Ashley Casperson spent the 2020 bear season proving to herself and the world that she was capable of achieving her dreams.
Date Harvested: September 20, 2020
Location: Ontario, Canada
Weapon Used: Mathews Vertix
Ashley Casperson watched a giant boar from mid-August until they finally came face to face in mid-September. Using her SPYPOINT Link-Evo, she kept tabs on it and other bears. She’s no stranger to the sport, and spends a lot of time chasing these majestic animals.
“I have harvested multiple Ontario black bear with both compound bow and rifle,” Casperson said. “I have hunted big bush, bear baits, and spot-and-stalk in standing corn fields.”
She’s tagged several good ones, including a potential record FROW bear in 2017 that weighed 648 pounds and had a 20 2/16-inch skull, and two giant bears in 2019.
In 2020, it happened again. But it came together largely because of the time she spent scouting and prepping for the hunt.
“Because I was hunting almost two hours from where I live, I had to make effective use of my time,” Casperson said. “I would put in so many early mornings and late nights driving to check cams before or after work leading up to the season. When it came time to hunt, I didn’t want to pressure the area and wanted to be able to show up and get it done in one trip. I ran the SPYPOINT cell cameras, which enabled me to pattern the bears, plan where to hunt and saved me hours and hours of commuting to check trail camera photos.”
On September 20, the morning started out with cool temperatures, but warmed up quickly. The wind blew out of the Northwest.
“I jumped a buck when walking to the stand that afternoon, and there was fresh moose and deer sign everywhere,” Casperson said. “It was windy when I arrived but had gone dead calm about 20 minutes before my boar came out.”
Around 1:30, she settled into the stand along a big hardwood ridge that’s surrounded by swamp and marsh ground. Watching an owl and two fishers helped pass the time.
A couple hours later, she spotted a big bear feeding on acorns, and it angled toward her.
“He came in from the ravine on my right out of the swamp,” Casperson said. “He did not hesitate when walking in but paused briefly to scent check when he was close. He then went behind a big oak tree and was broadside in front of me when he came out. I drew back.”
She took the 28-yard shot. The arrow struck the back of the lungs, and got a full pass through. The boar ran approximately 20 yards, and disappeared over a cliff. Because she didn’t see the bear go down, Casperson gave it plenty of time to expire.
Eventually, she climbed down to check her arrow. It looked promising, so she took up the blood trail. As soon as she looked over the cliff, she spotted the bear at the bottom of the hill at the edge of the swamp.
“This was an incredibly memorable hunt for me,” Casperson said. “I was going through a lot. Scouting and hunting were my escape. It was my first ever experience doing everything solo, from scouting to skinning. I challenged myself and did something solo that many people told me I couldn’t do.
“This bear means so much to me,” Casperson continued. “It marks a milestone in my life and made me stronger knowing that I could achieve anything I worked hard at. It showed me that I can count on myself and that I should never listen to the negativity of others. If you want something bad enough, you can make it happen. This hunt wasn’t about a trophy or to harvest a big bear. This hunt was about learning, putting my skills and experiences to use in the field alone, to believe in myself and my knowledge, and to not give up.”
Of course, after tagging the bear, she couldn’t wait to start cooking and eating the prime meat. She thought about all of the recipes she’d get to try out.
By: Josh Honeycutt
