So where should you go to hunt black bear while perhaps you still can? One of the most justifiably famed and publicized locales is the north end of British Columbia's Vancouver Island, particularly that portion covered by Pacific Rim Guide Outfitters, Limited, operated by writer/muzzleloader trophy hunter and guide Jim Shockey. Shockey bought a large chunk of outfitter Wayne Wiebe's renowned territory several years ago and has maintained the tradition of producing outsized, jet-black bears for his clients, hunting them by various spot-and-stalk methods, some by land and some by sea. Shockey stays fully booked with hunters season after season, so the biggest problem with finding a bear with him is finding an opening when you can hunt.
Fortunately, Shockey has now expanded his operation two provinces to the east in central Saskatchewan where he has bought a new territory and started a new company, Canadian Whitetail Adventures, Limited, in the area around Sled Lake. As the name suggests, whitetail deer will be the major focus of this operation, but in the spring the camp with be devoted to bear hunting over bait. Color-phase bears can be found in the area, and size can be truly impressive.
This last spring, Texas outdoor-television personality, Larry Weishuhn, took a boar on tape whose black hide squared an honest seven feet, and whose girth measurements, based on a formula used by Canadian wildlife departments, gave a calculated weight of well above 500 pounds. Other hunters whom I spoke with when I visited the camp following Weishuhn's departure reported seeing as many as 10 or a dozen bears........(continued)
