(Ursus americanus) The Dream Fulfilled: My Idaho Spring 2026 Bear Hunt

I was eleven years old the first time a black bear truly captured my imagination. It wasn’t just the animal itself—powerful, intelligent, and wild—but the stories that came with them. Teddy Roosevelt’s epic hunts in the American wilderness, the way he respected the game he pursued. And Holt Collier, the legendary bear hunter and former enslaved man who guided Roosevelt and once saved his life by wrestling a bear with his bare hands. Those tales lit a fire in me that never went out. For decades, I carried that dream: one day, I would hunt a black bear on my own terms, in the mountains, with honor and patience.

That day finally came in the spring of 2026, deep in the rugged country of Idaho.

This day opened under a crisp blue sky with patches of snow still clinging to the north-facing slopes and flowers clinging to the south facing slopes . Idaho’s spring bear hunt is special—bears are emerging from their dens, hungry and active, feeding on fresh green-up and winter-killed carcasses. The shot broke clean. The .30-30 cracked across the basin and the bear dropped instantly. knelt beside him in the spring grass, hand on his thick fur, and said a quiet thank you. For

the bear. For the mountains. For the dream.

Thank you lord for this blessing