This 6-minute YouTube video highlighting a multi-species bowhunt by Fred Bear is wonderful because it shows so much behind-the-scenes footage of his Yukon adventure. I love the views of the horseback hunters heading to camp, bowfishing for salmon, sharpening Bear Razorhead broadheads with a file, and crossing a fast-moving river on foot — with Fred using his Kodiak recurve as a wading staff! When Fred nears show, he simply throws his recurve ahead into the bushes; imagine doing that today with a modern compound — no way!
The narrator — another legendary bowhunter in his own right, Fred Eichler — does a great job explaining what was involved from a production standpoint in filming such a hunt with the available cameras at the time. Amazingly, the cameraman captures Fred arrowing a Rocky Mountain goat on film, with hunter and animal both in view at the same time.
FYI: You need to keep in mind that some of the specific scenes were recreated after a kill and then edited later to piece together the whole story in chronological order. For example, the scene (closeup view from the side) of Fred drawing his bow on the goat was filmed after he made the killing shot. They didn’t have two cameramen and two cameras. And if you look closely, you’ll notice Fred has three arrows in his quiver when they recreate this shot, but he has only one arrow in his quiver (and one on the string) when they walk up on the dead goat. My guess is he needed at least one follow-up shot. Whatever the case, it’s still a crazy-impressive accomplishment.
And I love the flowery description: “There lies the aristocratic dweller of the high places. His snowy coat gleaming in the afternoon sun.”
Later on the trip, Fred has a chance to stalk a grizzly, and again the cameraman captures hunter and animal in the same shot. You can even see the arrow in flight!
Sit back and enjoy this walk back in time.
