north or central Idaho for archery general elk

arkansas_archer

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A friend and I are planning our first archery elk backpack hunt for 2019 and I'm trying to narrow our search for a unit by starting with deciding between north and central Idaho. We already wrote off southern Idaho because my partner, and possibly I, will have a traditional bow in hand and we thought southern Idaho terrain might not be as conducive to getting a close shot. If we're wrong about that we'll gladly widen our search again to the whole state, we are open to all advice. From what I've read Idaho has a pretty good elk population all across the state now that the wolf population has gone down some so I guess our decision will be based more on the possibility of getting somewhat deep in to the backcountry and away form people and conduciveness to bow hunting. We're not new to backpack hunting, just new to Idaho, and we're in pretty good shape so terrain isn't a huge factor unless its just too steep to pack an animal out on foot. Any advice is greatly appreciated. Thanks!
 
Ensure you're actually prepared to pack an elk out. Have you guys been up to one on the ground before? This can't be stressed enough, especially if you are going deep on foot.

Most of the time if you climb a couple thousand feet of elevation you can get away from most people. There's elk all throughout the state.
 
Thanks for the response. We've never been up next to an elk on the ground but we've packed out a lot of deer in steep terrain so if we have to we'll just make multiple trips with loads equivalent to the weight of a deer. We're training hard so hopefully we'll be able to pack on a little more weight than that but we won't know until we're there I guess.
 
Log onto the IDFG website and look at the Hunt Planner, and review all of the provided info. Harvest statistics, draw odds, unit specific info, advantages of A vs. B tags, and even have some elk hunting video. Most archery success runs about 6-10% total. A bull elk is big, think along the lines of horse-sized. A mature 4-6 year old will be 400-500 pounds live weight, and a 10 year old could be close to 800. You better know how to skin, dress, bone out or quarter a big animal. Make sure you have good knives and a portable saw. A bunch of game bags will be necessary too. Elk is the best eating meat you can imagine, so don't be afraid to consider taking a cow either!!!

Since you've decoded to come out, consider buying your license and applying in May for one of the controlled hunts with an Oct. 1st opening date. The odds of drawing are long, but you might get lucky. Still in the rut, archery is good, and you could fall back to a rifle if necessary. As for the different areas and hunting with traditional gear, you should be prepared to shoot out to 40 yards, no matter what. Southeast Idaho is very brushy and sometimes you can't get an arrow to them at half the distance. You will want to stay away from open hillsides, but they will be bedding in cover and most waterholes and wallows will provide 20-30 yard shots, if you can find them.
 
Lots of videos out on cutting up an elk. You should prepare all you can before your hunt. Sounds like you are going at it the right way. All units in Idaho have elk. All units in Idaho have elk harvested with bows each year. Keep your expectations reasonable and you will have a great time. If you want more cover and thicker forest then head farther north. Any of the units in the panhandle will get you thick country. Their are still plenty of wolves in Idaho so a wolf tag would be worth picking up.

Here is a video that my son made of me cutting up a bull.


DZ
 
>Thanks for the response. We've never
>been up next to an
>elk on the ground but
>we've packed out a lot
>of deer in steep terrain
>so if we have to
>we'll just make multiple trips
>with loads equivalent to the
>weight of a deer. We're
>training hard so hopefully we'll
>be able to pack on
>a little more weight than
>that but we won't know
>until we're there I guess.
>


There is nothing in Arkansaw that will even remotely prepare you for Idaho. Unless you strap a deer on your back and climb a tree I guess...
 
I've said it before and i'll say it again......
There is no flat ground in Idaho for Elk hunting!
Be prepared to work your ass off. The shortest pack out I have done is about 3 miles, the longest 6.5 miles.
I'm gettin too old for this.
PB
 
That isn't true. I live here in Idaho and have for a long time.
Parts of Arkansas are very much like Idaho in terms of terrain.
 
I live in central Idaho, I will be honest with you, if you want a good hunt I would look farther north. The central part of the state has become over run with archery hunters. First lite headquarters is in Ketchum and it seems like anyone who buys firstlite gear ends up hunting central Idaho. I'm not getting down on firstlite but there social media, all the fans of the meat eater seem to end up here.Good luck out there.
 
>That isn't true. I live here
>in Idaho and have for
>a long time.
>Parts of Arkansas are very much
>like Idaho in terms of
>terrain.


Show me... I was born and raised in central Idaho and spent a ton of summers in Arkansaw. Been all over both of them. You show me anything that even remotely compares to the sawtooths or hells canyon in Arkansaw.
 
If your driving from Arkansas to come elk hunting, your driving through much better elk country then 99% of Idaho. Colorado has friendlier terrain, more elk, and no wolves. Wyoming has similar attributes. Idaho has turned into a refuge for Oregon, Washington and Utah hunters that only draw an elk tag every 20 years. That's my two cents, and Hawkbill nailed it perfectly.
 
Don't forget you can easily be dealing with 70-80 degree temperatures during the day and well above freezing at night.

When you knock down a bull elk at 8 am and by the time you start butchering its already 60 degrees and climbing you are racing the clock. Fly blown, "sour" meat is not pleasant, but at least you will have several hundred pounds of it to deal with.

I would have to agree with some of the other posters, that you may be driving past similar, if not better, elk hunting on the way to Idaho. Don't get me wrong we have lots of elk, many in unit/places you wouldn't expect them.
 
Arkansas_Archer,
I'm planning to head out to Idaho as well if I don't draw a NM tag. I've hunted elk out west several times. Hit me up if you have any questions. I'd be glad to help you out.


>A friend and I are planning
>our first archery elk backpack
>hunt for 2019 and I'm
>trying to narrow our search
>for a unit by starting
>with deciding between north and
>central Idaho. We already wrote
>off southern Idaho because my
>partner, and possibly I, will
>have a traditional bow in
>hand and we thought southern
>Idaho terrain might not be
>as conducive to getting a
>close shot. If we're wrong
>about that we'll gladly widen
>our search again to the
>whole state, we are open
>to all advice. From what
>I've read Idaho has a
>pretty good elk population all
>across the state now that
>the wolf population has gone
>down some so I guess
>our decision will be based
>more on the possibility of
>getting somewhat deep in to
>the backcountry and away form
>people and conduciveness to bow
>hunting. We're not new to
>backpack hunting, just new to
>Idaho, and we're in pretty
>good shape so terrain isn't
>a huge factor unless its
>just too steep to pack
>an animal out on foot.
>Any advice is greatly appreciated.
>Thanks!
 

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