This midwesterner is hunting alone in grizzly country

As much as we all want a season on grizzlies... EVEN if it happens, I personally dont believe it will impact the bears one single bit. When we did get a season few years ago that got stopped by the court right before it opened, it was like what, 12 tags? Thats not gonna do a damn thing for 99% of the bears. Its a feel good feeling to say we need a hunting season, cause in reality, thats not going to change these bears and their habits or population one bit. The good thing would be getting them off endangered list, so you are not facing a federal offense for possibly defending yourself. And EVERY game warden I know or dealt with in Western WY along with biologists understand the current landscape, and wish there were far less bears as well.

Reality is grizzly issues will stay relevant and something someone must take into account when hunting these type of areas. I had a sow and 3 cubs destroy my archery camp 3 falls ago. I still slept in that camp that night, and hunted there all september. Big bulls are worth the risk for me. I had no food or anything in camp, it was just cubs being cubs and destroyed my stuff. But I did tie my horses much closer to my tent the next few nights thats for sure
True you may not make a dent in the population but like the Wolves in my area once they start getting shot at they are less likely to just waltz in on a carcass.
 
True you may not make a dent in the population but like the Wolves in my area once they start getting shot at they are less likely to just waltz in on a carcass.
I like to think this will be true. I support Grizzly delisting and hunting, regardless.
 
Theres let's say 1000 sows in the GYE (definetly more) a sow has 1 to 3 cubs a year. To take out mortality let's say 1 cub a year. Every year for say 25 years. 1000 new bears a year.

I believe your arithmetic is a little off because they keep cubs two years. So 1000 sows (or whatever the number is) breeding every third year. But I agree the population increase has still been substantial.

Its out of control.

I agree it is.
 
I'm not a local...but I attribute the growth to incredible fecundity. Every sow I've seen has 2 or 3 cubs. And I do think generally they are staying out of trouble. Certainly lots of bears die, hit by cars and then rarely killed by humans (self defense, poaching, or offing problem bears). But generally I think the land can support the bears and they are growing and they haven't found any sort of natural limiting factor yet.
Don't forget trains and irrigation canals. Those two seem to take out bears every year
 
If you shoot a bear in self defense are you legally obligated to report it?
I think if you don't report it, you're going to be treated a lot more guilty than innocent than reporting it but I'm sure there something written somewhere that you are legally required to report it.
 
It’s worth remembering that people hunt and recreate in grizzly country in large numbers all the time, and the overwhelming majority don’t get eaten by a bear. It’s also worth noting that a lot of those people are pretty stupid, yet they get away with it more often than not.


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I think about this often and am reminded often. And then I remember some pretty legit guides that have been mauled too. God has a time for each of us I guess.
 
I spent the better part of the last 30 years in and around the Jackson Hole area. Of that time I’ve probably hunted about 20 seasons (missed a few for school, injuries, family, etc).

In about 20 seasons, I’ve 13 elk, including two nice bulls that were last light shots and next day packouts. But most of the cows I’ve killed were next day packouts too, plus helping others packout. So I haven’t packed out a hundred times without a Grizzly encounter but it’s been a lot more than a time or two.

I’ve seen a lot of bears out and about but never had one on meat or encountered one when packing meat.

I now live in Dubois.
I also live just outside of grizzly bear minor (Dubois). I saw 4 grizzlies along the trail from Union Pass to Moon lake the last time I went there to fish. So far, after hunting a few days in 67 this year for bears and general driving around, my grizzly to black bear ratio is 10:2. They’re obviously not as thick as some of the areas near Cody or closer proximities to the park, but they’re plenty thick in this area. I’ve spent a decent amount of time hunting in the Madisons and Gravelly range and I can’t say I feel any more comfortable in this area hunting archery solo. There is a good population of bears in the upper green, but the western half of 67 & 68 from Lava Mountain towards Brooks lake is saturated with grizzlies.
 
…….the western half of 67 & 68 from Lava Mountain towards Brooks lake is saturated with grizzlies.
And Wind River Lake is closed for Grizzly activity because people have been gutting trout lakeside and leaving it in water.

Try harder, folks.
 
Man, my family was up to visit last week and we drove up to Wind River lake to take the kids fishing only to find it blocked off due to bear activity because these lazy buttholes can’t take their fish somewhere else to clean😂 We did see a sow and cub there the last time we fished it..but that was a few years ago.
And Wind River Lake is closed for Grizzly activity because people have been gutting trout lakeside and leaving it in water.

Try harder, folks
 
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