Help picking unit for father/ son archery hunt

[Chow_Hound]

I am planning my first DIY archery hunt next year with my 14 year old son. We will be hunting the first week of the season to accomodate his school schedule. I recognize that is a tough time to hunt elk so want an area that has a good deer population. We're much more interested in quanity than quality. Also, I recognize that my son will not enjoy the trip if the terrain is brutal.

I've been reading all of the data on the DOW website, but could really use some advice from someone who has been there. I have narrowed down to 3,11,211,14, 241 but would look at other areas if you thought they would be better fits. I don't want to fall for misleading stats. For example, are the stats in 214 better than 14 because of the private land in 214 and the public land is really the same as 14?

Also, what should I really expect in terms of crowds during the first week. I imagine the weekends will be bad, but what will it be like mid-week.

Thanks

 

[stillhunting]

Unit 3 & 11 always have deer year round and with a either sex tag there should be a lot of oppertunity to get a shot.Some of the small land owners around craig may let you on for archery so don't be afraid to knock on a door if you see deer on there land.Look for the small parcels of public land mixed in around the private too.In unit 11 I like the south end around the axial basin.You won't see much for elk in either of these areas that time of year.Don't know any thing about 14 or 214.You may think about getting a youth tag for your son for elk as if it does not get filled he can hunt any unit with a late season hunt after nov. 16th,I did several hunts over christmas break with my kids over the past years.Also if you don't mind not hunting he can draw into some great units on a youth tag for cow elk that you can't with out preferance points.Also he can draw most average cow/doe/either sex tag units on 2 choice and build points so when he is ready to hunt a bull/buck he can get into a great unit.After the first year I started hunting seperate from the kids so I could concentrate on their hunt and not think about the shots I was missing and I had a lot more fun with them!! Good luck be safe !!