"The Bob" Spring Bear Hunt 2025

Spring Bear planning and prep started early this year.  In December Sam and I started discussing plans for a 2025 spring bear hunt in the Bob Marshall Wilderness.  January commenced the start of rucking and serious strength training and plyometrics to get in Montana backcountry shape.  I mapped out a rucking/hiking program for sixteen weeks. It consisted of rucking with a heavy pack once a week, swimming once a week, and then another ruck for distance.  In addition, I programmed a resistance program for strength once a week, plyometrics (jumping/explosiveness) once a week and hypertrophy (size/muscle growth) training once per week.

Prep Ruck Training w/ 90lbs

After months and hundreds of hours of e-scouting, training, and zoom calls.  We had a solid game plan.  We chose to visit a spot where we saw a cinnamon bear last year and also try some new territory. Once all the travel was complete.  I met Sam at the Bozeman Airport.  We got my gear, suitcases, and gun case; then headed north for “The Bob”.  It was an eight hour drive from the airport to the trailhead.  Along the way we caught up on life and stocked up on groceries and last minute gear that I couldn't fly with.  After last year’s sow grizzly charge we had plenty of bear spray.

We rolled up to the trailhead before dark.  We quickly set up Sam’s tent so that we could get in some glassing before it got dark.  Sam and I rode up the mountain to recon the first glassing spot across the Flathead River.  E-scouting wise, it was a perfect setup; but when we saw it, there was a 2000’ vertical cliff-face.  So we moved on to plan “B” out of the gate.

The next morning we got packed up with our 75 lb packs and headed out.  We had a five mile hike to our first campsite.  Along the way we got into some new regen pine growth and saw our first grizzly bear scat of the trip.  We continued on the trail till we got to the creek crossing.  Our boots and socks got a little wet getting across the creek.  Better than last year of stripping down to our boxers and wadding across thigh high forty degree ice melt and blisters three days in.  As we got back into the canyon we came across a cow moose on the trail.  She headed for higher ground.  Finally we continued up the trail till we found a good flat camp spot near a creek mouth.  We set up camp and unloaded any extra weight.  

We packed minimal gear and food then headed up the 2000’ to our first glassing spot overlooking a bowl with three miles of visibility.  After hiking up for two hours, and seeing a grouse drumming at five yards, we finally got to the top.  We moved around to see the best view. After refueling and sitting for an hour or two Sam spotted a black bear on the same mountain we were on about a mile to our left.  I got my spotter on it and it was a black sow with two blonde cubs.  They were feeding and it was cool to watch them eating and playing.  As I was getting some video of the cubs, Sam spotted another black bear to our east.  This was a boar for sure.  He was out in an opening, tearing up the bolsom’s.  This boar was a mile away.  We tried to get closer.  He ended up going over the ridge as we made our way down the mountain we were descending for an hour.  We decided to take the creek bottom back to our tent and go after him the next morning.  We had a heck of a time trekking through the thick brush, crossing the creek back and forth on the steep slopes.  Exhausted; after dark we finally made it back to camp. 

Boar - 1 mile away

The next day it rained until noon.  So we slept in and rested from a seven in a half mile hike the previous day.  Once the rain stopped and we got a meal.  It was time to go get the boar we saw last night.  We hiked a mile up the national forest trail then bushwhacked and climbed 1500’ vertical to get on the ridge where the bear crested.  Needless to say after the micro spikes and trekking poles assistance we were soaking wet with sweat when we got to the destination.   We glassed openings and new mountains but no bear.  Sam saw some deer on top.  We eventually made our way out the ridge.  I spotted a black bear on the mountain below where we were the previous day.  I got excited but it was 1000 yds out. Sam finally caught up to me.  I got the spotter out and it was the sow with the two blonde cubs.  So we watched them for a while till it started to get dark.  We made our way out the ridge back until dark fell.  Now it was time to climb down the 1500’ vertical slope in the dark.  With headlamps on we slowly made it down the mountain.   We got back to camp at 11pm.  We decided that where we were was too dense with pines and we needed to relocate to a better vantage and somewhere that had more open areas for better killing ability.

The next morning we packed up camp and headed five miles back to the truck.  We had a close up experience of two cow elk on our way out.  Followed up by some whitetail deer as we got closer to the trailhead.  Sam took my spotter and tripod back to the truck to drop some weight because we had a 4 mile hike ahead of us to campsite number two.  So after hours of hiking eight miles we found a good camp spot near the next canyon trail.  We set up the tent and had enough time to hike and glass for the evening.  So we hiked on the trail a mile to see signs and try to stumble into some bears.  We were seeing a lot of bear scat and paw prints in the mud on the single track trail.  No bears but we saw elk on the mountain to the south of us.  Then we noticed some mountain goats near the elk.  A cool experience to watch the Billy goats, ewes, and kids doing their thing amongst the elk cows. As the sun got low we headed back to the tent to get some sleep after a thirteen plus mile hike day.

Mountain Goats & Elk

Day four we came up with a game plan to cross the creek to glass back on the open grass fields and cliff-faces to find a bear. The sun was out and we hiked a mile up the trail then went down to the creek.  We found a big log to cross the creek, then headed up the steep, previously burned open face.  It was nice and open with being able to see the entire side of our glassing mountain.  Where we were we could see a lot of country and also see the elk and goats now on our side of the mountain. We set up our peax tarp to shade the sun.   As the afternoon passed, the clouds passed, we got a rain shower that turned into a snow squaw.  We took naps under the tarp.  I woke up and walked to look over the side while Sam was napping.  I walked to the other side of the tarp and got down over the nose and saw a furry brown bear heading down to the creek bottom about 800 yds away.  I hurried back to get my gun and woke Sam.  We headed down closer to where I saw said bear.  I wasn’t fore sure if it was a cinnamon black bear or a grizzly.  So we waited to see if the bear would reappear but it never did.   After that we had a rainbow near our tarp setup. Finally with no visuals on any bears we headed back to camp.

The last day we had to scoot to hike out and drive eight hours back to the airport.  We packed up camp and started out.  Not 100 yds from our tent we had fresh bear scat.  It must have been that bear I saw the afternoon before.  We think it followed the creek bottom down to the main hiking trail and went right by our tent (20 yards).  

All in all we had an epic adventure.  No bear(s) but a trip of a lifetime.  We hiked a total of 39.6 miles and saw 5 bears, 7 elk, 12 goats, 2 ruffed grouse, 5 whitetail deer, a couple of mule deer and one cow moose.  We had two sunny days, two cloudy and two rainy/snowy days.  I feel like every time we go we learn and get closer to our goal of harvesting a bear.