Montana Spring bear

[Deadfall]

There are a few black bears in that area. However....... There are piles of grizzly bears. Be very very careful what you shootin at. Or real quite about it.... Both preferably

 

[Mattman215]

Good morning everyone,

My wife and I are planning to do our first bear hunt the end of May this year in Montana. We are from Wisconsin, so not able to get out there that frequently. I spent a week just south of the Sawtooth range 2 years ago elk hunting and spoke to some guys from Missoula who were glassing for bears. Does anyone know if this area holds a good population of black bears? It seemed like good habitat for them, but I am completely unfamiliar with spring bear.

Thanks in advance,
Brant


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I have never hunted Montanan, however here in AZ bears don’t seem to mind people at all. Some of my best bear spots are freakishly close to people, roads and hiking trails. Find food and water where they feel safe and they do not seem to care how many cars or people come close to them. At least that has been my experience. Keep in mind I said people not hunters.

 

[SPEDRAY]

I don't know how it is around the Missoula area. But around the Bozeman area, I don't think I will be able to make it into my usual bear spots by late May if this snow pack keeps up. I look for areas on South facing slopes a few miles from the roads with green vegetation. I see most of them in the areas I find the most antler sheds. Don't know if this a coincident or not.

 

[ProStaffSteve]

Contemplating a bear hunt in Montana this fall. I have a bear spot but have never eaten bear & I doubt he’s eating berries there. Does this make as much impact as joe-blows on the internet make it seem?

 

[Deadfall]

No. Bears are opportunists. They eat bout anything.
Berries only around a couple months at best.

Would stere clear of anything anywhere near trashcans though...lol...

 

[ProStaffSteve]

No. Bears are opportunists. They eat bout anything.
Berries only around a couple months at best.

Would stere clear of anything anywhere near trashcans though...lol...

Copy! No trash bins in my spot! Great to hear that too, tbh “it’s fat was literally blue” is what they say & it sounds like bs

 

[cavitykilla]

I don't know how it is around the Missoula area. But around the Bozeman area, I don't think I will be able to make it into my usual bear spots by late May if this snow pack keeps up. I look for areas on South facing slopes a few miles from the roads with green vegetation. I see most of them in the areas I find the most antler sheds. Don't know if this a coincident or not.

What elevations are you typically hunting around the Bozeman area? Most spots I have e-scouted are in the 7k+ and I was worried about the same thing

 

[SPEDRAY]

We start around 7k. But don't hunt around Bozeman. Way too many motivated people. Usually travel 2 hours to get away from the crowds

 

[Valsport]

Bozeman is the Manhattan of the outdoors

 

[ktm450]

I will also add that MT has more Spring snow holding in the mountains than I can remember. more snow is predicted this week and the whole State got another huge dump last weekend.

 

[ronebones]

Also from a prospective first time bear hunter here, not knowing anything at all about western montana having never hunted there specifically. Obviously noone here is giving up their spots on where TO GO to find bears, which of course is completely understandable. Most avid hunters (myself included) are not keen on sharing their hard found honey holes with anyone, whether that be on public or private land.

Having done a ton of E-scouting, I have some general idea of a few areas I might like to check out based on the common advice of follow the snow melt, south facing slopes where its greening up, away from high traffic areas, etc. However, is there anywhere some of you more experienced montana hunters would recommend NOT to go? E-scouting is a solid start, but doesnt always tell the whole story. I.E. areas that are over hunted, heavily trafficked in the spring, usually impassable because of late snow melt or too many closed access roads, excessive amount of grizzlies, etc? From the sounds of it, you can find bears in many many places in western/north western montana, but it would be nice to know if there are any areas specifically to avoid to maximize my limited amount of time out there in the field. Ive got a 20 hr drive there and 5 days to hunt before my 20 hr drive home, so I'm sure you can understand every extra hour I can spend out there vs driving around counts.

I have no doubt in my mind its going to be a fantastic experience either way, whether the hunt is successful or not, but if anyone has any areas where i should draw a big red X on my map to not even consider as a first time spring bear hunter, feel free to share if you wish!

P.S this is not reverse psychology trying to get you to tell me to avoid your hunting spots, just trying to save myself some driving from spots that might look good e-scouting but are actually not worth even getting out of the truck when you get there.

Thanks!

 

[Kenneth@Kifaru]

Also from a prospective first time bear hunter here, not knowing anything at all about western montana having never hunted there specifically. Obviously noone here is giving up their spots on where TO GO to find bears, which of course is completely understandable. Most avid hunters (myself included) are not keen on sharing their hard found honey holes with anyone, whether that be on public or private land.

Having done a ton of E-scouting, I have some general idea of a few areas I might like to check out based on the common advice of follow the snow melt, south facing slopes where its greening up, away from high traffic areas, etc. However, is there anywhere some of you more experienced montana hunters would recommend NOT to go? E-scouting is a solid start, but doesnt always tell the whole story. I.E. areas that are over hunted, heavily trafficked in the spring, usually impassable because of late snow melt or too many closed access roads, excessive amount of grizzlies, etc? From the sounds of it, you can find bears in many many places in western/north western montana, but it would be nice to know if there are any areas specifically to avoid to maximize my limited amount of time out there in the field. Ive got a 20 hr drive there and 5 days to hunt before my 20 hr drive home, so I'm sure you can understand every extra hour I can spend out there vs driving around counts.

I have no doubt in my mind its going to be a fantastic experience either way, whether the hunt is successful or not, but if anyone has any areas where i should draw a big red X on my map to not even consider as a first time spring bear hunter, feel free to share if you wish!

P.S this is not reverse psychology trying to get you to tell me to avoid your hunting spots, just trying to save myself some driving from spots that might look good e-scouting but are actually not worth even getting out of the truck when you get there.

Thanks!

You are going to learn a lot for sure and just study on what to look for as much as you can beforehand. But the only way you will learn is first hand experiences. Enjoy your time and hunt hard. Don't get frustrated if you aren't seeing bears. Just keep moving, glassing, looking for primary food sources and good things can happen. good luck and hunt the 5 days entirely. You are going to have fun.

 

[mtwarden]

No specific places to avoid, but obviously places nearer big towns will generally get more pressure than those away from those big towns (but not always!).

You might want to spring for Caltopos premium plan, it includes very recent (like a day or two) sat shots. This should give you a very good idea of snow cover as your trip gets closer.

Also take into account that having some south/west slopes free of snow is great, but also look how you're going to access those specific areas. There will be some snow free areas that might take wading through 3' of snow to get there

 

[Kenneth@Kifaru]

No specific places to avoid, but obviously places nearer big towns will generally get more pressure than those away from those big towns (but not always!).

You might want to spring for Caltopos premium plan, it includes very recent (like a day or two) sat shots. This should give you a very good idea of snow cover as your trip gets closer.

Also take into account that having some south/west slopes free of snow is great, but also look how you're going to access those specific areas. There will be some snow free areas that might take wading through 3' of snow to get there

I expect my hip flexors to take a beating this spring lol

 

[444Marlin]

Bozeman is the Manhattan of the outdoors

I believe Manhattan is a small town West of Bozeman off of 90, past Belgrade?

 

[tkhuntsman]

I believe Manhattan is a small town West of Bozeman off of 90, past Belgrade?

Yes it is and there's not many bears in that general vacinity

 

[ThunderJack49]

What elevations are you typically hunting around the Bozeman area? Most spots I have e-scouted are in the 7k+ and I was worried about the same thing

You said Absarokas, Park County side or Red Lodge side?

 

[cavitykilla]

You said Absarokas, Park County side or Red Lodge side?

I was going to approach from the red lodge side if we head to that area as it seemed further from Bozevegas. The last time I was in the Absarokas was for an elk and deer hunt with a backcountry tag so we had to get wayy back there to stay legal. I don't want to log that many miles hiking if I can help it. It was a 17+mi round trip hike last time and I don't wanna risk going that deep into the backcountry on a spring trip. I live in TN and spent summers working in Yellowstone in my 20s. Never been in the west in May and especially concerned since it seems to be a heavy snow year...I'm usually waiting for run off to end for fly fishing

 

[ThunderJack49]

I was going to approach from the red lodge side if we head to that area as it seemed further from Bozevegas. The last time I was in the Absarokas was for an elk and deer hunt with a backcountry tag so we had to get wayy back there to stay legal. I don't want to log that many miles hiking if I can help it. It was a 17+mi round trip hike last time and I don't wanna risk going that deep into the backcountry on a spring trip. I live in TN and spent summers working in Yellowstone in my 20s. Never been in the west in May and especially concerned since it seems to be a heavy snow year...I'm usually waiting for run off to end for fly fishing

If you're referring to the 316 backcountry unit, I would imagine that to be very inaccessible right now. I'm sure someone could do it, but not me.

 

[Axlrod]

I was going to approach from the red lodge side if we head to that area as it seemed further from Bozevegas. The last time I was in the Absarokas was for an elk and deer hunt with a backcountry tag so we had to get wayy back there to stay legal. I don't want to log that many miles hiking if I can help it. It was a 17+mi round trip hike last time and I don't wanna risk going that deep into the backcountry on a spring trip. I live in TN and spent summers working in Yellowstone in my 20s. Never been in the west in May and especially concerned since it seems to be a heavy snow year...I'm usually waiting for run off to end for fly fishing

First off we refer to it as Bozeangeles! And just a weather update, I'm at 5600 feet, and we got 10" of snow last night in SW MT. Most of the Snotel sites in the area north of the park are at 120% of normal.