Spring Bear Idaho

[Colinhic912]

Hey everyone I am new to this forum. I am planning a spring bear hunt to Idaho and thinking on going to unit 21A. I was just looking for some advice. Due to work I can only go from April1-6th and know that snow might be an issue and looking at the maps I know I'm gonna have to be in shape. This will be my first "western" hunt but I have hunted in the ADK mountains most my life. I figure that any bears that are out will probably be hangin out on south south/east facing slopes and will probably be at lower elevations below the snow line. I am not looking for anyones honey hole but any advice would be greatly appreciated.

 

[softtail103]

You will generally find them at the bottom of the mountains in the valleys. First grass and other food sources. Be ready to take a longer shot at your game. Make sure you have a caliber capable of putting your bear down with one shot. Nothing worse than tracking a wounded bear. We have had a lot of snow this year in the mountains. Bitterroot range is a rugged area. Be in shape. Rethink your pack to lighten the load. Good luck with your hunt!

 

[Rick Richard]

Good luck and welcome from North Carolina

 

[Colinhic912]

Thanks for the advice I have a .300 wby mag. I just moved out to Utah and have been shed hunting with my pack on in the snow getting myself in shape.

 

[motrapper]

Thanks for the advice I have a .300 wby mag. I just moved out to Utah and have been shed hunting with my pack on in the snow getting myself in shape.

Welcome to Utah I Moved here 12 years ago.
FYI Big Game Drawing ends March 4 Bonus point ends the 18th

 

[Colinhic912]

Welcome to Utah I Moved here 12 years ago.
FYI Big Game Drawing ends March 4 Bonus point ends the 18th

Thanks and perfect thank you for the help!!

 

[Colinhic912]

Good luck and welcome from North Carolina

Thank you!

 

[ObiWanKannoli]

Good luck with your trip! I'll be in Hells Canyon myself in April.

You stated it in your first post, but getting in adequate condition is paramount in my opinion. Even if your physical ability as is won't limit you, being in better shape will make the experience much more enjoyable.

Second piece of advice, load up on the waterproof gear. Cold sucks, cold and wet really sucks.

As others have said, look for green.

Lastly, enjoy your trip, and good luck!

 

[adk hunter]

Welcome from Northway exit 25. Shout if you need anything...

 

[Colinhic912]

Good luck with your trip! I'll be in Hells Canyon myself in April.

You stated it in your first post, but getting in adequate condition is paramount in my opinion. Even if your physical ability as is won't limit you, being in better shape will make the experience much more enjoyable.

Second piece of advice, load up on the waterproof gear. Cold sucks, cold and wet really sucks.

As others have said, look for green.

Lastly, enjoy your trip, and good luck!

Thank you for the advice! Ill make sure to bring rain gear! Good luck!

 

[WeekendWarrior]

• For spring bear, really focus on finding the green patches. The bears coming out of hibernation will be eating anything they can find, and south facing meadows that get a lot of sun will green up first. These can be up high or down low, but that is where the bears will be.
• You will find the bears in pretty cliffed-out and steep areas, with dark timber broken by little meadows. So look for scree fields, avalanche paths, and cliff bands on your satellite imagery to identify areas while e-scouting.
• Good glass helps a lot because every wet stump literally looks like a bear.
• You will see lots of rocks flipped if there are bears in the area, they look for moths and other insects to eat under rocks. While you might not see **** or prints, you might see flipped rocks. Know that the poop plug the bear form while hibernating can take time to pass, so you might have an active bear in the area and no poop to indicate their presence.
• You don't need a huge bullet, just something that shoots flat. 270 and 6.5 moving close to 3000fps or faster are fine choices. I just use my 300wm though.
• Long shots are really common with bears. They are in tough to access spots and can smell you very easily, making it hard to close within 300 yards. Be comfortable shooting 600 yards.
• To this point, thermals and wind management are so dang important. If you play the wind right, you can usually call them in with a predator call.
• For fitness, cardio is fine and all, but high rep dead lifts, squats, and pistol squats are king. High rep meaning sets of 20. Shoot for 5-10 sets. Really get the burn going. Cardio doesn't preserve the strength needed for steep mountains, unless you have mountains to run or bike in. You need to balance power with endurance, which is why high rep sets on compounding leg exercises will get you there.

 

[Ua26fitter]

Unless it's a typo you might want to reconsider the dates you are looking at.
I don't think it opens until April 15th. I personally wouldn't go until mid May or early June if only making 1 trip.

Kris

 

[Professor]

I think you run the risk everything will be white that early. The last week in May through the first week in June is the best time. At least this is what many resident hunters told me. Glass for them in green grass at the snow line. You can also hunt them in some thick rainforest areas as well. Here you can try to sneak up on them using service rds. My son and I saw three doing this.

 

[calling4life]

Are there any knowns as to what bears come out of dens first?

Is it like mom and cubs come out first, that way boars that are out don't just sniff out dens and kill them, they can get out, get down to the lowland with brush and get to cover and trees.

Or do big boars get out first for some evolutionary reason...?

Do we know what bears will get out of dens the earliest? Maybe there isn't a differentiation between old, young, male or female...

Not looking for conjecture, actually wondering if this has been studied and if there is a general pattern.

If it were that big boars came out earliest, that'd be when I'd look to hunt, there may be fewer bears, but they'll be easier to spot and should have good coats.