# Bear hunting



## SidVicious (Aug 19, 2014)

I just started getting into bear hunting last year when I tried (unsuccessfully) to fill a bear tag in Idaho. I have been putting in for Utah, and just wanted to see if I could get some info on some of the units. Is baiting the preferred method? Is it better to try a spot and stalk hunt? Is there a better part of the state than another? Any and all info is very much appreciated. Thank you.


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## JuddCT (Sep 7, 2007)

What weapon do you want to use? If archery baiting would be the way to go, but it will be tough.


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## SidVicious (Aug 19, 2014)

I like the idea of archery, but at this point kind of just want to get one under my belt. Is it much easier during the rifle hunts?


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## mikevanwilder (Nov 11, 2008)

The rifle and archery are at the same time. An archery just allows you to bait them. 
I bet most hunters use hounds in Utah. Read the proclamation if your going to bait as there are quite a few requirements. 
Yes there are better units but it will take you a long time to draw them. If you just want to get one under your belt look at a unit that you can draw easier. There are also over the counter spot and stalk only tags on certain units.


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## Mr Muleskinner (Feb 14, 2012)

Spot and Stalk is tough to say the least. It requires a lot of scouting and and in my opinion a ton of luck.

Baiting and hounds are the most sure fire methods. There seams to be a lot of guys that run their dogs for free or payment of fuel just to get their dogs out. It is pretty cool to watch a good houndsman and his dogs work. Baiting can be a lot of work but is also a ton of fun. In a good unit you may see several different bears on the same day. It is real fun to watch them come into a bait station.

There are several post on this forum about baiting bears. Do a search and you will find some pretty good detail.

One thing I will say with regard to bears in Utah...........there are far more of them than most people realize.


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## SidVicious (Aug 19, 2014)

Cool. This is very helpful. Thank you! Are the success rates for the over the counter tags pretty low? Can you use hounds on those hunts? I may just keep putting in and do bait and Archery in a few years. That would be a riot. I'll probably try to hit Idaho again too this spring


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## mikevanwilder (Nov 11, 2008)

No with the over the counter tags they are spot and stalk only. No hounds or baiting.


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## Nambaster (Nov 15, 2007)

I can barely sit still watching an episode of "Criminal Minds" sitting over bait would be like serving a prison sentence in solitary confinement. I think spot and stalk or dogs is the only way that I will ever end up with a dead bear. I think those guys that sit in a tree stand for weeks at a time deserve some serious credit.


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## Mr Muleskinner (Feb 14, 2012)

sitting over bait can be very trying. When we are hunting in Idaho there are typically 3-4 of us with 3 bait stations each. During the hunt we have to keep them stocked and typically won't start sitting on them until they get hit. Once they do get hit it is typically just a matter of time. Some of the best days I have ever had with my son was hunting bear.


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## SidVicious (Aug 19, 2014)

I know this is delving a bit off topic now, but for a bait trip to Idaho, how do you transport enough bait for multiple stands, for say a week? Don't you need quite a bit? I was pretty loaded down this spring with just camping gear, but would like to try and bait this time. I have a jeep, but it was pretty tight. Is a trailer helpful?


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## swbuckmaster (Sep 14, 2007)

It probably depends on how long you plan on hunting and how may bears are hitting your bait. It took two truck loads of bait for me to get my bear in utah. 

I would assume you would need a trailer full of bait one week then come back the second or third week and hunt it.


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## SidVicious (Aug 19, 2014)

Cool. That gives me a good idea of what to plan for. Thank you!


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## kstorrs (Oct 29, 2012)

SidVicious said:


> I know this is delving a bit off topic now, but for a bait trip to Idaho, how do you transport enough bait for multiple stands, for say a week? Don't you need quite a bit? I was pretty loaded down this spring with just camping gear, but would like to try and bait this time. I have a jeep, but it was pretty tight. Is a trailer helpful?


Possibly use a roof rack to get some more storage space?


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## archerben (Sep 14, 2007)

SidVicious said:


> I know this is delving a bit off topic now, but for a bait trip to Idaho, how do you transport enough bait for multiple stands, for say a week? Don't you need quite a bit? I was pretty loaded down this spring with just camping gear, but would like to try and bait this time. I have a jeep, but it was pretty tight. Is a trailer helpful?


I don't think I've ever done it without a trailer.


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## swbuckmaster (Sep 14, 2007)

SidVicious said:


> Cool. That gives me a good idea of what to plan for. Thank you!


This is about a weeks worth for a couple of bears for one bait. If you get more then a couple you won't have any bait left when you come back. Notice the truck tire in the back ground.


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## Critter (Mar 20, 2010)

swbuckmaster said:


> This is about a weeks worth for a couple of bears for one bait. If you get more then a couple you won't have any bait left when you come back. Notice the truck tire in the back ground.


For some reason I'm getting the munchies.


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## swbuckmaster (Sep 14, 2007)

I always sample the bait


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## Mr Muleskinner (Feb 14, 2012)

sweet feed from IFA is much easier to deal with.


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## Lonetree (Dec 4, 2010)

Mr Muleskinner said:


> sweet feed from IFA is much easier to deal with.


^^+1^^

And if you know a local dog food plant(we have one in Ogden) many will sell you "bulk" food. Most of it is a mix of all kinds of things, including ripped bags. Bring your own garbage cans to put it in. They don't always have it, so you need to plan ahead.

They stick around longer with smaller pieces of food, that take more to chew. It takes them longer to eat it. Check with the F&G, we were prevented from using dog food in one Idaho location because of its proximity to a populated area. They did not want bears associating hand outs with pet food. It was only that one location.


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## BigT (Mar 11, 2011)

*Bear Hunting*

Anyone tried the Spot & Stalk Bear hunt here in Utah?

I am considering the Spring Bear hunt, or the Spot and Stalk. I am leaning towards the Spot and Stalk as I see multiple bear every year hunting deer where we go. I have enough points to draw the spot and stalk, and have a good shot at the LE spring.

I don't have the means to pay for hounds at this point. Anyone have a thought on the spring vs the fall spot and stalk?

Thanks


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## Critter (Mar 20, 2010)

BigT said:


> Anyone tried the Spot & Stalk Bear hunt here in Utah?
> 
> I am considering the Spring Bear hunt, or the Spot and Stalk. I am leaning towards the Spot and Stalk as I see multiple bear every year hunting deer where we go. I have enough points to draw the spot and stalk, and have a good shot at the LE spring.
> 
> ...


I'd say to get one more year of points and then this coming spring get out to the area and take a look at what it looks like and if you see any bears.

I know of some areas that spot and stalk would work great during the spring but the bears are not in the same location as they were in the fall.


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## SidVicious (Aug 19, 2014)

Once again, great info! I've heard with bait, that sweet things are the best. Is that true? Also, are there any things I should steer clear of that doesn't work as well? If I end up hauling it all the way to Idaho, I don't wan't to waste space on stuff that the bears don't like.


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## swbuckmaster (Sep 14, 2007)

The best bait is the cheapest bait you can get. Bears will eat anything.


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## SidVicious (Aug 19, 2014)

Cool. That makes me feel better about it. I'm excited to really get into this, so the advice is very much appreciated


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## swbuckmaster (Sep 14, 2007)

Read about my bear hunt here. It will give you all the info you need for a bear hunt. This was my first time and I learned from some of the best bear hunters in utah.

http://UtahWildlife.net/forum/showthread.php?t=78353

Follow me on my archery bear hunt.


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## SidVicious (Aug 19, 2014)

That is a great write up! Looks like quite the adventure!


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## Kevin D (Sep 15, 2007)

A group of us local houndsmen from northern Utah and southern Idaho used to combine our resources to run and maintain bear baits in the Salmon area of Idaho to run our dogs off of (not legal in Utah, but it is in Idaho). We did this for several years and truly had the Cadillac of bait stations.

So just to answer a couple of your questions, spring bear are easier to bait than fall bear. There are a lot more natural food sources available for a bear in the fall that your bait will have to compete with. Bear still show up of course, but not in the numbers they do in the spring and they don't stick around as long.

Our baits consisted of 2 parts; a stink bait to attract the bears, and a food bait to keep them coming back. Our stink bait was dead animals, we'd gather up dead cows from local dairies, store 55 gallon drums of mink carcasses from fur farms, take the byproducts from custom meat cutters and a local trout farm, or anything else that would raise a stink. Idaho laws were a lot more lenient than Utah laws concerning dead animals so it was a lot easier, though we still held our breath (for more than just the smell) every time we passed the port-of-entry in Inkom.

For food bait we'd fill up a 2-ton truck full of the bulk dog/cat food waste that lonetree mentioned. We also mixed our own sweet feed from rolled corn, beet tops, or other grains and mixed it with feed grade molasses that we purchased 55 gallons at a time. We also bought up racks of out-of-date pastries and bread from the Hostess store as swbuckmaster suggested and peeled wrappers until our fingers were raw, but that was too much work we finally decided.

After several years of doing this we abandoned the practice. Idaho laws were changed making it more difficult for us Utahns to run our dogs in the state, plus the cost and effort required to keep or baits maintained was always a burden. I think we fed every bear, crow, magpie, coyote, and raven in central Idaho. We could unload several hundred pounds of bait one weekend and it would be gone by the next. The only thing that would remain untouched was the barrels full of rotten mink carcasses, I think even the maggots had a hard time stomaching those.....

Not to discourage you, but I think you'll find it is tough to maintain a bait from afar. To keep the bears coming back you need to keep the bait fresh, which can be a constant chore. It s tough to drop a bait off one weekend in a high bear density area and still have bear there the next unless you set out a massive amount of food.....at least that has been my experience.


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## SidVicious (Aug 19, 2014)

Thanks, Kevin! That is good stuff to know. So as far as Idaho goes, it seems like quite the chore to keep baits ran effectively. Would you suggest running dogs or spot and stalk instead? If I had a tag here in Utah I could maintain the bait, but it's sounding like quite the task to do that in Idaho


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## mikevanwilder (Nov 11, 2008)

Like Kevin said with baits, you have to keep them stocked. You have to get the bear in a routine and if they show up and your station is empty they might leave and not come back.


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## Kevin D (Sep 15, 2007)

SidVicious said:


> Thanks, Kevin! That is good stuff to know. So as far as Idaho goes, it seems like quite the chore to keep baits ran effectively. Would you suggest running dogs or spot and stalk instead? If I had a tag here in Utah I could maintain the bait, but it's sounding like quite the task to do that in Idaho


Spot and stalk works well in Idaho depending on the area. West central and northern Idaho have high enough bear densities so that the odds of filling a tag are in your favor. Eastern Idaho and around Salmon are tougher hunts for the spot and stalkers because bear are a little more scarce. I think baiting makes more sense in these areas. Spring is also better for spot and stalk hunters because bear are out in the open more grazing on new grass. Early fall bear are still going to be in the berry patches where they are tougher to see.

Idaho has some pretty strict guide and outfitter laws that they enthusiastically enforce, so if you want to hunt with hounds you about have to go through a licensed guide. The Idaho F & G has run several sting operations targeting houndsmen for guiding under the table and it may be tough to find a hound guy willing to take you for nothing, which is the only way it is legal.

So yes, if you want a bear in Idaho a spot and stalk hunt is very doable.


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## SidVicious (Aug 19, 2014)

Thanks again, guys! Looks like I will have my work cut out for me. I'll let you guys know how it goes


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