Coastal Archery Black Bear

[cantclosethedeal]

I am working out my ?wish? list for the next 5 years, and a coastal archery black bear hunt keeps coming up. I am planning on spring 2011.
I am curious to hear who has done this in the past. How was your experience. Options to DIY and forgo the guide. Guide recommendations. Boat charter recommendations. Etc.

Also, I may want to cut my teeth on a good old Canadian bait hunt. Any suggestions here??

Thanks in advance.

 

[CDub]

I have done both hunts guided. For coastal, Vancouver Island is the way to go. It's more expensive than most bear hunts, but you will be blown away by both the number and size of bears that you will see. I rifle hunted, but coastal bear hunts are tailor made for archers, you will have multiple stalk opportunities and it isn't a big deal if you blow a stalk as there are so many bears. I highly recommend this outfit--on some days we saw upwards of 20 bears in a single day. http://www.trophywest.com/hunts_offered/black_bear.htm

Bait hunts are also great archery hunts. This outfitter in Northern Saskatchewan is also a bit more expensive than most baited hunts, but you are hunting bears that have literally never seen a person and are completely unbothered by your presence. It's a hoot to hunt from a ground blind, and I had a couple of bears literally stick their head into my ground blind while I was sitting on the bait. Huge bears up there. To top it all off, there is fantastic fishing for northern pike, walleye, and lake trout to fill your day before you sit on a bait. http://www.campgrayling.ca/