Any state land up north?

[Brandon Curry]

Would anyone know of a wma within like 50mi of watertown, hoping to locate a decent bear to fill my tag?

[tughillhunter]

google ny state lands. dec website has a mapping tool.

[DeerStalker22]

I know this is farther than 50 miles but the tooley pond road starting in the cranberry lake area is loaded with really good bear and deer hunting, my grandfather has killed two bears on that road as well as some nice deer.

[RifleSharpShot]

Go up to the mountians near water safari theres bear and state land up there!!Good luck!!

[Brandon Curry]

google ny state lands. dec website has a mapping tool.

I have checked it out and used this tool, deff very helpful

i was just asking for some experienced advice as this will be my first bear season.

im checking into cranberry lake, and this water safari areas now...thanx guy

[KenAxe-7]

Fort Drum has a large number of bear, just have to get a permit. They are free and there is over 100k acres of hunting land.

[Brandon Curry]

Fort Drum has a large number of bear, just have to get a permit. They are free and there is over 100k acres of hunting land.

I did not know you could hunt the training area....just checked out their web site all about it( link on dec web page) just need to register.

This will be a first for me as i never have purchased a bear tag.

[ryanrobb52]

• Be careful on Drum though, there are only certain areas open each day and it takes alot of man hours to know the areas up there. On the plus side though it is close to where you live and the quality of animals is exceptional. Plenty of Bear and Deer up there for the taking. Oh and remember a compass or GPS, its easy to get lost in there.
  

[KenAxe-7]

Training areas 17, 18, 19 are good for bear, 19 is a bit tricky and easy to get turned around in. I know of many NYS recordbook bucks shot in these areas also.

[Brandon Curry]

thanks for the info, so all i have to do i fill out the registry and call them?

On another note...i feel stupid asking this but it is my first time attempting to hunt bear, what should i be looking for to position myself in a good/safe place?

[Brandon Curry]

advice anyone?

[bkln]

If I were you I would go first with someone who knows what they are doing, go and see what they do, ask ton of questions, live and learn, then do it yourself. This ain't a video game, this is 300 pounds animal and firearms...stay safe out there bro....

[Daveboone]

Darn few bears are actually shot in NY by hunters "hunting bears". They are usually incidental to deer hunting. Without dogs or baiting, it is very difficult to pinpoint them without putting in alot of time. There are certainly areas where bears frequent, but usually they are neighborhood bears, and shooting them is like shooting cows in a farm yard. Keep in mind the avg bear shot in NY (and out of state) are usuallly what are most common: one and two year olds, 125-175 lbers.

Spend alot of time driving back roads in potential bear country in the summer, looking for rural farms and orchards. Then knock on some doors, (probably alot of doors), to find farmers-growers who have beer problems in their fields and orchards, and are willing to let you set up a stand. Set up some game cameras along likely travel routes, etc. It is similar to plotting out a buck....except there are something like a thousand times more whitetail in NY than bears.

[tibio]

Try Claryville. Seen lots of bear on top of Denman Mtn.

[DeerStalker22]

How did you end up doing this year?

[nyantler]

hunting bear this late can be tough sometimes because many have gone to den... but sometimes when weather is mild like this and food is still available.. they will den later... find the food sources... that is the ONLY reason a bear will be out this time of year.

OH yeah.. mothers with cubs will defintiely be denned up... usually only the cubless females and males will venture out this late

Edited January 30, 2012 by nyantler

[AaronBlaine]

is fort drum in the northern zone?

[irish_redneck]

is fort drum in the northern zone?

Yes