E-scouting for spring black bear.

[NChuntNfish]

Hey Guys,

Longtime lurker but first time poster. I’m from North Carolina, grew up hunting the general species around here. We began venturing out several years ago and started doing mule deer hunts in Wyoming. This year for a number of reasons we have decided to take a different route. About 5 years ago I was by reading an article about the best DIY OTC hunts and one of the hunts mentioned was a spring black bear hunt in Montana. Ever since reading that article I have wanted to take that trip and this year decided to take the plunge and make it happen. It’s about a 2300 mile drive to get the northwest corner of the state which I’ve gathered from reading on here seems to be the area that would give us the best odds. I’ve also read to look for timbered areas and avalanche chutes that are south facing as they typically see the first of the new growth in the springtime. My question mostly revolves around E-scouting since trying to go scout before season is not possible unfortunately. We will be coming towards the middle of May and have about 6 full days of hunting before having to drive back. When looking at maps do you generally try to find ridges that are very open, or some that have dispersed openings among the trees? Seems that animals would typically want to be in an area that has some readily available cover versus an almost bald hill side. Currently looking at going to the Lolo national forest. Going to call and speak with the forest service and see if they would also be able to point me in the right direction. Thanks for all the advice I’ve already gathered on this forum and for any input into these questions.

 

[Westernhuntr]

You'd be surprised with the bald hill statement. I'm in Idaho and a lot of black bears are found in open areas, especially up in Hells Canyon. E Scouting can be hard for spring black bear strictly because at different times during the season they'll be in different areas. You usually have to follow a couple weeks of melted snow because that's where the most recent green up will be and that's all season and weather dependent. With that being said you can still find good areas to check out while E scouting, I would just find a few and try not to stay married to any of them because once your eyes see the landscape you might see something better in person.

For me, when I E scout before heading out to bear hunt I look for anything south facing or west facing that is either in or close to a river basin. River and creek basins are always key for me. Try to find a large area using the 3D feature to ensure you can see a lot of country from one or two spots. I avoid thick timber strictly because you can't glass into it. I like sparse pockets of timber but I love old burn areas. If you can find a fairly recent burn that has a good glassing point, I'd start there. For the area you're heading to I'd see if you can find a hillside that has some glassing points of some old logging roads. They love to use those roads to travel, plus the old logging companies would use a certain type of grass to plant on the edges of the roads to make them more stable and the bears love that grass (the name of the grass is slipping my mind).

Again, spring bear is a bit difficult to E scout for. You might plan on utilizing a half day just getting your eyes on some good country in your hunting area and then going from there.

 

[NChuntNfish]

I appreciate the advice. I’ve done lots of reading and a lot of looking over maps like google earth. With that said, there is a lot of country to choose from. Definitely excited about the experience above anything else. I was a little surprised about the bald hill statement, just an assumption they would want more cover. I have a general area I’m wanting to be in, but there is a lot of different landscape to choose from. Some higher open hillsides and still within driving distance are some lower elevation timber areas on more rolling type terrain. What timeframe would you be looking into specifically for the old burns, 3-4 years?

 

[craveman85]

Never fully trust Google earth satellite photos. Some may look like good hintsble spots but when you get there it's all 10' spruce too thick to see anything. Satellite images can be several years old. Pick out several "regions" as one may have too much snow and then pick several spots in those regions. I wasted a lot of time and gas on bad satellite views lol.

 

[CMF]

Never fully trust Google earth satellite photos. Some may look like good hintsble spots but when you get there it's all 10' spruce too thick to see anything. Satellite images can be several years old. Pick out several "regions" as one may have too much snow and then pick several spots in those regions. I wasted a lot of time and gas on bad satellite views lol.

Any way to rule out grown-up cuts or burns by the date they were made?

 

[craveman85]

Any way to rule out grown-up cuts or burns by the date they were made?

Onx shows the dates of burns and cuts.

 

[CMF]

Onx shows the dates of burns and cuts.

Yea, I know that. But I'm trying to use that to determine if an area might be grown up. I'm looking at going to central/north Idaho this spring, but haven't been out west in the spring yet or to Idaho.
Just looking for someone with experience in the field and Onx that can provide examples, like "an X+ year burn will be grown up, but a X-X year old is good..."
I know in south MS, a clearcut is grown up with briar and brush in just a few years. I don't have experience up north or west.

 

[craveman85]

I feel like 2 or 3 years maybe up to 7 should be good from what I heard and saw when I went out. Also depends on the condition of the forest before the burn. I went to one 3 year old burn that you couldn't walk through because it was all 6" diameter logs laying around like pickup sticks. Had to walk on top of them all like balance beams and hope they didn't break.