An unprecedented year of human-bear conflict has been felt across Colorado. Hunters should take every precaution to keep a clean camp and properly secure any attractants, including harvested animals and meat.
While it will come as no surprise to Colorado residents that black bears have been highly active in 2026, more than 100,000 out-of-state hunters visit each year between September and November, when bears are still highly active during hyperphagia in the pursuit of packing on pounds before denning.
“While a lot of the focus on bear activity this year has been centered around towns, we have also seen bears very active in the woods as they’ve had to travel greater distances to find food sources,” said CPW District Wildlife Manager Halley DeWalt of Norwood. “Bears are still actively trying to add as many calories as possible and will be attracted to hunt camps, gut piles and carcasses.”
During the first rifle season, an elk hunter outside of Pagosa Springs encountered an adult black bear in camp multiple times. Over the course of a few days, the bear damaged multiple ice coolers, tables, a generator and camp kitchen boxes. In addition to visual confirmation of the bear examining the hunter’s camp, the bear left muddy paw prints on the hunter’s truck and wall tent after attempting to enter both at night.
The hunter said his party did everything they could to try to scare the bear off multiple times and eventually decided to drive into town to sleep.
“We have seen that bears have been bolder this year in pursuit of food and less wary of human presence,” said CPW District Wildlife Manager Nate Martinez of Pagosa Springs. “Our hunting seasons are busy with a lot of folks camping both in campgrounds and dispersed through the forest. We also have a lot of bears. It’s always a good idea to have bear spray, but more important than that is to secure food inside of vehicles or hard-sided trailers.”
BearWise reminds hunters that they have a higher chance of encountering a black bear than hikers, as hunters more often move through dense timber, along game trails and other areas frequented by bears. Prime hunting hours of early morning and late evening also align with increased periods of bear activity.
Hunt camps are inherently different from typical tent camps, as many will cook meals inside of wall tents. The smell of food can attract hungry bears into camp and into tents. All food and beverages, including canned food, garbage, pet food and scented toiletries are bear attractants.
Many hunters who successfully harvest an animal also will also field dress or process the animal in or near camp. CPW recommends packing meat out as soon as possible and to properly hang meat or secure it in certified bear-resistant coolers.
“If a bear claims a carcass, safely attempt to haze it away. But bears will aggressively defend a food source,” Martinez said. “If the bear does not back off and the situation is not safe, take pictures or video from a safe distance if possible and contact the CPW office closest to you.”
To find the nearest CPW office, go to cpw.state.co.us/contact-us.
By John Livingston. John is the Southwest region public information officer for Colorado Parks and Wildlife.
