Central CO Archery Bear Hunt

[Danimal]

I threw my hat in the ring for a leftover CO bear hunt and actually pulled one. Ain't gonna lie, been bow hunting for 35 years this year and I am feeling way out of my element. I've always hunted around bears but never for bear, probably could have killed a dozen or so out of my treestand back east just incidentally while deer hunting. I've seen a couple of bears while elk and deer hunting this unit in the past, and it made me get that itch to give it a go, but now that were a month a way I'm feeling lost. So here it goes, what would be the strategy that seems to make the most sense? Currently I'm thinking of just hoping to find a gut pile to sit over. A second option is I'm thinking maybe just road glassing for a bear or for sign from the road and trying to cut a fresh track. Both options kind of feel like pizzin in the wind. The times I've seen bear incidentally in the past there was no part of my fiber that thought I could make a move on this thing and get in to bow range. Thanks in advance for any info.

 

[5MilesBack]

what would be the strategy that seems to make the most sense?

I would talk to every hunter you can find up there and let them know you have a bear tag. After they kill something, you go sit on the carcass.

 

[Danimal]

I would talk to every hunter you can find up there and let them know you have a bear tag. After they kill something, you go sit on the carcass.

That makes sense but would that be a d-bag move? Most guys I've run into don't seem to mind removing some bruins from the woods.

 

[5MilesBack]

That makes sense but would that be a d-bag move?

Not at all. If they don't want to disclose their kill site, then that's fine. Someone else will be willing to give you theirs. Beyond that, most guys have no problem talking to guys with different tags. When I had my moose tag, seemed like every elk hunter in the area wanted to drop by and let me know about moose they were seeing. If they were out seeing them, then it was also while they were hunting.......in their spots, and had no problem helping out. Some of them even offered to help for packing when I got one down. I don't think you'll have a problem.

 

[ElDiablito]

Depends on the country but glassing (spot and stalk) make be a possibility. Sitting on a water source is the easiest way I’ve found if you’re in dry country. Bears where I hunt in western CO love to swim and drink in ponds mid day or last light.

 

[dtrkyman]

Fall bears are looking for food! Oak brush with acorns of course and berries.

I see bears constantly in CO. when I am up there fishing or turkey hunting.

 

[Fetty Wapiti]

In September the vast majority of bears will be at lower elevations. Look for food. Canyons and rocky areas in the lower ends of drainages that harbor service berries and chokecherries are good places to start. Imho you would be far more successful finding natural food sources and glassing, even still hunting those spots than you would be sitting on a carcass. Once you find an actively feeding bear getting close shouldn't be a problem at all.

 

[FlyGuy]

I’m not an expert, but in my experience a poorly hung food-bag is a great bear attractant!

IMO, bears are not very easy to glass in the Fall. Certainly give it a try, but it seems they stick to cover more in the Fall so I wouldn’t make it the main strategy.

With bear tags selling for only $100 even for NR, seems like many elk/deer hunters may have a tag, but even if that’s the case I’d let them know. I’d bet that with a week to hunt elk, the vast majority of them only have a bear tag just in case they happen upon a bear that happens to be within a short distance for an east stalk (or that walks into camp), but most wouldn’t go very far out of their way to kill one. And, they’ll want to know if you’ve seen any deer/elk, so you could be helping them as well.

What I would do is focus on lower elevations. Creek bottoms and ESPECIALLY oak-brush. That stuff should be loaded with easy to access acorns. If you can find a nice flat ridge top, that’s also just above a flowing creek bottom, that’s also covered in waist high oak-brush, then I’d definitely spend some time in there. Once you locate some fresh scat/tracks, then I’d find a good location to get set up, grab your favorite predator mouth call and get after it for about an hour. Rinse and repeat.

Good luck! Let us know how it goes!

 

[Poser]

Scrub oak. 5,000-9,000 ft elevation range.

 

[sodaksooner]

I threw my hat in the ring for a leftover CO bear hunt and actually pulled one. Ain't gonna lie, been bow hunting for 35 years this year and I am feeling way out of my element. I've always hunted around bears but never for bear, probably could have killed a dozen or so out of my treestand back east just incidentally while deer hunting. I've seen a couple of bears while elk and deer hunting this unit in the past, and it made me get that itch to give it a go, but now that were a month a way I'm feeling lost. So here it goes, what would be the strategy that seems to make the most sense? Currently I'm thinking of just hoping to find a gut pile to sit over. A second option is I'm thinking maybe just road glassing for a bear or for sign from the road and trying to cut a fresh track. Both options kind of feel like pizzin in the wind. The times I've seen bear incidentally in the past there was no part of my fiber that thought I could make a move on this thing and get in to bow range. Thanks in advance for any info.

Is that unit specific? I don't do the bear thing either but we hunt central CO. If you want to PM me and we match up units I can at least send you to spots I have seen sign over the years. Saw a huge boar a few years ago.....just coming off a carcass, which we found a few minutes later.

 

[5MilesBack]

Scrub oak. 5,000-9,000 ft elevation range.

That's why I never see any bears I guess. I don't think I've hunted elk below 10k feet.........ever, during archery. But every carcass I've ever had or found has had a bear on it at some point.

 

[Danimal]

Thanks guys lots of great feedback here. If anyone else has some ideas I'm all ears.

 

[Hnthrdr]

Food, food, food, followed next by water. I agree with sitting a kill. Especially if it’s a harder to draw unit, most guys won’t care one bit on letting you sit an elk carcass in a spot they will likely not hunt again or for a really long time

 

[30338]

I'd not worry about gut piles and would focus on water holes near berry patches. And if you locate one with a variety of sized tracks indicating multiple bears, I'd sit it all day long. For archery, I'd have them come to you.

 

[Poser]

That's why I never see any bears I guess. I don't think I've hunted elk below 10k feet.........ever, during archery. But every carcass I've ever had or found has had a bear on it at some point.

They will travel for carcasses, but they are primarily focused on scrub oak once it becomes edible. My experience has been if you are not seeing bears in sept, you are too high.

It seems non intuitive because scrub oak thrives in direct sunlight and doesn’t really grow on north facing slopes so you are looking for bears in the direct sun and they seem entirely indifferent to it once they going into that oak frenzy. I’ve personally seen 5 bears from one glassing spot all on the same aspect, but I have heard of guys seeing 15+. They are all hitting and cleaning out the same elevation profile and then working their way down as the mast become edible. Once it’s all been eaten, some will return to higher elevations to score whatever they can and then den up.

 

[TxTaurus74]

I archery hunt SW Colorado and see them in the evenings watching water holes.

 

[Hondo0925]

Sitting water holes will definitely be the ticket!! Especially this year as dry as it has been water will deliver. Like others have said check water holes for tracks and once you find sign, sit it as long as you can, especially through the heat of the day and into the evening. Find water near chokecherries and oak brush with acorns. Now that’s a deadly combo for bears.

 

[5MilesBack]

Sitting water holes will definitely be the ticket!! Especially this year as dry as it has been water will deliver.

Where has it been dry this year? We've been having the wettest spring and summer on record. Watching the weather stations it seems like it's been pretty widespread across Colorado this year.

 

[Hondo0925]

Where has it been dry this year? We've been having the wettest spring and summer on record. Watching the weather stations it seems like it's been pretty widespread across Colorado this year.

Come to the southwest/southern Colorado. Haven’t had rain since the first week of June and over 90 degrees every day through July until just recently. Might be different in central Co but here it’s dry dry dry. Oh and 5 fires just popped last week. Big snow packs don’t always mean wet summers

 

[Hnthrdr]

Where has it been dry this year? We've been having the wettest spring and summer on record. Watching the weather stations it seems like it's been pretty widespread across Colorado this year.

This is my experience, I guess SW Co has been dry? But from the frontrange to central corridor to north west, tons of water