BigGameHoundsmen.com

Nah, not for me. I didn't know I was going spend opening day of bear season today by myself until late last night cause my daughter (the shooter) was at her moms sick with the flu. I went ahead and went anyways knowing that I had no intention of pulling the trigger unless my dogs were in danger. I drove past 66 trucks all filled with guys waiting to turn dogs loose. I've never seen so many people. The wind was howling and this particular valley was very calm so that's why it was packed. I kept driving and got a good strike from the box but, around the curve the pull off was packed with guys so I kept driving. I finally went to a place with few bears and wouldn't ya know I had it all to my lonesome. Not a soul. I started down the road and got a very hot strike from the box. I got out and found a nice sized track but, hesitated because of the wind. Finally I couldn't stand it and turned out my lead dog and he only went about 50 yards and jumped the bear. I then turned in the rest of my pack and pulled the truck off the road. I couldn't hear the dogs but, the tracker was pegging out a 5 and that's usually very well within hearing range. I grabbed my gear and threw it on and took off in a run with my tracker pointed towards them. I would run acouple hundred yards stop and get a better reading and take off again. Finally after 30 minutes of lung busting running treeing switches started going off. I got within 100 yards of the dogs and could see the bear in the tree but, couldn't hear the dogs barking. Only then did I put my Tracker up. I made my way to them and at about 35-40 yards I could hear them in a roar. I've never hunted in wind like that. I sat at the tree and took pictures and a short video and wished 100 times that my daughter could have been there to kill her first bear. It was a legal sow bear probably 125# or alittle better. After about 30 minutes I left the bear in the tree and headed home listening to the marine radio crackle with excited bear hunters.

Willie my lead dog.





Willie, Chaos, and Little Ann... She made her first race at 5 months old. She didn't do much more than follow the other dogs but, hey that's better than setting at the turn out bawling.



Lizzie and Physco.... Physco hate's to be leashed to her cause she drags him everywhere... typical female...LOL




One more of Chaos and Willie




The bear....

I did talk to one fella. On my way home there was a guy with a truck load of dogs parked at a culvert pipe and he had a great big jug headed mixed up hound out on a leash and he was going nutts along with everything else in his truck. I pulled up and he looked at me and said "son there's been a bear come threw here and I mean fresh". I said "really? did ya find a track?" It was at this point the fella became alittle perturbed at the young man in the truck questioning his houndsmen ablitily. See he was in his upper 50s I would guess with many years and many bears under his belt. He looked at me and said "Son I don't have to find a track on the ground to turn on like some of you guys. My dogs know what a bear smell like and tell me all I need to know." It was at this point he unsnapped goliath never taking his eyes off me. He then went to his truck and dropped the tailgate still looking staight at me. Every dog he had went blowing up the creek. He then walks up to my truck window and says "son if you want them dogs to make bear dogs you gotta drop that tail gate. So why don't you turn em loose and let em run this bear?" I looked at him with a wide grin and said "well I was just going to tell you that about 2 hours ago I came threw here and saw a mink cross the road and stopped and watched him work up that creek. Looks to me like your dogs are taking his exact track." He slowly turned and started walking away. I said "see ya around" and drove off laughing. He just threw up his hand in discust.