2026 spring bear hunting forecast

Bear emergence is closely tied to green up, when forbs and grasses start to emerge. These are important food sources for bears as they emerge from their dens.

The timing of green up, and bear emergence, will vary in parts of the state depending on winter snowpack and spring conditions. Due to mild winter conditions to date, snowpack is minimal, resulting in increased accessibility and earlier spring conditions.  If snowstorms occur in February and March, areas with heavier snowpack and higher elevations won't be accessible until later in the season. Please keep vehicles off wet and muddy roads to avoid damaging roads and fish and wildlife habitat.

Hunters often use this hunting season as an opportunity to scout new hunting areas for next fall's deer and elk seasons, turkey hunt or collect shed antlers. Remember it's legal to take naturally shed antlers, but not skulls with antlers attached. More information on shed hunting.

• 2025 western Oregon black bear harvest (pdf)
• 2025 eastern Oregon black bear harvest (pdf)

Successful bear hunters must check-in their bear's skull at an ODFW office within 10 days of the harvest so biologists can collect a tooth and other biological information.

Please call your local ODFW office in advance to make sure a field biologist is available and make an appointment. When you arrive, please make sure the bear's skull is unfrozen.

Here's more information you'll need to check your bear in.

All hunters who purchase a 2026 spring bear tag are required to report their hunt results online or at a license agent no later than Jan. 31, 2027. Reporting is required even for those who did not hunt or were unsuccessful. ODFW uses this information to determine harvest, effort in specific areas and set future hunting regulations. Learn how to report

Bear numbers in the southwest are high and likely increasing. However, the bear population density is highest closer to the coast in the Coast Range. Bear numbers are also very high in the Southern Cascades and Siskiyou mountains, including the Applegate, Rogue, and Evans Creek WMUs.

Black bear hunting this spring should be good right from the start of the season. We have had a relatively mild winter and our snowpack in the high elevation is low so the grass green up bears rely on this time of year should start beginning of April. 

The Coast Range may see downed trees from winter storms will likely be an issue for hunters. Hunters should be prepared to deal with downed trees or have a backup plan for hunting locations in the event they can't get to their preferred hunting areas. 

Typically, May is the better month to hunt as bears will be moving around more prior to the June rut, and vegetation growth accelerates with warmer temperatures. Also, by May most roads have been cleared of downed trees. 

Boars tend to emerge from their dens earlier than sows and cubs. Remember it's illegal to harvest a sow with cubs. In general, it's good to start the season by glassing open hillsides during sunny mornings and evenings. Bears will most likely be out at this time feeding on grasses and anything else that can fill their bellies. 

Hunters are encouraged to keep checking the website for updates as the hunting season approaches and throughout the duration of the season. In general, lower elevations tend to green up first so hunters should focus their efforts there during the early part of the season, and then move up in elevation as the snow melts. Early in the season, focus on bear foraging evidence and tracks. After a couple weeks, bear digestive tracts will become more active and scat will serve as another indicator of bear activity.

Increased bear activity will most likely occur on decommissioned untraveled skid roads with high grass production. When bears are active, they will be looking to feed in these grassy openings or similar meadow-type ranges. Coastal wetlands, mid-elevation meadows, mountain prairies and riparian areas are other good places to look for bears. Hunters with access to private timberlands will find bears in clear-cuts, either feeding on green grass or tearing apart stumps looking for insects. Focus on south-facing hillsides in the early mornings and evenings, typically bears will be more active during these times.

Please be mindful of road access conditions. Even this winter's mild snowfall has the potential to create impassable snowdrifts, especially on north-facing slopes. Hunters may want to drive roads they intend to hunt ahead of time to make sure that the roads are passable.

Snowpack on and around Mt. Hood has been lower than normal (as of February), following the trend seen around the west this year. With a lack of snow, road access to higher elevations and roads on ridges will likely be more accessible than in past years. The most common way of scouting is glassing clear cuts using maintained logging roads to move around. We have had reports and personal sightings of unusually high bear activity throughout the winter. With the extremely mild-winter and higher bear activity, hunters will not have to wait to see larger bear movement. Once the season is open, hunters will have good opportunity to hunt unrestricted in a majority of the units.

Hunters can deploy several tactics to be successful, including still hunting in timber or glassing clear cuts, both good areas for calling and spotting. Calling also increases your likelihood of coming across a mountain lion, so have a valid cougar tag on hand (mountain lion/cougar tags can be purchased at any time each year, but a valid tag is needed before harvest for a legal take).

We are seeing exceptionally low snowpack in the South Blues this year. Access should be fairly easy at low to medium elevations, and high elevation areas will likely be accessible earlier than normal. Hunters should keep an eye on snow conditions as the season approaches and plan to target emergent food sources on exposed south slopes and meadows that will melt off sooner. In the South Blues, bear populations are concentrated in wetter high elevation areas and occur at lower densities in more arid locations.

Hunters can try a variety of tactics including still hunting lower elevation meadows and riparian areas early season and transition to spot and stalk as larger open mountain faces become snow free later in the season. Calling may also be effective, be sure to have a cougar tag as well, as they frequently come into calls.

Snowpack in NE Oregon is substantially lower than normal, much like most of the Western U.S. We are potentially expecting some heavy mountain snow, but even with that, our snowpack will likely be much lower than in years past. Access should be fairly easy in all lower elevations, with the higher elevations being accessible much earlier in the season. Hunters in the Mt. Emily unit should be pleased this year with how accessible that unit could be, compared to years past when driving on the Summit Road is not possible until mid-May.

Bears come out of their state of torpor in late winter/early spring. Early season they tend to be lower in elevation and in somewhat timbered areas where there is lush green grass first. Tactics are a little different this time of year, because setting up to glass big open south facing slopes can be unproductive until there is abundant forage such as balsamroot and wild onions starting to emerge. Hunters should focus their efforts on the lower elevation bands where glassing opportunities may not be as good until there is widespread green up. Bears can pop into view very quickly and a shot can present itself quickly, and if you are not ready to shoot you may lose your chance. Once the temperatures have warmed up a bit in the late spring season, grasses and forbs are all growing on big open south facing slopes, hunters should set up where they have a good vantage point to glass over a lot of country. This time of year bears will be cruising around eating on these open slopes and being in a position to see a lot of country is your best bet to glass them up. Other techniques that can work better this time of year include calling with fawn/calf distress calls as they are getting close to hitting the ground.

The district experienced moderate snowfall in the mid to upper elevations. Hunters should expect access to be limited early in the season with access to high elevations by mid to late season. Access to lower elevation areas should be better than normal this year if the weather conditions hold and there are no late season snows. Look for bears in areas of early green-up. Usually south-facing slopes are the first to become snow-free and can be good places to glass for bears.

Higher elevations near Pine Creek and McGraw Overlook will have snow early in the season but should become accessible by mid to late season. Hunters planning on traveling the 39 Road to access the McGraw area should be aware that the road is still snow covered from about the Lake Fork Campground on. For up-to-date road conditions, please contact the Wallowa Whitman National Forest, Baker Ranger District at (541) 523-6391. In the Keating Unit, hunters will find better access in some of the mid to low portions of the national forest.