Idaho Elk, Mule Deer and Black Bear Blog

Spring Bear Hunt Drop Camps Available

Thu, 05 Feb 2026 01:51:00 GMT

We are only 2 short months away from the “official” opening day of most of Idaho’s spring bear hunting seasons. I say “official” because in normal years, our area, although open to hunt, is normally not accessible yet due to deep snow conditions. Obviously, this year is shaping up to be different and even though it has been a mild winter, I still bet that cabin fever has set in for many.

This year you may want to consider a spring bear hunt drop camp for your cure to cabin fever. You can shake out those cobwebs by hunting at your own pace, pursue (almost) every predator Idaho has to offer using your preferred method of hunting including calls, bait (we will preset for you), or spot and stalk for bear, coyote, fox, mountain lion and wolf.

Our spring bear hunt drop camps consist of packing you and your gear into a preset camp with tent, cots, pads, wood burning stove, cooking and eating utensils and packing out of you and your game from camp. We will preset some baits within walking distance of your specific camp site and show you where they are when we pack you in.

All you need to bring is your personal gear, food and the desire to do your part to protect elk and deer numbers in Idaho! Contact us for more info or questions on the possibility of a spring bear hunt drop camp and best of luck in the other draws!

Happy hunting!

George

Spring Bear Hunt Drop Camp

Wed, 05 Mar 2025 12:00:00 GMT

If I haven’t made it clear that I think Idaho is THE best place to hunt, then I suppose you haven’t read enough of our blogs. Predator hunting in Idaho tops them all!

In Idaho, you can hunt wolves, bears, mountain lions, coyotes and foxes all at the same time by either spot and stalk or electronic calls method clear up until June 30 each year. To increase your odds for bear, you can even hunt them over bait. Idaho is becoming one of the last places left where you can legally hunt bears over bait. It has been proven repeatedly that it is the best way to hunt bears AND protect their young. Spring sows almost always, when showing up at a bait, have this year’s cubs in such close contact with them that it is very hard to mistake her for a dry sow.

All that to say, that if you are an avid predator hunter or simply want your chance at a wolf, maybe an Idaho spring bear hunt drop camp may be your best option. You can hunt at your own pace during the day then sit a preset bear bait in the evening to increase your odds of success.

Our Idaho spring bear hunt drop camps consist of us packing you and your gear into a preset backcountry wall tent camp. It has cots with pads, woodburning stove and all cooking and eating utensils. We will preset some bear bait sites that we have used for years and show them to you before we ride back to the trailhead. We pick you, your gear and your game up on a predetermined date and take you back to the trailhead.

All this is available in the months of May and June. For the truly adventurous, you may consider a late April approach. It is up to you. All tags are over the counter (OTC) so obtaining a tag is no problem. If this sounds like the perfect adventure for curing that cabin fever brought on by winter turning to spring, contact us for your back country Idaho spring bear drop camp today!

With Idaho’s large percentage of color phase black bears, open wolf and mountain lion season, ability to hunt spot and stalk, using electronic calls and bait for bears, what are you waiting for? Get out and enjoy YOUR public lands and remember to take a kid with you!

Idaho’s 2025 Spring Black Bear Season is Just Around the Corner

Wed, 15 Jan 2025 10:00:00 GMT

I know, I know, the holidays just got over and it is still cold and white outside, but what a perfect time to begin thinking about what is truly important, where are you going to hunt spring bear this season?

Idaho’s 2025 spring bear season, I predict, is going to be one for the record books. Why? I am so glad you asked.

1. First, last fall’s berry crop was non-existent. Bears were out late scrounging for whatever they could find to eat and probably even cheering on would be deer and elk hunters, so that they could take a turn at a gut pile for some pre-winter calories.

2. Because of such a lackluster berry crop last fall, I predict that the bears will exit their dens far earlier than “normal” this year seeking to pick up on some lost calories from last fall.

3. This winter has started slow and continued so far to be very mild. What does that have to do with bears you ask? Now I am no biologist, but without heavy snow, big game survival (deer, elk, and antelope) will hopefully be much greater than usual leaving not that many carcasses for bears exiting their winter slumber hideouts to eat, so they head out on a journey for food that they will certainly find in abundance at our bait sites.

4. We will have lots of those bait sites loaded heavily with some of the best tasting (yes, of course we taste our bear bait) icings and sugar laden goodies you can imagine. A hungry bear will not be able to resist them, and we will keep the baits full, so the bears always have goodies to come back to!

5. If, on the off chance we get one of those sneaky nocturnal type bears, we will have dogs on hand as back up in case the need arises to get the job done.

6. Oftentimes, bear baiting gets a bad rap from the nonhunting world, but studies have proven that bear baiting is the best way to protect females with their young as new babies are almost always right at their momma’s side as she fills her belly at our bait sites. These females with cubs are protected and add an additional level of enjoyment in just enjoying watching “the show” as the cubs learn to navigate the woods with their mothers.

So, as you find yourself getting back to “normal” life after the holidays, why don’t you break up the daily doldrums by asking one of your coworkers, friends, relatives or best of all one of your own kids, nieces or nephews if they would like to join you out in Idaho for an opportunity at one of Idaho’s famous color phase black bears and Contact Us to book your hunt.

Hope to see you in the woods! And, as always, remember to take a kid hunting!

Cure Cabin Fever with an Idaho Spring Bear Hunt

Mon, 20 Mar 2023 22:49:22 GMT

The first day of spring is officially here! It has been a long time coming and it can mean only 1 thing: Idaho Spring bear hunting season 2023 is literally only days away!

With this winter feeling like it has been the longest winter in the history of all mankind…at least here in Challis, Idaho, cabin fever is running rampant, and we are ready to get out, start setting bear baits, shoeing horses and mules, riding colts, setting camps and simply enjoying watching mother nature come back to life after a long winter’s siesta.

If you haven’t made plans for your Idaho spring bear hunt yet, you are in luck! We still have a few openings for this spring, and they are indeed a sure cure for cabin fever. We offer hunts from Sunday through Friday beginning early May and can accommodate groups up to 4, 6 if it is all in one party. We love seeing kids and women in camp and can reserve a full camp for your family outing. Non hunting observers are always welcome with hunters in our camps as well.

If you have already made plans and find yourself in need of quality affordable bear bait, check out our inventory of affordable bulk bear bait. If you are simply heading out to the woods to hunt bears spot and stalk or have already engaged the services of another outfitter, then best of luck to you! Take lots of pictures, take time to soak it all in and most of all, take a kid hunting with you if you can! Remember, someone once took you hunting for the first time!

Contact us today about scheduling you for your 2023 Idaho spring bear hunt with Castle Creek Outfitters or Wild Idaho Outfitters, your bulk bear bait needs, bear baiting tactics or to simply talk Idaho hunting. It is certainly one of our favorite subjects!

Happy Hunting,

George

A Couple Spots Still Left for this Spring Bear Season

Mon, 24 May 2021 21:48:33 GMT

The weather has been unseasonably warm and dry this year and the water level on the creek has been pretty steady helping us avoid the radical highs of a “normal” spring runoff, bears are active, and we got ‘em on camera.

We are looking forward to a productive spring bear season and have just a couple spots still available for June. So, if you don’t have any concrete spring hunting or fishing plans and can get away on short notice, contact us about dates and times for an Idaho spring bear hunt with us!

Happy hunting!

Spring Bear Drop Camps

Wed, 31 Mar 2021 22:34:39 GMT

With Idaho’s 2021 spring bear season beginning this week, we are grateful that we are pretty much booked up on our guided hunts, but new for 2021, we are offering spring bear drop camps for those DIY hunters who to prefer the challenge of hunting on their own and more of the spot and stalk element of bear hunting.

This is a more affordable option over guiding, puts you in charge of your own schedule and may just be the ticket for that pent up wintertime cabin fever!

We will pack you into a back country camp, drop you off, show you a couple of pre-baited sites you can sit in the evenings and leave you to your own hunting experience. We will then come pick you up at a predetermined time and hope to hear tall tales of faraway places and hopefully be able to congratulate on a well-placed shot on an Idaho bear!

For more info on this new option from Wild Idaho outfitters and Castle Creek Outfitters this year, contact us!

Best of luck with spring bear hunts this year and remember to get out and enjoy YOUR public lands!

Post Season Trail Cam Pics Still Plenty of Bears Left for Next Year

Mon, 27 Jul 2020 10:00:00 GMT

We had a successful spring bear season this year, taking several nice bears, half of which were color phase. Game cameras show there are still plenty of bears left in our area to hunt this fall or next spring. For example, bear season closes on the June 30^th and on the evening of June 26^th a hunter sat on a bait until approximately 9:45 pm, by 10:37 pm a nice sized cinnamon bear was chowing down on the bait. The bear had us figured out and was only coming out at night, you say? Presumably, the same cinnamon bear was back for more chow by 7:43 the next morning. After that, the bait was quiet for a while, then presumably the same bear came back again on July 5^th at 1:30 in the afternoon with another adult cinnamon, and a cub appears on a few frames. A client had shot a cinnamon on this same bait early in June, which was the only bear we took off it this spring

Another camera showed 4-5 black bears and 1 cinnamon visited a bait site during the same time frame; only one bear was taken off this bait this spring. Nearly all our baits were literally licked clean by July 7^th, after being rebaited the last week of June. I can’t imagine how many bears inhabit the mountains of Central Idaho, and I don’t believe for a second that anyone knows. Though, I speculate that sport hunting isn’t putting the slightest dent in the population.

Good hunting,

Joe Cavanaugh

Positive Attitudes and Hunting Success

Mon, 20 Jul 2020 10:00:00 GMT

When I met my bear-hunting client a few of weeks ago, one of the first things he told me is that he usually has “pretty good luck on hunting trips like this”. As we all know, luck is a good thing to have on one’s side, but it’s difficult to obtain on-demand. Later the hunter informed me that what he really wanted was a nice cinnamon-phase bear, as he had already taken several other color phases of black bear. I told him he had chosen the right area, which he had because Unit 28 produces a high percentage of color-phase bears; though I what I was thinking is, he better pray for a dose of exceptionally good luck. The first evening on bait he shot an absolutely beautiful cinnamon bear with chocolate feet. Positive attitude or just plain luck—you decide which one was the winning factor. Having either one can’t hurt your odds of success and having both is better yet.

Good hunting,

Joe Cavanaugh

Idaho Controlled-Hunt Application Period for Elk, Deer, Antelope, and Fall Bear Opens May 1st

Fri, 01 May 2020 04:01:00 GMT

The tag application period for Idaho controlled-hunt elk, deer, pronghorn, and fall bear tags opens May 1 and runs to June 5. Idaho does not use a bonus/preference point system for controlled hunts. As a result, hunters have the same odds of drawing a tag the first year they apply as they do any other year.

To apply, residents and nonresidents must have a general hunting license, and pay an application fee of $6.25 for residents and $14.75 for nonresidents—per species. Unlike many other states, the cost of the tag is not paid for upfront in Idaho, instead they are purchased after the applicant has drawn. Successful applicants are notified by July 10, and tags must be purchased by August 1. Any tags that are not purchased by August 1 will be forfeited to a second application period, which runs from August 5 to August 15. Hunters who have already applied for a moose, bighorn sheep or mountain goat controlled hunt this year may not apply for any other controlled hunt (during the same year).

Castle Creek Outfitters operates in Unit 28, where there is an excellent, late-season, controlled-hunt for mule deer, which runs from October 10, all the way through the rut, to November 30 (Hunt 1018). This hunt has produced some outstanding bucks in the past. There are only 5 tags available however, and competition is fierce. (In controlled hunts with 10 or fewer tags, not more than one nonresident tag is issued). Castle Creek Outfitters also receives 1 “outfitter allocation tag” for this hunt, which is in high demand. There are no controlled-hunt, elk tags or bear tags for Unit 28, as they are all sold over the counter. Nonresident deer and elk tags are also valid to take black bear, mountain lion, or gray wolf instead of a deer or elk, if a general season is open for that species.

For detailed information and statistics on Idaho controlled hunts click on this link: https://idfg.idaho.gov/rules/big-game

The Wyoming deer and pronghorn tag application period closes June 1 and results come out June 18. The state of Wyoming allows you to purchase preference points only for deer, pronghorn, elk, moose and sheep from July 1 to November 2.

Good hunting,

Joe Cavanaugh

Idaho Spring Black Bear Hunting

Fri, 31 Jan 2020 11:00:00 GMT

The application deadline for Idaho controlled-hunt, spring bear tags is February 15. Fortunately for all of us, most Idaho black bear tags are sold over-the-counter (OTC). This includes tags for units 28 and 27, where Castle Creek and Wild Idaho Outfitters conduct their bear hunts. The reduced-price or “wilderness tag” is good for all of Unit 27 and those portions of Unit 28 within the Frank Church Wilderness, as well as within most designated wilderness areas in the state of Idaho. The full-price tag is valid for those portions of Unit 28 outside the wilderness area, and for most of the state outside of designated wilderness. Bear are so plentiful in Idaho that residents and nonresidents are able to purchase 2 OTC bear tags per year. These can be 2 wilderness tags, or 1 full-price tag and 1 wilderness tag. This is an incredible opportunity for anyone wanting to hunt bear.

Bear hunting in Idaho can be done by baiting, though DIY-hunters must have a baiting permit, issued by Idaho Fish and Game. Use of electronic calls is legal for bear hunting within designated wilderness only (wilderness tag). Hounds are also permitted for hunting bear in Idaho.

Cougar and wolf hunting seasons are in full swing this February over most of Idaho. Tags are sold over-the-counter for both species. Use of electronic game calls is legal for taking wolf in much of the state, and legal for cougar within designated wilderness areas only. Baiting is not legal for either species. Hounds are legal for hunting cougar, but not wolf. In Units 28 and 27, cougar and wolf can be harvested until the end of spring bear season, which is June 30, allowing bear hunters to carry OTC tags for all 3 species. Check Idaho F&G website for thorough explanations on cougar and wolf hunting regulations.

Readers who would like to comment on the latest wolf-hunting proposals from Idaho Fish & Game can do so by clicking here:
Wolf Harvest Season Proposals: Review and Comment Opportunity

The Idaho Spring Turkey application deadline is March 1st, 2020.

Good hunting.

Joe Cavanaugh

The End of Winter and the beginning of Spring Bear Hunts

Tue, 26 Feb 2019 21:52:10 GMT

Anybody else getting antsy yet? I sure as hell am. Stuck working in the cold and watching the weather roll in everyday, just daydreaming of spring.

Down here in Texas we don't get “spring fever” the same as our friends up north. The grass has been green mostly all year, and we have only had a few days that dropped below 30. But I still get worked up being stuck down here in the mud. I want to be in the mountains.

I spend my days dreaming of riding a horse down the ridge lines and across the creek bottoms. That sweet smell of the pines in the early mountain morning, and the daily rain storms that spit on you for just long enough to make you put a raincoat on, but not enough to really need one. I think of the long horseback ride back to camp in the middle of the night, when the only way to know that you're almost home is the smell of the campfire burning somewhere in the dark ahead of you.

But most of all I miss that moment when a bear creeps out in front of the bait, impossibly silent for a predator of that size. When you somehow forget how breathing works, and you have to stop from shaking. It's buck fever, but with touch of spice. Fear. That's what that pit in your stomach is. Because you’re still hunting, but you’re suddenly aware that you might not be as far above the food chain as you thought.

That's what I'm pining for: Spring Bear Hunts.

Castle Creek Outfitters' First Spring Black Bear Hunt of 2018

Tue, 29 May 2018 19:04:00 GMT

This last week (May 13 - 18) was quite a milestone for us here at Castle Creek Outfitters. It was our first hunt since George, Caleb, and myself bought the business! So naturally we decided to send our undisputed best, most capable, freakishly talented, and unbelievably humble guide in to handle this grand first step. I was honored.

The week started like all others: at The Bent Rod. It's where we grab all of our last second gear and meet the hunters we will be spending the week with. From there it's a short 2-hour drive to the trail head. Then we hop in the 5-ton truck to make it across the river and head into camp. For the next 5 days, it's all bear bait, horses, and beautiful Idaho mountains.

As some of you know, bear hunting over a bait can often involve a lot of sitting around and not a lot of getting bear opportunities, so it takes a level of discipline and patience to make a hunt fun and successful. The hunter had that in abundance. After sitting on bear baits for 4 days without so much as an oversized opossum to get our hearts racing, I never even heard a negative word from him. That's what a truly experienced hunter looks like. It was a wonderful attitude that lent itself to success when finally, on the 4th day, we had a hit on the game camera. It was a massive, beautiful, color phase black bear. And boy was he a looker; a big jug-headed, 6-foot boar! Now we had something to be excited about! But with only one day left, a lot rode on this last hunt. We decided to head out at 1 p.m. with nothing to lose, but a deep-seated, somewhat unjustified, belief that this was going to come together.

First thing we did, when we made it to the bait, was to do our best to throw some scent around like confetti. We figured a few pounds of chocolate coffee creamer, 3 scent sticks, and a great deal of cherry sugar would do the trick. Well sure enough our sent stick sacrifice paid off. Just before 6 p.m. a brown blob started sliding across the sage. The hunter knew what to do. With a perfect shot, he took out both the lungs and sure enough, we found the bear less than 80 yards from the bait. Bear down! I couldn't have planned it better if I was the one making the rules.

The only thing better than getting a big bear is getting to earn him. There's no handouts in this country, and things don't always come together, but when they do it's a thing of beauty. I don’t know if there really is such a thing as a perfect hunt, not in my mind at least. But maybe that's part of what makes it so beautiful. You are always getting better and even when everything is done right, it still may not come together. But I believe success without the possibility of failure is a hollow victory. And it's in those moments of doubt that the best hunters stand out, by mindset alone, and cause a subtle change that often dominoes into a very different end-result. It's how some hunters seem to just “get luckier.” If there was a theme for this last week, I think that would be it. The hunt is what you make it, and I can say with great pride, this hunt was a huge success.

“I'm a DIY hunter for the last 25 years and booked my first guided hunt with Castle Creek. They did a great job having the hunt match what I was looking for and provided access to places I could never reach on my own. Great horses/mules, scenery was amazing, warm tents and food was great, this hunt was just what I needed and look forward to hunting with them again.”

CCO's First ClientMay 2018

A Lifelong Dream Fulfilled

Thu, 03 May 2018 21:43:53 GMT

Hello, past and future Castle Creek hunters! We have a big announcement to share with all of you! Castle Creek Outfitters has come under new ownership! We will be offering quality Elk and Mule Deer, and Spring and Fall Black Bear Hunts, in the Salmon-Challis National Forest in Eastern Idaho. We look forward to getting to know all of you as we begin this new journey! George McQuiston, Caleb Bergeleen, and I (Camden Powell) have come together to fulfill a lifelong dream and we purchased Castle Creek Outfitters from Shane McAfee! We will have many more updates to come and we invite you to contact us with any questions you might have. We look forward to getting to know all of you and showing you what we are all about.