LoneGriz
Member
- Messages
- 7
I'm hoping for thoughts from the group on surrounding hunting bears on the Uncompahgre Plateau this September, given the drought conditions?
I need to make a decision by end of week whether to turn in my Uncompahgre September bear tag and hope for better conditions next year or move forward with the hunt.
I hunted the tag about 5 years ago. I don't recall the reason (spring freeze or drought), but the mast crop completely failed that year. My buddy and I hunted 2 weeks, 1 week at beginning of September and 1 week at the end of September. We definitely put in a solid effort! I didn't see a single bear outside of very thick riparian environments (along creeks in thick cover). I didn't see a single bear out in the open from vantage/glassing locations. My buddy finally saw and took a younger bear the afternoon of the last day. I'm hoping to avoid a similar experience, if at all possible. I drew the tag last year but turned it in due to mast crop failure due to spring freeze (?). I was out on hike on the front range this weekend in a gamble oak habitat. There was some acorn, but little, and what was there was stunted (small).
Question(s) I have out to the Warden and Biologist on the Uncompahgre: What are the conditions of bear feed on the Uncompahgre Plateau this year? Do you feel there will be an opportunity to glass up bears from vantage/glassing spots this year or will they all be down in riparian areas similar to what I experienced several years ago? In your opinion, given conditions, is this a year to turn in the Uncompahgre September bear tag or to hunt it? If to hunt it, where would you expect to find bears and how would you hunt if it was your tag?
Any thoughts/input? I've never taken a black bear, but it isn't from lack of effort! One of these days the bear god will smile on me...
Thanks! Jim
I need to make a decision by end of week whether to turn in my Uncompahgre September bear tag and hope for better conditions next year or move forward with the hunt.
I hunted the tag about 5 years ago. I don't recall the reason (spring freeze or drought), but the mast crop completely failed that year. My buddy and I hunted 2 weeks, 1 week at beginning of September and 1 week at the end of September. We definitely put in a solid effort! I didn't see a single bear outside of very thick riparian environments (along creeks in thick cover). I didn't see a single bear out in the open from vantage/glassing locations. My buddy finally saw and took a younger bear the afternoon of the last day. I'm hoping to avoid a similar experience, if at all possible. I drew the tag last year but turned it in due to mast crop failure due to spring freeze (?). I was out on hike on the front range this weekend in a gamble oak habitat. There was some acorn, but little, and what was there was stunted (small).
Question(s) I have out to the Warden and Biologist on the Uncompahgre: What are the conditions of bear feed on the Uncompahgre Plateau this year? Do you feel there will be an opportunity to glass up bears from vantage/glassing spots this year or will they all be down in riparian areas similar to what I experienced several years ago? In your opinion, given conditions, is this a year to turn in the Uncompahgre September bear tag or to hunt it? If to hunt it, where would you expect to find bears and how would you hunt if it was your tag?
Any thoughts/input? I've never taken a black bear, but it isn't from lack of effort! One of these days the bear god will smile on me...
Thanks! Jim