Black Bear Hunting is How to Celebrate 44 Years of Marriage
My husband, Dan, asked me to accompany him on a Vancouver Island black bear hunt. It was always his dream to get a big black bear on Vancouver Island, and he wanted to do it from a houseboat, which is for two hunters only. He thought it would be fun for us to do this together.
We have been married for 44 years, and I had never hunted before I married Dan. He encouraged me to try it, and I loved it! We have since hunted many species of animals together over the years, while raising our daughters.
We booked this five-day hunt with Frazier River Outfitters in 2023 but had to wait until 2025 for the houseboat hunt. We wanted to hunt with guide Dawson Deveny. It was hard to wait, but so worth it.
The hunt was much more exciting than I expected. We arrived at the airport in Campbell River, BC, to meet Dawson and outfitter John Sievers. We then drove two and half hours to the houseboat before heading to the main lodge, accessible only by boat. We stayed there overnight to meet our second guide, Timber Lewis, cook, Dawn MacCullum, and another hunter and his guide, who were hunting from the lodge. The lodge is beautiful and has breathtaking views. Dawn is an amazing cook as well!
The next morning, we sighted in our rifles, loaded up the houseboat and headed out. We accessed the estuaries in various areas by anchoring the houseboat and taking a Zodiac inflatable boat to shore. At one spot, we took ATV’s on old logging roads to get up high and glass remote estuaries where the bears come out to feed. The guides amazed me with their ability to quickly spot bears.
We hunted together the first and second day and saw bears each day, but not all were shooters. We were looking for the big one. On the third day, we split up. We had spotted a big bear from high up on the mountain the night before, but lost sight of him when we stalked down to him. So, we dropped Dawson and Dan at the ATV’s, and Timber and I went out with the houseboat and then used the Zodiak inflatable to hunt another spot. Dan shot his bear that day. It was a huge seven-foot-two-inch bear! We were all so happy that night.
We all went back out hunting on the 4th day, looking for a bear for me. We hunted all day and saw bears, but none big enough. We headed back to the lodge at the end of the day to stay there overnight. I told myself if I didn’t get a bear, it was OK, because my husband had gotten his dream bear.
On the last day of the hunt, Dawson said we were going to look for the “big beach crawlers.” He took us to a spot he had only hunted one time before. We went to two different estuaries, anchoring off shore and then taking the Zodiak to explore. At the second estuary, we quietly peaked around a bend, looking into a spot where there was a salmon stream. I looked in my binoculars and saw a big black bear moving along the beach shore to the left. He was moving quickly into the bushes. I’m not a fast shooter, and I need to be certain I have a good shot before I pull the trigger. I quietly told Dawson I saw a bear, and he then spotted it too. He got his shooting sticks ready for me. He wanted me to sit down and use my right knee as a rest for my right elbow. We waited and waited for the bear to come out onto the beach. I could still see him in my scope. My hands got sweaty, and my heart beat like crazy.
Dawson and Timber discussed my shot opportunity. Dawson asked me if I thought I could make it. I quietly talked the shot through with them and I decided to take it. I almost jerked the trigger but stopped my finger and remembered my husband’s coaching, to slowly “squish” the trigger so I wouldn’t jerk it.
My .338 found its mark at almost 110 yards. The bear only went 20 yards and died. When we waded the shallow salmon stream to him, I was shocked at his size. The guides knew how big he was but didn’t say anything to me, because they didn’t want to make me nervous. He was seven and half feet and had a big scar on his nose. I commented how I would love to see the bear that did that. The guides replied, “They don’t get much bigger than this, Sue!”
It was one of the most exciting hunts I had ever been on. We had excellent guides and a top-notch outfitter in Frazier River Outfitters. We celebrated our 44th anniversary with this hunt and will never forget it! I encourage all women to try hunting and make special memories-of-a-lifetime too. – Sue Zimmerman