West Virginia Bear Season 2026-27: Fall Activity & Hunt Dates

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

Firearms: August 29, 2026 to December 31, 2026, varying by zone across 7 rows in the agency table. Archery and Crossbow: September 26, 2026 to December 31, 2026. West Virginia Division of Natural Resources publishes these dates and the full zone tables on this page were read from its own page on September 19, 2026.

Q: Does West Virginia have a spring bear season in 2027?

No. West Virginia holds no spring bear season. The 2026-2027 regulations summary dates bear seasons from late August through December, plus the four-day Mountaineer Heritage Season in January. 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 West Virginia?

West Virginia Division of Natural Resources, on its page titled Basics for Avoiding Human-Bear Conflicts, which is linked from the agency notice on this page. That page is the agency's own guidance for West Virginia 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 West Virginia bear hunting rules?

At West Virginia Division of Natural Resources, 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.

August 29, 2026 to December 31, 2026

Firearms

published

September 26, 2026 to December 31, 2026

Archery and Crossbow

published

No season

Spring bear season

no season

July

Busiest reported month

492 reports on record

Fall activity

When black bears are most active in West Virginia

The division calls the black bear's return one of the state's greatest conservation success stories: in the early 1970s bears were limited to parts of ten eastern mountain counties and believed to number fewer than 500, and current estimates put the population near 15,000, with bears harvested in 53 of West Virginia's 55 counties in recent years. The black bear has been the state animal since 1973.

The bars count research grade American black bear observations people uploaded to iNaturalist for West Virginia, 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 November. 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.

492 research grade American black bear observations have been uploaded to iNaturalist for West Virginia across every year the platform holds, and 25 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 November. 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 West Virginia by year, 2016 to 2025: 6 in 2016 and 62 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 West Virginia Division of Natural Resources says

Fall feeding

Bears typically rely on the soft mast of summer (blackberries, raspberries, blueberries) until hard mast (acorns, hickory nuts, beech nuts) is available in the fall.

West Virginia Division of Natural Resources, read September 19, 2026. Read it at the source

Denning

While they do spend most of the winter sleeping, they never enter true hibernation, which requires an animal to depress its metabolic rate, body temperature and breathing. Still, bears and their cubs emerge from their dens in the early spring.

West Virginia Division of Natural Resources, read September 19, 2026. Read it at the source

When conflicts and sightings rise

Bears prefer natural food when it is available, which is why nuisance activity usually subsides in the fall.

West Virginia Division of Natural Resources, 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

West Virginia bear seasons, 2026-27

West Virginia Division of Natural Resources 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.

Firearms

published

Firearms opens in 5 days, on October 3, 2026 (Boone, Fayette, Kanawha and Raleigh counties).

West Virginia firearms, as published by West Virginia Division of Natural Resources
Zone	Opens	Closes	Notes
Logan, McDowell, Mingo and Wyoming counties (segment 1)	August 29, 2026	September 7, 2026	These four counties carry the earliest firearms window in the state, opening in late August.
Logan, McDowell, Mingo and Wyoming counties (segment 2)	December 7, 2026	December 31, 2026
Barbour (west of Route 92 and Route 250 from Belington to the southern border of Barbour County), Braxton (west of I-79), Calhoun, Clay (north of Elk River), Harrison, Lewis, Mercer, Monongalia, Monroe (west of Route 219), Roane, Summers, Taylor and Upshur (west of Route 20) counties	September 19, 2026	September 25, 2026	A one-week September window across thirteen counties or parts of counties.
Boone, Fayette, Kanawha and Raleigh counties (segment 1)	October 3, 2026	October 9, 2026	An October week followed by the December window.
Boone, Fayette, Kanawha and Raleigh counties (segment 2)	December 7, 2026	December 31, 2026
Barbour (west of Route 92 and Route 250 from Belington to the southern border of Barbour County), Berkeley, Boone, Braxton (west of I-79), Brooke, Cabell, Calhoun, Clay (north of Elk River), Doddridge, Fayette, Gilmer, Hampshire, Hancock, Harrison, Jackson, Jefferson, Kanawha, Lewis, Lincoln, Marion, Marshall, Mason, Mercer, Mineral (east of New Creek), Monongalia, Monroe (west of Route 219), Morgan, Ohio, Pleasants, Putnam, Raleigh, Ritchie, Roane, Summers, Taylor, Tyler, Upshur (west of Route 20), Wayne, Wetzel, Wirt and Wood counties	October 22, 2026	October 25, 2026	A four-day window on public and private land in 41 counties or parts thereof, running at the same time as the concurrent antlerless deer season.
Boone, Fayette, Gilmer, Kanawha, Raleigh and Ritchie counties	November 23, 2026	December 6, 2026	Opens with the buck firearms deer season and closes two weeks later.
Barbour (west of Route 92 and Route 250 from Belington to the southern border of Barbour County), Berkeley, Braxton (west of I-79), Brooke, Cabell, Calhoun, Clay (north of Elk River), Doddridge, Hampshire, Hancock, Harrison, Jackson, Jefferson, Lewis, Lincoln, Marion, Marshall, Mason, Mercer, Mineral (east of New Creek), Monongalia, Monroe (west of Route 219), Morgan, Ohio, Pleasants, Putnam, Roane, Summers, Taylor, Tyler, Upshur (west of Route 20), Wayne, Wetzel, Wirt and Wood counties	November 23, 2026	December 31, 2026	Opens with the buck firearms deer season and runs to the end of the year across 35 counties or parts thereof.
Barbour (east of Route 92 or south of U.S. Route 33), Braxton (east of I-79), Clay (south of Elk River), Gilmer, Grant, Greenbrier, Hardy, Mineral (west of New Creek), Monroe (east of Route 219), Nicholas, Pendleton, Pocahontas, Preston, Randolph, Ritchie, Tucker, Upshur (east of Route 20) and Webster counties	December 7, 2026	December 31, 2026	The December window across the eastern mountain counties.

Dates read from 2026-2027 West Virginia Hunting and Trapping Regulations Summary, West Virginia Division of Natural Resources, accessed 2026-09-19.

West Virginia dates its bear firearms seasons county by county rather than by numbered zone, and the division's 2026-2027 tables sort the counties into seven windows that together run from late August to the end of December. A county can appear in more than one window, and several counties are split along a highway or a river so that the two halves sit in different groups. The division says there are no permit-only counties for any bear firearms season in 2026.

Archery and Crossbow

published

Archery and Crossbow is OPEN now, through December 31, 2026.

West Virginia archery and crossbow, as published by West Virginia Division of Natural Resources
Zone	Opens	Closes	Notes
Statewide	September 26, 2026	December 31, 2026

Dates read from 2026-2027 West Virginia Hunting and Trapping Regulations Summary, West Virginia Division of Natural Resources, accessed 2026-09-19.

The archery and crossbow season is a single statewide window, the longest bear season West Virginia dates, running from late September to the last day of the year.

Spring bear season

no season

West Virginia holds no spring bear season. West Virginia holds no spring bear season. The 2026-2027 regulations summary dates bear seasons from late August through December, plus the four-day Mountaineer Heritage Season in January. Source: West Virginia Division of Natural Resources.

Other West Virginia bear seasons the agency names

Special Split Youth, Class Q and Class XS Bear Season

published

Special Split Youth, Class Q and Class XS Bear Season opens in 19 days, on October 17, 2026 (Public and private lands in the 51 counties open to a firearms deer hunting season).

West Virginia special split youth, class q and class xs bear season, as published by West Virginia Division of Natural Resources
Zone	Opens	Closes	Notes
Public and private lands in all or parts of 26 counties open to bear hunting	September 12, 2026	September 13, 2026
Public and private lands in the 51 counties open to a firearms deer hunting season	October 17, 2026	October 18, 2026

Dates read from 2026-2027 West Virginia Hunting and Trapping Regulations Summary, West Virginia Division of Natural Resources, accessed 2026-09-19.

This season runs as two separate weekends with different county lists, and is open to hunters under 18 and to Class Q and Class XS holders.

Mountaineer Heritage Season

published

Mountaineer Heritage Season opens in 108 days, on January 14, 2027.

West Virginia mountaineer heritage season, as published by West Virginia Division of Natural Resources
Zone	Opens	Closes	Notes
Statewide	January 14, 2027	January 17, 2027

Dates read from 2026-2027 West Virginia Hunting and Trapping Regulations Summary, West Virginia Division of Natural Resources, accessed 2026-09-19.

A four-day statewide January season covering deer, black bear and wild turkey together, dated after every other bear season has closed.

Urban Deer/Bear Archery/Crossbow Split Season

published

Urban Deer/Bear Archery/Crossbow Split Season is OPEN now in the Participating incorporated cities, towns, villages and incorporated homeowner associations, through December 31, 2026.

West Virginia urban deer/bear archery/crossbow split season, as published by West Virginia Division of Natural Resources
Zone	Opens	Closes	Notes
Participating incorporated cities, towns, villages and incorporated homeowner associations (segment 1)	September 5, 2026	December 31, 2026
Participating incorporated cities, towns, villages and incorporated homeowner associations (segment 2)	January 11, 2027	January 31, 2027

Dates read from 2026-2027 West Virginia Hunting and Trapping Regulations Summary, West Virginia Division of Natural Resources, accessed 2026-09-19.

The division makes this split season available to incorporated municipalities and homeowner associations that choose to take part, so whether it applies depends on the community rather than the county.

The agency's own season sentence

Black bear archery and crossbow season is Sept. 26-December 31, 2026.

West Virginia Division of Natural Resources, read September 19, 2026. Read it at the source

Current West Virginia regulations

Permit and tag requirements, zone maps, permitted methods, tagging and reporting, and everything else a bear hunter is bound by for West Virginia are set by West Virginia Division of Natural Resources, are legally binding and change annually. Its current regulations page is linked here.

West Virginia Division of Natural Resources: 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

West Virginia deer seasonArchery, firearms, muzzleloader and youth deer windows for 2026-27, under the same sourcing rules.West Virginia small game seasonPheasant, quail, grouse, rabbit and squirrel openers, read from the same agency.West Virginia 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

West Virginia bear season questions

When are black bears most active in West Virginia in the fall?

In the observation record for West Virginia, research grade black bear reports peak in July and 25 percent of all 492 reports fall in September, October and November. West Virginia Division of Natural Resources 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 West Virginia in 2026-27?

Does West Virginia have a spring bear season in 2027?

When do black bears go into dens in West Virginia?

West Virginia Division of Natural Resources describes the denning timing for West Virginia 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 November 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 West Virginia increasing?

The number of research grade black bear reports uploaded for West Virginia went from 6 in 2016 to 62 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. West Virginia Division of Natural Resources describes when sightings and conflicts rise in West Virginia in the sentence quoted on this page.

Who publishes guidance on living with bears in West Virginia?

Where are the rest of the West Virginia 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 West Virginia Division of Natural Resources’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.