Much of the land here is privately owned, but taking the time to seek permission and exercising a little common courtesy will often result in "permission granted." There are also some state lands in these units.

The Northern Region includes WMUs A, B and C2 in Coos County and WMU D1 in a small portion of northern Grafton County.

Hunters took 158 bears in these units in 2004. Coos County offers big woods and plenty of room to hunt, and also produces some of the largest bears taken in the state each year.

In the southwestern corner of New Hampshire, Cheshire, Hillsborough, Sullivan and Merrimack counties are good bear producers, too. These are designated as Southwest Region 1 (SW1) and Southwest Region 2 (SW2) and take in WMUs H1, H2, I2 and K. Hunters took a total of 115 bears in these two regions in 2004.

While much of the land here is privately owned, both regions contain state land open to hunting, and there seems to be plenty of bears. The bear density in SW2 is estimated at .40 per square mile, while in SW1 the bear density is estimated at .60 animals per square mile.

For more information including season dates and license requirements, contact the New Hampshire Fish and Game Department, 2 Hazen Dr., Concord, NH 03301; call (603) 271-3421, or visit the department's Web site at www.wildlife.state.nh.us.

MAINE
According to Jennifer Vashon, Maine's Black Bear Project leader, hunters took 3,921 bears in Maine during the 2004 season, the largest number since 2000, when 3,951 bears were harvested. Of the total numbers of bears taken last fall, 91 percent were taken over bait or with hounds.

Once again the top-producing counties were in the northern part of the state. Topping the list was Aroostook County, where hunters took 1,276 bears, nearly one-third of the statewide harvest.

Thanks to a mixture of agricultural lands and large forestlands, "The County" has one of the highest densities of black bears in Maine and has become known as a top producer of large bears.

Somerset County produced the second-highest number of bears last year with 556. This is not surprising because Somerset County is always among the top five bear counties in Maine.

Piscataquis and Penobscot counties each produced over 450 bears, 491 and 468, respectively, here again no real surprise because both have large populations of black bears.

Rounding out the top five counties was Washington County, where hunters took 407 bears.

Maine's bear population has increased by about 28 percent since 1990, and indications are that bears are expanding into new range, as evidenced by increased harvests in the state's southernmost counties.

In 2003, York County hunters killed 13 bears, but that number jumped up to 26 in 2004, a 100 percent increase! No bears were harvested in Cumberland County in 2003, but last season hunters killed eight bears there.

Oxford County, which is north of York County and stretching along the border of New Hampshire, produced 299 bears.

Maine's 2005 general bear season will commence Aug. 29 and run through Nov. 26. Baiting will be allowed starting Aug. 29 and end Sept. 24, while the use of hounds will be legal starting Sept. 12, ending Oct. 28.

A special bear-hunting permit is required for all hunters between Aug. 29 and Oct. 28 in addition to the regular big-game hunting license. The cost of the bear permit is $28 for residents and $68 for non-residents.

For more information on bear hunting in Maine, contact the Maine Department of Inland Fisheries and Wildlife by calling (207) 287-8000, or visit the agency's Web site at www.mefishwildlife.com.