Sept. 6, 2012




GILBERT – Phil Peliska always wanted to try bear hunting but never thought he would have the time to do it right.

But an opportunity to hunt on a friend’s family land changed that and after finally being drawn for a tag this year the 38-year-old Mountain Iron was able to set up shop in rural Gilbert to hunt during the 2012 season.

That hunt proved to be very successful, as Peliska bagged a nearly 300 pound boar (male) on the first day of the season.

And, he did it with a bow and arrow.

“Once I was drawn, then it was a matter of choice as to which way to hunt bear,” Peliska said by e-mail this week. “In my personal opinion, there's no bigger challenge than trying to harvest a bear - or any other big game -  with a bow and arrow set up. To see the animals breath, the whites of their eyes and their eyelashes - there's nothing else like it to me. Outsmarting their nose and their ears takes some serious skill and know how in my opinion.”

Peliska’s bear hunting odyssey started a few years ago when his friend and UPS co-worker Ron Paul told him that there had been several bear sightings on a property in rural Gilbert owned by Paul’s parents Rich and Rose.

Once he had the place to hunt it was just a matter of getting drawn in the bear lottery. Department of Natural Resources officials only release a certain number of permits each year and it took Peliska three tries to get a tag.

Then, he says, the real work began.

One of the things that kept him from the sport in the past was the amount of time needed for pre-season scouting and baiting.

But with help from his friend Ron Paul and using bait from various sources, including an apple tree in his parent’s yard, Peliska was able to set up shop.

“I was able to do the baiting on days off and on weekends. Ron’s dad and mom did the baiting Monday through Friday when I wasn't able to make it out there,” Peliska said. “Over a two-week baiting period, we determined via trail cam that we had a yearling cub, two 200- to 250-pound bears, a 300-pound bear and a 400-pound-plus pound bear coming into this bear station. My goal was to try and harvest a bear over 200 pounds.”

On opening day Peliska and Ron Paul (who was going to video the hunt) made their way to Peliska’s stand in the early afternoon.

Peliska said that through the use of the trail cams they had a pretty good idea what bears bears were hitting the bait pile and when.

And at about 6 p.m. the action picked up.

“We started hearing some really cool yet odd noises coming from straight behind us. It sounded like a bear knocking down dead trees,” Peliska said. “So (Ron) got himself and the video camera positioned that direction, east. The noise was on going for the better part of 10 to 15 minutes. I was looking back over my left shoulder and panned back to the bait pit and from the straight south from behind a pine tree out popped a big black blob.”

Peliska said he immediately grabbed his bow, a Mathews Z7-Xtreme, off the bow hanger, knowing immediately that it was a shooter (no cubs with it).

“The bear came around the tree and climbed up on top of the bait pile and started to move around the logs to get to the bait. I had about six different opportunities to shoot but I remembered that on the Outdoor Channel they always said you want to let the bear expose its shot side armpit,” he said, adding that waiting that 30 to 45 seconds felt like forever.

“I finally drew, brought my pins down on him and put my 20 yard pin on him. He then exposed that armpit at a slightly quartering away angle and I dropped the string on him. I saw the arrow hit right where I was aiming,” Peliska said.

The bear blew off the bait pile like an explosion and ran off to the southeast, Peliska said, adding that the two men heard crashing sounds not long after.

About 10 minutes later they climbed down and followed the blood trail, finding the massive bear about 40-yards away.

“It was amazing to see this fella up close. He was massive. The kicker was the other bear knocking down dead trees was still there and now madder than ever because we were between him and the food source,” he said. “We exited the woods and went back to the house to get help hauling this big bear out of the woods.”

After registering it, he brought the bear to a taxidermist friend, who measured the bear, skull and paws and estimated it was at least six-feet tall and more than 300 pounds.

Peliska, who considers himself an extremely avid deer hunter, said he might have found something to rival that sport.

“It was an amazing experience. One I will never forget.  I'm pretty sure I've found a new addiction,” he said.