Brady Miller's 2022 spring black bear hunting gear list

I recently returned from my 2022 spring bear hunt and thought it would be a great time to drop this gear article out there. What I take on my spring hunts, mirrors very closely to what I use in the fall on my mule deer hunts. There are just a few small tweaks here and there, but overall a spring bear hunt is a great way to test new gear or try some different foods.

What's truly great about bear hunting, is that you can use whatever gear you have available. You don't need a super heavy weapon, you don't need a ton of weight in optics, but for me, it's just something that works well. This gear list is based around a full backpack style hunt so this is everything I'm carrying in my pack.

If you're a visual person, we actually released my spring bear gear list video back on April 26. You can watch that video below.

There is a few differences between that gear list video I recorded back in April and what I took on the hunt. Since I was hunting with some friends (Ryan Lampers, Brian Call and Pedro Ampuero) we split up some of our gear to make things eaiser on all of us. I didn't end up taking my shelter, but I'm leaving it in the gear list for a reference if you wanted to prepare for a solo spring hunt.

Why a gear list?

The reason I personally do gear lists for every hunt is simple... I want to know that I don't leave anything behind and to see if there is anything I need add or even subtract from my gear. When I'm getting ready for a hunt, I create a gear list well in advance. I why always tell people to take all their gear and place it on the floor and run through it several times to ensure you have everything and to see what you could live without. I always keep my gear lists in both a Google Sheet that I can access from my phone and I also have a custom Excel spreadsheet I built several years ago that I linked in some previous articles for people to download and work off of that I also create for every hunt.

My gear list breakdown for a backpack style spring bear hunt

I actually removed a few items from this gear list that was in the gear video I recorded. I didn't take my pepper spray and I elected to leave my Aquamira water purification drops at home.

In conclusion

If anyone has any questions about the gear I brought on this hunt, I'd be more than willing to dive in and explain a few things. If you have an upcoming bear hunt planned or are looking at one down the road in the future, have fun and enjoy the time on the mountain.