Missouri Breaks Unit 700?

Buckshot2

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Anyone ever hunt this unit for archery? Thinking of making the trip this year and am in need of some info as far as access, public land, time of year etc, etc. Any info is appreciated, thanks in advance.
 
I'm not sure of the unit number, but a guy I work with hunts the Breaks about every other year. I will talk to him and find out what unit he hunts. If it is the 700 I will try and get some info. for you.


Slide
 
You most likely will be amazed at the number of hunters you encounter and the lack of elk. Lots of hunting but not much killing. Pray for dry weather because if it rains the roads are impassable.

The MFWP has increased rifle cow tags to the point of giving almost more cow tags then they have elk. The Numbers are less then stellar in my opinion.

Drawing the tag will be the hard part as the archery permit is guaranteed once you draw the elk tag.

Nemont
 
Well, I have been hunting the breaks for years and probably wont go back. I have now seen more hunters than elk the past 2 years. Lots of public ground, lots of public:)
Way overrated area.
NEMONT, I agree there are fewer elk than there were but it isn't because they were all shot. They gave out a bunch more cow tags and it just pushed all the elk to the other side of the river......Talk to a biologist and get a count of elk, you will see they have moved, not disappeared.
 
"Drawing the tag will be the hard part as the archery permit is guaranteed once you draw the elk tag."

Huh? you have to draw a tag to draw a permit?
 
I have archery hunted this unit for years and have had good luck. Each year there are more hunters that come into this unit, but like most other units the majority of these hunters are lazy. This is a unit where you have to know how to read a map and use a GPS because the majority of the land (that is good hunting) is difficult to access. Just like the hunting regulations read "hunting access is limited and difficult".
I have always ran into an elk every time I have hunted this unit. In my mind there are a lot of elk in this unit. The best way to hunt this unit is to hunt for at least one week straight and you have to be willing to walk many miles.

I also have people tell me that it is impossible to call in a bull elk in the Missouri Breaks. I may have good luck, but I call in more bull elk in the Breaks than any other unit I bow hunt.
 
Buckshot2,
Yes, If your a nonresident then you will have to apply for and draw a nonresident deer/elk combo or nonresident elk license and then apply for the unlimited archery permit in 700.
ismith
 
The MT FWP better get a handle on things in the breaks, because that place, what was once world-class for all of the critters living there, is going downhill rapidly. I doubt any action will be taken until things are too late, because thats the way the FWP in MT works, but who knows.
 
I like the unit as well. If you want it bad enough you'll find elk. Unfortunately for me as well, I'm a non-resi and usually have to wait everyother year for a combo tag.

C'mon elkhorncrazy1....reveal to us/me your original screen name. :) I wanna pick your brain a little.
 
I would like to see FWP limit the archery permits more. If not for the benifit of the animals, them for the sake of hunt quality.
ismith
 
My name will not be revealed. However, you can pick my brain as much as you would like.
 
Crittergitter is on to it. I would suggest checking into Region 6 for 2007. I know I will and all of my local contacts. It was a HORRIBLE 2006. You could see elk across the river at any time but I watched one buddy eat a tag (he held out and I respect him for it) and the other got 26 hunting days spread over four different trips and shot a dink 3x4 the last day. It was the ONLY bull they saw on the final four day excersion. And I promise you - these boys are far from lazy.

Even the famou$$$ Jackie Bushmen and camera man shot DINK bulls compared to what they normally get and they pay $10,000 a pop for some of the best the area holds.

I would guess those that are saying it is good DID NOT hunt it in 2006. Big changes over their in the last couple of years.
It never seems to last. Got to go do some research into the north side. Good luck all!!!

Another vote for limiting the pressure before they hit Canada!
 
OK elkhorncrazy1- I will pick.

Did you hunt it in 2006?
Do you have any photos of what you killed?
 
Yes, I did hunt the unit in 2006. I shot my bull elk the week before my trip to the breaks, so I was the caller for all my other hunting buddies. There wasn't as many elk in our areas as compared to the pass few years, but we managed to see elk every day and we called in bulls for everyone. No one ended up shooting an elk, but we all had a blast with plenty of action.

You are right with many of the elk moving across the river. Everytime we looked you could see 100-200 elk. One afternoon we counted 46 bulls with the majority of them being 6-points.
 
Thanks for all the info guys, we're not locked into 700, just trying to get a feel as to what to expect. Looks like I have some research to do on the licensing proscess.
 
One thing to expect (any unit in the breaks) is if is rains it can screw your hunting plans in a hurry!

Thank god for a four-wheeleer this past year. It rained on us a lot but we were able to use the four-wheeler to travel the county roads. For about three days many hunters were only able to walk from where they were camping because you could not use a truck to come and go on the county roads.
 
Elkhorn,

Your name isn't Dan, is it?

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This is my post

I've just pissed in my pants.......and nobody can do anything about it.
 
I hunted the Misouri Breaks unit adjacent to 700 four years in a row from 02'-05'. Did not draw Montana in 06', however my buddy who lives near the breaks and has hunted it for years, in fact is 5 for 5 on mature bulls from this area, told me this was by far the worst year he had ever experienced. Saw very few good bulls and alot less elk in general, guess the increase in cow tags is having its affect. Also, he reported still alot of hunters, so lot less elk + lot of hunters, you can do the math on this one.

Secondly, the rain while hunting the breaks. For those who don't know it can be brutal. I was very lucky in 02', 03' and o4' weather wise, but got punked hard in 05'. Had to spend 3 nights in my truck, 7 miles from my camp, which was 25 - 27 miles from hard top...............Luckily I checked the weather forecast and the 50% chance of light showers predicted was enough for me to throw my sleeping bag, two gallons of water and a few snacks in my truck before heading out before dawn that Monday morning. Rained and snowed like crazy for three days and final dried enough to get back to camp Thursday afternoon.

My advice, there are better places to hunt in Montana as well as other states and this is based with my connections with the Montana boys in adition to my own experience on the breaks.

Good luck wherever you end up.

JL
 
Sorry, but you can't blame last year's increase of cow tags for the lack of bulls in the breaks. The problem there has entirely to do with one thing: bow hunters. The rifle hunters are very limited and have been for years, while the cow tag increase last year was to reduce cows, not bulls. Meanwhile, the archers have unlimited access to the elk there and the increase in popularity has really lessed the number of good bulls.

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This is my post

I've just pissed in my pants.......and nobody can do anything about it.
 
Did'nt they try to copy the same rules/ regulations as 410 a few years ago? I thought I remeber hearing about this, but it got shot down. Does anyone remeber or have any input on this?

I have not followed the numbers for the past few years, but have the number of cow tags and hunters increased the last few years?

I was attracted to this area many of years ago because of the high density of elk with great bull to cow ratio, low number of hunters, and vast amount of land to hunt.

Do you really think you/we should be trying to find a new unit to hunt?

Give me your thoughts!!!
 
I know they gave out 1200 cow tags for 410, and 300 for 417. They increased the either sex permits for 417 to 125 from 75. I drew a 417 either sex permit and the second weekend of the season NOBODY was even seeing elk! I finally talked to a cow hunter that had seen a decent bull with some cows and he told me where to go. I ended up shooting a decent 280 class 6x6. Honestly I figured Id see more elk, and perhaps get a chance at a little larger bull. It just didnt happen. I talked to a local in Lewistown that also had a permit for that area, the best bull he had seen was a 3 point raghorn. So I feel pretty lucky to get the bull I did. I also know someone that had a 410 either sex permit, he saw quite a few bulls and ended up getting a 350 class bull. As far as archery hunting, I think that there are some better general units to be found.
ismith
 
Im with Mtmuley. I have hunted the breaks my whole life (for deer) and the first couple years my area went from limited elk (which I could never draw) Hunting was decent, but the last couple years I am sick of seeing 4 wheelers where there arent supposed to be any andelk running around with arrows sticking out of their hind quarters.
The F&G gets an earfull from the ranchers when trying to establish a healthy herd with some decent age to the bulls, and I am confident that is one of the reasons there are such high numbers of archery hunters in the unlimited areas (and the increased # of rifle tags) The ranchers get their either sex tags, and the block management ranchers do a pretty good job of steering any other tag holders to the cow herds. God forbid somone should shoot a bull they have a tag for. They must not eat as much grass as a cow anyway.
Ide much rather have a "quality: hunt once in a while than a frustrating experience evry year.

bittersweetmuleymeat.
 
It doesnt' help that the MT legislature/fwp commision is in the back pockets of the board of outfitters and stock growers and really doesn't care about the rest of us.


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This is my post

I've just pissed in my pants.......and nobody can do anything about it.
 
We'll see if the two new guys think any differently.

bittersweetmuleymeat
 
mtmuley,
I agree with you there! It would be nice if deer and elk where considered seperately(so you could hunt elk with a bow and deer with a rifle), but something needs to be done to manage for quality. Id also really like to see Western Montana go to 4 point or better restrictions or draw only for muley bucks. Here are those pics of my elk I posted earlier.
ismith
http://www.monstermuleys.info/dcforum/DCForumID12/7005.html
 
This has been real fun reading everyones thoughts, thanks!

I am also sick of hunters (bow & rifle season) using 4-wheelers in areas where they are not to be used. A 4-wheeler screwed my hunt a few years ago in the breaks on a nice bull (350+).

I personally hope that we dont ever see the day of picking our weapon, but I truly think that it will happen soon as to bow hunting is growing very fast. It seems to me that the F&G doesnt put a lot of thought into managing areas for bow season. Unit 700 is a perfect example as to the number of tags are unlimited for bow season. I would like to see the F&G manage this better, limit the number of tags for cows and bulls and limit the number of out of state tags. No more unlimited either sex tags for bow season! I would also like to see the F&G do their studies of how many big game animals are in each unit during the hunting season, not during the winter season. Many big game animals migrate out of the unit/area to winter and this is when the F&G does most of their studies on numbers to calculate how many tags need to be issued for the following season.

I have talked to a lot of hunters (bow & rifle) that have had frustrating seasons because it has been difficult for them to see elk and to find big bulls. I guess I have been lucky the last few years, I find elk and see big bulls (300+) consistantly. However, I usally walk 5-10 miles a day. Hopefully my luck continues, especially as I get older as to walking 5-10 miles wont last forever!
 
I too was for the "pick a weapon" idea when I first heard of it, but after careful consideration, I would only support it in a certain context. Here is my ideal version:

1. Don't even do it for deer. Either weapon is fine. But don't even get me started on Montana's deer management, that's for another post.

2. Antelope is already in a similar program. You can get a general archery tag for the entire state or draw a unit specific tag and hunt either rifle and/or archery

3. Elk would be just like antelope but opposite. Rifle hunters could get an unlimited general tag, while archers would have to draw an area (most of the state would be unilimited or you could draw a region just like region 7 antelope).

The only problem with this plan is that the FWP currently says we have too many elk in MT. This wouldn't help any, so here's an extention of my plan for high-elk years:

1. Archers could also put in for a cow tag that could be taken with a rifle after archery season. This way excess cows could be harvested and archers would have the chance to secure some meat for the freezer

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This is my post

I've just pissed in my pants.......and nobody can do anything about it.
 
Its hard to get people to shoot cows. Everyone has to have that little raghorn to drive around town with for a week then throw the head on the woodpile. Your ideas may be good ones. It has crossed my mind to "earn your bull" in some areas, meaning you MUST shoot a cow first and have you "either sex" tag then validated. Not sue of the logistics of that, but its a thought since there are "too may elk" here.
Remember, when the F&G set quotas, based on what their "management strategy or #" is, only a portion of what is considered is how hunters would like the herd managed. Just because herds are "above the management objective" in an area, dosent mean the ELK are eating themselves out of house and home, or the area couldnt sustain a higher healthy population of elk, it just means there are more elk there than the FWP think there sould be (for a variety of reasons)
I would love to hear about deer management. I too have some "thoughts" about it.

bittersweetmuleymeat.
 
"I am also sick of hunters (bow & rifle season) using 4-wheelers in areas where they are not to be used. A 4-wheeler screwed my hunt a few years ago in the breaks on a nice bull (350+)."

Glad to see that you guys feel the same way as I do about atvs, they are becoming a huge problem here in PA, and its only going to get worse. I can tell you right now, that if Im in the middle of nowhere and a atv comes by where its not supposed to be Im gonna have a melt down x(.
 
LAST EDITED ON Jan-18-07 AT 08:37PM (MST)[p]The FWP meetings with the public are happening right now. The one closest to me is in Hamilton MT on the 23rd. I'm going to say what I have to say, even if they don't listen. I've been to past ones for about 4 years. Local sentiment on issues can be helpful. mtmuley As an afterthought to bittersweets post about too many elk, I think that it may be area specific due to large holdings of private land. I don't know if there are too many elk in the Bitteroot, but I will say private, mostly non huntable land holds the majority of the animals.
 

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