Good morning, all. Hope everyone is enjoying their weekend hunting or fishing! Wanted to share this wild footage of a turkey hunter who had a bobcat stalking him - http://huntervids.com/videos/bobcat-attacks-hunter-in-west-virginia-2015/ Which brings me to some questions = 1. Anybody ever had this experience while turkey hunting or hunting in general? Would love to hear your experiences. 2. Anybody carries a side arm while bowhunting? Out here in the Pacific NW, there are bears, mountain lions and wolves. I had a friend of mine stalked by a mountain lion while rifle hunting elk. The mountain lion was actually coming after him when he turned around by instinct, and managed to drop it. Didn't even have time to draw his side arm. Look forward to hearing some stories, feedback. Thanks!
Don't you have wolves in MN? Or maybe not in your area. I've been lucky enough to not encounter wolves, and bears have been either far away or like 'ghost' in the woods. One time I hiked in a trail to pick huckleberries in the mountains bordering the Idaho-Montana border. When I hiked out, there was fresh bear poop on the trail ... made me really, really cautious as it was grizzly country too.
I live south of where most of the wolves live we do have a few come thru on occasion. We also have bear around usually in the spring no need to be afraid of either. I had one interesting experience bear hunting with momma bear on the ground in front of me and cubs up one of the trees that was part of the platform stand I made. The standoff ended with no shots fired, I was a little nervous walking out of the woods that night.
Most bears will avoid people, I was told. But momma bears with cubs, or even momma moose with calves are to watch out for. And wolves and mountain lions will stalk a person though. That's why I like to head up high in the mountains, more open areas, less dark, crowded woods. Glad to hear your encounter with momma bear ended peacefully!
I would be afraid of a moose with a calf then I would a wolf or a bear. I know some guys who are wilderness rangers in the BWCA in Northern MN they all have stories of getting treed by cow moose, thing is a moose that is pissed of stays pissed off and will often not leave the area when they have a human up a tree.
That's something I did not know about moose. I've only seen one momma moose with a calf once. I was going up a clear cut, and heard some noise in the treeline to my left. I stopped and waited, and a momma moose and her calf strolled into view just in the tree line. They were grazing about 40-50 yards from me. I was in some brush so they didn't see me. I watched them for quite a bit, then crept away like a mouse. That was too close!
The BWCA is mostly water but you typically have to portage thru the woods, the moose use the portages as much or more than humans so it provides opportunities for conflict. Not that all moose with calves are prone to attack but the 2 guys I know have both have been treed more than once during the time they spent as rangers. They also spent the summer working every day in the wilderness so they have much more exposure than the average person.
Crazy video!! I was turkey hunting 2 years ago upstate NY and while walking up the side of the mountain with my buddy Conor, we were being followed by something, to the righ of us in the thick woods!! We couldnt see a thing, reflectios of eyes, anything. It was his first time in the woods ever, and i`ll tell you what, I was ust as nervous as he was!! He had a shotgun, I had my bow, and the sun couldnt come up fast enough for the both of us!!
That would have made anybody nervous as heck! Do you have any idea what it was? What kind of predators do you have in the eastern woods? Coyotes? Bears? Now there this new breed - coywolf (coyote/wolf hybrid).
Don't carry a side arm, but carry some spray in case a black bear decides to get frisky with me. Was hiking in before sun light this last season and noticed a big and dark (Black Bear) object walking along side me about 30 yards away. I kept walking and and he just kept walking along side. Put my head lamp on after another 50 yards of walking and stood my ground for a minute and the bear went off. Have had a few encounters with black bears, this one was just uncomfortable because I couldn't see very well. Usually they are just curious in my experience.
That's what I heard about bears. They are usually just curious about people. But I'd rather not encounter any, even curious ones, while I am picking huckleberries!
I've had coyotes stalk my decoys while turkey hunting and had a black bear come within 5 yards while deer hunting out of a ground blind a few years back, but I've never had a predator actually stalk me and never really been to worried about it.
During the last gun deer season, I set myself down on a steep brushy hillside so I could watch the other side of the canyon. I got there before light and right at the first rays of light I heard rocks clattering right behind and above me. I turned and something lept away from not ten yards behind me. It was still pretty dark so all I could see was a flash of fur before it was gone. I'm pretty sure it was a yote or bobcat. Seemed too small to be a lion (not to mention that it didn't kill me). Plus I went back up there later with a caller and shot a yote. I don't know whether it was sneaking up on me and then realized I wasn't something it wanted or if it just got that close before it saw/smelled me. What that taught me was: sit with your back up against a rock or tree.
YUP! I love it when I'm out and I hear this: [VIDEO=youtube_share;Q1pWxVaBVww]https://youtu.be/Q1pWxVaBVww[/VIDEO] They only time I was afraid to get down was after I saw a cow moose charge a young buck under my stand. I got home well after dark that night
I carry a side arm when i'm hunting up north where the wolves are. I had one cross my path last year at dark and it only went 50 yrds into the woods and then eye balled me while I walked to my truck. Not a very good feeling when your by yourself and no one else is around.
Pretty common for folks to call in coyotes or the odd bobcat here while turkey hunting. Most end up with a face full of #6's or what ever their shooting. I carry my 9mm on public land at times,but it's for the 2 legged critters not the ones on 4. Never felt uneasy or threatened by any animal in the woods. But as far as people. Lots of folks do sketchy stuff on the WMAs around here. Grow some dope... Cook some meth...etc...
Well by the time you see a wolf closing in on ya his brothers and sisters are already closing the distance from all angles! haha
