Grizzly Country Questions

[muzzyman88]

Hey guys. I am finally headed west this fall for my first ever western hunt. I will be hunting Region F general in Wyoming for mule deer. I'll be going there with my uncle, who's hunted in and around this area, almost every year for 30 years, so I am confident in his knowledge and abilities here. That said, he and I were talking the other day and he mentioned that the Grizzly situation in here is getting bad and said I most likely will run into one while we're there as he almost always does. He's never had issues, but he said that the mindset he uses is to "hunt bears" while he's there to always be mindful.

Now, I'm from PA and I consider myself pretty "bear savy" when it comes to black bears. But bears here are pretty much nothing more than big racoons and will bolt out of the area are the slightest hint of human presence. I know absolutely nothing about the behavior of Grizzlys other than what I see on the news when they eat someone. lol. I'm not afraid of the idea of being around them and honestly would love to see one.... from a distance. My uncle assures me that as long as I'm using my head and not doing dumb crap, potentially putting myself at risk of a close run in, all will be fine. He does not go in and out of the mountains in the dark each day and for the most part sticks to more open ridge tops, etc, where visibility for both bears and deer is better. He usually pays someone locally to bring horses in to retrieve downed deer that can't be easily and quickly dragged to the truck. We will most likely be hunting together most of the week, along with a couple others in our party. I will have spray as well as my rifle as he suggested.

My questions are, what are the typical encounters with them like? I completely understand the unpredictability of any wild animal, especially something like a grizz, and you should never take your eyes off or trust them, but from many things I read, no matter what, if you see one, you should leave the area and hunt some place else. Is it really like that? I'm just envisioning seeing one from across a drainage and thinking I have to slowly walk away and go find a new place to hunt.

Anyway, I'm new to this and excited to finally get to hunt the western mountains for the first time. I honestly don't care if I kill a deer, I just want the experience this time.

 

[Dos Perros]

If you see one and move to another area, you'll just be around other bears you don't see.

 

[muzzyman88]

If you see one and move to another area, you'll just be around other bears you don't see.

Ya know... thats a valid point... lol.

 

[TaperPin]

The stereotypical encounter is either food or surprise related. Dirty camps attract bears - don’t keep Cheetos in your tent and follow normal food/trash rules.

I don’t know if you are used to rattle snakes, but it’s similar. You don’t put a hand anywhere you can’t see a snake - you don’t quietly sneak around blind corners where you can’t see that there isn’t a bear. If you read 100 bear encounters, often the story is a guy walked around a clump of trees or a bend in a game trail and surprised a bear, then the rodeo was on.

Old habits are hard to break - it’s hard to go around a dense area when going around is twice the work. Those decisions can get repeated 100 times a day if you are hunting heavily timbered areas and working through bedding areas, but you are always weighing cost/benefit of how much you avoid areas. Glassing is safer than still hunting. Travel in daylight is safer than getting into position in the dark.

 

[TaperPin]

Eventually, you’ll get a new rhythm and it becomes normal. Also, part of being a defensive driver is hedging bets in sketchy driving situations - same goes with bears. Increasing buffer space in areas more likely to have mishaps is common sense. When you can’t avoid a blind corner it makes sense to get the rifle off your shoulder and make sure your buddy actually has his pepper spray on his belt. I want to laugh when people keep it in their pack.

Talking at a normal level is not a normal part of hunting, but in sketchy areas we have to pass through we may do it just to help give a bear the heads up, especially if we are out after dark.

 

[KHNC]

We called in a Sow and two large cubs last year to 35 yards. Then had a boar chasing another sow and cubs while my buddy was in a tree stand watching trails and a wallow that evening. Thats 7 sightings in one day! Ill be glad to not be around them for a change. I had my gun out on the first encounter. We were archery hunting.

 

[fatlander]

Based on the records, you’re overwhelmingly more likely to be killed by a grizzly if you’re alone.

Hunt with a partner. Outside of that, don’t do stupid stuff with food, stay away from carcasses. You’re going to have to accept a certain amount of risk hunting around them. If you walk around making noise, with the wind at your back, and stay out of thick cover you definitely knock down the probability of encountering a grizzly but you also definitely increase the odds of eating tag soup.


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[Elk97]

Biggest difference between black and griz is attitude. Don't expect a griz to run or be intimidated by you at all. They may run, but might just stare you down while deciding what to do with you. Avoid hunting alone if possible and listen to what your uncle says, sounds like he's got it figured out.

 

[Ralphie]

You have some risk just being there. But your best chance for a bad encounter with a bear is going back to retrieve meat after it's been left overnight, or really any amount of time. If you have to leave meat and come back for it proceed with extreme caution. And if there's a bear on it let him have it and leave.

 

[Schoolhousegrizz]

Just make noise going through thick cover. If you see one across a ridge you don't need to leave the area. It's not like they are going to spot you and come running at you. Hunting with a partner will help you feel much safer, because well you are much safer than hunting alone.

A few years ago I ran into a grizz by myself. I was going off trail and cutting through some thick cover. I was yelling "hey bear" when I worked my way through which possibly saved me. When I came out of the cover into a small meadow there was a grizzly on the edge of the far tree line about 35 yards away staring at me. He had heard me coming and was obviously aware and waiting to see me come out in the meadow. When I saw him I drew the pistol and started backing away. He took a quarterimg step slightly towards me. I was able to keep backing up (although I fell in a snow bank) and get cover between us. My wife was about a mile away glassing for a black bear I was going after. She saw the grizzly bust out heading in the opposite direction.

 

[muzzyman88]

Thanks fellas. Im beyond excited to get out there in the mountains. I'm just trying to learn more about grizz behavior and what I can do to minimize the chances for a situation around them.

I remember my uncle telling me about walking up a trail one day with a couple other guys and a bear was coming down the same trail toward. There were 3 of them and the bear would not budge off the trail. They had to back off and loop around the bear and the bear continued on its way down the trail... lol. Its a different world I guess there, not being at the top of the food chain... ha

 

[Johnny Tyndall]

Lotta good advice here. Not at all hunting specific, but the book Bear Attacks: Their Causes and Avoidance by Herrero is very interesting, he's a (the?) leading researcher on the topic.

 

[TaperPin]

Thanks fellas. Im beyond excited to get out there in the mountains. I'm just trying to learn more about grizz behavior and what I can do to minimize the chances for a situation around them.

I remember my uncle telling me about walking up a trail one day with a couple other guys and a bear was coming down the same trail toward. There were 3 of them and the bear would not budge off the trail. They had to back off and loop around the bear and the bear continued on its way down the trail... lol. Its a different world I guess there, not being at the top of the food chain... ha

If you get a chance, and you probably will, just watching bears for long periods of time is interesting. Even a sow with a cub, or a younger solo bear will be somewhat careful as they travel to stay off the radar of a big boar. The most surprising thing to me is how well they can lay their head down and disappear in relatively flat terrain - I do pay more attention in general because of it.

 

[Dos Perros]

One evening, it was the evening before the Wyoming archery opener, so like late August, my buddy had glassed an area just over from a prominent saddle. He got back to his buggy in the grey light and a grizz came through the saddle and was less than 100 yards away, just open alpine country with short grass and rocks here and there. He said the bear saw him and paused and looked at him as if to say "if I wanted you, I could have you," and then just kept on walking without a care in the world.

 

[muzzyman88]

If you get a chance, and you probably will, just watching bears for long periods of time is interesting. Even a sow with a cub, or a younger solo bear will be somewhat careful as they travel to stay off the radar of a big boar. The most surprising thing to me is how well they can lay their head down and disappear in relatively flat terrain - I do pay more attention in general because of it.

I'm hoping I do get to spend time watching them from a distance. Would be a neat experience for an east coaster like myself. I've spent a great deal of time here watching a lot of black bears in my lifetime and it always amazes me, for as big as they are, how quiet they are most of the time, almost gentle. I was once in a treestand archery hunting and had what I'm guessing was a 300-350lb bear climb up the tree I was. It was about a foot below my feet when it realized I was in the tree... he and I both stared at each other for a minute trying to decide which one of us should jump out of the tree... lol.

 

[BearGuy]

Definitely going to echo what someone else said and definitely stay away from carcasses. If you smell one, go the other way.

 

[tuffcity]

Best reading is by author James (Gary) Shelton. He has 3 books out and well worth the read. I personally think his books are a lot better than Herrero. More practical in nature and not as sensationalist. He used to run a business out of Bella Coola, BC to train people to deal with bear encounters.

His books are on amazon.

Bear Attacks 2 Myth & Reality​