Can any of you guys tell me how to go about hunting black bears? Are you supposed to call or ambush from a stand? One place I hunt has a good population of black bears,I've seen them from a distance and I've found tracks and scat but I don't know how to hunt them. It is a mountain wilderness area that has one road running from one end to the other,no other roads and no house for miles. It is very rocky and has a lot of hills,some of them almost vertical! Season is from Nov.1-30 and baiting is not legal.

Sorry about all the questions I've been posting. I'm new to all this kind of hunting and there is probably a lot of stuff that you guys take for granted that I don't even know about. Makes me feel kind of ignorant but I've got to find out somehow...lol. I read whatever I can find on this stuff but I figure that first hand experiences from you guys is probably better than "generic" magazine articles. Found that sometimes what you read just ain't so.

[This message has been edited by KRAZYHORSE (edited 08-17-2001).]

Krazyhorse, I have only called a couple bears and have only harvested one so my experience is limited.

Bears like steady calling so a electronic caller may be handy. Bear vocalizations or fawn distress probably will work best.

Increase the length of your stands to 45 mins or more.

Manage your scent well. A bears nose is it's best weapon.

Call areas heavy with bear sign and thick vegetation. Bears are reluctant to cross open areas this time of year during the day.

Can't think of a lot more. Others will add to it I'm sure.

Thanks for the info Curt,I wasn't sure if I should call to them or just set up an ambush and wait on them like we usually do deer here. Is there any specific cover scent that you would recommend? Finding thick vegetation won't be a problem,that's about all there is There are a few spots where you can see,but not many. I've found sign while deer hunting and my friend saw one about 30min. before he shot his bobcat last year. Year before last I had to help carry one out that one of the guys in our deer camp shot. We had been sitting around camp shootin the bull about one of us getting one and danged if he didn't do it...lol.

Here in Arizona we look for Cactus Patches with ripe fruit and glass the "Pear patches" as we call them. If the pears are not ripe or the bears are at higher elevation in thicker brush we call and try to glass them up in open oak thickets and stalk them...
Bullwidgeon

Krazyhorse, i've hunted bear here in arkansas for about 5 years up in the sylamore national forest and i just hunt them kind of like deer (find sign, then hunt very hard where the sign is) lot of the bears at sylamore like the white oak thickets and those clumps of purple berries that look like miniture grapes . but so does everything else (coons, possums, yotes, ...) hope this helped and good huntin
Beautiful country up here in the hills ain't it.
later jwcw13

jwcw13,I've got some friends that used to deer hunt up around Horseshoe Bend and Ash Flat,that's pretty close to you isn't it?

Thanks for the info on the food sources,they eat pretty much what a deer does? Somebody here told me to set up close to water because they like to spend a lot of time around creeks. There are a lot of oaks and even some mucadines scattered around on that mountain,haven't seen much of anything that doesn't like muscadines I didn't know that Coyotes liked wild fruit though,have to keep that in mind.

You're right about the country,it is beautiful. I was born in western Oklahoma and have spent my life going back and forth from there to here. The country is definitely a lot nicer here,IMO,but most of my family doesn't share that opinion...lol

I have called in 2 black bear here in Pa in 2 years. Both while coyote hunting. The last was yesterday evening about 1/2 hr. before dark. I just walked back a couple miles on an old logging road near the center of a large tract, where i had found a lot of coyote sign the previous year. I hunt with a shotgun so i hunt thick areas which aren't hard to find here, esp. this time of year. I called 3 short series in a period of maybe 10 minutes. I heard a twig snap behind me and turned around looking right into the face of a good size bear! At approx 15 yrds! My heart started pounding and my stomach actually hurt instantly. (nerves i guess)I instinctively turned my shotgun his direction, only got it moved a couple inches before he was gone in a hurry. Darkness was coming quickly and i had planned on hunting after, i took a small red lensed light, but decided not to call in the area at night until the frost opens things up and also puts some leaves on the ground so i can hear. I called one in last year at night, not pleasant. Thought i'd have to go home for dry fruit of the looms. Just saw rear end entering a laurel thicket when I hit him with the light at about 25 yards. yesterdays was called with a circe cottontail, the other a johnny Stewart cottontail tape. Too many hunters during bear season here to try though.