Ashton's Turn

Ashton accompanied me at the bear stand last year when he was six and absolutely loved it. He was looking forward to doing it again, and even wanted to try and shoot the bear himself. I was all for this, but we had a lot of work to do to get him ready. 

Leading up to May, we spent many nights reviewing hunter safety and looking at pictures of bears. I probably asked him hundreds of times... where would you shoot this bear? Sometimes I would give him trick pictures where there wasn't a good shot or a shot shouldn't be taken, but by the many of the hammering sessions, he was pinpointing the vitals consistently. I had no doubt he knew where the bullet needs to go, but the next stepping stone was getting him comfortable with a large caliber rifle. 

Ashton absolutely loves shooting the .22 rifle, but he never shot anything bigger (except maybe his 10ga, which kicks like a son of a gun). He's not the most brave or confident kid in the world, so I knew taking him shooting and leaving with the desire to shoot again may be difficult, especially since he gets anxious about failing and trying new things. 

I put the muzzle break on my 6.5 Creedmoor and we headed to the range with Kevin. It wasn't Ashton's first time at the range, but it was his first time shooting there. We went to a 25 yard area and put up the targets. He has handled a gun many times and knows the safety rules, but this time, we were loading it. 

The rifle would sit in a lead sled so he wouldn't feel any kickback, something he was nervous about. But before that, he needed to get use to simply pulling the trigger. He sent a couple rounds down range without aiming as we went over proper holding, breathing, trigger pulls, etc. I could tell he was both excited and scared by his movements and comments. 

He finally got the courage up to look down the scope and aim at the target. Although very hesitant and likely with terrible form, he squeezed the trigger and hit the target. He felt a sudden surge of accomplishment, knowing it didn't hurt or kill him while also hitting the target. In fact, he hit a couple inches above the center, easily a kill shot on a bear. 

Lots of back patting and anxious/ excited talking later, he put a few more rounds down range, each of them grouping within a few inches of the center. Although we were there for a couple hours, Ashton only poked about 6 holes in the paper. That's alright though, the point was to get him comfortable; mission accomplished. 

We scheduled a few other times to head to the range prior to the bear hunt, each of which Ashton felt more comfortable and able to shoot better. By the time we were done with the shooting sessions, I was confident he would hit where he was aiming. 

Day 1

The plan was to pick up Ashton from school on Friday, shoot down to the stand, rebait, get a good night's rest, and wake up early the next day to start hunting. I would be lying if I told you I was confident that's how it would work out, but thankfully, it did! There were no hiccups at all. 

Ashton came running out of school excited to get going. Of course, he told all his friends where he was going. He made sure they all saw the truck and camper too to reemphasize his upcoming adventure. 

We stopped to grab some pizza on the way down and drain the bladders before hitting the road for a few hours. He talked my ear off the entire way, not about hunting, but anything he saw along the way. He was obviously excited, which of course excited me to see. 

We got to our parking spot a little after 6PM. We got my pack ready, stuffed heavy with with bait and scent destined to lure in Ashton's bear. As we were packing our layers, I asked Ashton where his coat was. I didn't pack him a rain coat because he takes one to and from school every day. Of course, this was the FIRST time he forgot to bring it home with him! This had me worried because not only was this a key item to keep him dry, but it also functioned as a wind breaker from sitting for hours in the stand being blasted with cold gusts. Being wet and cold in Alaska is no joke, but I didn't have time to figure out a solution that night... plus the weather was nice so it wasn't really needed until the next day, so we left our layers behind. 

On our way in, I coached Ashton on how to best walk through the woods avoiding hazards, the correct route to get to the stand, where we could/ couldn't talk and how loud, "no pee" zones, and what to do if a dangerous situation were to occur or we came face to face with a bear. He absorbed it all quickly. 

Here is Ashton hiking the road to the trailhead. One day I'll make him carry some heavy things on his back so I don't have to carry everything. 

He wanted to climb the hills so bad on the way in, so I told him if we were fast we could do it on the way out. 

And here he goes, not giving up until he reached the top. 

We got to the stand about an hour and a half after leaving the truck. The barrel was empty but it wasn't beaten to a pulp, so that meant it wasn't bare for too long. The bear bell (think yummy smelling suet) was still hung high across the trees. Thank fully the smart brown bear from years prior wasn't able to figure out how to tear this one down.

We pulled the SD cards from the game cameras, rebaited the barrel, dropped some oil, and sprayed the air with anise... then got out of there as quick as possible. Hopefully that was enough to bring back a bear or two during the time we would be there. 

We got back to the truck around 9:30PM. We were both starving so we grabbed some snacks, booted up the laptop, and took a gander at the action on the bait stand over the last few weeks. Looking at all the bear pictures and videos really got Ashton excited! I also used this time to quiz him again on shot placement, which he nailed consistently. 

The following are pictures I took of my laptop screen while scrolling through the SD cards... you can get a good sense of what kind of action occurs at a bear stand, and to see what helped get Ashton even more excited. 

The picture above is Friday night. Check out the time that bear was at the barrel... now look at the time stamp of the pic that captured me and Ashton walking in to the barrel... 

This is a very big black bear!

This bear was up to no good! He stared directly into the camera and then proceeded to destroy the camera. 

Here he is with the battery cable in his mouth that he ripped out of the camera and battery box. Luckily I had AA batteries in the camera too so it didn't go down and I could catch the culprit!

Another really nice black bear.

This guy is on his hind legs, jumping, trying to reach the bear bell strung high above him. This is how a large boar got it one year even tho it was 12 feet in the air. I now hang it 15+ feet high. 

Same here... but I think this may be the big boar that has grabbed it in the past. 

The combination of snacking and looking at everything on all three SD cards made us go to bed fairly late. I decided that we didn't need to get up early the next day since we just rebaited and needed a little time to marinade before bears would likely come back. I also didn't want a cranky kid the entire day on the stand, so I opted for us to sleep in until Ashton decided to wake up. 

Day 2 (Hunting Day 1)

I still got up early to pack and get things ready for the day… packing lunch, clothes, entertainment, hunting gear, etc. I had a smallish, fleece lined coat of mine in my truck’s emergency stash of items, so I grabbed that to use as Ashton’s rain/wind break layer. He was going to swim in it, but he would be dry and warm!

Ashton eventually got up sometime after 8AM at which time I promptly had him stuff his face with donuts and a banana. It was at this time he got ahold of the Go-Pro and started narrating the different parts of the hunt… I will let him talk you through our adventures, and I’ll fill in some gaps with pictures and text 😊

His serious bear hunter face...

Ashton leading the way through the woods trail

This is our final approach to the bear stand. It's a little nerving walking in to a place you know big bears are constantly visiting from all directions. This is where we have to be on high alert. You'll notice I'm carrying the handgun out of the holster... every tenth of a second counts at close range.

12 hours straight of sitting means we need something to keep us busy while waiting for a hungry bear to come in... his tablet kept him still and his mind from wondering. The only problem with this is he would occasionally laugh out loud or say something to me without whispering (due to his ear buds being in); that's a learning curve he is stills working on. 

This is the first black bear to come in to the stand! 

He was a dandy! And he was in no hurry at all. 

Ashton was very nervous. This was a new experience and a lot to take in! This was the first time shooting the big rifle outside of the gun range and off the lead sled. The tree stand wasn't made for little guys, so the rest was too high for him. He had to sit on his legs to raise him high enough to level out the rifle. Combining all this with the adrenaline/ anxiety/ and excitement made for difficult shooting conditions. 

I told Ashton to take his time; only pull the trigger when you know it is aimed at the correct spot, your breathing is under control, you can squeeze slowly, and you are comfortable. Well, this bear hung out for about an hour. Ashton had the rifle locked on him the entire time, but the bear never gave him a shot Ashton was comfortable with. Truth be told, that was my fault!

I learned a lot on this first day of hunting... a lot of what NOT to do with a bear stand and getting a young kid on his first bear. First of all, we should have practiced shooting outside the use of the lead sled. But my biggest mistake I made was assuming Ashton would be able to shoot any black bear that came in to the stand. I failed to recognize that Ashton needed a good 10 seconds of the bear standing still, broadside, in order for him to get his breathing right and feel comfortable pulling the trigger. Me on the other hand, I only need the bear to present a kill zone shot for a second and the deal is sealed. However, with most bear stands, a 10 second standing or side shot isn't difficult to get. But with my bear stand, it's near impossible. The reason is because there is a huge crater below the barrel (see above pic). This pit had been dug and eaten out over the last decade from bears on the barrel. When a bear comes in, it sits or lays in the crater, and feeds on the barrel. This covers the lower half of the bear and for Ashton, that's not a good shot because he can't locate the vitals without seeing the whole bear. STUPID ME!!! This meant the only good shot Ashton would likely get is if a bear was outside the pit holding still while sideways, for a lengthy amount of time... not happening. I set the kid up for failure, and that was a tough pill for me to swallow :(

Ashton was a little clumsy in the bear stand. He first dropped his peanut butter crackers, followed shortly by one of his gloves. 

Not to be outdone, I dropped BOTH of our full bags of clothes, gear, food/drink, and everything except the gun from to stand. To my defense though, a rope broke causing the stuff to tumble. 

We got out of the stand and back to camp by 8 to both be out before it got dark and to allow us to scarf some dinner before going to bed. Getting up early was the plan for the next day. 

Day 3 (Hunting Day 2)

We got up early and ready for the day, but on our way out, Ashton had to poop. 

If you don't know Ashton well enough, his pooping sessions take about 30 minutes! This includes 15 minutes of sitting, and 15 minutes of wiping. This put us a little... behind, lol 

On our way in. Again, I need to put some weight on that kids back!

It was a cold morning; plants were frosted over. 

Ashton got to see his first wild brown bear. Brown bears are a nuisance... they are big, mean, eat everything, and aren't worth hunting because they taste horrible and can't legally do anything with the hide or body parts except put it in your house.

 I scared this guy off, because that food is reserved for black bears! Notice the cut on his face... he was in a fight recently. 

Despite scaring him off, he came back a few hours later. It was a little more difficult to scare him off the second time. 

And of course, free food keeps him close by, so he returned for a third time!

The brown bear was gone long enough to allow a black bear to come in. This guy wasn't a monster, but he wasn't tiny either. The picture above does a good job of showing you what Ashton was having difficulty with... the lower half being covered. 

This guy hung out for quite a while as well. Ashton would hold the rifle on him, but as long as the bear was in the pit, Ashton wouldn't look down the scope at it because he didn't have a shot. Sitting on his foot and holding the rifle for an hour wore on him too. But after waiting for that long, his patience was rewarded. Something spooked the bear out of the pit. He stood tall on the lip of the pit, standing sideways, looking hard into the woods. This gave Ashton time to collect himself, control his breathing, take careful aim behind the shoulder, and gently pull the trigger... click. SON OF $!&^%! I didn't put a bullet in the chamber when I handed him the rifle!!!! I quickly chambered a bullet, but by that time, the bear shifted positions. He grew nervous about what was in the trees, and he walk away unharmed. 

I failed Ashton... again :(

He was in in good spirits though, and wasn't mad at me at all. I'm shocked he didn't give me the mother of all guilt trips, because I deserved it!

Day 4 (Hunting Day 3)

On the hike in this morning, Ashton said to me... We have to chase our dreams, because they won't chase us. I'm pretty sure he heard that in a YouTube video somewhere, but it was an appropriate pep talk for the morning. 

We may have shaved some time off our morning from the hitchhiked ride we got, but this woods poop stop made us break even. 

I decided I needed to try and get the bears to stand still broadside. Ashton had a box of Little Debbie cupcakes in the camper, so I brought a handful and smeared them on the side of the barrel. I thought this would get the bears to stand and hold still while licking them off. 

It's a bad picture but this is the most beautiful gold and black bird I have ever seen! This little fella kept us entertained for a while in the stand. 

One thing that was plentiful on the bear stand... mosquitos. Ashton decided he was tired of getting tortured by them and decided to take matters into his own hands (by taking their hands).

This big guy showed up a few hours after we arrived in the stand. He was loving the cupcakes, but he would not stand to lick them off. The crater was too narrow and his body too long that when he stood, he angled down and that wasn't comfortable for him... dang it!

Here is Ashton, waiting patient for a potentially good shot. As long as the bear was in the pit, he was safe. 

The bear eventually got out of the pit and was sniffing around. To my surprise, he actually turned broadside and held still for quite a while. This gave Ashton a chance to shoot (at) him. Unfortunately, Ashton missed completely. I have NO IDEA how he missed, but he shot below and through his legs. 

We reviewed his approach, his aimed location, breathing, hold, trigger pull, etc and he insisted he did everything right. He was sad about this miss, and wanted another opportunity... which he got 30 minutes later when the bear came back in. 

This bear was eventually shot by Ashton while it was standing in the pit. He got hit, ran away, and never looked back. At first, we thought it was a good spot from the yelp the bear released, but there was no blood to be found and no indication he was fatally wounded. 

I spent the next couple hours looking for the bear in thick cover, while Ashton stayed safely in the tree stand. After unsuccessfully finding any sign of the bear, I returned to Ashton to tell him the news he suspected. I would later review the video in slow motion and could tell he again shot low. This time it hit the bear in the arm/foot area. There was now a wounded bear out there, with the inability to use one leg for the rest of their life :(

This was tough for me. It was my fault for letting him shoot the bear after missing so terribly on the first one. He obviously did the same thing a second time, and I should have prevented that from happening. Also, wounding an animal is absolutely unacceptable. Although it is a part of hunting, and all hunters will experience the inability to retrieve an animal they shot, it is the hunter's moral obligation to ensure they are prepared enough to make a clean kill. That was my obligation for Ashton, and my failure as well. 

It tore my heart apart knowing the bear was suffering because of the rifle I put in my child's hands, but there was nothing I could do at this point. Ashton on the other hand, did not have the emotional response I was experiencing. Wounding an animal did not make him upset at this point in his life as he truly did not know the bear would eventually die as a result of the wound, and likely be in pain until that occurred. Ashton did not know he missed the bear's vital. Ashton did not know it was a bad thing to not retrieve an animal. Ashton did not know what hunting really meant. 

It was my job to teach him these things, but this was not the way I wanted to educate him. I was torn between frustration, anger, sadness, and disappointment, not really at Ashton, but at myself as well. He took a bad shot when I know he can hit where he is aiming. But it would not do any good to point fingers and tear him down. This was an impressionable moment for him. If I berated him and made him feel bad for what occurred, he would resent the hunt and likely not want to do it again. If I told him it was alright and that it happens and not to worry about it, it would suggest this is a common thing and it's no big deal. 

I was forced to find middle ground... emphasizing the tragedy that just occurred, not pointing blaming fingers at him, and figuring out a way to learn from our mistakes (by walking through them) while delivering some type of consequence. We talked a lot about the shot and made plans to practice more for next time... but that next time would not be in 2023. Although we can shoot 5 bears in this area, I told Ashton that the wounded bear counts as his bear for the season, and he can not shoot another one. He would not get another opportunity to redeem himself. Doing so will take another year of waiting, stewing on our mistakes, and ensuring it didn't happen again. 

Pooped kid!

Ahhh, the lullaby of a vehicle.

This is a pictures of a waterfall from the snow melt off the rocks. Ashton told me to take a picture of it, so I did, while driving by it at 55 MPH. He was obsessed with the waterfalls, telling me to look at each one he found, and counting over 100 of them on the way home (when he wasn't sleeping). 

Overall, I take full accountability for everything that happened, or didn't happen. If I could do it again, I would definitely change many things. The silver lining in this is Ashton still had a blast despite coming home empty handed. He's excited to try again next year, and boy will I make sure we are better prepared!

 And here are a couple goofy videos of this silly boy...