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Black Bear Hunts in the Lower 48

Travis Baker

| December 29, 2020

Travis Baker
December 29, 2020

As the year comes to a close, I think we can all agree that we’re looking forward to putting 2020 in the rear view! The WTA staff have been very busy with the launch of our recent TAGS catalog and putting the finishing touches on our new Hunting and Fishing Trips of a Lifetime catalog. This will begin hitting mailboxes in early January. It’s been a mild Winter so far in western Nebraska and across much of the West, yet I am still looking forward to longer days and warmer temperatures. As we get through the holidays and life starts to slow down a bit, it’s time to start planning for the upcoming Spring hunting seasons. Here are a few black bear options that are a little closer to home and maybe even an easy drive for some. You don’t have to travel all that far to find some excellent black bear hunting opportunities. In fact, some of the biggest bears in North American are found in the lower 48.

Arizona’s White Mountain Apache

This trophy black bear hunt takes place in the northeast part of the 1.7 million-acre White Mountain Apache Indian Reservation in east-central Arizona. Several of the top Boone and Crockett black bears have come off this Reservation. Hunts are conducted over bait in the Spring and early Summer. Due to the higher elevation (over 8,000′) the bear hides are good all season long! No other black bear hunt in North America offers this seclusion, skull size, color-phase percentage, bait or hounds hunting style and low-volume atmosphere. Our success on big, colored bears is unrivaled. Plus you have the option to hunt two bears! All of this plus no pesky mosquitoes!

Maine Black Bear Hunting

A great option for those in the northeast is a Fall black bear hunt in northern Maine. This is not only a great hunt, but an even better option if you’d like to bring along a non-hunting companion or even the whole family. The baited hunts here begin late August and run through mid-September. Comfortable log cabins are equipped with gas lights and heat, with each cabin having its own private bath. Fine cuisine is served in the historic dining room, which features Maine lobster, prime meats, and much, much more. These are high quality black bear hunts, reasonably priced, and ideally located.

Wyoming Baited Black Bear Hunt

Hunt trophy-class color phase, black bears in the pristine Greys River Country of western Wyoming. This region of Wyoming is known for its sheer beauty and abundance of color phase bears. This veteran outfitter has been in the business for over 30 years successfully hosting hunters from all over the US. You and your experienced guide will head out each afternoon to enclosed blinds, over well baited areas. Over the past years, hunters have experienced high shot opportunities on bears squaring 5-1/2 to over 6′. All hunts are conducted in the late afternoon thus hunters have most of the day to relax or fish in the private ponds located near the lodge.

Idaho Black Bear Hunt – 5 Star Lodge

Located next to the Salmon River in the pristine north-central Idaho back country, this outfit has a backdrop worthy of a thousand photos. This specific area of Idaho is known for having wild fruit trees that fill every canyon on the ranch where bears gravitate to from the surrounding mountains preparing for a long winter. With a high-density bear population and outstanding trophy-quality, this is a hunt that can be customized to fit anyone’s preference of pursuit, whether it’s hunting over bait, with hounds, or spot-and-stalk hunting.

Give one of our consultants a call today to learn more about these high success black bear hunting opportunities. Our toll-free number is 1-800-346-8747.

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Estate Hunting: A Closer Look at a Misunderstood Hunting Option

Estate hunting, often referred to as high fence hunting, is one of the most misunderstood segments of the modern hunting landscape. The term can carry strong assumptions, but those assumptions rarely reflect the reality of what these hunts actually involve.

At its core, estate hunting offers hunters access to large, privately managed properties where wildlife is carefully stewarded, and hunting opportunities are predictable, efficient, and highly successful. These hunts are not intended to replace traditional public-land or limited-entry experiences. They are meant to provide an alternative option for hunters with specific goals, time constraints, or physical considerations.

Understanding estate hunting begins with recognizing how the properties operate and what the experience looks like on the ground.

What Defines an Estate Hunt?

Estate hunts take place on privately owned ranches or preserves enclosed by a perimeter fence. These properties can range from several thousand acres to well over 100,000 acres, depending on location, species, and management model.

Within these boundaries, wildlife populations are actively managed year-round. Landowners and outfitters focus on habitat improvement, water development, herd health, genetics, and balanced harvest rates. The result is a stable wildlife population with a strong age structure and consistent hunting opportunity.

Because animals remain on the property, outfitters can offer hunts with a very high harvest probability. In many cases, hunters can pursue specific age classes, horn characteristics, or species that would otherwise require years of applying or limited-entry permits.

What the Experience Is Actually Like

One of the most common misconceptions about estate hunting is that animals are easily located and harvested quickly in a confined space. In reality, many estate properties are vast, and hunters may never see the perimeter fence during their hunt.

These ranches often feature diverse terrain of rolling hills, timber, brush country, open plains, canyons, and river bottoms, allowing animals to behave naturally. Hunters glass, stalk, track, and pass animals just as they would on large private ranches or expansive Western properties.

Once on the ground, the hunt feels far more like a traditional spot-and-stalk or guided private land experience than what many imagine when they hear the term “high fence.”

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Why Europe Should Be Your Next Hunting Destination

When hunters think of the ultimate adventures, Africa and Alaska are usually at the top of the list. Yet tucked away in Europe is a world-class hunting experience that most never know enough about to wish for. It’s a mistake, one I made myself for years, until a recent trip to Slovakia opened my eyes to what hunting in the Old World is truly like. In Europe, centuries of tradition reshape your thoughts about international hunting.

The Hunt You Didn’t Expect

My group of seven rolled into Slovakia in early August, the perfect time for the roe deer rut. We had booked five tags per person through WTA, which initially made me nervous. How could taking that many animals be sustainable? But game management in Europe works on an entirely different level. Their wildlife departments track populations down to individual animals, maintaining detailed records unlike anything we have in the States. They issue licenses based on precise population data, and in many areas, they still need to conduct additional culls because game numbers are so healthy.

The hunting itself felt foreign yet familiar. Watching roe bucks chase does across open ag fields reminded me of hunting pronghorn during the rut. We watched as bucks chased does miles over the horizon, only to return and chase more. We would use the standing corn and sunflower rows for cover, glassing open areas where roe deer congregated on clover and alfalfa food plots.

The guides knew every ridge and valley, pointing out where certain bucks lived and separating solid trophies from medal-class deer. Some mornings started at 3 a.m., with hunters in position before dawn. While some stayed afield all day, others slipped back to the lodge for a late-morning feast and rest before the evening hunt.

More than One Species

The hunting was amazing, and we were not limited to roe deer. Once we arrived, we learned that we could add mouflon and red stag to our hunt. Wild boar roamed the same areas. Come September, fallow deer would be available as well. It’s a mixed-bag type of hunt, where you can customize your hunt on the fly.

The mouflon hunting took us into mountains that could have been transplanted from Montana. We parked at the end of a logging road and stalked through timber, glassing for those distinctive curved horns. On one stalk, we heard an odd noise: two mouflon rams butting heads. Following the sound, we intercepted a bachelor band of rams, all jostling and sparring as they moved through the forest. When the biggest ram separated from the group at 70 yards, I made my shot at a free-range animal that had lived wild in these mountains for years.

The quality of the animals shocked everyone. Multiple hunters took mouflon that exceeded expectations. One member of our group dropped a 320″ red stag that wasn’t even on our radar when we planned the trip. These aren’t high-fence operations—this is free-range hunting across extremely varied terrain.

Tradition Runs…

Hunting Croatia: Europe’s Overlooked Paradise

Croatia may be best known for its thousand-plus Dalmatian islands and historic cities like Dubrovnik, but it’s far more than a sightseer’s paradise. This diverse country also ranks among the world’s premier hunting destinations—rivaling Spain and Africa in both variety and quality of game. From the lowlands along the Danube River where some of Europe’s largest red stags reside, to the rugged mountain ranges that harbor massive brown bears, to the coast where mouflon roam, Croatia offers hunters an incredible range of hunting opportunities. Croatia has long been one of WTA’s most popular destinations. And it just keeps getting better!

Here are some of the top choices, beginning in the north and stretching south to cover the full breadth of the country.

Croatian Mountain Lodge: Red Stag, Roe Deer, Brown Bear, Fallow Deer, & Mouflon

Worldwide Trophy Adventures offers a jewel in the Dinaric Alps. This hunting lodge is one of a kind. One of our most popular destinations sits just west of Zagreb, near the town of Ogulin. Our beautiful four-bedroom lodge sits in a secluded forested area surrounded by a variety of species. The surrounding woods hold brown bear, red stag, fallow stag, mouflon, wild boar, roe deer, and more. A world-class staff, excellent meals, and personable guides await your visit above the Adriatic Sea.

Learn…