When soapberries ripen in July, the bears move into aspen and cottonwood stands. Soapberries grow along the margins of these stands and the fresh leaves of the aspen itself are also eaten. Summer is a hungry time for black bears. As the grasses and horsetails mature, their nutritional value declines. During these lean times, bears might climb trees to obtain cottonwood catkins, or fish for pike along the shallow margins of a lake.
Some bears seek out campsites and garbage to supplement their diet.
As summer progresses, the bears move into black spruce forests where ripening blueberries are found. If they're not threatened by grizzlies, some black bears will move into sub alpine habitats where more blueberries and crowberries are available. In most years, energy-rich berries are plentiful during the autumn season. Berry crops are critical to northern bears which must survive with a narrow variety of foods and a short foraging season. When berry crops fail as they do every few years, black bears are forced to travel widely in search of food.