Secret to Elk hunting Public land

mntman · Jan 23, 2010

Kinda of the off season right now so I thought I might help you guys out who are just starting, want to or haven't been sucessful. So here is the secret.

First thing I do is look for a unit that is OTC or 2nd choice eligible (colorado, save your points) which has large areas of country where you can get at least 3 miles from the nearest road. Once I have a "potential" area I go to work on my topo maps searching out areas that look like they have 4 major things, cover, food, water and an area where a sane man won't go. Once I have multiple areas located in the unit, I circle them on my topo and head out in early summer just looking at the country putting on 7-12 miles a day cruising the area.
While I'm walking, I'm taking notes on my map of what I'm seeing, especially sign from the fall and whats' near by. After I do this a couple times, I go back to the maps, analyze the info and go back to circling areas I want to inspect closely.
I then head back into the mountains and search these area intensely looking for more sign, travel areas, bedding areas etc... Once I get 2-4 areas done I analyze the info collected again and determine the best area to try vs. the LEAST amount of human interference possible.(remember you only need to see 1 elk to fill your tag)
With hunting season just around the corner, I hit the woods a couple more times learning the area even more (remember it takes years to truly learn an area!)
Then with the arrival of hunting season, you should have your 1st 3 days planned out on where/when/how you will be hunting. Keep in mind I leave camp 1 1/2-2 hours before legal shooting light, and don't get back till 1-2 hours after light.
I stay out there all day with the attitude of I WILL shoot an elk and being prepared for it.

The last thing is to hunt the same area year after year learning it. Hope this helps some of you guys out.
Oh the secret is Hard Work

Mntman

"Hunting is where you prove yourself"

joesikora · Jan 24, 2010

Great Post

Thanks

Joe E Sikora

Daxter · Jan 24, 2010

I wish every elk hunter I have ever heard complain about an OTC elk hunt could read what you just wrote. Perfect.

Dax

jls456 · Jan 24, 2010

LAST EDITED ON Jan-24-10 AT 05:58PM (MST)[p]Well said. Cant never get too far from the roads!

COjack · Jan 24, 2010

you forgot one thing...befriend two sherpas with good backpacks.

mntman · Jan 24, 2010

The sherpas has crossed my mind but then they'd think I was a wimp at hunting when we are only 9-12k feet

For the NR's I understand it's hard to do this but they really have to emphasize hunting the same area year after year to become sucessful.

Mntman

"Hunting is where you prove yourself"

Romulus · Jan 25, 2010

Great post! I think a lot of guys who have low success rates do not realize how much extra effort it takes to be consistently successful on public land. You have to be willing to put in effort before light and many guys are either unwilling or not confident enough to do that. We hunt the same drainage every year in colorado which is just nasty enough to keep the horse guys out and far enough to keep most of the foot hunters out of the area. Over the past 5 years we have seen on average 3-10 bulls per day mostly 250-290 class bulls. But each time we decide to kill a bull we remember why most are not hunting this area. The bulls congregate about 500 to 1000 vertical feet below the trail in steep nasty canyons and when you kill one you have to pack back up to the trail and then about 2 to 3 miles on the trail to the truck. We rarely see cows or real small bulls but the decent bulls for this area have always been in there. The roads are full of guys who think they want to kill elk but most will not put out even 1/3 of the effort it takes to get to this area and would not consider trying to pack an elk out. Thats why its good year after year.

archeryguru · Jan 25, 2010

Amen to that!!!

archeryguru.com

hossblur · Jan 26, 2010

You mean you don't call an outfitter, fly in, get in a truck and drive right to a 350 bull, shoot it and be back to the "ranch" by dinner time perfectly clean? Come on, I watch T.V., your obviously doing something wrong! WORK???? Hunting isn't work, its wearing designer camo, european boots, all the newest electronic guizmos, a new magnum(without one scratch or ding in the stock). Someone points out your elk, sets up your shooting sticks for you and tells you when to shoot. Then you walk up to the elk, do the high five/handshake, then the guide calls in the horses, guts and cuts yor elk and they haul it out while you are wisked back to the chateau for a 1pm tee time followed by cocktails and a dinner show. Lets face it, if you have a knife and use it on some disgusting, stinking animal, your not a real hunter, and backpacks are for carrying your cell phone and lap top! Good lord man, don't you know blood is hard to get out of your clothes?

I agree with the hunt the same areas part, I think this is more important than anything.

Randy11 · Jan 26, 2010

Your last little paragraph is the biggest and most overlooked thing in my opinion. When you're picking an area, obviously choosing one that has good numbers of elk is better, but don't chase the numbers, stick with an area. Elk use the same areas year after year, you just need to find these areas. Hunting the same area over and over again gives you a lot better chance of figuring these areas out.

I hunt an area with extremely low elk numbers, but I've figured out a few funnels and staging areas that the elk always use, so can get in them fairly regularly.

martinc · Jan 26, 2010

And any decent elk killed like that is a great trophy, no matter the score. I would take a 300 bull on such a hunt before a 380 in a Limited entry unit with the whole county looking for an elk for you, or on a guided hunt on a ranch. And that coming from a guy that only hunted elk once, and did it with a guide. It's a dream of mine to hunt elk on my own one day.

hossblur · Jan 26, 2010

Do it man, utah millions of acres of public elk land. come out and do it, there is plenty of info to get you into a good area, then spend a year or two learning. YOU can do it, a guide, especially on public land, is just a guy who spent years learning an area, cut out the middle man and do it yourself!!! DO IT(little voice in your head) DO IT, DO IT

martinc · Jan 27, 2010

I was planning to do it Sept 09, in an easy to draw unit ( undersubsribed the last 2-3 years ) but we didn't draw !

We then decided to go for a fully outfitted horseback hunt in Northern BC. We got a good deal since we only booked in early July, for a Sept 1-10th hunt. I had a great time, learned a lot,saw beautiful country, and got a decent 6x5, my first elk. But I have the greatest respect for the guy on does it on his own.

Right now I want to try other game animals, but I will hunt elk again in the near future, and a DIY hunt is in the cards.

Califelkslayer · Jan 27, 2010

mntman, you nailed it!!

I hunted rifle elk twice, late 70s, early 80s and said I'd never do it again without horses. Figured I'd never get the damn thing out of where they go when pressured.

Spent the next 10 years chasin em with a bow, semi-successfully.

Got horses in "99" I ate one elk tag since and that was this year. I don't live near elk so scoutin is pretty much out but I find an area away from roads, a long way from roads. Some flat land along with north facing timber and I pack into the area a few days before the season. It works!!

Except for the one area I hunt regularly. And it took a while to learn it too.