Late in the afternoon Wednesday,
September 9th, the opening day of the
2026 Wisconsin bear season Jarrod
Erdody let Mike Foss know via text that he
had just arrowed a big bear. Foss dropped
from his own stand to help in the recovery.
Both hunters and good friends had been
baiting six stands for months over 26 miles
of Zone A near Lake Superior.
“I knew I couldn’t sit another two hours
without helping track,” said Foss, a former
guide who had led literally hunters of hunter
to bears but had never filled a Wisconsin tag
himself. “An hour later, we reviewed video
footage of the hit and knew the arrow was
placed perfectly.”
The bear was dead within 30 seconds
of the shot and had fallen in a ravine.
Wolves, a major problem on all six stands
during baiting, were on the carcass almost
immediately and made quick work of
the boar although the vast majority of
the meat was salvaged. In the black, the
wolves remained close and made their
dissatisfaction clear that Erdody and Foss
were claiming their kill.
Even ravaged by the wolves and skinned,
quartered and deboned, Erdody’ boar
weighed in on the scales later at 380 pounds.
The stage was set for day two, and Foss
climbed to his stand by 2 p.m. hoping for
an encounter with a very big, lone sow that
had periodically come to bait during the
preseason.
“I’m in their environment, their backyard,
their home,” Foss said. “To single out and
outsmart a mature black bear is what I’m
after. I knew which bear I wanted; it was
that or nothing at all.”
At 6 p.m. Foss said a prayer of thanks for
simply being there. By 7 p.m., he heard the
cautious approach of a bear that circled wide
to his left. There was no wind that would
enable her to pick out the danger.
“She appeared at the bait like a ghost,”
Foss said. “I drew my bow and settled the
pin, but had to wait until she moved her
right front foot forward to open the bullseye
better.” Preparation for months and another
well-placed arrow was rewarded with
another very large bear expiring quickly
15 feet behind the hunter’s stand. An old,
intelligent Bayfield County sow weighed in
at 398 pounds.
“Jarrod and I targeted two mature black
bears that had eluded many hunters for
many years,” Foss said. “Rarely does a plan
like this come together, especially in two
days. I have always loved and appreciate
bears and still get emotional reminiscing
about my one and only Wisconsin bear
hunt. A memory that I will cherish forever.”
