Spring 2023 Black Bear Hunt

Our 2023 spring bear hunt has started here at Makwa River Outfitters in Saskatchewan, Canada!

We haven't had a hunt since 2018, and before that, 2012.

So we are pumped about the potential for this year!

Watch and see how we do:

Monday, May 22, 2023

Welcome to our wonderful friends who have hunted bear and deer with us, Rod and Steve.

Welcome also to our new friends, Justin, Barry, John and Reid.

Having lunch just before heading out to the stands

2:30 and away they go!

The guys are heading into some awesome country, awesome bear country!

3:30... they only left camp an hour ago. Is that the sound of a rifle shot? Just a minute... is that another shot? Hang on to your hats, everyone. I think we have a bear down... or is it two bears down?

In the meantime, Rod is watching a big sow from his stand. He will not be shooting this one.

Two shots had indeed been fired! John's bear has been retrieved. Pictures to follow.

John's story: "I hadn't been in the stand long. I heard the first shot. I was checking my scope, not even looking for bear yet but as I looked through the scope, there he was! Suddenly all the voices were in my head that I needed to pay attention to: the size of the snout, the size of the ears, the size of the bear compared to the barrel (and he wasn't near the barrel yet). Should I shoot the first bear on the first day? He then walked off and I didn't have to make a decision, but not long after he returned, and he looked bigger and better than the first time. I knew that this was my bear, and that is when I started to get really excited. The shot was good, he only went about 20 yards!"

Good job, John!

May 22/23 - John

And here is Justin's bear!

May 22/23 - Justin

Tuesday, May 23/23 - Day 2 of Week #1

The call just came in on the radio this evening from Reid: "I got a bear down!"

May 23/23 - Reid

Wednesday May 24/23 - Day 3 of Week #1

From inside of Barry's ground blind: small cinnamon sow being followed by boar.

Rod did it! He took an enormous bear this evening!

May 24/23 - Rod

This big boy weighed in at 505 pounds. He would easily have been a 650-pound bear in the fall! Skull measurement: 20 inches. Awesome!

Rod's story: "I was sitting back, watching the antics of a nice-sized sow with her two cubs from last year. Suddenly, she started carrying on and sent her cubs up into the trees: one went up the tree right above the bait barrel and the second one about 20 feet away. Now I was paying attention. I was concentrating on what was coming... I knew something was coming! When he came out, he sauntered past the sow and I thought, "How did that cub get down the tree so fast?" He was so much bigger than her; he completely dwarfed her, making her look like one of the cubs in comparison. If the top of a bear's head comes up to the top of the food barrel, that is a nice bear. But this one, when he walked up to the barrel, looked straight down on it! I did not expect a bear that big to come out of the forest! He just lumbered in and almost looked like a big old circus bear. Unbelievable!

The sow was running around him, snapping her jaws at him, trying to distract him from her cubs. She knew that this big boar was going to kill them so that he could breed her. She was doing what any good mother would do: everything she could to protect them. She was desperately trying to slow him down and trying to block him from the cubs but he was not paying any attention to her huffing and puffing. The big boar stopped and looked over at me and I aimed for between the eyes.

He lay at the base of the tree where the one cub was and neither of them were coming down. The sow kept circling him, snapping her jaws and trying to get him away even though he was dead. The sow then sensed that something had happened to the Big Tank. He was not moving, and she knew that she had to move the cubs now, so she started convincing them to come down. The cub that was 20 feet away scurried down and disappeared into the forest. But that poor little cub trapped right over the dead big boar would come down to about 12 feet and then he would shoot back up at full speed. She was making aggressive sounds for him to come down. It was like she was saying "Come down now!" and the cub was replying, "You can't really want me to come down now, can you?!" Everything bad and evil that he knew in his present world was lying right at the base of the tree he was cowering in!

I called Walker, my outfitter and guide, to warn him of the dangerous situation he might encounter as he drove in with the quad. In a quiet voice (which was hard to do at the time) I told him that I had a bear down. I wanted to keep calm about my big bear. I didn't want to jinx it, and I wanted to surprise him, but in reality I wanted to shout, "Bring a tow truck! We are going to need help bringing in this big boar!"

For 45 minutes that cub kept trying to get down but would panic and shoot right back up to the highest branch on that tree. He knew that this was the only safe place, because the small branches would not be able to hold that big bear. Finally he mustered up all of his courage and came down to about 15 feet off the ground. He did a Superman dive off the tree that took him 20 feet away, did a drop and roll, and I'm not sure his feet touched the ground as he ran at lightning speed into the forest. Who knows when he stopped running!

I have done a lot of bear hunting, in many locations. I have seen a lot of bears. I have taken 15 bears, and I never dreamed that I would see something this big walk out of the forest in front of me! I think to myself, "How many cubs will live because I took their predator out of the picture?" I wish everyone had the opportunity to see a bear like that come out of the forest. You just don't see that! It was quite the evening for me!"

Grant, Randal and Walker working on Rod's bear. Barry in the background.

Thursday May 25/23 - Day 4 of Week #1

Good news, everyone! Barry has just taken his first-ever bear! Congratulations, Barry!

May 25/23 - Barry

Friday May 26/23 - Day 5 of Week #1

The final bear for this week is taken by Steve:

May 26/23 - Steve

Justin, Barry and Rod waiting for Steve and his bear to get to camp.

Sunday May 28/23 - Arrival day (the day before the hunt starts) of Week #1

Welcome to our dear friends Kevin and Josh and welcome to our new friend Lashanda. Kevin and Josh have been hunting deer with us since 2014, but this is their first bear hunt. How exciting is that! When we first greeted them, though, there was a bit of sadness, because this is the first time that Kevin's dad (Josh's grandfather) was not with them. David was special to all of us here at Makwa River Outfitters. His kindness, his good sportsmanship and his love of his family made him a very important part of "our family." David unfortunately passed away on May 6, 2023.

David from his last deer hunt with us in 2018

David Edward Laux, July 17, 1931 – May 6, 2023

David Edward Laux, 91, peacefully passed away at his home surrounded by his loving family on Saturday, May 6, 2023. David was born July 17, 1931 in Appleton to the late Gordon and Rosamund (Gerrity) Laux. On May 3, 1958, he married the love of his life Judith "Judy" in Appleton. David went on to work for Hewitt Machine until he retired at the young age of 55 in 1987. In his free time, he enjoyed playing cribbage and going on scenic drives with Judy. He was also an avid fisherman and enjoyed spending most of his days on Lake Winnebago, especially with his grand kids. He greatly enjoyed hunting, also with his grand kids. He often talked about the big Canadian hunting trips he went on with his son, son-in-law, and grandson in his later years. He was a renowned pigeon racer. Specifically, he was a member of the Valley Racing Pigeon Club and was the 2nd best pigeon racer in the United States. David will be remembered most for his love of his family.

David is survived by his two children: Kevin (Julie) Laux and Amy (Scott) Melendes; grandchildren: Josh Laux and Jaden Laux, Katie (Bradley) Rainbolt and Casey Melendes; siblings: Gordon Laux Jr, Joseph (Pam) Laux, Mary (Tom) Murphy and Kathy (Larry) Fondow; sisters-in-law Yoko Laux, Carmen Laux and an abundance of other dear family and friends.

Monday May 29/23 - Day 1 of Week # 2

Beautiful day here at Makwa River Outfitters in Saskatchewan, Canada. Kevin, Lashanda and Josh are out for their hunt. Kevin saw a very large bear! Why didn't he take it? Sometimes it's really tough to pull the trigger on the first day! But Kevin, it might not come back!

Tuesday May 30/23 - Day 2 of Week # 2

An awesome Saskatchewan view. Can you see the moose on the other side of the water?

Wednesday May 31/23 - Day 3 of Week # 2

Wow. Just wow.

Thursday June 1/23 - Day 4 of Week # 2

Day 4: enough just watching! Time to start bringing home some bears! Kevin is the first one to shoot, and it's a cinnamon color phase.

June 1/23 - Kevin

Kevin has taken deer with us but this is his first bear hunt.

Second one to shoot is Lashanda. This is Lashanda's first hunt for anything, and she chose a bear hunt. Wow, way to go!

June 1/23 - Lashanda

And then, just at the end of the day, Josh calls in: he has a bear, and it's down on the pile!

June 1/23 - Josh

Josh has hunted deer with us several times but this is his first bear hunt.

This 2023 spring black bear hunt was an absolute blast! What fun there was! Great people, great bears, great times! We will take another one-year pause due to personal time commitments on our part, but let's meet here in spring 2025. Call now to get in on the black bear hunt of a lifetime.