Hunting Washington Forum
Big Game Hunting => Bear Hunting => Topic started by: grizzlyadams on August 12, 2011, 03:50:33 PM
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Ok, I am really confused about something and hopefully you pro's out there can enlighten me. After years of unsucessful bear hunts, I decided to read a bit more on it hoping to find out what I am doing wrong. I have read that bears are active all day long but it seems the only time I see pictures or the rare glimpse of one in the wild it has been in the early morning or evening hours. Are bears really active all day long, even in the heat? I always thought that mid-day when it gets hot they stay in the cool of the forest. Any help would be greatly appreciated. One more thing.....would you all hunt high or low this time of year. Yes I know it depends on the food source, but would that food source be high or low right now........Thanks Ya'll. :hello:
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Grizz, from what I see it depends on the food. If there is food they will eat, sleep, and eat some more where ever they are if they feel safe. On my cam I've gotten bears chowing two days straight and only leaving for brief periods of time. Day, noon, early, late, and at night. You can look at my thread in the deer section regarding my cam and look at dates and times of active. I think to be successfull you need to find areas the bears are using for feeding. It seems like they have a range area that they come and go as the work from spot to spot. Do the usual, look for berries, scat, tree peels, shoot, even beds. I've got pics low and have helped pack bears from higher up. Now, I just have to shoot my own.
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Thanks h2O....I really appreciate any advice. I would really like to get a bear this year. Its getting tough to justify buying that tag with the wife every year if I dont eventually bring something home. All I can say anymore when I come home from a hunt is :dunno:. Its getting old.....guess maybe I am hunting the wrong areas. I can sit across from a hillside meadow all day full of berries and never see a thing. Funny thing is that I bet the very next day after I am gone the bears are feasting away in that very spot. :bash:
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In 100 degree heat I have watched a bear move from shade spot to shade spot in a canyon to escape the heat of midday...resting in the shade...did not appear to be eating...
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I hear ya man. Same thing for me. I'm learning more each time I go out. If you care to share a bit either on the forum or via pm maybe I can help. I've received some good advice from other members and will pass some along if I can.
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I have seen bears out in the middle of the august heat. Had a chance at one two years ago at 1pm, but he was not giving me the right angle for a clean shot. They eat when they are hungry and drink when the are thirsty, just like you and me.
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Sure thing h2O....I dont know if little old me could actually have any usable info on the subject but I would willingly share anything I know.... :tup:
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In 100 degree heat I have watched a bear move from shade spot to shade spot in a canyon to escape the heat of midday...resting in the shade...did not appear to be eating...
Cant say that I blame them Iceman. My shepard seeks out the shade when the sun shines and shes not even all black. Couldnt imagine it being 80 degrees and wearing a black fur coat.
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Thanks h2O....I really appreciate any advice. I would really like to get a bear this year. Its getting tough to justify buying that tag with the wife every year if I dint eventually bring something home. All I can say anymore when I come home from a hunt is :dunno:. Its getting old.....guess maybe I am hunting the wrong areas. I can sit across from a hillside meadow all day full of berries and never see a thing. Funny thing is that I bet the very next day after I am gone the bears are feasting away in that very spot. :bash:
think what you would do with a coat on in the heat,they will move in next to water and or an area with cooler thermals..I don't hunt clear cuts at all,I hunt thick dark areas by feeding areas..because there are berries there does not mean there are bears,find good sign and watch it...The bear has 45 noses,keep that in mind,you can walk up to one if he don't smell you...or hear you...I walked to within 30 feet of a bear tearing at a log facing me,when I seen it the bear looked at me and stared for about a minute,then slowly turned and I dumped it..2pm, hot July 17Th..mid way up a steep dark drainage..sidehilling with the thermals in your favor above a creek is good juju
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rasbo...that whole (just because the berries are there does not mean the bears are) seems to be so true!! I hear or read all the time to just find the berries and you'll find the bears.....sooo not true. Unless its just me. I am certain that the local wildlife have somehow bugged me and a forest alert system is triggered everytime I head out for a hunt
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Same with me, 90 degrees at noon and eating grass on the side of the logging roads. Go figure huh ?
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Think of it this way. How many grocery stores are in your area, and how many do you actually shop at? Now, how many berry patches are in the woods? and how many will the bears actually eat at? There can be berry patches in the woods that are plentiful and at full bloom, but if bears are not in the area, then no use hunting them, or if there are a TON of berry patches in the area, then the bears may simply be in a differnt berry patch and sometimes will remain close to one patch until hes done or no longer feels safe there. I tend to hunt berry patches quite a bit. If its cool out or misty or lightly raining then the clear-cuts or more open areas is where i'll be found, but if it hot out and mid day, i tend to stay closer to water sources and hunt the deeper timber. Hope it helps!
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RASBO, what happened to your other profile pic? I liked it way better.
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RASBO, what happened to your other profile pic? I liked it way better.
Blame me ... :chuckle: actually he needs to put it back :yeah:
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Ive killed them in the heat of the day and had good luck in the evening also never had good luck in the morning. :twocents:
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RASBO, what happened to your other profile pic? I liked it way better.
Blame me ... :chuckle: actually he needs to put it back :yeah:
Much thanks. :tup:
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I have seen very few bears out in summer heat.. they get down in the draws and timber during the high heat. Most of the bears I have seen in midday heat were spooked out of a draw and were getting to the next one. Majority of bears we have killed are in the first hour and last couple hours of light when its hot
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I have known Bears to climb up on a large stump or log around the 10:00 AM time frame just to bask in the sun/heat. Known of several killed just that way....
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rasbo...that whole (just because the berries are there does not mean the bears are) seems to be so true!! I hear or read all the time to just find the berries and you'll find the bears.....sooo not true. Unless its just me. I am certain that the local wildlife have somehow bugged me and a forest alert system is triggered everytime I head out for a hunt
It may not mean that a bear is going to be standing there waiting for you to shoot it, but it does mean that it is a great starting point for your hunt. And if you find a berry covered hillside, keep watching it frequently. Guaranteed that if the berries are ripe, one or more will show up sooner or later.
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Ive got bears at all hours of the day at some spots and some early am and late pm at other spots.
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I have seen them at all times of the day, but early morning has been the most productive for sightings for me
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We've killed more bear between 3 and 5pm than any other time. I usually get set up around noon, take a nap and when I wake up there they are!!! My thought has always been that when they emerge from a day sleeping in the creek bottoms they are really hungry and aggressively feeding. Allowing me to get away with a lot more movement than I would if they are just grazing nonchalant.
