School me on bear hunting in WA

[shibbershabber]

With my limited time and money, the $46 for bear & small game is awfully tempting as is the three month long season.

So whats the scoop?

Why so cheap and why so long of a season?


Are there a glut of bears here? Are they tougher to get?


Looking at how much the deer tags are and the shorter seasons... Is it that deer and elk are just more popular?



Im limited to deer hunting in Oregon and I have never considered bear before. Im told that east Lewis county units are good for bear, my inlaws just bought some bare land up there and since Ill be spending time up there, especially in the fall itd be perfect for getting some hunting in.


SO.

What can I expect out there? Long shots, <100yd shots? 
Ive got a nice .303 British and a .58cal Muzzleloader that will put the hurt on almost anything at 75 yards. This should be enough for bear, right?


As far as cleaning them up after the kill, anything special to know?

Ive watched some good videos, about 5 of them and none actually gutted the bear. Just skinned it, took the legs @ shoulder, some ribs and back meat.
Is that about it on a bear? Just skin it and lop off the good stuff? No gutting?

Thanks!

[saylean]

So cheap for a long season...you'd have to ask the Dept of Fish and Game for that. Not a lot of people specifically look for bear.

Washington has the highest black bear pop in the lower 48.

It is thick in areas with bear, but if you know how to find them, it can be done on the west side or east.

Deer and elk are more popular, yes.

Most of my shots for bear are 50 yards or less, last bear I shot was about 30 yards. Depends on where you hunt and how. Lewis is pretty open, so 100 yards is probably right, if not farther, depending.

Weapon choice...you should be fine. Look at the shot placement for bears at the top of the forum.

If you don't gut the bear, you miss out on the tenderloins. Other than that, it is similar to deer.

Oh, and follow the blue links at the bottom of my post if you want a little book on how to hunt em.

Best of luck.

[h20hunter]

I believe bears are under hunted in our state. I'd guess half are taken while hunting other game and half are targeted intentionally.

[shibbershabber]

Good info.

Looks like Im going for bear next year!

[bobcat]

Are you planning to hunt anything other than bear? Just wondering because you said you would also buy a small game license. What is that for?

[luvmystang67]

So many bears, if you know where to look...

Its a great season.  Low pressure, you can spend a lot of time learning it.  Its pretty cool to see a dead bear up close if you're successful.  They make great pepperoni and summer sausage.  You can create a great excuse to spend a lot of time in the woods.

My goal is at least 1 bear per year.   You have 3 months, shouldn't be too hard if you put the time in.

[Curly]

There are a ton of bears not far from Vancouver.  Head west out toward Long Beach.  It's loaded with bears.

(Some areas might be firearm restricted so you could use that muzzleloader of yours to get a bear).

[h20hunter]

By the way.....for the OP....see that little link on Sayleans thread....the very last one.

Step one: click
Step two: buy
Step three: read
Step four: hunt
Step five: kill bear

[shibbershabber]

Yeah, definitely sold on getting some bear.

Small game lic would be for some rabbit, maybe a bobcat if I should stumble upon one.