Kyle with his 2021 Idaho spring bear

Kyle Hanson: Idaho Spring Black Bear Hunt Report

HUNT: Idaho Frank Church Wilderness Spring Black Bear Hunt
CONSULTANT: Outdoors International

April, 2021

Another spring bear hunt in the books!

This was my second time hunting with our Outfitter for Spring Bear in the Frank Church Wilderness. Idaho spring bear hunts have become an annual trip for me and one of my favorite hunts year round. Bears are just flat out cool critters and a blast to hunt. That being said, I am not one to chase the same experience twice so we switched things up this year with an early season spot & stalk hunt on horseback rather than a baited hunt in June (which was awesome too…). I didn’t know at the time but this hunt ended up being my dream bear hunt.

This is a fly in hunt

This Bear hunt was MY TYPE OF HUNT!

We flew into the Wilderness and packed into a small basecamp for the week on horseback where we spent the week. We saw bears every day glassing for THE bear. In the meantime we ate like kings and enjoyed the scenery. I must say that sleeping in a wall tent next to the river is about the best night’s sleep you can imagine. Especially after long day of stalking bears in that country.

Jace and Kyle with Jaces bear

Both my friend Jace & I tagged out on the 3rd day of the hunt.

Jace wanted a Blonde Bear and I wanted to Chocolate. We got exactly what we wanted! My bear, “El Choco” ended up being my best Black Bear to date and Jace’s Bear was his first. And actually, on that note too.. Black Bear for Jace had been a tough specie to bag. All in all pretty hard to beat that for an outcome.

Hunting from horseback

After taking a couple great Color Phase Bears, we hiked a little, enjoyed camp life and even got to go visit some of the Petroglyphs from the Sheepeater Indian Tribe!

Once again, Idaho has stolen my heart and I will go back. I say it all the time but it was truly an incredible adventure. The Frank Church Wilderness is one of my favorite places. It can eat your lunch and leave you limping but I love the remote wilderness… and on this trip I did leave with some gnarly blisters, we still left smiling with our Bears though.

Next spring we are going to do the Spot & Stalk hunt again but stay tuned. This one will be a full on Backpack trip and we are going in for big or bust!

  • How would you rate your trip overall? Great! Solid as they come! Looking forward to the next adventure.
  • How were your guide? Great
  • How was your lodging? Great
  • How was the food? Great
  • How was your outfitters communication? Great
  • How physically demanding was your trip? Extreme
  • Would you book another trip with Outdoors International in the future? Yes
  • Can we use your stories and/or photos on our website? Yes
  • Can we use this in social media? Yes
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My hunt was absolutely top notch.

The outfitter is a fantastic man and incredibly hard working and knowledgeable, there is no doubt he will do everything within his power to make peoples hunts successful and enjoyable. I plan to do it again with him next year for sure.

Wade Zuver

Our hunt was excellent.

We saw bucks every day along with all other sorts of wildlife. Mountain goats, bears, and foxes were common sights. Fishing and crabbing was special bonus. The food was excellent, the crew was amazing. Outdoors International did a great job of finding exactly what we were looking for.

Jesse Neveau

What an amazing experience!

The hunting lodge was out of this world!, Rooms, food and the scenery were all A+. Our guide was exceptional and had us on Shiras moose all five days. We saw over 30 total with at least 10 bulls. They had a plan for everything including taxidermy and game processing.

Kayla Redmon

 

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Kyle Hanson Hunting Consultant
My commitment to my clients from the beginning as a Hunting Consultant with Outdoors International has been and still is to this day to put people first. I will always strive to provide my past, current, and future clients with exceptional customer service. It is a privilege to share in other’s dreams, and not something I take lightly. I am fortunate to send hundreds of my clients a field every year with incredible customer satisfaction. I’d love to help you plan a trip someday!