Second Chances Seized: Spring Bear Success - Part 2

Ethan Ruby

After the nerves of the failure relaxed, we decided to move on with the hunt. We ventured farther into where we wanted to go, stopping to glass clear-cut pipelines and open hillsides. I was surprised to see so much prime new growth but with zero bear activity. It was becoming discouraging but we pressed on.

After a few hours without another bear spotted, and daylight starting to fade, I decided there was only one option left. It was time to go back and wait out the boar from earlier in the evening. I knew the odds of this bear being back out in the same spot were slim after being pushed out by a gunshot, but at last, we were going to try. The plan was simple. Sit and wait at the top of the hill. Several hundreds of yards away, and pray that the pull of feed in the form of grass was enough to tempt the old boar into risking it.

As I contemplated all of this, we crested the top of the hill, and there he was. Roughly half a kilometer away. I quickly gathered my rifle and started the stalk. I did not want to mess this up again.

The ground was marshy and the wind was good. As I moved in on the bear, I scanned in front of me for a good location for a shot. Roughly 300 yards out I came upon a downed cedar tree. I figured this would be my spot. I rested my rifle but the nerves had started to get to me. I tried and tried to get steady but it wasn't happening. Knowing this was not an ethical shot to take, I had no choice but to leave cover. I got down and started crawling. Inching my way closer, as the boar continued to feed. Now well within range, I set up for the shot again. Once I had the crosshairs steadied, I knew I had made the right call. All I needed to do was let the rifle do its job. Once the boar was broadside, I let the .270 buck. I quickly racked another shell, but there was no need. The bear expired quickly, only making it a few steps.

Just like that, my 2020 spring season was over. When I put my hands on this bear he was exactly what I was looking for. An old boar that had seen many days in these woods. The green score of the skull measured a very respectable 18 ⅝” with the bear itself squaring out at 6’3”. This bear will forever be engraved in my mind and presented in my home, and for that I'm grateful. Being able to share a successful hunt, for the second time, exactly two years apart with my fiance, was the icing on the cake.

Through the last 5 years I’ve been spot and stalk hunting black bears. Many of those hunts have been memorable, but this one ranks high, and that's what hunting is all about.