Liard River Outfitters
712054 RGE RD 55 T8X 4A8 Grande Prairie, AB, Canada

Day 5 was another good one with the wind finally dying down, and the boys started seeing more bears moving again right away. We spotted 6 bears yesterday with 3 good stalks but just not the size we’re looking for. One good boar gave us the slip on a tight lease and the night was over. Shamus and his boys spotted a nice 7 foot class bear shortly after leaving camp and made a quick stalk to 270 yards. When the bear walked in the trees just before the shot they got Brian on ...the radio and the hound crew was on the way. The dogs hit the ground and with the fresh scent trail the race was on. A little up and down had the big boar running hard and with the dogs in top condition they had him high in a poplar tree after the 8 mile run. The dogs performed flawlessly, and even a couple of the young pups made the run to the tree. One shot and the 7’4 boar was on the ground with a good skull just under the 19 mark. Hound hunter Steve got exactly what he was looking for on his hunt, and we were happy to help him out ! Tomorrow’s another day, and with a few bear tags left to fill the boys are going hard ! Stay tuned......

Day 4 is in the books with another 6 foot boar on the ground. The dogs did great in the big valley country and after a hard up and down 5 mile run they treed about 350 yards off the road. Those dogs just keep getting better and better. We had a decent day with 4 bears spotted, but not what we’re looking for. That wind just had everything spooked and not hanging around once spotted. Shamus and his boys spotted 13 bears for the day. One good boar gave them the slip in the l...ate afternoon that just wasn’t meant to be. Lots of up and comers and a great crop of cubs should mean great bear hunting for years to come ! Hoping to put another bear or two on the ground today !!! Stay tuned.......

Day 2 and 3 have been some of the worst I’ve seen for wind in years. Cold temperatures have the bears moving sporadically and the wind has them acting spooky when we do spot them. Despite the tougher conditions the boys are still putting bears on the ground. Shamus’s hunter got a shot into a big boar right at last light, and after a short run with old Justice the following morning she treed that big old warrior solo. At 7’ 2 with a 19 15/16 skull the bear took the lead fo...r the top spot so far in camp this spring. A few other bears were spotted and a couple stalks blown for unknown reasons. Right at last light Shamus’s other hunter put a nice 6 foot class boar on the ground and rounded out the day with the second bear of the week. The sun is back out and with lots of bears spotted we're looking for those monsters to start hitting the ground again. Stay tuned.......

Day one for the new group of hunters and we hit the ground running, well the bears seemed to be anyway. Shamus had the Glenn boys on 9 bears for the day but with a few sows and small bears making up the majority of what they saw it just wasn’t what they were looking for. Brian and the hound crew spotted a nice thick bear for just a split second as it went over a hill and decided they had time for a run before they ran out of daylight. The dogs did great and after a fair...ly quick 8 mile run the bear had enough and decided to leave the hounds on the ground and went up a giant poplar tree. After studying the bear for a minute or so it was decided she was a sow and would get to live for another day. We try to only take boars as the sows really are the key to having such a great population of bears. Me and my hunters had a slow start to the day with the temperatures cooled off and the wind blowing hard. With not a bear seen until almost 8 p.m. even I was beginning to get discouraged and had to remind myself how quickly things can change. Not 5 minutes later we rounded a bend and there stood a sow standing on her hind legs in the willows. She dropped down on all fours and out of sight, so we decided to give her a few minutes and see if she’d come back out on the deactivated road for us. Not more then 2 minutes later around the corner walks the boar that dreams are made of ! That image of that bear will be forever burnt into my memory as he stood up stiff legged and busted us out in the open still looking for that sow. There are no words that truly do him justice so I’ll just say he was most likely the biggest, and if not biggest in the top 3 black bears I’ve ever seen. I’ve glassed thousands of bears while doing spot and stalk hunts over the last 20 years, but these super bears just leave you speechless!!!! The setup played out with absolutely no chance for a shot, but I will definitely be after that bear for the rest of my life, or one just like it I guess. Tomorrow is another day and with a great group of hunters in camp the optimism level is high !!! Stay tuned........

Day 7 came to a close with another giant boar giving guide Shamus and hunters the slip. They got on him 3 times but each chance was short as the big boy knew something was wrong. The hound crew put another 6 foot class boar on the ground making the weeks total 9 bears dead. We hunted until the last minute of light and let another mid 6 foot boar go with a beautiful white blaze. You can’t kill monsters if you’re not willing to hold out and let those mid sized bears walk. ... Everybody got their bears and got to see a pretty good number of future giants walk. The grizzly total for the week was 7 bears spotted, and 2-3 dozen more fresh tracks cut. Good thing they’re protected now so they can continue to be a problem in the next couple years ! The next group of hunters arrives today and with the boars moving heading into the rut we’re hoping to put a few more on the ground. See more