BLACK BEAR PRIMER Part 2
If you can get past the mosquitoes, black flies, finding all of the bait you’re going to need, and all the hard work carrying the bait to your bait site, you will be in for one of the most rewarding experiences a BOWHUNTER can have.
FIRST
Bears require a lot of water, especially in the late summer. I try to locate a site in the most isolated place you can, close to a swamp or watershed…or a natural food source like a lush berry crop or acorns. Make sure there is lots of cover, preferably backing up to some very dense bush. Look for bear sign in the area; scat, tracks, or torn up rotten logs etc… You can usually still draw bear to a good looking location by adding scent to the area as in the tip under methods
BAIT
The bait can be almost anything you can find lots of, old bread soaked with molasses or used deep fryer grease works well. ..and don’t forget that a bear loves sweets, DONUTS work great, as do fruits, corn, popcorn, candy, molasses etc… These are just a few of the things that can be used, if you can find a source of other things don’t be afraid to experiment. The bear will let you know if they work or not.
SET UP
I used to love 55 gal. drums with the top cut off and position it on its side approximately 90 degrees to the tree stand. Michigan outlawed them so now I prefer to bait in a shallow hole next to a big stump or overturned tree Use dead logs from the area to make sure the bear has only one way to get to the bait. (TIP) I cut those covering logs 5 feet long for a reference. A 5 foot bear (or longer) is going to be a shooter.
After you get all of these things together it is time to start baiting. Put all of your bait in the barrel, don’t worry about what order, the bear will figure it. Set up your tree stand, preferably in a tree that will break up your outline as much as possible, downwind from the bait. Make the distance about 15 to 20 yards or whatever YOU feel comfortable shooting. You usually need only one shooting lane to the bait. Cover the hole/container with logs to prevent raccoons and other animals from stealing the bait. This will also tell you whether or not your bait has been hit.
METHODS
One of the most important things in baiting for bears is to let the bear know where your bait is. One of the best ways to do this is to advertise, by making a honey burn. Put a small amount of honey in an old tin can, use a propane torch and cook the honey until you get a yellowish white smoke. Bears can smell this for over a mile. And it will stick to the trees around your bait site.
Another method you can use to get your bait started is to loosen up the dirt directly in front of the bait and mix in a gallon of well used deep fryer oil. When the bear comes in he will be standing in the oil pad. When he is finished he will wander off to wherever bears go, making a trail of well used deep fryer oil. When another bear crosses his trail he will back track it right to your bait. I call it the JUDAS TRAIL.
These are probably the two best methods that I know of to get a bait going in a hurry. However patience is a virtue. I used these methods on one bait in particular and it took about three weeks, but once it got started it was one of the best sites I ever had. There were at least seven bears using that particular site. I saw six bears at one time until the Pope and Young monster that I shot, showed up and chased them all off. But that’s another story for next week when we move to Part 3.
We have some very knowledgeable bear hunters on this forum and we welcome comments, tips, and opinions as we move on with this exciting sport of bear hunting! 
I may be putting out some bait this weekend for the very first time 
so this is perfect timing. Now I need to add to the list honey in a tin can! 
