Expectations for First Spring Bear
Howdy all, I'm going on my first spring bear hunt this May, third western hunt. I'll have about a week and a half to hunt, I'm in great hiking shape, can reliably shoot to 300 yards, I've done significant e-scouting for glassing knobs and logging roads at a range of elevations, and chose a unit with high bear densities in Montana. I'm looking for an idea of what to expect in terms of sightings and opportunity from a source that isn't YouTube. I've seen that bear tag success rates typically run about 8% from raw statistics, but I know that's often skewed by people who are just totally unprepared or just pick up the tag for the fall (much like whitetail rates in the East are skewed by the folks who only go out opening day).
So for the people on here with spot-and-stalk spring bear experience, what is a reasonable expectation if I hunt hard for ~10 days in terms of sightings and sign? I don't want to get overly discouraged by not seeing bears if it's a normal occurence but also don't want to stick around a bad spot because my expectations are too low. Any tips also appreciated. Thanks.
Posted Feb 19, 2026, 3:14 PM UTC