posted by Jim on Dec 31

 My brother Randy, a good friend Mark, and my dad Raddie had all drawn bear tag’s for the Red Oak hunting zone in Michigan’s Lower Peninsula.   The first day they could legally start baiting they headed north.  And every weekend thereafter, they would repeat the long and tiresome task of hauling up untold amounts of fresh bait.  They scouted miles and miles of back roads and timber, making bait stations and preparing stand sites.  By the third weekend, they had nine bait stations in all, scattered over several miles of cedar swamp, river bottom, and a couple of promising sites on some hardwood ridges.
     As time pasted and the hunt date got closer, the guy’s started concentrating on the baits showing the most sign.  There were five baits out of the nine that had really good activity.  At each of those five sites is where they hung stands.
           I planned on joining the group on the first weekend of the hunt, to run the camera for my dad at first.  Then if he filled his tag, I would pair up with Randy or Mark, filming their hunts and so on.
    Randy and I were driving separate vehicles and going up on Thursday, September the 18th after work.  Mark would be joining us on Saturday evening.  And, my dad, Raddie, being retired had been up there a few days already keeping the bait sites full and getting the camp set up.
      Arriving too late on Friday night to do anything, Saturday morning we were up early and heading out to check the bait’s.    I set up my camera equipment in the tree that my dad was to hunt that night, and we went back to camp to await the evening hunt.
Darkness had fallen fast and the first night on stand had come and gone.  When we all reunited back at camp, Mark was the only one that had seen a bear.  The bear was small, and he passed up the opportunity.  But, he was very excited about his first heart pounding bear encounter in the woods.  I think he said that his heart beat increased to such a rate that he had an instant headache, blurred vision, and was shaking so bad he would not have been able to draw his bow even if he had wanted to.   There were a lot of laughs all around, and we couldn’t wait until tomorrow’s hunt.
     The next night on stand was a bit more exciting for dad and me.  After an hour or so on stand, I heard a twig snap behind me and to my right.  I was scanning the brush for movement and at the same time my dad had slowly stood up and turned to face me.   I had assumed that he too heard the noise.  But when he started to explain where he had seen bear’s come from in the past, I told him that I had just heard something behind me.   Almost at that second his eye’s got real big and all he said was “BIG BEAR! BIG BEAR!”.  Unfortunately, the bear was 15 yards away on a steep ridge about eye level with us.  And he broke out of there in a hurry.  No doubt he caught our scent.  We decided to let that stand set for a day or two without any disturbance.  The next morning while re-baiting all the sites I hung another stand and my camera equipment at a great looking location that hadn’t been hunted yet.  Dad and I both had a good feeling about this new spot, so we got in and out of there as quickly as possible.  
     On stand that evening, all was calm and quiet.  The sun was bright and in our faces for most of the hunt.  Although it was very warm, and not the ideal hunting situation, we had a good feeling that something was going to happen.  As the sun ducked down below the tree tops, my dad began to whisper, trying to control his excitement about an approaching bear. He had me at full attention.
     For the next several minutes, which had seemed like hours, the bear just toyed with us.  Every time it approached the bait, it would suddenly change its mind and go back the way in which it came.  This was really getting to my dad, and by now every time it looked as though it might present a shot, dad would raise his bow.  Well, the bear would catch just enough movement or sound to stop and back out once more.  This was played out time and time again, until dad and I were both wiped out.
At least I was getting “a lot of film”.
After many times back and forth, from cover to the bait, the bear finally made the mistake of walking out in front of the bait station.  Dad started to bring his bow up, and again the bear stopped and looked up at us. But, this time when the bear turned to retreat, again, Dad quickly came to full draw and sent an arrow his way.   Although, at first the shot looked good to Dad, it had struck the bear a bit high.  Deflecting off the top of its shoulder and ending up hitting the spine, leaving dad no option, but to finish the bear off with a second arrow.  The big bear turned out to be a sow with a beautiful coat and nice size head.  A very nice trophy and well worth all the hard work.
     Although Mark had a chance at a bear and passed, that was the only one he saw.  Unfortunately, my brother Randy never saw a bear the entire trip.  My dad’s bear was the only one taken this year out of the three hunters.
     I would like to thank my dad Raddie for allowing me the opportunity to share in this experience with him. It is definitely a trip that I will not soon forget.  I love you dad, and can’t wait for our next hunting adventure.