Surely someone here has some experience with a black bear hunt in the USA or Canada. I'm looking for something relatively inexpensive to do this fall as I'm going to plan a cape buffalo hunt for the next year. I would really rather hunt in a spot and stalk manner, but that may not be paractical in many areas, baiting seems to be the only method used. Any recommendations that you personally have used would be appreciated.

If you like hunting by yourself and not having to use a guide, I'd highly recommend Prince of Wales Island, Alaska. There are lots of bears, and there are many great areas accessable by vehicle. Plus, the fishing in the Fall is great and you can't beat the scenery!

Pete

I made a trip to BC last year and hunted with these fellows. www.bolenlewis.com They run a top notch operation at a very reasonalbe price. This is a spot and stalk hunt where you will see a lot of bears.

M16

Thanks for the info, looks like they have some big black bears too, I don't care much about shooting a 150 pounder. Most of the eastern Canada outfitters bait only, and the ones I know who have gone say they sit them in a tree stand all day, come back and get them at dark. I don't care to sit that long. I don't hunt whitetails from a tree either. I checked and you can fly straight into Terrace BC which is where they'll pick up the hunters.

The fall spot and stalk bear hunting in parts of Idaho is very good. If you are looking for a guided hunt I can help you.

aspenhill@triton.net

jstevens,

I can also suggest a BC outfitter I've hunted with twice. Although it is not a deluxe lodge, the food is edible and the price is reasonable. Most importantly, the bear hunting, which is ALL spot-&-stalk is super. Bears over 7' are common and so are various color phases.

In 2003, four of us killed good bears, and several other hunters I sent there did likewise. One of them also killed a dandy wolf.

So if you would like contact info, send me a PM here.

Below is a photo of the bear I killed in 2003. Under it are photos of two monsters I killed on my first hunt. -TONY

Jstevens,

Whoops. I just reread your message and note you mentioned a FALL hunt. My recommendation for this particular BC outfitter was based on hunting there in the spring.

Although bear are fair game in the fall, he spends most of his time guiding moose and elk hunters. -TONY

its my understanding that there was a huge lack of berries in the US rockies last year & the bear crop is suffering from it. We saw it in montanna & i hear that in colorado they expected to loose not only last years young but the year before too

These are a few more photos of critters killed in 2003 on hunts with the BC outfitter I mentioned above.

The two guys in the first photo are a father and son from NJ and hunted in BC after talking to me as a reference. The son killed a bear and the wolf. -TONY

Give this one a try:
http://members.shaw.ca/bearhunt/

If the link doesn't work, email Len Gransch at the following:

lgransch@telusplanet.net

OK how about anything in northeast us? any good guides up this way

If you want a spot and stalk hunt that is not baited, Alaska is hard to beat, and as has been mentioned, the scenery is worth the trip.
I bear hunted in Alaska with Adams Guide Service. I took my son there when he was 12 for a caribou/bear hunt. We both filled our tags and had a truly awesome time. When bear hunting, we would get to a nice vantage point and scour the nearby mountains with our binocs until we saw a black dot that needed investigating. Once a bear was spotted, we would then begin our hike in his direction until we reached the point where we wanted to take a shot. It was a great experience for me to take my son on his first trip like this. We continue to go on adventures that with him along, to me are truly priceless.

You would be hard pressed to beat southeast Alaska.