Photo by Vic Attardo

In South Carolina's mountains, there is more than one way to skin a bear. You can still-hunt for bears during the third week in October, or you can register as a member of one of the many dog-hunting parties and hunt during the last week in October. Some bear hunters are strictly still-hunters and some are ardent dog hunters. Some do both.

Regardless of how you intend to hunt bears this year, as a member of one of the many dog-hunting parties, or taking on a bear one-on-one, by stalking or still-hunting, scouting is one of those basic fundamentals that you absolutely must do. There is no way around it. If you don't know where the bears are and what they are feeding on by the time bear season rolls around, you already have two strikes against you. When it comes to bears and bear hunting, experience has shown that it is best to stick with the tried-and-true, basic fundamental methods that bear hunters have used for decades.

Whether you are slipping through the woods on a solo still-hunt or thrashing through the brush behind a pack of Plott and Walker hounds, you only have six days to home in on the place where a bear is using. A bear can cover a lot of territory in 24 hours and he has the whole world at his disposal. He may be here today and way over yonder tomorrow. If you are going to pin down where a bear might be on opening day, you simply must get out there and scout around, preferably well in advance of opening day.

BEAR SCOUTING 101
For most veteran hunters, scouting is not a considered a chore; it is actually one of the most enjoyable aspects of bear hunting. Autumn is a great time of the year to be in the woods in Carolina -- nothing could be finer. Temperatures tend to be near ideal in October, lows typically range in the 30s and 40s, humidity is low and the air is usually crisp and clear.

When those first chilly mornings of October finally arrive, a dyed-in-the-wool bear hunter's fancy turns toward tromping through the mountains looking for bear sign. Deer season can wait. October in the mountains is all about bears. Somewhere up there in those high hills the bears are munching on acorns, roaming from ridge to ridge searching for the best food sources, and leaving plenty of sign of their comings and goings. Time and time again, experience has shown that the key to success in bear hunting is good old-fashioned footwork --getting out there early and finding out where those trails and feeding areas are.

Tony Cantrell, a veteran bear hunter from Oconee County with a Boone and Crockett bear to his credit, begins his scouting well before bear season.

"I usually get started looking for bear sign in September," Cantrell said. "I look for white oak trees being limbed, leaves raked up under the acorn trees, and tracks in the sandbars along the creeks and so on. You might find tracks just about anywhere this time of year. The bears are roaming around looking for the best food sources, and where you find the food, you find the bears."

FIND THE FOOD
Find the food and you'll find the bears. It really is that simple: Black bears have been recorded consuming up to 20,000 calories in a day in the fall of the year. They are storing up fat for the winter and no creature in the woods can put away that many calories and be shy about getting food.

Hence, in October, bears spend most of their waking hours in search of food.