Sam Millard
WKR
Jess and I finally connected on a bear on Sep. 12. It was our third trip since the fall season opened on Aug. 30. According to my notes, it was the 39th bear I had put glass on in 2014 and the 13th bear that week. Jess passed on a shooter opening day because it was black (she wanted a brown one this year).
This hunt started late on the afternoon of the 11th. We hiked into a ridge top that provided a view of an old burn thick with small second growth trees and blanketed with huckleberry brush. I figured shot distances would range from 700-1300 yards from our excellent position. I was packing my DE Canyon Rifle in 338Edge +P and Jess carried a DE Stalker in 7WSM. About 90 minutes before dark, bears started appearing all around us. A small black fed into the open at 715 yards, but Jess passed on it. I put an average size black in the scope at 1256 yards, but decided it was too small. Two more blacks came out that were obviously small bears. At 15 minutes before legal light ended, a chocolate colored bear cautiously worked it's way out of the timber above the burn. As it fed down into the huck brush, I got a good look at it's head with the spotter. I decided right then that it was a "dead bear walking". Experience has taught me that a bear will not abandon a lucrative berry patch overnight and will most likely be feeding close to where it was the night before. This year's berry crop has been long and spectacular! We walked out in the dark with high hopes for the morning hunt.
The next morning found us in a position close to where we were the night before. We were facing east into the burn, so we had to set up in some timber to allow the shot with the sun in our face and optics. After settling in, we immediately started looking for the chocolate. I found him within 100 yards of where we left him the night before. I ranged him at 890 yards and started setting up the shot. I offered it to Jess, but because of the distance, the big 338 would need to be used. She wasn't comfortable with shooting it for the first time on a live target, so she told me I should shoot. With no way of closing the gap for a sub-800 yard shot with the 7WSM, I decided to take the shot. I ranged the bear and a few likely spots he would stop while feeding. I settled on a patch of brush he was angling toward at 906 yards. I dialed in 18.5 minutes of elevation and 2 minutes of left wind to counter a strong thermal settling off the mountain with the sun rising. I confirmed with Jess that she was watching through the Swaro and video was running. The bear was steadily feeding toward the treeline and the patch of brush I had ranged. As he came into my scope's view, he turned and offered a quartering away shot. As the trigger broke and the recoil told me I had taken the shot, Jess called out "Hit!". I watched the bear scramble down to the right through the scope as I reloaded for a follow up. Jess told me she saw paws in the air behind a log below the brush. I watched the log for 5 minutes to make sure he didn't get up. Jess said, "Daddy, that bear is DEAD! I saw his paws in the air!". Well, she was right. The 300 grain SMK had smashed his lungs, and after a death run of 15 yards, he had piled up on his back behind the log I had watched.
I called Jess on the two-way radio we each carry and told her the best way to climb to the bear. We did this one right...shot him 500 feet above the trail out! Unfortunately, there will be no video of the shot, as the bear had moved out of the screen AND the tripod was bumped, resulting in some beautiful footage of a tree top 300 yards in front of us
Jess was a great spotter and even packed 40 pounds of meat and fat out. She has matured so quickly as a hunter/shooter over the last couple of years, I sometimes forget she is still 13 years old...
This hunt started late on the afternoon of the 11th. We hiked into a ridge top that provided a view of an old burn thick with small second growth trees and blanketed with huckleberry brush. I figured shot distances would range from 700-1300 yards from our excellent position. I was packing my DE Canyon Rifle in 338Edge +P and Jess carried a DE Stalker in 7WSM. About 90 minutes before dark, bears started appearing all around us. A small black fed into the open at 715 yards, but Jess passed on it. I put an average size black in the scope at 1256 yards, but decided it was too small. Two more blacks came out that were obviously small bears. At 15 minutes before legal light ended, a chocolate colored bear cautiously worked it's way out of the timber above the burn. As it fed down into the huck brush, I got a good look at it's head with the spotter. I decided right then that it was a "dead bear walking". Experience has taught me that a bear will not abandon a lucrative berry patch overnight and will most likely be feeding close to where it was the night before. This year's berry crop has been long and spectacular! We walked out in the dark with high hopes for the morning hunt.
The next morning found us in a position close to where we were the night before. We were facing east into the burn, so we had to set up in some timber to allow the shot with the sun in our face and optics. After settling in, we immediately started looking for the chocolate. I found him within 100 yards of where we left him the night before. I ranged him at 890 yards and started setting up the shot. I offered it to Jess, but because of the distance, the big 338 would need to be used. She wasn't comfortable with shooting it for the first time on a live target, so she told me I should shoot. With no way of closing the gap for a sub-800 yard shot with the 7WSM, I decided to take the shot. I ranged the bear and a few likely spots he would stop while feeding. I settled on a patch of brush he was angling toward at 906 yards. I dialed in 18.5 minutes of elevation and 2 minutes of left wind to counter a strong thermal settling off the mountain with the sun rising. I confirmed with Jess that she was watching through the Swaro and video was running. The bear was steadily feeding toward the treeline and the patch of brush I had ranged. As he came into my scope's view, he turned and offered a quartering away shot. As the trigger broke and the recoil told me I had taken the shot, Jess called out "Hit!". I watched the bear scramble down to the right through the scope as I reloaded for a follow up. Jess told me she saw paws in the air behind a log below the brush. I watched the log for 5 minutes to make sure he didn't get up. Jess said, "Daddy, that bear is DEAD! I saw his paws in the air!". Well, she was right. The 300 grain SMK had smashed his lungs, and after a death run of 15 yards, he had piled up on his back behind the log I had watched.
I called Jess on the two-way radio we each carry and told her the best way to climb to the bear. We did this one right...shot him 500 feet above the trail out! Unfortunately, there will be no video of the shot, as the bear had moved out of the screen AND the tripod was bumped, resulting in some beautiful footage of a tree top 300 yards in front of us
Jess was a great spotter and even packed 40 pounds of meat and fat out. She has matured so quickly as a hunter/shooter over the last couple of years, I sometimes forget she is still 13 years old...
