Just returned from a spring bear hunt in the Navajo Reservation with good friends Titus and Calvin. This is possibly the greatest hunt that one can make in possibly the most beautiful place at the most beautiful time of the year in North America. We hunted with hounds in the Chuska mountains last Friday and the temperatures were in the mid 30's but warmed into the mid 60's for highs.
A bear hunt with hounds is WAY more exciting than sitting over a barrel of stale donuts but requires that the hunter be in pretty good physical condition to get to the bear and back out with the bear. We hunted and I killed my bear between 8,000 and 9,000 feet elevation and the terrain can be VERY steep.
The bear did not want to tree which is common with a big bear and prefers to fight on the ground. As I was wallowing around in the thick, steep terrain within 20 yards of the bear, searching for a clear shot, he finally climbed.
Titus and Calvin treed another big, old boar then next morning after SteveO and I split off to try to cut a lion track. The second bear was dark brown and as heavy as the one that I took. He appeared to be older than mine as his teeth were showing a lot of wear and he was missing half of his right ear. This is a great hunt that I would recommend to anyone that wants a very good opportunity to kill a big black bear.
Yes, I have photos and video of both bears but you will have to watch CARNIVORE for the footage or go to CARNIVORETV facebook page to see "Yours Truly" and the bear as I am not good at posting photos.
Adios,
Gary

I was just reading about hunting bears with hounds in New Mexico this morning. I'm new to hunting with dogs and absolutely love it! Currently I just have dogs for small game, but I think hunting bears and lions with hounds would be an absolute blast! I'm not in the financial place right now to do such a hunt, but it's a dream of mine. Thanks for sharing your experience!

I have hunted well over 50 years for just about everything that a fellow can hunt and I must say that hunting lions and bears in the mountains of the Southwestern US is the best. My advice to guys and gals is go while you can, as this is not an expensive hunt. You can purchase a bear or lion tag in NM for less than $500 and a lion tag in the Navajo for $250.
I will be glad to give you some ideas when you feel that the timing is right to make the trip.
Adios,
Gary

I appreciate the advice, Gary. Do you use your own hounds or hire a guide? Can't wait to see the show!

Sounds like fun to me. Pigs and coons may seem tame compared to bears.

I use my hounds on lions and my Navajo buddies have dogs that will run bears. The really large bears typically do not want to tree so the dogs have to get more aggressive with them to make them climb. The dogs fought and bayed my bear for approximately 45 minutes before he climbed. Steve and Calvin went down to try to video the bear battling on the ground and were there for 20 minutes before Tytus and I went down. (I was sure that the bear was going to break again and wanted to be able to drive close to the next bay or tree).
The bear was 15-20 steps off a steep bank when we arrived. Steve said that they had been there the entire time, dogs baying at the bear and then the bear charging the dogs.
Yes, bears are amazing creatures. The stamina that they possess is incredible for such a large critter...and yes, they can really cover the ground no matter how rugged.
Adios,
Gary

Calvin Redhouse called me at 10:49 PM last night as he was rolling off the mountain with a big dark cinnamon bear that he killed on the last day of Spring Bear Season. Calvin served 5 tours of duty in Iraq and Afganistan while in the Marine Corps. Now he is a Security Guard for Dine' College and shooting video for CARNIVORETV.
Adios,
Gary

Awesome! Can't wait to see video!

Great story. 320 black bear was highway kill near Sanderson recently.

I saw the report on the Sanderson bear on the TP&W Dept. news release. That is a fair sized bear for that area but if my poor memory serves me correct, a much larger one was hit by a vehicle just west of Alpine a few years ago. I had the opportunity to hunt in the mountains of Mexico due south of Dryden a couple of years ago and the bears there were huge. One had killed a grown horse out in the flats the day before we arrived and had consumed most of him. (A bear doesn't mind eating decaying flesh, in fact tends to favor it, while a lion will not).
After visiting with the locals, I found the reason for the "oversized" black bears in the area is that they don't hibernate...that makes sense. They also claimed that the population of black bears was the highest of any where in North America as they are so highly protected. They had a photo of a deer feeder with 14 bears under it, eating corn. The neighboring ranch had a photo of a bear coming out of the swimming pool that weighed approximately 500 pounds.
Adios,
Gary

Gary, when does the new Carnivore season start?

We will begin airing again the first of July at our regular time slots, Fridays at 11:30 PM, Saturdays at 12:30 PM and Sundays at 6:00 PM.
Thanks,
Gary

Thank you, sir. Looking forward to it.

I am having the bear made into a rug and meat processed at High Desert Taxidermy in Kirtland, NM. Mr. Gale Smith, taxidermist sent me some of the meat and it is great. He made snack stick, polish, summer sausage and breakfast sausage.
If you ever need any taxidermy or processing done in that part of the world, give him a call.
Adios,
Gary

I've never eaten bear before. Sounds good though.