By Horse or By Foot !!

raybow 1

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bellingham- washington
How many of you hunt elk by horse and how many hunt by foot. What kind of terrain do you hunt--is it open high country or secluded like the west coast. Where do you find those big nasties when it comes crunch time? How many miles do you usually hunt during the day?

<FONT COLOR="#800080" SIZE="1">[ 06-29-2002 22:50: Message edited by: raybow 1 ]</font>
 
I don't like horses much, and often the feeling seems to be mutual. I like hunting from them when I can get a gentle old nag, though. I will usually go in several miles. How many miles is determined by the steepness of the terrain - I may not get there as fast as the young guys, but I WILL get there if that's where the critters are. ;)

My trip to Montana a couple years ago, it was 8 miles in on foot. In New Mexico, it was just a couple of miles in, as it was private property with little pressure.
 
hey Ray I have been known to hike around 10 miles a day searching for them elk.I do my hunting near Ellensberg mostly so we have a variety of terrain from Sage to pine forests.I dont hunt much in the sage mainly cause I dont care much for it I'd rather be up in the hills.he only way I can hunt the big boys is if I draw a any bull tag.
 
Just like I call 400+ # bear killers in my area LIERS.. I'll call anyone that claim to hike over 6-7 miles Liers too (No OFFENCE KEVIN :D)

It might be different in other areas but I like to think I'm in DAM good shape come Elk season and to do a 1 miles hike here.. (I call it an Idaho mile) so 6 Idaho miles is FUGGIN FAR !!!! You'd have to of gone 2500' change in elevation and back down again....

ANYWAYS, thats just my area so I'll be quiet and get back to the subj. ... ;)

Uhhh.. by foot.. never by horsey....
 
Hey Moosie:
I hike a lot of times by trail that has marked miles so I know how far I go at times and I have hunted many a day 10 miles in and back out in a day when scouting for elk. Even in Idaho they have marked trails a lot of times so you know how far you are hiking then too. as for the elevation change I have an area that I worked that we would climb 3000 feet in elevation change in 1 hour and 10 minutes. the reason I know how high in elevation we rose was because we were working with a Hughes 500 helicopter to fly our wood we cut. When you grow up working in the woods it is nothing to hike that ten miles in a day. I've taken bulls that were 10 miles in by marked yardage and still made it back out before dark. It would take two days of packing but that's what happens. Maybe you just need to drink some of that Red Bull before you start out. :D HA HA This is one reason I do as well as I do. I go little farther and hunt a little harder than the next guy. If Kraven says he hikes 10 miles I have no problem believing him. There are some areas I will agree a person may not be able to hunt more than what you are saying. I hunt one ridge out here that is called rugged ridge and it is 1.3 miles straight up with no trails and lots of windfalls. It takes over an hour of steady walking to get to the top. Most can't make it to the top. If you had big enough mountain ranges that were similar I agree 6 or 7 miles max.
 
Ray, Don't pay any attention to Moosie---he's a wimp. There are plenty of areas here a guy in reasonable shape can walk back in 5-10 miles a day to hunt. It just depends on the terrain, same as in Washington or Oregon. I think Moosie likes to mostly road hunt. :D
 
Ithica37:
Man if I knew of a place I could road hunt and be successful I'd be on it like a fly on dung. I'm just thinking Moosie needs to come over and hunt the easier terrain with me. Some of it is pretty mild and some isn't. Moosie-- You are hunting way too tough of ground man.
 
Raybow said...

<BLOCKQUOTE>quote:</font><HR>I hike a lot of times by trail that has marked miles <HR></BLOCKQUOTE>

HAHA.. If I hiked on fetching TRAILS I could walk 20 miles a day too :D :D *WINK*

YAH, I agree that some of the area I hunt is a little tough.... HEre is a picture from Last year...

6downhill.jpg


LOOK at the picture..... The guy in the Left of it is one of my elk huntng buddies... THERE is also A road to the right of the picture... TAKE a look at the mountain To the left of the road then follow the ridge up to the RIGHT... We like hunting thsat mountain and have checked it out on a Quad map scouting the Elevations and the miles...

Lemme tell you it takes ALL of my energy and it's maybe 6 miles.... TOUGH and far indeed, makable yes.. but nothing ya hunt day after day and definately not 10 miles :D :D

YAH, don't mind me too much, Ithica knows I'm a road hunter.... Thats why I never get anything ....
 
<BLOCKQUOTE>quote:</font><HR> I'm just thinking Moosie needs to come over and hunt the easier terrain with me. <HR></BLOCKQUOTE>

I'm there..... :D :D is it too late for this year ?!?!?
 
The last elk we packed out on our backs was 8 iles in. Where I hunt is 2 hours by horse and I hunted here before I had a horse. I go from 6500 to 9500. One place I hunt takes me 6 hours on horse and the elevation change is almost 4000 feet. That is where I will be going for sheep if, I mean when, I get drawn.
 
Moosie:
You are more than welcome and consider it an invitation in rifle or muzzleloader season. I guess what I was trying to say was 10 miles a day is not a lot if you are in the right area. The only reason for me mentioning marked trail was so a guy could have an accurate guage on how far he could go in a day. I aso hunted in Colorado one year with Dirk and Cole Ross in the San Juan Forest before they were killed in a plane wreck scouting the next year. I have hunted similar terrain and I cantell you it is a lot easier to get around than in the dense timber on the Penninsula. Here is what a guy would be hunting with no marked trail>this isn't bad here.
Where%20the%20big%20boys%20play.jpg
There are no roads in there and that is just a little taste of how deep it is. About three miles up that big drainage is a wallow that always produces a 290 to 320 bull.

<FONT COLOR="#800080" SIZE="1">[ 06-30-2002 01:35: Message edited by: raybow 1 ]</font>
 
SO... what month am I going with ya


MAN you're up late.... wife kick ya out of bed like mine did ;)

NICE area. I seen that picture in the Hunting area pictures....

I agree that a guy can cover lots of grround hunting... My point was that I hear 10-12 miles as a standard day from alot of people... Same people that get winded walking a flight of stairs.... I think (LIKE BEARS) that distance gets a bit exagerated..... OR maybe it's just me ... ;)
 
No your right it does get exagerated a lot>more than not in fact. October with a muzzleloader is an ideal time as a guy would be hunting the solduck unit. Quality bulls there. Rifle season is a little trickier but if you want a crack at a big one we could set it up where the last two potential world records were taken in rifle season!! I just happen to know the drainage those boys came out of. :D
P.S. I've got a good one that still gets up in the morning and fixes my breakfast and lunch. She's from the old school and that is why I kept her.
 
Moosie you are very correct it all depends on where you are at as to how many miles a person can go in a day.I have a spot here for deer hunting that you only go 2-3 in a day because of the steepness of the terrain.
 
Moosie, Thanks for the picture of your hunting spot! Now everybody on the Internet knows about it!

Now I see what your problem is, Moosie. You're hunting where it's too flat! Don't you know elk like steep country where they can get away from all the wimp hunters out there? I can see why you like hunting that little hill in the picture, that's one of my grandmother's favorite spots! :D She'll be pissed off when she finds out you're telling everybody about it!

I was going to take you chukar hunting next Fall, but if that's what you consider a tough hunt I better not! :D We don't sit around and use the binocs when we chukar hunt, either. There's no resting. You have to be able to walk or run non-stop all day. I wish there were chukars in grandma's and your elk hunting spot, it would be a lot easier on me and Scout!
We could cover twenty miles a day, easy! :D (twenty for me, a hundred for her!)

<FONT COLOR="#800080" SIZE="1">[ 06-30-2002 09:12: Message edited by: Ithaca 37 ]</font>
 
Kraven,

You mentioned hunting around Ellensburg. Is the Menastash Ridge area any good still? I hunted that area alot in the 70's and found good elk and mulies in there. I loved that country. It is beautiful in there.....


Bill
 
Hi Westman yes the area mentioned is still ok but the mule deer arent as many and the Elk are spikes only unless you draw a permit for a branched antler tag.
Flipper the reason we only hike just a few miles in that one area is due to the steepness of the terrain it is very similar to the pic that Moosie posted.
 

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