1 00:00:00,080 --> 00:00:17,080 Speaker 1: Yeah, my name is Clay Nukeleman. This is a production 2 00:00:17,120 --> 00:00:20,680 Speaker 1: of the Bear Grease podcast called the bear Grease Render 3 00:00:21,120 --> 00:00:25,200 Speaker 1: where we render down, dive deeper, and look behind the 4 00:00:25,239 --> 00:00:30,040 Speaker 1: scenes of the actual bear Grease podcast, presented by f 5 00:00:30,480 --> 00:00:35,320 Speaker 1: HF Gear, American made purpose built hunting and fishing gear 6 00:00:35,600 --> 00:00:39,280 Speaker 1: that's designed to be as rugged as the places we explore. 7 00:00:43,280 --> 00:00:48,400 Speaker 1: All right, man, this is uh, this is like groundbreaking stuff. 8 00:00:49,000 --> 00:00:52,240 Speaker 1: This has never happened before in the in the bear 9 00:00:52,320 --> 00:00:56,880 Speaker 1: Grease podcast. We're all doing a live podcast. So we're 10 00:00:56,920 --> 00:01:01,720 Speaker 1: in um just outside of Bentonville, our console at the 11 00:01:01,880 --> 00:01:04,440 Speaker 1: Black Bear Bonanzas. So for all the people that are 12 00:01:04,480 --> 00:01:07,959 Speaker 1: here live, we're gonna be, We're gonna be. Yeah, there 13 00:01:07,959 --> 00:01:11,920 Speaker 1: we go. We got we got a pretty good crowd here, 14 00:01:12,959 --> 00:01:16,560 Speaker 1: way way more people than we thought we'd had. Yeah, 15 00:01:17,000 --> 00:01:21,959 Speaker 1: we love you all. Yeah. So we uh this this 16 00:01:22,000 --> 00:01:25,360 Speaker 1: podcast will go out on the bear Grease platform here 17 00:01:25,400 --> 00:01:29,119 Speaker 1: in a couple of weeks, assuming that these guys don't 18 00:01:29,160 --> 00:01:33,200 Speaker 1: just say like ridiculous stuff that makes me just like 19 00:01:33,400 --> 00:01:36,039 Speaker 1: cancel the whole thing. So maybe you guys just get 20 00:01:36,080 --> 00:01:38,920 Speaker 1: to hear it all on your own. I don't know. Um, 21 00:01:39,080 --> 00:01:41,959 Speaker 1: we this has been so much fun. This is This 22 00:01:42,360 --> 00:01:46,240 Speaker 1: event has been in the making for several years. Yeah, 23 00:01:46,280 --> 00:01:48,800 Speaker 1: we were, we were just about to pull the trigger 24 00:01:48,840 --> 00:01:51,680 Speaker 1: on it two years ago. And uh, I know most 25 00:01:51,720 --> 00:01:53,520 Speaker 1: of you hill Billies don't get out much, but there 26 00:01:53,560 --> 00:01:56,720 Speaker 1: was a global pandemic. We didn't hear about it much here, 27 00:01:57,240 --> 00:02:00,240 Speaker 1: but there was a global pandemic that, uh kind of 28 00:02:00,240 --> 00:02:02,640 Speaker 1: shut the world down. And I think the event was 29 00:02:02,680 --> 00:02:06,640 Speaker 1: planned for March. Was the end of March? It was, yeah, 30 00:02:06,720 --> 00:02:11,480 Speaker 1: And where were you then? Yeah? Yeah, So we have 31 00:02:11,720 --> 00:02:15,960 Speaker 1: this like identical event plan. Myron was gonna come and 32 00:02:16,760 --> 00:02:19,400 Speaker 1: we were gonna have a live recording of what at 33 00:02:19,440 --> 00:02:22,720 Speaker 1: that time was the Bear Hunting Magazine podcast. So maybe 34 00:02:22,760 --> 00:02:24,520 Speaker 1: I think it's better. I think we're all probably better 35 00:02:24,560 --> 00:02:30,520 Speaker 1: than we were two years ago, hopefully. Yeah. Um, I 36 00:02:30,560 --> 00:02:33,120 Speaker 1: want to introduce my guests, and each one of them 37 00:02:33,120 --> 00:02:36,720 Speaker 1: are here for very particular reason, and that reason will 38 00:02:36,919 --> 00:02:40,840 Speaker 1: become clear maybe as we go further. Um. This is 39 00:02:40,919 --> 00:02:45,280 Speaker 1: James Brandenburg. James is the lead man for the Arkansas 40 00:02:45,400 --> 00:02:48,720 Speaker 1: chapter of the back Country Hunters and Anglers. Hello, James, 41 00:02:48,960 --> 00:02:52,840 Speaker 1: He's James. Has been MC and today and H. James 42 00:02:52,919 --> 00:02:58,160 Speaker 1: was on the Bear Hunting Magazine podcast with me several times, 43 00:02:58,440 --> 00:03:02,919 Speaker 1: and uh, he always did. I like talking at James, 44 00:03:02,960 --> 00:03:05,320 Speaker 1: Like I don't. I don't know how much that he 45 00:03:05,440 --> 00:03:08,520 Speaker 1: says that it's like really profound, but I find them 46 00:03:08,520 --> 00:03:11,240 Speaker 1: when I'm within arms reach of the guy that like, 47 00:03:11,320 --> 00:03:14,079 Speaker 1: I like talking at him, So that's a big compliment. 48 00:03:14,200 --> 00:03:16,280 Speaker 1: I feel like that basically what I am is just 49 00:03:16,400 --> 00:03:19,400 Speaker 1: there as a wall for you to bounce things off of, 50 00:03:19,880 --> 00:03:22,480 Speaker 1: and you solve most of your own problems without me, 51 00:03:22,800 --> 00:03:25,600 Speaker 1: if I'm being honest with you. The first time we 52 00:03:25,680 --> 00:03:29,720 Speaker 1: said guard the gate in the context of guarding the 53 00:03:29,760 --> 00:03:33,560 Speaker 1: gate and predator hunting being the gate for the anti 54 00:03:33,639 --> 00:03:36,720 Speaker 1: hunting community to step into our space as North American 55 00:03:36,800 --> 00:03:38,720 Speaker 1: hunters was when I was talking to James. And it 56 00:03:38,800 --> 00:03:41,600 Speaker 1: was only after that that I was like, we gotta 57 00:03:41,600 --> 00:03:44,360 Speaker 1: guard the gate, guard the gate. And then since that time, 58 00:03:44,760 --> 00:03:46,760 Speaker 1: you know, we've we've talked more and more on that 59 00:03:47,400 --> 00:03:50,800 Speaker 1: and and built this idea that I think it's catching 60 00:03:50,920 --> 00:03:55,240 Speaker 1: on in the country is that we have an incredible, 61 00:03:55,320 --> 00:03:59,800 Speaker 1: incredible thing in North America that nobody else has with 62 00:04:00,080 --> 00:04:03,960 Speaker 1: just this this this opportunity to hunt wildlife, to hunt 63 00:04:03,960 --> 00:04:09,000 Speaker 1: on public lands, and that we have the most successful 64 00:04:09,440 --> 00:04:12,400 Speaker 1: wildlife management system of anywhere on planet Earth, and the 65 00:04:12,480 --> 00:04:17,560 Speaker 1: history of planet Earth, and the way that those who 66 00:04:17,640 --> 00:04:22,240 Speaker 1: are would be against us for whatever reason. The platform 67 00:04:22,320 --> 00:04:26,360 Speaker 1: that they often target to enter into our beautiful space 68 00:04:26,440 --> 00:04:30,080 Speaker 1: that works so well is through predator hunting and sometimes 69 00:04:30,080 --> 00:04:32,360 Speaker 1: through bear hunting. And so I feel like our job 70 00:04:32,440 --> 00:04:35,160 Speaker 1: is to tell the story of the bear hunter, give 71 00:04:35,240 --> 00:04:37,599 Speaker 1: context to it. You know, why would somebody want to 72 00:04:37,600 --> 00:04:40,080 Speaker 1: shoot a bear? We like bears, and you know our 73 00:04:40,120 --> 00:04:43,560 Speaker 1: messages we love We love bears more than anybody. We 74 00:04:43,600 --> 00:04:47,120 Speaker 1: want bears to thrive more than anybody does. There's nobody 75 00:04:47,160 --> 00:04:49,560 Speaker 1: on planet Earth that wants there to be more bears 76 00:04:49,560 --> 00:04:52,000 Speaker 1: in Arkansas than me and Myron Means and a bunch 77 00:04:52,000 --> 00:04:54,839 Speaker 1: of you guys. And that's the truth and when and 78 00:04:54,920 --> 00:04:58,719 Speaker 1: it's a it's a difficult sell. It's a multi steps 79 00:04:58,760 --> 00:05:03,320 Speaker 1: cell to convin someone with no history, no connection to hunting, 80 00:05:03,680 --> 00:05:06,479 Speaker 1: to say killing a bear is actually a good thing 81 00:05:06,800 --> 00:05:09,440 Speaker 1: for the big picture. I mean, that's a multi step cell. 82 00:05:09,760 --> 00:05:12,679 Speaker 1: It's like, well, yeah, we are taking one individual out, 83 00:05:13,320 --> 00:05:16,000 Speaker 1: but you know, for the habitat that we have, that 84 00:05:16,040 --> 00:05:18,440 Speaker 1: animal needs to be taken out. And there's selective measures 85 00:05:18,440 --> 00:05:22,320 Speaker 1: and the gaming fish is monitoring, you know, multi steps cell. 86 00:05:22,400 --> 00:05:26,880 Speaker 1: It's a very easy sell for someone with no even 87 00:05:26,880 --> 00:05:29,799 Speaker 1: emotional connection to hunting, like most of us here would 88 00:05:29,800 --> 00:05:34,440 Speaker 1: have historical connection to go man killing bear equals bad 89 00:05:35,320 --> 00:05:40,279 Speaker 1: done deal. So here in Arkansas, thank goodness, we do 90 00:05:40,400 --> 00:05:43,360 Speaker 1: not have that problem. And we're here today because we 91 00:05:43,400 --> 00:05:46,720 Speaker 1: plan on never having that problem here. But we live 92 00:05:46,800 --> 00:05:50,359 Speaker 1: in such a world that is so interconnected. UM. In 93 00:05:50,480 --> 00:05:53,599 Speaker 1: my work with Bear Hunting Magazine, I was introduced to 94 00:05:53,839 --> 00:05:58,120 Speaker 1: a world I was absolutely unfamiliar with, which is a 95 00:05:58,120 --> 00:06:04,320 Speaker 1: world that is well just that the hunting community is 96 00:06:04,320 --> 00:06:06,720 Speaker 1: is under attack and other places. Twenty years ago, growing 97 00:06:06,760 --> 00:06:08,280 Speaker 1: up in Arkansas, if you told me that, I would 98 00:06:08,279 --> 00:06:10,880 Speaker 1: have said, man, you're just crying wolf. I mean, who's 99 00:06:10,920 --> 00:06:14,240 Speaker 1: coming to Arkansas telling us we can't hunt? And you 100 00:06:14,240 --> 00:06:17,039 Speaker 1: guys know what the world is changing quickly, And what 101 00:06:17,080 --> 00:06:21,120 Speaker 1: we can do now is build a foundation of understanding 102 00:06:21,160 --> 00:06:25,320 Speaker 1: the context knowledge base. And we're not mad at anybody. 103 00:06:25,480 --> 00:06:28,240 Speaker 1: The people that might be against us, we're not against them. 104 00:06:28,520 --> 00:06:30,800 Speaker 1: We're not trying to be ugly and stomp our feet. 105 00:06:30,839 --> 00:06:34,240 Speaker 1: We're trying to be the smart wise guys. By wise guy, 106 00:06:34,320 --> 00:06:37,560 Speaker 1: Brent's kind of a wise guy in the negative way. UM. Now, 107 00:06:38,360 --> 00:06:41,520 Speaker 1: we're the guy with the most knowledge, the guy with 108 00:06:41,600 --> 00:06:45,000 Speaker 1: the most wisdom, the guy with the most understanding of 109 00:06:45,040 --> 00:06:47,640 Speaker 1: the big picture, I think wins inside of this. And 110 00:06:47,640 --> 00:06:49,480 Speaker 1: so that's what we're trying to do, is just educate 111 00:06:49,560 --> 00:06:52,680 Speaker 1: people and why we're doing we're doing so James Brandenburg, 112 00:06:53,200 --> 00:06:59,200 Speaker 1: when we talked about that make it, did you see 113 00:06:59,240 --> 00:07:06,800 Speaker 1: how that went up? Quiet? He wouldn't welcome I will, 114 00:07:06,960 --> 00:07:10,480 Speaker 1: I will not go in sequential order. Here to my left, 115 00:07:10,520 --> 00:07:14,760 Speaker 1: this is Myron means. Myron means is I've known Myron 116 00:07:14,880 --> 00:07:19,400 Speaker 1: since uh two thousand eight or nine or somewhere somewhere. 117 00:07:19,480 --> 00:07:24,800 Speaker 1: The Myron is the large carnivore lead large carnival biologist 118 00:07:24,800 --> 00:07:26,120 Speaker 1: for the state of Arkansas. Is that the way you 119 00:07:26,200 --> 00:07:29,520 Speaker 1: say that? The only one in them? He leads yourself. 120 00:07:29,760 --> 00:07:32,400 Speaker 1: I have a small to medium sized personnel staff of 121 00:07:32,520 --> 00:07:36,560 Speaker 1: me myself and I. Yeah. So Myron has worked with 122 00:07:36,560 --> 00:07:39,600 Speaker 1: the game fish his whole career out of out of 123 00:07:39,640 --> 00:07:44,520 Speaker 1: college five years agency this year, yeah, twenty seven years 124 00:07:44,560 --> 00:07:49,520 Speaker 1: working with black bears in Arkansas. So Myron is is 125 00:07:49,600 --> 00:07:55,520 Speaker 1: the the resource for knowledge about Arkansas bears. And uh, 126 00:07:55,640 --> 00:07:57,680 Speaker 1: I'm gonna get Myron a little bit to give us, 127 00:07:57,800 --> 00:08:00,760 Speaker 1: give us the story of Arkansas all bears, because if 128 00:08:00,760 --> 00:08:04,040 Speaker 1: you're here today, no matter if you're from Oklahoma or Missouri, 129 00:08:04,480 --> 00:08:09,880 Speaker 1: you need to know the story of how bears got here. Um, 130 00:08:09,880 --> 00:08:14,240 Speaker 1: this is my wife, Misty newcom Misty is a is 131 00:08:14,320 --> 00:08:19,280 Speaker 1: a classic on the barg Reas Render. Um because she 132 00:08:20,240 --> 00:08:24,280 Speaker 1: keeps us in line and I get I get more comments, 133 00:08:24,280 --> 00:08:27,040 Speaker 1: she keeps me in line. I get more comments about 134 00:08:27,040 --> 00:08:29,640 Speaker 1: Misty being on the render, and so I just keep 135 00:08:29,680 --> 00:08:32,120 Speaker 1: bringing her on, not because the comments, but because I 136 00:08:32,160 --> 00:08:35,200 Speaker 1: like her. But I hear there is confusion today that 137 00:08:35,320 --> 00:08:39,680 Speaker 1: someone tried to sell themselves as me. Yeah, is that 138 00:08:39,679 --> 00:08:45,240 Speaker 1: that someone trying to steal my identity today? As how 139 00:08:45,280 --> 00:08:47,200 Speaker 1: you tell us a far Britt and I we often 140 00:08:47,240 --> 00:08:51,559 Speaker 1: get mistaken for one another. I don't ever mistaken for 141 00:08:51,600 --> 00:08:58,840 Speaker 1: one another. Um, Brent Reeves. Everybody would know Brent Reeves 142 00:08:58,840 --> 00:09:01,960 Speaker 1: from the Beargrease Render. And uh, Brent and I have 143 00:09:02,040 --> 00:09:06,199 Speaker 1: been friends for a long time, and uh we've been 144 00:09:06,280 --> 00:09:09,280 Speaker 1: hunted a lot together in different places. And uh, Brent 145 00:09:09,520 --> 00:09:12,439 Speaker 1: is here for the Southern wit and charm. So if 146 00:09:12,440 --> 00:09:14,800 Speaker 1: you have a little meter and you're taking the only 147 00:09:14,800 --> 00:09:17,199 Speaker 1: reason I keep him around. Brent says stuff to me 148 00:09:17,360 --> 00:09:20,319 Speaker 1: every single time I'm around him that I say, did 149 00:09:20,360 --> 00:09:22,360 Speaker 1: you just make that up? And did somebody tell you that? 150 00:09:22,960 --> 00:09:26,040 Speaker 1: What I have noticed is the stories are often inconsistent, though, 151 00:09:26,080 --> 00:09:28,160 Speaker 1: because sometimes he's like, my dad told me that, and 152 00:09:28,160 --> 00:09:30,240 Speaker 1: the next time I'll be like, my uncle told me that, 153 00:09:30,280 --> 00:09:31,960 Speaker 1: And the next time I'd be like, I made that up. 154 00:09:32,000 --> 00:09:34,559 Speaker 1: So I don't know. It's hard to know the truth. 155 00:09:38,080 --> 00:09:41,719 Speaker 1: I keep it around a great friend of mine. And 156 00:09:41,760 --> 00:09:45,400 Speaker 1: then final, and definitely not least on the end, here 157 00:09:45,480 --> 00:09:49,360 Speaker 1: is my friend Mo Shephard and Mo is here for 158 00:09:49,440 --> 00:09:52,040 Speaker 1: a various specific reasons. I've got a story I want 159 00:09:52,120 --> 00:09:56,160 Speaker 1: him to tell you, uh later. But mo is Mo 160 00:09:56,520 --> 00:09:59,199 Speaker 1: is like a mountain man. If I think about Arkansas 161 00:09:59,280 --> 00:10:03,440 Speaker 1: guys that are just woodsman, just real deal woodsman. Uh. 162 00:10:03,640 --> 00:10:07,320 Speaker 1: Mo was one of the most accomplished big woods mountain 163 00:10:07,400 --> 00:10:10,640 Speaker 1: hunters that I know, and he and I have corresponded 164 00:10:10,679 --> 00:10:13,360 Speaker 1: a lot with bear hunting when I was really trying 165 00:10:13,360 --> 00:10:16,439 Speaker 1: to learn how to bear hunt in national forest without 166 00:10:16,559 --> 00:10:18,959 Speaker 1: the use of bait, which we can talk about a 167 00:10:19,000 --> 00:10:21,400 Speaker 1: little bit today. Me and Mo. I mean, Mo was 168 00:10:21,400 --> 00:10:23,680 Speaker 1: a resource for me because he spent his whole life 169 00:10:23,679 --> 00:10:27,000 Speaker 1: in the mountains and killed bears on purpose in national forest, 170 00:10:27,480 --> 00:10:29,800 Speaker 1: you know, not an incidental deer kill. Some of them 171 00:10:29,800 --> 00:10:32,000 Speaker 1: were incident. I think he got lucky on you know, 172 00:10:32,080 --> 00:10:37,320 Speaker 1: probably a third of them, but not your opinion. Uh no, 173 00:10:37,600 --> 00:10:40,360 Speaker 1: But I just have a lot of respect for mo 174 00:10:40,559 --> 00:10:44,640 Speaker 1: as a as a woodsman. But uh hey, okay, I 175 00:10:44,720 --> 00:10:46,640 Speaker 1: got a little ahead of myself here, which I tend 176 00:10:46,679 --> 00:10:48,960 Speaker 1: to do sometimes. Do you know what the bear Grease 177 00:10:49,000 --> 00:10:51,560 Speaker 1: render is? We got a lot of not in head. 178 00:10:51,600 --> 00:10:56,280 Speaker 1: So the bear Grease podcast is our documentary style podcast 179 00:10:56,760 --> 00:10:59,600 Speaker 1: that is not like this. It's where we have you know, 180 00:10:59,640 --> 00:11:03,680 Speaker 1: we have specific topics if you hadn't heard it, specific topics, 181 00:11:03,720 --> 00:11:06,000 Speaker 1: and we really dive in deep and it's a well 182 00:11:06,040 --> 00:11:10,600 Speaker 1: put together, like polished um podcast. This, I'll tell you 183 00:11:10,600 --> 00:11:12,560 Speaker 1: the truth. A lot of it is because we couldn't 184 00:11:12,559 --> 00:11:14,839 Speaker 1: do that every single week. It was just too much work. 185 00:11:15,280 --> 00:11:17,040 Speaker 1: We had to figure out a way to do something else. 186 00:11:17,080 --> 00:11:20,320 Speaker 1: So we put together in the colectic group every week 187 00:11:20,360 --> 00:11:27,199 Speaker 1: on the off weeks typically talk about what the podcast 188 00:11:27,240 --> 00:11:30,079 Speaker 1: topic was about the week before, so you'll understand the format. 189 00:11:30,400 --> 00:11:32,520 Speaker 1: That's what We're not going to do that this week 190 00:11:32,679 --> 00:11:34,800 Speaker 1: because this is a special one. We're gonna we're gonna 191 00:11:34,840 --> 00:11:39,040 Speaker 1: talk about bears, Marian, why don't you give us a 192 00:11:39,160 --> 00:11:43,840 Speaker 1: rundown of just bears in Arkansas and kind of just 193 00:11:43,880 --> 00:11:47,200 Speaker 1: a historical look. You know how much time we have left. 194 00:11:48,840 --> 00:11:51,920 Speaker 1: You know that's good. I know you can talk this 195 00:11:52,000 --> 00:11:55,839 Speaker 1: real abbreviated, real quick. I'm sure most of you know 196 00:11:56,000 --> 00:11:59,360 Speaker 1: that Arkansas at one time we used to unofficially be 197 00:11:59,480 --> 00:12:02,600 Speaker 1: known as the bear State. Bring it back, yeah, bring 198 00:12:02,760 --> 00:12:05,240 Speaker 1: back before we were the natural state or the land 199 00:12:05,240 --> 00:12:07,800 Speaker 1: of Opportunity. At the time of settlement, we were called 200 00:12:07,840 --> 00:12:11,440 Speaker 1: the bear State. And uh, it was thought at the 201 00:12:11,520 --> 00:12:14,640 Speaker 1: time of settlement in Arkansas that we may have had 202 00:12:14,720 --> 00:12:17,240 Speaker 1: as many as fifty thousand black bears in the state. 203 00:12:17,920 --> 00:12:20,920 Speaker 1: And of course, the landscape was completely different than it 204 00:12:20,960 --> 00:12:24,400 Speaker 1: is now. I mean, we had vast expanses of bottom 205 00:12:24,480 --> 00:12:30,080 Speaker 1: land hardwood, mature forest upland hardwood pine mix, and it's 206 00:12:30,160 --> 00:12:34,600 Speaker 1: just a different different ecosystem than it is today. Uh. 207 00:12:34,800 --> 00:12:40,040 Speaker 1: At the time of settlement, very briefly, bears had one 208 00:12:41,559 --> 00:12:47,600 Speaker 1: very sought after commodity that was plentiful in Arkansas. And 209 00:12:47,679 --> 00:12:50,320 Speaker 1: that's that right there. He's holding up a jar bear grease, 210 00:12:50,400 --> 00:12:53,720 Speaker 1: bar oil, and we all know kind of what happened 211 00:12:53,720 --> 00:12:56,800 Speaker 1: with the uh demise of the whales. You know, the 212 00:12:56,840 --> 00:12:59,960 Speaker 1: whales were sought and hunted for their blubber to rent 213 00:13:00,000 --> 00:13:02,520 Speaker 1: are down the fat for oils. Well, the same thing 214 00:13:02,600 --> 00:13:06,360 Speaker 1: happened with bear of their oil or their fat was 215 00:13:06,440 --> 00:13:10,160 Speaker 1: highly coveted a market hunting wise, So what better place 216 00:13:10,240 --> 00:13:13,880 Speaker 1: to get oil bear fat than in the bear state, right, 217 00:13:14,840 --> 00:13:18,959 Speaker 1: And so at the time of settlement, through settlement into Arkansas, 218 00:13:19,240 --> 00:13:22,560 Speaker 1: it became a you know, a really sought after commodity. 219 00:13:22,640 --> 00:13:27,800 Speaker 1: Bears were market hunted, uh, you know, unceasingly or without 220 00:13:27,840 --> 00:13:32,240 Speaker 1: any regulation or anything, and so uh they were almost 221 00:13:32,280 --> 00:13:36,920 Speaker 1: extirpated from the state completely. In fact, by nineteen fifty one, 222 00:13:37,000 --> 00:13:39,400 Speaker 1: a man named trust and Holder did a land survey 223 00:13:39,400 --> 00:13:43,359 Speaker 1: of the state of Arkansas, and uh found that the 224 00:13:43,360 --> 00:13:46,680 Speaker 1: only remaining population that he had evidence of was in 225 00:13:46,720 --> 00:13:50,280 Speaker 1: the lower White River drainage scrub Grass Bayou. And it 226 00:13:50,360 --> 00:13:52,559 Speaker 1: was thought that we may have had as many as 227 00:13:52,600 --> 00:13:56,320 Speaker 1: fifty bears left in the entire state. Now, if you're 228 00:13:56,360 --> 00:14:00,679 Speaker 1: a big Clay Newcomb podcast fan, and if you've listened 229 00:14:00,720 --> 00:14:04,360 Speaker 1: to this podcast with Dori Province, UH, some of those 230 00:14:04,520 --> 00:14:08,680 Speaker 1: really old timers that lived in the Washtalls of the Ozarks. 231 00:14:08,720 --> 00:14:11,040 Speaker 1: They'll tell you, Hey, when I was a kid back 232 00:14:11,040 --> 00:14:14,000 Speaker 1: in the thirties or forties, we saw a bear. So 233 00:14:14,160 --> 00:14:17,719 Speaker 1: is it likely that there were some remnants of the 234 00:14:17,760 --> 00:14:23,600 Speaker 1: mountain bear population still out there? Sure? Uh. But nineteen 235 00:14:25,120 --> 00:14:27,720 Speaker 1: Game and Fish embarked what is still to this day 236 00:14:28,280 --> 00:14:31,600 Speaker 1: a historical reintroduction effort. In over a ten year period, 237 00:14:31,680 --> 00:14:35,440 Speaker 1: they reintroduced two hundred and fifty four bears from Minnesota 238 00:14:35,480 --> 00:14:39,520 Speaker 1: and Manitoba, Canada into the Ozarks and wash tolls of 239 00:14:39,560 --> 00:14:41,920 Speaker 1: the state and the forest were grown back up at 240 00:14:41,960 --> 00:14:45,960 Speaker 1: that time, and it was really perfect bear habitat, and 241 00:14:46,080 --> 00:14:49,280 Speaker 1: there wasn't a season on at that time. Interject something. 242 00:14:49,840 --> 00:14:52,200 Speaker 1: I think this is a compelling part of the story 243 00:14:52,680 --> 00:14:56,080 Speaker 1: that gives a little more context. Is that you know, 244 00:14:56,560 --> 00:14:59,400 Speaker 1: from from the time of white European settlement of this 245 00:14:59,480 --> 00:15:01,520 Speaker 1: part of the world world, which would have been you know, 246 00:15:01,720 --> 00:15:05,000 Speaker 1: in the early eighteen hundreds, the first people were getting 247 00:15:05,080 --> 00:15:07,880 Speaker 1: here pretty much and starting to settle by the turn 248 00:15:07,920 --> 00:15:11,520 Speaker 1: of the century. By nineteen hundred, in in and on 249 00:15:11,520 --> 00:15:14,440 Speaker 1: a little bit further, almost all of Arkansas would have 250 00:15:14,480 --> 00:15:18,840 Speaker 1: been cut for timber to build the Eastern US. I mean, 251 00:15:18,880 --> 00:15:22,440 Speaker 1: they were sending timber from here and in marketing back, 252 00:15:22,520 --> 00:15:26,080 Speaker 1: especially after the railroads, they would have done that. But basically, 253 00:15:26,080 --> 00:15:30,160 Speaker 1: by the nineteen fifties and sixties, well go back the 254 00:15:30,600 --> 00:15:35,520 Speaker 1: national forest. Um, the what am I looking for? The 255 00:15:35,800 --> 00:15:41,640 Speaker 1: the federal government protection of national forest started with Teddy Roosevelt, 256 00:15:41,680 --> 00:15:45,960 Speaker 1: I want to say in the teens, uh when was 257 00:15:47,080 --> 00:15:55,080 Speaker 1: before Teddy Roosevelt set up the Forest Service. And so 258 00:15:55,160 --> 00:15:59,520 Speaker 1: they started protecting these big blocks of what became public land. 259 00:16:00,320 --> 00:16:04,880 Speaker 1: And so for sixty years the timber was able to regrow. 260 00:16:05,000 --> 00:16:07,280 Speaker 1: So in the fifties and sixties, for the first time 261 00:16:07,360 --> 00:16:10,440 Speaker 1: a bunch of our habitat all of a sudden had 262 00:16:10,480 --> 00:16:12,480 Speaker 1: this big timber and was good for bear habitats. So 263 00:16:12,520 --> 00:16:16,080 Speaker 1: it was like the right time. Habitat was right. Everything 264 00:16:16,160 --> 00:16:18,520 Speaker 1: was right, and so that's why it was a success. 265 00:16:18,800 --> 00:16:21,480 Speaker 1: That's that's exactly right. And you know, the force were 266 00:16:21,520 --> 00:16:24,880 Speaker 1: coming back, bears were protected, so it was I mean, 267 00:16:24,920 --> 00:16:28,040 Speaker 1: it was just excellent bear habitat. And you know, bears 268 00:16:28,040 --> 00:16:31,240 Speaker 1: have proven one thing, not only here in Arkansas but 269 00:16:31,320 --> 00:16:34,080 Speaker 1: about anywhere else, but giving the opportunity and the right 270 00:16:34,160 --> 00:16:38,520 Speaker 1: kind of habitat and circumstances, their populations will flourish. And 271 00:16:38,640 --> 00:16:42,200 Speaker 1: so the population flourished, and actually flourished to the point 272 00:16:42,240 --> 00:16:47,120 Speaker 1: that by night gaming fish reopened bear season in the state. 273 00:16:47,640 --> 00:16:50,240 Speaker 1: And uh we've had a bear season this last year 274 00:16:50,280 --> 00:16:54,360 Speaker 1: mark the forty one modern day bear season. If you 275 00:16:54,480 --> 00:16:57,280 Speaker 1: look at our bear harvest since nineteen eighty, it's just 276 00:16:57,360 --> 00:17:00,800 Speaker 1: been a steady increase all the way up. We think 277 00:17:00,880 --> 00:17:04,760 Speaker 1: we probably have around six thousand bears in the state now, 278 00:17:05,240 --> 00:17:07,480 Speaker 1: you know, give or take a few hundred or maybe 279 00:17:07,480 --> 00:17:11,600 Speaker 1: even a thousand, But I mean, the probably one of 280 00:17:11,640 --> 00:17:16,000 Speaker 1: the most unique things about bears in Arkansas is we 281 00:17:16,040 --> 00:17:21,280 Speaker 1: seem to be looping through these twenty years cycles. You know, 282 00:17:21,359 --> 00:17:24,680 Speaker 1: the bears are reintroduced back around nineteen sixty, give or 283 00:17:24,720 --> 00:17:28,120 Speaker 1: take a few years. By nineteen eighty, twenty years later, 284 00:17:28,880 --> 00:17:32,199 Speaker 1: we're able to reopen bear season in the state. And 285 00:17:32,359 --> 00:17:35,720 Speaker 1: from nineteen eighty to two thousand, you know, our bear 286 00:17:35,800 --> 00:17:38,880 Speaker 1: population had increased in such a way that we were 287 00:17:39,320 --> 00:17:42,840 Speaker 1: we're not harvesting the number of bears we needed. Incidentally, 288 00:17:43,200 --> 00:17:45,200 Speaker 1: so what do we do in two thousand one to 289 00:17:45,560 --> 00:17:50,159 Speaker 1: increase harvest rates? We had abating to the regime harvest 290 00:17:50,200 --> 00:17:55,280 Speaker 1: strategy or to our regulation strategies, and then uh so 291 00:17:55,600 --> 00:17:59,040 Speaker 1: here we are twenty years later in the same bear 292 00:17:59,200 --> 00:18:03,199 Speaker 1: population in what are we talking about now? Reintroducing a 293 00:18:03,240 --> 00:18:06,240 Speaker 1: bare season to the Gulf coastal plaine of Arkansas. That's 294 00:18:06,240 --> 00:18:11,880 Speaker 1: a big deal deal and so I mean it's uh, 295 00:18:12,040 --> 00:18:15,920 Speaker 1: it's just a good testament to great uh conservation efforts 296 00:18:16,000 --> 00:18:19,800 Speaker 1: by game and fish. Uh and you know, land use 297 00:18:19,840 --> 00:18:25,160 Speaker 1: patterns change, uh, everything changes, you know, over time. But uh, 298 00:18:25,320 --> 00:18:29,280 Speaker 1: it's something that I've certainly feel privileged to be a 299 00:18:29,320 --> 00:18:33,720 Speaker 1: part of, to be in a state that has done 300 00:18:33,720 --> 00:18:37,600 Speaker 1: this so successfully, reintroduced bear so successfully. You may have 301 00:18:37,640 --> 00:18:41,640 Speaker 1: said it, but in the biological community, the reintroduction, which 302 00:18:41,680 --> 00:18:48,040 Speaker 1: a reintroduction is different than a uh that that's specific 303 00:18:48,160 --> 00:18:54,520 Speaker 1: terminology to describe taking adult wild animals and relocating them 304 00:18:54,600 --> 00:18:56,760 Speaker 1: in turn and loose. But that is it's considered the 305 00:18:56,760 --> 00:19:01,080 Speaker 1: most successful reintroduction of large carnivores in the world. That 306 00:19:01,520 --> 00:19:04,080 Speaker 1: still stands. That's right, it still stands. I mean, no 307 00:19:04,160 --> 00:19:08,119 Speaker 1: other natural resource agency anywhere in the world has done 308 00:19:08,359 --> 00:19:12,879 Speaker 1: what Arkansas has done so successfully with a large carnivore. 309 00:19:13,240 --> 00:19:18,240 Speaker 1: That's something to be proud of, it really is. And 310 00:19:18,680 --> 00:19:22,239 Speaker 1: to put it into context too, when you look at 311 00:19:22,280 --> 00:19:24,959 Speaker 1: a you top in your phone and for a for 312 00:19:25,119 --> 00:19:27,679 Speaker 1: like a heat map of the of North America for 313 00:19:27,720 --> 00:19:31,840 Speaker 1: where our bear populations are, and you'll see a bunch 314 00:19:31,840 --> 00:19:34,479 Speaker 1: of red in the eastern United States, I mean, one 315 00:19:34,520 --> 00:19:36,879 Speaker 1: of the strongholds of the black bear is in the east, 316 00:19:37,119 --> 00:19:39,040 Speaker 1: you know, the southern Appalachians, all the way up in 317 00:19:39,080 --> 00:19:42,199 Speaker 1: the UH, up in the main into Canada, all the 318 00:19:42,200 --> 00:19:44,840 Speaker 1: way down to Florida. I mean, the eastern US has 319 00:19:44,880 --> 00:19:47,720 Speaker 1: some incredible bear populations more than US. I mean, you 320 00:19:47,800 --> 00:19:53,400 Speaker 1: go into West Virginia, North Carolina, Uh Virginia, Man, they 321 00:19:53,400 --> 00:19:57,960 Speaker 1: have some incredible bear populations. Okay, So imagine all these 322 00:19:58,000 --> 00:20:01,440 Speaker 1: bears here, and then all of Canada is just Canada 323 00:20:01,520 --> 00:20:05,639 Speaker 1: is bear central, I mean, Canada is The wilderness that 324 00:20:05,680 --> 00:20:10,600 Speaker 1: they actually have in Canada is just remarkable in terms 325 00:20:10,680 --> 00:20:14,520 Speaker 1: of actual definition of wilderness being places where people in 326 00:20:14,600 --> 00:20:18,080 Speaker 1: civilization and roads are not. So Canada still has very 327 00:20:18,160 --> 00:20:20,800 Speaker 1: much a strong bearer population. And then it loops into 328 00:20:20,840 --> 00:20:23,200 Speaker 1: the Rocky Mountain West. And remember I'm painting a picture 329 00:20:23,200 --> 00:20:26,320 Speaker 1: of a heat map. The Rocky Mountain West all the 330 00:20:26,359 --> 00:20:29,080 Speaker 1: way down to Old Mexico has black bears, and all 331 00:20:29,119 --> 00:20:31,640 Speaker 1: the Western states, a lot of them have pretty good 332 00:20:31,640 --> 00:20:39,760 Speaker 1: bear populations, very good bear populations in the northwest, Washington, Oregon, Idaho, Montana. 333 00:20:40,160 --> 00:20:42,639 Speaker 1: So there's a big hole in our map though in 334 00:20:42,680 --> 00:20:47,600 Speaker 1: the central US, from about middle Kentucky over to the 335 00:20:47,800 --> 00:20:51,240 Speaker 1: Rocky Mountains and the Great Lakes have bears too. So 336 00:20:51,320 --> 00:20:54,840 Speaker 1: from like Michigan down the whole mid South and South, 337 00:20:55,400 --> 00:20:59,919 Speaker 1: no bears except for this one little red dot about 338 00:21:00,000 --> 00:21:03,240 Speaker 1: that big which is the Arkansas bear population. So I 339 00:21:03,240 --> 00:21:05,879 Speaker 1: mean think about that. I mean, when you're looking at 340 00:21:05,880 --> 00:21:09,360 Speaker 1: this as a as a as a continental resource, it's 341 00:21:09,359 --> 00:21:13,159 Speaker 1: pretty wild that we've got bears here and now. And 342 00:21:13,200 --> 00:21:16,080 Speaker 1: what Myron could tell you better than me is that 343 00:21:16,520 --> 00:21:19,480 Speaker 1: from the reintroduction of those two and fifty four bears 344 00:21:20,119 --> 00:21:24,080 Speaker 1: now Missouri, these bears are moving into Missouri such that 345 00:21:24,160 --> 00:21:27,160 Speaker 1: Missouri has had their first bear season. And we're gonna 346 00:21:27,160 --> 00:21:30,159 Speaker 1: talk I believe Laura Connley will be here later right 347 00:21:30,240 --> 00:21:34,840 Speaker 1: here now, Um, they're going into Missouri. They they've moved 348 00:21:34,840 --> 00:21:37,680 Speaker 1: over into Oklahoma just this week. Did you hear about 349 00:21:37,680 --> 00:21:40,480 Speaker 1: the legislation where in Louisiana they're proposing the bear season 350 00:21:40,520 --> 00:21:42,919 Speaker 1: in northern Louisiana. I kind of got wind of that 351 00:21:43,040 --> 00:21:47,080 Speaker 1: a few months ago talking to Louisiana's bear ball just 352 00:21:47,119 --> 00:21:49,679 Speaker 1: but she thought it might be coming so well, they 353 00:21:49,840 --> 00:21:53,960 Speaker 1: put it out as an official composal. But I mean, 354 00:21:53,960 --> 00:21:58,119 Speaker 1: that's massive conservation success in two when we live in 355 00:21:58,160 --> 00:22:02,000 Speaker 1: such an urbanized world and whatever is this is what 356 00:22:02,080 --> 00:22:05,640 Speaker 1: I always say, whatever is happening ecologically in North America 357 00:22:06,160 --> 00:22:09,520 Speaker 1: for some wild reason has been beneficial to black bears, 358 00:22:10,080 --> 00:22:13,960 Speaker 1: I mean, And so to me, it's kind of it's 359 00:22:14,040 --> 00:22:17,639 Speaker 1: kind of poetic in a sense that the you know, 360 00:22:17,680 --> 00:22:22,320 Speaker 1: the American frontier truly was fueled by bear meat and 361 00:22:22,359 --> 00:22:25,560 Speaker 1: bear grease. That that is not that is not hyperbolic. 362 00:22:26,040 --> 00:22:28,199 Speaker 1: I mean people used to not eat dear meat, just 363 00:22:28,320 --> 00:22:31,200 Speaker 1: keep their hides, and they killed bears for their meat 364 00:22:31,520 --> 00:22:33,600 Speaker 1: and for their hide. Well they use their hides too, 365 00:22:33,960 --> 00:22:37,639 Speaker 1: but for their oil. I mean, so this bear was 366 00:22:37,680 --> 00:22:40,920 Speaker 1: so important. And then there was a time when the 367 00:22:40,960 --> 00:22:43,320 Speaker 1: bears were extrapated, just like you know, Arkansas is a 368 00:22:43,400 --> 00:22:47,760 Speaker 1: great a small microcosm of what happened in bigger places too. 369 00:22:48,160 --> 00:22:52,040 Speaker 1: The bears were gone. People forgot, I mean literally in Arkansas, 370 00:22:52,200 --> 00:22:56,359 Speaker 1: people forgot. I mean it's like bears weren't here basically 371 00:22:56,520 --> 00:22:59,800 Speaker 1: in a functional way for seventy years, sixty years, and 372 00:22:59,800 --> 00:23:02,159 Speaker 1: then all of a sudden in the eighties it was like, 373 00:23:02,280 --> 00:23:05,400 Speaker 1: holy cow, we got bears. And then while Myron walked 374 00:23:05,400 --> 00:23:07,919 Speaker 1: through from us having a bear season in nineteen eighty 375 00:23:08,400 --> 00:23:11,119 Speaker 1: until two thousand one. And I'm about to make a 376 00:23:11,200 --> 00:23:14,159 Speaker 1: claim here that if somebody can dispute me, they will, uh, 377 00:23:14,760 --> 00:23:19,880 Speaker 1: I'll give them jar beargers. So during that period of time, 378 00:23:20,000 --> 00:23:22,720 Speaker 1: Arkansas was probably killing less than a hundred fifty bears 379 00:23:22,720 --> 00:23:27,720 Speaker 1: a year. Maybe there was no baiting, so from around 380 00:23:27,720 --> 00:23:32,359 Speaker 1: and there, I think it was harvest was yeah, it was. 381 00:23:32,480 --> 00:23:35,440 Speaker 1: It was just pretty amnemic. I mean, because most people 382 00:23:35,480 --> 00:23:37,920 Speaker 1: had to do it. It was most of the harvest 383 00:23:38,000 --> 00:23:41,800 Speaker 1: at that time was incidental to deer honting. Deer season 384 00:23:41,800 --> 00:23:45,520 Speaker 1: and bear seasons ranking current, and so you know, most 385 00:23:45,560 --> 00:23:48,760 Speaker 1: people didn't actively hunt bears. They were out deer hunting. 386 00:23:49,000 --> 00:23:51,640 Speaker 1: I see a bears, shoot a bear. Uh so bear 387 00:23:51,680 --> 00:23:55,520 Speaker 1: seasons open. So really, up until two thousand one, I 388 00:23:55,560 --> 00:23:58,400 Speaker 1: would say the majority of the bear harvest was incident. 389 00:23:59,320 --> 00:24:02,520 Speaker 1: And that's that's exactly my point is that guys, there 390 00:24:02,520 --> 00:24:05,240 Speaker 1: were some, but there weren't a lot of people really 391 00:24:05,280 --> 00:24:09,119 Speaker 1: targeting bears. Two thousand one, they decide I'm building to 392 00:24:09,160 --> 00:24:11,600 Speaker 1: a point here that I want everybody to hear is 393 00:24:11,640 --> 00:24:16,080 Speaker 1: that in two thousand one, they said, we have so 394 00:24:16,160 --> 00:24:18,960 Speaker 1: many bears in Arkansas. We need an effective way to 395 00:24:19,040 --> 00:24:24,000 Speaker 1: manage these bears because to take out typically in bear management, 396 00:24:24,040 --> 00:24:26,720 Speaker 1: to take out ten percent of the bear population per 397 00:24:26,840 --> 00:24:31,480 Speaker 1: year is gonna equate to that population remaining stable for 398 00:24:31,520 --> 00:24:33,800 Speaker 1: the most part. And Myron could tell us a spot 399 00:24:33,840 --> 00:24:36,320 Speaker 1: about that in general, that would be a true statement. 400 00:24:36,680 --> 00:24:39,560 Speaker 1: And so they said, we cannot harvest the number of 401 00:24:39,560 --> 00:24:42,360 Speaker 1: bears that we need for the habitat that we have 402 00:24:43,000 --> 00:24:46,280 Speaker 1: using incidental deer harvest to kill these bears. Did you 403 00:24:46,320 --> 00:24:49,960 Speaker 1: ever kill a bear in the nineties? Yeah, nine ninety 404 00:24:50,000 --> 00:24:52,760 Speaker 1: I killed my first bears nine? Did it on purpose 405 00:24:52,880 --> 00:24:58,359 Speaker 1: or was this there weren't many for real? Um? I 406 00:24:58,400 --> 00:25:00,720 Speaker 1: thought you'd kill them st that. Did you hunt the 407 00:25:00,760 --> 00:25:05,760 Speaker 1: first first year in that eight Yeah? And I hunted 408 00:25:05,800 --> 00:25:08,080 Speaker 1: each year up till nine ninety and I killed my 409 00:25:08,119 --> 00:25:10,639 Speaker 1: first bear in that team ninety. So I'm curious to 410 00:25:10,680 --> 00:25:13,560 Speaker 1: see how many here did hunt bear prior to two 411 00:25:13,640 --> 00:25:25,280 Speaker 1: thousand in Arkansas. Yeah, that's why you're up here. Well, okay, 412 00:25:25,359 --> 00:25:27,800 Speaker 1: so what they had to do, and it was a 413 00:25:27,840 --> 00:25:30,560 Speaker 1: management decision that the game and fish did as they said, 414 00:25:30,600 --> 00:25:33,359 Speaker 1: we're going to manage our bears with bow hunters. And 415 00:25:33,560 --> 00:25:35,679 Speaker 1: I'm putting words kind of in the I mean, this 416 00:25:35,720 --> 00:25:37,640 Speaker 1: is what I've heard. We're gonna manage bears with bow 417 00:25:37,720 --> 00:25:43,119 Speaker 1: hunters on private land over bait. And that that was 418 00:25:43,920 --> 00:25:47,719 Speaker 1: an extremely critical and I think brilliant move for the 419 00:25:47,760 --> 00:25:50,000 Speaker 1: state because all of a sudden it opened up a 420 00:25:50,040 --> 00:25:53,960 Speaker 1: real possibility for people to tap into this resource. I mean, 421 00:25:53,960 --> 00:25:56,160 Speaker 1: it kind of opened the floodgates for hunters to really 422 00:25:56,200 --> 00:25:59,320 Speaker 1: be able to kill one. It really did allowed people 423 00:25:59,359 --> 00:26:01,960 Speaker 1: to kind of get bear, so to speak. And after 424 00:26:02,040 --> 00:26:04,360 Speaker 1: that point, you know, once people learned how to bait 425 00:26:04,440 --> 00:26:07,760 Speaker 1: bears and how to go about it, you know, there 426 00:26:07,800 --> 00:26:10,520 Speaker 1: was a learning curve associated with it. But after a 427 00:26:10,560 --> 00:26:15,320 Speaker 1: few years when the culture became not acceptable, but when 428 00:26:15,400 --> 00:26:18,119 Speaker 1: people started learning how to do it, that's when you 429 00:26:18,160 --> 00:26:20,520 Speaker 1: saw our harvest in the state really take. This is 430 00:26:20,520 --> 00:26:23,679 Speaker 1: a principle too inside of wildlife. And I saw this 431 00:26:23,720 --> 00:26:25,680 Speaker 1: as a kid growing up in a part of Arkansas 432 00:26:25,760 --> 00:26:29,080 Speaker 1: that was a really good bear area. Is that because 433 00:26:29,200 --> 00:26:33,600 Speaker 1: it was really difficult to target bears, they held little value. 434 00:26:33,640 --> 00:26:36,240 Speaker 1: I would say, I mean for real like cultural value, 435 00:26:36,359 --> 00:26:39,560 Speaker 1: like my dad would tell you. I mean, it was 436 00:26:39,640 --> 00:26:41,520 Speaker 1: kind of like, man, you don't want to bear anywhere 437 00:26:41,560 --> 00:26:43,720 Speaker 1: around where you're hunting. They'll tear up your deer stands, 438 00:26:43,720 --> 00:26:46,600 Speaker 1: they'll tear up your deer feeders. Their trouble. And I 439 00:26:46,600 --> 00:26:50,520 Speaker 1: saw people killing bears and just kind of like, yeah, 440 00:26:50,560 --> 00:26:53,040 Speaker 1: I just I mean, almost like a trash animal, that 441 00:26:53,200 --> 00:26:55,119 Speaker 1: kind of a vermin mentality, and that that is not 442 00:26:55,200 --> 00:26:57,320 Speaker 1: a blanket statement. There were people that were killing them 443 00:26:57,320 --> 00:27:00,320 Speaker 1: and loving them like mo. But in general, I stand 444 00:27:00,359 --> 00:27:04,200 Speaker 1: by that that there wasn't a great incentive for someone 445 00:27:04,200 --> 00:27:06,200 Speaker 1: to be a bear hunter because it was so difficult. 446 00:27:06,440 --> 00:27:09,200 Speaker 1: And when they liberalized that season, all of a sudden, 447 00:27:09,520 --> 00:27:11,720 Speaker 1: we started hunting and we were like, holy cow, we 448 00:27:11,760 --> 00:27:14,760 Speaker 1: can actually go kill a bear. And we learned how 449 00:27:14,800 --> 00:27:17,359 Speaker 1: to bear hunt, we learned about bear meat, we learned 450 00:27:17,400 --> 00:27:20,439 Speaker 1: how to you know, we're still learning just kind of 451 00:27:20,480 --> 00:27:25,760 Speaker 1: this this how unique this wildlife commodity is. But I 452 00:27:25,960 --> 00:27:29,040 Speaker 1: I refused to let anybody tell me that bait and 453 00:27:29,080 --> 00:27:32,240 Speaker 1: bears is a negative thing, and you shouldn't either. Bear 454 00:27:32,359 --> 00:27:34,879 Speaker 1: It's a management tool for game agencies to harvest the 455 00:27:35,000 --> 00:27:37,359 Speaker 1: number of bears that they need to. And I'm on 456 00:27:37,400 --> 00:27:40,159 Speaker 1: the national platform a little bit. So people sometimes give 457 00:27:40,200 --> 00:27:44,480 Speaker 1: me a hard time, and I absolutely will run someone 458 00:27:44,520 --> 00:27:46,399 Speaker 1: into the ground if they say that hunting a bear 459 00:27:46,520 --> 00:27:50,159 Speaker 1: over bait isn't hard, isn't fair chase, or as a 460 00:27:50,240 --> 00:27:52,800 Speaker 1: lazy man's way to hunt. And I'm preaching to all 461 00:27:52,880 --> 00:27:56,320 Speaker 1: y'all hunting bears over bait is good, and don't ever 462 00:27:56,400 --> 00:27:58,400 Speaker 1: let anybody come in this state and say that it's 463 00:27:58,440 --> 00:28:02,080 Speaker 1: not and that and that's what they're doing. I mean, 464 00:28:02,600 --> 00:28:04,840 Speaker 1: it sounds like I'm preaching to acquire. That's like we 465 00:28:04,880 --> 00:28:08,720 Speaker 1: already know we're in the church. But a man in Maine, 466 00:28:09,119 --> 00:28:11,920 Speaker 1: the Humane Society United States, comes in and says, man, 467 00:28:12,000 --> 00:28:14,160 Speaker 1: baiting bears is you know, they come up with all 468 00:28:14,200 --> 00:28:17,240 Speaker 1: the reasons why that you shouldn't do it, and it's 469 00:28:17,280 --> 00:28:21,439 Speaker 1: so there there, it's there is a time when we 470 00:28:21,480 --> 00:28:23,960 Speaker 1: may have to be like, well, if we built it 471 00:28:24,040 --> 00:28:26,760 Speaker 1: strong enough, they won't ever you know, won't ever happen here. 472 00:28:26,760 --> 00:28:30,280 Speaker 1: But my point is from the day at the first 473 00:28:30,320 --> 00:28:32,760 Speaker 1: bear ever killed over bait, I was like, this is 474 00:28:32,800 --> 00:28:35,879 Speaker 1: a real deal. This is cool, and you don't have 475 00:28:35,960 --> 00:28:39,080 Speaker 1: to have access to private land and huntover bait to 476 00:28:39,160 --> 00:28:42,160 Speaker 1: kill a bear in Arkansas and we've proved that, and 477 00:28:42,480 --> 00:28:47,280 Speaker 1: guys like James has proved that. So they're definitely somebody 478 00:28:47,280 --> 00:28:49,280 Speaker 1: that has private land in Arkansas and some of the 479 00:28:49,360 --> 00:28:51,959 Speaker 1: key bear areas. Yeah, you got a leg up on us. 480 00:28:52,120 --> 00:28:53,960 Speaker 1: And I mean I'm one of those guys. I just 481 00:28:54,600 --> 00:28:56,440 Speaker 1: you know, there's some guys that were born in Stuck 482 00:28:56,480 --> 00:28:59,440 Speaker 1: Guard and have access to the world's best duck hunting. 483 00:28:59,720 --> 00:29:02,200 Speaker 1: There's some guys that were born in Iowa and have 484 00:29:02,320 --> 00:29:04,880 Speaker 1: the world's best white tail deer hunting. And then you 485 00:29:04,880 --> 00:29:08,280 Speaker 1: know so because I do hear that sometimes like guys 486 00:29:08,280 --> 00:29:11,440 Speaker 1: are like, well, private land guys get all the bears, 487 00:29:11,480 --> 00:29:15,760 Speaker 1: and it's like, man, it's just either to find fine 488 00:29:16,000 --> 00:29:18,320 Speaker 1: private land that you can hunt, which you can do, 489 00:29:19,120 --> 00:29:22,000 Speaker 1: or learn to hunt him a national forest, which you're 490 00:29:22,000 --> 00:29:24,760 Speaker 1: hearing me preach about hunting bears over bait and how 491 00:29:24,840 --> 00:29:27,360 Speaker 1: much I absolutely love it because you can be selective 492 00:29:27,760 --> 00:29:30,440 Speaker 1: and we can preach that because we are selective. I 493 00:29:30,520 --> 00:29:32,840 Speaker 1: hadn't killed the bear over bait in Arkansas since two 494 00:29:32,840 --> 00:29:35,480 Speaker 1: thousand six. Last year, I killed the first bear overbait 495 00:29:35,640 --> 00:29:38,040 Speaker 1: since two thousand and six in Arkansas, just because I'm 496 00:29:38,040 --> 00:29:41,720 Speaker 1: waiting on a five pound bear in a big male. 497 00:29:41,960 --> 00:29:45,320 Speaker 1: That's the truth. And if we're if we use the 498 00:29:45,360 --> 00:29:49,120 Speaker 1: system right and as bear hunters, we actually use baiting 499 00:29:49,160 --> 00:29:51,440 Speaker 1: as a method to be selective. And Mayer and I 500 00:29:51,440 --> 00:29:54,440 Speaker 1: have talked about this a lot. Letting the juveniles and 501 00:29:54,480 --> 00:29:59,120 Speaker 1: females go and actually being selective, we can we can 502 00:29:59,200 --> 00:30:02,040 Speaker 1: do a whole lot more than if we have a 503 00:30:02,040 --> 00:30:04,520 Speaker 1: harvest with a bunch of Souths. But I said all 504 00:30:04,520 --> 00:30:09,280 Speaker 1: that to say, um, hunting a bear in the national 505 00:30:09,360 --> 00:30:12,520 Speaker 1: forest on purpose, hunting them like deer is by far 506 00:30:12,720 --> 00:30:16,080 Speaker 1: the hardest hunt that I do in North America. Really, 507 00:30:16,600 --> 00:30:20,080 Speaker 1: I love it. And uh, and that's what Mo is 508 00:30:20,120 --> 00:30:22,560 Speaker 1: so good at and has done over the years. I've 509 00:30:22,560 --> 00:30:25,760 Speaker 1: taught him a lot of what he knows. But wait 510 00:30:25,800 --> 00:30:30,080 Speaker 1: a minute, the story is story change since earlier? Yeah, 511 00:30:33,040 --> 00:30:35,480 Speaker 1: I mean I was just a kid. I was in diapers, 512 00:30:36,640 --> 00:30:40,520 Speaker 1: know so, And I know there would be a mixed 513 00:30:40,520 --> 00:30:42,800 Speaker 1: group of people here. Some people to have access would 514 00:30:42,800 --> 00:30:44,840 Speaker 1: be really interested in baiting bears, and then another group 515 00:30:44,880 --> 00:30:47,480 Speaker 1: that might be interested in hunting bears and in in 516 00:30:47,560 --> 00:30:49,960 Speaker 1: big national forests. But Marn, do you have anything to 517 00:30:49,960 --> 00:30:51,400 Speaker 1: add to that. I kind of want to talk to 518 00:30:51,480 --> 00:30:54,440 Speaker 1: me about hunting bears and no, just that. I mean, 519 00:30:54,600 --> 00:30:56,600 Speaker 1: you know, in the in the in the world of 520 00:30:56,680 --> 00:30:59,720 Speaker 1: natural resource agencies, you know, I mean, if you're a 521 00:31:00,000 --> 00:31:02,920 Speaker 1: araftsman or tradesman or something, you just have a bag 522 00:31:02,960 --> 00:31:07,200 Speaker 1: of tools and you have you know, baiting. It's just 523 00:31:07,400 --> 00:31:10,840 Speaker 1: a it's a management tool, you know, for us to 524 00:31:10,880 --> 00:31:14,560 Speaker 1: get the objectives that we want out of our bear harvest. 525 00:31:14,640 --> 00:31:18,200 Speaker 1: You know, if if something happened by the wayside, I mean, 526 00:31:18,280 --> 00:31:21,280 Speaker 1: we would have to have a on baiting, we'd hey, 527 00:31:21,320 --> 00:31:24,560 Speaker 1: we'd certainly have to have another tool in the bag 528 00:31:24,760 --> 00:31:27,520 Speaker 1: that we could use to offer up the same type 529 00:31:27,560 --> 00:31:31,120 Speaker 1: of harvest numbers that we have today. So it's it's 530 00:31:31,120 --> 00:31:33,800 Speaker 1: a tool. Yeah, it's a tool. I can add to 531 00:31:33,840 --> 00:31:36,640 Speaker 1: that what you said earlier about the bears in the eighties, 532 00:31:36,680 --> 00:31:39,080 Speaker 1: through the early seasons and even into the nineties, until 533 00:31:39,120 --> 00:31:43,520 Speaker 1: they started baiting. I don't know how many people, friends, families, 534 00:31:43,760 --> 00:31:45,600 Speaker 1: people that I didn't even really know would come to 535 00:31:45,640 --> 00:31:47,600 Speaker 1: me when they knew I was bear hunting, you know, 536 00:31:47,680 --> 00:31:49,840 Speaker 1: just after bears. Of course I love the deer hunt too, 537 00:31:49,880 --> 00:31:52,520 Speaker 1: but I would take specific days I just bear hunt 538 00:31:52,560 --> 00:31:54,880 Speaker 1: during the season. They said, why are you wasting time 539 00:31:55,040 --> 00:31:59,880 Speaker 1: after them bears? The same thing Gary new But I 540 00:32:00,040 --> 00:32:02,000 Speaker 1: heard that from a lot of different people, in different 541 00:32:02,200 --> 00:32:03,840 Speaker 1: styles of people and everything. You know, why are you 542 00:32:03,880 --> 00:32:05,880 Speaker 1: wasting time hunting bear when you could be deer hunting? 543 00:32:05,920 --> 00:32:08,520 Speaker 1: I said, because I'm intrigued by it, you know, And 544 00:32:08,560 --> 00:32:09,920 Speaker 1: a lot of those people when I got my first 545 00:32:09,960 --> 00:32:13,680 Speaker 1: and nineteen ninety, I rubbed it in on them. I mean, 546 00:32:13,720 --> 00:32:16,160 Speaker 1: there's there's no doubt in my mind that baiting has 547 00:32:16,600 --> 00:32:20,400 Speaker 1: spawned a quote bear hunting culture in Arkansas, no doubt 548 00:32:20,440 --> 00:32:23,280 Speaker 1: about it. And we do have a bear hunting culture 549 00:32:23,320 --> 00:32:34,800 Speaker 1: in the state and its thriving. Yeah, I want I 550 00:32:34,880 --> 00:32:39,080 Speaker 1: want Moe to tell us a story of you know, 551 00:32:39,440 --> 00:32:42,200 Speaker 1: as a bear hunter. People that don't know a lot 552 00:32:42,240 --> 00:32:44,920 Speaker 1: about bear hunting and they hear you bear hunt, they're like, 553 00:32:45,000 --> 00:32:47,160 Speaker 1: have you ever been attacked by a bear? Have you 554 00:32:47,200 --> 00:32:50,720 Speaker 1: ever been in a sticky situation? And the truth of 555 00:32:50,760 --> 00:32:55,640 Speaker 1: it is, many minute times we're talking about bears, Brent, 556 00:32:58,000 --> 00:33:03,800 Speaker 1: they rely in Arkansas are bears. I mean it would 557 00:33:03,840 --> 00:33:06,520 Speaker 1: be if you said, Claire, I'll give you fifty thou 558 00:33:06,720 --> 00:33:08,600 Speaker 1: dollars if you can go out in the next ten 559 00:33:08,680 --> 00:33:11,520 Speaker 1: days and have a bear attack you. I don't think 560 00:33:11,520 --> 00:33:13,080 Speaker 1: I could do it. I mean, like you. You have 561 00:33:13,160 --> 00:33:16,920 Speaker 1: to Our bears typically are not aggressive, and very few 562 00:33:17,440 --> 00:33:21,440 Speaker 1: incidentss of human bear direct conflict and my right, Myron, 563 00:33:22,080 --> 00:33:27,240 Speaker 1: I mean it happens occasionally, But this story is one 564 00:33:27,280 --> 00:33:30,920 Speaker 1: of the closest that I've heard from around these parts. 565 00:33:30,960 --> 00:33:33,600 Speaker 1: But MO, tell us tell us your story of getting 566 00:33:33,680 --> 00:33:37,720 Speaker 1: kind of just scared version of it. So whatever version 567 00:33:37,720 --> 00:33:41,520 Speaker 1: you got to make a long story short. I left 568 00:33:41,520 --> 00:33:43,440 Speaker 1: my house one day. At the time, I was living 569 00:33:43,440 --> 00:33:46,720 Speaker 1: out in in the middle of national forest land, so 570 00:33:46,760 --> 00:33:49,920 Speaker 1: I could just hunt from my house. Uh. It was 571 00:33:49,960 --> 00:33:56,840 Speaker 1: early both season, and I just took off late morning. 572 00:33:56,880 --> 00:33:58,440 Speaker 1: I didn't even get up early to go that day. 573 00:33:58,480 --> 00:34:01,360 Speaker 1: I was just going to do scouting, mainly for deer bear. 574 00:34:01,440 --> 00:34:04,440 Speaker 1: It was early and I grabbed one of my recurve 575 00:34:04,480 --> 00:34:06,760 Speaker 1: bows and I took off from the house. And I 576 00:34:06,800 --> 00:34:10,040 Speaker 1: are so into my slip hunt, slipping around looking for sign. 577 00:34:10,320 --> 00:34:12,080 Speaker 1: I come up on a little bench there where there's 578 00:34:12,080 --> 00:34:14,560 Speaker 1: a lot of pop all bushes. People from marks don't 579 00:34:14,600 --> 00:34:16,120 Speaker 1: know what they are and what they look like. They 580 00:34:16,239 --> 00:34:18,440 Speaker 1: they're there real thick, they're not very big and you 581 00:34:18,440 --> 00:34:20,440 Speaker 1: can't see very far and when they got green leaves 582 00:34:20,440 --> 00:34:24,000 Speaker 1: on them. Anyway, I've seen some deer deer scat there, 583 00:34:24,040 --> 00:34:26,200 Speaker 1: and I thought, well, this might be a good place 584 00:34:26,239 --> 00:34:28,759 Speaker 1: to come back and bring a stand in deer hunt, 585 00:34:28,840 --> 00:34:33,440 Speaker 1: you know. And where was that? Uh, that's kind of 586 00:34:33,440 --> 00:34:36,640 Speaker 1: a secret I don't like. Hey, y'all, remember Mo was 587 00:34:36,680 --> 00:34:40,120 Speaker 1: on my secret podcast? Did did y'all hear that he 588 00:34:40,239 --> 00:34:48,400 Speaker 1: keeps secrets? Anyway? I don't, you don't need to know. Anyway, 589 00:34:49,760 --> 00:34:51,200 Speaker 1: I was going through and I thought this might be 590 00:34:51,200 --> 00:34:53,120 Speaker 1: a good place to come back and bow hunt, you know, 591 00:34:53,160 --> 00:34:55,319 Speaker 1: and bring a stand. And then about the time some 592 00:34:55,400 --> 00:34:58,319 Speaker 1: movement caught my eyes, got very far from me, and 593 00:34:58,400 --> 00:35:00,160 Speaker 1: I kind of looked in front of me of the 594 00:35:00,160 --> 00:35:03,359 Speaker 1: Papa bushes, and I saw a small bear cup. I thought, 595 00:35:03,440 --> 00:35:07,560 Speaker 1: there's a little bear cup. That's pretty cool. Mama. The 596 00:35:07,600 --> 00:35:10,359 Speaker 1: cub was just had been born that during the winter 597 00:35:10,440 --> 00:35:12,359 Speaker 1: that year. It was probably twenty pounds or something other, 598 00:35:12,520 --> 00:35:14,839 Speaker 1: maybe twenty five and not very big, but a small dog. 599 00:35:15,920 --> 00:35:19,920 Speaker 1: And I thought where man probably handled that cub before, 600 00:35:20,160 --> 00:35:23,600 Speaker 1: handled about every cub, and especially in that secret spot up. 601 00:35:23,760 --> 00:35:27,839 Speaker 1: I know he's been up there. But anyway, I thought, well, 602 00:35:27,840 --> 00:35:29,319 Speaker 1: Mama was round here somewhere. I need to find where 603 00:35:29,320 --> 00:35:31,640 Speaker 1: she's at because I need to if she shows up, 604 00:35:31,640 --> 00:35:32,960 Speaker 1: I need to let her know where I'm here and 605 00:35:33,000 --> 00:35:35,000 Speaker 1: just ease my way out of here, because I'd run 606 00:35:35,040 --> 00:35:40,000 Speaker 1: across thousand cups of numerous times over the years, and 607 00:35:40,040 --> 00:35:42,239 Speaker 1: I I was smoking for her. And about that time, 608 00:35:42,280 --> 00:35:45,280 Speaker 1: I've seen movement where this and come from this small 609 00:35:45,320 --> 00:35:48,600 Speaker 1: bear and there's another cup. I thought, well, that's cool, 610 00:35:48,600 --> 00:35:51,799 Speaker 1: there's two cup. But I still haven't seen Mama yet. Yeah, 611 00:35:51,840 --> 00:35:58,200 Speaker 1: the bear factory was generating right there, and anyway, I thought, well, 612 00:35:58,239 --> 00:35:59,680 Speaker 1: I'll just let him pass on by it. I'll just 613 00:35:59,719 --> 00:36:01,279 Speaker 1: keep it out for her. And they keep going around 614 00:36:01,280 --> 00:36:03,640 Speaker 1: the hill, but you know they won't be no problem 615 00:36:03,719 --> 00:36:06,880 Speaker 1: or nothing. Well, about that time, the two little peckerwood 616 00:36:06,960 --> 00:36:10,000 Speaker 1: bears here, they come right towards me to start mos 617 00:36:10,080 --> 00:36:12,160 Speaker 1: and playing and pushing on each other. And they come 618 00:36:12,160 --> 00:36:15,640 Speaker 1: towards me, get closer. They get with probably ten fifteen yards. 619 00:36:15,680 --> 00:36:18,799 Speaker 1: I mean, that ain't good. They're gonna get way too close. 620 00:36:18,840 --> 00:36:22,600 Speaker 1: And I still haven't found Mama yet, so I don't 621 00:36:22,600 --> 00:36:24,839 Speaker 1: care if I talked to him or motion myself, but 622 00:36:24,880 --> 00:36:27,600 Speaker 1: I got their attention, and they both just stopped and looked, 623 00:36:27,920 --> 00:36:29,520 Speaker 1: and I think I'm even kind of waved my bow 624 00:36:29,600 --> 00:36:32,000 Speaker 1: at him. Or something other maybe said something real light. 625 00:36:32,360 --> 00:36:36,359 Speaker 1: They just jumped into the bushes out of sight. I thought, well, 626 00:36:36,360 --> 00:36:38,719 Speaker 1: that's good, but I thought I still haven't seen Mom yet, 627 00:36:39,640 --> 00:36:41,560 Speaker 1: So I went to just back up and get out there, 628 00:36:41,560 --> 00:36:42,920 Speaker 1: but I kept looking because I didn't know if she 629 00:36:43,000 --> 00:36:45,440 Speaker 1: might be behind me or where she was at. And 630 00:36:45,480 --> 00:36:48,120 Speaker 1: about that time I see movement. Here comes MoMA out 631 00:36:48,280 --> 00:36:50,520 Speaker 1: right where the cubs did out there, about twenty five yards, 632 00:36:52,280 --> 00:36:54,239 Speaker 1: and she had her nose down to sniffing the like 633 00:36:54,400 --> 00:36:57,160 Speaker 1: mama's dooce. He was following her cubs around, just staying 634 00:36:57,200 --> 00:37:01,279 Speaker 1: where there is at And I thought, well, I need 635 00:37:01,320 --> 00:37:03,120 Speaker 1: to let her know I'm here or to see what happens. 636 00:37:03,239 --> 00:37:05,200 Speaker 1: So I think I just sat there for a few seconds, 637 00:37:05,320 --> 00:37:07,600 Speaker 1: and then she turned sniffing and started coming the same 638 00:37:07,600 --> 00:37:11,000 Speaker 1: way they did towards me. I thought, this ain't good, 639 00:37:11,040 --> 00:37:13,359 Speaker 1: This is not good. How big would you say she was? 640 00:37:13,600 --> 00:37:20,160 Speaker 1: She was your average salth bear out in the mountains. 641 00:37:20,280 --> 00:37:22,200 Speaker 1: I would say she was a hundred and fifty hundred 642 00:37:22,239 --> 00:37:25,160 Speaker 1: senty pounds. This is honest, man. You think you can 643 00:37:25,200 --> 00:37:29,239 Speaker 1: buy that, can't you? And looked like she was not 644 00:37:29,400 --> 00:37:31,120 Speaker 1: that old bear. I figured that might even been her 645 00:37:31,120 --> 00:37:33,200 Speaker 1: first cubs she'd ever had, you know. But oh, now 646 00:37:33,200 --> 00:37:36,080 Speaker 1: we're speculating. I'm speculating like you do all the time. 647 00:37:36,160 --> 00:37:42,600 Speaker 1: So anyway, anyway, she started that same direction, I thought, 648 00:37:42,640 --> 00:37:44,880 Speaker 1: I gotta do something, so I think I just in 649 00:37:44,880 --> 00:37:46,960 Speaker 1: a soft voice, said hey bear, hey bear, hey bear, 650 00:37:47,120 --> 00:37:49,120 Speaker 1: And she looked at me and raise her head up 651 00:37:49,120 --> 00:37:51,759 Speaker 1: and looked at me on all fours. I thought, I 652 00:37:51,800 --> 00:37:53,160 Speaker 1: gotta get out here. So I knew where she was 653 00:37:53,200 --> 00:37:54,920 Speaker 1: at then, so I'm gonna start backing up. Well, I'll 654 00:37:54,960 --> 00:37:56,600 Speaker 1: start backing up and just talking to her, and she 655 00:37:56,719 --> 00:38:01,600 Speaker 1: just stand there looking at me. And then I don't 656 00:38:01,600 --> 00:38:03,760 Speaker 1: know exactly what happened. I remember all of a sudden, 657 00:38:03,880 --> 00:38:07,600 Speaker 1: one of those cubs made a little balls and I 658 00:38:07,640 --> 00:38:09,239 Speaker 1: looked at my left and he climbed a pop off 659 00:38:09,280 --> 00:38:12,640 Speaker 1: bush right beside me. Right, No, I mean like for 660 00:38:12,760 --> 00:38:14,600 Speaker 1: me to you just right there, and I'm like, this 661 00:38:14,760 --> 00:38:17,919 Speaker 1: is not good. And when he done that, you could 662 00:38:17,920 --> 00:38:21,319 Speaker 1: see her demean your chains. Her hair bristled up, she 663 00:38:21,480 --> 00:38:24,080 Speaker 1: puffed up, you know. I just I don't know. I 664 00:38:24,120 --> 00:38:28,319 Speaker 1: know you've probably seen him do that. And when she'd 665 00:38:28,320 --> 00:38:29,759 Speaker 1: done that, I thought, well, I gotta do something, so 666 00:38:29,800 --> 00:38:31,520 Speaker 1: I went to back up and before I even knew 667 00:38:31,520 --> 00:38:33,200 Speaker 1: what happened, she made it kind of a dust them 668 00:38:34,239 --> 00:38:36,080 Speaker 1: like that, and she was on me before I could 669 00:38:36,080 --> 00:38:38,720 Speaker 1: even move. I mean, just bam right on my face, 670 00:38:38,760 --> 00:38:40,680 Speaker 1: snapping her teeth, and I stuck my bowl up in 671 00:38:40,680 --> 00:38:43,440 Speaker 1: her face like that between me and her, and just 672 00:38:43,600 --> 00:38:46,560 Speaker 1: started holler at her, backing up. She was biting, snapping 673 00:38:46,600 --> 00:38:51,400 Speaker 1: at my bow. And once I remember she swatted at me, 674 00:38:51,440 --> 00:38:53,239 Speaker 1: but I think she was trying to scare me by 675 00:38:53,280 --> 00:38:57,080 Speaker 1: swatting leaves off the ground or whatever. And uh, but 676 00:38:57,160 --> 00:38:58,960 Speaker 1: then she made a big lunge at me, and I 677 00:38:58,960 --> 00:39:00,600 Speaker 1: don't even know if I was at he or what caused, 678 00:39:00,640 --> 00:39:02,200 Speaker 1: but she loaned to me like she was gonna try 679 00:39:02,200 --> 00:39:04,040 Speaker 1: to knock me down or bite me or something other. 680 00:39:04,160 --> 00:39:05,759 Speaker 1: And I just remember raising up and I kicked her 681 00:39:05,800 --> 00:39:09,160 Speaker 1: out in the face with my boot and it just stoner. 682 00:39:09,280 --> 00:39:11,359 Speaker 1: She just froze like that, and I really got loud 683 00:39:11,400 --> 00:39:12,920 Speaker 1: in I won't repeat some of the things I was 684 00:39:12,960 --> 00:39:17,160 Speaker 1: probably saying, but I just kept backing up and hollering 685 00:39:17,200 --> 00:39:19,960 Speaker 1: at her and hollering at her, and I guess I 686 00:39:20,000 --> 00:39:23,120 Speaker 1: got far enough that that she didn't I think there 687 00:39:23,160 --> 00:39:25,280 Speaker 1: was any danger, and I don't remember if the cub 688 00:39:25,400 --> 00:39:28,200 Speaker 1: made another ball sound or what. But then she acted 689 00:39:28,239 --> 00:39:30,080 Speaker 1: to gress again. She started towards me again, and I 690 00:39:30,080 --> 00:39:32,120 Speaker 1: got real loud that time, and I even poked at 691 00:39:32,120 --> 00:39:34,959 Speaker 1: her with my bow. She stopped again. I just kept 692 00:39:34,960 --> 00:39:38,080 Speaker 1: backing up, hollering real loud, I mean really loud, and 693 00:39:38,200 --> 00:39:39,960 Speaker 1: I finally got knock plumb out of side of her. 694 00:39:40,000 --> 00:39:42,399 Speaker 1: But she finally just stood there and froze when she did. 695 00:39:42,680 --> 00:39:44,279 Speaker 1: While I was backing up, she turned and went over 696 00:39:44,320 --> 00:39:46,919 Speaker 1: into the bushes where the cubs were, and she kind 697 00:39:46,960 --> 00:39:50,759 Speaker 1: of I don't remember she ballard at him or whether 698 00:39:50,800 --> 00:39:52,520 Speaker 1: she swat him. Anyway, she got that one off the 699 00:39:52,520 --> 00:39:53,879 Speaker 1: tree and it was still the ground, and I seen 700 00:39:53,920 --> 00:39:55,680 Speaker 1: him move off into the pop up bushes. So I 701 00:39:55,719 --> 00:39:57,680 Speaker 1: just kept backing up fast and got quite a ways 702 00:39:57,760 --> 00:40:02,160 Speaker 1: from him, and I caught my earth and then I 703 00:40:02,200 --> 00:40:03,920 Speaker 1: think there was actually a log, and I sat down 704 00:40:03,920 --> 00:40:05,799 Speaker 1: on just the rest. I was probably two yards where 705 00:40:05,800 --> 00:40:07,680 Speaker 1: the bears was that thinking about what had just happened, 706 00:40:08,000 --> 00:40:10,160 Speaker 1: and then I realized the I carry a quiver on 707 00:40:10,160 --> 00:40:12,439 Speaker 1: my side, and I had an arrow with a broad 708 00:40:12,480 --> 00:40:14,440 Speaker 1: head in my hand, and I never remembered getting it 709 00:40:14,480 --> 00:40:16,640 Speaker 1: out of my quiver. I don't know if I was 710 00:40:16,680 --> 00:40:19,080 Speaker 1: thinking in my mind that she was gonna get me 711 00:40:19,160 --> 00:40:21,480 Speaker 1: down to what. I don't know, but I had it 712 00:40:21,520 --> 00:40:23,520 Speaker 1: in my hand and I thought, I don't even remember 713 00:40:23,560 --> 00:40:27,160 Speaker 1: doing this, and then I got up and went home 714 00:40:27,200 --> 00:40:32,200 Speaker 1: and and that was a story for sure. That's that's amazing. 715 00:40:32,520 --> 00:40:34,480 Speaker 1: What what year about? What year would that have been? 716 00:40:34,600 --> 00:40:41,520 Speaker 1: That was probably two thousands six, two thousand seven, So yeah, yeah, 717 00:40:41,680 --> 00:40:46,480 Speaker 1: not old like I am, so wow, you know, I 718 00:40:46,480 --> 00:40:51,200 Speaker 1: I've only heard I've only heard one other story that 719 00:40:51,280 --> 00:40:53,239 Speaker 1: kind of rivals that, and I can only tell it 720 00:40:53,360 --> 00:40:55,439 Speaker 1: second hand, and I'll do it real quickly. And it's 721 00:40:55,440 --> 00:40:57,600 Speaker 1: an Arkansas based story. Now, you can go a lot 722 00:40:57,640 --> 00:41:00,560 Speaker 1: of different places and get bear stories, and and you know, 723 00:41:01,440 --> 00:41:04,439 Speaker 1: grizzly bears out west is a whole different ball game. 724 00:41:04,880 --> 00:41:07,560 Speaker 1: Like you know, our black bears are just not that aggressive. 725 00:41:07,600 --> 00:41:11,080 Speaker 1: Typically grizzly bears are for real, they'll eat you and 726 00:41:11,160 --> 00:41:13,319 Speaker 1: hurt you. You know. So if you're in the in 727 00:41:13,360 --> 00:41:17,239 Speaker 1: the greater Yellowstone region where there are grizzly bears in 728 00:41:17,280 --> 00:41:19,719 Speaker 1: the lower forty A, it's a different story. But for here, 729 00:41:20,200 --> 00:41:23,479 Speaker 1: that story right there is pretty pretty wild coming from 730 00:41:23,920 --> 00:41:27,040 Speaker 1: you know, coming from somebody that's that that is reputable. 731 00:41:27,160 --> 00:41:30,640 Speaker 1: Like Mr mo Um, I had a I had a friend, 732 00:41:30,880 --> 00:41:33,839 Speaker 1: and I'm telling his story second hand. He was he 733 00:41:33,880 --> 00:41:36,520 Speaker 1: was bow hunting and used a climber tree stand in 734 00:41:36,560 --> 00:41:38,919 Speaker 1: the wash dolls and setting up in a big pine tree, 735 00:41:38,960 --> 00:41:41,359 Speaker 1: way up a pine tree. And he had walked in 736 00:41:41,400 --> 00:41:44,760 Speaker 1: that morning in the dark, well just after daylight, whatever time. 737 00:41:44,920 --> 00:41:47,520 Speaker 1: He sees a bear and he has no interest in 738 00:41:47,560 --> 00:41:50,600 Speaker 1: shooting a bear. He could have his bow season. And 739 00:41:50,960 --> 00:41:53,480 Speaker 1: this bear has his nose on the ground like a 740 00:41:53,560 --> 00:41:56,719 Speaker 1: hound and it's trailing him, just walking right there. He 741 00:41:56,760 --> 00:41:58,759 Speaker 1: walked and he was just like, huh, that's kind of 742 00:41:58,800 --> 00:42:04,440 Speaker 1: odd and uh. And the bear just comes right up 743 00:42:04,480 --> 00:42:08,200 Speaker 1: under his tree stand, sniffs up the tree and just 744 00:42:08,239 --> 00:42:13,480 Speaker 1: look straight up at him. And he, as I remember 745 00:42:13,520 --> 00:42:15,560 Speaker 1: the story being told, you know, he talked to the 746 00:42:15,600 --> 00:42:18,120 Speaker 1: bear just like hey, eat at here, you know, and 747 00:42:18,160 --> 00:42:20,799 Speaker 1: the bear started copping its teeth at him and kind 748 00:42:20,800 --> 00:42:24,879 Speaker 1: of getting bristly. And the bear walked off and kind 749 00:42:24,880 --> 00:42:27,200 Speaker 1: of did it they when they get aggressive, they kind 750 00:42:27,200 --> 00:42:30,320 Speaker 1: of bristle up and kind of kind of strut almost 751 00:42:30,360 --> 00:42:33,359 Speaker 1: like a turkey. But he walked out there and then 752 00:42:33,360 --> 00:42:38,360 Speaker 1: he he whether he ran back, but basically a cycle 753 00:42:38,440 --> 00:42:41,279 Speaker 1: of three or four times that bear would run to 754 00:42:41,320 --> 00:42:43,520 Speaker 1: the base of his tree and it would run up 755 00:42:43,560 --> 00:42:45,879 Speaker 1: like two or two or three jumps, and then he 756 00:42:45,920 --> 00:42:48,440 Speaker 1: was like, hey, you know he his intensity went up 757 00:42:48,880 --> 00:42:51,160 Speaker 1: and it came up like halfway up the tree. It 758 00:42:51,280 --> 00:42:55,600 Speaker 1: went down and before you know it, that bear, he said, 759 00:42:55,719 --> 00:42:59,400 Speaker 1: was coming over the top of his his his tree stand, 760 00:43:00,080 --> 00:43:02,080 Speaker 1: and he had a bow and he was trying to 761 00:43:02,120 --> 00:43:04,480 Speaker 1: shoot it when it was coming up the tree. But 762 00:43:04,560 --> 00:43:08,080 Speaker 1: every time he leaned out, his arab came off the rest. 763 00:43:08,160 --> 00:43:09,840 Speaker 1: If you're a bow hunter, you know what I'm talking about. 764 00:43:10,040 --> 00:43:13,480 Speaker 1: You're trying to shoot straight down. And he could not 765 00:43:13,560 --> 00:43:17,160 Speaker 1: shoot that bear until he was able to be about 766 00:43:17,200 --> 00:43:20,080 Speaker 1: like this, and he shot that bear right in the 767 00:43:20,120 --> 00:43:25,960 Speaker 1: throat when it was even with him. Yep. And uh. Anyway, 768 00:43:26,080 --> 00:43:29,319 Speaker 1: that that that story was told to me boy, and 769 00:43:29,360 --> 00:43:32,600 Speaker 1: I know the guy that happened to and um anyway, 770 00:43:32,600 --> 00:43:36,440 Speaker 1: why that's a wild story too. It was well, he 771 00:43:36,520 --> 00:43:40,200 Speaker 1: never recovered the bear. The bear dropped out of the tree, 772 00:43:40,560 --> 00:43:43,520 Speaker 1: ran off and never found it. He believed it to 773 00:43:43,560 --> 00:43:48,200 Speaker 1: be a juvenile male, which makes sense, doesn't it really? 774 00:43:48,760 --> 00:43:51,399 Speaker 1: Do you do you know any wild stories? My man 775 00:43:51,880 --> 00:43:55,400 Speaker 1: in the tree today. He never came down. He texted 776 00:43:55,440 --> 00:44:03,520 Speaker 1: me that battery ran out. I mean, uh, Moses, probably 777 00:44:03,560 --> 00:44:05,839 Speaker 1: about the craziest one that I've heard. But I mean 778 00:44:05,880 --> 00:44:08,759 Speaker 1: I can working with bears as many years as I have, 779 00:44:09,040 --> 00:44:14,560 Speaker 1: I can absolutely see what happened to you as being, yeah, 780 00:44:14,600 --> 00:44:17,520 Speaker 1: a legitimate deal. And you know, I mean doing all 781 00:44:17,520 --> 00:44:19,640 Speaker 1: the den work that I've done over the years and 782 00:44:19,680 --> 00:44:23,239 Speaker 1: everything else, having females with cubs and all that, I mean, 783 00:44:23,600 --> 00:44:26,560 Speaker 1: sure they can be protective every you know, the adage 784 00:44:26,600 --> 00:44:30,000 Speaker 1: mama bear, I mean, you know that's saying came about 785 00:44:30,160 --> 00:44:33,120 Speaker 1: because of a reason, because mama bears can be so 786 00:44:33,239 --> 00:44:37,120 Speaker 1: protective of their cubs. But you know, outside of that 787 00:44:37,200 --> 00:44:41,000 Speaker 1: particular scenario, I mean, black bears just inherently aren't known 788 00:44:41,160 --> 00:44:46,720 Speaker 1: to exhibit predatory behavior like a grizzly bearriers or something 789 00:44:46,760 --> 00:44:50,040 Speaker 1: like that. They have had black bear attacks in British 790 00:44:50,040 --> 00:44:53,319 Speaker 1: Columbia is some places up north, you know, predatory black 791 00:44:53,360 --> 00:44:57,040 Speaker 1: bear attacks, but we probably have a standard. Yeah, a 792 00:44:57,120 --> 00:45:01,240 Speaker 1: predatory attack would be a bear seeking you, actually stalking, 793 00:45:01,440 --> 00:45:05,040 Speaker 1: walking you down and sizing you up. And it's a 794 00:45:05,160 --> 00:45:10,040 Speaker 1: very distinct behavior pattern. And uh so it's uh, I mean, 795 00:45:10,480 --> 00:45:14,440 Speaker 1: you know bears or bears. Yeah, yeah, nun we ever 796 00:45:14,480 --> 00:45:17,160 Speaker 1: had any tough bearon counts usually make you talk. Well. 797 00:45:19,239 --> 00:45:22,120 Speaker 1: I was just thinking your story kind of reminded me 798 00:45:22,200 --> 00:45:24,600 Speaker 1: and your story of last week. My son was playing 799 00:45:24,640 --> 00:45:26,520 Speaker 1: basketball and someone fold them and I kind of felt 800 00:45:26,840 --> 00:45:32,080 Speaker 1: some of those same urges of that mama stabbing my teeth, 801 00:45:32,160 --> 00:45:35,280 Speaker 1: you know. But I thought what Maron was talking about, 802 00:45:35,320 --> 00:45:37,640 Speaker 1: the how the old timers in Arkansas will talk about 803 00:45:37,640 --> 00:45:40,120 Speaker 1: how they saw bears in the thirties and forties, and 804 00:45:40,160 --> 00:45:43,399 Speaker 1: Clay knows this story. But my great grandpa was uh 805 00:45:43,880 --> 00:45:46,759 Speaker 1: kind of a legendary man in our little tiny town 806 00:45:46,840 --> 00:45:49,200 Speaker 1: of four hundred my brothers here, and he could he 807 00:45:49,239 --> 00:45:51,520 Speaker 1: could attest to if when people found out that that 808 00:45:51,600 --> 00:45:54,400 Speaker 1: was our great grandpa, they'd be like, oh, lose Joplin. 809 00:45:54,480 --> 00:45:56,839 Speaker 1: Strongest man I ever knew. At one time he killed 810 00:45:56,840 --> 00:45:58,840 Speaker 1: a bear with his bear hands, and that was like 811 00:45:58,840 --> 00:46:00,759 Speaker 1: an actual thing. We heard he killed a bear with 812 00:46:00,800 --> 00:46:08,839 Speaker 1: his bear hands. When when when we do that? Well, 813 00:46:08,840 --> 00:46:10,400 Speaker 1: well I was going to tell him is that? And 814 00:46:10,440 --> 00:46:13,879 Speaker 1: so when I started dating Clay, um, I told him 815 00:46:14,080 --> 00:46:20,239 Speaker 1: like he's he was interested in grandall with his hands 816 00:46:23,120 --> 00:46:25,080 Speaker 1: and we would hear stories about him like that he 817 00:46:25,120 --> 00:46:27,400 Speaker 1: caught logs. You know, you kind of just don't believe 818 00:46:27,440 --> 00:46:29,839 Speaker 1: stories like that, like I saw a truck, a whole 819 00:46:29,840 --> 00:46:32,160 Speaker 1: truck of logs. He caught him with his own back. 820 00:46:32,440 --> 00:46:35,000 Speaker 1: We kind of, you know, try to get him to 821 00:46:35,000 --> 00:46:36,920 Speaker 1: talk about it. He was a pretty humble guy, and 822 00:46:36,960 --> 00:46:38,919 Speaker 1: sometimes he would be like, oh yeah, and he would 823 00:46:38,960 --> 00:46:43,560 Speaker 1: just real mildly be like, basically, no, no arrogance whatsoever. 824 00:46:43,600 --> 00:46:46,000 Speaker 1: Tell us, yeah, I did catch an entire the thing 825 00:46:46,040 --> 00:46:47,800 Speaker 1: of log So we you hear these stories enough. And 826 00:46:47,840 --> 00:46:49,640 Speaker 1: I told play when we started dating. I don't know 827 00:46:49,640 --> 00:46:52,439 Speaker 1: if it's true, but everyone in town tells me he 828 00:46:52,560 --> 00:46:55,839 Speaker 1: killed the bell. I do he researched it. I went 829 00:46:55,880 --> 00:46:58,080 Speaker 1: and asked him. He was eighty nine at the time, 830 00:46:58,160 --> 00:47:00,920 Speaker 1: so this would We've been married for years, so it 831 00:47:00,960 --> 00:47:06,280 Speaker 1: would have been Yeah, it was while we were dating, 832 00:47:06,320 --> 00:47:08,440 Speaker 1: so it would have been, you know, right at the 833 00:47:08,560 --> 00:47:10,960 Speaker 1: end of his life. And uh. And I asked him, 834 00:47:11,000 --> 00:47:13,080 Speaker 1: I said, did you kill a bear with your bare hands? 835 00:47:13,160 --> 00:47:15,239 Speaker 1: And he said, he said no, but I killed one 836 00:47:15,280 --> 00:47:18,640 Speaker 1: with a rock. And what happened when he was it 837 00:47:18,680 --> 00:47:20,440 Speaker 1: was I think we figured it to be. In the 838 00:47:20,520 --> 00:47:24,200 Speaker 1: nineteen thirties in in Polk County. So this is a 839 00:47:24,280 --> 00:47:27,800 Speaker 1: real deal. He he lived right around Hatfield, Arkansas, on 840 00:47:27,840 --> 00:47:30,320 Speaker 1: Polk County, and he said he was walking home from school. 841 00:47:30,320 --> 00:47:32,400 Speaker 1: One maybe not school, I don't know. He was just 842 00:47:32,560 --> 00:47:36,640 Speaker 1: under twenty. You know, he was a kid. So do 843 00:47:36,680 --> 00:47:39,759 Speaker 1: the math when it would have been. It probably it 844 00:47:39,800 --> 00:47:41,319 Speaker 1: may have even been in the twenties. I think it 845 00:47:41,400 --> 00:47:43,160 Speaker 1: was in the twenties, and I think he was It's 846 00:47:43,160 --> 00:47:44,880 Speaker 1: been a long time, so we've done the math um. 847 00:47:44,920 --> 00:47:46,799 Speaker 1: But he said that he was walking home and he 848 00:47:46,800 --> 00:47:48,759 Speaker 1: saw a bear cub a cross the road in front 849 00:47:48,800 --> 00:47:51,560 Speaker 1: of him and run up a sapling and he just 850 00:47:51,600 --> 00:47:53,440 Speaker 1: picked up I mean, just what would a kid do 851 00:47:53,600 --> 00:47:56,239 Speaker 1: back in those days. He picks up a rock and 852 00:47:56,280 --> 00:47:58,759 Speaker 1: starts chunking rocks at this bear. And you know at 853 00:47:58,800 --> 00:48:00,600 Speaker 1: that time, I mean, you can't amen, I mean, this 854 00:48:00,960 --> 00:48:03,000 Speaker 1: is a vermin. I mean, these people were trying to 855 00:48:03,040 --> 00:48:07,160 Speaker 1: make a living off the land. And what I thought 856 00:48:07,160 --> 00:48:11,960 Speaker 1: he was scared? Yeah, he anyway, and he he knocked 857 00:48:11,960 --> 00:48:14,400 Speaker 1: it out of that tree and killed it. And uh. 858 00:48:14,440 --> 00:48:17,680 Speaker 1: But why that story is unique, and what we've talked 859 00:48:17,719 --> 00:48:20,040 Speaker 1: about is that I have to go back and do 860 00:48:20,120 --> 00:48:22,000 Speaker 1: the actual math of how old he was when he 861 00:48:22,040 --> 00:48:23,279 Speaker 1: died and when it all happened, But it would have 862 00:48:23,280 --> 00:48:25,760 Speaker 1: been probably in the nineteen twenties, which we're not supposed 863 00:48:25,760 --> 00:48:28,279 Speaker 1: to be bears in western Arkansas during exactly. I mean, 864 00:48:28,320 --> 00:48:30,520 Speaker 1: there's no doubt in my mind there was rainnant bears 865 00:48:30,600 --> 00:48:34,440 Speaker 1: running around, you know. Yeah. Yeah, Paball believed there shouldn't 866 00:48:34,440 --> 00:48:37,600 Speaker 1: be anything. Yeah, if I see a bear, I'm like 867 00:48:37,760 --> 00:48:45,600 Speaker 1: killing Yeah, yeah he did. That's what happened to the dinosaurs. Yeah. Um, hey, 868 00:48:45,760 --> 00:48:49,560 Speaker 1: we're we're gonna I want to transition to talking a 869 00:48:49,560 --> 00:48:53,719 Speaker 1: little bit about like how to kill a bear. And 870 00:48:53,800 --> 00:48:55,880 Speaker 1: you know, there's a thousand different things we could talk about. 871 00:48:55,960 --> 00:48:59,080 Speaker 1: But James a couple of years ago killed a bear 872 00:48:59,160 --> 00:49:02,640 Speaker 1: and National for Us on purpose, non incidental kill, like 873 00:49:02,800 --> 00:49:06,560 Speaker 1: very much so on purpose. And uh, I think sometimes 874 00:49:06,600 --> 00:49:09,200 Speaker 1: that's the most accessible way for somebody to haunts, just 875 00:49:09,239 --> 00:49:11,560 Speaker 1: go out in national forest. That being said, I think 876 00:49:11,560 --> 00:49:15,640 Speaker 1: you should go somewhere else. You shouldn't hunt here. Um 877 00:49:15,800 --> 00:49:23,840 Speaker 1: they're not laughing. Um, now, it's no no stretch to 878 00:49:23,840 --> 00:49:26,160 Speaker 1: say that killing a bear National Forest in Arkansas or 879 00:49:26,200 --> 00:49:30,840 Speaker 1: Oklahoma or Missouri is a very difficult hunt, but a 880 00:49:30,960 --> 00:49:35,439 Speaker 1: doable hunt. And uh, James did it. The first year 881 00:49:35,480 --> 00:49:37,680 Speaker 1: he tried, which don't be encouraged by that, and you 882 00:49:37,800 --> 00:49:43,080 Speaker 1: probably can't. Um I tried it for the Daniel Boone 883 00:49:43,120 --> 00:49:46,239 Speaker 1: when Daniel Boone went into Kentucky, crossed the Cumberland Gap 884 00:49:46,320 --> 00:49:50,239 Speaker 1: and came back after just like my life. Okay, we'll 885 00:49:50,280 --> 00:49:52,040 Speaker 1: be talking about something like you know that reminds me 886 00:49:52,080 --> 00:49:55,719 Speaker 1: of Daniel Boone. I like to talk it misty to 887 00:49:56,120 --> 00:50:02,719 Speaker 1: talk at James, James, you're talking, Listen to talk. Yeah, 888 00:50:02,760 --> 00:50:05,640 Speaker 1: I mean, I guess so so Daniel bo when he 889 00:50:05,640 --> 00:50:07,680 Speaker 1: went into Kentucky and for two years went on the 890 00:50:07,719 --> 00:50:10,240 Speaker 1: Big trap Line, and I mean there was nobody there 891 00:50:10,640 --> 00:50:14,280 Speaker 1: except you know, some few bands and Native Americans, and 892 00:50:14,680 --> 00:50:17,680 Speaker 1: he was torn his whole life of telling people about 893 00:50:17,760 --> 00:50:20,400 Speaker 1: it because by him telling him about it, he ruined it. 894 00:50:21,040 --> 00:50:23,719 Speaker 1: And so I think that's the story of us. And 895 00:50:23,840 --> 00:50:26,400 Speaker 1: it's in a way because but like we want to 896 00:50:26,440 --> 00:50:28,359 Speaker 1: share what we know and it doesn't do any good 897 00:50:28,360 --> 00:50:32,120 Speaker 1: to hold stuff back. But I will say Georgia in Tennessee, 898 00:50:32,280 --> 00:50:35,960 Speaker 1: West Virginia are way better bear hunting. It's actually not 899 00:50:36,000 --> 00:50:39,080 Speaker 1: a joke. You can take more bears in Georgia, that's 900 00:50:39,120 --> 00:50:42,120 Speaker 1: for sure. They have they have bigger bear populations. Yeah, 901 00:50:42,320 --> 00:50:47,120 Speaker 1: so there's other options you have. Yeah, definitely if you 902 00:50:47,320 --> 00:50:48,960 Speaker 1: if you think you want to get into the game 903 00:50:49,000 --> 00:50:51,080 Speaker 1: and fish, say that that's me because I hunt out. 904 00:50:52,480 --> 00:50:55,200 Speaker 1: So I hunted last year and the year before that 905 00:50:55,280 --> 00:50:57,719 Speaker 1: is the only time that I've ever bear hunted. Um, 906 00:50:57,840 --> 00:51:01,279 Speaker 1: I've seen two bears. One of them is dead and 907 00:51:01,320 --> 00:51:03,120 Speaker 1: the other one ran across the road in front of 908 00:51:03,120 --> 00:51:06,720 Speaker 1: me before the season was open. So, uh, it's hard, 909 00:51:07,120 --> 00:51:09,759 Speaker 1: and if you haven't done it before, it's a lot 910 00:51:09,800 --> 00:51:12,160 Speaker 1: of fun. You just kind of have to set your 911 00:51:12,200 --> 00:51:14,719 Speaker 1: mind to what you're gonna encounter, how how you want 912 00:51:14,719 --> 00:51:19,160 Speaker 1: to go about it, and you measure your success more 913 00:51:19,239 --> 00:51:21,359 Speaker 1: by I think how long you can stay out there 914 00:51:21,400 --> 00:51:25,320 Speaker 1: and keep after it. You know. Uh, I scouted a 915 00:51:25,400 --> 00:51:28,200 Speaker 1: couple of days before the season open. I scouted before that, 916 00:51:28,280 --> 00:51:30,400 Speaker 1: but went in earnest a couple of days before the 917 00:51:30,440 --> 00:51:34,040 Speaker 1: season and hunted, uh to three days into the season. 918 00:51:34,520 --> 00:51:38,640 Speaker 1: Uh during archery season, you know, so put five to 919 00:51:38,680 --> 00:51:42,440 Speaker 1: seven days into it, and um, that was about all 920 00:51:42,480 --> 00:51:45,480 Speaker 1: I needed, I mean because I was done, Like I 921 00:51:45,520 --> 00:51:48,680 Speaker 1: didn't want to do it anymore. Bears are a low 922 00:51:48,719 --> 00:51:52,000 Speaker 1: density animal, so if you think about it like a 923 00:51:52,080 --> 00:51:55,360 Speaker 1: high population whitetail deer might be forty deer per square 924 00:51:55,400 --> 00:51:58,760 Speaker 1: mile in good bear habitat. How many bears per square 925 00:51:58,800 --> 00:52:06,719 Speaker 1: mile would we have, myron? Huh, fifteen to twenty bears 926 00:52:06,760 --> 00:52:18,720 Speaker 1: maybe per hundred square kilometers? Conversion Maric, Come on, what's 927 00:52:18,719 --> 00:52:25,440 Speaker 1: a kilometer someone converted for me? Real quick? Give me 928 00:52:25,440 --> 00:52:28,640 Speaker 1: an anecdote, like a bear per square mile? Two bears? 929 00:52:28,680 --> 00:52:32,319 Speaker 1: Oh gosh, okay, I'll land base. I'll convert it for you. 930 00:52:32,520 --> 00:52:40,920 Speaker 1: Land base sto square miles square miles sixty two. So 931 00:52:41,000 --> 00:52:44,759 Speaker 1: twenty five bears per sixty two square miles. Man, that's 932 00:52:44,760 --> 00:52:51,240 Speaker 1: some really about half a bear about point six bears 933 00:52:51,239 --> 00:52:54,600 Speaker 1: per square miles. So there's our number. So you know, 934 00:52:55,040 --> 00:52:59,040 Speaker 1: forty deer per square mile point six bears. Those are 935 00:52:59,080 --> 00:53:02,399 Speaker 1: the size bears. These guys kill point six. No, that's 936 00:53:02,440 --> 00:53:04,520 Speaker 1: that's good info. Yeah, And so I mean that's like 937 00:53:04,640 --> 00:53:07,800 Speaker 1: prime bear density. So to say, to qualify what James 938 00:53:07,840 --> 00:53:11,320 Speaker 1: was saying, you can't be validated by seeing game. I 939 00:53:11,400 --> 00:53:14,680 Speaker 1: mean we're used to deer hunting and like the golden 940 00:53:14,800 --> 00:53:17,239 Speaker 1: era of white tail deer hunting in North America, and 941 00:53:17,280 --> 00:53:18,920 Speaker 1: we go out and we don't see deer. We're like 942 00:53:18,960 --> 00:53:21,239 Speaker 1: what's wrong man? When you bear hunt. That's why I 943 00:53:21,280 --> 00:53:23,879 Speaker 1: love about it. You can't be validated by seeing game. 944 00:53:24,239 --> 00:53:27,840 Speaker 1: I mean, I'll go seasons without seeing a bear in Arkansas, 945 00:53:29,760 --> 00:53:31,799 Speaker 1: and I mean we're doing stuff very much so on 946 00:53:31,840 --> 00:53:35,760 Speaker 1: purpose and don't see a bear the whole season doing 947 00:53:35,800 --> 00:53:38,319 Speaker 1: what we So what you're saying is I'm as good 948 00:53:38,320 --> 00:53:43,560 Speaker 1: of a bear hunter as you guys are. Apparently even 949 00:53:43,560 --> 00:53:49,640 Speaker 1: a blind South Wilkins over there Jonathan Race. Jonathan did 950 00:53:49,680 --> 00:53:53,640 Speaker 1: the same thing James did. Jonathan set out several years 951 00:53:53,640 --> 00:53:57,160 Speaker 1: ago and he didn't even live over here, but traveled 952 00:53:57,200 --> 00:54:00,279 Speaker 1: into the mountains in western Arkansas, hunted a couple of 953 00:54:00,360 --> 00:54:03,160 Speaker 1: years all on his own, and kill the bear last year, 954 00:54:03,280 --> 00:54:06,680 Speaker 1: didn't you, Jonathan? Yeah, So I mean this is this 955 00:54:06,719 --> 00:54:09,320 Speaker 1: is a this is a doable thing. Yeah, but you shouldn't. 956 00:54:09,360 --> 00:54:11,160 Speaker 1: You probably shouldn't treat You should try to do it 957 00:54:11,200 --> 00:54:15,759 Speaker 1: in Georgia or in Georgia somewhere else. More bears over there, 958 00:54:15,800 --> 00:54:19,239 Speaker 1: and definitely not at that place that Myron mentioned. I 959 00:54:19,280 --> 00:54:22,799 Speaker 1: don't either one of them. Yeah, you know, I give 960 00:54:22,840 --> 00:54:26,920 Speaker 1: bear hunting seminars around the state usually before better season 961 00:54:26,960 --> 00:54:29,800 Speaker 1: comes about it, before you can bait. And I really 962 00:54:29,840 --> 00:54:32,320 Speaker 1: tell people. I mean there's you know, there's two different 963 00:54:32,640 --> 00:54:35,200 Speaker 1: avenues to bear hunt. You can bear hunt on private 964 00:54:35,280 --> 00:54:37,440 Speaker 1: land or you can bear hunt on public land. And 965 00:54:37,480 --> 00:54:40,600 Speaker 1: of course private land. You know, there's certain techniques that 966 00:54:40,640 --> 00:54:44,279 Speaker 1: can benefit you and establishing a bait station. And I 967 00:54:44,320 --> 00:54:46,319 Speaker 1: tell people all the time, you know, I kind of 968 00:54:46,360 --> 00:54:49,839 Speaker 1: go through the processes of finding natural bait stations on 969 00:54:49,880 --> 00:54:53,840 Speaker 1: public land, and uh, I can I can attest to 970 00:54:53,880 --> 00:54:57,040 Speaker 1: you everyone here that a natural bait site can be 971 00:54:57,280 --> 00:55:00,759 Speaker 1: every bit as effective as you know a man made 972 00:55:00,800 --> 00:55:05,480 Speaker 1: bait site even better better. You'll find a natural food source. 973 00:55:05,800 --> 00:55:08,560 Speaker 1: You find that one particular white oak on a bench 974 00:55:08,640 --> 00:55:16,000 Speaker 1: that's throwing acorn acorns like crazy, right you almost boat. 975 00:55:16,120 --> 00:55:18,879 Speaker 1: Or you find that one particular black gum tree that's 976 00:55:18,880 --> 00:55:21,719 Speaker 1: throwing you know, berries like crazy right at the front 977 00:55:21,719 --> 00:55:25,360 Speaker 1: of the season. So I mean I tell everybody, or 978 00:55:25,440 --> 00:55:27,960 Speaker 1: hickory nuts if picker nuts as we call them mostly 979 00:55:27,960 --> 00:55:31,880 Speaker 1: in Arkansas, Yeah, picker nuts. So I mean, you know, 980 00:55:31,920 --> 00:55:33,920 Speaker 1: I really kind of harp on that point to people. 981 00:55:33,960 --> 00:55:36,920 Speaker 1: If you don't have access to private land and to 982 00:55:37,040 --> 00:55:40,080 Speaker 1: do all that, a natural bait site can be every 983 00:55:40,080 --> 00:55:42,520 Speaker 1: bit as effective. Let's just run through that, just a 984 00:55:42,520 --> 00:55:46,560 Speaker 1: little bit like in the eastern deciduous forest. Really, that's 985 00:55:46,560 --> 00:55:49,839 Speaker 1: what apply and Georgia and any anywhere you can hunt 986 00:55:49,840 --> 00:55:52,720 Speaker 1: bears over here in the fall. We don't have spring 987 00:55:52,760 --> 00:55:56,200 Speaker 1: bear seasons in the South, very few spring bear seasons 988 00:55:56,239 --> 00:56:00,359 Speaker 1: in the lower forty eight. Um Maine has some bear 989 00:56:00,600 --> 00:56:05,440 Speaker 1: spring bear seasons on some tribal lands, and Idaho, Montana, Wyoming, 990 00:56:06,320 --> 00:56:08,759 Speaker 1: Washington has a limited anyway we hunt bears in the fall, 991 00:56:09,440 --> 00:56:13,399 Speaker 1: and um hard masks is gonna be probably the main 992 00:56:13,440 --> 00:56:15,320 Speaker 1: thing you're gonna key in on. That's what the bears 993 00:56:15,320 --> 00:56:17,239 Speaker 1: are keying in on. And that would be acrens, whether 994 00:56:17,239 --> 00:56:20,200 Speaker 1: it be red oakacres, white oakacerings, whatever kind of acren 995 00:56:20,239 --> 00:56:23,880 Speaker 1: there is. They it would be possible bear food. But 996 00:56:24,160 --> 00:56:26,879 Speaker 1: just like white tailed deer, they're gonna be selective. They're 997 00:56:26,880 --> 00:56:29,239 Speaker 1: gonna high grade their food, just like you or I would. 998 00:56:29,280 --> 00:56:31,359 Speaker 1: If there was a buffet out here, we'd go through. 999 00:56:31,400 --> 00:56:33,120 Speaker 1: We'd say I want that, I don't want that, I 1000 00:56:33,160 --> 00:56:35,680 Speaker 1: do want that. But if there was a limited amount 1001 00:56:35,719 --> 00:56:38,480 Speaker 1: of food and there was only one or two options 1002 00:56:38,719 --> 00:56:41,920 Speaker 1: and we had to eat, we'd eat a lesser desirable food, 1003 00:56:42,520 --> 00:56:45,560 Speaker 1: the number one desirable food. I mean, we can just 1004 00:56:45,680 --> 00:56:48,680 Speaker 1: almost say without question, is is gonna be white oak 1005 00:56:48,719 --> 00:56:51,920 Speaker 1: acorns during the time we're hunting. It's just a small 1006 00:56:52,000 --> 00:56:54,680 Speaker 1: window of time that that really that we're keen on 1007 00:56:54,719 --> 00:56:57,360 Speaker 1: these bears. Other times of the year they're eating berries, 1008 00:56:57,640 --> 00:57:00,360 Speaker 1: they're eating soft mask. We're not as heat in on 1009 00:57:00,440 --> 00:57:04,759 Speaker 1: them during that time. Mayron mentioned black gum um. That's 1010 00:57:04,760 --> 00:57:07,279 Speaker 1: something that you don't hear a lot about, but I 1011 00:57:07,360 --> 00:57:09,840 Speaker 1: have a couple of years ago I found a black 1012 00:57:09,840 --> 00:57:13,080 Speaker 1: gum tree. It was about eighteen inches in diameter at 1013 00:57:13,080 --> 00:57:18,320 Speaker 1: the base and it looked like it looked like a 1014 00:57:18,400 --> 00:57:22,320 Speaker 1: telephone pole that they had been climbing for years. Just 1015 00:57:22,440 --> 00:57:25,280 Speaker 1: I mean claw marks, branches all over the ground, and 1016 00:57:25,280 --> 00:57:28,240 Speaker 1: there were eight piles of bears scout under that single tree. 1017 00:57:28,760 --> 00:57:31,200 Speaker 1: Bears were just climbing. It's probably one or two bears. 1018 00:57:31,400 --> 00:57:34,320 Speaker 1: They were climbing that tree, breaking the branches out of 1019 00:57:34,360 --> 00:57:36,600 Speaker 1: that black gum. And black gum has a little soft 1020 00:57:36,720 --> 00:57:39,760 Speaker 1: berry about that looks like a raisin. And uh, boy, 1021 00:57:39,800 --> 00:57:44,160 Speaker 1: at the right time, when they hit, they're loaded with hit. Yeah, 1022 00:57:44,280 --> 00:57:49,280 Speaker 1: and you know, so acorns, uh you know black gum. 1023 00:57:49,360 --> 00:57:51,919 Speaker 1: You might find a persymmetry that the bears are hitting 1024 00:57:51,920 --> 00:57:55,200 Speaker 1: per simmons are pretty there's just little windows when they're 1025 00:57:55,240 --> 00:57:58,720 Speaker 1: when they're using those hickory nuts, beech nuts. Parts of 1026 00:57:58,840 --> 00:58:01,600 Speaker 1: Arkansas are gonna have some beach timber, you know, few 1027 00:58:01,640 --> 00:58:04,520 Speaker 1: parts of Arkansas. But when beech nuts make they're gonna 1028 00:58:04,520 --> 00:58:07,560 Speaker 1: eat They're gonna eat those hard and heavy. Um, that's 1029 00:58:07,600 --> 00:58:10,880 Speaker 1: primarily what they're eating in the fall. You guys agree, Yeah, 1030 00:58:11,360 --> 00:58:15,400 Speaker 1: I'd say acorns and then black gun berries and then 1031 00:58:15,760 --> 00:58:18,120 Speaker 1: the hickory nuts. Is what I found myself. But if 1032 00:58:18,120 --> 00:58:20,120 Speaker 1: you're intellect she said, and where the beech nuts are, 1033 00:58:20,320 --> 00:58:24,080 Speaker 1: those are half protein content mass. When they do hit, 1034 00:58:24,120 --> 00:58:26,320 Speaker 1: they just don't hit very often. They will sure go 1035 00:58:26,360 --> 00:58:29,480 Speaker 1: to them then. And what always, what I've found is 1036 00:58:29,520 --> 00:58:34,680 Speaker 1: that bears will use natural food very similar to the 1037 00:58:34,920 --> 00:58:37,200 Speaker 1: use of bait site. I mean just that's what Myron's 1038 00:58:37,240 --> 00:58:41,720 Speaker 1: point was, is that a bear is extremely habitual. If 1039 00:58:41,760 --> 00:58:44,960 Speaker 1: you can find where he's been, he's probably gonna come back. 1040 00:58:45,000 --> 00:58:47,400 Speaker 1: And this is like the dream scenario that I would 1041 00:58:47,400 --> 00:58:50,480 Speaker 1: have only found. I mean, I talked about scenarios like this, 1042 00:58:51,160 --> 00:58:53,360 Speaker 1: and you're like, well, heck, he must find a spot 1043 00:58:53,360 --> 00:58:55,200 Speaker 1: like that every year. Not true. I mean I probably 1044 00:58:55,200 --> 00:58:58,440 Speaker 1: found this three or four times in my life. But 1045 00:58:58,520 --> 00:59:00,560 Speaker 1: this is what you're after, so like to talk about 1046 00:59:00,600 --> 00:59:04,000 Speaker 1: what you're after. What you're after is to walk onto 1047 00:59:04,040 --> 00:59:05,960 Speaker 1: a bench or on the top of a ridge or 1048 00:59:06,320 --> 00:59:10,600 Speaker 1: wherever the acrons would be, and find a significant amount 1049 00:59:10,600 --> 00:59:13,640 Speaker 1: of your food source and then a significant amount of 1050 00:59:13,840 --> 00:59:17,720 Speaker 1: bear scat. I mean, I've been in places where you 1051 00:59:17,760 --> 00:59:20,040 Speaker 1: walk up there and it looks like hogs have been 1052 00:59:20,040 --> 00:59:22,800 Speaker 1: in there and there's bear. You know, find ten or 1053 00:59:22,840 --> 00:59:26,720 Speaker 1: twelve piles of bear scout in a hundred square yard area, 1054 00:59:26,880 --> 00:59:29,640 Speaker 1: some of it very fresh, some of it old acrons 1055 00:59:29,680 --> 00:59:32,480 Speaker 1: on the ground. I mean, it's just if you can 1056 00:59:32,480 --> 00:59:34,640 Speaker 1: find that you're in the chips, and then you just 1057 00:59:34,720 --> 00:59:37,520 Speaker 1: hunt it smart like you would hunt a deer. You know, 1058 00:59:37,720 --> 00:59:43,760 Speaker 1: you gotta watch the smarter smarter there there. So when 1059 00:59:43,800 --> 00:59:46,640 Speaker 1: you find that, you treat it just like a deer spot. 1060 00:59:46,680 --> 00:59:48,880 Speaker 1: You know, you gotta get the wind right. But what 1061 00:59:49,040 --> 00:59:52,280 Speaker 1: I found, and what I didn't I didn't know until 1062 00:59:52,360 --> 00:59:55,040 Speaker 1: I did it, is that you can kill a bear 1063 00:59:55,200 --> 00:59:57,720 Speaker 1: on the ground. I can't believe I'm telling people this stuff. 1064 00:59:58,080 --> 01:00:01,400 Speaker 1: Gunning you can kill. You can stalk a bear and 1065 01:00:01,520 --> 01:00:03,760 Speaker 1: dry leaves on the ground when he's got his face 1066 01:00:03,760 --> 01:00:06,480 Speaker 1: eating akrons, and that's what I was unsure of. And 1067 01:00:06,560 --> 01:00:08,400 Speaker 1: ten years ago when I was kind of just like 1068 01:00:08,440 --> 01:00:11,080 Speaker 1: trying to kill one in National forest, I'd be out 1069 01:00:11,160 --> 01:00:13,120 Speaker 1: and the leaves would be dry, and I'm sitting here 1070 01:00:13,120 --> 01:00:14,920 Speaker 1: with a traditional bow, and I'm like, how the heck 1071 01:00:14,920 --> 01:00:17,880 Speaker 1: am I gonna get within eighteen yards of a bear? 1072 01:00:18,600 --> 01:00:20,560 Speaker 1: And what I found? And I have the I have 1073 01:00:20,600 --> 01:00:23,240 Speaker 1: a video on Bear Honey Magazine YouTube channel of a 1074 01:00:23,280 --> 01:00:27,480 Speaker 1: bear that I first spotted about sixty yards away and 1075 01:00:27,520 --> 01:00:31,320 Speaker 1: I filmed them for eighteen minutes. I know it because 1076 01:00:31,320 --> 01:00:34,160 Speaker 1: it was on the camera. I filmed them for eighteen minutes, 1077 01:00:34,200 --> 01:00:37,439 Speaker 1: just circling the white oak tree, just circling. Never looked 1078 01:00:37,520 --> 01:00:40,800 Speaker 1: up one time, Maron and I just started walking towards 1079 01:00:40,880 --> 01:00:42,920 Speaker 1: him in the broad there was nothing to hide behind, 1080 01:00:43,440 --> 01:00:47,880 Speaker 1: and I walked to where I could hear him crunching acrons, 1081 01:00:48,440 --> 01:00:50,280 Speaker 1: and then I was like, this is close enough, and 1082 01:00:50,320 --> 01:00:52,440 Speaker 1: I just kind of crouched down in the wide open, 1083 01:00:52,880 --> 01:00:55,440 Speaker 1: and that bear, you know, eventually just kind of made 1084 01:00:55,480 --> 01:00:58,480 Speaker 1: his way my direction and I killed him at fourteen yards. 1085 01:00:58,680 --> 01:01:01,360 Speaker 1: But the leaves were crunchy. Dry. Point is you can 1086 01:01:01,400 --> 01:01:04,400 Speaker 1: stalk them if they're eating. Now, if they're moving. If 1087 01:01:04,400 --> 01:01:06,160 Speaker 1: you're like going through the mountains and you see one 1088 01:01:06,200 --> 01:01:09,720 Speaker 1: that coming across the ridge, he'll be as I mean, 1089 01:01:09,760 --> 01:01:12,200 Speaker 1: I'm not gonna say as spooky as a deer, but 1090 01:01:12,320 --> 01:01:14,960 Speaker 1: that bear is going to be alert. If you can 1091 01:01:15,000 --> 01:01:17,680 Speaker 1: catch them, feed them feeding. You could about walk up 1092 01:01:17,680 --> 01:01:19,160 Speaker 1: to him and slap them in the rear, as long 1093 01:01:19,160 --> 01:01:24,160 Speaker 1: as they don't smell yep, I mean yeah, absolutely common 1094 01:01:24,200 --> 01:01:27,720 Speaker 1: to them. The dominator in that is the wind was 1095 01:01:27,760 --> 01:01:31,920 Speaker 1: at your face. Bears do not see. They're kind of nearsighted, 1096 01:01:32,480 --> 01:01:35,320 Speaker 1: don't see probably well as most people. They don't have 1097 01:01:35,360 --> 01:01:37,640 Speaker 1: a little small fuzzy ears, not bi great our ears 1098 01:01:37,680 --> 01:01:40,040 Speaker 1: like a deer, so they don't really hear that well. 1099 01:01:40,680 --> 01:01:44,120 Speaker 1: But the bear has the strongest snows of any land animal, 1100 01:01:45,360 --> 01:01:48,520 Speaker 1: and they use it. They live or die by it. 1101 01:01:49,160 --> 01:01:52,240 Speaker 1: So if you want to be a successful bear hunter, 1102 01:01:53,080 --> 01:01:56,480 Speaker 1: that is probably the most important factor that you can 1103 01:01:56,520 --> 01:02:00,640 Speaker 1: never ever leave out his wind how third normals play, 1104 01:02:00,680 --> 01:02:04,600 Speaker 1: how down drafts, play, what your wind is doing, because 1105 01:02:04,640 --> 01:02:07,640 Speaker 1: you will never ever stalk a bear with the wind 1106 01:02:07,800 --> 01:02:11,360 Speaker 1: nod in your favor. That's right. They noticed he didn't 1107 01:02:11,400 --> 01:02:14,240 Speaker 1: say use sent control products. He said play the wind 1108 01:02:14,800 --> 01:02:20,680 Speaker 1: like a real man, that's a whole other Yeah, kidding 1109 01:02:21,200 --> 01:02:25,800 Speaker 1: yet how much time? Uh we're walking? It all kind 1110 01:02:25,800 --> 01:02:32,240 Speaker 1: of inside jokes for Beargary surrender yeah, um yeah, so um. 1111 01:02:32,280 --> 01:02:34,600 Speaker 1: I wanted to touch on that. And that's all the 1112 01:02:34,640 --> 01:02:36,920 Speaker 1: secrets I've got. I mean, like people talk to me 1113 01:02:36,920 --> 01:02:38,800 Speaker 1: about how do you kill a bear? And National Forest, 1114 01:02:39,080 --> 01:02:41,960 Speaker 1: I've told you everything I know right there. Really it's 1115 01:02:42,000 --> 01:02:45,360 Speaker 1: literally get out and pound the dirt, looking for places 1116 01:02:45,320 --> 01:02:48,880 Speaker 1: and hunt. And now James and Jonathan they have taken 1117 01:02:48,880 --> 01:02:50,959 Speaker 1: my advice and gone out and done it, so it'd 1118 01:02:50,960 --> 01:02:58,240 Speaker 1: be interesting to see it. Yeah, hunt too. No, I 1119 01:02:58,320 --> 01:03:03,040 Speaker 1: will say that the why I got into it is 1120 01:03:03,080 --> 01:03:05,440 Speaker 1: because it was an adventure and a challenge. Is something 1121 01:03:05,440 --> 01:03:07,560 Speaker 1: new to do, something you could do here in Arkansas 1122 01:03:08,280 --> 01:03:10,080 Speaker 1: happened to be. I was planning to do it anyway, 1123 01:03:10,120 --> 01:03:14,080 Speaker 1: and then we had COVID so we weren't gonna travel anywhere. Um, 1124 01:03:14,120 --> 01:03:17,600 Speaker 1: but I wanted to become a better woodsman. I wanted 1125 01:03:17,640 --> 01:03:19,560 Speaker 1: to just get out and see more of the state. 1126 01:03:19,720 --> 01:03:22,040 Speaker 1: And and if you choose to do this in the 1127 01:03:22,120 --> 01:03:24,080 Speaker 1: National Forest, you're gonna see parts of the state that 1128 01:03:24,120 --> 01:03:28,840 Speaker 1: you didn't know existed. We live in a beautiful, beautiful place. 1129 01:03:29,640 --> 01:03:33,680 Speaker 1: As pretty as Georgia, not as pretty as Georgia, tex Place. Um, 1130 01:03:34,240 --> 01:03:39,960 Speaker 1: and uh, you will. You will challenge yourself in many 1131 01:03:40,000 --> 01:03:43,439 Speaker 1: many ways to go out and do that. But that's 1132 01:03:43,520 --> 01:03:46,800 Speaker 1: what I wanted out of that particular adventure, and I 1133 01:03:46,960 --> 01:03:48,680 Speaker 1: thought there was a lot of value in that for 1134 01:03:48,720 --> 01:03:51,360 Speaker 1: me as a just on my journey as a hunter. 1135 01:03:51,400 --> 01:03:54,000 Speaker 1: And I'm kind of thoughtful about that kind of stuff. 1136 01:03:54,000 --> 01:03:56,560 Speaker 1: Not everybody is. I mean, I'm glad I brought a 1137 01:03:56,560 --> 01:03:59,640 Speaker 1: bear home and and had all the stuff from it too. 1138 01:03:59,680 --> 01:04:02,600 Speaker 1: But it was a very fun adventure to go on. 1139 01:04:02,680 --> 01:04:05,760 Speaker 1: And and that's what I would sell anybody. If you're 1140 01:04:05,760 --> 01:04:09,480 Speaker 1: looking for an adventure, take up bear hunting. Yeah, on 1141 01:04:09,680 --> 01:04:12,680 Speaker 1: national you know, national forest, on public land, because it's tough, 1142 01:04:13,000 --> 01:04:16,040 Speaker 1: it's real tough. Yeah. I want to talk real quickly 1143 01:04:16,160 --> 01:04:20,200 Speaker 1: about baiting bears. Just kind of give the high points 1144 01:04:20,200 --> 01:04:22,320 Speaker 1: of baiting bearers. I'm trying to just get a swath 1145 01:04:22,440 --> 01:04:25,439 Speaker 1: of what people might be interested in. Does that sound 1146 01:04:25,480 --> 01:04:29,919 Speaker 1: fair to all? Yepnom Is that fair? Yes, it's very 1147 01:04:29,920 --> 01:04:34,120 Speaker 1: fair question to say about baiting barriers. Well, I'll say 1148 01:04:34,120 --> 01:04:38,200 Speaker 1: two things. There's bear bait around here. I can smell it. Well, 1149 01:04:38,240 --> 01:04:41,000 Speaker 1: what you smell is uh yeah, Northwoods. It smells like 1150 01:04:41,080 --> 01:04:48,080 Speaker 1: bear bait. Yo. She didn't know I brought this. This 1151 01:04:48,200 --> 01:04:50,720 Speaker 1: is uh yeah, this is some stuff I like to 1152 01:04:50,800 --> 01:04:53,320 Speaker 1: use this north Woods bear products. I'm going to give 1153 01:04:53,320 --> 01:04:57,520 Speaker 1: some of the away that smells like fall. And then 1154 01:04:57,520 --> 01:05:01,400 Speaker 1: in the we also Clay always fine, you know, places 1155 01:05:01,440 --> 01:05:03,640 Speaker 1: to go get just junk foods, stuff that we wouldn't 1156 01:05:03,720 --> 01:05:06,240 Speaker 1: let our kids eat, and fills the back of his trunk. 1157 01:05:06,640 --> 01:05:08,360 Speaker 1: And when our kids were little, one of them came 1158 01:05:08,400 --> 01:05:12,200 Speaker 1: toddling new and expired honey bun in their hands just 1159 01:05:12,520 --> 01:05:16,280 Speaker 1: now and down. I was like, what do you eat? Yeah? 1160 01:05:16,440 --> 01:05:19,280 Speaker 1: And my kids, Mike, whenever we see certain items in 1161 01:05:19,320 --> 01:05:21,000 Speaker 1: the grocery store, they're like, oh, look there's some bear 1162 01:05:21,040 --> 01:05:28,520 Speaker 1: baits that. So when you're when you're baiting bear, always 1163 01:05:28,520 --> 01:05:32,080 Speaker 1: tell people it's all about location, location, location. Most people 1164 01:05:32,280 --> 01:05:35,320 Speaker 1: they say, well, I got property in this county, We 1165 01:05:35,360 --> 01:05:37,920 Speaker 1: saw a bear there once or twice. You know, is 1166 01:05:37,960 --> 01:05:41,680 Speaker 1: it gonna be good for baiting bears? And what I've 1167 01:05:41,720 --> 01:05:46,400 Speaker 1: seen is that even on a micro scale, like if 1168 01:05:46,480 --> 01:05:49,640 Speaker 1: you took like half of a county, there are gonna 1169 01:05:49,680 --> 01:05:52,000 Speaker 1: be even inside like even let's say it's the best 1170 01:05:52,000 --> 01:05:55,240 Speaker 1: bear county around, and you took even just a quarter 1171 01:05:55,320 --> 01:05:58,720 Speaker 1: of that best bear county around, there's gonna be fringe 1172 01:05:58,840 --> 01:06:02,200 Speaker 1: bear habitat, and that there's place, there's property in that 1173 01:06:02,520 --> 01:06:05,320 Speaker 1: best county that you probably couldn't kill a bear on. 1174 01:06:06,040 --> 01:06:09,560 Speaker 1: Bears are very selective about where they're gonna go and 1175 01:06:09,560 --> 01:06:12,240 Speaker 1: where they want to be in the daytime. And so 1176 01:06:12,360 --> 01:06:15,760 Speaker 1: the short version is when you're baiting bears, you want 1177 01:06:15,760 --> 01:06:18,120 Speaker 1: to be in you want to be where the bears 1178 01:06:18,200 --> 01:06:21,040 Speaker 1: want to be in the fall. So it's possible that 1179 01:06:21,080 --> 01:06:23,320 Speaker 1: somebody's got bears, and Miron can tell you this, got 1180 01:06:23,320 --> 01:06:25,960 Speaker 1: bears on their place during the summer, but they're like, 1181 01:06:26,400 --> 01:06:28,240 Speaker 1: but when we put out bear bait in the fall, 1182 01:06:28,560 --> 01:06:32,360 Speaker 1: we don't get bears up. Bears have big ranges. They're 1183 01:06:32,360 --> 01:06:35,440 Speaker 1: moving around, they do. They typically have a summer range 1184 01:06:35,480 --> 01:06:37,560 Speaker 1: and a fall range, and that fall range, you know, 1185 01:06:37,720 --> 01:06:41,080 Speaker 1: maybe two miles away. But in the home range of 1186 01:06:41,120 --> 01:06:45,960 Speaker 1: a bear, they will have seasonal ranges within that whole 1187 01:06:46,000 --> 01:06:49,000 Speaker 1: home range, and they definitely, I mean some bears have 1188 01:06:49,120 --> 01:06:53,400 Speaker 1: their summer forage area in very close proximity to maybe 1189 01:06:53,400 --> 01:06:56,360 Speaker 1: where their fall range would be. But in other bears, 1190 01:06:56,400 --> 01:06:58,720 Speaker 1: you know, they may be three or four miles apart, 1191 01:07:00,000 --> 01:07:01,960 Speaker 1: and you're not as a hunter, You're not like trying 1192 01:07:02,040 --> 01:07:05,680 Speaker 1: to map out home ranges of different bears. But if 1193 01:07:05,720 --> 01:07:08,240 Speaker 1: you can, if you can, if you have access to 1194 01:07:08,320 --> 01:07:13,040 Speaker 1: private land that you have permission to hunt in very secluded, 1195 01:07:13,160 --> 01:07:16,520 Speaker 1: remote areas that are typically connected to big blocks of 1196 01:07:16,600 --> 01:07:20,920 Speaker 1: national forests. In our state, the bears, the bears are 1197 01:07:21,000 --> 01:07:23,640 Speaker 1: on national forest. I mean, that's just the truth of 1198 01:07:23,680 --> 01:07:27,520 Speaker 1: it there there. But the bears want big, unfragmented not 1199 01:07:27,680 --> 01:07:31,400 Speaker 1: true wilderness like Capital w federal wilderness, but they want 1200 01:07:31,400 --> 01:07:35,520 Speaker 1: to be in big, unfragmented blocks. That's not exclusive. Bears 1201 01:07:35,920 --> 01:07:38,160 Speaker 1: can adapt and can be living, you know, in your 1202 01:07:38,200 --> 01:07:43,680 Speaker 1: backyard in general, though the bigger blocks, a big public land, rugged, rough, 1203 01:07:43,880 --> 01:07:45,960 Speaker 1: nasty stuff, that's where bears are gonna want to be. 1204 01:07:46,680 --> 01:07:49,440 Speaker 1: And you'll learn over time. Like there was a time 1205 01:07:50,560 --> 01:07:54,000 Speaker 1: years ago where I was baiting like eleven different spots 1206 01:07:54,280 --> 01:08:00,200 Speaker 1: in a good county in Arkansas, and of those eleven spots, 1207 01:08:00,200 --> 01:08:03,040 Speaker 1: by the time season came around, we would usually have 1208 01:08:03,240 --> 01:08:06,320 Speaker 1: three spots that you could kill a decent bear at 1209 01:08:07,040 --> 01:08:09,360 Speaker 1: that whole time we baited it. Though in September we'd 1210 01:08:09,360 --> 01:08:12,000 Speaker 1: have had bears at every one of those spots, and 1211 01:08:12,480 --> 01:08:15,600 Speaker 1: as the as the as the calendar turns in September, 1212 01:08:15,760 --> 01:08:19,000 Speaker 1: coming to October, the white oak acrens, all the acrens 1213 01:08:19,000 --> 01:08:23,120 Speaker 1: start getting ripe, falling bears start to transition. You know, 1214 01:08:23,200 --> 01:08:26,600 Speaker 1: during that time, Um, there's just a big transition in 1215 01:08:26,640 --> 01:08:31,280 Speaker 1: the natural world from summer to fall, and bears start 1216 01:08:31,320 --> 01:08:34,880 Speaker 1: to move around, and you can basically you can hold 1217 01:08:34,920 --> 01:08:37,960 Speaker 1: bears early, it's hard to hold them late. Everybody's beaded bears. 1218 01:08:38,040 --> 01:08:40,760 Speaker 1: You know. We'll say, Man, I had bears, but they 1219 01:08:40,880 --> 01:08:43,800 Speaker 1: left by the time season came. You know, what can 1220 01:08:43,840 --> 01:08:45,800 Speaker 1: I do to keep them? And I told the guy 1221 01:08:45,840 --> 01:08:47,519 Speaker 1: earlier today, I said, the best thing you can do 1222 01:08:47,600 --> 01:08:49,880 Speaker 1: to keep a bear and be able to kill him 1223 01:08:49,880 --> 01:08:52,599 Speaker 1: on opening day is have a spot that you can 1224 01:08:52,720 --> 01:08:57,519 Speaker 1: kill bears and keep them until opening day. It works brilliant. 1225 01:08:57,880 --> 01:09:02,720 Speaker 1: So what I finally did, after after after what teach 1226 01:09:02,960 --> 01:09:08,000 Speaker 1: that Mo and his backwoods wisdom taught me that, what 1227 01:09:08,000 --> 01:09:10,679 Speaker 1: what I finally did, after bating eleven spots, as I said, 1228 01:09:10,680 --> 01:09:12,960 Speaker 1: why I'm even baiting those other eight, I'm just gonna 1229 01:09:12,960 --> 01:09:15,240 Speaker 1: bait the three. And so that's what I did. I 1230 01:09:15,240 --> 01:09:17,160 Speaker 1: mean pretty much just narrowed it down. I was like, 1231 01:09:17,280 --> 01:09:21,000 Speaker 1: I cannot kill a good bear at this spot, so 1232 01:09:21,400 --> 01:09:23,400 Speaker 1: we're just chunking it. You know, we we tried it 1233 01:09:23,439 --> 01:09:25,280 Speaker 1: for several years. You can't give up on a spot 1234 01:09:25,320 --> 01:09:28,120 Speaker 1: after one year. I bait it three years before. I 1235 01:09:28,160 --> 01:09:32,599 Speaker 1: was like, ah um. But you know, but a lot 1236 01:09:32,640 --> 01:09:35,439 Speaker 1: of you may not have access to that many properties, 1237 01:09:35,479 --> 01:09:37,040 Speaker 1: so you may it may be a deal where you 1238 01:09:37,080 --> 01:09:39,720 Speaker 1: bait for five years and finally you get a straggler 1239 01:09:39,800 --> 01:09:43,679 Speaker 1: that comes in and that's that's okay too, But point 1240 01:09:43,720 --> 01:09:48,040 Speaker 1: being secluded land moment. Yeah. And then and the later 1241 01:09:48,120 --> 01:09:50,240 Speaker 1: in the season it gets later in the fall, it 1242 01:09:50,320 --> 01:09:52,840 Speaker 1: gets the harder it is to get a bear to 1243 01:09:52,880 --> 01:09:56,400 Speaker 1: come to bait, Like later muzzloader hunt or the gun hunt. 1244 01:09:56,439 --> 01:09:58,120 Speaker 1: It's a lot harder to get them to come to 1245 01:09:58,160 --> 01:10:00,720 Speaker 1: those areas. You gotta try to get closer to where 1246 01:10:00,760 --> 01:10:03,800 Speaker 1: they want to be in that fall during the mass 1247 01:10:03,840 --> 01:10:06,519 Speaker 1: they'll come to bait once they hit the mass hard, 1248 01:10:07,400 --> 01:10:11,040 Speaker 1: you know from opening a from the acrons first fall, 1249 01:10:11,080 --> 01:10:14,080 Speaker 1: they'll hit it hard. But then as the acrons dispersed 1250 01:10:14,080 --> 01:10:15,600 Speaker 1: and get less of them, and they're more apt to 1251 01:10:15,640 --> 01:10:17,360 Speaker 1: come back to a bait side. But you need to 1252 01:10:17,400 --> 01:10:21,639 Speaker 1: be closer to where they're hanging out hitting that mass 1253 01:10:21,640 --> 01:10:25,720 Speaker 1: crop too. So Mo Mo and I kind of work 1254 01:10:25,800 --> 01:10:27,800 Speaker 1: together on a bait side one year and he killed 1255 01:10:27,800 --> 01:10:30,479 Speaker 1: the bear on November the fifth, over bait, which is 1256 01:10:30,520 --> 01:10:34,559 Speaker 1: the latest I've ever It's pretty late what he's trying 1257 01:10:34,560 --> 01:10:37,040 Speaker 1: to say. And I have people that are like, Hey, 1258 01:10:37,080 --> 01:10:39,400 Speaker 1: I'm gonna come bear hunt. What if what if I 1259 01:10:39,479 --> 01:10:43,160 Speaker 1: came mid October talking about hunting over bait and I 1260 01:10:43,240 --> 01:10:44,880 Speaker 1: would just be like, stay home. That's one of the 1261 01:10:44,920 --> 01:10:49,639 Speaker 1: worst times to try to the bear season over bait, 1262 01:10:50,240 --> 01:10:53,599 Speaker 1: I said I. I kind of had this revelation last year. 1263 01:10:53,680 --> 01:10:56,120 Speaker 1: Is sitting over a bear bait in Arkansas? Is that 1264 01:10:56,200 --> 01:10:59,000 Speaker 1: it is? It is a an ephemeral window. I mean, 1265 01:10:59,040 --> 01:11:01,800 Speaker 1: it's like a short window that comes and goes where 1266 01:11:01,800 --> 01:11:05,400 Speaker 1: those big bears are using the bait site during the daytime. 1267 01:11:05,960 --> 01:11:09,559 Speaker 1: Very short window, and it's always gonna be the as 1268 01:11:09,640 --> 01:11:11,880 Speaker 1: early as the season is open. I mean, so like 1269 01:11:12,040 --> 01:11:14,000 Speaker 1: when we bear hunt, I mean we pretty much bear 1270 01:11:14,080 --> 01:11:16,559 Speaker 1: hunt over bait the first three days of season and 1271 01:11:16,600 --> 01:11:19,240 Speaker 1: then our baits just die. It's like they just turned 1272 01:11:19,280 --> 01:11:22,480 Speaker 1: the switch. We've done it for twenty years. It's not anecdotal, 1273 01:11:22,800 --> 01:11:25,400 Speaker 1: it's everybody. I mean, it's It's like sometimes you hear 1274 01:11:25,439 --> 01:11:27,519 Speaker 1: people say stuff and you're like, you haven't done that 1275 01:11:27,640 --> 01:11:30,519 Speaker 1: very much. Or if you come to the wrong conclusion, man, 1276 01:11:30,760 --> 01:11:35,000 Speaker 1: that bears leave baits. They're hard to hold most years, 1277 01:11:35,439 --> 01:11:38,000 Speaker 1: and you better, you better, you better hunt them quick, 1278 01:11:38,200 --> 01:11:40,080 Speaker 1: is what I'm trying to say. Yeah, that that year, 1279 01:11:40,120 --> 01:11:41,680 Speaker 1: you remember the reason we talked about it, because I 1280 01:11:41,760 --> 01:11:44,240 Speaker 1: told you killed the bear with about every means there 1281 01:11:44,320 --> 01:11:46,760 Speaker 1: was other than my pistol. And the only way I 1282 01:11:46,760 --> 01:11:50,320 Speaker 1: could do that was during the opening of the gun 1283 01:11:51,520 --> 01:11:53,960 Speaker 1: fire bear season. And that year it was when it 1284 01:11:54,040 --> 01:11:56,720 Speaker 1: opened just a few days, like five days prior to 1285 01:11:57,600 --> 01:12:01,439 Speaker 1: gun deer season. Pretty and and so we we baited 1286 01:12:01,479 --> 01:12:04,599 Speaker 1: and and and got got a bear coming in, a 1287 01:12:04,600 --> 01:12:07,559 Speaker 1: good material bear. And I was lucky. The first evening 1288 01:12:07,600 --> 01:12:09,200 Speaker 1: I sat there. I sat there all day, but the 1289 01:12:09,200 --> 01:12:11,479 Speaker 1: first evening I sat there about noon and then had 1290 01:12:11,479 --> 01:12:14,559 Speaker 1: to eat. But I'm hungry, you can tell. But you 1291 01:12:14,600 --> 01:12:17,840 Speaker 1: look at yeah the bear. The bear came in, you know, 1292 01:12:17,920 --> 01:12:19,840 Speaker 1: thirty minutes before dark. And I took it with my 1293 01:12:19,880 --> 01:12:22,040 Speaker 1: pistol and called Clay and said, cut it up here. 1294 01:12:22,040 --> 01:12:23,200 Speaker 1: I've got a bear down and you're gonna have to 1295 01:12:23,240 --> 01:12:25,960 Speaker 1: help me. So we got a lot of fat off 1296 01:12:25,960 --> 01:12:28,519 Speaker 1: of that bear too. That bear had a beautiful coat. 1297 01:12:29,320 --> 01:12:32,080 Speaker 1: Five you know, the longer you wait in the season there, Yeah, 1298 01:12:32,120 --> 01:12:33,720 Speaker 1: I've got made it had a rug made out of it. 1299 01:12:33,720 --> 01:12:36,040 Speaker 1: It's a beautiful rug. I mean it's thick, lot of 1300 01:12:36,840 --> 01:12:39,240 Speaker 1: a lot of fat holding a big filet of fat. 1301 01:12:39,320 --> 01:12:41,840 Speaker 1: That was just like you know, like that big yeah. 1302 01:12:42,360 --> 01:12:47,240 Speaker 1: But um yeah. And then as far as what debate with, 1303 01:12:47,760 --> 01:12:51,480 Speaker 1: you know, there's there's basically anything. I mean, there's regulations 1304 01:12:51,720 --> 01:12:54,160 Speaker 1: looking looking the red books for what you can bait. 1305 01:12:54,240 --> 01:12:58,519 Speaker 1: They have had to kind of get specific, but in general, uh, 1306 01:12:58,720 --> 01:13:01,439 Speaker 1: just about anything that will make a human fat, well, 1307 01:13:01,720 --> 01:13:04,599 Speaker 1: a bear will eat. That's what I say. We use 1308 01:13:04,640 --> 01:13:08,080 Speaker 1: a lot of a lot of bread, pastries, dog food, corn. 1309 01:13:08,320 --> 01:13:10,880 Speaker 1: I didn't know dog food made people fat. That's a 1310 01:13:11,000 --> 01:13:19,360 Speaker 1: good touche. I've never tried to have this trip both fat. 1311 01:13:19,400 --> 01:13:23,720 Speaker 1: You know, do you eat dog food? Um? Every opportunity. Now, 1312 01:13:23,920 --> 01:13:25,360 Speaker 1: we use a lot of we use a lot of 1313 01:13:25,479 --> 01:13:28,720 Speaker 1: used cooking oil. I would say that's a key component. Um. 1314 01:13:28,960 --> 01:13:31,080 Speaker 1: And this is not a sales pitch. I got nothing 1315 01:13:31,080 --> 01:13:35,080 Speaker 1: tied to these guys, but these these friar grease additives, 1316 01:13:35,080 --> 01:13:38,200 Speaker 1: this is this is Northwood's gold rush. It really is 1317 01:13:38,280 --> 01:13:41,599 Speaker 1: incredible that you pour this in with your friar grease, 1318 01:13:42,040 --> 01:13:45,000 Speaker 1: put it on corn, dog food, bread, whatever, and it 1319 01:13:45,280 --> 01:13:48,400 Speaker 1: really attracts. I can smell it right now, misty nose. 1320 01:13:48,600 --> 01:13:53,760 Speaker 1: That's the smell of September at our Yeah, we open 1321 01:13:53,840 --> 01:13:57,599 Speaker 1: this up. Hey, could you put that in the candle? 1322 01:13:57,880 --> 01:14:02,760 Speaker 1: Could you put that in one of those bear grease candles? Oh? Yeah, 1323 01:14:01,520 --> 01:14:09,320 Speaker 1: I don't know where you north Woods Barger. It smells 1324 01:14:09,400 --> 01:14:12,760 Speaker 1: up here right now. Wow, it really does. There's a 1325 01:14:12,760 --> 01:14:14,360 Speaker 1: lot of resources. I tell you what, if you want 1326 01:14:14,400 --> 01:14:16,240 Speaker 1: to learn how to bear hunt Yata, you ought to 1327 01:14:16,280 --> 01:14:19,360 Speaker 1: subscribe to Bear Hunting Magazine. Colby Colby, Moorehead and Joe 1328 01:14:19,400 --> 01:14:22,639 Speaker 1: Line run Bear Hunting Magazine. It's the only bear hunting 1329 01:14:22,640 --> 01:14:27,400 Speaker 1: magazine in the world. Way about of coy big. I mean, 1330 01:14:27,640 --> 01:14:30,600 Speaker 1: people ask me all the time. People message me and 1331 01:14:30,640 --> 01:14:33,519 Speaker 1: asked me some real specific question about bears, which I 1332 01:14:33,720 --> 01:14:36,439 Speaker 1: don't mind. But I'm like, man, I've spent the last 1333 01:14:36,479 --> 01:14:39,160 Speaker 1: ten years writing about that and every issue of Bear 1334 01:14:39,240 --> 01:14:41,519 Speaker 1: Hunting magazine, and so the first thing I say is 1335 01:14:41,560 --> 01:14:45,360 Speaker 1: you should subscribe to Barretti magazine. And uh, but it's 1336 01:14:45,520 --> 01:14:47,639 Speaker 1: not a sales pitch. Just I'm just telling you the truth. 1337 01:14:47,640 --> 01:14:49,160 Speaker 1: If you want to learn how to bear hunt and 1338 01:14:49,160 --> 01:14:52,639 Speaker 1: see bear hunting on a big national scale, it's it's 1339 01:14:52,920 --> 01:14:55,200 Speaker 1: it's handy because I can only talk so much. You've 1340 01:14:55,200 --> 01:14:56,960 Speaker 1: got a lot of stories, a lot of different kinds 1341 01:14:56,960 --> 01:14:59,519 Speaker 1: of adventures in different ways to do it, and bear 1342 01:14:59,600 --> 01:15:02,120 Speaker 1: hunting is pretty diverse. And as a new bear hunter, 1343 01:15:02,640 --> 01:15:04,680 Speaker 1: you know, I'm still learning all the different ways to 1344 01:15:04,720 --> 01:15:07,240 Speaker 1: do it in different places, and and I like getting 1345 01:15:07,240 --> 01:15:11,080 Speaker 1: the magazine to see those different things in different perspectives 1346 01:15:11,120 --> 01:15:14,559 Speaker 1: and just add different ideas to what I might do. 1347 01:15:14,680 --> 01:15:19,160 Speaker 1: So it's a good resource. Yeah. Yeah, Um, Brent, we 1348 01:15:19,160 --> 01:15:22,519 Speaker 1: didn't talked to you yet. Using what you want to 1349 01:15:22,520 --> 01:15:26,519 Speaker 1: talk about, I don't know. Closing thoughts, Well, I'm for 1350 01:15:26,600 --> 01:15:30,799 Speaker 1: bear hunting, okay, I'm for baiting bears. I'm for doing anything. 1351 01:15:31,520 --> 01:15:34,720 Speaker 1: I really appreciate the where the game and fish has 1352 01:15:34,800 --> 01:15:37,320 Speaker 1: gone as far as the Gulf Coastal area because that's 1353 01:15:37,360 --> 01:15:39,280 Speaker 1: where I'm from. It's a big deal. Yeah, it is 1354 01:15:39,320 --> 01:15:41,360 Speaker 1: a big deal. And the ground down there is flat. 1355 01:15:42,200 --> 01:15:44,680 Speaker 1: What yes, sir, you don't have to it. See like 1356 01:15:44,720 --> 01:15:46,559 Speaker 1: I tell you about count, you don't have to con 1357 01:15:46,680 --> 01:15:50,120 Speaker 1: ut in the mountains and now maybe we're not gonna 1358 01:15:50,120 --> 01:15:51,680 Speaker 1: have to bear hunt. You don't have to walk up 1359 01:15:51,680 --> 01:15:54,920 Speaker 1: a mountain exactly. Well, I just it's it's just good. 1360 01:15:54,960 --> 01:15:58,160 Speaker 1: And and you know, I've I've got friends that worked 1361 01:15:58,160 --> 01:16:00,519 Speaker 1: at at Felsenthal, the guys that I grew up with, 1362 01:16:00,640 --> 01:16:03,000 Speaker 1: and they just it's just they see more that's down 1363 01:16:03,040 --> 01:16:06,920 Speaker 1: in the southeast part of Arkansas actually goes down into Louisiana, 1364 01:16:07,520 --> 01:16:09,840 Speaker 1: and that they see more and more. It used to 1365 01:16:09,920 --> 01:16:11,760 Speaker 1: be he would call him a man, I saw a 1366 01:16:11,800 --> 01:16:14,760 Speaker 1: bear today. Now now when I talked to him, it's like, 1367 01:16:15,200 --> 01:16:20,360 Speaker 1: you know, once every month or two, how many bears 1368 01:16:20,360 --> 01:16:22,360 Speaker 1: have you seen? He's, oh, gosh, I don't know. I 1369 01:16:22,400 --> 01:16:25,160 Speaker 1: couldn't tell you how many. You know, it's just they 1370 01:16:25,479 --> 01:16:29,040 Speaker 1: absolutely remarkable. At the place that I grew up and 1371 01:16:29,080 --> 01:16:31,040 Speaker 1: there's not many acres down there. I didn't put a 1372 01:16:31,080 --> 01:16:34,439 Speaker 1: track on that you never saw a bear, and now 1373 01:16:34,520 --> 01:16:37,360 Speaker 1: you see them. It's it's not unlike, it's not uncommon anymore. 1374 01:16:38,040 --> 01:16:41,240 Speaker 1: And it's it's an absolute testament. It's a testament to 1375 01:16:41,320 --> 01:16:44,519 Speaker 1: the folks that Myron, that Miron, that that Maron works with, 1376 01:16:45,000 --> 01:16:47,960 Speaker 1: and all these folks around here that put some value 1377 01:16:48,000 --> 01:16:50,880 Speaker 1: on something and see the value in it, and they've 1378 01:16:50,920 --> 01:16:52,800 Speaker 1: been working for a long time to get it to 1379 01:16:52,800 --> 01:16:55,000 Speaker 1: where it's at now, and it's hats off to you. 1380 01:16:55,360 --> 01:17:00,880 Speaker 1: It's a testament to great bear conservation. And it just 1381 01:17:00,960 --> 01:17:05,320 Speaker 1: continues to be, you know, flagship species for the agency. 1382 01:17:05,360 --> 01:17:08,679 Speaker 1: I mean, it really is continues to be a success story. 1383 01:17:09,120 --> 01:17:11,000 Speaker 1: It's good to see that louis Anna is getting a 1384 01:17:11,040 --> 01:17:13,920 Speaker 1: little after the whooping we put on them a couple 1385 01:17:14,000 --> 01:17:17,879 Speaker 1: of days ago. You're welcome for both of those things. 1386 01:17:18,560 --> 01:17:22,519 Speaker 1: Be yeah, now, man, I can't, I can't. I can't 1387 01:17:22,680 --> 01:17:25,839 Speaker 1: reiterate enough how special it is that we have bears 1388 01:17:25,920 --> 01:17:28,600 Speaker 1: here and that we can hunt them like we can so, 1389 01:17:28,760 --> 01:17:31,759 Speaker 1: I mean, I'm like super grateful for that. Um hey, 1390 01:17:31,800 --> 01:17:33,400 Speaker 1: thank you guys so much for being a part of 1391 01:17:33,439 --> 01:17:35,000 Speaker 1: the bear grease surrender