West Virginia hunters will get a rare opportunity this weekend as the long held black bear sanctuary in the Cranberry Wilderness and Cranberry Backcountry opens for bear hunting.
"There’s a number of different bears that we routinely get complaints on in the Cranberry Sanctuary that haven’t been hunted in 25 or 30 years," said Chris Ryan, bear biologist with the West Virginia DNR. "They’ve lost their fear of humans."
That was one of the catalysts for the Natural Resources Commission agreeing to open the area once again to bear hunting. The other reason was the sanctuary has outlived its usefulness.
"At the time that sanctuary was created around 1970, there was an estimated 500 bears in the state. Today, we have more than 10,000 bears in the state. We have bears reproducing in every single county in the state," Ryan said.
Originally, the Natural Resources Commission designated two bear sanctuaries in West Virginia. The Cranberry was the first in 1967. The second closed area for bear hunting was at Spruce Knob, which was established in 1972. The Spruce Knob restriction on bear hunting was lifted in 1980.
Due to the lack of hunting pressure, archery hunters have a great opportunity for close contact with a bruin. Ryan said that will be a rare treasure for bowhunters.
He said, "For an archery hunter who specifically targets bears, this will obviously be one of the easier opportunities they have."
Eventually, that will change as the bears become quickly educated. The bulk of bear hunting will begin Dec. 10, the first Monday after buck season. The area is likely to be a ripe selection for houndsmen looking for a long bear chase with their dogs.