Kbbond
New member
- Joined
- Jan 6, 2019
- Messages
- 22
Elk, deer, and pronghorn permeate 99% of my family's hunting stories and, aside from finding their tracks in our boot prints left hours before, those stories do not include black bears. Why? I have no clue. Dad and grandpa always proclaimed that "bear is greasy!" or "they are tougher than hell to eat!" etc. Thinking back on what my dad and grandpa had said about bear (and their subsequent lack of interest in adding bear hunting as a family tradition), I am reminded of a statement made by Chef Eduardo Garcia on an episode of Meat Eater. Eduardo asserts that "the number one food allergy is when someone has screwed up a dish." I'm guessing that is precisely what happened over 50 years ago in my family. Great-grandpa probably ate a piece of bear that was poorly taken care of and wickedly overcooked. Consequently, bears were taken off of the annual license application list without a second thought, not to return until 2018.
I decided it was time to try and get a bear on my own. I've seen the shows where guys and gals get just as excited about harvesting a bear as they do deer or elk - but why is that if they are so bad to eat? What is the allure? I had to find out. Colorado has plenty of bears and plenty of public land to find them on, particularly around mountain towns like Aspen, Glenwood Springs, Gunnison, and Steamboat Springs which is precisely where I honed in. I decided to sit a water hole on my first day after hiking in about 2 miles and just wait, it was hot and surely a bear would come in for a drink. No luck after 4 hours of sitting so I decided to make my way back to camp. A half hour into my trek to camp, I stumble into a 120 yard shot on a beautiful jet-black boar. I went to work, recalling that I need to get as much fat off the meat as fast as possible. I remember cutting sheets of fat off that I could measure in inches, it was unreal! Dad instilled in me an almost OCD level of care when it comes to meat care and for that, I am thankful. The meat came off clean, went into clean synthetic game bags, and were cooled off by a cold September night. No dirt, no hair, minimal fat...clean cool meat, plus a gorgeous hide fit for a rug which I was surprisingly excited about.
Moment of truth...I did a standard process at home - steaks, roasts, whole backstraps, and burger ground with 25% bacon ends. The meat was incredible!! I slow cooked a roast in a classic fashion and Introduced it to my father, skeptically he took a bite. He sat for a bit and almost got a look of disappointment on his face. I asked what was wrong, he replied with, "I've missed out on this for 50 years!" He was blown away and now has plans to hunt for black bear in 2019.
I learned that bear is truly a treasure and an incredible resource, I gained a new respect for those animals instead of dismissing them as a sub-par food source. I can't wait to do it again and now, I look forward to helping my dad get his first black bear next September. If you're on the fence about bears based on what people say, I say ignore them and try it for yourself. Respect the animal and take care of the meat, remove the fat, keep it clean, get it cold, and you're good to go!
I decided it was time to try and get a bear on my own. I've seen the shows where guys and gals get just as excited about harvesting a bear as they do deer or elk - but why is that if they are so bad to eat? What is the allure? I had to find out. Colorado has plenty of bears and plenty of public land to find them on, particularly around mountain towns like Aspen, Glenwood Springs, Gunnison, and Steamboat Springs which is precisely where I honed in. I decided to sit a water hole on my first day after hiking in about 2 miles and just wait, it was hot and surely a bear would come in for a drink. No luck after 4 hours of sitting so I decided to make my way back to camp. A half hour into my trek to camp, I stumble into a 120 yard shot on a beautiful jet-black boar. I went to work, recalling that I need to get as much fat off the meat as fast as possible. I remember cutting sheets of fat off that I could measure in inches, it was unreal! Dad instilled in me an almost OCD level of care when it comes to meat care and for that, I am thankful. The meat came off clean, went into clean synthetic game bags, and were cooled off by a cold September night. No dirt, no hair, minimal fat...clean cool meat, plus a gorgeous hide fit for a rug which I was surprisingly excited about.
Moment of truth...I did a standard process at home - steaks, roasts, whole backstraps, and burger ground with 25% bacon ends. The meat was incredible!! I slow cooked a roast in a classic fashion and Introduced it to my father, skeptically he took a bite. He sat for a bit and almost got a look of disappointment on his face. I asked what was wrong, he replied with, "I've missed out on this for 50 years!" He was blown away and now has plans to hunt for black bear in 2019.
I learned that bear is truly a treasure and an incredible resource, I gained a new respect for those animals instead of dismissing them as a sub-par food source. I can't wait to do it again and now, I look forward to helping my dad get his first black bear next September. If you're on the fence about bears based on what people say, I say ignore them and try it for yourself. Respect the animal and take care of the meat, remove the fat, keep it clean, get it cold, and you're good to go!
