Idaho fall bear

[Geno67]

Where to start? I'm snakebit on bear so far. Hunted on three occasions over three years in east TN with hounds and a guide. No luck. Took a decade off to get a few things done and now I'm back in the saddle so to speak. I applied for a controlled hunt in Idaho and if I don't get drawn, I'll just buy an otc tag and go anyway. I'm looking at unit 1 in Idaho in the northeast corner of the panhandle a month from now.

Anyone had any luck with bear? Fall or spring makes no difference to me, I just would like a bear to add to the list. Any and all help is appreciated.

 

[Potsie]

Prepare for hunting in thick, wet brush.

 

[Geno67]

Thanks BB. I was hoping for general information that would be helpful rather than specifics that would give away anyone's secrets. You delivered.

 

[kmott]

in the fall .find the berries find the bears.

they also like to hit the salmon runs , so glass around the rivers first and last light . glass ,glass and glass some more and you will find them

 

[Geno67]

I am in the market for a spotter and maybe a rangefinder. I think I bought a rangefinder from a friend who needed money but I've never used it so I'm not certain I can find it.

 

[Geno67]

Another question. Can a car get around the national forest service roads? My old Taurus gets better gas mileage than my truck and has a huge trunk. I hunt out of it in Florida, Georgia and Alabama but the forest service roads are well maintained. I will have a chain saw.

 

[El Jason]

Another question. Can a car get around the national forest service roads? My old Taurus gets better gas mileage than my truck and has a huge trunk. I hunt out of it in Florida, Georgia and Alabama but the forest service roads are well maintained. I will have a chain saw.

Hard to answer this one definitively. During the time period you are looking at, the bears will be focused on whatever berry source is available. Personally, I would hunt high into the alpine and look on slopes where the berries haven't burned off yet (i.e. more northerly aspects). Some roads are fine to get you to the trailhead. Others, not so much.

 

[Geno67]

Thanks JLS and kmott. I will be calling the forest service office to ask questions when I get the results of the draw on the 23rd.

 

[elker]

Use bait also, legal in Idaho. In the high bear area, bears will be on the bait in a day or two. Spring seems to be better than fall. Just got into bear hunting 4 years ago. I always go OTC and hunt where a lot of bears are. Some units have 2 bear tags, those areas have lots of bears and reduced prices for the tags. The F & G want to reduce bear populations in those. I've been successful 3 out of the last 4 years, 1 fall and 2 spring. There are some good FS roads that can be used by cars, just need to have your baits 200 yds from road, creeks. I know some great spots that I no longer hunt and can share those. I never have put in for the bear draws as there are lots of good places OTC. PM if interested.

 

[ida homer]

I would focus on spring, and baiting. I have baited one time in my life, couldn't be more green, and we had 3 bears on it within 4 or 5 days.
They're so much easier to find in the spring vs. the fall. Focus on deer and elk in the fall!

It's pretty easy to have 3-4 different tags in your pocket at the same time in ID, as we have accidentally bumped into some big bears in the fall.

 

[BAKPAKR]

If you are going to hunt bears in Unit 1, or almost any other place in North Idaho, I don’t think I would want to use a car as my hunting rig.

I agree with kmott, if you can find berries in the fall, you will find bears. By the end of August and into September, the berries are at the higher elevations and the well-maintained roads are generally not at those higher elevations. In the spring, it is not uncommon to have to bust through patches of snow that separate open sections of road.

FYI - I understand that grizzly sightings are getting more and more common in Unit 1. Make sure to identify the bear species before you shoot.

Good luck and I look forward to hearing about your hunt.

 

[Geno67]

I did not get drawn for a control hunt. Went ahead and purchased 2 over the counter tags for bear and 3 for wolf. Now to decide which unit.

 

[BAKPAKR]

I did not get drawn for a control hunt. Went ahead and purchased 2 over the counter tags for bear and 3 for wolf. Now to decide which unit.

Are both bear tags reduced price tags? If you will be driving a car, how far/high are you willing to hike from either a paved road or a well-maintained gravel road? Also, how long will you be in Idaho and what time period?

 

[Dunning Kruger]

Use bait also, legal in Idaho. In the high bear area, bears will be on the bait in a day or two. Spring seems to be better than fall. Just got into bear hunting 4 years ago. I always go OTC and hunt where a lot of bears are. Some units have 2 bear tags, those areas have lots of bears and reduced prices for the tags. The F & G want to reduce bear populations in those. I've been successful 3 out of the last 4 years, 1 fall and 2 spring. There are some good FS roads that can be used by cars, just need to have your baits 200 yds from road, creeks. I know some great spots that I no longer hunt and can share those. I never have put in for the bear draws as there are lots of good places OTC. PM if interested.

He specified unit 1. Baiting is not legal there. No bait, no hounds, no e callers, no reduced price tags

 

[Geno67]

No. One bear tag is regular so I can hunt any unit for it. I also have three wolf tags and can hunt any unit. Ecallers are legal for wolves statewide so I could use one as long as I have a wolf tag in my pocket. I am not tied to any unit to be honest, I would just like a pelt. Color phase would be great but not required. Any color would be fine for my first bear.

I will be hunting from a GMC Envoy, 2wd. I will be in state 5 days starting Monday, September 16 through Friday, September 20. I am 52 with a sort of bad knee and a sort of bad back. As little hiking as possible. I can hike long distances 2-5 miles, but carrying hide/meat out would be a real task.

 

[elker]

Geno67, if you get a chance, shoot me a pm and I can give you a couple of specific areas I no longer hunt due to the driving time. These place are more north central Idaho, in high bear densities. The panhandle is a good area too, although baiting is not legal there. as DK pointed out. In 5 days you should have no problem getting a couple of bears in. Spot and stalk can be more difficult in the area due to thick forest usually can't see the ground, although there are a few open areas. GMC Envoy would be fine. Berry patches are magnets for the bears this time of year. I'm 63 and was able to get the bear hide and meat with similar challenges you face. One of the pluses with baiting is you only have to set the baits 200 yds off the roads and creeks. so the pack out is fairly easy. Good luck.

 

[Geno67]

Thanks elker - pm sent.

 

[Geno67]

Idaho bear hunt update. Where to start? LOL

Car barfed on me for 9 hours in Missouri. No explanation for why it quit in the middle of the night and made me push it off the road, no explanation for why it started again the next morning right before the tow truck got there. Three days of driving up. Set up baits in a few likely spots. It got real interesting after that. I could not keep up with the baits once they were being hit (2 took 24 hours, 1 was hit the first night). One of them was dug out 6+ feet deep and 12' long in one night where I had poured some strawberry syrup down the stump hole.

I called for the rest of the day after setting out my baits. Called up half a dozen coyotes, a very nice mountain lion and 2 bobcats (they were together), I guess they could have been lynx as I was not close enough to tell the difference. No bear and no wolves. I had intended to get up before dawn and listen for wolves up near the peaks of the mountains but I was too tired and never did.

Went to check my baits again the following morning and all of them needed replenishing. After I replenished the last one I went back to the first one only to find the gate to the road locked. It was washed out about half a mile past my bait. I put on my pack and walked the mile in to it. Not paying any attention and not knowing exactly where it was, I walked up on and spooked two large black males. I sat down and watched it for about 20 minutes and a large male comes into it. I watch him for 10 minutes or so and he stretches up against a tree and I squeezed a shot off right between his shoulders. He went back to all fours just as a fired and I shot right over him. I walked the mile back out as it was getting dark and was at the ranger station the next morning. After explaining my dilemma to the ranger he gave me a visitor's permit and a key to the gate so I could retrieve my bait. I went back there and sat for a while but no bears. At lunch I went and checked my other baits. I gave up on one of them because I was unable to keep up with the demand and replenished the remaining one.

I had been carrying a .308 semi and a pistol but I was carrying more bait in so I opted for a bolt action and left the pistol in the truck. I went back to the truck, ate lunch and went to sit the bait for the afternoon. In the 15 minutes that I was at the truck, the largest bear I have ever seen in my life had moved in on the bait. I sat and watched for a while as the wind was right and here comes three little 35 pound fuzzballs. I was thinking there was no way that bear could be a sow but it was. I continued to watch them for 30 minutes. The wind shifted and I knew she was going to wind me and she did. The three bobble heads went up a tree and she went into a frenzy. I don't think she could see me but she was making a mess of the place huffing non-stop, running off for 80 yards or so and running back down the mountain to the bait area. I got tired of it and was going to move out to the truck and go to another bait. She had other ideas. the first charge started at 30 yards and ended when I fired a round into the ground between her front feet at about 10 feet. That stopped her but did not run her off. She proceeded to tear down and stomp into pieces every tree in a ten yard area less than 8". She and I had a yelling match, a calm conversation, a screaming match and then another calm conversation. I fired another round into the ground between her feet when she charged me the second time at about 8 yards. She went back to the bait and sat down on top of it. I tried easing out but she blocked me again and I had to be ready to shoot if needed. I could not back up the mountain to my truck with my chair in hand so I ended up leaving a perfectly good chair in the woods when she finally let me ease out after a two hour standoff in a thicket on the side of a godawful hill in Idaho.

When I got to the truck, I took off my hunting gear, put on some khakis and a knit shirt and drove home. I still wanted a bear rug but not bad enough to kill a bear and take it off of it. At that point in time, all I wanted to do was go home and hug my family. So that's exactly what I did. I left three days early - lol. All told I saw 11 bears including the three cubs.

I can't thank elker and BAKPAKR enough for the wonderful information - I'm certain it made all the difference in my wonderful hunt.

Now - someone help me find an antelope hunt.

 

[Dave N]

Well! That was exciting, wasn't it?

 

[Kiwi]

Sounds like you found a great spot! And a real adventure. Glad you got out ok.