Bear encounters

hawkman

Eight Pointer
Friends and acquaintances that love and hunt in Hyde Co tell me that after you shoot a deer - if your truck isn't close by - bear will have gotten to your kill before you do. They're not after you, just groceries.

Sent from my Pixel 2 XL using Tapatalk
 

DarrinG

Six Pointer
Last October I had a smaller 150#-ish bear come up a ridge I was bowhunting. I had been in the stand maybe 30 minutes that evening. looked like a young boar. When he crossed the path I walked in, he stopped like hitting a wall, turned and tracked me right to the base of my tree. He looked up at me and sat on his haunches and just sat there staring at me 18 ft up a tree. After about 30 seconds he stood back up on all 4's, and suddenly put his front feet up on the tree I was in on my climbing stick. That's when I talked to him out loud and said "don't you do it....don't do it! Get on outta here....now GIT"....all the while drawing my revolver from its holster on my side and drawing a bead between his eyes. He stared at me with his front feet up on my tree for what seemed a long time but in reality was probably only 5-10 seconds, then dropped back down and slowly walked behind me, stopping to turn his head and look at me again, before wandering on over the ridge. Its seems like we are getting as many bears around here as deer, or so it seems. Everywhere I have scouted this year I have found bear sign galore, yellow jacket nests dug out of the ground, tracks in soft dirt, tracks in logging roads, fruit tree branches broken over, claw climbing marks all over old apple trees, etc, etc. I watched a HUGE boar last September sit and clean up a spot that had some white oaks acorns on the ground, for over an hour, all the while wishing it was later in October so I could have killed him (sitting there with a bear tag in my pocket but season not open yet). Late last summer my wife and I was doing some scouting and mushroom hunting when I heard the sound of claws on bark scraping right over me on a thick ridge. My first thought was what in the world is a raccoon doing out in daylight, coming down the tree. The sounds was descending and on the back side of a huge red oak. Suddenly at about 9-10 feet a very small bear cub jumps off the tree and hits the ground right in front of me at about 10 feet. The cub walks away down the hill into a thick area about 20 yards away and out of sight in the thicket. I yell at my wife to back out quickly and I start yelling "hey mama bear....we're leaving" over and over while I backed out of the area. She had to be close and the last thing I wanted was for that cub to sound off in alarm and send mama crashing in to defend the cub. Seems encounters are happening a lot more often around here as the population keeps increasing.
 

jug

Old Mossy Horns
Contributor
I have been spooked by a bear twice up in Rockingham county. First time in 2013 I was walking back to the truck during Turkey season and had a bear growling at me mildly as I walked by.
Second time was January 2014 when my brother and I was setting up a stand with my my daughter. The bear was on top of the ridge above us growling and woofing at us.
We left real quick and in a hurry.
 
Last edited:

turkeyfoot

Old Mossy Horns
Of all ones I've encountered can only remember 3 popping jaws at me all others just ran never had one growl or any other vocalizations or make aggressive move seen them be curious few times though
 

DarrinG

Six Pointer
I've never heard one growl, but heard several "whoof" and pop teeth. We used to have to run them out of dumpsters at night pretty regularly at a place where I worked. Had several whoof and pop teeth at me that got pretty brave around the dumpsters.
 

23mako

Ten Pointer
Never run into one hunting in NC but have walked up on several out west. This was a little grizz in Montana this summer. He made walking on that snow pack look easy with his built in spikes.
 

Attachments

  • 20190714_092531.jpg
    20190714_092531.jpg
    114.6 KB · Views: 43
  • 20190714_092536.jpg
    20190714_092536.jpg
    129.4 KB · Views: 42

pcbuckhunter

Old Mossy Horns
Contributor
I’ve never had a bear encounter where I felt threatened. In my experience most of the time they run away quickly when they see you. The only time they don’t run immediately is if they walk up on you instead of the other way around.
I had one walk up on me in the Pisgah Bear Sanctuary several years ago. I was on the ground gutting a deer near a big laurel thicket. He popped out of the laurels about 10 yards from me. He saw me, and bobbed his head several times, trying to figure out what I was I guess, and finally decided I wasn’t very interesting. He just continued on his way, and never looked back.


Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk
 

Mike Noles aka conman

Administrator
Staff member
Contributor
Hunting mountain lions with dogs and hunting bear with dogs are completely two different hunts, two different animals two different mindsets I have and do hunt both the only thing they have in common is they both will tree or bay up. I have alot of encounters with black bears every year most are by choice but I have run up on a few walking in fields checking crops you will know very shortly after walking up on one if you have upset him or not, 99% of the time he will give off some verbal warning signs popping his teeth is a dead give away he is upset most of the time he is going to move off and you will never know he was there. Bears are not that gun smart in N.C. as they are in some other parts of the country meaning they do not hear a gun shot an associate it with a gut pile being left in the area that's a learned behavior.

100% agree with everything but the highlighted part, and that's specifically to bears in and around the Pungo NWR. Those buggers will respond to a dove shoot :ROFLMAO: .

Like most that hunt eastern NC, a bear encounter is more likely than not during an active hunting season. I've only had one spook me in over 40 years and that was my fault. I got between a sow and cub while tracking a deer and she wasn't very happy with me. Had a few claim a deer before we got there and the popping teeth told us it was his deer.
 

RJ1

Ten Pointer
100% agree with everything but the highlighted part, and that's specifically to bears in and around the Pungo NWR. Those buggers will respond to a dove shoot :ROFLMAO: .

Like most that hunt eastern NC, a bear encounter is more likely than not during an active hunting season. I've only had one spook me in over 40 years and that was my fault. I got between a sow and cub while tracking a deer and she wasn't very happy with me. Had a few claim a deer before we got there and the popping teeth told us it was his deer.


I should have mentioned that they act different around Pungo than they do other places,I haven't hunted around it in years but its a different ballgame dealing with bears around it. I have heard they act the same way in certain parts of Pamlico County.
 

Panthera

Eight Pointer
Our bear population in NC is booming now. 2/3 of them are in the coastal plain. Biggest black bears on the planet too.
 
  • Like
Reactions: jug

Moose

Administrator
Staff member
Contributor
I had one look at me from the bed of my truck while I was opening my drivers door. Not sure who was more surprised at that moment he ran North and I ran south. I was glad I had a crew cab to put a little more distance between us :D Conman watched the whole thing from his front porch.

I had one trail me once when I did a doe in heat drag but that was more out of curiosity I think.

I had one come at me when I was bear hunting poping his teeth. He wasn't the one I was after but at about 4 yards I obliged him. My muzzleloader spoke and he now spends his days in front of my fire place.
 

RJ1

Ten Pointer
Had an encounter this afternoon, pulled into the driveway after work had one setting in he corner of the front yard eating apples little guy looked like he weighed about 100lbs, I had time holding my Great Dane "Sweet Pea " I think he wanted to try him on.
 

Mack in N.C.

Old Mossy Horns
100% agree with everything but the highlighted part, and that's specifically to bears in and around the Pungo NWR. Those buggers will respond to a dove shoot :ROFLMAO: .

Like most that hunt eastern NC, a bear encounter is more likely than not during an active hunting season. I've only had one spook me in over 40 years and that was my fault. I got between a sow and cub while tracking a deer and she wasn't very happy with me. Had a few claim a deer before we got there and the popping teeth told us it was his deer.

My BIL was in a Bear Club in Sampson Co back in the 90's and the ones there and in Bladen co responded to a shot like a dinner bell
 

Wv67

Ten Pointer
We see them all the time here , I’ve walked up on em at my stand a lot just tell em get on I’ve had some trip over their self to get out of dodge , and had a few just look at me and watch me climb , my buddy took a pic once of one that climbed under him and looked at him for awhile LOL and In the pic you can see his pistol LOL. He is from Moorhead , we been hunting for 24 yrs now since he relocated here
 
Speaking of which...

So that just happened. Young one. Couldn’t upload the video. But he just kind of looked up in my direction and wandered off. Sloooow. If it saw me, it obviously wasn’t too worried about it.
 

Attachments

  • 7C904EE1-4A5A-4EA1-AA6F-099D874FF863.png
    7C904EE1-4A5A-4EA1-AA6F-099D874FF863.png
    1.2 MB · Views: 37

timekiller13

Old Mossy Horns
I threw my water bottle at a bear one time. Early bow season, bear was hanging around stand and it was about dark. Decided to spook him off before I got down so I chunked my water bottle at him. He stood up on his hind legs and popped his teeth. I thought, "Oh crap, I screwed up!" I hollered at him and he tore off down the laurel like a scalded dog! I don't throw things at bears anymore.
 

Quackman

Twelve Pointer
Do they make me nervous when I encounter them, yes. Will they charge and eat you, no.
When was the last time you heard of a bear attack in NC? I can’t think of one.



Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk
 

rescue934

Twelve Pointer
I have been in the deer stand 3 times this season, had a bear under the stand all three times. This will continue until the tailgates drop, after that, I just don't see many in the daylight
 

Aaron871

Four Pointer
I hunt black bears in the Northwest zone.
Trust me, they are EXTREMELY difficult to get close to and want nothing to do with us...

I’ve had coyotes claim several of my kills while I was still tracking. But they will run off before I get remotely close.
 

Crappie_Hunter

Twelve Pointer
Contributor
I was hiking a crowded trail in the mountains one time when a group of us came around a bend to see a cub "playing" beside a little patch of trees. I quickly scanned and did not see momma bear. I said nope, and high tailed it back down the trail where I came from. Some of the others wanted to take pictures and stuff.... not me ya'll are on your own!

I'm not scared of bears but do respect a momma with a cub for sure!!
 
Top