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Almost too jealous of the color to respond! That is beautiful!

I say tag 'em, then bag 'em. After that, you can run a conclusive DNA analysis to determine their species. Of course, I am only kidding! But, doesn't that train of thought seem strangely familiar? Great job, Lance! Show us some color next time!!

Been there, done that. It was my first archery bear, too. Makes for an easier pack out, especially when you are alone! Good job and great eating!

Not a good bear spot. I think these are all mule deer?

Did your son try to call that bear out of the canyon?

I'll trade you deer for bear.

I wouldn't be glassing a ridge, but would be predator calling beneath it. Would be hard to tell if the bear was running to the call or away from pursuing dogs. Depends on how close or far away the barking is and whether or not I see a bear before I hear dogs barking. One could surely glass or call a bear in before its tracks are cut by dogs, and in that case, tag it. But, if dogs are in hot pursuit, I would back off. That being said, I was calling in 23N yesterday and ran into some hound hunters. I spoke a few kind words with them and headed off on the next FR road to call in an area more inaccessable to their rigs. And guess what? There was still plenty of room for all of us to share the forest, even with our different hunting methods.

Don't let it get you down. There is always next year!

Nice job. I was up high this morning, and no bears in the oaks. I drove out past some prickly pear and they were still purple. I thought that the bears might still be on them!

Plenty of bugling in 23N last night and this morning.

Checked my salt lick. It is still bringing in cows and small bulls daily. This bull is bigger than the spikes and raghorns that usually show up, but never got a complete picture of him. I think this deer is above average? A cool little family of turkeys. Sadly, no bears.

I use about 4 different hand calls and mix them up during a stand. I use an open reed Tally-Ho, a closed reed T-Rex, and another open and closed reed model that I have long forgotten the maker. I've called bears using all four independently, but enjoy mixing it up a bit, especially for long distances versus short distances.

You have to really be careful when calling for bear alone. In particular, you need to watch your back for lions. They can sneak in without a sound and scare the heck out of you, as well as pose a safety risk. When calling alone, my sidearm is chambered, off of safety, and sitting on my lap. You also need to watch for rattlesnakes and keep the foxes from coming in too close. Good luck! Tell us about your calling adventures!

+1 on the bears. I had a buddy put out 2 pipe feeders with the self-help elbows and bears ripped them off the trees within two weeks and destroyed them.

Very good advice. October is a prime acorn production month in areas around 5,000-6,000 feet in elevation. If you have a rough canyon with plenty of oaks and a water source in it, you will likely have bear feeding there. They tend to drink more frequently when consuming oaks, and will sometimes water two or more times in a single feeding. With scouting, one can pattern where a bear is eating and drinking and set up along its travel routes, just like any other predictable animal, and harvest it from a blind, or set up to call from a nearby location with an elevated vantage point or a solid backdrop for your own protection. I have called in bears before in October, but it has never been as productive for me as the month of August. Sometimes they are so engrossed with eating a stellar crop of acorns that they could care less about wasting valuable energy to chase down a wounded animal and finish it off when the calories hanging in front of them are such easy pickings! On the other hand, you could call in a bear that wants the extra meat over mast calories that will stop at almost nothing to get them! And that is the RUSH associated with the unpredictability of calling bear. That being said, a bear cannot respond to your call if it is not there to hear it in the first place. So do your scouting in the proper places, find fresh sign, and call away with any wailing noise maker to your heart's content. And don't give up if nothing comes in after an hour. Move further into your canyon and try it again. I've had several bears come in on my second stand, that likely were already coming in on my first stand, but simply needed more time to get there. After two blanked stands in the same general area, I am gone and moving to another location. P.S. I have yet to call in a bear in November or December.

TJ, I would only hope that every hunter was as honest and ethical as you. We have all faced game law temptations, but it takes an honest hunter to obey them. Thanks for having the courage!

Nice color pattern.

I'll tell you what, that was such a nice write up that I actually got excited reading it. I'm going to give deer hunting a try! Great job!

Check with Bass Pro Shop in Mesa, AZ. I think they have an official scorer who works in their archery department. What did your taxidermisct score it at? Any pictures of the tagged bear?

Great job! Did you get both your bear and lion in 23N? Post some video of the bear that walked in on you!

No added pork to the meat mix? A 100% deer brat? Sounds delicious! I might have to try and shoot a deer afterall! (next year)

That is right. I've been bow hunting fo 20 years and still have not got my first buck! You have out done me already. Great job! And even greater, knowing what your comfortable shooting range distance was and sticking to it.

Beautiful coloration. Great job! Did the other hunters tag the first bear?

What is the recipie, please.

I know you are not a bear hunter, but did you at least snap a photo of the bear that came in? What color and size range was it? Good luck on the deer.