Call bear.

[Bmac7]

What is the best strategy to find fall bear? I usually see more in the spring.

 

[roosiebull]

I have found bear to be super reliable in the fall, they get harder to find after the weather starts getting bad and the berries end, but Aug-Sept, find the food sources, then check around them for sign, and make a plan.

I don't know where you're hunting, so i'm not sure what the main food sources will be, but they are all about food in the fall, and when they are chowing down in berries, they leave a lot of sign.

around here, early season (early august) it depends on what's ripening, but the first places i'm looking for is skunk cabbage patches that aren't already mowed down by elk, I tend to find big bear in the skunk cabbage. may be a coincidence, but that's been my experience, so that's where i'm looking first, and it offers some good opportunity to kill one with a bow down in the swamps, since it's close quarters regardless.

berries are the obvious big food source in the fall, the types of berries that are ripe first depends on the region. around here, early on, it's usually chittem or elderberry first, sometimes huckleberry ripen early, then later it's all about blackberries.

you won't know what you need to hone in on until you get out and about and see what is the best food source at the time, every year is a little different in that regard, but once you figure that out, you will see bear focusing on one or a couple food sources, and that narrows the habitat down a lot.

when they are eating elderberry or chittem, it's pretty easy to see where bear are feeding, you will see a bunch of fresh broken branches on the trees/bushes, and often times you will hear them breaking the branches before you see them when you have an encounter, fall bear are noisy critters.

on the south coast here, black caps come on really good early, sometimes too early, but if they aren't over by the opener, that's where a person wants to focus, bear love them.

sometimes around here, salmon berries will still be around when the season starts, and they love them. some years they are eating salal berries, it's all about finding the best food source in the fall, then finding a spot you can glass or ambush.

once you find the best food source, then you are looking for sign around the feed, when I find huge scat piles or big tracks, i'm spending time there.... if I see a lot of small/medium bear sign, i'm not gonna bother..... big boars generally aren't around other bear in the fall (more likely smaller bear won't be around big boars)

higher elevation when it's all huckleberry underbrush in the timber, it's harder to hunt, because those bear have no reason to hang out in the open a lot, but you may find open areas those bear move through on a regular basis, then you can set up an ambush spot.

i'm looking for spots with concentrated bear sign, that I can hunt without getting my wind in there, bear don't tolerate human scent at all, and they can smell you a long ways away.

I think fall bear hunting is easier than spring, I have found that bear can be super patternable when you find that good food source, where in the spring, big boars seem to be more wanderers, especially this time of year when the pre rut activity is warming up..... they are thinking about food and sows, and competition.... in the fall all they care about is food, and they feed a lot. fall bear are trying to put on weight, and spend more time out and about during daylight.

it will be different regionally, but the concept will be exactly the same, find the best food sources, and you find bear.

 

[Bmac7]

I have found bear to be super reliable in the fall, they get harder to find after the weather starts getting bad and the berries end, but Aug-Sept, find the food sources, then check around them for sign, and make a plan.

I don't know where you're hunting, so i'm not sure what the main food sources will be, but they are all about food in the fall, and when they are chowing down in berries, they leave a lot of sign.

around here, early season (early august) it depends on what's ripening, but the first places i'm looking for is skunk cabbage patches that aren't already mowed down by elk, I tend to find big bear in the skunk cabbage. may be a coincidence, but that's been my experience, so that's where i'm looking first, and it offers some good opportunity to kill one with a bow down in the swamps, since it's close quarters regardless.

berries are the obvious big food source in the fall, the types of berries that are ripe first depends on the region. around here, early on, it's usually chittem or elderberry first, sometimes huckleberry ripen early, then later it's all about blackberries.

you won't know what you need to hone in on until you get out and about and see what is the best food source at the time, every year is a little different in that regard, but once you figure that out, you will see bear focusing on one or a couple food sources, and that narrows the habitat down a lot.

when they are eating elderberry or chittem, it's pretty easy to see where bear are feeding, you will see a bunch of fresh broken branches on the trees/bushes, and often times you will hear them breaking the branches before you see them when you have an encounter, fall bear are noisy critters.

on the south coast here, black caps come on really good early, sometimes too early, but if they aren't over by the opener, that's where a person wants to focus, bear love them.

sometimes around here, salmon berries will still be around when the season starts, and they love them. some years they are eating salal berries, it's all about finding the best food source in the fall, then finding a spot you can glass or ambush.

once you find the best food source, then you are looking for sign around the feed, when I find huge scat piles or big tracks, i'm spending time there.... if I see a lot of small/medium bear sign, i'm not gonna bother..... big boars generally aren't around other bear in the fall (more likely smaller bear won't be around big boars)

higher elevation when it's all huckleberry underbrush in the timber, it's harder to hunt, because those bear have no reason to hang out in the open a lot, but you may find open areas those bear move through on a regular basis, then you can set up an ambush spot.

i'm looking for spots with concentrated bear sign, that I can hunt without getting my wind in there, bear don't tolerate human scent at all, and they can smell you a long ways away.

I think fall bear hunting is easier than spring, I have found that bear can be super patternable when you find that good food source, where in the spring, big boars seem to be more wanderers, especially this time of year when the pre rut activity is warming up..... they are thinking about food and sows, and competition.... in the fall all they care about is food, and they feed a lot. fall bear are trying to put on weight, and spend more time out and about during daylight.

it will be different regionally, but the concept will be exactly the same, find the best food sources, and you find bear.

Great tips. Thank you for taking the time to reply.

 

[Wildatheart]

I have found bear to be super reliable in the fall, they get harder to find after the weather starts getting bad and the berries end, but Aug-Sept, find the food sources, then check around them for sign, and make a plan.

I don't know where you're hunting, so i'm not sure what the main food sources will be, but they are all about food in the fall, and when they are chowing down in berries, they leave a lot of sign.

around here, early season (early august) it depends on what's ripening, but the first places i'm looking for is skunk cabbage patches that aren't already mowed down by elk, I tend to find big bear in the skunk cabbage. may be a coincidence, but that's been my experience, so that's where i'm looking first, and it offers some good opportunity to kill one with a bow down in the swamps, since it's close quarters regardless.

berries are the obvious big food source in the fall, the types of berries that are ripe first depends on the region. around here, early on, it's usually chittem or elderberry first, sometimes huckleberry ripen early, then later it's all about blackberries.

you won't know what you need to hone in on until you get out and about and see what is the best food source at the time, every year is a little different in that regard, but once you figure that out, you will see bear focusing on one or a couple food sources, and that narrows the habitat down a lot.

when they are eating elderberry or chittem, it's pretty easy to see where bear are feeding, you will see a bunch of fresh broken branches on the trees/bushes, and often times you will hear them breaking the branches before you see them when you have an encounter, fall bear are noisy critters.

on the south coast here, black caps come on really good early, sometimes too early, but if they aren't over by the opener, that's where a person wants to focus, bear love them.

sometimes around here, salmon berries will still be around when the season starts, and they love them. some years they are eating salal berries, it's all about finding the best food source in the fall, then finding a spot you can glass or ambush.

once you find the best food source, then you are looking for sign around the feed, when I find huge scat piles or big tracks, i'm spending time there.... if I see a lot of small/medium bear sign, i'm not gonna bother..... big boars generally aren't around other bear in the fall (more likely smaller bear won't be around big boars)

higher elevation when it's all huckleberry underbrush in the timber, it's harder to hunt, because those bear have no reason to hang out in the open a lot, but you may find open areas those bear move through on a regular basis, then you can set up an ambush spot.

i'm looking for spots with concentrated bear sign, that I can hunt without getting my wind in there, bear don't tolerate human scent at all, and they can smell you a long ways away.

I think fall bear hunting is easier than spring, I have found that bear can be super patternable when you find that good food source, where in the spring, big boars seem to be more wanderers, especially this time of year when the pre rut activity is warming up..... they are thinking about food and sows, and competition.... in the fall all they care about is food, and they feed a lot. fall bear are trying to put on weight, and spend more time out and about during daylight.

it will be different regionally, but the concept will be exactly the same, find the best food sources, and you find bear.

Awesome post! Thanks for the info also