New elk hunter seeking advice....

[Hobie]

If you are going to start scouting for elk in an areas brand new to you, besides having all the topo maps, what areas do you look for? Do you scout the transition areas? Water holes? Natural funnels?

Do you start high or low? Thick in the cedars or out in the foothills?

Any thoughts or experience on tackling a new spot would be a great help. It's central Utah if that helps or makes a difference.

Thanks,
Hobie

 

[trevriv]

I usually get on a high ridge and glass the openings in the trees. Where I hunt, there is a good mixture of aspens, pines, scrub, oak, and sage brush. In the mornings and evenings they will usually be moving in the trees and you can catch glimpses in them moving around. Just before dark I often see them on top of bald knowls and on top of ridges. In mid day, I search in the thick stuff, usually north facing slopes. Elk are starting to get vocal and you should be able to find them just by listening.

 

[Anaconda]

General rules of thumb,
Look for food, water, cover. Depending on the season, higher is better than lower in most cases.
Look for benches on North facing slopes. As far away from human activity as possible.

 

[trevriv]

one of the key words in that last post was "aspens", so I usually hunt pretty high. Hope this helps.

 

[trevriv]

if your in an area where food and water is pretty abundant (especially after this year, everything is still green!). I find that cover is the most important thing, also if you can figure out where their escape routes are that is pretty productive... especially if there are other hunters pushing stuff around.