Spring Bear...Need a Spotter?

[Drenalin]

I'm looking into doing a spring bear hunt next season. Would likely be Idaho, in the panhandle. I'll have 8x and 12x binos, and plan on hiking out every day from a basecamp. I'm wondering if I should carry 8x and a spotter, or just roll with 12x binos? Do you guys who bear hunt up there generally carry a spotter, or not?

I'm considering compact/lightweight options like the Kowa 501 (maybe the 553), Nikon ED50, or Opticron MM4. I'm not nuts about ponying up for the 553 with the limited use this would get, but I'm not totally opposed to it either. I'm concerned that these 50-55mm scopes wouldn't gather enough light to do me much good late evening when more bears would presumably be out. The Opticron might be a better option because of that with its 60mm objective. I'm also wondering if the panhandle is (in general) so thick that I'd be fine with just binos?

I've got a lightweight tripod with a RRS BPC-16 micro ball head on it (has pan) - good enough for a small spotter, or should I go ahead grab an Outdoorsman micro pan head too?

 

[MtnMuley]

Depends how picky you are about what kind of bear you kill. I personally would never go bear hunting without a spotter, regardless of where I was hunting.

 

[Slugz]

x 2

 

[Drenalin]

@MtnMuley Thanks - not picky at all. I'd be fortunate to see bears my first time out, so anything that's not a cub would do just fine. Are you always carrying a full size spotter?

 

[AZ_Hunter_2000]

I do not know the type of terrain but this is what I do here in AZ:

If the terrain lends itself to some level of glassing I bring my SLC 10s and my STX 65. If the terrain does not lend itself to glassing (ex: maximum line of sight is under 700 yards but lots of vegetation that I cannot seen through) I just bring my SLC 10s.

If it is wide open country (ex: bears in the prickly pears) then my SLC 15s get the nod along with my STX 65.

 

[Geewhiz]

Bring a spotter for sure.

 

[bsnedeker]

@MtnMuley Thanks - not picky at all. I'd be fortunate to see bears my first time out, so anything that's not a cub would do just fine. Are you always carrying a full size spotter?

I'm also not picky regarding bears...haven't had enough success to pass on anything legal at this point in my hunting career. I do not take a spotter with me hunting for bears...just my 12X's on a tripod. With that setup I can tell if it's a single bear or if it's a sow with cubs and that's all I need to know to decide if I'm going after the thing or not.

 

[Blacktailaddiction]

Last weekend hunting Oregon coast. Spotted a big bear at exactly 1.45 miles away with my 10X binos. Then I laid prone with my rifle scope to get 24X magnification to get a better idea. Wish I had brought the spotter so I could have filmed him :/

 

[280Ackley]

I have never got used to using a spotter and only carry my 10x42’s. Didn’t hinder me from spotting 14 bears in 4 days last year with my boys. But like others have said, if you are picky you will need one to better determine the size especially at any distance.

 

[slvrslngr]

I'd bring a spotter. You can come across bears any time of day so even the small objective spotters are useful. Plus if it's a slow day, you can look for sheds or at other wildlife to fill your time.

 

[JRMiller]

I’d bring one unless the hike/out in is a death march and I just cant take the extra weight. The tripod can be more important in those cases. Tripod i never leave behind. Binos on a good solid tripod are way more effective

 

[MtnMuley]

@MtnMuley Thanks - not picky at all. I'd be fortunate to see bears my first time out, so anything that's not a cub would do just fine. Are you always carrying a full size spotter?

I pack a Swaro 95 everywhere I go these days. It's just something I'm willing to sacrifice extra weight on.

 

[tniccum24]

Spotter for sure.

 

[Drenalin]

Appreciate all the feedback, I'm going to pick up either a Kowa 553 or the Opticron MM4 60. Thanks!

 

[MtnMuley]

You absolutely can't go wrong with the 553. Would be perfect if you are not sure how much you are going to use it.