Bear hunting question (camp, costs, vs.)

[Maineah]

Originally Posted by forest beekeeper

Gotta be careful getting out of the vehicle, don't you have a cup holder?




We saw a black bear crossing the road near our home a few weeks ago.

Sometimes a neighbor hear asks to hunt bear on my land, I hope he goes bear hunting this year, we could do with some more bear meat

Yeah but Foster's cans won't fit in it!

[Submariner]

Originally Posted by Maineah

Yeah but Foster's cans won't fit in it!

I got a drill bit that cuts a 6 inch diameter hole. We could cut hole in the plastic dashboard for you that would fit a fosters.

[Maineah]

Originally Posted by forest beekeeper

I got a drill bit that cuts a 6 inch diameter hole. We could cut hole in the plastic dashboard for you that would fit a fosters.

Thanks for the offer I'll just shoot them out the window and keep the can between the legs!!!

[gcberry]

Well here's why I asked the question originally: I live in the White Mts on the ME-NH border. There are many bears here. While out walking the other day I met a fellow who had just come from his bear baiting station on a neighbor's property. He told me that he's been begging the neighbor for years to allow him to lay bait, but it was only this year that the neighbor agreed. He said that 4 bears have been coming regularly (he has a camera trained on the area connected remotely to his computer, I guess a sort of outdoor webcam) and it will enable him to shoot a big male rather than a sow with cubs. However, I was wondering if by baiting, the bears get very used to human food and then start cruising the area looking for more. Another neighbor starting having a problem bear visiting on a regular basis, going on to his porch, disturbing an (empty) cooler, etc. Then last week the bear ended up in his home! Could this be due to the nearby baiting? The other thing I wanted to know is if there is some kind of hunting "etiquette" when training dogs in search of bears. There is a fellow who runs his hounds around our area at the crack of dawn and these dogs are LOUD! I'm not a late sleeper but being awakened at 5 a.m every morning is not so fun. I'm NOT against hunting, nor have I said anything to this fellow. Just wondering if this was typical this time of year- (I'm obviously new to ME).

[Maine Writer]

I have bears here (two, I think) and there isn't any baiting near my home. Bears are almost always on the move. Contrary to popular belief, they're very active during the day this time of year because they're gorging on food in preparation for winter.

Training dogs is part of life in Maine. You can check for local noise ordinances but will have to decide if causing a potential problem for someone who is earning a living is worth doing something about it. It's temporary but at 5 am, still annoying.

[Kracer]

Baiting close to homes is indeed a problem that falls into two categories, ethical and legal. While legal it may not be ethical. In the presence of conflict a legal knee jerk reaction can be fatal to local and statewide bear baiting as blanket solutions are often applied.......to be fair and avoid the dreaded slippery slope.

Coon hunting with hounds was a tradition down here until some locals ran afoul of a new resident. The tradition went away overnight. My new black and tan hound, Josie Wails, never got a chance to hunt.

[OutDoorNut]

Originally Posted by gcberry

There is a fellow who runs his hounds around our area at the crack of dawn and these dogs are LOUD! I'm not a late sleeper but being awakened at 5 a.m every morning is not so fun. I'm NOT against hunting, nor have I said anything to this fellow. Just wondering if this was typical this time of year- (I'm obviously new to ME).

Since you're new to the area, is this a case of the fellow and his hounds being there first?

If so, I'd go to bed early enough to be up by 5 am, so long as doing so was compatible with my work schedule.

[gcberry]

Oh, I'm not feeling grumpy about it, and I wouldn't say anything to him, I was just wondering if this was a common thing that I should expect, and I guess the answer is yes. And yeah, we certainly do find ourselves going to bed a whole lot earlier in Maine - and waking at dawn or before.

[Maineah]

Originally Posted by gcberry

Oh, I'm not feeling grumpy about it, and I wouldn't say anything to him, I was just wondering if this was a common thing that I should expect, and I guess the answer is yes. And yeah, we certainly do find ourselves going to bed a whole lot earlier in Maine - and waking at dawn or before.

If you think the dogs are bad wait 'till the shooting starts! We have a target range here in my back yard. We have sighted in all of our rifles here for the last 23 years. Occasionally a new neighbor will complain to the police who always tell them it is not against the law. I anticipate that problem again this year as the house across the street was recently sold again. The new folks are NOT hunting types and I'm bracing for a confrontation with them over the rifle shooting very soon!

[Zymer]

Originally Posted by Maineah

If you think the dogs are bad wait 'till the shooting starts! We have a target range here in my back yard. We have sighted in all of our rifles here for the last 23 years. Occasionally a new neighbor will complain to the police who always tell them it is not against the law. I anticipate that problem again this year as the house across the street was recently sold again. The new folks are NOT hunting types and I'm bracing for a confrontation with them over the rifle shooting very soon!

LOL, lots of shooting goes on around here, in season, out of season, whatever.

I am most impressed by the out-of-season target shooters who only have time for 1 or 2 shots to sight-in and then are done for the day .