Bear Baiting: a little discouraged

As of yesterday (Monday) afternoon there hasn’t been a bear at my bait barrel. I’ve changed bait from meat and sweet goat chow to doughnuts. The doughnuts did get the attention of one critter on the first night. I was excited for a split second when I saw the tipped barrel and a log on the ground. A bear would take all of the logs out.

Can you see the animal? The single bright spot on the left is a reflection off the barrel.

The eyes belong to a very big raccoon. It was back Saturday night. I need to replace the logs with some that are bigger and heavier to help keep the raccoons out of the barrel. The only benefit of it visiting the barrel is that it takes the scent of the bait with it when it leaves.

There has been life happening nearby. A bird burst from the bushes in front of Taylor the day we set up the barrel and stand. She had a small nest with four blue eggs (not a robin). We pass the nest each time we go to and from the bait. The bird flies to a nearby tree when we’re a few feet from the nest. When she didn’t fly away last Friday I thought we might have scared her away for good. That wasn’t the case. Three naked, not in any way cute baby birds squirmed in the best. The four egg hadn’t yet hatched. We looked in on them again Monday. They’re fuzzy now, still squirming, and the egg is gone. We didn’t look closely enough to see if there’s a fourth baby or if the egg failed to hatch. The egg isn’t in the nest. If they aren’t stepped on by wildlife (we are extremely careful) or eaten by raccoons, crows or blue jays, the birds will probably leave the nest before hunting season opens on August 26.

I ordered two lures from Cronk’s yesterday. If those don’t work I have another plan. I could use a little of the “it’s like shooting fish in a barrel” mythology now. Maybe today’s the day. I’ll be hiking up the hill before morning’s over.

Robin Follette

About Robin Follette

Maine Press Association award winner, 2013. Robin's Outdoors, Bangor Daily News, third place in Sports blogs. I grew up with a fishing pole in my hand and have always loved the outdoors. From gardening to hunting and fishing, kayaking, camping, hiking and foraging, most of my time is spent outdoors. I teach outdoor skills as a volunteer instructor for Hooked On Fishing - Not On Drugs and Becoming an Outdoors-Woman. Pro-staff at The Limb Grip. My personal blog is here. I'm currently working on my first book, a collection of short stories based on my outdoors experiences.