49 degree am I hunting them wrong?!

[Shooter4]

Went out Saturday again I drove a lot of the unit I did find sign but yet no bears was up there from first light to last light cruising roads what am I doing wrong?! I hear everyone seeing these damn bears but I can’t seem to catch a break

[cougforester]

How much glassing did you do? All cruising roads in the truck?

We found 8 bears in a 250 acre square drainage this weekend. The other 3 we saw were scattered in random places, so where you find one there will be more.

[Shooter4]

No glassing at all just cruising around walking out to areas then leaving I’m more so looking at meadow areas

[Shooter4]

How much glassing did you do? All cruising roads in the truck?

We found 8 bears in a 250 acre square drainage this weekend. The other 3 we saw were scattered in random places, so where you find one there will be more.

I take it your glassing all day?

[cougforester]

Glass an hour, walk a couple miles along a road, glass an hour, and so on. Eventually we found the spot that saw all the country they were concentrated in and just stuck there. We hiked between 8-12 miles a day, on gated closed logging roads.

[jrebel]

Spend time behind glass.  Last weekend we cruised the roads learning new areas.  We spotted bears while driving but guess we would have seen way more by glassing.  Once you find one, they become easier to spot and you will know what kinds of areas to spend time in.  My experience is most of the bears will eat in the open grassy areas that have cover very near by.  Wide open slopes with no cover....I don't see much in.  Grassy slopes with brush and big timber near by will hold bears.  Water is key too......which most of the country your in has plenty of water. 

 

[Shooter4]

Glass an hour, walk a couple miles along a road, glass an hour, and so on. Eventually we found the spot that saw all the country they were concentrated in and just stuck there. We hiked between 8-12 miles a day, on gated closed logging roads.

we’re ya seeing them in the morning or afternoon more?

[CoryTDF]

No glassing at all just cruising around walking out to areas then leaving I’m more so looking at meadow areas

Ya got to glass man. 

[cougforester]

Afternoon. Some late morning, most showed up after 3 PM.

The best bear advise I ever found was to look for "bear triangles". Find a south facing slope, with draws on either side preferably with water, with a ridge between them. This will form an upside down slice of pie shape. Here's stuff I look for that is in your unit. Couple that with gated and closed roads, you're set.

[buckfvr]

"Cruisin roads" should be limited to traveling from one glassing spot to another with by far, your most time each day spent behind binos.  We generally find them feeding in cuts and worry about getting in range once we locate a shooter.

[Shooter4]

Afternoon. Some late morning, most showed up after 3 PM.

The best bear advise I ever found was to look for "bear triangles". Find a south facing slope, with draws on either side preferably with water, with a ridge between them. This will form an upside down slice of pie shape. Here's stuff I look for that is in your unit. Couple that with gated and closed roads, you're set.

gotcha good to know!

[Ironhead]

Keep your ears open , a lot of times you can hear them before you see them.

[Firetwin3]

Also drew this unit. Hunted for 4 days earlier this week, >10 miles each day behind a gate. When I hunted, I could find meadows/hillsides that were a 3-400 yards in length and then everything else was too thick to really glass in to, alongside the fact I wasn't really able to even get high enough to glass into farther off meadows.

My question now, is how much area are you looking to glass from your glassing spot? Is that 3-400 yard meadow/cut enough? Or should I be searching for the one spot that lets me view much much more?

[jrebel]

Also drew this unit. Hunted for 4 days earlier this week, >10 miles each day behind a gate. When I hunted, I could find meadows/hillsides that were a 3-400 yards in length and then everything else was too thick to really glass in to, alongside the fact I wasn't really able to even get high enough to glass into farther off meadows.

My question now, is how much area are you looking to glass from your glassing spot? Is that 3-400 yard meadow/cut enough? Or should I be searching for the one spot that lets me view much much more?

3-400 yard cuts is enough....especially if you have bear sign.  If I were hunting smaller areas like that, I would look for bear sign on the roads.  If there were no bear scat....I would move along.   

[JWBINX]

Shooter4, Bears are more active in afternoon, glass south facing slopes heavily after 3pm.
49 degrees north can be tough as it is very thick. Cruise up Burnt valley road out of Chewelah
and take a couple dirt roads up to the left to some open areas that have produced in the past.
Run up to ski area and watch greening up areas although it may be a little early depending on
snow depth. Good luck!

[weatherbow21]

I've had good (great) luck cruising roads and finding bears, along with walking roads and glassing cuts. One unit I've drawn over there didn't have much for cuts or any open space for that matter so it was mostly cruising roads. Make sure you're focusing on ankle high grass, or clover if you can find it. I wouldn't focus too much in the mornings, at least not first light like you would for deer.

[Shooter4]

I've had good (great) luck cruising roads and finding bears, along with walking roads and glassing cuts. One unit I've drawn over there didn't have much for cuts or any open space for that matter so it was mostly cruising roads. Make sure you're focusing on ankle high grass, or clover if you can find it. I wouldn't focus too much in the mornings, at least not first light like you would for deer.

Okay thanks

[Machias]

I don't want this to come across as a jerk answer, but cruisin roads is not actually hunting.  I think I put thousands of miles on my truck, looking for tracks and sign and I might have seen a couple of bears in several years of "cruising".  In my opinion it's an extremely unproductive way to try and kill a black bear in Eastern WA or Northern Idaho.  The terrain is not particularly conducive to that style of "hunting".  Do bears get spotted from the roads, sure, but your chances are pretty small.  Good luck to you, find the food and you will find bears.

[buckfvr]

I don't want this to come across as a jerk answer, but cruisin roads is not actually hunting.  I think I put thousands of miles on my truck, looking for tracks and sign and I might have seen a couple of bears in several years of "cruising".  In my opinion it's an extremely unproductive way to try and kill a black bear in Eastern WA or Northern Idaho.  The terrain is not particularly conducive to that style of "hunting".  Do bears get spotted from the roads, sure, but your chances are pretty small.  Good luck to you, find the food and you will find bears.

 

[bearpaw]

shooter i sent you a message

[weatherbow21]

I don't want this to come across as a jerk answer, but cruisin roads is not actually hunting.  I think I put thousands of miles on my truck, looking for tracks and sign and I might have seen a couple of bears in several years of "cruising".  In my opinion it's an extremely unproductive way to try and kill a black bear in Eastern WA or Northern Idaho.  The terrain is not particularly conducive to that style of "hunting".  Do bears get spotted from the roads, sure, but your chances are pretty small.  Good luck to you, find the food and you will find bears.

Weird, I've seen a lot of bears from and in roads. When we hunted 111 back in 2016 my wife killed the 25th bear we saw, one of those was in a spot we walked into but it was eating grass in the middle of the road.

Call me a liar, or lazy, I don't care. Its not my preferred way of hunting either and I'd rather hike into the Wenaha like I'm doing this weekend, but to say it doesn't work is pretty silly. 

[Buckhunter24]

I don't want this to come across as a jerk answer, but cruisin roads is not actually hunting.  I think I put thousands of miles on my truck, looking for tracks and sign and I might have seen a couple of bears in several years of "cruising".  In my opinion it's an extremely unproductive way to try and kill a black bear in Eastern WA or Northern Idaho.  The terrain is not particularly conducive to that style of "hunting".  Do bears get spotted from the roads, sure, but your chances are pretty small.  Good luck to you, find the food and you will find bears.

Weird, I've seen a lot of bears from and in roads. When we hunted 111 back in 2016 my wife killed the 25th bear we saw, one of those was in a spot we walked into but it was eating grass in the middle of the road.

Call me a liar, or lazy, I don't care. Its not my preferred way of hunting either and I'd rather hike into the Wenaha like I'm doing this weekend, but to say it doesn't work is pretty silly.

Sounds like it worked for you. But the advice from others is spot on in my opinion. Many thick areas where even when you see a bear while driving it will be a rushed shot at best. Glassing cuts and getting up a bit higher and glassing open timber is going to produce better for him and provide a better shot mist likely. Getting a call from one of the guys that sells them on this forum would be good too.

[Machias]

Not calling you a liar or lazy.  Just giving you one guy's perspective.  In 26 years of hunting up here, I think I've seen literally less than 10 bears from the road.  Good luck and I hope you get a big one.

[Bango skank]

I don't want this to come across as a jerk answer, but cruisin roads is not actually hunting.  I think I put thousands of miles on my truck, looking for tracks and sign and I might have seen a couple of bears in several years of "cruising".  In my opinion it's an extremely unproductive way to try and kill a black bear in Eastern WA or Northern Idaho.  The terrain is not particularly conducive to that style of "hunting".  Do bears get spotted from the roads, sure, but your chances are pretty small.  Good luck to you, find the food and you will find bears.

Weird, I've seen a lot of bears from and in roads. When we hunted 111 back in 2016 my wife killed the 25th bear we saw, one of those was in a spot we walked into but it was eating grass in the middle of the road.

Call me a liar, or lazy, I don't care. Its not my preferred way of hunting either and I'd rather hike into the Wenaha like I'm doing this weekend, but to say it doesn't work is pretty silly.

It may have been eating in the middle of the road, but you walked up on it.  If youd have been cruising in your truck youd have just seen a bears ass disappearing into the brush, never would have been able to get out, load your rifle and shoot.

[WSU]

Where you wearing your kuiu while road hunting?  (sorry, couldn't help it).

[Jonathan_S]

I've seen a lot of bears from/on the road but only two that I had a remote possibility of shooting. Unless it's in an area that offers good visibility, it is a pretty low percentage game.

[buckfvr]

Bear, deer, what ever, road hunting is road hunting highly dependent on luck.  If luck is all you got, youre gonna need a giant bag or 2 of chips and a box of cheap beer.

[weatherbow21]

Where you wearing your kuiu while road hunting?  (sorry, couldn't help it).

I don't generally wear camo Joe.

I guess this turned into a road hunting thread. I could care less if people road hunt, as I said its certainly not my favorite way. The unit I hunted, 111, it was really effective. There's not a lot of open, glassable terrain and not a lot of walk in roads at least that I could find, I'm done applying for that unit because of it. I cruised roads and covered lots of country and it worked. Roads grow grass on the edges and the bears eat it  Many of you are right, bears don't tend to stand in the road and let you shoot them. But, in 2016 4 of us drew the same tag. 3 of them were literally shot from the vehicle, like it or not, it happened. The one I killed we had seen multiple bears on a stretch of road and lots of poop, so we started parking and walking it and thats how I taggged out. The first year I drew it, it was the same story but totally by accident.

49 degrees has a lot more clearcuts, I don't know any hunter that wouldn't understand glassing cuts and open areas would be more effective than driving around and through them. Like I said make sure you're focusing on ankle high grass, or clover if you can find it (you'll find both on the edges of roads).