Spring season?

[G-Man]

Well I can't see baiting ever passing our legislature, but I wonder what the chances are for a spring hunt for bear, their numbers are climbing every year and the are becoming a bigger and bigger nuisance.

The dec complains that there is no tradition of bear hunting in nys, but I believe a spring hunt would create one, what else is there turkey? their numbers are down in most of the state, I'd give a few days up of hunting turkey to hunt bear in spring or every afternoon..and hunt turkey in am.

[grampy]

I agree Gman, it's on my bucket list to shoot a big old boar bear. Have had some chance encounters during deer season with some smaller bears and just let them walk. Have eaten bear meat a few times and liked it. So a dedicated spring season would be ok with me. Especially since our turkey numbers have taken a dive in recent years too.

[Daveboone]

With our limited means of hunting bears (no dogs or baiting), spring hunting probably would be even less productive than fall....where most bears are stumbled on while deer hunting. Sows with cubs of course are off limits, (As they should be)and they and the boars don't have mast/ berries to center on yet.

Most areas that have a bear hunting tradition do so because they can be productive: bait or dog hunting.

[G-Man]

I do not agree, find the food in spring and find a bear, cut cornfields or standing corn that went unharvested are huge draws I could kill a bear every spring in my 6 acre standing corn as its the only food available ...

[Two Track]

We have an early bear (Sept) season by me.  Here is the problem, the state land I see the bears on is closed for hunting until late Oct (bow only) and no guns until after Nov. 1.  They let the Palisades Park Commission set the regs for Sterling Forest.

 

The other two state land properties in the county have no bear activity on them, but hunting is open on them.

Do they want the Bear population reduced or not?