works quite well as an addition.

also check with the local fastfood places and dinersbecause I know at night at closing time they usally throw away food that they couldnt sell but would work well for bear bait.

McBruce

depends what the bears are use to eating. try to stick with same types of foods.
if they are dump bears and use to human food, anything sweet will work.

if they usually only get berries, try pie fillings, blueberry, apple, peach. cherry.

popcorn with bacon grease works, fish, rotting meat, gut piles. ( slaughter houses might help ya out )
the worse the smell the more they like.

saw some stuff called dead horse , comes in a sealed bag, pin hole it and hang...will do a drip, brings em in
also licorish (sp sorry ) smelling sprays or liquides work well.

if your gonna film your hunt, i'd suggest building a log enclosure or pit.
1/2 barrels have a trashy look ( but very effective for bait sites ) just look bad on film.

some use full barrels and cut holes. can judge the size by the size of the hole.

cut some logs 6 ft and lay around so you can judge size
also some sticks at 3 ft and 4 ft hights will give you an idea of how tall.

good luck.

kdvollmer

Duane,
seems you already know just what to be using here. That bear is coming to get your dads cantelopes. They might be out of season to grow in Arkansas during bear season, but I am sure you can get them at the local grocery store. Might be expensive being out of season though. But at least you know that is what he is eating when he comes to town.

Champlain Islander

I thought that was you Duane. Nothing wrong with baiting bears where legal and providing that is the way you want to take them...hence my reference to CH ( I like to throw that one out there from time to time since it is rarely talked about these days. I don't wantthe establishment
to get complacent and think they won).
Any old moldy bread, rolls, donuts covered in molasses will usually bring them in. Lots of guys I know that used to bait before it became illegal here got their bread products from restaurants and stores after the due date. It is quite labor intensive to set up your bait station and lots of trips to refresh your bait pile or barrel will be necessary. When the bears start to come though it is pretty certain you will get a chance to take one. Once they start to hit the bait they are hooked and usually come just before dark. You will be able to evaluate them at close range since they usually will come to the bait providing they aren't spooked off. I would set up a trail cam on the bait to see what is coming so you don't spook them off before the season. I haven't taken a bear and probably never will. I have seen about 50 in the woods and many were at close bow range. Just for sport we used to go to the dumps before containers were mandated and watch the bears breaking open garbage bags and chowing down on garbage. It was a nightly ritual in those days to bring a 6 pack and watch the bears and I have seen hundreds that way. They sit like humans on their butts with legs spread and open the garbage bags, lick out the cans and eat whatever food stuff is there. Just one of those things I don't care to hunt just like ducks. I like to watch them in the woods and wild apple orchards while bow hunting for deer. I did help to stock bait stations on my last trip to Newfoundland. I got by Bou and helped the outfitter dispose of a whole pickup truck load of heads, hooves, skins and legs from the bou and moose that were harvested that season. All their bait stations were open 55 gallon drums set upright with a square 6” hole on the side near the bottom. They would take logs and run them through the top and out the side hole and often drive them in to the ground or chain them to a tree so the bears can’t drag the barrel off. Same set up in Maine and you run into the bait stands constantly when hunting the big woods. This was wilderness and no bread or pastry products were available so they used meat. I wouldn’t recommend doing that since the bread stuff is much cleaner and less mess. They are indeed a great animal and certainly worthy of respect. I like small game, turkey, deer, elk and caribou. Some day I'll probably get a moose but I am usually gone elsewhere when moose season comes here so I rarely put my name in the lottery. Taking one with a Trad bow would be a neat way to harvest one and knowing you it would certainly be fair chase. Let me know how it goes for you. Best of luck Duane from CI.