Amede
Having lived in Missoula for over half my life
Wednesday, January 17, 2018, 10:47

and spent some time in Kalispell. I would say the Libby area or the Swan Lake area. Both have some big bears and are fairly plentiful. Bow hunting elk in those areas can be real exciting if your not careful. However one of the biggest I have ever seen was one hit on the highway just east of Lincoln. It was brought in on a flatbed and is now mounted in the Lincoln Forest Service office. I was right behind that flatbed when it was brought in, and it was BIG. I think 9' something and over 700 lbs. So that would be the south end of the Bob, Swan lake borders the west side of it.

One of my good friends worked for years in Libby for the FS and says that he saw as many bears in a day there as he would in Glacier. Back in 07 or 08 the DFW was pressured into doing a griz study to determine numbers. They estimated the population to be around 350-400 in that NW sector. They stopped counting at 720 or so, if I remember correctly.