A Tradition of Hard Work and Reward Saskatchewan offers everything a bear hunter could ask for: endless wilderness, plenty of game and vast stretches of land where you can truly disconnect. And behind every successful hunt, you’ll find dedicated outfitters and guides. It’s their year-round planning that makes a rewarding adventure in this province possible! […]
Saskatchewan offers everything a bear hunter could ask for: endless wilderness, plenty of game and vast stretches of land where you can truly disconnect. And behind every successful hunt, you’ll find dedicated outfitters and guides. It’s their year-round planning that makes a rewarding adventure in this province possible!
Each season, licensed professionals in the area devote countless hours to preparation. (Depending on the region, hunts may occur in spring, fall, or both!) Their efforts consistently balance the needs of hunters with a deep commitment to conservation.
In this article, you’ll learn about their hands-on, diligent work and how it helps protect the populations, maintain healthy habitats, and support a sustainable hunting experience.
Preparing for the season begins with a clear understanding of the current population of these animals. To pinpoint areas with high activity and align harvests with sustainability quotas, outfitters review data from the previous season such as reports and trail camera footage alongside more recent trail cam activity leading up to opening day.
They also keep a close eye on natural habitats. The goal isn’t just to find good spots to hunt, although that’s important. They also want to ensure that guest activities don’t disrupt the natural rhythms of wildlife in the area.
When your guide understands the local bears, it helps them with baiting. Experienced guides use this technique to improve the hunting experience by attracting bears to specific locations using food (typically a mix of grains, meat scraps, pastries, or sweet syrups).
They will need to follow specific steps to bait effectively:
To select the best locations, guides spend weeks exploring the wilderness before the season, identifying trails, feeding areas, and den sites. Strategic placement considers factors such as:
Setting up bait sites also involves placing the ground blinds or tree stands where you’ll spend your day on the hunt. Locations are chosen for camouflage and safety, allowing hunters to watch and wait quietly while remaining undetected.
Local guides typically set up three to four times as many bait sites as there are hunters in camp. This ensures some areas remain untouched, keeping them fresh and inviting. If a site is pressured too often, animals may grow wary and avoid it, so resting certain spots helps maintain reliability. Guides refresh these unused sites with new bait and track activity with trail cameras, giving the next group a better chance at success.
Replenishing and maintaining bait sites are physically demanding, involving barrels of bait hauled deep into the bush often accessible only by ATV or boat. Yet this hard work is essential for creating predictable locations where guests have the best chance at a successful harvest.
During every visit, outfitters will conduct comprehensive briefings for hunters to help them prioritize safety and ethical hunting practices at every stage of their time in the forest. The goal is to equip them with the knowledge and guidelines they need to prevent accidents and respect both the animals and the environment.
You’ll learn topics such as:
Before the season kicks off, guides and their teams get to work making sure all equipment is ready to go. They check blinds, stands, gears, and vehicles, and stock up on essentials like food, medical kits, and plenty of orange safety vests for everyone.
Storms, vegetation overgrowth, and fallen trees can lead to blocked paths, so trail work is a constant part of the job. Both before and during the season, crews are often out clearing trails, repairing access roads, and getting boats or ATVs ready to safely transport everything.
Behind the scenes, logistics are key. Each operation coordinates how hunters will get to and from the sites. Depending on the location, that means sometimes by ATV or boat, and in more remote areas, even by plane. Pre-season baiting trips also serve to test every vehicle, so by the time opening day arrives, everything’s running smoothly and guests can start enjoying their trip from moment one.
Despite thorough preparations, the wilderness can be unpredictable. So that you enjoy your time in Saskatchewan and stay safe, outfitters prepare for unexpected situations by having contingency plans in place. They anticipate adverse weather conditions, potential injuries, and difficult hunting conditions, and take proactive action to equip hunters with communication devices and educate them on navigating the wilderness safely.
Most hunting guides in Saskatchewan are members of the Saskatchewan Commission of Professional Outfitters, our non-profit association of licensed professionals. As part of our services, we offer safety training programs, support, and best-practice guides to ensure everyone who hunts in this province follows safe and ethical practices.
All the behind-the-scenes work from scouting and baiting to trail clearing and gear prep makes a real difference. It creates the right conditions for safe, ethical, and rewarding hunts. And when everything comes together, they have a much better shot at a successful harvest.
Dan McGill, an avid hunter who loves to travel, shared about the positive experiences he’s had, time and time again.
“Passion for the place only grew. Each year, I’d rally friends, sharing tales of the majestic bears of Saskatchewan and inviting them to experience the thrill firsthand. Our hunting tales are filled with awe and admiration for the bears of Saskatchewan. Their size, unmatched by any we’ve seen in Michigan or even Ontario, is a testament to the region’s rich biodiversity.”
Joe Gerber agrees. He has had an incredible time in Saskatchewan:
“I don’t think you can find anywhere with as good hunting as there. The quality of the deer, tons of bears, giant bears, coloured bears. It’s all something you don’t see everywhere.”
As you’ve seen, preparing for the season in Saskatchewan is no small job. It starts weeks before the first hunter arrives and truly takes years of hard work and experience. Guides do more than lead hunts—they make the entire experience possible. Everything they do is aimed at balancing excitement with sustainability, so visitors enjoy themselves while respecting the land.
Thanks to their year-round efforts, guests leave with unforgettable memories while the wilderness stays wild for the seasons to come.