Colorado Bear Season 2026-27: Fall Activity & Hunt Dates

Q: When does bear season open in Colorado in 2026-27?

Rifle (over-the-counter and/or limited): October 14, 2026 to November 22, 2026, varying by zone across 4 rows in the agency table. Archery (over-the-counter and/or limited): September 2, 2026 to September 30, 2026. Colorado Parks and Wildlife publishes these dates and the full zone tables on this page were read from its own page on September 19, 2026.

Q: Does Colorado have a spring bear season in 2027?

No. Colorado holds no spring bear season. Neither the Commission's 2025 to 2029 Big Game Season Structure nor the 2026 Colorado Big Game brochure lists any bear season outside the September 2 to late November window; every Colorado bear season runs in the fall. Spring bear seasons are mostly a western pattern, and the national page lists the states that hold one in 2027.

Q: Who publishes guidance on living with bears in Colorado?

Colorado Parks and Wildlife, on its page titled Living with Bears, which is linked from the agency notice on this page. That page is the agency's own guidance for Colorado residents on attractants, encounters and who to call, and its sentence on fall activity is quoted verbatim beside the link, read on September 19, 2026.

Q: Where are the rest of the Colorado bear hunting rules?

At Colorado Parks and Wildlife, whose regulations page is linked on this page. Those rules are legally binding, change annually and vary by zone and land ownership; the permit and tag system, zone maps, methods and reporting requirements are all published there. This page carries the season windows themselves, with the source page and read date attached.

This page covers the 2026-27 season year. Dates were read from the agency sources linked below, last checked September 19, 2026. Seasons change annually and agencies correct their own pages; confirm against the linked agency page before you hunt.

October 14, 2026 to November 22, 2026

Rifle (over-the-counter and/or limited)

published

September 2, 2026 to September 30, 2026

Archery (over-the-counter and/or limited)

published

No season

Spring bear season

no season

July

Busiest reported month

2,085 reports on record

Fall activity

When black bears are most active in Colorado

Colorado Parks and Wildlife estimates 17,000 to 20,000 bears in Colorado, and says the largest populations of black bears live in areas where there is Gambel's oak and aspen, near open areas of chokecherry and serviceberry bushes. Grizzly bears were extirpated in Colorado in the mid 1950s.

The bars count research grade American black bear observations people uploaded to iNaturalist for Colorado, by calendar month, across every year the platform holds. The busiest month in the record is July, and reports drop below 40 percent of that peak by October. The drop into winter reflects bears denning and fewer people outdoors in equal measure, which is why the agency’s sentences below, not the curve, carry the timing.

2,085 research grade American black bear observations have been uploaded to iNaturalist for Colorado across every year the platform holds, and 22 percent of them fall in the three shaded fall months. The busiest month in the record is July, and reports drop below 40 percent of that peak by October. These are counts of what people reported, so they measure observers as well as bears; they are not a population, not a survey and not a statement about this autumn. See the records on iNaturalist.

Research grade black bear reports uploaded for Colorado by year, 2016 to 2025: 44 in 2016 and 310 in 2025. Most of the climb is the platform itself growing, and every species on it shows the same shape, so this is a record of reporting rather than a population trend.

What Colorado Parks and Wildlife says

Fall feeding

In the fall, bears enter a period of compulsive overeating (hyperphagia). They start feeding for 22 hours a day to gain the 20,000 calories a day they need to survive hibernation.

Colorado Parks and Wildlife, read September 19, 2026. Read it at the source

Denning

Most Colorado bears are active from mid-March through early November.

Colorado Parks and Wildlife, read September 19, 2026. Read it at the source

When conflicts and sightings rise

In late summer through fall hyperphagia, bears will eat up to 20,000 calories per day to sustain themselves through the winter torpor period. CPW receives the most sightings and conflict reports during this time because bears are more active and visible in human spaces.

Colorado Parks and Wildlife, read September 19, 2026. Read it at the source

A young black bear resting its chin on a bare dead branch in a green hardwood forest, ears forward, looking at the camera — A young black bear on a dead limb in the hardwoods. In the eastern forests the fall feeding season runs on acorns and beechnuts, which is why the agency sentences quoted on these pages talk about hard mast and mast years. Photo: Courtney Celley, USFWS. “Black Bear (20083897724)”, U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service - Midwest Region, Public domain

Hunting dates

Colorado bear seasons, 2026-27

Colorado Parks and Wildlife dates American black bear seasons under its own names, and each is below under that name with the zone rows exactly as the agency lists them, the source page linked beside each table, and the date it was read.

Rifle (over-the-counter and/or limited)

published

Rifle (over-the-counter and/or limited) opens in 1 day, on October 14, 2026 (1st season).

Colorado rifle (over-the-counter and/or limited), as published by Colorado Parks and Wildlife
Zone	Opens	Closes
1st season	October 14, 2026	October 18, 2026
2nd season	October 24, 2026	November 1, 2026
3rd season	November 7, 2026	November 15, 2026
4th season	November 18, 2026	November 22, 2026

Dates read from 2026 Colorado Big Game Hunting brochure, Bear Season Dates, Colorado Parks and Wildlife, accessed 2026-09-19.

Colorado's rifle bear seasons run concurrently with the four rifle deer and elk seasons, and the rows above are the statewide Bear Season Dates summary printed in the 2026 Colorado Big Game brochure. The brochure's hunt code tables and the cpw.state.co.us/bear hunt list carry the unit by unit detail, and the Commission's 2025 to 2029 season structure says a concurrent rifle bear licence is valid only during open rifle deer or elk seasons.

Archery (over-the-counter and/or limited)

published

Archery (over-the-counter and/or limited) has closed for the season year; the last segment ended September 30, 2026.

Colorado archery (over-the-counter and/or limited), as published by Colorado Parks and Wildlife
Zone	Opens	Closes	Notes
Statewide	September 2, 2026	September 30, 2026	Unless otherwise noted in the brochure tables

Dates read from 2026 Colorado Big Game Hunting brochure, Bear Season Dates, Colorado Parks and Wildlife, accessed 2026-09-19.

Archery bear season is a fixed statewide September window in Colorado; the Commission's 2025 to 2029 season structure sets it at September 2 through 30 every year, and the 2026 brochure prints the same dates in its Bear Season Dates summary. Unit availability is in the archery hunt code tables.

Spring bear season

no season

Colorado holds no spring bear season. Colorado holds no spring bear season. Neither the Commission's 2025 to 2029 Big Game Season Structure nor the 2026 Colorado Big Game brochure lists any bear season outside the September 2 to late November window; every Colorado bear season runs in the fall. Source: Colorado Parks and Wildlife.

Other Colorado bear seasons the agency names

Muzzleloader (over-the-counter and/or limited)

published

Muzzleloader (over-the-counter and/or limited) has closed for the season year; the last segment ended September 20, 2026.

Colorado muzzleloader (over-the-counter and/or limited), as published by Colorado Parks and Wildlife
Zone	Opens	Closes	Notes
Statewide	September 12, 2026	September 20, 2026	Unless otherwise noted in the brochure tables

Dates read from 2026 Colorado Big Game Hunting brochure, Bear Season Dates, Colorado Parks and Wildlife, accessed 2026-09-19.

A nine day muzzleloader bear season run concurrently with the muzzleloader deer and elk season, per the 2026 brochure's Bear Season Dates summary.

Sept. Rifle (limited)

published

Sept. Rifle (limited) has closed for the season year; the last segment ended September 30, 2026.

Colorado sept. rifle (limited), as published by Colorado Parks and Wildlife
Zone	Opens	Closes	Notes
Statewide (limited units)	September 2, 2026	September 30, 2026	Unless otherwise noted in the brochure tables

Dates read from 2026 Colorado Big Game Hunting brochure, Bear Season Dates, Colorado Parks and Wildlife, accessed 2026-09-19.

The limited September rifle bear season is a fixed 28 day September window with licences issued by unit; the 2026 brochure lists it as Sept. Rifle (limited).

Sept. Plains Rifle (over-the-counter)

published

Sept. Plains Rifle (over-the-counter) is OPEN now in the Select plains units, through November 22, 2026.

Colorado sept. plains rifle (over-the-counter), as published by Colorado Parks and Wildlife
Zone	Opens	Closes	Notes
Select plains units	September 2, 2026	November 22, 2026

Dates read from 2026 Colorado Big Game Hunting brochure, Bear Season Dates, Colorado Parks and Wildlife, accessed 2026-09-19.

A plains rifle bear season in select plains game management units, opening September 2 and closing with the fourth rifle season, per the 2026 brochure and the 2025 to 2029 season structure.

Private-Land-Only Rifle (over-the-counter)

published

Private-Land-Only Rifle (over-the-counter) is OPEN now in the Private land, by unit, through November 22, 2026.

Colorado private-land-only rifle (over-the-counter), as published by Colorado Parks and Wildlife
Zone	Opens	Closes	Notes
Private land, by unit	September 2, 2026	November 22, 2026	Unless otherwise noted in the brochure tables

Dates read from 2026 Colorado Big Game Hunting brochure, Bear Season Dates, Colorado Parks and Wildlife, accessed 2026-09-19.

The private land only rifle bear season opens September 2 and runs to the close of the fourth rifle season; the 2026 brochure notes a new private land only rifle bear hunt for units 3, 11, 211 and 301.

The agency's own season sentence

Archery bear season opens on September 2 and closes on September 30, annually.

Colorado Parks and Wildlife, read September 19, 2026. Read it at the source

Current Colorado regulations

Permit and tag requirements, zone maps, permitted methods, tagging and reporting, and everything else a bear hunter is bound by for Colorado are set by Colorado Parks and Wildlife, are legally binding and change annually. Its current regulations page is linked here.

Colorado Parks and Wildlife: current regulations

A black bear track pressed into wet grey mud, five rounded toes in an arc above a broad pad, with a second fainter print beside it — A black bear track in mud in Shenandoah National Park. Tracks, scat, turned over logs and claw marks on smooth beech bark are the sign most people meet in the fall woods, weeks before they meet the bear. Photo: M. Punches, NPS. “Black Bear Track in Mud (44654784885)”, ShenandoahNPS, Public domain

Bear season in other states

Colorado deer seasonArchery, firearms, muzzleloader and youth deer windows for 2026-27, under the same sourcing rules.Colorado small game seasonPheasant, quail, grouse, rabbit and squirrel openers, read from the same agency.Colorado foraging calendarThe acorns, beechnuts and berries the agency names as fall bear food are the same mast a forager follows.

An adult black bear standing on a broken limb high in a hardwood tree above two small cubs, all three looking down — A mother black bear and two cubs of the year in a hardwood tree. The denning sentences quoted on the state pages describe when family groups like this one go to ground, and it moves by weeks between a Gulf Coast winter and a northern one. Photo: Courtney Celley, USFWS. “Black Bear Family (20083894064)”, U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service - Midwest Region, Public domain

Colorado bear season questions

When are black bears most active in Colorado in the fall?

In the observation record for Colorado, research grade black bear reports peak in July and 22 percent of all 2,085 reports fall in September, October and November. Colorado Parks and Wildlife describes the fall feeding period in its own words, quoted on this page with a link to the page it came from. Reports count people as well as bears, so the shape of the curve is the useful part and the exact numbers are not.

When does bear season open in Colorado in 2026-27?

Does Colorado have a spring bear season in 2027?

When do black bears go into dens in Colorado?

Colorado Parks and Wildlife describes the denning timing for Colorado in the sentence quoted on this page, read on September 19, 2026 from the page linked beside it. In the observation record, reports fall below 40 percent of the July peak by October and reach their low in February. That drop reflects bears denning and fewer people outdoors in equal measure, which is why the agency's sentence, not the curve, is the denning answer.

Are black bear sightings in Colorado increasing?

The number of research grade black bear reports uploaded for Colorado went from 44 in 2016 to 310 in 2025. Most of that rise is the platform itself growing, since every species on iNaturalist shows the same climb, so the year bars on this page are a record of reporting rather than a population trend. Colorado Parks and Wildlife describes when sightings and conflicts rise in Colorado in the sentence quoted on this page.

Who publishes guidance on living with bears in Colorado?

Where are the rest of the Colorado bear hunting rules?

A brown wooden Bear Country sign with a white bear pictogram and a red band, on two posts at the edge of a lodgepole pine campground in low sun — A Bear Country sign at Indian Creek Campground, Yellowstone. The land manager writes the rules on the board, and they change by campground and by season: food storage orders, closed drainages, and whether a soft sided tent is allowed at all. “Bear Country Sign for Indian Creek (14457698423)”, Yellowstone National Park from Yellowstone NP, USA, Public domain

A snow covered track running between pines bent low under heavy snow, with a strip of blue sky above — Midwinter at Moosehorn National Wildlife Refuge, Maine. This is denning season in the north; each agency's own sentence on when its bears enter and leave their dens is quoted on the state pages, and the month bars show the reports thinning to match. “Winter at Moosehorn (11714166893)”, U. S. Fish and Wildlife Service - Northeast Region, Public domain

This page covers the 2026-27 season year with agency data read on September 19, 2026 and an iNaturalist record to September 19, 2026. Every sentence about bear behaviour is Colorado Parks and Wildlife’s own, quoted exactly with a link to its page; every season window is republished from the agency page linked beside it, and windows the agency had not yet published are labelled not yet published. The month bars count what members of the public reported and are not a population. See also the national bear season guide.