When you mention bear hunting to any hunting enthusiast, most outdoors folks think of the big woods around Moosehead Lake or the forest/field combinations of northern Maine.
Maine’s reputation as a top destination for fall bruin hunting is world-renowned, but few would think the hills around the Lewiston/Auburn area are prime bear hunting grounds. While a relatively small number of bear are tagged in Cumberland, Androscoggin and Oxford county each year, it’s not for lack of quarry. It’s predominantly due to lack of hunters.
While our woods are less secluded than the distant reaches of the state, hunters hoping to bag a bruin over bait can succeed if they plan, scout and hunt wisely in the forests surrounding our local towns.
According to Scott Lindsay, the assistant regional wildlife biologist for the Maine Department of Inland Fisheries and Wildlife, “The most active pursuit of bears in Region A, (which includes the Lewiston/Auburn area) with a 2003 harvest of 29, takes place in WMD 15 in Southern Oxford County: a function of more bears and more opportunity and space to hunt them.”
Statewide, the estimated bear population hovers around 23,000 bruins, a 28-percent increase since 1990, according to MDIFW habitat conservation and special projects biologist Sandy Ritchie.
With bear hunting season over bait starting on Aug. 29 (ending Sept. 24), hunters have almost the entire month of August to prepare. Bait sites can be set out 30 days prior to the start of the season. This means that local bear hunters will be out in force scouting, baiting and hoping to catch a glimpse of “the ghost of the forest.”
Aptly nicknamed, the black bear is a solitary creature, but more and more are being seen around this part of the state.
Several years ago, I was driving up the lower end of Turner Street in Auburn late at night. I caught a glimpse of something running alongside my car and thought it was probably a dog chasing after me. Instead, this big black mass was a bear, apparently rousted from his garbage can scavenging by my headlights. The bear passed me and continued up Turner Street with me in curious pursuit. The bruin cut through a few back yards and made it onto Mayfield Street and then Summer Street. After charging up Summer Street, the bear dove into the woods just before Mount Auburn Cemetery. Later that week, a friend of mine also saw a bear dash across Park Avenue in Auburn.
Lewiston resident Ryan Gagnon got his first glimpse of a wild bear in Auburn several years ago. While taking a leisurely evening spin along Lake Shore Drive in North Auburn, Ryan and his friend passed by Taber’s Driving Range and were headed toward the North Auburn Cash Market. As they rounded the bend, they surprised a black bear pawing through a trash bag along the roadside.
According to MDIFW regional biologist Roger Dumont, “Bear sightings are increasing (in this part of the state), yet the majority of good bear hunting is further north.” That shouldn’t discourage local hunters, as there still seems to be plenty of bear for the few sports who choose to chase them.
Just ask taxidermist Dick Sprague of Minot, who holds the record for the largest sow taken in Maine. He took his 306-pound trophy in nearby Canton in 1987, proof that big bears do make their way into this region.
While black bears do lead a typically solitary lifestyle except when breeding or when sows raise their young, bears often congregate around concentrated food sources such as wild or agricultural crops. According to MDIFW studies, female bears use areas of 6 to 9 square miles and remain within or near the range of their mother for the duration of their lives.
Conversely, male bruins disperse long distances, often up to 100 miles as sub-adults (1-4 years of age) prior to settling into adult ranges that may exceed 100 square miles. Of interest to hunters, black bears often make trips up to 40 miles outside of their ranges to feed on berries, nuts or occasionally to an orchard or field of oats or corn in late summer or fall. When beechnuts are plentiful, bears will feed late into the fall. Local hunters know this, and finding a ridge of beech is a hunter’s dream.
Black bears are considered omnivores, feeding on a vast array of vegetation and animal matter. Bears will concentrate on fruits and berries, such as wild blueberries and raspberries, abundant in the local woods. With late-season berries still abundant, hunters in search of bruins should concentrate on these patches. Several years ago, wild raspberries on Streaked Mountain in Buckfield hung on the bushes into late August and, the bears were literally trampling down the thorny plants.
Local farmers can also point interested hunters in the right direction. Corn is a favorite treat, and bears will roll around in the stalks to get the corn onto the ground where they can easily eat it. Walking around the edges of corn fields is one good way to see if a bear is feeding in that area. The soft soil of the field is great for capturing a bruin’s paw print, and the wise hunter can tell the weight of his or her bear simply by examining the width of the pad.
Bee farmers will also welcome hunters when marauding bears come to damage hives and ingest the tasty larvae and honey. Hunters should keep their ears open for complaints from local farmers and spread the word that they would be interested in removing an unwanted bear from a farm, orchard or beekeeper’s property. Chances are they just might get invited to do so!
Hunters after bear will need to purchase a big game hunting license, along with a bear permit ($28, not including agent fee). Hunters should also seek landowner permission when creating a bait site and are required to seek permission when erecting a tree stand.
Comments are no longer available on this story