If you are preparing to embark on bear hunting, a previous skillful hunting experience would be a big plus. However, previous hunting experience is not a necessity when it comes to hunting a bear. Generally, you need a profound stalking skill to succeed in spotting and hunting down a bear. Also, you need suitable hunting equipment for both safety and success.
For successful bear hunting, you should pay attention to the following:
Stealth
Particularly for the black bear, stealth is very essential when trying to stalk a bear. This animal can be startled easily by abrupt movement.
One of the best ways to maintain maximum stealth while stalking a bear is to wear non-rustling clothing. Also, wear hunting boots that do not make sound. At this point, it is important to say this; your bear hunting success depends largely on pre-season scouting prior to the real hunting trip.
Use Scent Covers
Bears are known for their incredible sense of smell. As a result, they can detect body scents even from very far distances. Therefore, one of the best bear hunting strategies is to use scent covers to stiffen your body smell while trailing a bear.
Here are some tips in addition to scent covers:
• Do not come in contact with gasoline, tobacco smoke, pets and engine exhausts prior to your hunting trip. These odors are likely to stick on your clothing and would be easily detected by the prey.
• Watch out for wind direction that can easily give your presence out. Therefore, it is best to stalk a bear always upwind.
Take Your Time to Aim
Whether you are stalking a dear from a tree or at the ground level, you should remain as calm as possible, while taking your time to aim at your prey. This way, you can execute your shot without missing your target. Always resist the lure to shoot hurriedly as you may end up missing your shot.
The Set Up
Set up is an important aspect of bear hunting. You can choose to make the bait station complex or simple. I prefer to use a 50-gallon drum which I would usually chain to a tree. You can use branches and logs of tree to crib the barrel. This way, the bear will come from the front and you will gain an excellent shot angle. In order to get the best view, consider using a tree stand for your setup. This setup technique provides increased shot opportunities, especially if you are an archer. Get the bears to dig out food bit by bit by creating about 6” diameter hole at the log’s base.
Stay at Alert
One of the best bear hunting tips is to stay at alert all the time. Often, bears will appear before you even hear the sound of their movements. These animals move in calculated precision with their padded feet. Don’t forget, they are smart enough to know that the treats at the bait station were the work of humans. So, be on an alert!
Finally, remember to stay safe during bear hunting, and don’t go hunting bear without a license.
Duck Hunting Tips: See How the Pros Do it
The duck hunting pros pay attention to details, this is why they could kill as many as 1,000 ducks each season! Also, over time, these pros have employed some trial-and-error methods, which have now become reliable strategies for hunting ducks successfully. This article provides some of the reliable strategies used by pros to get thousands of ducks down per season.
Calling Trick
The pros say, “All novice callers should look for a place where ducks congregate in mass and just listen as the ducks communicate. As important as it is to know what the ducks do, it’s also amazing when you discover what they don’t do!” Why the novice callers usually achieve little success is this; they simply take the calling tricks from old hunters to the field, instead of listening to the ducks carefully in order analyze which calling trick would work best.
According to the pros, the noise from ducks when they are feeding, is different from the noise you get when they are resting. “Therefore, one of the tricks for successful duck hunting is becoming skillful at matching the different noises with the different situations. This way, you can make a suitable call and get the right result. Take for instance, if you make a feed call while hunting 20ft of water, the ducks will definitely fly off, they are not dumb!” said the pros.
Decoy Placement
In duck hunting, decoy placement is very important, but decoy numbers, movement and types are equally important.
Here are the pros’ basic rules: the duck hunter should use large numbers of decoy. Consider using as many as 150 to 300. “The ducks have the feeling that safety lies in numbers. Contrary to the regular decoy tip that says put out fewer decoys initially, it is more successful to put out all that you have.”
Additional Tips
Consider carving out a small pond to attract ducks since they are easily drawn to areas with water. If you cannot create one, find an existing pond and place the right baits to catch ducks.
Also, ducks will always move towards areas with long grasses. This provides shield from predators for them and their young ones. Therefore, consider growing the specie of grasses that will grow tall. The best spot to plant the grasses is close to the water. Remember, you don’t have to trim the grasses, the height is the point of attraction to ducks.
Don’t keep other animals close to the pond as this will deter the ducks from coming. Create room for their comfort by giving the impression that the area is only for them. Once ducks have the feeling that no other animal comes to the site, they will be attracted in mass to the pond area you’ve created.
Finally, when it comes to real shooting during duck hunting, the pros advised picking out just one bird from the bunch, then another, instead of trying to kill multiple ducks at a time.
Elk Hunting: Mastering the Tricks and Tactics for Calling Elk
Elk hunters have increasingly leveraged elk calls to enhance their success in elk hunting. The reason is simple; these hunters have discovered that elks communicate a lot. So, mastering the tactics and tricks that work in calling elk would enhance your outcome as an elk hunter.
What are the Basics of Elk Calling?
First, it is important to understand that elks communicate in their own language. Secondly, there are suitable calls for different times of the year. Once you get these two basic facts rightly, you will be amazed at the awesome results that would accompany your elk hunting escapades.
Don’t think for a moment, that elk calling is a mystery to be unraveled by some elk masters. That’s far from it! It only requires application of the right techniques and regular practice to master elk calling art. There are tons of conventional elk calls designed to mimic elk vocalization sound perfectly. The major trick in mastering elk calls is to know the suitable call for a particular time.
What are the Different Types of Elk Calls?
When it comes to mastering elk calling technique, a good place to start is the different types of elk calls available.
The pro elk hunters have identified six major types of elk calls. According to these pros, four of these calls are best suited for the female elk (cows), while the other two are most applicable to the male elk (bulls).
The different types of elk calls used in elk hunting are listed below:
Female (Cows) Elk Calls
These are:
1. Cow call
2. Mews and soft chirps
3. Excite cow call
4. Alarm barks
Male (Bull) Elk Calls
They are two in number:
5. Raking
6. Bugle
Tricks and Tips for Elk Calling
When it comes to elk hunting, other tips and tricks can help you achieve success in calling elk. The major element to success is practice. Practice your elk calling as much as possible. However, local hunting laws regulate elk calling, especially when you do not have a tag or permit to call an elk. So, check your local hunting regulations to be sure.
Some additional helpful tips for elk calling include the following:
Readiness – you need to be always ready as this is very vital in successful elk hunting. Before you call an elk, ensure that you have assumed the right shooting position and would not miss your target when the elk appears.
Be Patient – if your initial trials in calling elk did not produce result, don’t quit. Patience will reward you more than you can imagine. If you keep encountering failure, step aside and hone up your elk calling skills before resuming to call elk. The result of your efforts will soon be evident to all. Consider spending up to 30 minutes calling an elk prior to making a move. Don’t quit too soon.
In a follow-up post, you will learn how and when to engage each call for successful elk hunting.
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