Abbott Creek Outfitters, North Western Maine

[BillBraithwaite]

The third week of September was my week to experience my first black bear hunt, or so I thought. I asked all the questions that have been posted and spoke with a number of hunters who have hunted the area and I hate to say it was the worst hunt I've experienced. I met with the owner prior to the hunt and toured the facilities and they were adequate. Upon arrival we were taken to sites and then back to camp for a briefing. After being told repetitively what not to do and everything that could go wrong we were released to go. Not a very positive briefing. At 3pm we headed to our stands, temperature 83 degrees, first indication that things were NOT normal. My bait had been hit sometime after 5 pm Sunday and 3pm Monday, a 2nd indication things were NOT normal. Needless to say this pattern of temperature and bait being hit continued for 5 days. The obvious conclusion, 300 lb bears with 3" of fat and 6 " coat don't move in these temperatures. They have gone nocturnal. 27 of us were in camp with 4 sightings and ONE bear hanging. Should the outfitter be held responsible for the poor success rate or do you chalk it up to the unusual weather and hope that the next time will be the best time?

[Graybeard]

If the bait sites were well maintained and bait kept there and they were being hit but just not when you were on stand I don't really see how you can blame that on the outfitter. For sure you can't blame unseasonably warm weather on him.

Now the briefing sure didn't sound like much but then I wasn't there.

[APlottNamedBoomer]

I remember this week well, very slow bear hunting up North...About the only way to get a bear moving was with a pack of dogs, rough week for the baiters.

[theoldarcher]

I agree with Greybeard.  

I, too, had a hunt similar to yours once: the week-long hunt turned out to be one of the hottest weeks ever seen by folks in that part of Canada--on Wednesday, about noon of the week, it was 103 degrees in downtown White River, Ontario.  The locals were about to die.  This was prior to banning spring hunts in the province, and it was the first week of June.  Any bear with a brain was lying in a creek until about midnight, then eating, and back to the creek before  the sun came up.  Only God can control the weather.

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