Is there Grizz in Chwk?

[Gone_Fishin_]

This is mainly just a question, wish i would have been able to get some pictures yesterday.

So 2 buddies and I were up Chwk Lake rd yesterday at a little spot we know doing some target shooting. (Lower end before fish hatchery) As we were trying out buddies new Tikka 7mm rem/mag my one buddy happens to look over at a cut block on a mountain about 2kms away and see's this VW size brown blob moving along the top ridge. We grab the binos for a closer look and what do you know, its a massive bear just grazing away on the mountain side. As i still haven't cut my tag yet we decide to watch for a while and see it would even be possible to make our way up and over there. After a brief hike through the forest we quickly realize this is not going to happen, and even if it was there was no way we could pack this sucker out.

Half hour goes by and it wanders back into the forest, no biggy. Nothing gained nothing lost. Few hours later as were almost done for the day and i take a look back up on the ridge and see this bruiser come wandering out of the forest again. Now this things is massive, completely brown with some possible darker areas on ears/face. Looking through the binos at 2 kms and it looks like a VW Bug. I've never seen a bear this big before and i grew up on the island, so i've seen my fair share of BB's.

After scanning for a bit we realize there is another road that leads up there, we pack up and head out. Drive up chwk lake rd and bit and find the next turn off. This one was gated like most so we decide to make the hike and see if we can make it up there. After half hour or more we come to the cut block where we know it was grazing up above. Because we have no line of sight from down low, we start working our way up the side of the mountain working the wind to see if we can get a closer look and possible shot off. As we come over the edge it seems to have left the area, but we knew it could be just behind a bush somewhere we couldn't see. After another 10 minutes of sitting still i see this massive head appear from behind a bush, i tell buddy get down and i put the scope on it. I look and look some more.. see the pointy nose and appears to be a sow to me. Another few minutes goes by as were waiting for a better look and surveying the area buddy says "cub, DON'T SHOOT" so instantly lower the rifle and take another look (we were within 40 yards) i see another cub come wandering down the hillside. I know long story and getting to the point.... both cubs were pure brown, no black at all. Like light brown exactly the same as a grizz, mom was the same with the exception of some black on her head i seen. Didn't get a complete look at her body though so can not confirm complete body colour.

New to hunting so question is as title states... I wish we could have got a better look at the mother, or even better a picture. But i can say for 100% fact, that this girl was massive. Bigger then any BB i have ever seen around the lower mainland, or even growing up on the island. At 50 yards with the scope on 3power its head darn near took up the entire sight. I seen one back leg and it was as thick as the 12" log beside her.

Might go for a venture up there again and see if we can find some tracks or even beter get another look at her and a picture.

Will let ya know if i do.

[71_camaro]

there are lots of grizz in the range behind hope.more than ever! so thats not too far away.could be for sure

[WestCoastHunter]

Can't answer the question for you but I sure am interested. You don't have to travel far out of Chilliwack to find yourself caught in grizzly territory.. Whether it is a bullshit story or not, a friend of mine claims that a few years ago his cousin and him were hunting near Tamihi and he spotted a grizz over the ridge.... hopefully somebody can answer this for you! :confused:

[Gone_Fishin_]

The main thing that has me questioning what we stalked was the two light brown cubs. No black at all on them. Even if i didn't see the cubs i was hesitant on the shot as i couldn't tell if i was looking at a decent Grizzly or a massive Brown phase BB. Unfortunately we didn't get a good look at her entire body so couldn't see if there was the tell tale camel hump behind the shoulders.

Has had me scratching my head all morning.. and i cant get the look of that head through the scope outta my mind either !! ... omg she was a beast is all i can say.

Thankfully unlike some hunters i've encountered... I was taught to take my time, watch and then watch some more (measure twice cut once rule) and didn't squeeze when i easily could have dropped her. We did however, get some much needed stalking practice in. That sure got my blood pumping crawling in as quietly as we could to within 50 yards. All i could think of at the time while looking down my scope was i wish i didn't leave the bow in the truck. Makes me want to get that bow shot even more now, hopefully before she closes on the 15th.

[BearStump]

I was hunting an area very close to the spot you're talking about a couple years ago. Sat all day over a big bowl that held a good amount of bears. As the sun was setting over the mntn my buddy says "oh shit! Bear" and points to my left. I look over and not 40 yds away was a huge huge bear. Like you said, all light brown and without question. Black bear didn't even register in my mind at all. Just "oh crap a grizzly" it was directly in line with the setting sun and scope, bino's had so much glare they were rendered useless. I was convinced that this was not a bb . And it was walking right at us. I was so convinced that I put a warning shot at its feet. I t took off and to this day I'm still wondering.
This was on the mountains between chwk river valley and skagit valley. Accessed from the chwk side.

[Fella]

Gonefishin, did you see any tracks?

[Gone_Fishin_]

Gonefishin, did you see any tracks?

At the time we weren't looking for any tracks as we knew where the bear was. So no we did not see any. The whole area was destroyed from something smashing around there. Looks like whatever it is has been in this area for a while now.

We were thinking of going back to take a look for any sign we could find to see if we could determine if it was a grizz or not.

Will adivse if we make the hike back up there.

[Ketchika]

I've seen things in that area that would lead me to say yes.

although this report is 25 years old its still worth a read.
http://skagiteec.org/skagit-research-library/sp-files/00002fad.pdf

[BiG Boar]

http://i300.photobucket.com/albums/nn5/bigbore14/A4272006-E518-44BA-B3A1-3926332C96F2_zpsvpre7b9m.jpg (http://s300.photobucket.com/user/bigbore14/media/A4272006-E518-44BA-B3A1-3926332C96F2_zpsvpre7b9m.jpg.html)

Did it look similar to above bear?

[Wild one]

Seen a grizz in the Skagit so it is possible in my opinion

[itsy bitsy xj]

I'm heading there today, I'll keep my eyes open for tracks or a grizz

[allan]

We've seen grizz on the manning park side only about 35 km n east of your spot. I would say yes it's very possible to have them move into your area.
I have also seen some massive color phase black bears last spring just past hope that on first glance one would easily confuse as grizzly on first glimpse. We were bow hunting and still kicking ourselves not to have shot that one with a rifle we had with us as it would have been an easy 80 yd shot.
To this day it's the largest black bear I've ever seen.

[Gone_Fishin_]

Big Boar:

Yes it looked like the one in the picture, with some slight darker colours on its head. We did not get a good look at her from close though, was behind a bush and only side view of her head was sticking out. From far away with the bino's it looked like a massive boar with that sway in its walk.

I would have said it was a BB in a brown phase but when i saw the cubs that were full brown and fuzzy i instantly thought grizz.

[adriaticum]

It's possible. There are grizzlies in Manning park and Skagit valley and it's always possible that one wanders into the Chilliwack valley.

[Foxton Gundogs]

That pic's definitely a brown color phase Black Bear. But I suspect you knew that BB :mrgreen:

[itsy bitsy xj]

The loggers on West Harrison told me there is a 5 yr old Grizz up there around the 40 km mark

[caddisguy]

There have been a number of grizz sightings around the Skagit watershed. You can have someone drop you off just before the 26 mile bridge and hike up to the crowsnest near Sumallo Grove... keep a good pace and you might actually beat them there. There's also the Skyline trail which I think puts you right in Manning.

The Upper Silver, Maselpanik (both bordering Chilliwack) Eaton and Ross have all had their share of biologist confirmed grizzly sightings.

I've had some huge not-so-shy bears come in pretty close while fishing that river. I recall one about 5 years ago that must have been over 400lbs get so close I could have reached out and pet the damn thing. Looked like a black bear to me though. They certainly do not fear the lone fisherman with a cheap reel that sounds like a duck in distress.

[HarryToolips]

That pic's definitely a brown color phase Black Bear. But I suspect you knew that BB :mrgreen:
I agree 100%..Gone fishin: unfortunately it's hard to tell bear species completely by color, but like you said, a big shoulder hump is a good way to identify grizz..also, griz have more of a dish-shaped facial profile when looking from the side, from the fore-head to the tip of it's curved nose..black bears on the other hand will when looking from the side look more straight from forehead to the tip of their straighter snout..blackies will also have larger ears in comparison to their head size compared to griz.. as previously stated, go find a track and take a pic if possible, griz tracks have just the tip of the claw showing, and it's farther away from their paw than a black bear's..

[BiG Boar]

What do you mean color phase? That's a grizzly bear for sure.

[TexasWalker]

What do you mean color phase? That's a grizzly bear for sure.
trolllllllll

[~T-BONE~]

Seen them one bowl over from flora lake.. And yes lots up Harrison east. Dad shot one in self defence in 82

[olympia]

saw one last year at this time on Mamquam FSR near the snow line. If you look at google maps it seems Squamish, Pitt Lake, and Harrison are so close that its totally possible that whole area would have grizz. They caught a grizz on a weather camera near Pitt Lake a couple years ago and about 7 years ago one came into town in Squamish. There population seems to be on the rise as I read more and more about them all the time. We should start tranquillizing them and release them in the neighborhoods of all the anti grizz hunt activists afterall they say humans should live in harmony with these animal...nuck nuck nuck

[walks with deer]

Yes the grizz in squamish was a young bour and he scratched up the fascia on my house climbing up to my roof.
They are ever expanding.

[olympia]

Yes the grizz in squamish was a young bour and he scratched up the fascia on my house climbing up to my roof.
They are ever expanding.

I used to live on 5th ave, how bout you?

[ItsGrouseTalk]

Crazy. The Chilliwack Valley is practically my backyard. Would be cool to see one!

[Peter Pepper]

saw one last year at this time on Mamquam FSR near the snow line. If you look at google maps it seems Squamish, Pitt Lake, and Harrison are so close that its totally possible that whole area would have grizz. They caught a grizz on a weather camera near Pitt Lake a couple years ago and about 7 years ago one came into town in Squamish. There population seems to be on the rise as I read more and more about them all the time. We should start tranquillizing them and release them in the neighborhoods of all the anti grizz hunt activists afterall they say humans should live in harmony with these animal...nuck nuck nuck

Naw just get a U-Haul and lay a trail of Timbits into it. Jump out lock it in, and transport to Van or Vic!

[walks with deer]

Olympia I lived right near there do not remember street name.

3 minute walk to town on friday nights.

[curt]

I have a buddy retired from search and rescue at had a pic of 2 grizzlies he claimed to me I was right off Chilliwack lake rd I couldn't comment on the exact area but they were definitely grizzlies big humps

[davet]

I am sure I have seen one up by Wahleach Lake. I was heading down the hill after a day of fishing with no luck and this monster bear ran across the road. I did manage to snap a picture off with my cell phone but the bear was far away and all i got was its head looking at me. If i can find out how to upload pictures Ill post it.

[ROY-alty33]

I remember a few years back at a Chwk Bruins game here was an outfit called "Cascade Grizzly Protection Assoc" or something like that. They claimed there was a small population of Grizzly in the North Cascades. I have spent a ton of time working and playing in the Chwk river valley and its off shoots and have never seen any sign that would lead me to believe Grizz live there. It is perfect country for them though wouldn't surprise me.

[heyblast]

A couple of years ago a member on here posted pictures of Grizzlies on the upper Pitt River and I saw a Grizzly in Manning park two years ago beside the road eating the new grass along with a number of black bears. So very likely what you think you saw is what you saw, wouldn't surprise me in the least.

[ROY-alty33]

http://w w w.coasttocascades. org/north-cascades/
This one link that claims six bear live there, but I think they might be a little under the influence of hemp rope granola and too tight berkenstocks

[Jelvis]

Grizz have a huge muscled hump above the front shoulders to it's thick neck .
Black bear have no hump on the front shoulders.

[257stew]

I know that where this bear was seen one may not be thinking 'Grizzly' but when you do bump into one you know right away. To be within 40 yrds and not know seems strange. I spent a lot of time hunting black bears, we use to see on average 6-10 a night and when the population of grizz started to grow and move from nocturnal to doing more during the day, we would start seeing them 1,2,3 times a spring and when we did we knew within a second or two that we were looking at a grizzly. Population of grizzlies has exploded around my home. We have a sow with 2 cubs raiding dumpsters and see them all the time. Not so in the 80's. Hope for all that the bear seen is a grizzly and the population is doing well down there and expanding. Cheers 257Stew

[Good2bCanadian]

Up on Mcquire last season in the snow. We seen tracks that sure looked like bull Elk or Moose.
Seen these tracks following an old FSR for a couple hundred yards.

[Gone_Fishin_]

I know that where this bear was seen one may not be thinking 'Grizzly' but when you do bump into one you know right away. To be within 40 yrds and not know seems strange. Cheers 257Stew

Unfortunately we did not get to see a complete view of the bear once we got within shooting distance. The only full view we had must have been from about 2km's away when we first spotted her and we didn't spend much time looking through the binos. We seen a bear, so we dropped what we were doing and went to investigate. This is my first year bear hunting and do not have the experience yet to determine exactly what she was unless i had time to get a full body look, or at least front shoulders. When we got up to the top of the cut block it took a few to find where she was and when we did it was only the silhouette of her head through a bush. She turned briefly for us to get a view of her head but it didn't last long as we spotted a cub right away.

In my mind at the time it was a Black Bear in a brown phase (which i really would like to get one day)... until i seen the light brown/fuzzy cubs. When i seen little brown/fuzzy cubs is when i started thinking, hmmmm thats not right. Only time i've ever seen brown cubs was when i was looking at a Grizzly.

Hence why i started this thread, did not know if they would be this far down towards the lower mainland and was hoping i could get some answers on the forum.

Was speaking with my buddy that went up with me and he believes what we seen were grizzly cubs, i'm almost positive it was too. Now that smoke is pouring out of our ears i think were going to take a hike back up there and see if we can get any tracks to help identify. More or less for piece of mind to know what we seen.

[Gone_Fishin_]

Grizz have a huge muscled hump above the front shoulders to it's thick neck .
Black bear have no hump on the front shoulders.

If we were able to see anything more then her head it would have helped determine grizzly or BB but unfortunately we did not get to see her body up close. Only a slight view of head for a second and silhouette through a bush.

[browningboy]

There's grizzly up on Cheam, don't kid yourself they have been expanding for years!

[Gateholio]

I don't know much about the area itself but I know about grizzly migration and grizz collaring a bit. It would be naive to think there is no grizzlies in that area.

[Pablothemagnificent]

About 6 years ago I was fishing from a float tube on the north end of Lindemann Lake in early June. As I was quietly drifting along about 100 feet from shore, I watched as a very emaciated-looking grizz picked his way down to the shore's edge. I observed him for about 5 minutes and decided to put a little distance between him and me. I have a feeling that he probably didn't survive long, but he provides some evidence for this discussion. A year later I also saw the back end of what I suspect was a grizzly high up on Mt. Maguire when my wife and I were quadding on the FSR before all the gates went up.

[Dour]

There is grizzles in Squamish there in Boston bar. There in upper Harrison there in whipsaw and manning park so why would they not be in the back side or upper chilliwack lake those bears are known to have a range of 100 km so they are where they are when they want be some one should set a few game cams up and see what they see. Allegedly Sasquatch live at chahalis lake to south of the boarder so yah . The sasc was a joke lets not get side tracked now.

[r106]

There are lots of areas that are only a day or two hike from there that hold Grizz. So it wouldn't surprise me to see one in the Chiliwack valley. But just because you saw a brown bear and 2 brown cubs doesn't mean it's a grizz. It could just be a dominate trait from the Sow. I would head back up there and look for prints and take some pics

[Sniperdan]

Yes there are Grizzly in the Chilliwack River valley even as low down as the big mud slide a few years ago that took out that house just above the On the Way Store.

[Ricky Bobby]

Seen them in skagit... Short walk for them.

[scotty30-06]

Do the C/O acknowledge that there are grizz in that area.....i mentioned it to an officer and he just laughed and said there isn't any grizz around here...that was just past chipmunk turn off of Chilliwack lake road

[ACB]

I grew up around CHWK been going up to CHWK L. since 1961 never was so lucky to see a G bear, seen a few Elk around Km.14 and seen many many B bears. I have been lucky enough to have seen more than a few G bears over the years else where and do you know what the first G bear I saw took about 1 sec. to realize it wasn't a B bear. They don't look anything alike and as far as a brown phased sow having brown cubs is totally normal. Quite a number of years ago in MU 5-13 I saw a chocolate colored sow B bear with 3 different colored cubs 1 was blond, 1 was strawberry brown and 1 was chocolate. It was beautiful to see. I'm not saying the likely hood is that you didn't see a G bear but just because it's big and brown doesn't mean it's a Grizzly. In any case it was probably a rush to see a big bear like that anyway. Good on ya for getting out there and seeing it.

[digger dogger]

The g-bear in chwk, was found dead in harrison.
"I heard"

[Paulyman]

I talked to the logging contractor that logged the Sowerby FSR area, he informed me that when they were working in the area that they had seen a large grizzly that resided there. That is just on the other side of the mountains from Jones lake, so I would not be the least bit surprised.

[scotty30-06]

Crazy to think those big things are this close to the city....city folk from van would sure get a surprise seeing one of those on their next camping trip

[Gateholio]

There is a large grizzly bear living near a residential area in the Pemberton area. He has a GPS collar on him but he is rarely seen. Sleeps all day a couple of hundred yards from houses! :)