CO Bear in Sept or Oct

[TXSTDU]

I am looking at a unit that has second chance tags for the September Season, but I will be in CO during the 1st Rifle in October.

Which would you do and why?

 

[jray5740]

In my opinion, and remembering bear hunting is alot of luck mixed with alot of effort, September is the better bet than October. I have been trying for years to get my CO bear tag filled, and for years I have been Mr. Tag soup butler at your service. I have never seen a bear in October hunting 2nd rifle in 20 years, but I have seen them in the same unit on the same mountain during archery season, a long ways off tho

 

[idahohikker]

In my opinion, and remembering bear hunting is alot of luck mixed with alot of effort, September is the better bet than October. I have been trying for years to get my CO bear tag filled, and for years I have been Mr. Tag soup butler at your service. I have never seen a bear in October hunting 2nd rifle in 20 years, but I have seen them in the same unit on the same mountain during archery season, a long ways off tho

That’s my experience in Idaho. Once there’s been a lot of hunters in the field in September the bear sightings get slim as they move into cover and feed around creek bottoms.

 

[jray5740]

That’s my experience in Idaho. Once there’s been a lot of hunters in the field in September the bear sightings get slim as they move into cover and feed around creek bottoms.

Yes I agree. Its always a little bit frustrating to watch shows like meateater and others where finding bears seems so easily done by simply glassing areas where bears are likely to be. I know we have a load of bears in Colorado, and CPW wont admit it, but I have a hunch, the reform in bear tag prices and ability to get more of them easier has to do with increasing populations that cant be controlled.........but even at that, hunting bear in Colorado seems to be significantly harder than other states for whatever reason. At least in my experience anyway, maybe Im just not a good hunter haha

 

[TheHardWay]

I have been hunting bears in September for quite some time...either muzzleloader or rifle. My success rate isn't anything to brag about, but I have had opportunities, and every once in a while come across a bear large enough that piques my interest to put my tag on.
I think September holds more opportunities since the bears are usually out feeding like crazy. A year when the acorns and chokecherries are scarce seems to be better, in my experience because the the bears are roaming around more, offering more chances for a sighting as the move through the thick brush. Otherwise, on a good year for mast, bears seem to find well hidden spots with lots of food, and just hang out to gorge themselves.
With that said, I've glassed up lots of bears in October. As the leaves begin to change and fall off, they become easier to spot. However, I do think that they are not quite as active.

 

[Overdrive]

IMO if your going to hunt bear then do just that and hunt bear's and nothing else at the same time. If your serious about getting a bear I'd stay with the September season and make it your focal point, when you start putting a Deer or Elk license in the mix then your more likely to go after them instead of a Bear. I always did the have a bear tag for Just in case, well it just usually sits in my pocket as is a waste. This year I'm going in September with just a Bear license and see what happens when I'm focused on Bear's.

 

[LongWayAround]

When the berries get freeze dried by a frost, the bears move on. I would hunt them in September with a rifle if they were a priority. I've bought an archery bear tag every year and have mostly only seen them the week before bear opened. I know a few finger ridges where the berries grow under the beetle kill and the ground is paved with purple bear shit. I would target those types of areas.

 

[TheHardWay]

IMO if your going to hunt bear then do just that and hunt bear's and nothing else at the same time. If your serious about getting a bear I'd stay with the September season and make it your focal point, when you start putting a Deer or Elk license in the mix then your more likely to go after them instead of a Bear. I always did the have a bear tag for Just in case, well it just usually sits in my pocket as is a waste. This year I'm going in September with just a Bear license and see what happens when I'm focused on Bear's.

This is a valid point. A lot of times in the first part of the September rifle bear season, I find myself distracted from bear hunting by watching elk in anticipation for muzzleloader season, which as you may know, runs concurrently with the September rifle bear season. I don't really get serious about bears until after muzzleloader elk is over.

 

[Felix40]

I can’t think of a september elk hunt in Colorado where me or my buddy have not seen at least one bear.

 

[TXSTDU]

We are worried that the unit we are looking at in Sept is also an OTC archery unit.

I guess which is the lesser of two evils.

A: all the archery hunters there in the unit messing things up

Or

B: wait and hit otc bear right before 1st rifle elk as the unit will have a minute to settle down

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[Poser]

We are worried that the unit we are looking at in Sept is also an OTC archery unit.

I guess which is the lesser of two evils.

A: all the archery hunters there in the unit messing things up

Or

B: wait and hit otc bear right before 1st rifle elk as the unit will have a minute to settle down

Sent from my SM-N950U using Tapatalk

More elk hunters means more elk carcasses.


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[orionthehunter1]

We are worried that the unit we are looking at in Sept is also an OTC archery unit.

I guess which is the lesser of two evils.

A: all the archery hunters there in the unit messing things up

Or

B: wait and hit otc bear right before 1st rifle elk as the unit will have a minute to settle down

Sent from my SM-N950U using Tapatalk

I wouldn't worry too much about the archery hunters ive killed a pile of bears in OTC archery elk units

 

[collinparsons]

I’ll be going from Texas to Colorado for the rifle bear opener. Hopefully we’ll find one. Just applied for units based mostly on harvest stats, but the harvest is so low that I don’t really think that’ll matter much

 

[TXSTDU]

We ended up putting in for the Sept. Bear draw.

We figured if we don't get drawn than we always have OTC tags

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[tdhanses]

I wouldn’t worry at all about the OTC archery hunters, that’s all I’ve hunted in CO and I see and get close to bears every year, key is finding a great food source. I’ve found if there is very little food there will be very few bears or bear just passing through which is difficult to hunt.