Hey folks, still reminiscing on Spring Bear bow season almost upon us...
I write several outdoor columns for several newspapers here in the mid west [Eastern Alberta]
This one on spring bear thought I would share it!!
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OUTDOOR ADVENTURES
By Neil B. Stratton
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Hoooya, I am likening that warm sunshine until 7:30 in the PM, it actually brightens up my spirits and gives me more energy, which I need badly, time to shake off the cobwebs.
I like this daylight saving time, wish we could just simply stay on this system all year long, also after that recent deepfreeze this, in the plus temperatures is also so welcoming.
That white stuff is disappearing slowly but surely, also lifting the spirits, March 20th is the first day of spring this year 2014, and that being next week already on Thursday.
It feels good, spring bear hunting season is in the air also, which starts in April, I have had many a fond memory spring bear hunting, and many things trigger those memories, in spring a raven call instantly reminds me of bears.
Other certain smell’s and sounds also trigger memories, I don’t spring bear hunt any longer as the bear is not my preferred table fare and I won’t take a bear…just to take a bear, but the adventures were outstanding and lifetime.
It’s one of the best cures for cabin fever just getting out there usually involves a lot of quading with off highway 4x4s, getting dirty and wet…good times in warm fresh air.
I will still help anyone that needs a hand just for the adventure… also can be a good video guy, and/or camp cook…however that may be scarier than a mad bear.
Speaking of mad bears, all the crazy antics make the adventures, crossing a deep creek and seeing fish swimming everywhere and chasing them for hours catching them with our hands, and safely releasing them.
Sounds crazy, just a wilderness survival instinct kicking in from the cave man days I think, but a lot of fun and no fish were hurt during this adventure, we on the other hand were soaking wet and bruised from head to toe.
Exploring new ground and finding antler sheds are adventures many set entire weekends aside just to experience, with spring bear hunting that is just part of the adventure that is just part of the bonus.
As a mad bear deterrent, many of us carry large cans of bear spray, which is potent Capsicum pepper spray, made from hot cayenne peppers and other deterrent chemicals.
The spray blasts out to 8 meters, very effective as a bear deterrent that can be used with no permanent harm to the bears, said users on the hand is an adventure in itself.
Picture this, my younger bow technician Blaine that has been shooting a bow at our shop since he was 14, is now my hunting partner, he is perched near 7 meters up a tree.
He is in a tiny portable tree stand, just big enough to sit and possible actually stand if needed with no room for error, on the opposite side of the tree is my smiling face in another mini stand, we are both strapped in with safety belts so there is no escape.
I was there to video and enjoy, I don’t know how but I am sure my stand is even smaller, its early evening and not much is moving so we are having a whispering conversation.
Somehow we came up with the fact in the conversation that a bear…can, from the ground climb a tree and be sitting on your lap in about two seconds flat.
No sooner did I say that, I looked under our stands at the base of tree and there sat a younger bear, wide eyed staring up at us, he appeared in super stealth like a boreal forest ghost.
So with that reminder, I asked Blaine if he had his bear spray handy, which he had to dig out of his pack, same place mine was, not so good if a situation ever came up like just described.
Blaine had the canister in hand and was reading the label, I whispered the question if he remembered how to use it, so he was removing the safety cap and replacing it in good practice.
I than whispered “when is the last time you tested it?” he looked at me and said “you have to test it?” I responded with “yes, after a few years, once a year a super short blast will just confirm it is still charged”.
He responded with a “Huh!!” it was a peaceful and quite evening, I scanned the thick spruce forest for more bear, the bear at the base of tree had disappeared as quickly as he appeared, but there would be more.
It was eerie quiet and I focused on every little movement, I was sure there would be another bear appearing any second now, that’s when a loud “PSSSSTTTT” near rattled me out of the tree.
I turned my head towards Blaine and see him holding the bear spray canister outward and a big red stain on a poplar tree a couple meters straight out from us.
Before I could say “eeek!!” you can’t test it now…”way up in a tree”…I saw a large red cloud drifting towards us in the light evening breeze, panic naturally took over.
I contemplated taking a nose dive out of the stand, but glancing at the ground that was so far away…fear and common sense took over, so I took a big breath, closed my eyes and hugged the tree.
Ya so…that didn’t work well as one can only hold their breath so long and its human nature to open your eyes to impending doom, soon we both stood there coughing with body fluids flowing from our eyes, nose and mouth.
As I looked at Blaine thru blurred vision hugging the tree I didn’t know whether to laugh or cry…more than we were already crying…being the demented bush monkeys we are, somehow we were both hysterically laughing.
When we could finally see we had to climb down out of the tree and rinse our faces with bottles of water, after a half an hour we were no worse for wear and knew hands on bear spray works very well.
The slight overspray mist we experienced was nothing like a full face on blast, which I really care NOT to ever experience, and the lesson of the day was the effectiveness of the bear spray and watch the wind if you ever need to test or use bear spray.
I could write a novel of the adventures, antics and funny moments while spring bear hunting, I now realize it wasn’t the bears I was after on spring bear hunts.
*After the Adventure*
Life is an adventure, but you have to get out there and make it happen, laugh often life is short!
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Although I wrote this article in humour, care and caution is needed when using Bear Spray ...read directions and heed cautions and use with responsibility
Neil
More Spring Reminiscing !!
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