VERNON The last day of the state’s controversial black bear hunt was much like the first with hunters heading into the forest in the pre-dawn hours to look for bears and crowds of angry protesters who oppose the hunt meeting them as they came out. The six-day season began Monday, Dec. 5 and ended last Saturday. Hunters bagged 297 bears, 89 of which came through the Waywayanda station. State officials say the hunt was needed to thin the bears’ numbers, but some oppose the hunt, saying the state hasn’t done enough using other methods. Three days into the hunt, four opponents were arrested in Waywayanda Park. They were charged with hunter harassment, disorderly persons, resisting arrest and obstructing the administration of law, according to Martin McHugh, director of the state Division of Fish and Wildlife. Angela Metler, 49, of Highland Lakes, director of the New Jersey Animal Rights Alliance, which had unsuccessfully sued to stop the six-day hunt, was among those arrested. Also arrested were Theresa Fritzges, 57, of East Windsor; Albert Kazemian, 49, of Highland Lakes, and Janet Piszar, 52, of Millburn. Kazemian also was charged with making terroristic threats, McHugh said. ``From what I understand, the hunters were walking down a path and the anti-hunt activists got in their way and refused to move. They had a video recorder and they were verbally abusing the hunters. The hunters requested that they step aside and please let them go on and they didn’t,’’ McHugh said. In New Jersey, it is illegal to obstruct or make physical contact with a person who is legally hunting, to get in between a hunter and his or her prey or to attempt to influence the behavior of the prey to interfere with the hunting. Violations are punishable by fines of between $100 and $500. About 100 protesters, chanting slogans like ``Stop killing our bears!’’ and waving signs that read ``Kill the hunt, not the bears,’’ gathered at the park on Saturday. Law enforcement officials restricted the protesters to an area about 150 yards from a check station where hunters brought their dead bears to be weighed and inspected. Six more people were arrested during the protest, apparently for moving outside the designated protest area. They were: Kristen Sondej of Garfield, Lynda Smith of Hewitt, David Stewart of Vernon, Catherine McCartney of Highland Lakes, Eleanor Hoffman of Rockaway and William Crain of New York City. Each faces one count of obstructing the administration of law. In addition, two hunters were arrested in the southern region of the state. Garry Newborn of Hazlet faces six charges: hunting while his license was revoked, hunting black bear without a permit, failure to tag a black bear, providing false information and two charges of possessing an unregistered black bear. Newborn’s hunting partner, William Seward of Middletown, faces one charge of possessing an unregistered black bear. At the end of the hunt McHugh said, “I believe we’ll now see a reduction in nuisance complaints, a reduction in serious complaints and that we’ll get more information about these bears because of this.” He would not say whether he expected another hunt next year, but noted the state’s black bear management plan recommends hunts in 2006 or 2007.