diamond hitch
Well-known member
When I was first starting hunting my father took me to the same place every saturday and sunday. We went home every time by noon to watch football. Everyone I knew had a place and did the same thing. My current hunting partner hunted the next ridge over and followed th same pattern. My father had killed an elk there at one time and was waiting for lightening to strike again. Since we were in the migration path it was likely to accure- and did about every 3 year probably following the weather patterns. In a hot year it didn't happen and in a cold year it may have happened the week before season.
A few years ago some gents from North Carolina showed up at my house and were interested in buying the 160 acfres next to my place for their hunting club. The question posed to me was "How many trophy bulls were on the parcel?". My answer was "When?". He said they had 200 acres at home and there were 50 trophy bucks on it. I told him that at one time or another there were 1-2 bulls on the property for 1-2 days. When was the question. The summer was a good answer but by September the answer was not as much. He asked how many acres would they need for a full time elk herd. In my country which is summer range, there just wasn't going to be a chance. In the lower elevations - maybe 3-5 sections depending on habitat.
Over the years I have tracked enough elk to observe their response to pressure. In the summer they show up in my hay about every 5-14 days. In the middle of season I have followed their tracks from ridgetop (7800-8300 ft) to the valley floor (4500ft) and back - over night and over 10 miles. They never feed in the same place twice nor did they bed in the same place. Over time they did revisit the bedding places but I have rarely caught them there but every couple of years. Kind of like following traveling salesmen. Now I tend to drop into those places for a look if I am in the vicinity.
In my experience, the bulls have a small range in October and September that is dictated by pressure and weather. The cows cover 2-8 miles per night and tend to hole up in the rocks or jungles during the days. If you jump them it will take about 3 days to find them again. As we see the bigger spreads bought up by the city folks that tend to post them more and more elk graze on their neighbors places during the night and ball up in the sanctuaries during the day. In the old days most ranchers wanted some help moving the herds back to the government land. Today they just whine about the hunters and too many elk.
My advise to you is scout an area away from the sanctuaries where the elk haven't balled up and learn their migration patterns as they pertain to the weather conditions.
A few years ago some gents from North Carolina showed up at my house and were interested in buying the 160 acfres next to my place for their hunting club. The question posed to me was "How many trophy bulls were on the parcel?". My answer was "When?". He said they had 200 acres at home and there were 50 trophy bucks on it. I told him that at one time or another there were 1-2 bulls on the property for 1-2 days. When was the question. The summer was a good answer but by September the answer was not as much. He asked how many acres would they need for a full time elk herd. In my country which is summer range, there just wasn't going to be a chance. In the lower elevations - maybe 3-5 sections depending on habitat.
Over the years I have tracked enough elk to observe their response to pressure. In the summer they show up in my hay about every 5-14 days. In the middle of season I have followed their tracks from ridgetop (7800-8300 ft) to the valley floor (4500ft) and back - over night and over 10 miles. They never feed in the same place twice nor did they bed in the same place. Over time they did revisit the bedding places but I have rarely caught them there but every couple of years. Kind of like following traveling salesmen. Now I tend to drop into those places for a look if I am in the vicinity.
In my experience, the bulls have a small range in October and September that is dictated by pressure and weather. The cows cover 2-8 miles per night and tend to hole up in the rocks or jungles during the days. If you jump them it will take about 3 days to find them again. As we see the bigger spreads bought up by the city folks that tend to post them more and more elk graze on their neighbors places during the night and ball up in the sanctuaries during the day. In the old days most ranchers wanted some help moving the herds back to the government land. Today they just whine about the hunters and too many elk.
My advise to you is scout an area away from the sanctuaries where the elk haven't balled up and learn their migration patterns as they pertain to the weather conditions.
