Bear Hunting without bait or dogs

[usastripes]

Not that I have anything against using bait or dogs, I just will not be able to where I am trying to hunt. I am planning on doing a DIY bear hunting next year, and trying to get some pointers on hunting them without the aid of bait and dogs. This will be my first bear hunt, so any and all the help will be much appreciated!!!

Thank you in advance!

 

[MNhunter86]

I would say find the local preferred food source of the bears. No matter where you are hunting bears they pretty much always have the same thing on there mind and that's getting fat. So find the greenest slopes or ripest berry patches would be my suggestion.

 

[usastripes]

I would say find the local preferred food source of the bears. No matter where you are hunting bears they pretty much always have the same thing on there mind and that's getting fat. So find the greenest slopes or ripest berry patches would be my suggestion.

tried any one of those before ?

 

[Barrelnut]

Some in the NW have had success with predator calls.

 

[MNhunter86]

tried any one of those before ?

In Minnesota where I do most of my hunting we are allowed to bait them. So when placing bait sites I kind of follow my advice I always try to find natural food sources that are already getting hit by bears for spots to set up my bait stations.

 

[Buckskinner]

Advice above and hope for the best... Legal to do a honey burn?

 

[usastripes]

In Minnesota where I do most of my hunting we are allowed to bait them. So when placing bait sites I kind of follow my advice I always try to find natural food sources that are already getting hit by bears for spots to set up my bait stations.

advisement taken, Yes I have always wondered about the Honey thing, does that also work? do bears have a soft spot for honey ?

 

[Catahoula]

Hey stripes, I have killed 8 bears by spot&stalk here in Idaho. Buy the best hiking boots that you can afford & go hunting. In the spring I look for marshy areas & green spots. Sometimes instead of glassing the ridges & open areas I head right into the thick cover around marshy spots. If you have the wind, bears are not the sharpest tool in the shed. Most of my bears are within 75 yards when I spot them. I have let 17 go since I shot my last one. I only look for odd colors or huge bears.
PM me if you would like to talk bear hunting. I will give you my phone number.
Good luck, Kirk

 

[Guy M]

Not that I have anything against using bait or dogs, I just will not be able to where I am trying to hunt. I am planning on doing a DIY bear hunting next year, and trying to get some pointers on hunting them without the aid of bait and dogs. This will be my first bear hunt, so any and all the help will be much appreciated!!!

Thank you in advance!

Cool! Spring or fall hunt? My son and I have taken several bear on spot & stalk hunts since 2010, here in Washington State.

It's good to remember that the bears are extremely food-oriented. Find their food source, and you've taken a big step towards success. In the fall, that often means berry bushes. Getting to a good observation point early in the day, and using good optics helps tremendously. If the weather is reasonably cool, the bears may be active all day. If it gets warmer, their activity level may fall off mid-day.

I've bumped into bears at rather close range a few times, while moving to or from my observation point. That can be fun, and worthwhile. Danged critters can be tough to find, or suddenly show up right with the hunter!

One point, often bears don't seem to "leak" much after being hit. With that, and their soft pads, they can be difficult to track if wounded. In my experience, when wounded, they normally go for low, brushy areas. I've seen a hunt go from a 300+ yard wounding shot, to an exciting close range follow-up/finishing shot in the brush.

I like the old advice about looking for a mature bear. A big bear usually has his ears more on the side of his head, rather than atop his head. A big bear often walks like a big ol' 55 gallon drum with legs attached, maybe even waddling a bit.

Watch for the cubs! I watched a black bear come down a ridgetop trail towards me from roughly a quarter mile out. I was hunting with a traditional muzzle loader. The bear worked closer and closer towards the fallen tree, behind which I was crouching. Suddenly, at fairly close range, I saw she had a cub tailing along behind her! Uh oh, didn't want to shoot a mama bear with a cub, so I stood up and said "hi bear" at about 30 yards. She woofed and headed east at a run, the poor cub tumbling along behind her, no doubt wondering what the heck was happening!

Bear hunting is an awful lot of fun. Enjoy!

Guy

 

[dfanonymous]

In cali, a lot of the black and cinnamon bears are pretty much where the deer are relatively. Canyons, meadows, basins etc. As long as the have a food and water source.

 

[Waynzee]

Where ever you're hunting I would talk to some local Game Wardens and get their ideas and opinions on best places to hunt. Most all the Game Wardens I have ever talked to were more than willing to give me info on some of the best places to hunt and almost always I was successful in the areas I was told to check out.

 

[rm76]

I had the same idea when I decided to go after blackies -- did not want to hunt over bait or with dogs. I first booked a coastal boat hunt in Alaska. This was a spring hunt with the idea of finding the bears at the shoreline feeding on grasses when they first come out of the den -- but that was a year with a record breaking early spring thaw and bear were out early feeding on grass high up. Then I booked a hunt in northwestern Alberta (fall hunt) were bears were feeding in grain fields. That was an excellent hunt with large bears, a 2 bear limit, and a good amount of color phase bears. PM me if you like and I'll be glad to give you the contact information for the outfitter.

 

[86alaskan]

To echo some of the previous responders, find the green fresh food and clearings. Don't expect to find them moving much if the weather gets too warm. I can verify that the bears will be eating a lot in the spring and aren't all that hard to get in close to. I've hunted a number of bears in the spring, but never took anything in the spring. You could hunt the fall as well and you can still hunt them in the same way. Fall bears taken late before their hibernation can have some of the thickest and nicest hides you'll find. The problem in the spring is you may have to sort through rubbed bears if you're picky about hide quality. I took 2 brown bears in Alaska by finding areas with ripe blue berries and a healthy bear population. It just takes a steady eye and some patience.