This will be my first year of baiting, & I am curious as to what some of you use. Anything out of the ordinary that you've found works well?

Though we may not think they would taste good...I've heard that In-Laws work well.

Bear will eat anything. . Start with fish or something that smells really bad with some bread or dog food. Make sure the sun hit's the bait mid-day. So it will heat it up and get things good and smelly. Put down some fryer grease all around your bait. This will create a scent trail when the bear come in to the bait they will step in the grease. "Other bears will follow the trail right to your bait" Check the bait every day once they hit the bait start mixing it up a little. Just bread,then bread/dog food with fryer grease. Then add the sweets..."it's much better to sit by a sweet bait than one that smells"...LOL that way you don't have to smell it all day. I don't bait any more here in Washington they won't let us. Sure wish we could it was alot easier to juge a bears size by how big they were next to the bait barrel. Oh...one more thing it is Very important to talk to yourself or whisle on the way to the bait!!! This will let the bear or bears know you are on yor way. You don't want to suprrise a bear at the bait site. They will leave the site but, they will be close if not watching you!! Do everything the same way every time you go to the bait....Change one thing or forget to whisle or talk to yourself and it will be days before a bear will hit the bait again.

Members of the Anti-Gun and Hunting crowd

before it was outlawed in oregon I found the best thing to be bacon grease and anise oil poured over pastries, especially garlic bagels, I did not set up long term bait stations this bait would bring things in, in a hurry if they were anywhere around. There are too many idiots in the woods in this state to leave a tree stand up or make a permanent bait station on public land.

Thanks guys.
Unfortunately XP we can't use fish or fish parts here, & when we are done the bait sight has to be cleaned up completely, including removing all dirt contaminated by cooking oils, so I think I'll just mix grease & oil with the dogfood or some such..
Keep the ideas & tips coming!

Down here in Carolina some of the boys I shoot with bait them with honey buns. They just bag a bunch of them up and poke holes in the bag to let the smell out. Whether that is illegal I do not know. The only bear hunting I know how to do is with dogs.

if you have to clean everything up, have you thought about trying predator calling. I got a big boar in close up by crater lake but could never get the shot, it was actually kind of spooky because it was so thick I could smell him, hear him, and catch glimpses of him at about 40 yds but he hung up, I think he winded me because he started popping his teeth and thrashing some sapplings. Talk about an adrenaline rush.

I have thought abot predator calling, & have even tried it on one occassion, but the dominate predator in my area is brown bear(which we can't shoot that time of year), & I don't have any desire to have an extremely agitated 10' brownie wandering around my stand if I can't shoot it.

don't blame you

Try this, they say it works!!

Bear Bait

Thats right JD HHI 6092, we raise our beers, I mean bears right, in the pacific northwest

I usually bring a PETA member with a honey bun in their pocket that can't run as fast as me!!

Vance, I remembered that a guide in Eagle Point told me once that he used cooked oatmeal with mollases and anise oil mixed in, for what it's worth he took alot of nice bears with it, assuming he gave his true recipe.