re: Who all is going elk hunting this fall?

:lol:

Gotta love picking off grouse as lagniappe. Always a blast. Awesome pics. I have a buck tag late October and a cow tag mid November. Hopefully we can replenish the freezer.

Wouldn't have it any other way.. Could still make a rifle hunt within the next few mo's but have too much shite going on and probably won't make it this year. Still have a freezer full of meat from last years hunt. Always next year-

8720'

When we hunted from the 11,500' spot we encountered elk at 10,400'


When we hunted from the 8720' spot we encountered them at 9400'


We talked to a guy in town who tagged a giant bull on the first week and he said that due to the dry year, the springs were coming out the mountain lower than usual and the elk were lower.



That being said, we saw sign and the first herd of elk high at 11,000+




There was a good trail system throughout the area. We stuck to the trails to make distance before we ventured out

Got ya, that clears up my thinking. sounds like your daily elevation gain/loss stayed somewhere below 1000'. Man every where we went in our Unit it was a 2,000' climb to get to the hunt area. it sucked. Sounds like I need to find areas where I can get the truck up to within about 500'to definitely less than 1000' of elevation of the planned hunting area.

eta: if doing a basecamp at the truck.

Remember it’s always better to hunt up then down. Especially if you harvest one. But easier to hump it up with energy and take your time going down when tired. Also the way the thermals flow so you aren’t busting them out going in.

quote:

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One day we did a 2000' descent and a 2000' climb back to camp.... Noooo thanks

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Flat landers don’t realize how much this is a kick in the nutz for sea level dwellers

Elk normally work their way down late evening from their bedding area and feed all night in meadows, etc. and work their way back up around daybreak. It's not uncommon for them to travel 1/2 mile to a mile from their bedding sites to feed. Spend the first day scouting and try to find the medium, where you catch them coming up to higher elevation after a night of feeding to bed early/mid-morning, and back down the next evening to feed. Once they get back around the vicinity of where theyre bedding, they will look for heavy cover to shed themselves from predators and lay up most of the day, so don't limit yourself to just overlooking meadows. Your "in-between" hours of the day you likely won't see them unless you stumble across their bedding area and jump them up. I'd put the bugle down and carry a diaphragm cow call and walk/hike a couple hundred yards and give a few soft chirps or mews and stop and listen. If you don't get any response, keep on moving and repeat. I have found success with this method in regards to getting bulls to bugle back continuously. Once you've gotten a response, then the work begins. Keep wind detection on you and hunt the wind and work your way to them but know in the morning they are going up, and in the evening they are coming down.

Congrats, Joe. The ride home is more fun that way. Guided, DIY?