View Full Version : Black Bear Hunt
jgregoir
08-15-2018, 16:39
Anyone ever hunt black bear in units 39, 391, 051, 46, or 461? I drew a tag for September for these units accidentally and wondering if anyone has experience in these units?
Good spots to set up camp/jumping off points?
Areas they think may be holding bear or they've seen bear while elk/deer hunting?
Not really looking for anyone's honey holes just wondering where to start in these units. Figured not too many people into hunting bears so hopefully this isn't like asking for someone's secret elk spots. Any help getting started would be greatly appreciated! Thanks in advance and fingers crossed!
I hunt bear every year, mostly concurrent with the elk season. I don't know those areas but would suggest you contact your local wildlife officer asap for any suggestions as to where to find (problem) bears. Spend every morning and evening you can out there. Good luck!
hunterhawk
09-06-2018, 06:40
Never hunted that unit but usually the key to a good bear hunt is to not have a bear tag and be elk hunting then you are sure to see bears :-/
While not unit specific I am curious how people hunt bear as it sounds like most people get a bear tag while elk hunting but don't really make a specific effort toward bear, so what so people do to fill their tag?
I've had a bear tag for three years and never seen one. Since you can't bait in Colorado, you have to do the next best thing by killing something else, then hunting over the gut pile for the next few days.
That strategy worked for me last year in that it attracted a bear (I heard it) but I was messing around and by the time I got up there it was long gone.
hunterhawk
09-06-2018, 23:11
Hunt near streams and meadows morning and before dark
jgregoir
09-07-2018, 09:28
Awesome. Thanks for all the advice. I've seen bears several times while scouting for elk or elk hunting but never had a tag in my pocket at the time. I've heard from multiple people too that finding a gut pile from an elk is the best bet. Second would be a water source and berry bushes. Hunted south Georgetown last weekend and saw one pile of sign but the area was loaded with people camping. Going to try a new spot this weekend.
Got my first black bear on Thursday.
Turns out, all you need to do is move onto acreage in the mountains, pick up a private land only bear tag good for Sep - Nov, have a rifle ready in the house, and wait for one to walk by.
I'm pretty certain this is the same bear I posted about a few years ago. First time I'd seen him since.
Thankfully I have a winch on my Mule UTV and was able to get him back to the shed. No idea on the weight (over 400 is my guess), but he measures 84" nose to tail and 79" across front paws. Hard to tell skull size until it's cleaned, but I'm pretty certain he'll make the B&C record book. He was an old bore with broken and missing canines and a lot of other teeth jacked up or missing. Curious to see what the DOW office says about his age.
I doubt I'll ever have a chance at a bear this size again.
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That's the SCAR 17S I shot him with for perspective.
Congratulations, good looking bear.
kidicarus13
09-09-2018, 16:31
Nice!
encorehunter
09-09-2018, 17:06
Beautiful bear. I like hunting them in orchards. My biggest bear I was able to spot, then I used elk mouth call to do a wounded animal call. He came from a couple hundred yards pretty fast. I waited for him to come around a tree, and shot him at about 10 yards. The 45-70 knocked him off his feet. The he decided to get up and keep coming, so I shot him three more times. I saved the fifth shot for myself in case he got up again. He died less than 5 yards from me.
henpecked
09-09-2018, 17:52
Congratulations
Awesome! Turn that thing in to a jacket with the head as a hood! :)
The biggest black bear I've ever seen was off of Rollins Pass Road, it ran out in front of my Jeep and all I saw was the ass end and I swear it was a good 3 feet wide..
Congratulations! He would make a fine full body mount.
No drama on this "hunt." I spotted him on my way home from work on the road that cuts through my property. I ran in and grabbed my rifle and headed down the hill in the direction he was headed. I spotted him at 85 yards and shot him once through the heart with a 150 grain Winchester Power Point .308. He took off for 15 feet, dove into my pond and that was it. I went back to the house to change out of my work clothes and then drove down and fished him out with the winch.
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henpecked
09-09-2018, 19:13
Do a full mount you won't regret it.
Shooter45
09-09-2018, 19:17
Congrats on the bear! That's definitely big most places especially Colorado!
I'd love to do a full mount, but that's a big animal to have standing in the corner. Not sure I have the room unless I have him lying down on a large ledge I have.
Then there's the $3K vs $1K for a rug.
Tough decision.
henpecked
09-09-2018, 19:52
I spent the 3000 and never regretted it. Mines on a rolling base which makes it easy to move.
Dayum, that's a big bruin. A good full mount can always be sold for more than what you pay for it. If I ever get one it will go on a high corner platform in the living room.
encorehunter
09-10-2018, 06:12
I don't know that you will get a rug done for $1k. I was quoted about $1500 for mine, and wasn't as big as yours. Tanning it alone was over $500. Granted, I will never go back to that taxidermist again. He cUT the inspection tag off immediately, and I still don't think I got my bear back. I got DOW involved because they said it was highly irregular for a taider mist to do that. My father's bear still jas the inspection tag on it, even after being tagged. The taxidermist was in Canon city. My father's was done in Pueblo West, and his came out amazing.
Took him to the PWD this morning where they pulled a tooth. Said I can get the age info from the tooth analysis in the Spring. \
Then off to the taxidermist. I stood around while they skinned out his skull and took rough measurements with calipers - Length 12 7/8, Width 8 1/8
This puts him right on the line for B&C all-time record book - must have minimum 21" total.
I'll have to get the skull flesh off and wait the 60 day drying period before having him officially scored. He'll no doubt make the minimum 20" record book, but I'd of course like him to make the all-time.
From what I've read, boiling will potentially cause more shrinkage than beetles, and the taxidermist I took him to does not have beetles.
Does anyone know of a place that uses dermestid beetles?
ChickNorris
09-10-2018, 12:15
https://classicantlermounts.com/skull-cleaning/
Googled: beetle cleaned skulls denver
There is a video that's interesting, it shows his process on a bear skull.
I don't know that you will get a rug done for $1k. I was quoted about $1500 for mine, and wasn't as big as yours. Tanning it alone was over $500. Granted, I will never go back to that taxidermist again. He cUT the inspection tag off immediately, and I still don't think I got my bear back. I got DOW involved because they said it was highly irregular for a taider mist to do that. My father's bear still jas the inspection tag on it, even after being tagged. The taxidermist was in Canon city. My father's was done in Pueblo West, and his came out amazing.
Which place in Canon cut off your tag?
https://classicantlermounts.com/skull-cleaning/
Googled: beetle cleaned skulls denver
There is a video that's interesting, it shows his process on a bear skull.
Yep, I found the same, and have contacted them.
That is where I plan to take it unless something closer pops up.
Thanks!
jgregoir
09-10-2018, 19:12
Wow! Amazing bear. Congrats!
No drama on this "hunt." I spotted him on my way home from work on the road that cuts through my property. I ran in and grabbed my rifle and headed down the hill in the direction he was headed. I spotted him at 85 yards and shot him once through the heart with a 150 grain Winchester Power Point .308. He took off for 15 feet, dove into my pond and that was it. I went back to the house to change out of my work clothes and then drove down and fished him out with the winch.
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I went back this afternoon to pick up the skull from the taxidermist and he gave me the bullet he found "embedded in the hide" while fleshing it out. I was surprised because the bullet wound I found was through and through without even touching a rib. He asked me a couple of times if it looked like mine and that it was near one of the holes. I figured it had to be mine, but when I got it home and weighed it, it came out to 324+ grains. I shot him with a 150 grain .308. I believe he's been carrying that around for a while since there were no visible signs inside or out of him being shot before. Maybe an off-angle shot that went through some meat and then traveled along under the hide to its resting place. Strange
He also said it measured over 8 feet paw to paw after fleshing it out.
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My apologies to the OP for hijacking the thread - just excited about this bear of a lifetime.
ETA: Appears to possibly be a .50 cal muzzle-loading bullet - solid lead - concave base
ChickNorris
10-09-2018, 17:47
Yep, I found the same, and have contacted them.
That is where I plan to take it unless something closer pops up.
Thanks!
30ish more days. Im looking forward to an update.
It does look like a .50cal bullet.
ChickNorris
11-19-2018, 19:04
Yep, I found the same, and have contacted them.
That is where I plan to take it unless something closer pops up.
Thanks!
Hey there! Was wondering about your bear. : )
Getting the skull officially measured for Boone and Crockett tomorrow evening.
It will be over the 20" record book minimum, but not quite make the 21" all-time minimum.
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(Pics still uploading as attachments since the forum upgrade)
ChickNorris
11-19-2018, 23:11
Lovelovelove the pictures!
Do you know what the shrinkage was, if any?
By my measurement, he shrunk 1/8 inch in both directions.
Was 21", now 20 3/4"
Official measurement came in at 20 7/8"
He made the 2016-2018 record book, but just 1/8" shy of the all-time record book.
ChickNorris
11-20-2018, 20:20
That bear is awesome. Would love to know the story behind his dentition
Wow. 1/8 of an inch.
Stopped by the taxidermist today.
Bear rug shell just installed - needs eyes and then sent off for backing and then back for paint.
Should be back in a couple months
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Was he ever aged?
Yes, but won't be published till Spring 2019
Got my rug back today
7' 3" toe to toe
6' 11" nose to tail
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ChickNorris
03-19-2019, 18:52
Very nice!
kidicarus13
03-19-2019, 19:07
Cool!
Very cool. Really soft fur I take it? We used to have a llama skin rug and I just remember it was the softest thing.
-John
CPW finally published bear tooth age data for 2018.
My bear came back as 11-12 years old.
ChickNorris
07-22-2019, 11:37
Knowing nothing about the lifespan of bears, that doesn't seem very old.
[Edit] Googled. Not quite middle aged for a wild bear.
I was hiking up a 4x4 road to get to our camping spot for the night when an ATV came up behind us and said, "did you guys see that bear in the middle of the path? Biggest I have ever seen."
LOL, talk about freaky. We must have just walked by it without the slightest idea it was there.
Good thing he wasn't hunting us, lol.
-John
hunterhawk
07-22-2019, 22:20
That does seem pretty old to me.. pretty cool
marineimaging
12-14-2019, 14:12
I am 64 and have hunted and fished since I was a teenager, but, never having had any dealings with bear so I was wondering what the attraction is. Are they good table fare? Is it just for the hide? Is it for the trophy? I hunt and I shoot and I love the outdoors, but I have watched the videos of people attracting bears to a barrel of sweets and shooting them from a tree stand and I just don't get it. I am trying to understand what it is I am missing. Wisecracks not needed. I am looking for a serious hunters responses. Thanks.
Bear meat tastes good. People like rugs or mounts. Baiting it's not legal in Colorado. I've heard of more than one hunter who gets a bear, then doesn't really hunt bears after that. There are also people who love to hunt bears and do it every year. Some people just love hunting and want to try it all.
buffalobo
12-14-2019, 15:23
I will second bear meat good and most folks it seems stop hunting bear after they get one.
A Kodiak and a Silvertip are on my bucket list.
I’ve not tried it but have heard from several people that have that it’s good stuff, the bear fat when rendered down is highly desired by cooks/chefs as well. There is the possibility of trichinosis though so it needs to be cooked like pork. Colorado CPW would like it if more people hunted them, we have an over population of them throughput the state and CPW makes it as easy as possible to get a tag for one and encourages that you get one.
People think we are over populated because we stopped the spring hung, but we actually harvest more bears now with just the fall hunt, than we ever did when we had two seasons. I still haven't even seen one in the wild though, let alone gotten my own.
By the way, as to the age of a bear, there was a lady that was mauled by a grizzly that was interviewed on the MeatEater podcast. The bear that attacked her was in it's early 20's. Just this month I guess that bear for into trouble again and they put it down. It was 26 years old.
People think we are over populated because we stopped the spring hung, but we actually harvest more bears now with just the fall hunt, than we ever did when we had two seasons. I still haven't even seen one in the wild though, let alone gotten my own.
CPW says they are overpopulated and that via some study areas they have been watching the last few years they are beginning to find out just how much of an impact bear predation on fawns is impacting the drop in mule deer populations through much of the state. I’ve never seen one hunting either but I’ve seen dozens of them while working in Steamboat and the Aspen area as well as I have see them many times up the canyons outside Boulder.
I just recently heard that CPW said they may have underestimated our bear population by as much as 50%! Can you believe that? Quite the over sight.
When I was hunting in unit 33 some local was telling me that they were over populated because all the bleeding hearts Aspen want them relocated all the time so they drive them up there to drop them off. I don't know how much I believe that, but I did see a bunch of tracks around my tent whole I was hunting. I went into town and got a bear license mid season, but never saw one. I was bummed.
hunterhawk
12-15-2019, 11:52
I saw 5 bears in 1 week of hunting and missed one of them :-/ certain areas have more bears than others. I really want to get one with my bow. It will happen sooner or later.
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