Post by: Tracker0721 on January 05, 2020, 09:27:57 PM
Post by: buglebuster on January 05, 2020, 09:34:30 PM
Post by: jrebel on January 05, 2020, 09:52:31 PM
We did it a couple years ago. Don’t think I will be doing it again. We were in some absolutly beautiful area with decent glassing spots. The problem is, most of it it’s heavily timbered in those units and the bears don’t like to use them due to hunting pressure. We saw countless trucks driving the roads everyday with hounds in the back, and lots of trucks driving around with their bait setups in the back. From what I gathered is the bears aren’t in the open feeding due to all the baits everywhere, and the hound guys have them really skittish and away from any roads. We hiked into some really good looking country but it was void of bears I think due to my previous statements. If you are going to put in the effort, I suggest you run baits and put in a lot of time over there to be successful.
Very similar experience with us too. There was a 4-5 mile portion of road with 8-10 baits on it. Every spur road with a gate had a bait on it. The local stop and shop said everyone was killing small bears off the baits and he hadn't seen any with any size. I imagine getting away from people is the key.....find an area that does not have 10,000 baits and you will find a good spot and stalk area. If I do it again, I will be setting up a bait. :tup:
Post by: huntnnw on January 05, 2020, 11:45:49 PM
Post by: Jpmiller on January 06, 2020, 06:43:21 AM
Post by: cbond3318 on January 06, 2020, 07:38:34 AM
Post by: Tracker0721 on January 06, 2020, 07:55:59 AM
Post by: cbond3318 on January 06, 2020, 08:47:56 AM
Well I was looking at reduced fee areas and we want spot and stalk opportunities. I see some areas in 4 that pop up as roadless areas on OnX. Would just finding those roadless areas be good? Doubt baiters or houndsman get much over a mile from a road. Or are any of the other reduced fee units better for spot and stalk? My buddies would be flying in from around the US so we just wanted a cheap fun lunch busting spring hunt.
That’s what I would I do if I were set on those units. I have spent the last 2 yrs off trail in the south end of 4 and all of 3. It is astonishing the lack of bear sign I’ve noted. As others have said what bears are there get swallowed up by the numerous bait sites and then the hounds run the rest. I’m sure you can find some success by working hard in the areas you’ve looked at and you’re guaranteed to have fun doing it with a group of good buddies! :tup:
In all honesty , I have one spot in south 4 that I will be checking in May, then I’m bailing on those units.
Post by: buglebuster on January 06, 2020, 10:28:34 AM
Post by: idaho guy on January 06, 2020, 12:31:19 PM
I've got a trip planned with a buddy and our families to Stanley in mid May. We had talked about buying bear tags and spending a.day or two looking for one, is central Idaho the same way with hounds and bait being really prevalent?
no -get away from roads /trails and you will have few hounds down there
Post by: idaho guy on January 06, 2020, 12:39:56 PM
Post by: Huntin Hounds on January 10, 2020, 11:20:03 AM
That said if I was looking to have a good spot and stock hunt I would look toward unit 1. It has the highest bear density in the state, no bait and hounds are only used in part of the unit in the fall. Units 6 and 7 are not bad and have areas you can get away from roads. They also are far enough out of the way most people won't spend the time to bait them consistently. My son and I camped and did some alpine fishing in unit 9 last summer. I did not see any sign of bears or many other critters.
Early June is your best bet but really just depends on the snow melt. I've had years where I could get just about anywhere in the beginning of May. I had one year I camped up the CDA river and had over a foot of snow in my camp the first week of June and I was camped in the creek bottom.
Post by: Jimmy33 on January 25, 2020, 10:30:45 PM
I've been running bears and baiting for many years in unit 4. It's always been my favorite place to hunt but IDFG has ruined the bear hunting in the unit. Between the lengthened seasons, 2 bear limit and reduced tag prices the bear population has tanked. The last few years I have been lucky to have 2-3 bears hit a bait and last year only had 1 bear worthy of shooting and he was only there one night following a sow. Never touched the bait. The rest are 100-150 lbs tops with most closer to 100. The unit is so close to the freeway it just gets tons of pressure and everyone keeps shooting little bears to "do their part to save the elk".No bears in unit 1
That said if I was looking to have a good spot and stock hunt I would look toward unit 1. It has the highest bear density in the state, no bait and hounds are only used in part of the unit in the fall. Units 6 and 7 are not bad and have areas you can get away from roads. They also are far enough out of the way most people won't spend the time to bait them consistently. My son and I camped and did some alpine fishing in unit 9 last summer. I did not see any sign of bears or many other critters.
Early June is your best bet but really just depends on the snow melt. I've had years where I could get just about anywhere in the beginning of May. I had one year I camped up the CDA river and had over a foot of snow in my camp the first week of June and I was camped in the creek bottom.
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