The hunter raised his crossbow, steadying his elbow on the arm of his wheelchair. It had been just one hour since the guides had wheeled him into the blind and already the first bear of the evening was at the bait barrel. After months of planning and arranging, the hunter was now staring out the porthole of the blind at a hungry 175 lb. spring bear. The adventure had started over a year ago when this author had approached the hunter, David Mallak, as he sat quietly in his wheelchair, people-watching in the hallway of the Crossroad Shopping Center in St Cloud, Minnesota. When asked if he was a bowhunter, David responded with, “No, I’ve never been hunting.”

           At the time, David was 50 years old. He confessed with his next sentence that he had always wanted to hunt, but that he had never been given the opportunity. I boldly told him that this was his lucky day and that his life was about to change; for the better. And it did!  That very same fall, David attended the Annual UFFDA Camp Wilderness Hunt in Minnesota and became a member of the “Successful Bowhunter’s Club” by harvesting a handsome fork horn buck. The down side of his achievement was that many of us had to listen to him share the details of his triumph over and over and over again. Such a tough job!

           With his first big-game bow harvest behind him, he began to dream of expanding his horizons. Upon seeing details about the annual HBM Spring Fling Manitoba spring bear hunt in an issue of the Horizontal Bowhunter Magazine, Dave called me to gather more information. After many questions, he took the plunge by asking me if I would take him on that bear hunt, in spite of his wheelchair. The answer was, of course, yes.

           For almost two decades, outfitter Russ Bettschen of Lynn Lake Fly-in Outpost Camps has been our host for the Manitoba adventure for three very good reasons. Number one, he gladly works with our physically challenged comrades, doing more than is expected to assure that each one has the experience of a lifetime.
The second reason for our loyalty is that Russ has some of the finest bear hunting on the continent. His spring-bear population includes many large animals with a high percentage of color phases. The third and final reason is that the annual trek to Lynn Lake provides another opportunity to ride the rough ridges of northern Manitoba with Lee Nolden, Russ’ chief guide for the early wave of spring bear hunters.
           Lee provides excellent service, encyclopedia quality animal and fishing lore, while still being a down to earth, knee-slapping entertainer. He can turn a hunt that is going poorly into an experience worthy of anyone’s memory book.  Kevin Noetzelman, a fellow UFFDA board member joined David and me, offering his Ford Expedition and trailer, which provided ample space and comfort for three hunters and a mountain of their gear. By Saturday morning on May 20th, the team was assembled in my front yard, the packing was complete and the journey had begun.

           We arrived at Lynn Lake, Manitoba after almost two days of driving. Each of us enjoyed the dramatic change of scenery that is afforded by the continuous trek northward. A quick look at any road atlas will surprise you with just how far north Lynn Lake, Manitoba really is. Half the fun of the quest, however, is the journey through mile after mile of pristine Canadian wilderness.  We checked into The Bronx Hotel where a spacious 2-bedroom apartment that had been reserved by our host. We hadn’t even finished our unpacking when the telephone rang and Russ commanded from the other end, “Get your butts out here! The weather’s broken and the bears are going to be moving.”   We scrambled to obey. The weariness brought on by our long journey north immediately disappeared at the prospect of bagging big, black bruins a day early.

           After a 45-minute drive to the lodge, we sighted in our weapons to make sure that nothing had been bumped out of place on the rough roads to Lynn Lake. When accuracy had been confirmed, Russ and Lee loaded us into their vehicles to transport us into the bush.
Upon reaching our destination, Dave had to be wheeled 200 yards through dense cover, which included rolling over a large number of fallen sown trees. Our guides never batted an eye as they huffed and puffed, taking steady bites out of the distance that separated David from his bear bait.

          Once there, we quickly set up our ground blind, adjusting it so that the hunter and the cameraman had an equally clear vantagepoint overlooking the area around the barrel. When we were completely situated, Russ and Lee bid us farewell and disappeared back toward the road.

          As the minutes passed, the forest slowly came back to life from the silence that had been imposed upon it by the intrusion of the hunting party. The ever-friendly Gray Jays began to glide into our line of vision and Ravens could be heard giving the all-clear sign to their bird-buddies. Within a half an hour, it was business as usual, as the forest creatures resumed their daily routine.

           David was immersed up to the crown of his hat in sensual stimuli. He took in every new scent, sound and motion, usually following it with a question. He was like a small child making his first trip to a splendid toy store. His eyes were alive with the sparkle that can only be put there by something that is wild and wonderful. This evening was just a continuation of the “first time” experiences David had been bombarded with since leaving our front yard.  Suddenly he pointed towards the window and turned his head towards me holding up two fingers. I glanced out and spotted the large round head of a bear. It was standing on a game trail 50 yards away, looking towards the bait. I slowly moved to the camera, but by the time it was powered up and focused, the animal was gone.

           David excitedly whispered that there had been two bears. The larger of the two had taken a swing at the smaller one and they had disappeared into the heavy cover, headed north. We scanned the dense bush as the blood drummed through our ears to the beat of our speeding hearts.   After ten minutes, our systems began to slow only to be ignited once again by the arrival of another bear. It came down the trail that we had used when we had arrived at the bait. Without hesitation, the animal moved to the larder and began to dine on the treasures that it found around the barrel. It was completely “blind-sided” by our unique shelter, which sat a mere twelve yards away.

           The camera rolled as I closely examined the bear with the help of the zoom lens. It was a handsome creature with a thick and luxurious coat. I looked over at David and was rewarded by the sight of one very excited bear hunter. He watched the animal in total awe as he nervously held his crossbow at the ready.
I went back to the lens and continued to record the activities of the dining bruin. This was a smaller bear than the one that I had seen earlier. While we waited for the larger one to come in and claim his rightful place of dominance, I would document the antics of our present guest.

          When the animal had finished consuming the grease and bag, it moved to the bait barrel and began to withdraw the deposits, which had been left there by our guides. As the bear chomped away at the groceries, I could not help but notice what an excellent angle for a shot it was presenting the hunter. As it moved its right leg forward exposing its boiler room, I thought to myself, “Perfect!”

           The loud eruption of David’s crossbow being fired within the confines of our blind caused me to spastically jerk my head away from the viewfinder of the camera. Not before, however, I saw the arrow, followed by the vivid orange flare of he vanes, bury itself deeply into the chest of the unsuspecting black bear. With florescent feathers protruding from its flank, the bruin turned, snapping its jaws at the unseen enemy that had stung its side.
It quickly tuned and charged away, astounding us with its tremendous speed and power. Within seconds, we heard the animal began to emit its death moans.

        Judging by the loudness of its final uttering, we knew that it had not gone far. I tuned to the wide-eyed David as he asked me, “Was that a good shot?”  I burst into laughter at the man’s disheveled expression and uncertainty and then confirmed his victory as I said, “You got your bear, David!”
         
          He excitedly explained that he realized when the bear came into the bait, it was not the larger of the two. It had presented him with a perfect shot, however, so he decided to take it. The animal, he went on, was a nice sized bear and he was completely satisfied with his trophy. To David, the bottom line was that he had harvested his first black bear with a bow and he had made a perfect shot in doing so.

           Once our emotions had settled a bit, I left the blind to make sure that the bear was down. It had gone only 25 yards before falling in its final struggle with death. We radioed the lodge and immediately the guides were on their way to remove Dave’s trophy and hunting team from the bush.

             We filled in the remaining time until the arrival of Russ and Lee by shooting video cutaways and exposing a roll of still photographs. Once the guides arrived, more photos were taken of the hunter, his trophy and the proud staff of Lynn Lake Fly-in Outpost Camps. It was a gala celebration as we reveled in the accomplishment of a very unique and intensely satisfied bowhunter.
The bear was hauled out of the timber by our guides and moved back to the lodge where it was field dressed and hung to cool in the brisk, night air. The next day, the animal was skinned and deboned by Russ’ skilled staff. David supervised the entire operation, not wanting to miss a single phase of the process.

           For the next five days, the successful hunter had nothing to do but fish and spend countless hours watching the video of his first bear harvest. It was an unforgettable adventure for David and just as memorable for Russ, his staff and, of course, for Kevin and me.      It also was also a text book lesson about life. If people truly desire to accomplish something worthwhile, regardless of how serious their personal limitations are, they can achieve their dreams. It is just a matter of making the right circumstances and the right people come together at exactly the right time. David did precisely that and in doing so, he touched the lives of us all.