Pic above is a bull from several years back " Lip Curling" in effort to wind a receptive female.

It’s time to start preparing for the Massachusetts moose rut. I’ve been setting trail cameras in areas where moose sign has remained consistent throughout the summer. With any luck, the trail cameras will capture some distinctive rutting activity.

My 2026 anecdotal “Bear Project” exceeded my expectations. It will take  me some time to analyze the data,  I’ll share my findings in upcoming blog posts.

Jim

New Sow In TC Area

 

This sow, shown with one of her three cubs, is checking a bear scent-marking tree. Several years ago, that tree was a healthy hemlock, but it likely does not have many years left before it falls. In past years, this was a busy bear corridor, though I’m not sure what has changed. So far this year, nineteen bears have passed through this area, and only one other sow with two yearlings.

Pic above shows the hemlock sapling before its demise in Sept 2023

The highbush blueberries are nearly gone, and bear activity in these areas has slowed significantly. Bears are still feeding on other berries, but none produce the same volume of fruit as highbush blueberry bushes.

Hickory nuts and white oak acorns have begun to ripen, and bears will soon be foraging on them, including by climbing the trees.

 

Jim

Who Is Eating The Blueberries?

 

A few weeks ago, I found several highbush blueberry bushes bent and broken, still heavy with berries. I set up a trail camera to monitor one bush, hoping a bear would take advantage of the low-hanging fruit—and a young bear did. The close-up video shows just how efficiently a bear can forage blueberries.

A squirrel also made frequent visits, which reminded me that small mammals benefit from a good blueberry crop, too.

Then, to my surprise, a family of three demonstrated how to reach the blueberries without getting wet.

Jim

Best Ever Moose - Trail Camera - Massachusetts

 

Now that bear activity has slowed, I have been repositioning trail cameras around beaver ponds in hopes of videoing ( TC) a moose feeding on aquatic vegetation or simply passing through. I expected a cow or young moose—not the impressive bull that walked past a Gardepro 7NWF camera. In all my years of camera trapping, this is the largest bull any of my trail cameras captured. He should look magnificent this fall before the rut.

Jim

Woods Have Calmed Down !

 

Bears are feeding in swamps with highbush blueberries, and several new bears have passed my trail cameras in these areas. The cover photo shows a new face. With mating season over, the woods have quieted down, and the trail cameras have videoed sows with cubs and yearlings in wetlands. A few scent-marking trees are still being used by medium to large boars.

Yesterday, while bushwhacking, I found a small area where a bear had rolled logs and pulled apart both a standing snag and a fallen one searching for insects..

Standing snag torn apart by bear

Bear spent time and effort pulling the downed snag apart

 

Jim

Find The Berries - You'll Find The Bears !

 

The small bear on the cover picture is a sow that had yearlings in tow late Spring. She is one of the three bears foraging on blueberries in a swamp.

 

Last year, the highbush blueberries had a banner crop in the swamps I was camera trapping. This year, the crop is more uneven: several swamps have sparse berries, while one swamp is loaded. Three different bears have found that site, as shown by broken blueberry branches and numerous scat piles throughout the swamp.

Highbush Blueberries

Bush Damaged From Bear 

There  is still some light scent marking going on with several bears at scent marking trees. One location that has been slow all year had three new bears pass by the marking tree in the last two weeks. Maybe just a coincidence.

I was excited to capture trail-camera video of a third sow with four cubs. So far this year, that makes three sows with four cubs each. The first sow with cubs was a considerable distance from the last two sows. The physical characteristics of the second and third sows made them easy to distinguish: one had a large body and a very dark muzzle, while the other had a much smaller frame and a brown muzzle.

Bear Scat w/ Blueberry Seeds Visisble

I have been moving trail cameras into blueberry swamps in hopes of capturing more videos of new bears.

Jim

Gardepro Solar Package Beaver Pond Set

 

It has been hot lately, so I’m glad I enjoy getting an early start at dawn.

Gardepro sent me an A60 Solar Package trail camera and I have it set up in a quiet, remote beaver pond. Wildlife activity has been slow in this area, likely because of the extreme heat. I also have two Gardepro T5WF trail cameras set nearby. I included a short YouTube video to share more details about the location.

So far, the A60 and T5WF cameras have videoed a respectable bear crossing the dam on a foggy morning. A few days ago, the T5WF captured a yearling cub foraging on the dam.

I use the T5WF white-flash trail cameras for fisher scent posts during the winter, though I believe this model is now obsolete.

I’ll share more photos as the summer goes on.

https://youtu.be/Ih9XxnbZLsI

Jim

Moose On The Move

 

It has been two months since I found this snag, which a bear had torn into while foraging for insects. A cow moose is the first notable mammal to pass through this location. I am still hoping the bear that excavated the snag returns, so I placed a small stick across the opening to tell from a distance whether anything has entered the cavity.

Moose have been on the move, with several cows and bulls triggering the trail cameras. So far, two different calves have been videoed.

Highbush blueberries are beginning to ripen, and one lone yearling has started feeding in one of the swamps my trail cameras are monitoring.

Jim

Just Like That, Everything Has Gone Quiet

 

My trail cameras have been working overtime recording bear activity throughout May and most of June. But this morning’s SD card check was unusually quiet. I checked three locations, with eight cameras monitoring bear scent-marking trees and two beaver dams. Seven cameras had zero bear triggers, and one TC captured two smaller bears crossing a log bridge.

Berry patches will likely be the next major food source. With mating season nearly over, sows with cubs should begin moving more freely. My trail cameras do not often capture sows with cub’s scent marking, but one sow with two cubs has been marking consistently in one area since early spring. Now, a second sow—the one in the cover photo—has marked in another location. Maybe sows with cub’s scent mark more than I realized, or perhaps my cameras simply have not captured much of that activity over the years.

Last week, while checking one of my more distant trail camera locations, a TC captured a second collared sow with four cubs. In ten years, this is only the second time my trail cameras have recorded two different sows with four cubs.

2nd Sow w/4 cubs

Jim

 

Gardepro Trail Camera company contacted me to ask whether I would be interested in trying out a TC solar package. The terms were agreed and the package arrived midweek. I set it up at a beaver dam with plenty of open sky. The solar panel needs direct sunlight and should face south to capture as much sun as possible. Because it would be difficult to conceal, I placed it in a secluded swamp. Once everything was set, I realized I had forgotten one thing: zip ties to secure the cable to the tree. I’ll take care of that on my next check.

This area has consistent bear activity, and with blueberries ripening soon, bears will likely use the beaver dam to reach them. It will be interesting to see how this setup performs.

Bear activity in May was high compared with April, as expected with mating season in full swing. April produced 53 bear triggers, while May produced 167. The year-to-date total bear triggers  is now 279 with what looks to be 45 different bears, including 19 new bears that showed up in May. As mating season winds down, males will soon return to their solitary routines and pass my TCs less often. On the other hand, now that males are no longer covering miles in search of females, sows with cubs should begin triggering the cameras more frequently.

Blueberries should be prime for foraging in a few weeks, so I have moved several trail cameras into those areas.

Jim

Returned Home From Camping And Several Surprises

 

A Milestone Week

It has been an interesting week. My wife and I just returned from our second camping trip, and when I checked on my blog, I noticed the page counter had reached 500,000 views. Flattering, to say the least.

I started this blog back in December 2012. Thirteen years may seem like a long time to reach that number, especially with today’s social media platforms and bloggers who have thousands of followers. Still, this feels like a meaningful milestone to me.

This blog started—and remains—a place where I share a few short weekly paragraphs about my outdoor adventures. To everyone who follows along:                                        Thank You!. I truly appreciate your interest in my adventures.

A New Trail Camera Opportunity

While we were away, a trail camera manufacturer contacted me about offering a free trail camera solar package. I am still working out the details and will share more in a future post.

A Long-Awaited Loon Photo

Finally, I captured a photo of a loon with a chick riding on its back. That shot has eluded me for years, and I am thrilled to have had the opportunity. Sometimes it really does come down to being in the right place at the right time.

Back to the Trail Cameras

Now it is time to get the hiking boots back on and start checking trail cameras again.

Jim

Pictured above is Blaze in ideal bear habitat

 

With bear mating season in full swing in Massachusetts, all the bear scent marking trees that my trail cameras are monitoring have been busy. One area ( ½ square mile) has five active scent marking trees that have been visited by seven different bears, two are females and five males.

All seven bears have visible features that help me identify them, I have named them according. There is Matty w/2 cubs - she appears to have mange and her fur is matted , Blaze -  has two large white blotches under his front chest, Dark Face -  has a solid black muzzle, Bald Back -  has balding running down the middle of his back, Butt Scar - has a large scar on his right butt cheek. Scar Face - has a long scar running along his muzzle and then finally No Scars - a beautiful looking bear. I have included a few pics below showing identifying features.

It will be interesting to see if the level of activity with the next SD card check remains high. Will the scent marking trees still be as active on the downward side of mating season? Will any new bears show up in this area?

One thing that I did find interesting was that Matty with her two cubs stays in the area with so many males. She has also scent marked three of the five scent marking trees. In my experience sows with cubs don’t tend to stay in areas with this level of male activity.

 

Blaze

Bald Back

Matty

Dark Face

Jim

MA Has Some Large Bears

 

It’s been a busy week at one of my log bridge TC sets. If you haven’t seen the video, its below. This morning there was light ice on my windshield, and we had snow mixed with rain yesterday. So, this cool morning  I made my furthest drive and longest hike to check trial cameras, and I was not disappointed. The two trail cameras have been watching a scent marking tree in a new location and it’s been just under a month since the last SD check. With the last check a large male    ( presumed) had checked the scent tree on two occasions. It was a beautiful bear with blue ear tags and a nice shine to its coat. It was the largest bear to visit any of my sites until this morning’s check. 

Was the biggest bear

This morning’s bear was a “ Goliath” and absolutely beautiful ! He has only visited this location once , hopefully he will be back. The large bear with the ear tags was also videoed shadowing a large female bear.

https://youtu.be/Px-uCGTR0Gs

 

 

Jim

Height Of Bear Activity

 

One of my new locations captured another collard sow with three cubs last week. It could possibly be the same sow with four cubs that I shared in April. I received feedback from one of my followers, they think there were four cubs in the video. I reviewed the video in slow motion and can only see three. I think the TC hickuped when the third cub jumped from the log. It’s  not  important, I try to stay as accurate as possible identifying new bears; I’m thrilled to have had a TC video the sow and cubs in a pleasing environment.

https://youtu.be/BTQ11WqCMos

Primetime bear activity !  So far, TC’s have videoed eighty-seven bears in May, with many TC’s still to be checked. I wouldn’t be surprised if bear videos exceed one hundred for the month.

YTD “ Different Bears” is now 31.

  The criteria I use to count individual bears and to keep track of total bear videos by location are:

1.      Sow with cubs count as one family group.

2.      If a similar looking bear triggers a TC in each area within one hour of the first TC trigger the video is not counted.

It’s not exact ,but I think it’s a good representation of the data collected.

 

Below are two examples of easily identifiable bears.

 Jim

Bears are pretty hardy animals and can usually overcome mange

Very easy to identify

Missed Opportunity With Trail Camera

 

I have a perfect location to set TC’s that has a fallen snag, that slightly cuts the corner on the edge of a beaver pond. Bears like to log-walk, and this log bridge attracts them every time. I didn’t set there last year due to “ People Issues”. It’s such a good spot, I thought I would give it another try this year. I missed a top-notch video opportunity because only one TC was set. In previous years, two were always set, one facing east and the other west. There is a sow and one yearling ahead of the two yearlings on the log bridge in the cover picture. There is a snag  just out of view to the left. When I last  checked the set on April 22^nd the snag had not been disturbed. I’m Hoping to video a future bear that shows interest in the dugout area on the tree. I got a bit creative ( I think lol ) with a new set. Hopefully bears will travel along the log bridge and continue digging for insects.

Jim

Snag torn into by a bear searching for insects

Hopefully this setup will video a bear digging into the snag 

Bear Activity Continues To Pickup !

 

One of the new areas I set up trail cameras (TC’s)  last month has had quite a bit of bear activity. Two TC’s were set in a wetland with visible sign of skunk cabbage leaves being foraged on and fresh bear scat. The swamp has mountain laurel on the east side with a game trail skirting the edge of the swamp. The first TC was set hoping to catch bears moving along the swamps edge foraging on skunk cabbage. The second TC was set on a small old scent tree with a visible bear bite mark on it. Both TC sets have been active ! There are three bears in the area,  sow with one yearling, a younger bear with blue ear tag and a larger bear assumed to be a boar. The TCs were set April 20^th. On April 21^st, a yearling climbed the tree ( cover pic)  in front of the TC. Also , a second bear climbed the same tree  on April 22^nd. On May 2^nd, a large boar wandered through showing no interest in the tree that the bears had climbed. I’m not sure why the bears did that. It will be interesting to see if the tree has been climbed a third time with the next SD card check.

           

All my TC’s have been busy in North Central MA capturing black bears on the move. Of the twenty locations I have set up, nineteen  or 95%  have had bear activity, The one site that had no activity was a “ role of the dice” when setting it up. . There was nothing in the area to draw bears. The landscape was ascetically pleasing, and I was hoping to get a bear or two passing through. I pulled those TC’s , they’ll be better used elsewhere.

As of this morning my trail cameras have videoed 25 different bears.

Jim

Bear Activity Very Good !

 

Meet Scar, he ( assumed at this point) has a curved scar on his butt. His first crossing of this beaver dam was on April 16^th and is the only bear to trigger a trail camera in the area so far this year. Last Thursday after checking SD cards I bushwhacked around the swamp and found a bear scent marking tree with a small fresh bite mark on it. I didn’t think much about it until later in the day. With all the TC bear sets that I have made this year , this is the first area with fresh bear sign. On Friday morning I hiked back in with a TC to set up on the bite tree, was I surprised, to see the size of the bite mark now . 

Bite mark on Thursday

 The bear had visited the tree since my visit yesterday morning. 

Bite mark on Friday

It’s likely Scar who scent marked the tree on both days given its proximity to the beaver dam.

It will be interesting to see how many bears visit this site.

Jim

 

This scent marking post (snag) was found during the winter of 2025 while tracking a fisher. I was surprised to see  this snag was a communal scent post with a variety of different mammals leaving there scent, mice , longtail weasel, raccoons, foxes, and fishers. I often wondered why a coyote , bear or bobcat didn’t visited the scent post. Several weeks back, I pulled the trail camera and when reviewing the SD card was surprised to see what animals showed up.

Bear seems to be interested in the scent post.

The male fisher only visited the scent post a few times in 2026, and no female fishers visited the site at all. Likely the deep soft snow kept fishers travelling through the treetops, I will put another TC back out at this location later this year.

Male fisher checks scent post without leaving scent

The bobcat ( cover pic) was the first ever to visit this site (snag) leaving a quick spritz of urine. The bear didn’t leave any scent but appeared inquisitive.

I now have twenty “ TC Bear Locations” with eight of them ( 20%) having at least one bear passing by a trail camera this year. As of April 25^th, eleven individual bears have been videoed. The goal for the year is thirty-five bears. We are off to a good start.

Jim

 

Soon To Be On There Own

 

The cover picture with the family of three bears will be disbanding soon. With the upcoming mating season, the sow will send these  yearling cubs off on their own  soon, as she will be an eligible candidate during this  Springs mating cycle. Massachusetts prime  bear mating season typically starts mid-May to mid-June.

The two yearlings were born in January 2025. The first time these bears passed one of my trail cameras was in early June of 2025. The sow is small and has shown that she has the protective instinct to raise and keep both bear cubs safe for a year and a half in an area with many bears.

I always enjoy finding the first fresh bear sign of the year. This morning while making TC sets, I noticed a large bear scat pile, then a second. They were full of green matter suggesting that the bear had found a skunk cabbage patch. The bear also tore into a snag and rotten logs. A scent marking tree close by had fresh bite marks on it. I set a trail camera to watch the activity around the tree.

Jim

Bears On The Move - Off To Good Start

 

I was able to visit most of my TC sets last week to make final adjustments, and glad that I did. Most locations needed cleanup from the recent high winds with two sets having blown over trees in front of the cameras. I also moved two TC’s after reviewing full SD cards with nothing but squirrels on them .

Six  different bears have triggered TC’s so far this year with two of them coming from one of the new locations ( pic above). No sow with this year’s cubs  have passed any of my trial cameras.

I was glad to see skunk cabbage starting to sprout. Find a remote skunk cabbage patch and you’ll likely find signs of bears foraging.

No shortage of ticks this year. Treating clothes with Permethrin helps, but you still need to be mindful. I still wear long johns , pulling my socks over the bottoms and tucking in my shirt. I also wear gaiters treated with Permethrin.

Well , it’s great to be out each morning checking trail cameras and I am looking forward to seeing what adventures 2026 holds.

Jim

The Bear Counter Has Started !

 

                                                   The pic is bear number two for 2026

It is always nice to see the first bears of the year on my trail cameras. I still have not checked all my TC locations yet ,but there have been three different bears videoed so far. The first bear to trigger a TC was a distant sow with two yearlings. This was the same sow and yearlings that were the last bears to trigger a TC in November of 2025. This morning’s SD card check gave up bear number #3 . It looked like the resident bear of that area.

                                                       (above) New set at remote swamp

                                              (Above) Bear scent marking tree with bear bite

I was able to get to another deep woods TC set last week. I have been reviewing this swamp using Google Earth for months and contemplating whether it would be worth the time and effort to bushwhack into that area. I was not disappointed ! There was an abandoned beaver pond approximately two acres in size. The only remnants of beavers were a few submerged  beaver chewed branches. The pond is  secluded and remote. Hiking the swamps perimeter showed highbush blueberries along with  red oak trees. It looks like this will attract bears in July with the blueberries and fall with acorns. I also found a scent marking tree with a bear bite mark and set up a TC.

Jim

Busy Log Bridge

 

 My final trail camera location tally for 2026 is eighteen, and so far, no bears! I haven’t been able to check all the sets, so there’s still a chance to get a first 2026 bear TC trigger in March. Looking back through my records, at least one bear had triggered a TC in March since 2022.

What I did get last week was the busiest log bridge wildlife activity yet in a week, with everything from a mouse to a moose and many things in between (mouse, moose, red and gray squirrel, raccoon, mink, coyote, beaver, weasel, wood duck, and red shouldered hawk eating a frog).

I’ve received reports of bears on the move in my trail camera area and have seen more on Facebook. The milder temperatures early next week are sure to get what I call the “ Deep Woods Bears “ moving.

Jim

Trail Cameras Set and Waiting For Bears

 

First day time coyote of 2026

It’s  been a busy week in the woods setting out trail cameras. I still have several more TC setups to go but I am pleased to have the majority done. Bears are appearing from there dens; it will be interesting to see which location videos my first bear of the year. In prior years, my camera trapping line was always set by early March. Snow this year put a wrench in the works.

A friend let me know he saw a sow with two cubs during his hike last weekend. Based on my years of collecting bear data, most sows with first year cubs hold tight to their dens until mid-April. It will be interesting to see if any of my TC’s videos have early bears with cubs.

 Below are my Trail Camera Goals for 2026. I’ll update accordingly.

-          Bear(s) walking along pond shoreline or stream.

-          New Locations with logs spanning over water – “ Log Bridge.”

-          Deploy TC’s in new locations .

-          Aesthetically pleasing backgrounds

-          Set up on different bear bite trees

Jim

Its Time ! Trail Camera Sets For Bears

 

It sure has been a busy week. The few days of warm temperatures melted enough snow to start setting out trail cameras. I’m excited about this year having new areas and new spots within existing areas.

 On that note, this week while driving down a country road passing through ideal wildlife habitat ( private property) the landowners were outside. I figured I would stop and take a gamble at gaining landowner permission. I walked away in disbelief. They said, YES ! .

Hopefully, the landowners see this. Thanks  Again! I appreciate it so much!!

This morning’s hike took me a bit of effort to get to, packing in trail cameras. It’s a  remote swamp / pond with a bear bite scent marking tree and  beaver dam. The small hemlock sapling beaver chewed stump made for an ideal place to mount a trail camera. ( cover picture ).

Bear Bite Tree - Scent Marking

In previous years I had set up my camera trapping locations on a seven-day cycle, checking and changing SD cards weekly. This year I have more than fourteen locations and will travel longer distances to three of the locations. It should make for an eventful year. In the past, last year TC’s videoed an estimated twenty-seven different bears. With the new locations, I’m hoping to reach thirty-five this year.

 

Jim