Black bear hunting gear checklist

Pack & Frame

• Essential Hunting daypack
  Carries your day's layers, water, food and kill kit, and is comfortable enough to wear all day.

Clothing & Layering

• Critical Hunting boots, broken in
  Your hunt goes as far as your feet do. Boots broken in before the season, with the support for the terrain.
• Critical Insulating layer (puffy)
  A packable puffy keeps you warm on the glass and in camp once you stop moving.
• Essential Rain / wind shell
  Wind and rain can turn a cool day dangerous. A shell keeps your insulation dry and working.
• Essential Base layers
  Wicking layers next to the skin keep you dry on the climb and warm when you stop. Wool or synthetic, never cotton.
• Essential Gloves & beanie
  Cold hands can't work a safety or a knife. Gloves and a warm hat matter most in the early morning.
• Optional Gaiters
  Keep snow, water and debris out of your boots so your feet stay dry.

Cooking & Hydration

• Essential Water bottles / bladder (2–3 L)
  Two to three liters for the day, in bottles or a bladder you can drink from on the move.
• Essential Water filter / purification
  Filtering from streams and lakes means carrying less water on multi-day hunts.

Kitchen & Food

• Essential Day food / snacks
  Calories you can eat on the move keep your energy and judgment up through a long day.

Safety & Navigation

• Critical Headlamp
  You'll walk in and out in the dark, and you may be field dressing after sunset. Hands-free light is essential.
• Critical Blaze orange (hat + vest)
  Most states require blaze orange during rifle seasons, and it keeps other hunters from mistaking you for game.
  Check your state regulations.
• Essential GPS / mapping app with hunt units
  Hunt-unit boundaries and private land lines are hard to see on the ground. A mapping app or GPS keeps you legal and found.
• Essential Satellite communicator / PLB
  There's no cell service where many hunts go. A satellite messenger or PLB gets help when it matters most.
• Essential Bear spray
  The most reliable way to stop a bear encounter. Carry it on your chest or belt where you can reach it in a second, not in the pack.
• Optional Map & compass
  Batteries die and phones break. A paper map and compass still get you back to the truck.

First Aid & Survival

• Critical First aid kit
  Cuts, sprains and blisters happen far from help. A kit sized for your trip handles them until you get out.
• Critical Fire starter (lighter + backup)
  A fire can save your life if you're stuck out cold or wet. Carry a lighter plus a backup that works when wet.
• Essential Emergency shelter / bivy
  If you get stuck out overnight, a light bivy or emergency shelter can keep you alive until morning.

Electronics

• Essential Phone
  Your map, camera, light and line to help. Keep it charged and in a pocket you can reach.
• Essential Power bank + cables
  Keeps your phone, GPS and light running for days away from an outlet.
• Essential Spare headlamp batteries
  A dead headlamp in the dark is a real problem. Carry spare batteries or a charge.

Tools & Repair

• Critical Fixed-blade or replaceable-blade knife
  You need a sharp blade to field dress and break down an animal. Fixed or replaceable blades both work well.
• Critical Game bags
  Breathable bags keep meat clean and cool while it hangs and on the pack out.
• Essential Knife sharpener or spare blades
  A big animal dulls a blade fast. A sharpener or spare blades keep the work quick and clean.
• Essential Paracord / rope
  Ties back legs, hangs meat, lashes loads and fixes gear. Light, and useful in a dozen ways.
• Essential Zip ties or tag-attachment method
  Many states require the tag to be attached to the animal right away. Zip ties make it quick.
• Essential Nitrile gloves
  Keep your hands clean while field dressing and protect against disease in the animal.
• Essential Skinning knife / caping blade
  A small, precise blade for caping and detailed skinning if you're keeping the hide or a mount.
• Essential Non-iodized salt for hide
  Salting a hide right away keeps the hair from slipping before it reaches the taxidermist. Use non-iodized salt.
• Essential Bags / cooler for hide & skull
  For a mount or a rug, the hide and skull need their own bags or cooler to stay clean and cold.

Specialty / Weapon

• Critical Rifle, sighted in
  A rifle sighted in with the load you'll hunt, and a caliber that's enough for the animal.
• Critical Ammunition
  Enough of the load your rifle is sighted in with, plus extra for a check shot at camp. Different loads hit different places.
• Essential Binoculars
  You find game with your eyes behind good glass. Most hunts are won by glassing longer than the other guy.
• Essential Rangefinder
  Misjudged distance is the most common cause of a missed or wounding shot. Know the distance before you shoot.
• Essential Spotting scope
  Judges an animal at long range and saves you miles of walking toward the wrong one.
• Essential Tripod (for glassing)
  Steadies your binoculars or spotter for long glassing sessions. You'll see far more.
• Essential Shooting rest (bipod / tripod / sticks)
  A steady rest turns a hopeful shot into a confident one, especially past 200 yards.
• Optional Bino harness / chest rig
  Keeps binoculars on your chest, protected and ready, so you glass more and dig in your pack less.
• Optional Predator / distress call
  Distress and prey sounds bring coyotes and other predators in close.
• Optional Bait-site supplies
  What it takes to set and refresh a bait site where it's legal: bait, containers, scent and a way to haul them in.
  Check your state regulations.
• Optional Dope card / ballistic turret
  Knowing your holds at each distance turns a rangefinder reading into a confident shot.
• Optional Suppressor
  Protects your hearing and reduces recoil where it's legal. Check your state's rules.
  Check your state regulations.

Shelter & Sleep

• Critical Tent or camper
  A dry, warm place to sleep is what lets you get up and hunt hard again the next day.
• Critical Sleeping bag rated for overnight lows
  Rated for the lowest temperatures you'll see, so you sleep, recover and hunt hard the next day.
• Essential Sleeping pad / cot
  Cold ground pulls heat out of you all night. A pad or cot keeps you warm and rested.
• Optional Camp chair
  A real seat at camp makes long evenings and early mornings far more comfortable.

Pack & Frame

• Essential Hunting daypack
  Carries your day's layers, water, food and kill kit, and is comfortable enough to wear all day.

Clothing & Layering

• Critical Hunting boots, broken in
  Your hunt goes as far as your feet do. Boots broken in before the season, with the support for the terrain.
• Critical Insulating layer (puffy)
  A packable puffy keeps you warm on the glass and in camp once you stop moving.
• Essential Rain / wind shell
  Wind and rain can turn a cool day dangerous. A shell keeps your insulation dry and working.
• Essential Base layers
  Wicking layers next to the skin keep you dry on the climb and warm when you stop. Wool or synthetic, never cotton.
• Essential Gloves & beanie
  Cold hands can't work a safety or a knife. Gloves and a warm hat matter most in the early morning.
• Optional Gaiters
  Keep snow, water and debris out of your boots so your feet stay dry.

Cooking & Hydration

• Essential Water bottles / bladder (2–3 L)
  Two to three liters for the day, in bottles or a bladder you can drink from on the move.
• Essential Water filter / purification
  Filtering from streams and lakes means carrying less water on multi-day hunts.
• Essential Camp stove + fuel
  Hot food and water keep you warm and fed, and can boil water when filters freeze.
• Essential Water jugs
  Enough water at camp for drinking, cooking and cleaning up.

Kitchen & Food

• Essential Day food / snacks
  Calories you can eat on the move keep your energy and judgment up through a long day.
• Essential Cooler
  Meat has to cool fast and stay cold. A good cooler with ice keeps it safe from the field to home.
• Essential Multi-day food
  Enough real food for every day in, with extra in case weather or a kill keeps you longer.

Safety & Navigation

• Critical Headlamp
  You'll walk in and out in the dark, and you may be field dressing after sunset. Hands-free light is essential.
• Critical Blaze orange (hat + vest)
  Most states require blaze orange during rifle seasons, and it keeps other hunters from mistaking you for game.
  Check your state regulations.
• Essential GPS / mapping app with hunt units
  Hunt-unit boundaries and private land lines are hard to see on the ground. A mapping app or GPS keeps you legal and found.
• Essential Satellite communicator / PLB
  There's no cell service where many hunts go. A satellite messenger or PLB gets help when it matters most.
• Essential Bear spray
  The most reliable way to stop a bear encounter. Carry it on your chest or belt where you can reach it in a second, not in the pack.
• Optional Map & compass
  Batteries die and phones break. A paper map and compass still get you back to the truck.

First Aid & Survival

• Critical First aid kit
  Cuts, sprains and blisters happen far from help. A kit sized for your trip handles them until you get out.
• Critical Fire starter (lighter + backup)
  A fire can save your life if you're stuck out cold or wet. Carry a lighter plus a backup that works when wet.
• Essential Emergency shelter / bivy
  If you get stuck out overnight, a light bivy or emergency shelter can keep you alive until morning.

Electronics

• Essential Phone
  Your map, camera, light and line to help. Keep it charged and in a pocket you can reach.
• Essential Power bank + cables
  Keeps your phone, GPS and light running for days away from an outlet.
• Essential Spare headlamp batteries
  A dead headlamp in the dark is a real problem. Carry spare batteries or a charge.
• Optional Camp lantern
  Lights up camp for cooking and getting ready in the dark without draining your headlamp.

Tools & Repair

• Critical Fixed-blade or replaceable-blade knife
  You need a sharp blade to field dress and break down an animal. Fixed or replaceable blades both work well.
• Critical Game bags
  Breathable bags keep meat clean and cool while it hangs and on the pack out.
• Essential Knife sharpener or spare blades
  A big animal dulls a blade fast. A sharpener or spare blades keep the work quick and clean.
• Essential Paracord / rope
  Ties back legs, hangs meat, lashes loads and fixes gear. Light, and useful in a dozen ways.
• Essential Zip ties or tag-attachment method
  Many states require the tag to be attached to the animal right away. Zip ties make it quick.
• Essential Nitrile gloves
  Keep your hands clean while field dressing and protect against disease in the animal.
• Essential Skinning knife / caping blade
  A small, precise blade for caping and detailed skinning if you're keeping the hide or a mount.
• Essential Non-iodized salt for hide
  Salting a hide right away keeps the hair from slipping before it reaches the taxidermist. Use non-iodized salt.
• Essential Bags / cooler for hide & skull
  For a mount or a rug, the hide and skull need their own bags or cooler to stay clean and cold.

Specialty / Weapon

• Critical Rifle, sighted in
  A rifle sighted in with the load you'll hunt, and a caliber that's enough for the animal.
• Critical Ammunition
  Enough of the load your rifle is sighted in with, plus extra for a check shot at camp. Different loads hit different places.
• Essential Binoculars
  You find game with your eyes behind good glass. Most hunts are won by glassing longer than the other guy.
• Essential Rangefinder
  Misjudged distance is the most common cause of a missed or wounding shot. Know the distance before you shoot.
• Essential Spotting scope
  Judges an animal at long range and saves you miles of walking toward the wrong one.
• Essential Tripod (for glassing)
  Steadies your binoculars or spotter for long glassing sessions. You'll see far more.
• Essential Shooting rest (bipod / tripod / sticks)
  A steady rest turns a hopeful shot into a confident one, especially past 200 yards.
• Optional Bino harness / chest rig
  Keeps binoculars on your chest, protected and ready, so you glass more and dig in your pack less.
• Optional Predator / distress call
  Distress and prey sounds bring coyotes and other predators in close.
• Optional Bait-site supplies
  What it takes to set and refresh a bait site where it's legal: bait, containers, scent and a way to haul them in.
  Check your state regulations.
• Optional Dope card / ballistic turret
  Knowing your holds at each distance turns a rangefinder reading into a confident shot.
• Optional Suppressor
  Protects your hearing and reduces recoil where it's legal. Check your state's rules.
  Check your state regulations.

Shelter & Sleep

• Critical Backpacking shelter
  A dry, warm place to sleep is what lets you get up and hunt hard again the next day.
• Critical Sleeping bag / quilt rated for overnight lows
  Rated for the lowest temperatures you'll see, so you sleep, recover and hunt hard the next day.
• Critical Insulated sleeping pad
  Cold ground pulls heat out of you all night. A pad or cot keeps you warm and rested.

Pack & Frame

• Critical Frame pack rated for 80+ lb loads
  Packing out an elk means 200+ lb of meat in several trips. A pack built to carry 80+ lb loads saves your back.
• Essential Hunting daypack
  Carries your day's layers, water, food and kill kit, and is comfortable enough to wear all day.
• Optional Trekking poles
  Save your knees on the descent and steady you under a heavy pack.

Clothing & Layering

• Critical Hunting boots, broken in
  Your hunt goes as far as your feet do. Boots broken in before the season, with the support for the terrain.
• Critical Insulating layer (puffy)
  A packable puffy keeps you warm on the glass and in camp once you stop moving.
• Essential Rain / wind shell
  Wind and rain can turn a cool day dangerous. A shell keeps your insulation dry and working.
• Essential Base layers
  Wicking layers next to the skin keep you dry on the climb and warm when you stop. Wool or synthetic, never cotton.
• Essential Gloves & beanie
  Cold hands can't work a safety or a knife. Gloves and a warm hat matter most in the early morning.
• Optional Gaiters
  Keep snow, water and debris out of your boots so your feet stay dry.

Cooking & Hydration

• Critical Water filter / purification
  Filtering from streams and lakes means carrying less water on multi-day hunts.
• Essential Water bottles / bladder (2–3 L)
  Two to three liters for the day, in bottles or a bladder you can drink from on the move.
• Essential Backpacking stove + fuel
  Hot food and water keep you warm and fed, and can boil water when filters freeze.

Kitchen & Food

• Critical Multi-day food
  Enough real food for every day in, with extra in case weather or a kill keeps you longer.
• Essential Day food / snacks
  Calories you can eat on the move keep your energy and judgment up through a long day.
• Essential Bear-resistant food storage
  A bear can, bag or hang keeps food away from bears and other critters, and some areas require one.
  Check your state regulations.

Safety & Navigation

• Critical Headlamp
  You'll walk in and out in the dark, and you may be field dressing after sunset. Hands-free light is essential.
• Critical Blaze orange (hat + vest)
  Most states require blaze orange during rifle seasons, and it keeps other hunters from mistaking you for game.
  Check your state regulations.
• Essential GPS / mapping app with hunt units
  Hunt-unit boundaries and private land lines are hard to see on the ground. A mapping app or GPS keeps you legal and found.
• Essential Satellite communicator / PLB
  There's no cell service where many hunts go. A satellite messenger or PLB gets help when it matters most.
• Essential Bear spray
  The most reliable way to stop a bear encounter. Carry it on your chest or belt where you can reach it in a second, not in the pack.
• Optional Map & compass
  Batteries die and phones break. A paper map and compass still get you back to the truck.

First Aid & Survival

• Critical First aid kit
  Cuts, sprains and blisters happen far from help. A kit sized for your trip handles them until you get out.
• Critical Fire starter (lighter + backup)
  A fire can save your life if you're stuck out cold or wet. Carry a lighter plus a backup that works when wet.
• Essential Emergency shelter / bivy
  If you get stuck out overnight, a light bivy or emergency shelter can keep you alive until morning.

Electronics

• Essential Phone
  Your map, camera, light and line to help. Keep it charged and in a pocket you can reach.
• Essential Power bank + cables
  Keeps your phone, GPS and light running for days away from an outlet.
• Essential Spare headlamp batteries
  A dead headlamp in the dark is a real problem. Carry spare batteries or a charge.

Tools & Repair

• Critical Fixed-blade or replaceable-blade knife
  You need a sharp blade to field dress and break down an animal. Fixed or replaceable blades both work well.
• Critical Game bags
  Breathable bags keep meat clean and cool while it hangs and on the pack out.
• Essential Knife sharpener or spare blades
  A big animal dulls a blade fast. A sharpener or spare blades keep the work quick and clean.
• Essential Paracord / rope
  Ties back legs, hangs meat, lashes loads and fixes gear. Light, and useful in a dozen ways.
• Essential Zip ties or tag-attachment method
  Many states require the tag to be attached to the animal right away. Zip ties make it quick.
• Essential Nitrile gloves
  Keep your hands clean while field dressing and protect against disease in the animal.
• Essential Skinning knife / caping blade
  A small, precise blade for caping and detailed skinning if you're keeping the hide or a mount.
• Essential Non-iodized salt for hide
  Salting a hide right away keeps the hair from slipping before it reaches the taxidermist. Use non-iodized salt.
• Essential Bags / cooler for hide & skull
  For a mount or a rug, the hide and skull need their own bags or cooler to stay clean and cold.
• Essential Gear repair kit
  Tape, patches and a few small parts fix a torn tent, pad or pack before it ends your trip.

Specialty / Weapon

• Critical Rifle, sighted in
  A rifle sighted in with the load you'll hunt, and a caliber that's enough for the animal.
• Critical Ammunition
  Enough of the load your rifle is sighted in with, plus extra for a check shot at camp. Different loads hit different places.
• Essential Binoculars
  You find game with your eyes behind good glass. Most hunts are won by glassing longer than the other guy.
• Essential Rangefinder
  Misjudged distance is the most common cause of a missed or wounding shot. Know the distance before you shoot.
• Essential Spotting scope
  Judges an animal at long range and saves you miles of walking toward the wrong one.
• Essential Tripod (for glassing)
  Steadies your binoculars or spotter for long glassing sessions. You'll see far more.
• Essential Shooting rest (bipod / tripod / sticks)
  A steady rest turns a hopeful shot into a confident one, especially past 200 yards.
• Optional Bino harness / chest rig
  Keeps binoculars on your chest, protected and ready, so you glass more and dig in your pack less.
• Optional Predator / distress call
  Distress and prey sounds bring coyotes and other predators in close.
• Optional Bait-site supplies
  What it takes to set and refresh a bait site where it's legal: bait, containers, scent and a way to haul them in.
  Check your state regulations.
• Optional Dope card / ballistic turret
  Knowing your holds at each distance turns a rangefinder reading into a confident shot.
• Optional Suppressor
  Protects your hearing and reduces recoil where it's legal. Check your state's rules.
  Check your state regulations.