Bear

Ever since I saw a photo on the cover of Petersen's Hunting Annual of legendary outdoor writer Craig Boddington with a giant brown bear he'd taken in Alaska, I've been dreaming of the day when I too can hunt North America's largest land carnivore in the Land of the Midnight Sun. That photo was about 30 years ago. Alas, I haven't quite made it there yet, but I'm working on it. If this hunt is on your "bucket list" too, here's a quick summary of what you need to know.

American black bears live only in North America. These familiar bruins are primarily woodland animals, occupying forests as far north as forests grow in Alaska and Canada and as far south as Florida and northern Mexico.

As a kid I was raised hunting in treestands. As time progressed they invented tri-pods and elevated hunting box blinds. And now they have pop-up hunting blinds that are portable. Last week I got a Browning Phantom pop-up blind and took it bear hunting. It's sweet.

Black bears are one of the most regal animals to roam the wilds of North America. They are also one of the most widespread, with huntable populations stretching from coast to coast in Canada and most of the contiguous 48 United States, plus Alaska. Having said that, black bears are not always black. If you're looking to add a bear to your trophy room that sports a coat of a different color, here's what you need to know.

If you've found a good bear hunting location, the next step would be to consider bait. Bears may favor caviar but it is doubtful if you have an endless supply of caviar so the real question is, what food source do you have available?

There is certainly no shortage of black bears in my home province of Ontario, and I have hunted them a couple of times and even managed to bag a decent one a few years back.

I love bear hunting. I used to take a lot of kids and Ed Sweet, the host of Kid Outdoors, would film them. Then I'd go write articles on the hunts. On a normal bear season we'd take kids after school and sometimes hunt every other night until 1 a.m. and then get up at 4:30 a.m. to go to work. By the end of season, I'd be fried.

Whether you a hunt black bear in spring on a trip to a Canada or during fall in the U.S., black bears are among the most fascinating of all big game animals. Also, the black bear is pursued in various ways, from driving to glassing and stalking, still hunting to chasing with hounds, floating rivers to watching bait.

My brother-in-law and the kids came out to visit us in Idaho one year. While here, my 16 year old nephew Monty said, "Uncle Tom, could I come out bear hunting?" I said sure. To make a long story short, he missed a big one.