Bridger Teton Grizz

HuntLife17 · May 19, 2023

Quick question for those who have lived/ hunted in grizz country. I know the basic rules for coexisting with bears as far as food storage, game cleaning, general awareness, etc. However, one thing I haven’t seen discussed is how to balance early morning/late evening hiking to glassing points and back to camp in bear country.

For example, if planning to hike a couple miles in every day, do most guys just roll the dice and go, stick only to well established paths, only go on horseback/motorized vehicle, etc? The thought of bears doesn’t cause me concern, but trying to sneak to a glassing spot at 430 in the morning seems like a good way to get real close to a bear without knowing it.

Any thoughts out there?

Soccerdude · May 19, 2023

Roll the dice and go! Haha. I have walked up trails in the dark with headlamp and grizz tracks on it with a pistol in one hand and bear spray in the other. Nerve wrecking but let's you know you are alive. Good luck.

HikeHunt61 · May 19, 2023

I tend to be more liberal with my light in heavier cover going up to where I want to be at dawn. No sense accidentally sneaking up on a Grizz. About 30 min or a mile before my destination, I risk it and go silent. Exhilarating indeed...

Founder · May 20, 2023

Apparently there are grizzly bears in the country I frequent, but I do most of my packing in in the dark. Never worried about bears, but did buy a can of spray last year.

llamapacker · May 20, 2023

The way you have written the question tells me you will have trouble relaxing in grizzly country. I hike routinely in the dark, pack meat in the dark and generally go about my business in grizzly country the same as anywhere else.

The few concessions I might make is to erect an electric bear fence around my camp, and hike with a round in the chamber instead of just a full magazine. Of course a can of bear spray isn't a bad idea readily accessible.

I've bumped lots of bears over the years, both grizzly and black and never had a significant confrontation. They always run off, perhaps making a bit of noise, which can spike the adrenaline but that is about all.

I suppose you could say I have had one confrontation, when I actually stumbled into a small black bear cub on the trail and literally kicked it with my boot. The darn cub rolled over on its back and just lay there bawling. Mom took offensive and came charging in to "rescue" her cub. I had to shoot that sow at about 15 yards, and yes, I was a bit wobbly in the knees for a while after.

Your odds of running into a bear on the trail is slight, and they almost always get out of the way even before you know they are there. There are plenty of hazards out in the "wilds", from snakes to cats to bears and much more. While I respect and enjoy having bears in the hills, they are part of the total fabric of the wilderness and I don't let them dictate how I go about my hunt.

Bill

LIK2HNT · May 20, 2023

Don’t use a light ??
What you don’t see will give you a fraction of a second more of life w/o crapping your pants ??
Joking aside, serious question. But be prepared and be careful.

JB1975 · May 20, 2023

Polar bear won’t apply unless you lose your bearings and head way north, but the first 2 are great to abide by. Or feel free to use the polar bear rules for grizz. ?

HuntLife17 · May 20, 2023

Appreciate the responses everyone. As some of you could tell, this will be my first hunt in bear country so just want to make sure I’m as knowledgeable as possible, and like I mentioned, I couldn’t really find any info on whether or not hunt plans are impacted at all in the vicinity of bears. But it sounds like, as long as you maintain awareness of your surroundings, that’s really all you can do.

It’s good to hear I won’t be the only one hiking around in the dark, glad that’s not a major unspoken no-no or something.

schoolhousegrizz · May 21, 2023

HuntLife17 said:
Appreciate the responses everyone. As some of you could tell, this will be my first hunt in bear country so just want to make sure I’m as knowledgeable as possible, and like I mentioned, I couldn’t really find any info on whether or not hunt plans are impacted at all in the vicinity of bears. But it sounds like, as long as you maintain awareness of your surroundings, that’s really all you can do.

It’s good to hear I won’t be the only one hiking around in the dark, glad that’s not a major unspoken no-no or something.

Will you be alone? Having a buddy always makes me feel more comfortable in grizz country. They can only attack one person at a time, leaving the other there to help ?. Going through thick stuff I always make a bit of noise. I'm pretty sure it helped me avoid an ugly situation last year. I walked out into a meadow after going through some thick stuff. There was a grizzly on the edge of the meadow staring at me from about 30 yards away. He knew I was coming because of the noise so it was not a surprise, he was waiting to see what I was. I backed out and he eventually took off. I also had my 41 magnum drawn within a half second.

If you can, hunt with a buddy. Also have quick access to spray or a gun. Make noise when going through thick stuff. No shame in heading back to camp a little early before it's completely dark in grizz country.

HuntLife17 · May 21, 2023

schoolhousegrizz said:
Will you be alone? Having a buddy always makes me feel more comfortable in grizz country. They can only attack one person at a time, leaving the other there to help ?. Going through thick stuff I always make a bit of noise. I'm pretty sure it helped me avoid an ugly situation last year. I walked out into a meadow after going through some thick stuff. There was a grizzly on the edge of the meadow staring at me from about 30 yards away. He knew I was coming because of the noise so it was not a surprise, he was waiting to see what I was. I backed out and he eventually took off. I also had my 41 magnum drawn within a half second.

If you can, hunt with a buddy. Also have quick access to spray or a gun. Make noise when going through thick stuff. No shame in heading back to camp a little early before it's completely dark in grizz country.

Appreciate your experience. I think I’m just so used to hunting deer in small eastern wood lots where blowing deer out first thing in the morning can really impact how the morning hunt goes that I just figure being stealthy is a requirement. But, out west when you are just trying to get to a glassing point first thing where you may not even be within a half mile or so of game, stealth isn’t quite such a huge priority. So I’ll have to continually remind myself of that.

I will be with a buddy and we’ll both be packing a sidearm and some spray just in case so we should be good on that front.

schoolhousegrizz · May 21, 2023

HuntLife17 said:
Appreciate your experience. I think I’m just so used to hunting deer in small eastern wood lots where blowing deer out first thing in the morning can really impact how the morning hunt goes that I just figure being stealthy is a requirement. But, out west when you are just trying to get to a glassing point first thing where you may not even be within a half mile or so of game, stealth isn’t quite such a huge priority. So I’ll have to continually remind myself of that.

I will be with a buddy and we’ll both be packing a sidearm and some spray just in case so we should be good on that front.

Cool, you will be fine!