seeking Montana and Wyoming black bear hunting opportunities

[jeffpg]

Hey fellas,

I’m here in Billings, Montana working for a couple of months. I’m from Mississippi but I spend a lot of time out west for both work and play. I have a lot of hunting experience for big game during the normal fall hunting seasons in most of the western states, but I haven’t hunted during any spring season yet.

I would really like to hunt spring black bear nearby this year. I will be pretty busy until about May 1, at which time I will hope to have a nice block of time off. I have no idea of where to start learning about where to go, but I’m guessing that there should be public land access and possibly private as well. Any and all tips & info will be greatly appreciated.

I would also be interested in hunting in Wyoming when I head south from Montana sometime after May 1.

I am also very interested in hunting spring turkeys, but I will make a separate post about that.

I have some fantastic turkey and axis deer hunting opportunities on a 5k acre archery only ranch in west Texas to offer in return for your help.

Thanks,

Jeff

 

[bsnedeker]

Bears all over MT man, pick a spot and get after it. We've killed bears in the Little Belts and I've gotten really close a few times in the areas around Missoula as well. If you've never spring bear hunted before I can recommend The Ultimate Guide to Black Bear Hunting by Douglas Boze who also happens to be an active member of this very forum.

 

[aidan_downey]

For bears I would recommend MT. The country in Wyoming near Billings is tough for black bears. Cody area is overrun with grizzlies that have pushed the black bears out. Bighorns are tough with snow access from above and private land from below and they close fast. Not sure if you want to set up bait but in Wyo you can, just have to register. In MT it's all spot and stalk. Good Luck!