Frank church wilderness

[buckmster28]

Was thinking of doing a fly in mule deer hunt here next year. Has anyone here done it and if so what did you think? Any ideas which landing strips are better areas for deer? Not looking for anyone's honey holes just trying to get a starting point. Feel free to shoot me a p.m if you want.

 

[mickeymouseoutfitters]

It's been awhile for me too. I want to go back before I get to old. Maybe not so much for the hunting, just for the awesomeness of that country.



________________________________________
I'm not one for telling my grandson how big of turd I had to pinch off from having to eat so much meat. I want to give him the trophies that hang from my wall and tell him the unforgettable experience that came with each and every one.

 

[UGAhunter]

Mickey,when you do go back, be sure to have a lion tag in your pocket, I'm sure you"ll see one!

 

[mickeymouseoutfitters]

I did see one last time, but it was just the tail. And maybe I'll get two lion tags and five wolf tags. ;-)




________________________________________
I'm not one for telling my grandson how big of turd I had to pinch off from having to eat so much meat. I want to give him the trophies that hang from my wall and tell him the unforgettable experience that came with each and every one.

 

[muleybucks]

For what it's worth, I chased this magical dream.

Things I learned:

1) It's an adventure. From the airplane ride in till you get back to your truck, it's a nail biter. Be prepared with satellite phone in case of emergency. If you have an emergency, help might not be able to get to you for days (weather). You might be late flying in by a few days (weather) and the same thing can happen for your flight out. If you go, plan for extra days. You burn a LOT of time doing stuff other than hunting.
2) The runways look like KOA tent camping sites. Seriously, unbelievably crowded for a wilderness hunt.
3) No matter how far you hike, there's someone younger and in better shape willing to sleep in worse weather and they've walked through the spot you wanted to hunt.
4) These areas open September 15 with plenty of outfitters using horses to scour this country. It gets pounded all year long.
5) This country had a 43% decline in elk populations attributed mostly due to the wolves. Wolves aren't picky. They eat deer too. Fish and Game is working on clearing this up, but for now, the damage has been done.
6) For what the plane charter costs and for the amount of people, there are better options (in my opinion). We saw deer, but not as many, nor of the quality I expected. It is, after all, "wilderness". I expected more of a solitary experience and I can find that elsewhere.

Best of luck if you make the trip. My camp spot is open.

 

[Muleymemories]

>For what it's worth, I chased
>this magical dream.
>
>Things I learned:
>
>1) It's an adventure. From the
>airplane ride in till you
>get back to your truck,
>it's a nail biter. Be
>prepared with satellite phone in
>case of emergency. If you
>have an emergency, help might
>not be able to get
>to you for days (weather).
>You might be late flying
>in by a few days
>(weather) and the same thing
>can happen for your flight
>out. If you go, plan
>for extra days. You burn
>a LOT of time doing
>stuff other than hunting.
>2) The runways look like KOA
>tent camping sites. Seriously, unbelievably
>crowded for a wilderness hunt.
>
>3) No matter how far you
>hike, there's someone younger and
>in better shape willing to
>sleep in worse weather and
>they've walked through the spot
>you wanted to hunt.
>4) These areas open September 15
>with plenty of outfitters using
>horses to scour this country.
>It gets pounded all year
>long.
>5) This country had a 43%
>decline in elk populations attributed
>mostly due to the wolves.
>Wolves aren't picky. They eat
>deer too. Fish and Game
>is working on clearing this
>up, but for now, the
>damage has been done.
>6) For what the plane charter
>costs and for the amount
>of people, there are better
>options (in my opinion). We
>saw deer, but not as
>many, nor of the quality
>I expected. It is, after
>all, "wilderness". I expected more
>of a solitary experience and
>I can find that elsewhere.
>
>
>Best of luck if you make
>the trip. My camp spot
>is open.

Muley hit it on the head!

We've made the trip three times throughout the last 10 years. I would say it more about the experience then the hunt. Although we didn't hunt the traditional deer area's we did find deer but not exactly what we were hoping for.

Most air strips have been cleared of firewood, so you must pay to fly in firewood for a more comfortable camp. We've decided to concentrate our deer efforts in other parts of the state!

 

[Foxbow]

I have not been in there for a deer hunt.
However last season I went with a buddy on his sheep hunt.
Like someone said its an adventure all the way.
Not alot of game there, but a cool experience for sure.

 

[Boomhand]

I spent a day just outside of Loon Creek summit hunting this October and barely found a track. Years back it was an easy place to find a decent buck. was some Elk sign though.

 

[Highbasin338]

Muleybucks has got it. I've hunted the 20a side of wilderness for 20 years. Idaho's wilderness areas are in bad shape. We own cabins close by. I actually started hunting some heavily pressured areas closer to Boise and have had great success with some pretty dang good bucks. But you will not find a more beautiful place to hunt than the frank church. Let me know if you have any questions. Lots of people fly in, so be prepared for company.

Good luck!

 

[Zeke]

>I have not been in there
>for a deer hunt.
>However last season I went with
>a buddy on his sheep
>hunt.
>Like someone said its an adventure
>all the way.
>Not alot of game there, but
>a cool experience for sure.
>


Well, how did your buddy's sheep hunt go for him? Did he score on a ram or just score on the great country?
Share a bit of it with me please. I always love a sheep hunt story.
Zeke

 

[ID_MW]

The responses are pretty close from other members on this hunt. You shouldn't be completely discouraged concerning this hunt, but you should have realistic expectations as well. The strips in unit 26 do get jammed up with camps, and firewood is a little tricky with the no motors (chainsaw) rule. The outfitters really rule the area, and control the best hunting (Mile-High on the north side of Big Creek, and Zettels crew on the south). Water is at a premium in the high country; not many springs in this surprisingly dry unit, and the good water sources have been used by the outfitters for their camps. Finding deer down by Big Creek isn't tough, but finding a mature buck is.

The unit may be fair sized- but realize that for November, you are only going to be able to get 6-10 miles away from an airstrip at the ABSOLUTE furthest, and there are only a handful of usable trails to access decent muley habitat. Most hunters in 26 use Cabin Cr. or Soldier Bar as their airstrips, and for good reason; most deer will start to crowd the bottom end of Big Creek during the rut. When you look at hunter numbers for the unit (usually 70-100 guys per year) it needs noting that all those guys are crammed together within roughly 6 square miles of each other, so you could see how any deer with half a brain might seek to avoid the commotion. Most of the hunters are Washington guys, and pretty friendly; as most non-res guys are.

As far as trophy potential goes, a mature 4 point in the 130-140 inch range is pretty much the norm. Anything over 150 is a sure shooter in this unit and a 170+ buck is so rare that if this is your standard, don't even charter a flight. Trying to get away from a strip (at least 2 miles) will usually mean a day in which you will see 5-10 bucks, but most guys end up shooting 2-1/2 and 3-1/2 year old deer. This is a beautiful unit with a decent amount of deer, and if you get back there, best of luck. There are plenty of other units in Idaho that will yield much greater game densities, better trophy potential and less hunter conflict.

 

[Highbasin338]

+1 on the trophy quality. Lots of bucks in the 140" range. I don't want to be negative, buts it's the truth. Look at Mile High's web page. His brother guides in 20a and they do even worse over there.

 

[idelkslayer]

ID_MW

What do you mean by the following statement?

"The outfitters really rule the area, and control the best hunting"

Obviously the outfitters are going to have the greater ability to access areas away from the crowds because they have stock and in that sense certainly do rule the area. The part that I don't understand is how do they "control" the area or the best hunting? Are they physically blocking other hunters, claiming exclusivity to certain areas, delivering threats, or did you just mean that they are more successful?

 

[Rizzy]

I had the November tag last season and ended up trading it in for the general season tag so I could hunt the Sept 15 opener in the high country as well as the the rest of the general season in Oct in other areas.

I liked what I saw in the summer range as far as past fire activity and the few Deer I glassed up. This is the best I found in 4 days of scouting



I never made it back in that areas for the hunt and ended up hunting a different area for 3 days with similar results in Buck quality. It was a fun hunt but I didn't harvest anything.

 

[ID_MW]

Hey Elkslayer- My statement refers to the relationship of the outfitter camps to the most utilized deer habitat, as well as water sources, which are scarce in the units most hunted region. The outfitters are good guys as far as I am concerned, trying to make their money in a tough unit, and their hunters are easily the most successful, both in rate of harvest and trophy potential. You can check their websites to see what they pull out of there. The fact that they have horses in there doesn't hurt either.