OTC Bear Tag

[COBOHNTR09]

In the regs it says that you cannot hunt bear during deer or elk season unless you have a deer or elk tag for that unit. Does the tag need to be aquired through the draw? I know deer is draw only but if I had an OTC Elk tag does that mean I could hunt bear also?

 

[jd332001]

u can buy an over-the-counter bear tag with caps to accompany the season/method of your deer or elk tag. its only good for unit and season of the deer/elk tag. if u have a deer and elk tag with different dates or units you have to choose one to buy the bear tag to accompany.

for instance if you had a 41 2nd season elk tag than you could buy on a first come first serve basis 2nd season bear tag as long as the quota for that unit has not been met. this goes for archery, muzz, and rifle seasons. just check your current deer or elk tag and see if they are offered.

the bear draw is mainly for the september rifle seasons with some exceptions in select units. the bear draw has already taken place for those units this year. there are some other circumstances outlined in the booklet as well that are confusing to folks new to colorado.

hope this helps. they like to make if confusing.

 

[nripepi]

I was trying to figure out the reasoning for this rule.

Is it to keep the number of hunters in the field during that time to a specific number or is it to somehow curb party hunting possibilities? I was going to have a friend accompany me on an elk hunt and have him buy a bear tag in case we ran into a bear. I read the regs and I am the only one who could buy the tag. Kind of weird.