theHunter Classic Black Bear Guide

Black Bear Overview

Description

The black bear is the most common and widely distributed bear species that lives in North America. While known for their striking black coat, they come in a variety of fur variations- 5 variations exist in-game. Unlike grizzly bears or brown bears, they lack the distance shoulder hump and have shorter claws. Occasionally, you may find a bear that exhibits a beautiful "crescent moon" white stripe on the chest.

An American black bear, showing the chest stripe more commonly associated with Asiatic black bears. Note the lack of a shoulder hump, short claws, tall ears, and straight profile.

Male black bears are referred to as "boars" whereas females are referred to as "sows". Boars can be up to 20% or even 60% larger than their female counterparts. Another piece of sexual dimorphism is the ears. In proportion to their head, a female's ears are typically bigger and a male's ears are typically smaller. They are very huggable-looking animals, I think.

Once, many years ago, black bears occupied practically all of North America's wooded areas. Sadly, this is no longer the case, and many of them have taken refuge in thick woods that hold little or no human population; black bears are gone from Prince Edward Island, and have been since 1937. However, black black bears do still live in most of Canada, and that we should be thankful for.

theHunter Classic

Bagging a big black bear boar is no easy task, but it doesn't have to be so difficult either. You are going to need the proper tools (the bare minimum you already possess) and the know-how (something you will just have to procure if you are learning the ropes of bear hunting) to do so. Black bears will often roam in an unassuming manner, and in the dark swamps of Redfeather Falls, the shade of Settler Creeks, or the tall reeds of Rougarou Bayou, they can be easy to miss. It is rather rare to see two bears together, unbaited.

On the left is the old model, and on the right is the new one.

In-Game Habitats And Range

Currently, black bears are known to rove around:

Redfeather Falls

Settler Creeks

Rougarou Bayou

The black bear is the bear species with the greatest distribution in the game, present in 3 reserves. Two of them are American (Settler Creeks & Rougarou Bayou) and one is Canadian (Redfeather Falls). Where to find them in each one is hard to say, considering it differs so much and there is so much to cover. This we'll discuss when going over the process of hunting the animal. On the maps, there are select spawning areas where the animals will spawn in around 80% of the time. You should never rely on this, as it is not always the case, and even then the animals are simulated to be moving one hour before you enter the game (this is to lay tracks, but they scatter, thus making these animal spawn maps rather unreliable).

Equipment Pt. 1

Attractants

As expected, attractants will attract the animal they apply to towards a certain area; whether that be to a hunting region or to yourself. Currently, there is only one attractant for black bears, and the comes in the form of a bait barrel.

You may fill this blue bait barrel up with sweet corn. Take consideration when placing it, you need to find a good area with lots of animals. Afterwards, it will take 4 real-life hours for the feeder to begin attracting black bears. A hunting tower, tripod, shooting rest, ground blind, or treestand pairs well with these.

There are no callers for black bears, nor is there any urine spray available for purchase. This may be subject to change.

"Defensive" Equipment

When I say "defensive" equipment, I am referring to equipment that will give you an edge over the senses of black bears. There is scent-eliminator, wind powder, face-paint, and camouflage clothing to help you battle the bears' great sense of smell and worthy eyesight.

Wind powder (left) allows you to see which way the wind is blowing. You can utilize this to move upwind and into a position where the wind isn't blowing your scent into the animal's path.

Scent eliminator (middle) can be used to mask your scent from the nose of a black bear. The effect/duration of the scent eliminator lasts for 30 minutes, and is particularly handy.

Face paint (right) is a form of camouflage that works to hide the facial features of a human. In addition to the use of camouflage, face paint simply adds another useful element of visual coverage.

Camouflage

In continuation of "defensive" equipment.

Camouflage, by definition, is a piece of clothing specially made for the purpose of making visual detection (in this case, from a black bear) difficult. Black bears inhabit three reserves; one is a swampy reserve, the other two are summertime hunting reserves. There are two that I will recommend.

Sneaky 3D Summer Forest Camouflage

Sneaky 3D Summer Swamp Camouflage As is seen over to our left, we have our two camouflage patterns. On the left is the summer camouflage, and to the right of that is the swamp camouflage.

Do keep in mind, however, that Rougarou Bayou has some areas where the summer camouflage will apply and the swamp camouflage will not, and on Settler Creeks and Redfeather Falls the Sneaky 3D Summer Field Camouflage (not listed) will apply and the forest camouflage will not. It is not listed because I've found that black bears roam in the wooded areas of Settler Creeks far more than in the fields, and there are very few open areas in Redfeather Falls. Please feel free to use it, though.

Equipment Pt. 2

Optics

Optics (or optic equipment should you prefer a more verbose option) are pieces equipment designed that let you see over further distances while also allowing you to gather more information through the benefit of the magnification also increasing detail. These are things like scopes and binoculars. I will recommend two optics.

30x65mm Spotting Scope

7x42mm Rangefinder BinocularsFirst, I'll start off with my go-to choice.

While it may be a little overkill at the distances from which you'll be spotting/shooting black bears, it still incredibly useful. This will allow you to see over the large open spaces of Redfeather Falls and Rougarou Bayou (the swamps in particular) or fields of Settler Creeks. It has some power to it.

The rangefinder-binoculars, in my opinion, are a more viable option. They have the perfect amount of magnification, and paired with the rangefinding ability, give you the best of both worlds. These would be an especially fine option for all of you bowhunters out there.

Large Equipment

Unlike the previous equipment mentioned, large equipment must be deployed. This means that they must be carried in a special slot, and in turn, placed at an appropriate area (if the area allows large equipment, the outline of the placing prompt will be white). Keep in mind that deploying large equipment will spook all animals within a 100-meter radius.

For black bear, I suggest only three pieces of equipment.

Of the three mentioned, the ground blind is my favorite. It has the best visual coverage of all of them, which allows you to get close. The ground blind has four windows to shoot from. With the right camouflage setting, it makes you near-invisible. You will need to be quiet though, so keep that in mind.

This pairs extremely well with the bait barrel.

Next is the true-and-tried treestand. While it doesn't have as good of a visual reduction as the ground blind, it is still more than suitable. It should be paired with camouflage for the best effect. Placing it may be a bit tricky; you need to find a big enough tree that does not have any branches which may obstruct your view. Another advantage of this would be the high ground that you gain; it gives multiple directions to attack from, and it will let you see over thick brush.

Like the blind, use the treestand with the bait barrel. There is also a variant that holds two hunters.

Finally, there is the tower. It operates the same as any other hunting tower or treestand, with some pretty good visual reduction. However, it does take 24 hours to finish construction before you can actually use it. You may be able to utilize this; 4 hours before it is finished, place the bait barrel. Then, when it is finished, you can enter it right as the barrel starts attracting black bears. Another con would be that it is rather expensive, so don't use it if you aren't ready to spend a lot of money on it.

Firearms And Bows

Hunting around the Evergreen Hunting Reserve will be done with two weapon types and only two. These are firearms and bows.

Firearms

A firearm, by definition, is any time of gun designed to be readily carried and used by an individual. There are four categories of these firearms that I will go over. Please note that you can only ethically kill black bears with certain weapons and ammunition. The types of firearms are:

Rifles

Shotguns

Handguns

MuzzleloadersI recommend using the weapons listed below. If you are a bare-bones new player, then don't worry. You'll come with the .243 Rifle. First step, forget about it, you can't use the rifle on black bear. Next you have your 12 Gauge Single-Shot Shotgun. This you can use, but pay attention and make sure you are only using slug ammunition, which is the only kind you can use to ethically kill black bears.

Rifles

A useful type of weapon, rifles make up a big portion of the weaponry in the game. They are known for their accuracy due to spirals and grooves cut into the barrel, which spin the bullet and in turn, stabilize it.

Here we have the .300 Bolt-Action Rifle. I know, I know, I choose it a lot. But I do it because it's an exceptionally good rifle. It's seriously accurate and it packs a punch, so if you want to take a bear at range, then the .300 is your best bet.

Next, is the .45-70 Lever-Action Rifle. This is perfect for if there are multiple bears close by. Mounted with a scope, it's powerful, speedy, and accurate. It's also a fine self-defense rifle, should you find yourself face-to-face with an angry bear that's determined to rip you to a pile of shreds.

Shotguns

A shotgun is a type of firearm that is designed to shoot shotshells. Usually, these shells contain multiple projectiles known as pellets. Sometimes they may also shoot solid projectiles known as slugs. Shotguns are commonly smoothbore, meaning their barrels lack rifling, but they may be rifled in some cases- usually in combination with slugs.

First is the classic 12 Gauge Pump-Action Shotgun. I prefer it because it's ridiculously cheap, reliable as all, powerful enough to take almost all prey in the game, and accurate; in addition it has the benefit of a large 6-shell magazine and swift firerate. This shotgun also accepts the slug scope to make shooting with slugs even more devastatingly powerful and effective. Remember, you MUST use slugs for an ethical kill on a black bear.

Second up is the beautifully rustic 10 Gauge Lever-Action Shotgun. The main thing for it is it's power. This shotgun is very strong, and should have no problem taking bears past the effective range of a 12 Gauge. It's also accurate as far as shotguns go, not to mention quick. Again, slugs must be used for black bears.

Handguns

Defined as a short-barreled firearm that can be held and used with one hand, and small though they are, handguns are not to be underestimated. In the right hands of an accurate shooter, a handgun hunter can conquer the Evergreen Hunting Reserve with but a revolver. Keep in mind that if you are looking for a practical black bear weapon, then I do not recommend handguns.

The .454 revolver is suitable for all of your bear hunting needs. Light and small compared to a long-gun, it's still reliable. The power that comes from this revolver is immeasurable. To top it off (literally), you can mount scopes of varying power on the .454 revolver. Despite this, you still need to make educated shots, so keep that in mind.

Next up is a weapon purely for self-defense. Normally, I wouldn't recommend the 10mm Semi-Automatic Handgun for much, but it fits the role I'm giving it perfectly. It's quick, powerful, and has a large magazine. In the case where you're tracking a wounded bear and it decides to turn around in a last stand, then before it charges, you may draw your 10mm and (as unethical as it sounds) go ahead and "magdump" (empty the magazine through firing) until the threat is gone. Or you can risk an accurate shot.

Muzzleloaders

A muzzleloader is a kind of firearm, in which the projectile/bullet and (sometimes) the propellant is loaded through the muzzle and down the barrel.

I feel that the only appropriate muzzleloader for hunting black bear is the inline muzzleloader, and for good reason. It has the best range out of the two others. Plus, it performs much better compared to the cap lock's abysmal penetration and range. The power is outstanding as well and it has multiple ammunition types.

Bows

In it's simplest form, a bow consists of a shaft with both ends connected by some elastic string of sorts. It propels a projectile; an arrow towards the target. The benefit and advantage of bows is that they are significantly quieter than firearms and you have to opportunity to shoot several animals without scaring off any others that are nearby. I will do one crossbow and one vertical bow that I recommend.

A powerful bow is what you need, so my first choice is the reverse draw crossbow. It's probably the best or second best bow in the game, I think it's worthy of first place. For a bow, and because it is a crossbow, it has very good range, exceptional penetration, and a great deal of stopping power. It still manages to be quiet as well.

Like before, power is needed to take a black bow. When it comes to vertical bows, the snakebite is a must-have for big game. Despite being rather loud, it packs a serious punch and will make sure that a bear doesn't get far before dying. The penetration is impressive, and when bears are taken into consideration, this becomes more appealing.

Hunting The Animal (Pt. 1)

Scouting the Area

Before anything happens, the first thing you'll need to do is scout your reserve for good black bear spots. We'll cover Redfeather Falls, Settler Creeks, and Rougarou Bayou. When I say scouting, I want you to spend a good amount of time on each reserve- not exactly hunting for black bear, just looking for them. Try different times of day and start several games. If you are consistently finding black bears, then feel free to start hunting that spot with all of your amassed knowledge.

Redfeather Falls

Redfeather Falls is by far the best place for black bear in the Evergreen Hunting Reserve. It consists of swamps, thick forests, and rolling hills- all of which are set in coastal British Columbia. Other prey such as moose, white & blacktail deer, and elk also roam here. Superb spot for bear hunting in general.

The area outlined in black is the place where you will find black bears about 90% of the time. Keep in mind that this does not mean they are restricted to these areas; I have seen black bears east of the Mihkomekwan Falls campsite. The best areas for black bears, many people have found, is the Kathi Whatchi Crater island, the archipelagos west of that, and the hills west and north of the Maskwawaikowin Campsite.

Take a look around these areas. I suggest starting at the Maskwawaikowin Campsite and heading southeast into the swamp, and then straight east from there. Or, if you start at the Trapper's Rest Lodge, you can go north. Should you begin your expedition at the Darkwood Lodge, a great way to see bears is to shoot north and curve west- meeting towards the same general area that you would arrive at should you follow my directions for the Maskwawaikowin Campsite.

Settler Creeks

Settler Creeks is one of the reserves that get overlooked when black bear is in mind, seeing as how it and Rougarou Bayou are always overtaken by the great Redfeather Falls. Though it can be seemingly impossible to find a black bear in Settler Creeks, don't worry. With the right plan, you can find them just as easy as you can in Redfeather Falls.

The area outside the crossed-off area; the ring of black- is the area where you may find black bear in Settler Creek. I know that it is significantly broader (I apologize for not being so precise but admittedly, my personal information and experience on this reserve is a little lacking) but don't let it deter you. You will need to do the same things mentioned in Scouting the Area before you can pull off a satisfying hunt. Afterwards you may begin.

Several things I have discovered are that you find more bear tracks in the southern fields and creeks than actual bear sightings (though keep in mind this is my personal experience). A more reliable option would be sweeping the northern and eastern parts of the map and glassing the fields- not forgetting to check creek beds and gullies- for bears or bear tracks. You may try your luck in the south of the map as well. More often than not, a handful of bears will travel through there and lay tracks

Rougarou Bayou

Like Settler Creeks, practically nobody hunts black bear on Rougarou Bayou. To that, I say; why? Personally, I believe it gives a more a starter-friendly area to hunt in. There is a lot of the map that is lacking in black bear in Rougarou Bayou, but that also means there are areas with higher concentrations of bears as well. All you need to know is the right place to hunt in.

The current area outlined in black holds a high density of black bears. This is why I said it was starter-friendly; observe how close it is to the lodges. Unlike Redfeather Falls or Settler Creeks, Rougarou Bayou has select areas of black bears to benefit from. A well-placed bait barrel will do you wonders in Rougarou Bayou. Remember to scout the area before you hunt, so you get a black bear spot that's best for you.

I don't think it matters very much on which lodge you start at. Should you begin at the northwestern lodge, you can rove to the east along the more heavily-forested areas. Let's say you choose the central-eastern lodge as a stepping stone to your bear hunt. In this case, you may head straight north and break off to head eastward or to the northwest, towards the other lodge. Moving in a zigzag pattern is preferable, as you can quickly cover a lot of the thin strip of black bear hunting area. Keep in mind that you may find black bears southward in the swamp, but this is relatively uncommon when you first start.

Hunting The Animal (Pt. 2)

The Hunt (Part 1: Searching)

Depending on where you start, the direction and path of your hunt will vary. For ease of reading, I will give a list.

Trapper's Rest Lodge - Head directly north.

Darkwood Lodge - Head north until you reach the falls area or are east of the craters; turn west.

Highland Lodge - Head north into the fields, creeks, and forests, moving parallel to them.

Homestead Lodge - Head south, west, or northeast along the fields, creeks, and downhill forests.

Whispering Woods - Head east, straying away from the swamps and sticking to the forests.

L'île du Canard Noir - Head north until you reach the swampless forest, heading west or east.

The Hunt (Part 2: Tracking)

When tracking a black bear, you need to be smart. They are not easy animals to follow, and are rather skittish. This makes them excellent partners to help you level up your tracking skill. Males are much heavier than females; if you care a lot about the score, then ignore any sub-210 kilogram boars (you can almost guarantee that a 180+ kilogram bear is an O.K. scoring boar). Heavy animals will more often than not lay more tracks. The best scoring animals come in at a massive 240+ kilograms.

If you are able to check the age of the track, then use this to your advantage. If it is rather old then track while walking- do NOT run, for the bear could be much closer than you think and you may risk spooking it. If it is nearby, then crouch while tracking (these are common rules for most animals). If you are extremely close and do not know where the bear is, then go prone and listen. Black bears are noisy animals, and ones that are close by will make huffing, snorting, and heavy breathing noises- black bears also possess a distinct walking noise.

Now, if the black bear flees, do not run after it. From what I have seen, the trick of running after black bears has been patched and you can no longer catch up unless it gets stuck on something. If a black bear is spooked from distance, then they will usually not run very far- they will either trot or actually run. They will quickly slow from the trot, but they may continue running for quite some time, so take care to avoid spooking them.

The Hunt (Part 3: Spotting)

Spotting a black bear may be very easy or exceedingly difficult. For one, they stand out against bright green grass, tan sand, and silvery water. But they blend right in with the dark forests, fog, and shadows. So you're going to need to keep your eyes peeled when you hunt them. However, black bears tend to stick out a little bit due to the tone of their fur, especially if they're lighter than a chocolate bear.

When you do finally spot one, then you can see whether if it's a male or female. If you want to take only males, then move on if it's a female. But if you don't care about the gender of the animal, then don't bother. Field judging will also play an important part here. A weight of 200+ kilograms is very preferable. If a score estimate has a max score estimate above 20, then consider that animal a candidate for harvesting.

If multiple black bears are in one area, then make sure you identify all of them to make sure you're getting the best one and a trophy-sized one isn't hanging around nearby when you shoot. You also benefit from this because it contributes to leveling up your black bear spotting skill, which will allow you to estimate weight and score.

The Hunt (Part 4: Shooting)

Finally, you've come to the part where you're taking a shot. Shooting a black bear requires a great amount of knowledge and discipline. I will walk you through the steps. The first thing to consider is your weapon choice. If you have a rifle, then I suggest getting within 150 meters of the animal, especially if it's black bear-taking capability is towards the lower end. If you have a shotgun, a sub-100 meter distance is very preferable. Now if you have a bow, then get as close as you can.

If the bear is facing you, then wait for it to turn for a broadside shot (perpendicular to the hunter). Unlike a lot of other animals, shooting through the shoulder blade and leg bone of a black bear is very difficult. What you can do is attempt a risky moving shot, waiting until the leg that is closest to you is stretched ahead in a step; exposing the heart and lungs. If the bear does not turn, then try and shoot it from the front under the head and neck- in the center of the breast.

Above all else, the best shots come from above and from behind, where you can ignore the strong bones of the black bear. There are a few very good diagrams to use which is shown below. The images come from, and thus all credit goes to https://vtfishandwildlife.com.

Observe how in the first picture (top left), the arrow entered from behind at an angle, as well as in the second picture (top right), where the stepping bear exposes its vital organs. Take note that in the third (bottom left) picture, the leg bone covers the heart.

If the animal runs, then be prepared for another shot or use what you learned in the tracking part of the guide. A well-trained scent hound will also come in handy here. Remember that an injured bear may attack more readily than a healthy one.

The Hunt (Part 5: Scoring)

After you've harvested your animal, you'll be taken to the overview menu. You will see where you shot the animal and a variety of stats including score, harvest value, monetary profit, and other things. A good thing to do is taxidermize a trophy bear. I will briefly discuss scoring.

To our left is a picture of a trophy bear (the score of this bear is 23.898; a massive specimen). You can consider any bear scoring 23+ to be worthy of your trophy lodge.

Bears are scored by the dimensions of the head; a wider, larger skull means a higher score. That may be something to look for when hunting.

Conclusions/Credits

The End

That was my guide on how to hunt black bears in theHunter Classic.

Please, give credit to the following sources which I've used in my guide;

theHunter Classic Wikipage

HooCairs

Wikipedia

vtfishandwildlife.com

This is my first bear guide, and my third guide.

I hope this has helped you to hunt black bears. Happy hunting and good luck!

Source: https://steamcommunity.com/sharedfiles/filedetails/?id=2741215783

Black Bear Guide