.Field Notes 6: When the Arrows Fly – Diamond Bear’s Last Stand - The Garden State Outdoorsmen Podcast

Episode Transcript
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SPEAKER_00 (00:00):
Welcome back to the guys today outdoors and
podcasts.

(00:25):
Begging, begging crying to gowith my grandfather.

SPEAKER_01 (00:29):
Go with my father on his gear drive.
Yeah, on the last trip over, Ishot a great kickoff wasn't
about charging ground.
And then the whooping.

SPEAKER_05 (00:38):
And then you hear.
Alright, everyone, we are back.
We are back after the great bearweek here in New Jersey.
And today we have a couple ofthe killers from this week that
put down a bunch of uh greatbears.
Some people got their firstones.
Another one got his 21st, 20,24th Black Bear.

(01:04):
Would be 20, would be 20 thoughin New Jersey.
Um and then Frank got his firstarchery bear as well.
And Zach, all the way from thesouth, gets to miss out on on
bear season.
Hopefully it comes up next yeartoo.
The catch it and everything likethat.
Um boys, how's how's everyonedoing?

(01:26):
Good?

SPEAKER_02 (01:28):
Pretty good.
Killing it.

SPEAKER_05 (01:29):
Well, I I feel like I haven't seen since the
government shut down, Zach, Ifeel like we haven't seen or
talked to you much at all here.

SPEAKER_01 (01:40):
Yeah, we've been really busy doing a lot of
paperwork and stuff.
Sorry, my son is like in my faceright now.
So we've been just doing like uha lot of paperwork because we
have a lot of Marines that arelike stuck.
They're not allowed to move,they're not allowed to transfer,
so it's just like babysittingand thank God I don't have to do
it, but it's just like we'rebreaking up fight club pretty

(02:03):
much every single day in the uhsquad base, so it's it's kind of
hectic.

SPEAKER_05 (02:09):
I love it.
I love it.
Um well boys, after a veryinteresting week, was it we had
this northeastern come in on itstarted basically on on Sunday
and everything like that?
Monday was really rainy, and youknow, we might as well start
with uh with you, Eddie, hereand because you're the first one

(02:31):
in the group to get a bear uhthat's talking with us right
now, and an absolute giant of aof a bear.
So kind of go into really whatleading into to the season and
everything like that, and thenum tell us about that rainy,
stormy bear that you were ableto knock down.

SPEAKER_03 (02:51):
Yeah, no, so so I I ended up going out Monday and I
killed a bear that we calledDiamond Bear.
Uh Diamond Bear, first picturesI've ever gotten of him was in
2004.
So this is an old bear.
I didn't get I I I've got himperiodically on a deer corn.

(03:13):
It just he had a very uniquecircle on his chest.
Uh, but it kind of was like ashape of a diamond, it was
hollow in the center.
So, you know, over the years, II would say probably 2009-2010,
I really started pursuing himbecause he was getting into that
300-pound range, and I was like,Oh, I want this bear.

(03:35):
Well, I had him in 2010, solid,and then all of a sudden a
700-pounder showed up, and Iended up letting my mother sit
the bait, and she shot the700-pounder uh with the shotgun.
So it's pretty neat becausemom's skull was 22 and the 16th.
She's actually the largest blackbear killed by a woman in Boon

(03:56):
and Crockett, so it was actuallypretty cool.
So, a lot of history, uh, a lotof hunters knew this bear over
the years, and it just stuckwith him diamond bear, diamond
bear.
Um, it's gonna be, you know, uhTimber Life Outdoors.
We're gonna do.
I have so much pictures, audio,video.

(04:17):
Every day I was baiting thisbear this year, I was videoing
going in because I've never hadthe legend this locked it.
And I was very excited.
So leading up to it, he's he hasbeen missing for two years.
Nobody's seen him.
I figured he died of old age.
I I tracked him through fivedifferent towns, nowhere,

(04:38):
nowhere on a camera for twoyears.
Uh, one of the local cops, twotowns over, sent me a picture
when I was in Wildwood for thefiremen's convention back in
August or September, and uh hesaid, Look at the size of this
bear, and it was standing in adriveway, and it turned, and I
saw the blaze, and I went, Therehe is.

(04:59):
Um, a little bit of homeworktrying to find where I can get
close.
Uh, and then a page on Facebook.
Somebody posted a video of him,and I was on the other end of
town, so I made it to that endof town, just hunting him down.
Uh September 11th, he showed upon camera.
The bait sat there for two and ahalf weeks, multiple bears on
it.
Um September 11th, he showed hisface.

(05:22):
And I was from there, I waslocked in.
I had to figure something out.
I mean, you guys, you know, alittle sneak peek.
These are pages and pages ofwhen he came into the bait, what
the wind was doing, when he leftthe bait, what direction he
left.
I mean, I I wasn't letting himslip past me this time.
So, you know, yeah, fullanalysis.

(05:45):
Full analysis.
The only consistency this bearhad was he would not show up at
night, uh, daytime only, all daylong.
The only consistency besidesthat was if he left to the if he
left to the left of the bait, hewas coming back from the left of
the bait.
If he left to the right, he wascoming back from the right.

(06:05):
That's it.
Wind could be doing anything.
He did not play the wind onebit.
Um so coming up to the season uhweek before, I lost him for
three days, gone.
I was giving up.
I I I sat on my couch in thedark, just staring at the wall.
Like I let him slip by.
I was I was sick.

(06:27):
Uh I believe I ended up givinghim what you know, the
biologists they call it rottenguts.
I think I oversweetened him.
Uh he left the bait, he cameback, finally showed back up,
and I fed this bear nothing butpeanuts.
And he never left that dayagain.
Never ever left.
Stayed on the peanuts, allprotein.

(06:49):
He just stayed there.
He would sleep behind the bait.
Now he was staying at the baitwhile I was baiting.
I have videos of him at 12 feetjust standing there while I'm
dumping bait, dumping bait.
Um, also had 12 other bearshitting this same bait.
So I had to start baiting themevery day, every day.

(07:10):
So I said to myself, I said, youknow what, I'm gonna start
tricking them up.
Because with these big bears,you got you gotta play with
them.
You got they know what you'redoing, so you gotta play with
them.
So I was switching my times up.
I was doing it in the morning,doing it in the evening, doing
it.
I I wouldn't give them a patternto pattern me.
But no matter when I went in, hewas coming.
He waited for me all day.

SPEAKER_05 (07:31):
So now one thing before before you go, I'm afraid
to ask.
I think everyone is nowwondering how much was that bill
for just peanuts alone of bait?
And how are you still living athome and your your wife has not
kicked you up?

SPEAKER_03 (07:50):
So I I actually stepped in a little bit of uh
bait heaven this year.
Uh I helped uh I helped a personout who supplies bait.
A lot of us know them.
Uh, gave them two farms, and Ipretty much get what I wanted.
But I also uh I got about 5,000pounds for like 600 bucks off a

(08:12):
guy in Irvington.
So it was like I fell into it,you know?
Yeah.
We went through about 7,000pounds of bait.
Jeez! Uh between me and Brian.

SPEAKER_04 (08:22):
That bear was only 12 feet from you.

SPEAKER_03 (08:25):
Oh, yeah, yeah.
I I have video.
Yeah, that would have had arevolver multiple.
Hold on, hold on.

SPEAKER_05 (08:31):
Let me tell you these two boys are from the
south, so they don't understandwhat it's like being in New
Jersey and in the woods inJersey because that's not like I
I know it sounds like crazy, butyou just get so accustomed to
these bears, and these bears getso accustomed to you.
And a bear that size does notlike I swear, the bigger the

(08:54):
bear that I've encountered, thebigger boars, they really just
they know nothing is reallygonna happen to them, and
they're very confident.
Where I've I've been just asclose eye to eye with bears, and
they're it's just we just lookat each other, and that's it.
And the bear will either staythere and just chill, or just
slowly not even run, just slowlyjust walk off like nothing even

(09:18):
happened and went about its day.
So for you guys and anybodywho's listening who's not from
New Jersey, especially up in theWest West Jersey and everything
like that.
You this is like a normal, nornormal kind of thing here.
Not in Wisconsin, just straightup looks anyway.

SPEAKER_03 (09:36):
I uh I I even got I even have a few pictures.
I actually the biologist wanteduh the pictures because I
actually have nine bears at onetime on the bait.
Like this place was infested,but yet the big boy he would
roll in, diamond bear would rollin, everything's gone, nothing
would be there.
As long as he was there, noother bear was ever around.

(09:56):
Like it was just his.
But leading in the you know, thethe day of, you know, we were
looking at the rain, and I Isaid to Brian, I said, like,
hey, we're going.
I said, Well, I'm going.
I don't, you can come film, youcan do whatever you want, dude.
But I'm going.
I don't care if I get blown outof the tree, I'm going to put
this legend to rest.
And uh, you know, I I don't wantto give out too much because,

(10:19):
like, you know, the the video isgonna be great.
There's so much into the video.
We'll get you and Brian back onfor the video, for sure.
But but the uh leading up to it,like it's gonna be good because
I thought he outsmarted me.
We got in there, wind ishowling, raining.
I mean, it was just disgusting.
And uh within 20 minutes, westarted seeing bears, and

(10:42):
they're just coming in and out,and all I did was spray, you
know.
That's all I did because everytime I would bait, I would
spray, spray, spray.
So the plan was, you know,there's so many bears there,
there's no bait left.
So Monday rolling in there, nobait.
Went to the bait site.
There, I mean, there wasn't evena crumb.
I'm like, yes, this workedperfect, you know.

(11:03):
So I sprayed the trees, theyroll in.
Um, you know, and and uh you'llyou'll see when the video comes
out how it actually played out.
But we sat till 11:30, 11:40,and uh I was frozen.
My hands were purple.
Uh there's some real good videoof us swaying in the tree, you

(11:24):
know?
It's it's yeah, I think you guysposted that today.
Yeah, yeah, actually, yeah, heput it on.
It was just you wouldn't.
I think we were the only onesout there that morning.
I'll to be honest with you.
I don't think anybody else wentout.
Oh, we we we were out.
We were out.
Where is troopers?

SPEAKER_05 (11:39):
See now you guys are bear hunters if you were.
I think I think only like, andthis is not a knock to like I I
and we kind of try to take thatto advantage because like we
kind of figured like no one wasreally gonna be out at the
pressure line.
And what we did is, you know, wewe were doing a lot of spotting
stalking and everything likethat.
So like we just boots on theground.

(12:00):
Like, I think between thecombined four of us, I think we
were well over 20 plus miles.
I think Zach on his own, I thinkdid did uh like 11 or 15 miles
by by himself.
I I think that day.
So um it was it was a fun day,but yeah, I mean you guys you
guys toughed it out like so youwere.

(12:22):
And I don't blame like who who Idon't blame you at all.
Like that's that's what yougotta do.

SPEAKER_03 (12:27):
Yeah, it did like I said, this bear, he did
everything a big bear should notdo.
And in the past, this bear, II've had him day of the season
hitting the bait for many, manyyears.
You changed one thing with thisbear in the past, he was gone.
Gone, clear gone.
I had his den for seven years.

(12:49):
I found his den.
He would den November 14th everyyear for five years.
So I could never like when weonly had the shotgun season, I
could never kill him because hewas already in his den.
I had a camera on his den and itwould show him going in and
coming out late March.
There were two pictures, that'sit.

(13:09):
So I knew where he was, but hewould travel five different
towns, and I had him in eachtown all the way around.
Yeah, it it he's a he's a truelegend.
Like it uh and today I went intoday to take the stands out and
the steps, and I just sat in thestand and I'm like, there's

(13:29):
something missing here.
Like the woods was like a ghost,you know.
There was just nothing, and likeI just had that that feeling,
like, man, the legend fell rightthere, you know, like a 20-year
quest almost, you know, and it'slike finally came true.
Uh and he was bigger, he he wasbigger five, six years ago.
He was he was a lot bigger body.

(13:51):
Um he was definitely well in thesevens easily uh three, four
years ago.
So, you know, we we figure he'sabout 26, 27 years old.
Wow.

SPEAKER_05 (14:04):
Oh my god.
Lived a great life.
Yeah, right.
Are you guys did like so for thebiologists, like when you know,
because yet again, I know youknow we you want to keep as much
for for the film and everythinglike that, too.
So, but like when you went to tothe biologists, like what was
kind of their first reaction ofjust on like the sure, like when
they open up, because I thinkthey pull a tooth and everything

(14:26):
like that.
Yeah, how much was was was therereally not much left?
Like, kind of what what did thatand what look like?

SPEAKER_03 (14:32):
He still he still had some decent teeth, but they
they were like, Oh, he'sdefinitely 15 plus, you know.
And I said, Well, I can tell youright now, I have pictures of
him at 180 pounds in 2004.
And they're like, Really?
So then they looked a littledeeper and they're like, Yeah,
his teeth are very dark, youknow, they were stained.
Um, so they're they'reinterested in themselves to to

(14:52):
get that DNA, that tooth back,you know, whatever they do.
They're interested inthemselves.
Um exactly how old it is.
You know, wow, that's that'sincredible.
Yeah, the the the legend ofDiamond Bear, and it it's gonna
be cool.
You know, I'm glad I'm glad Iand me and Brian, Elvin from uh

(15:14):
Timberleaf, we actually metbecause of Diamond Bear.
We were hunting, we were huntingback in 2019, only about 300
yards from each other.
He would have him on his bait, Ihad him on my bait.
He had him at Brian actually hadhim at 60 yards on opening day,
circling him right at dark.
And then the bear was gone,vanished.

(15:35):
I said he knew you were there,he's gone.
There's no shot, you're nevergonna see him again.
I'm not gonna see him.
Nobody in this town is gonna seehim again.
You gotta go find him.
But he would just gone.
Insane.
Insane bear.
I I can tell you right now, if Ihad a 24-inch skull bear that
you knew for a fact was standinghere and he was standing here, I
was taking diamond bear.

SPEAKER_05 (15:55):
Like I mean, I think sometimes, especially like at
least how I look at things, likethe the quest, the the the
history that you have and withthese animals and everything
like that, yeah, I think faroutweighs like, yeah, I feel
like especially with bear orespecially with deer, because
you get it really common withdeer and everything like that.
You hear all these people thathave been chasing deer for, you

(16:18):
know, so many years andeverything, and then have even
passed up on on bigger deerbecause like that is like I
don't know, the history is a bigpart of what what we love to do.
And like when you're chasing andget obsessed with one specific
animal, and that's all thatyou're thinking about day and
day.
Nothing else matters, likeliterally like nothing else

(16:40):
matters until until you achieveyou know the goal, or until you
know somebody else or the theanimal dies of of old age.

SPEAKER_03 (16:48):
Uh uh you know, my my daughter, she kept coming in
here in the man cave because Iwas sitting here in the dark
just staring at my phone, keptrefreshing it.

SPEAKER_01 (17:00):
Oh no.
Kept refreshing it.
Refresh the refresh the screen.

SPEAKER_05 (17:08):
Oh no.
What a terrible time to lose.

SPEAKER_07 (17:15):
Never fails.
Oh no.

SPEAKER_05 (17:24):
Maybe.
Oh, I can't.
Alright, well.
I mean, I couldn't imagine yeah,for you, I I'm really interested
in people outside of like NewJersey and everything like that,
like really want to hear peoplelike what they would do, you

(17:49):
know, in in those scenarios.
Like you guys are like, oh, doyou have a gun?
First of all, we're not evenallowed to legally carry a gun
into uh a handgun into the woodsand everything like that.
Even if even if you have even ifyou have your concealed carry in
New Jersey, I still don't thinkyou're allowed to.
Um that's crazy to me.
Yeah, yeah.

(18:10):
So okay, so he'll he'll be back.
Um, so yeah, we we still cannotum do that, which I don't know.
Here in New Jersey, like runninginto like you want, like I love
running into bears, like andbeing on Western, like Frank can
tell you once we get into hisstory and everything.
And I imagine, you know, TJ'sbeen hunting Jersey.

(18:32):
How long have you been huntinguh Jersey for TJ?
You grew up here as well,correct?

SPEAKER_02 (18:36):
Yeah, I grew up.
I'm like like uh central Jersey,so hunting deer and everything,
probably the last 15-20 years.
But uh that's my first this wasmy second year trying to go
after the bear I was supposed togo after.
He didn't show up, but a bearsimilar to his size showed up,
and I thought it was him, but itwasn't.

SPEAKER_05 (19:01):
Um real quick, me, we guys, we got Eddie back.
Um, we we lost you for a sec,right when you started saying
scrolling and you were doing it.

SPEAKER_03 (19:08):
Yeah, just real quick, just you know, with the
emotion and and of himdisappearing after having him
locked in for weeks, and mydaughter come in here and I'm in
the dark.
Just from the light of my phone,you know, scrolling, refreshing,
make it see, make it scene ifyou show up.
So, like to actually put an endto this legend, it's like it's
priceless.

(19:30):
No, no, definitely.

SPEAKER_05 (19:31):
I I definitely feel it.
And someone we even before weget we get back to TJ, and I
want to say for whether nomatter what you're chasing, it's
always a bittersweet becauseyou're so happy that you finally
have killed the target thatyou're going to, but then also
there is a really set becauseit's like what's next?
Like, I like you miss thatchase.

(19:52):
You miss like at some pointyou're gonna be like, I really
want to be chasing, like youwant to have that game again
with that specific animal, andyou're never going to get it
again, you know.
And just like you said, you wentback to the woods and you're
taking everything down, and youknow, something was missing.
Well, that right there, like thewhole chase is is over, you

(20:14):
know.
The and no matter if you'rechasing deer, bear, turkey, a
specific bird, like whatever itis, like for me, there's certain
birds that have gotten the bestof me, and those things piss me
off, and I cannot wait until youknow turkey season to finally
kill, like, I'm waiting for onebird specifically.
I I I know he's still alivebecause I saw him actually not

(20:36):
too not too long ago andeverything like that, but you
just get so like invested, andwhen it's over, it's like you're
happy, and then it sets and it'slike man, you love the chase,
and that's what hunting like youlove just chasing, and and oh
yeah, the game of of chess andeverything like that.

SPEAKER_03 (20:57):
Some people don't understand it, you know.
They sit back and they're like,How do you do this?
You know, and I'm like, listen,I love it.
When when I when uh you knowwhen I met my girlfriend, she
said, you know, what do you do?
You know, and uh I'm like, Well,I hunt and fish.
I said, You won't find me in abar, you won't find me running
around, you're gonna find meeither in a tree or on the lake,

(21:17):
you know.
And she's like, Oh, you know,she found out real quick what
that meant because I wasn'taround from sundown, you know, I
was gone.
Yeah.
So she ended up joining, youknow, she got her license, she's
already taken three bears, she'staken three great bucks.
So, like, she she joined.
So it's like, there you go.
But yeah, you know, she justgoes and sits.

(21:39):
I do all the you know, hairstuff.
Yeah, yeah, yeah.
Of course.
Yeah, yeah.
So um, but but so hey, we'regonna have that, we're gonna
have that video out probably ina few weeks, and it's uh I can't
wait.
I can't wait.
Yeah, because I get I get totell my story in full with with
pictures and this and that.

(22:00):
So like I'm really lookingforward to putting this all
together.
It's awesome.

SPEAKER_05 (22:05):
No, we're we're really looking forward to it.
Um, you know, we'll we'lldefinitely get you back on for
that as well with with Brian andeverything like that.
Because, you know, we I I haveBrian on for our 200th episode.
We actually had Brian on fortalking about his bear and
everything like that.
And now you guys have shot justtwo absolute just giants and you

(22:25):
know of bears and like yours issuper old, like the stories
behind it and everything likethat, you know, we definitely
would love to sit down and andhem that out uh and another
date.
But um TJ, the first first bear,you know, and yet again, for for
our our guys that are not fromSouth or not from Jersey, where

(22:46):
TJ C says that central.
So yeah, the bears there are youdon't really you may get a few,
but probably you guys, your bearnumber is not no.

SPEAKER_02 (22:55):
We it's you might for us to see your bear down
here is shocking.
Uh you just don't see them.
Um but one thing I want to dofor a while was get a bear.
So I started off in this, youknow, State Land, stuff like
that, and seems like you alwayshave them on camera, but as soon

(23:16):
as that first morning, if itwasn't there, everything's gone.
Everyone, you know, travels inand out, it spooks everything,
they go dark or they don't show,and your whole week is shot.
So uh did that for years.
Finally, um my uncle, his buddy,was doing work at a lady's

(23:38):
house, and she has bears allover.
So bait didn't need it.
They're literally in herbackyard running around at the
bottom of it.
It's a real thick kind of marshsetup, and uh, I had everything
set up.
I was gonna do a ground hunt,you know, seemed real easy, and

(23:58):
then that that storm came in.
I saw the wind was totallydifferent now.
Um, so I ended up there's a rockledge kind of a little before
that marsh, and it's got alittle cutout in it, and I was
like, you know what?
I'm gonna sit in my truck, I'mgonna let the storm ride out,
and I'm sitting there looking atthe weather app, look at, and I

(24:20):
was like, there's a small breakfrom a downpour to a drizzle,
and it's about a 30-40 minutebreak, and it's right at
sunlight.
So I honestly I waited for likethe last 15 minutes before
sunlight, and I booked itthrough the woods.
The camera went off that they'rewe're in the marsh, so I figured

(24:40):
I'll go hot up on this ledge andhopefully they come out.
And for once everything wentright.
I was sitting there and I keptpoking, poking.
Finally, started to get a littlemore light, and finally I poked
and I was like, I don't rememberthere being a boulder right
there.
It was about like 60 yards, andI kept looking at it at five

(25:02):
because this is this is thefirst time I actually got to see
a bear.
And I looked and I was like,that that's not a boulder, that
that thing's moving, and it'scoming towards me.
And uh, so I'm poked, I'm justlooking, I'm looking, and it's
it's walking.
It's I was like, Alright, that'sprobably like 25 yards out.
So I'm watching it, watching it.
So finally I tuck back in mylittle cove and I'm drawing, you

(25:24):
know, waiting, and finally thisthing walks out, and for some
reason it decided to hug thatrock while coming up because it
was looking the other way, thankgod.
But when it walked up, it scaredthe crap out of me at first
because bears are a lot biggerthan what they look on trail
camera, especially a little over300 pounds.

(25:46):
So my drew back real quick, andthe time I looked to the peep
site, the only thing I knowabout a bear is dead centered.
So when I looked in there, I sawall three pins were right on it,
and I touched it off, andhearing that thud is a totally
different sound than a deer.

(26:08):
So uh that was pretty cool.
Didn't get to hear any great,you know, the death roar or
anything like that.
But watching that thing run 50yards and finally falling and
then rolling another 40 yardsdownhill, it was pretty cool.
The drag was horrible, I'lladmit that.
Next time, definitely bringing aquad.

(26:28):
But uh, it's it was a lot, itwas it was exciting.
You know, the challenge of itwas for me, I find bear a lot
harder to kill than deer.
It seems like as soon as theypick you off, no matter what
spot, they're gone.
You have one week to get itdone, and if you screw up one
time, your week is shot.

(26:49):
With a deer, it's like, allright, you mess up, you give it
a week, and it will come back.
You have months to get it beforesomeone else does, or hopefully,
but uh definitely cannot wait toget out there and do it again.

SPEAKER_05 (27:00):
Yeah, I I I will agree with you on on that.
I think the the time limit thatwe have here in New Jersey, it's
six days, and yet again, for ifyou're not a die hard bear
hunter or somebody who's justnot mentally insane, like
hunting in that storm on Monday,you're not gonna do it.

(27:21):
You know what I mean?
So if you don't get goodweather, and at the end of the
day, like that was stillhuntable weather.
I think last last year, theevening, the wind was even
worse, if I remember correctly,last year.
And that was a good one.

SPEAKER_02 (27:37):
Yeah, now we made snow and everything.

SPEAKER_05 (27:40):
Oh no, that was early season, or it was a
window, it was it was super, itwas super windy.
I think it was what I think itwas like 45 mile per hour wind.
Like the morning was okay,right?
But once you get to a certainyou know, wind, you know, we we
were still out, but likenothing.
And I think the number was superlow.
I think there wasn't that manybears harvested, like lower than

(28:03):
than this year is on openingday.
Um but like if if you look atthat in New Jersey, the problem
is you're if you have badweather anywhere in between that
week, you're you're potentiallylosing a day or or two.
You know what I mean?
So people have to take off ofwork, peep, whatever the case

(28:24):
is.
That already brings down yourpotential of harvesting a bear
down.
Now, yet again, you get superinconsistent wind, which on the
first I'd say three days, two tothree for at least where we
were, the wind was constantlyswirling.
We especially Monday and earlyTuesday, that wind was
constantly swirling just becauseof the storm and everything like

(28:47):
that.
So if you're getting a bear thatreally does not is not used to
human scent, or you're you'renot hunting somewhere by houses
or or on a hiking trail orwhatever, my experience, those
bear, you're not gonna see them.

SPEAKER_02 (29:01):
Yeah, that's exactly what helped me out.
Was there a few houses around?
So I feel like bears that theyused to smell them people, you
know, it just it really wasn'tworried that you know, if even
if it caught my scent, Icouldn't tell, but like I said,
it didn't had no worries.
I probably shot that bear at 12yards.
I love it.
And like you said, it it scaredme as much as I scared it when

(29:25):
uh it popped around that corner.

SPEAKER_05 (29:28):
I love it.
What are are you getting uh areyou gonna be eating this bear?

SPEAKER_02 (29:34):
Uh yeah, so I have an uncle who he does all the
specialty stuff, so we skinnedit, everything like that.
We butchered it, you know.
He's gonna do all the seasoning,everything like that.
Oh man.
Have you have you had bearbefore?

SPEAKER_05 (29:47):
No, it's my first time, so oh I I I love it.
I can only speak good thingsabout it, you know.
As long as people don't get ajunk bear, you know what I mean?
You're I it's it's goodexperiences when it comes to
comes to.

SPEAKER_02 (30:00):
bear especially those bear sausages and stuff
like that like it's absolutelykiller but um yeah no are are is
this a thing are you gonnacontinue to do this or you know
um did it did bear hunting getyou kind of like hooked do you
have that itch or did was it oneone and done oh no i it um it's
definitely hooked I mean uh Ilike that like I said it it's

(30:23):
more for me it's morechallenging than deer because
like where I'm at you know thedeer the does and everything
it's everywhere like a a beartrying to get that to cooperate
I was shocked the way ithappened but like I said with
all the failures I've ever hadwith like sitting and waiting
and you could hear the blue jayscoming around like literally

(30:44):
going right around with thebears walking and you're like
well now it's dead behind me andI'm not seeing that bear ever
again and you just hear the bluejays you know as it walks off
and it's like this is fun.
So it's definitely a lot morechallenging I definitely respect
it a lot more than what Ithought I would.

SPEAKER_05 (31:01):
I thought it was just oh it's a bear how hard
could it be and prove me wrongthat's what everyone thinks they
are a challenging animal to tokill um you know and yet again
that just goes to show likewe're one of the most densely
bear populated states and it'sonly western like the west north
of Jersey park you go fromcentral all the way to south we

(31:24):
really you go from very few toabsolutely basically none
there's what spaces that there'sa few bears in the pine barons
and everything like that whichit's very much possible but not
a living like a legit livingpopulation of of bears but um
yeah no that's 300 pounds asyour first bear is absolutely

(31:45):
impressive congratulations umyet again TJ um it's you've
killed a bunch of great bucksyou know that we've been
watching everything like thatand very happy for you to to get
your first bear and everythinglike that and you know can't
wait to see what else you'reable to to get down uh in the
coming future.
Thank you can't wait um Mr.

(32:08):
Chris our other guy with hisfirst bear surprisingly honestly
all jokes I had no idea that youwere going to even be bear
hunting this year I thoughtyou'd be getting ready for
Africa or something like that.
Well I'm still getting ready forAfrica that's like I'm gonna put
a little hunt and I'm planninglike it's like that's it didn't
stop me but I I know but I'mjust so now used to you just

(32:31):
like all on board for for Africaand everything like that.
So like Bear just completelyslipped slipped my mind for you
or surprised you haven't bookeda grizzly hunt yet well I mean
listen I got listen I got a Igot I got the Buffalo hunt I got
two different safaris next yearin Africa.

SPEAKER_04 (32:47):
I got Patagonia in Argentina in 27 I got I got a
lot of big hunts but bearhunting is you know I take a
week off to go bear huntingthat's that's happening every
year.

SPEAKER_05 (33:00):
It's one of the the New Jersey New York traditions
if you live close enough whereyou can come to New Jersey and
you know our boys um our ourWisconsin boys are going to be
coming out next year for for thebear hunt as as well and
hopefully we can get Zach comingcoming as well and have the full
camp next year as well but Chriswhy don't we hear your story on

(33:22):
how everything unfolded for youum I know you and I have we
we've talked about and we'vetalked before but you know
always always love it when Chriskills something and he comes on
and talks about it.

SPEAKER_04 (33:34):
Well so um bear season opened up in New Jersey
and I shot a bear and uh meetingend of story this is why the
pursuit live guys are are alwaysthe best I mean you know
fortunately I'm a I'm I'm adiehard hunter and also a

(33:56):
complete psychopath so I was outin the rain in my rain gear at
515 in the morning and got inthe saddle and I sat in the tree
all day.
It didn't matter I was out thereum the bear that I shot I
actually encountered at 730 inthe morning I had eight bear
encounters throughout the day umand my I have two I had two

(34:21):
target bears uh one that wenamed sweat pants um I I got I
actually got a picture of it soso you can kind of understand at
first when we saw it when thisbear showed up on camera we
thought he had some kind ofmange and if you look you can
see like how he's missing hisfur yeah yeah he was wearing a

(34:43):
sweat a set of sweatpants yeahyeah I I kind of set out with
the with the intention of ofhunting sweatpants I have
another big bear that's probablyfive to six hundred pounds there
um but neither of them showed upso as the day went on the I you
know this was the first bear I Iencountered in the morning I I

(35:05):
had my phone out I had video ofhim walking under my under my
tree he never really even knew Iwas there and when I texted my
hunting partner Rob he saidthat's a good bear shoot it I'm
like well I'm gonna wait it'syou know the sun just came up
we'll see what happens keepsraining the the wind keeps
coming I get a couple more bearsthat come in i i had a sow with

(35:27):
cubs come in we're getting on tolike 3 30 in the afternoon now
and just I'm like the next bearthat comes in is getting it i'm
I'm in my tree of place I'm coldI'm wet this is it so uh uh he
he came in from the oppositedirection that he did in the

(35:49):
morning walked right under mestopped at 10 yards and looked
up at me so I looked at him andI didn't have a face mask on or
anything I had all my reindeer Ihad my quiz up and I'm just like
all right you're you're gonnaget it buddy sorry and as soon
as he walked to the other sideof my tree I grabbed my bow he
stopped gave me a broadside shotand said yeah let him have it

(36:12):
and uh yeah I I it it probably II didn't have the you know the
buck fever shakes it was like ohit was like oh thank god I need
to warm up I I couldn't evenhang my bow back on the hanger
for a minute I I was holding mybow because I'm I'm just shaking

(36:32):
I'm like oh gosh thank it's overthank you oh so I sat in the
tree and I started to text youknow I was texting my hunting
partner letting know that I tookone and another bear came out
two minutes later I'm like ahwell that's great he stopped 30
yards broadside I'm like oh wellyou know you're you he's another

(36:54):
one that I would have shot hehad a nice white chevron on his
chest and I was like ah I wishyou would have came out first I
would have much rather taken youbut um you know I got out of the
tree had you know decent bloodfor probably 40 or 50 yards I
think maybe you know maybe alittle bit more or less but with
the rain he got into some reallythick stuff and I said all right

(37:18):
let me let me back out I I gotuh got our buddy Darren Duran on
the on the horn said Darren youknow we need you to come out we
got the dog on it this bear andit ended up going you know I
estimate about 200 yards.
Darren seems to think it was alittle less but we we we went
with one dog first that that dogtook us in a completely

(37:40):
different direction.
So we went and got his other dogand that dog inevitably just
took us straight to the bear sowe didn't have an accurate
distance on the track but I I dofeel like it was it it it ran a
little more than it should forthe shot um crossed a creek that
on you know I'm 6'4 and thisthing you know the the creek was

(38:01):
above my knees up to my thighsand this thing swam through it
and kept going for probablyanother 60 yards after that um
but yeah we got we got the bearwe got him out uh per it was as
perfect of a shot as it couldhave been it was double lunged I
was using a big expandable broadhead opened him right up and
even Darren when he saw the bearsaid that I I don't know how

(38:22):
this bear went and all like evenhalf the distance that that it
actually it shouldn't have donethis.
So yeah we got him out um he'sin the freezer now which is
great and uh yeah great uh greatgreat ending to an opening day I
ended up uh going out and doingsome guiding for the rest of the

(38:43):
week trying to put some otherpeople on bears and uh yeah so
uh it was great and then nowit's back to planning the next
safari not even whitale it'sjust planning the next safari
listen listen but bear huntingis one thing but dangerous game
hunting now we're talking likeyou talk you talk about oh you

(39:07):
know we you know we we go up wehang out near the bears like you
know and I know I'm gonna get alittle bit into my usual feel
here but you know when you'restaring down Cape Buffalo at
like 10 yards oh here we go okayyou know this thing all right
this thing really wants to killme where a bear is like oh hey

(39:27):
how you doing what's up you gotthat food for me yeah the the
bears here just want food that'sthat's it that's it that's it
where Cape Buffalo says no no Idon't I just I just don't like
you because you exist.
Yeah yeah so but no I'm uh I I'mI'm I'm looking forward to

(39:47):
trying to go back out in segmentB.

SPEAKER_05 (39:50):
I'm uh I'm still in the hunt for for sweatpants here
and uh and we'll see which I Idid have to you know Jersey has
to fix this whole I don'tunderstand why in segment B you
cannot bow hunt it makes nosense to me especially because

(40:12):
if I can go out for six days andshoot deer with my bow and tag
it under my six day why can Inot go out and hunt bear with my
bow why does it even why does itmatter if you can already do it
for deer with your six day soyou're you don't have an issue
with people already bow huntingat that time why when it now

(40:36):
comes for the because yet againwe have six days to to bow hunt
bear in New Jersey give usanother six days during the I
honestly would guarantee youprobably would have a lot more
bear hunters out there because II mean for myself I've already
shot one with the gun I but I'mfixated on shooting my next bear

(40:59):
with the bow I have guys outthere that I know that they just
bow hunt so they would go chasethem yes you you Chris which you
know um I feel like you're notyou're hurting people who don't
want to go out with the gunalready there's you know that's

(41:20):
that's just how it is like giveeverybody that opportunity to
kill them again with with a bowI'm sorry you already had a
season already if I can shootdeer with my with my bow and tag
it under my sixth day there's noreason why I cannot bow hunt
bear for for the winter wintertime.

SPEAKER_04 (41:41):
But you know that again our state is you know
banana so it's yeah itdefinitely should be like an any
implement kind of thing whereyou know even in New York during
rifle season for deer you canhunt with your bow if you want
you can use anything it's justyou can't use your rifle during
bow season so why isn't it theopposite in New Jersey for the

(42:01):
late bear season I I I don'tknow I don't understand it.

SPEAKER_05 (42:04):
And yet again it's only the bear season like yeah
we can bow hunt from sub fromthe second week of September and
if you're in the zone that goesall the way to extended
mid-February the whole entiretime six day yet again you can
bow hunt and use your your bowon the six day tags and not use

(42:27):
your you know your your othertag that's and exactly what you
mean like why I and I'm gonnaget drawn into this whole
freaking thing and everythinglike that so I don't want to get
into it but like we have the fixwe have the fix my bow
identifies as black powderequipment yes we can we can

(42:48):
still do that now can't we worksthat is still an office we could
do that that is that is a thingwe we can um but all jokes aside
Mr uh broadside ambush we nowhave as boondocks hunting have
now gone four for four thank youvery i was i was a little

(43:08):
nervous right you know four forfour we've kept the streak alive
with at least one of us tagginga bear every single year um I
went with the first Peyton gotthe the next two and then now
Frank with with his firstarchery bear and everything like
that.
So one Frank thank you for forkeeping it the streak alive for

(43:32):
us and everything like that.
But you had a very I'd kind ofsay more of a different uh bear
hunt than than the rest of thethree um you know and it it was
a a hunt that or a a season thatcould have gotten gotten you
discouraged and everything likebut proves why you just need to

(43:54):
keep grinding and keep going andkeep going you know you've
you've had a lot on your plateand everything like that on the
last couple weeks.
So this is a very well deservedbear and you know hoping getting
things moving on in the rightway for for you and and every
single factor as as it can be.
So I the minute I was an hourand something away from Frank

(44:15):
and the minute he told me uhthat this he he sent me the
video and it was a I literallypacked up camp and drove all the
way to meet up with Frank andeverything like that.
So Frank give us uh give useverything that that went down
for you.

SPEAKER_07 (44:32):
Yeah so so for me probably I did a lot of um
scouting for bear actuallyduring the deer season because I
wasn't seeing the deer that youknow I normally do or was seeing
before so I just kind ofswitched my focus.
I was running a lot of cameras Ikind of had an idea um that they

(44:54):
were doing almost the same exactthing as they were like the year
before when my buddy shot his soI went up and I put up a few
more cameras and you know sureenough they were basically doing
the same thing.
So uh Monday night I act oractually going into Monday I
actually didn't go out in themorning.

(45:15):
I woke up and I was like uh 5050 I don't know I was like nah
fuck it I'm not gonna go so II'll go out this afternoon so I
ended up going out early in theafternoon once the rain kind of
died down a little bit andactually set up my my saddle
before then probably like Ithink it was like three days

(45:36):
before bear season started I gotmy whole setup ready and uh went
in there and I was just kind ofwaiting wasn't really seeing too
much seen a little deer movementearly then that kind of died off
and uh I was actually textingyou know one of our good buddies
outdoor more squatch I had himover there and I'm like man like

(45:58):
he's he he he he kept telling meyou tonight's the night you're
gonna get it done I know it Ican feel it I'm gonna pray for
you probably half hour after hesaid that I look around the tree
and coming up from wherenormally it's like a deer
bedding but I also know like thebears come from there I look

(46:19):
over and there's a bear standing25 yards away from me so I'm
like oh shit so I'm sittingthere I'm trying to get the
camera on I'm trying to get allyou know all my shit together
put put my phone away stoptexting squats you know and uh I
I grab my bow and I'm like allright I and right when I was

(46:41):
like I can't I already had theyardage so I already like had my
pin set everything and sure shitenough all of a sudden the bear
turns and it's coming right forme so now I'm like all right
well like I'm gonna wait likethe bear's 25 yards like I'm
gonna let it get closer so I'msitting there waiting waiting

(47:02):
waiting the bear kept coming allof a sudden it turns it turned
actually pretty quick it turnedand it started going back to
where it was coming from so Iwas like oh shit so I start so I
moved my pin back becauseactually when it was coming I
kind of adjusted my pin you knowfor um to actually make the uh

(47:23):
the closer shot and when thebear turned to start going the
other way I kind of had like aquartering away shot at it so I
I drew back I took my time Ishot it and this is the first
time it happened to me the bearactually ducked like I have it

(47:46):
on video the bear droppedprobably about six eight and I
hit it almost almost in thespine dead center of the body
but like high and barely got anypenetration the bear takes off
running gone I'm like damn soyou know I'm sending the the

(48:07):
video to Mike everybody else I'mlike what do you guys think we
all agreed that was high justwait for the morning so I go
back Tuesday morning I didn'teven hunt I I went back in there
and didn't find no blood becauseit it rained all friggin' night
no blood no arrow nothing justvanished I was like oh man this

(48:32):
sucks I'm on the phone with MikeI'm telling him everything that
happened he's like listen likeit happens like you know just
keep your head up you know it'llbe back sure shit enough to make
a long story short I end upgetting the bear back on camera
about three days later with ahuge scar on its back um I think

(48:52):
I sent you the picture Mike ofthat one yeah yeah she the bear
looks like honestly besides thethe scar the bear looks complete
like yeah nothing even reallyhappened didn't yeah didn't even
like loot laser but I'll tellyou I've never you know I've

(49:13):
been hunting bears for a littlebit not quite as you know as
long as as as Eddie over thereand everything like that.

SPEAKER_05 (49:19):
I hope to be able to accomplish the bears eventually
at some point because I justlove bear hunting um but I've
watched like a lot of video I'malways watching bear videos and
stuff and like I've really neverseen a bear duck an arrow like
this before like it youliterally thought like you can

(49:41):
see when we slowed it downbefore the arrow even gets there
she already starts to completelylike drop in move um so by the
time like when the arrowactually hits it was just it was
a perfect would have been aperfect shot but it was just way
too high by the time the arrowactually reached um so that was

(50:07):
quite like wow like and what howhow far was the shot?

SPEAKER_07 (50:11):
That one was 26 yards.

SPEAKER_05 (50:13):
26 yards so yet again obviously of course that
yet again they're they'reanimals and everything like that
and their their reflexes are waybetter than ours but still like
for you just never really atleast you know for mine you
never really hear bears reallydoing that when you always watch
the the hunting videos andeverything like that like you
you just never see it with deerit's such a common thing you

(50:36):
know with with bears and I don'tknow if it's because her head
was down maybe that was it youknow I know with deer they can
um duck arrows a lot easier whentheir heads down versus versus
up and everything like that.
So maybe that was was one of thethings I'm not a hundred percent
sure but it was definitelysomething interesting that you

(50:56):
know even for myself you know Igotta take into or anyone's got
to take into consideration justin case if that ever happens to
to them.

SPEAKER_07 (51:04):
So yeah very very interesting that that that
happened first time seeing thatyep yeah man so I mean I was a
little discouraged but I st Istill went out um didn't really
see any bears um I startedseeing back on camera but like
late at night and uh Thursdaymorning I kind of had that
feeling we got cold temperaturesI was like I don't know like

(51:25):
today could be the day and sureenough by like 7 30 i i see the
bear i actually the one that ishot about 150 yards away and
he's it's actually circling mebecause i got in there i mean i
sprayed that rack getter likeOreo cookie shit i mean you
could smell that shit i was like17 feet up in the tree and you

(51:46):
could smell that shit like likeI was sitting on the floor man I
was like well I might overdid itbut uh no such thing no and he
just and that bear actuallycircled it came on my weak side
I had it at 25 yards but I Ididn't want to move because then
it actually started cutting backso it's like oh it's gonna like

(52:09):
circle me and I'll be able toget a shot once you know it the
fucking bear walk it starts assoon as he he comes over and I
got the tree my way I'm I'mwaiting for him to come on the
other side of the tree and I'mlike where'd it go?
I look over and the bear'swalking away from me it walks
all the way it probably it wentback to actually where it came

(52:32):
from and it probably stood overthere was going back and forth
for probably about another halfhour 40 minutes and then it must
it must have somehow the windshifted and it got that scent I
mean and it literally beelinedit right for me and I'm like oh
my god here we go like I I'm I'mfinally gonna I'm finally gonna

(52:52):
shoot it and uh it ended upcoming 15 yards broadside and
Mike saw I ended up uh smokingthem he he even ran even that
bear I got better penetrationbut not the greatest but I mean
he's he still ran like 150 yardsum they're tough animals man

(53:15):
they are tough animals realtough man and like I watch him
run away my arrow I'm like shitnot again like I call Mike I'm
like dude like the fuck man likewell what once he sent me the
video I was like dude I was likethat bear is dead like way
better yeah not a full passthrough but way better way
better way better penetration itwas a quarter and two shot yeah

(53:38):
um yep but just absolutely justdestroyed the y lungs and
honestly like it Frank didn'teven find the bear frank frank
Frank didn't even find the bearhe had a lucky companion that
came and found the bear not notbecause he called or anything
like that.
No absolutely I think Mike wason his way before I even got out
of the tree so I like I calledmy friend and I was like hey

(54:02):
like I shot one he was like allright and he's got he's got a
dog that's actually a cattle dogand uh so the dog I I always
hunt there so the dog can likefind me like you wouldn't
believe the dog literally I gota picture ran right to my tree
stand is laying down underneathmy stand waiting for me to get
down so I get down and uh I goover I I get the quad and we're

(54:28):
actually we're driving back tothe house we have a four-wheeler
trail that takes us back to thehouse where I was gonna go pick
up my friend so we could starttracking them and uh all of a
sudden I'm getting like I'm justabout going down like one of our
hills off our four wheeler pathand the dog just starts going
crazy.
So I'm like I'm calling the dogback I'm like come on come on

(54:49):
come on let's go and the dogusually will follow me once I
passed the dog and the dog kindof stayed put it like dawned on
me I was like wait a minute thedog's on something I get off I
get off the uh the the fourwheeler and three feet off the
four wheeler trail there's athere's like a big like thicket

(55:10):
with some bushes and the bear'slaying literally three feet from
the four wheeler trail I'm likeoh nice can't ask for anything
better there yeah pretty sweetyeah I was like nice so then I
always say I always sit thereand I'm always like you know if
I wait till he's facing this waythere's a good chance it runs
back towards the truck you knowyou're always thinking of that

(55:32):
extra little advantage I'll tellyou and Frank that was the best
crack like I didn't have to doany work but film and take
pictures the last couple yearswe've had to drag bears out like
a mile mile plus like out of thewoods all uphills and and all

(55:55):
these things and everything likethat where it's like you're
dying after after you're donethis was I showed up Frank's
like oh don't we got the quadand everything like that I get
in the car he goes you'recomfortable I'm like just
freaking drive I'm like I'menjoying life like I don't get
to drive a quad out to to gopull anything you know people

(56:15):
got to understand too when yougo after especially these big
bears I mean any bear reallythere's no easy bear to drag out
100 pounds 500 pounds they don'tmove but you know you go after
these bigger bears like you youneed to actually think like how
am I gonna get it out of herebecause that thing that thing
can rot in hours you know soit's like you need to

(56:35):
strategically figure out howyou're gonna move this thing if
it dies anywhere within ahundred yards so you know people
got to take that inconsideration like hey you know
I'm I'm very grateful for thecrew that I hunt with you know
I'm sure you guys see on likeFacebook you know a couple names
like Eddie Macken out there meand him grew up together doing
this like we're we're nuts whenit comes to bears we're just

(56:58):
nuts there's just nothing aboutit.

SPEAKER_05 (57:00):
We've shot them miles in where it's like hey we
might have to eat half this bearbefore we get it out you know
like so like it's just it's it'snuts man people gotta it's a lot
of work but I love it I love andI think that's another thing
where why I think not as manypeople bear hunt is because of

(57:21):
it's not really you know it'snot like a deer like at the end
of the day deer they're mucheasier to drag out um there's a
lot like and bears they're insome nasty nasty nasty stuff
they swamps deep far in andeverything like that if you

(57:42):
shoot like yeah you if you get a200 pound deer which yeah I
imagine not many people stillhere in New Jersey do but listen
if you shoot one all right likeyou can come up with a game plan
to a much easier game plan to todrag that thing out you shoot
let's see anywhere between 300and or even a 250 pound bear up

(58:05):
and I swear that the furtherback you are and the bigger and
nastier of conditions thatyou're in the bigger and bigger
and bigger of the bears thatyou're gonna gonna encounter I
mean we were chasing them Idon't know if I I showed you any
of the guys or anything likethat but there are two like
probably close to five sixhundred pound bears that that we

(58:26):
were hunting and everything likethat and there was this one
point I'm like what the helllike if I shoot it like you got
I gotta I'm calling so manypeople like you have a crew and
we all for the most part takeoff for the whole entire week
for bear season because youcan't you need that crew you
need as many people as youpossibly can I got a guy um

(58:48):
funny story of the back damn uhproduction crew they they did
pretty well again um but one oftheir guys shot a bear and he
dragged it out by himself tookhim four hours I think it was a
300 and something 320 somethingpound bear and he goes he texted
me yesterday I go dude how thehell did you do that?

(59:08):
He goes my body is destroyedlike I like it destroyed I'm
like I couldn't imagine dragginga bear out by myself four
freaking hours no I would becalling everybody in my contacts
list if you owe me a favor youare going I'm going to be

(59:32):
calling you and you are going tobe collecting on that if you owe
me money I will wipe her debtaway come out and you help me
drag listen but you know Mondayall all the boys you know
everybody was excited they allknew the story they knew all
knew I had them like they wereall waiting none of them went
out in anticipation that by 8 39o'clock I was gonna have him on

(59:55):
the ground because I would baithe would come in so that was the
plan.

SPEAKER_03 (59:58):
Well he didn't go that way It took a little
longer, and the Texas werecoming at like almost noon.
Like, hey, what's the story?
You know, we got to get in thewoods.
I'm like, Go in the woods.
What do you don't wait for me?
Go in the woods, you know.
And they were like, Ah, we'llwait a little longer.
So, you know, when it happened,I sent it out.
They gave up their wholeafternoon hunt, and everybody's
big bear they were after hittheir cameras at four o'clock,

(01:00:23):
4:30.
And they're just looking at meand they're like, you know what?
It's so worth it, though.
And I'm like, I owe you guys,you know, you gotta have that
group that's like willing todrop and come.
My my son shot one Saturdaynight, 403, his biggest bear.
His head's actually bigger thanDiamond Bear's hair.
It's probably it's probablygonna finish high 21s, maybe
even 22.

(01:00:44):
Um, and it this thing was downand way, way yonder, and it was
down in this hole.
And I was like, I don't evenknow how I'm gonna do this.
And again, everybody just gothome, and it's like, hey guys,
you want to drive an hour, youknow?
And and they're like, We'll beright there.
Austin Gotham, we're coming.
I'm like, you know, it's justpriceless, man.

(01:01:05):
Have guys like that in a groupthat it's just like drop it a
hat, they're coming five sixdeep.
It's like nice.

SPEAKER_07 (01:01:13):
No, that's awesome.
I think my my bear actuallyweighed in at uh 180s, you know,
dressed.
It wasn't the biggest solidbear.
There ain't nothing wrong withthat.
Listen, I was I was excited,man.
I was pumped.
It was my first one with thebiggest.

SPEAKER_03 (01:01:27):
Listen, I got I got a bear up there.
The first New Jersey bear huntis the one standing up in the
middle.
Very, very first hunt.
The very very first day.
I wasn't even bear hunting, Ijust sat in the woods deer
hunting.
First thing I saw was that youshot it.
That thing, that thing crawledup a tree, fell out, started
yelling.
I didn't know what was going on.

(01:01:48):
You know, it's laying theredead.
I don't know it's dead, neverdealt with a bear.
I'm throwing sticks, probably20, 30 sticks at it, you know.
The guns like safety's off asI'm throwing sticks.
You know, I was terrified.
Now here I am like hand feedingthese things, you know.
It's like come a long way.
But that, you know, that's a120-pound bear.

(01:02:10):
Yep.
You know, there's there's years,there's years I shoot 150,
125-pound bear.
I'm I I eat them, so yeah, yeah.
You know, yes, I want my targetbig bear, but you know, it's
hard to pass up even a 200-poundbear.
Like, I'm like, I just want a Iwant a bear.
Yep, exactly.
I I've just been fortunate thelast three years, I've killed

(01:02:32):
solid bears, you know, and it'slike it's finally paying off all
the years of like doing this,you know.
And you know, like I you got youguys saw like the dark face
video that Brian put up, youknow.
I helped Brian out with the bigbear.
I my son shot the other bigbear, so I was like, Ah, I got
nothing.
He goes, Hey, I got this bear,dark face, you know.
I'm like, Yeah, all right, let'sdo it.

(01:02:53):
You know, and wacko, you've seenthat story.

SPEAKER_07 (01:02:56):
Yeah, I had one on the property where we were
hunting.
We haven't we didn't see himthis year.
Last year, we actually wenicknamed him jelly roll.
He was about six to six fifty.
And I hunted him last year withthe bow, never saw him, but uh
he just like up and vanished.

(01:03:16):
Didn't see him at all this year,so we don't know.
We didn't hear about nobodygetting them, but yeah, you
don't know, you don't know.

SPEAKER_03 (01:03:24):
I I thought mine died old age, yep.
And then all of a sudden he popsup out of nowhere, and it's like
it's on.
I've had two years to rest mymind.
I'm coming, you know.

SPEAKER_05 (01:03:36):
I'll tell you, um, so one more.
So James from from back then, hehe shot a bear, and you know,
we're all up at camp together.
They we were not this was notplanned or anything like that.
So we camp out at Stephen StatePark, they camp out at Stephen
State Park this year, andeverything, and we were
literally right next to eachother, which works out great.

(01:03:57):
So we're all in group chat, likea Snapchat group chat and
everything like that, and youknow, he shot a bear and
everything like that, and hesends a picture and it's 50 feet
up in a tree.
So he shot the bear and it ranall the way up in the tree and
And I'm like, okay, whatever,not thinking much of it.
Finally get back to camp, andyou know, we're everyone's

(01:04:18):
celebrating, and they're like,Yeah, it took us four hours to
get it down.
It eventually it locked its jawwhen it was dying on and it bit
down.
And once their jaws are locked,it's it's like a pit bull.
Yeah, yeah.
And he there's this video of himjust like it looks like he's
doing like he's rowing for crew,and he's just trying to get this

(01:04:41):
this other tree to like knock itdown.
He they should like they shot itagain, trying to just get it
down and everything.
Didn't didn't work there, andfor four freaking hours.
Um it it it just freaking theyjust struggled and struggled to
to get it down, and finally,like I it just came crashing

(01:05:04):
down and everything like that.
And I was like, dude, it's likeyou could have saved yourselves
three hours and 30 minutes, wentand grabbed the chainsaw and
just cut down the freaking tree.
And they're like, no, we we werewe that was gonna be one of our
next things, but like it'scrazy, and yet again, it's these
animals are just absolutely justincredible, and just like you

(01:05:27):
never like I've I haven't reallyyou've seen people shoot them
out of trees and they fall andeverything like that, especially
when you're hunting with houndsand everything like that.
But to shoot one, it goes up ina tree, gets stuck, and then
it's just sitting there, and youyou gotta take your whole entire
time to try to steal it down andand and everything like that.
Um but yeah, that that was oneof the funny stories from from

(01:05:51):
camp and everything like that.
And and for you know, our ourguys from Wisconsin and who are
gonna be coming next year, andanybody else who's looking
forward to come.
Like this is a a huge traditionfor us.
Um, something that we mark onour calendars every single year.
Um, probably from not it'sprobably gonna, it's already
basically on our calendar fornext year because it's always

(01:06:12):
going to be during um the thesecond week of of October and
Um during was it a present is apresence, which what's the
holiday again?
Veterans is it veterans?
Columbus Columbus Day.
Columbus Day.
Jesus, Columbus Day.
So it's always that thatColumbus Day and everything like
that.
Um is is usually gonna be be theseason.
Um but it's it's something thatwe mean, we we put on some

(01:06:37):
miles, every single one of us.
Frank got one, every single oneof us were within 30 or 40 yards
of a bear throughout the week.
Um Zach, who um he was using um,and I I have it too, and
Um, but we were calling it, hewas calling in bears and

(01:06:57):
everything like that, using thefawn in fawn in distress and
Um, and he got a he had a nicebear within five yards, but I
guess when the bear popped up,there was just a whole bunch of
brush that he just he couldn'tshoot through and everything
like that.
Um Peyton actually could havekilled one.
If the season started one dayearly, he had a beautiful bear

(01:07:20):
um right in front of him at like15-20 yards the day before the
season.
Um, and then he had his buddyfrom Virginia come up and
everything like that, who willbe coming to to camp and
everything like that with usfrom from here on out and
Um he put him on that bear, hesaw the bear, and he ended up
going home.
He shoot he shot a buck andeverything like that on the last

(01:07:42):
day, three minutes left to go,uh, or they had to head back
home.
And it's you know, Peyton nowlives in Philly and his buddies
down in like Virginia andeverything like that, and they
shot a buck, and they both hadto work the next day in the
morning.
And I was like, What would youguys would have done if you shot
a bear?
Like, if you would have shot abear, like you weren't getting
that thing out anytime soon, andthen not only that, you unlike a

(01:08:06):
deer, you actually have to goand take that thing and get it
checked in.
And if you don't get there acertain time, you have to do it
the next day.
I was like, Boys, you would haveprobably had a call out and
everything like that of work.
Um, not really thinking that onethrough, and that's why we just
I much rather just take off thewhole goddamn week and just not
even have to worry about work atall during the season.

(01:08:27):
Because if you do shoot, it'sit's much easier.
Yet again, when you shoot adeer, you fill it out online,
boom, you you write it all down,you do what you have to do, you
tag your deer, and then once youdrag it out, you can just bring
it right to the butcher, you canbring it to your house, you can
you can do whatever.
Bear, like I think they closewhat's it?

SPEAKER_07 (01:08:47):
They close at nine.
Nine.

SPEAKER_03 (01:08:49):
I thought it was eight.
There the green pond was opentill nine because I called I
called the one warden and he waslike, he's like, Oh, I can hold
it till 9:30 if you can getthere Saturday with my sons.
And like I called him rightback.
I was like, Yeah, you know, sendeverybody home because I don't
know when the hell I'm gettingthe hell out of here.
Yeah, I got I got I got back tothe truck at 10 45, you know.

(01:09:12):
So I had to take it toWoodingham.

SPEAKER_05 (01:09:15):
After the the season, like what?
So, like you you killed thebear, you called them and
Like, you do use do they open upthe next day?

SPEAKER_03 (01:09:23):
Do they you have to they had yeah, they they had a
guy at Woodingham and one guy atPeakwest.
They were the only two guys,they were there till two
o'clock, but you had to call thenight before, follow the rules.
You know, you got you gotta dothat.
So um, actually, I had a buddyof ours, he uh we found it
Sunday morning, and by the timegot it out, couldn't even make

(01:09:44):
Sunday, so he actually checkedit in this morning.
The skin and the the head, thatthe yeah, um the hide in the the
head, and he was upset becausewe couldn't get an official
weight.
So I had him last night bringall the scraps, all the
quarters, the skin, the the thecape weight 100 pounds itself.
Uh I measured I weighed it here.

(01:10:04):
We came up with like 521dressed, you know.
So it's like it's not official,but it's on my scale that said
the five pound weight was fivepounds, so you know, whatever.

SPEAKER_06 (01:10:14):
Close enough enough.

SPEAKER_05 (01:10:18):
Um so last last thing I'll I'll go over real
quick is just kind of the thenumbers for the total harvest.
Um, yet again, Monday was theday of the storm in zone one.
We had 12 bears harvested onzone two, we had 15, zone three,
twenty-one, zone four, seven,and zone five, zero, totaling at

(01:10:38):
55.
Um the next day was 21, 24, 24,10, and 0, totaling at 79.
Wednesday was 13, 18, 19, 11, 0,totaling for 61.
Thursday was 17, 15, 11, 11, 0totaling for 54.

(01:11:00):
The Friday was 15, 16, 13, 12,and 1.
Totaling 17, and there's alwaysone, always one, and it's
usually the same guy.
Really?
What a what a what a guy.
That is that's that's the guy.
Um, and Saturday was 12, 22, 11,10, and zero totaling for 55.

(01:11:25):
And it's funny, like, one of mybuddies from South Jersey, uh,
Zach, uh, one of our team guys,he was asking, he was like,
Well, why do they keep zone fiveopen?
Like, what I go, because there'salways one, there's always one
guy, and it's kind of like he'slike, Is it that line to keep
them like from going too farsouth?
I go, that may be like, you knowwhat I mean?

(01:11:46):
That's like that one, you know,you're you're knocking that one
bear out, you know.

SPEAKER_03 (01:11:51):
I I don't, I don't really know, but I think they
put it in as like a threshold oflike, okay, let's just extend it
a little bit south, keep it thisway, you know.

SPEAKER_05 (01:12:01):
Yeah, yeah, exactly.
Like this way, it's open.

SPEAKER_03 (01:12:05):
Let's say they do move down in there.
This they don't have to go toback and try to remap it, you
know, have another issue, it'sthere already, you know.
That's what I thought.

SPEAKER_05 (01:12:13):
Well, which is which is which would make sense, but
it's always one, and it's crazy.
And if it's the same guy, that'seven better.
Like, that's it's that's alegendary.

SPEAKER_03 (01:12:20):
I have some inside information, and it's always the
same guy.
That guy knows his stuff.

SPEAKER_05 (01:12:27):
Um, that would be got one spot in zone five.
He right he fighting stuff allweek.
He's like, I'm gonna kill a bearsometime during this week in
this spot.
Um, total would be 361, that onebeing the one from zone uh five.

(01:12:48):
Um the 26 bears were tagged, andwe got to a 15.7 percent um
annual our harvest rate, whichis very low.
Um, and then yeah, uh as as youcan look, I'm not gonna go
through all the what's face, butSussex ended up with 183 bears,

(01:13:10):
which if anyone knows that isthe bear capital of New Jersey.
Um Warren County, which is whichis right up there, um, with 80,
Passaic with 25, Morris with 61,Bergen with two, Hutteren with
nine, Somerset with one.
So that must be that thatprobably Somerset, which has I

(01:13:33):
know there was a bear down therelast year and everything, like,
but it's so rare.
Like there, it's it's just sucha but you gotta have that one.

SPEAKER_03 (01:13:40):
Um it's like they don't know how to cross 78, you
know?
Right?
It's like that's it.
I mean they cross 80, they gethit all the time.
I mean, they just don't know howto cross 78, you know.

SPEAKER_05 (01:13:51):
Which is which is a good thing.
Let's let's uh you know, let'sum where they are because you
know, I like hunting, you know,and especially for TJ.
You could you could talk on thistoo.
It's it's I I hunt both areasthat have bears and areas that
don't have bears, right?
And it is so nice not having toto you know worry about bears
come and ruin your hunt andeverything.

SPEAKER_02 (01:14:13):
I would be devastated if bears came down
this way.
The first, I think the firstnight I had that we had uh the
trail camera sitting there, Iprobably had like a 140 walk by
and then we put some spray out.
And as soon as the bears come tothat area, that deer was gone.
And I was just like, I wascontemplating, I was like, Do I

(01:14:35):
really want a bear that thatbad?

SPEAKER_03 (01:14:38):
But yeah, no, if I had to do it down here and all
my spots got blown up by bears,it's wild now here by me in
Morris County, you know, like itit got to the point where you
know you just couldn't bait fordeer anymore, you couldn't do
none of that because you get thebears, but now it's like they
take shifts, they come in thatthe the bears will come in, lay
on the corn, they leave rightbefore dark.

(01:15:00):
Here come the deer.
It's like they're it's likethey're not even afraid of them
anymore.

SPEAKER_05 (01:15:04):
It's just they just avoid each other, and that and
that's kind of what I've seen inNew Jersey.
And I I I will quote this and Itell every New Jersey is such a
interesting state, especiallyfor bears.
And this is how you know youhave a problem.
Two reasons how you know youhave a problem.
One, right, it is not normal fora mother to have four cubs,

(01:15:26):
right?
It's it's not normal, and it'svery their percentage of all
four cubs surviving is extremelyhigh.
I had a I saw a picture earliertoday, actually, was a mother
with five cubs somewhere in NewJersey.
I I can't remember.
That's probably my picture.
It might have been it might havebeen my picture.

SPEAKER_03 (01:15:44):
She's got five.
I keep sending it to thebiologist.
This is the second litter offive she's had.
Okay, so must yeah, it must havebeen.

SPEAKER_05 (01:15:52):
I wasn't, I just I was driving and I was like, holy
shit.
I'm like, five cubs is it's it'sunheard of, right?
It's not so it's in New Jersey.
Natural bears were never the toppredator.
They're they're not.
We always had mountain lions, wealways used to have wolves,
right?
Obviously, as those things havegone away, bears have become

(01:16:15):
that number one thing, you know.
Um, so one hunting is extremelyimportant for for that, as they
cannot be the top predator.
Um, and then two, the deer areso used to them in West Jersey.
I actually have pictures of deerand actually bear on the camera
at the same time.
Not a big bear, and I'm notsaying it's it wasn't a big

(01:16:37):
bear, and it wasn't like a doeand a fawn, like it was a nice
size buck and a smaller bearwhere the deer must have felt
safe enough where I don't reallyneed to worry as as nearly as
much, right?
You'll notice you'll get bearson cameras, you won't get does
and fawns on cameras, but likeEddie says, once they're gone,

(01:16:58):
they they show up right after.
I I've seen that.
Like you'll have a bear, andthen not too long later, you
have, and it's like they're onshifts, and they know when what
time they're supposed to be onyour bait, and what time it's I
literally just sent you apicture of my bait site.

SPEAKER_03 (01:17:16):
They're all mature bears.
Jesus Christ.
At one time, nine bears.

unknown (01:17:24):
Wow.

SPEAKER_03 (01:17:25):
Holy cow!

SPEAKER_05 (01:17:26):
Yeah, that's a problem.
That that's one of the craziestpictures I think I've ever seen.
Like, that's not normal.
And I know North Carolina is inthat realm too, as us, but we
are such such a smaller statethat like it's it we're such a

(01:17:48):
bear state, like it's we're abig bear hunting state.
At the end, I don't care whatanyone says, we are a bear
hunting state, we have giantbears, we have a lot of bears,
like we are the we have thearchery world record here, and
I'm telling you, very, verysoon, the new world records
coming out of this state.

SPEAKER_03 (01:18:08):
Skull is coming out of this state.
There's hands down, no doubt.
When you got Mr.
Jim Shocky talking about it, andeverybody else, guess what?
That means they know this statedoes hold the world record
black.

SPEAKER_02 (01:18:21):
Yeah, it's coming.

SPEAKER_05 (01:18:24):
Yeah, so it it definitely is.
But all right, boys.
I I think we we've we've hit ourour time, we're at over how we
could talk about bears all day.
So listen, Eddie, if you everwant to come on, well again,
anytime you want to come on andtalk bears, you're more than
welcome.
TJ, we we're gonna have to getyou back on and talk some deer
hunting with you and andeverything like that.

(01:18:46):
Chris, I don't even need to sayanything to you.
Uh boys, I know for um Connor,we didn't get to touch on it,
but next week when Connor doescome on, we will be touching on
his his time in Ohio andeverything like that.
Um, that he just got back andeverything like that.

(01:19:07):
Looked like such a fun trip.
Um, really interested to hearingabout that.
Now he's back in Wisconsin, andhopefully the Wisconsin boys
things should start reallyheating up, and you guys should
be knocking some down here soon.
Uh Frank, brother.
Uh listen, and whenever I get aphone call, last thing I'll say,

(01:19:27):
yeah, twice I got a freakingphone call while I was in the
woods.
If he's not texting me before hecalls me, something has been
shot or is dead.
If he if he wants to call me andto talk about something for for
the podcast or for business orwhatever, or run something by
me, he'd be like, Hey brother,you free, right?

(01:19:49):
When he kills something, thereis no like, hey brother, you're
free.
It's a phone call.
I'm just like, I'm like killedsomething, like it's Frank,
Frank killed something.
But everyone, I hope you guysenjoyed this episode.
Make sure you guys go checkeverybody out.
Make sure you guys look closelyat uh Timber Life Outdoors.

(01:20:13):
Their video should be coming outin the next couple weeks.
If you haven't already, makesure you give them a follow.
Make sure you give TJ a follow.
I'll put his his Instagram downin the description below.
Uh, you know, the only, youknow, the the only fans or only
bow guys, whatever, you you knowwhere they're at.
I don't really need to speakabout them.
Um, you know where you can findour team and everything like

(01:20:35):
that.
I hope you guys enjoyed thisepisode.
And if anyone is ever interestedin coming out and doing some
bear hunting, please let usknow.
We love it.
It is such a blast.
If anyone wants to come and justtaste some black bear, listen,
we'll we have black bear meatfor for days and everything like
that.
Um, please free free.
We will be seeing you guys inexactly one week.

(01:20:57):
We'll see you guys next week.

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.Field Notes 6: When the Arrows Fly – Diamond Bear’s Last Stand

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.css-14f5ked{margin:0;word-break:break-word;display:-webkit-box;-webkit-box-orient:vertical;box-orient:vertical;-webkit-line-clamp:2;overflow:hidden;}.Field Notes 6: When the Arrows Fly – Diamond Bear’s Last Stand