Late Season Sanctuary in AZ unit with roads, roads and more roads

[wannakillabigbull]

Any opinions on what late season elk (first week of December) will be doing in an AZ unit that's 7000 ft to 11000 where roads cover dang near the whole unit? I would prefer to focus on the couple areas that are roadless, but they're at much higher elevations. My intuition tells me a number of good bulls will tough it out up high so as not to be in the maze of roads where all the hunters are. Anyone hunted an area such as this?

 

[AZBridger]

7,000-11,000' in AZ? I'm guessing you are referring to unit 7?

 

[wannakillabigbull]

Unit doesn't matter. My post is about understanding their behavior in the late season as a whole

 

[Howdy]

I find the oppisite
Down low in the steep canyon country filled with brush, rock, thorns

 

[hank4elk]

Ditto on Howdys post.
Any smart bull is well off the high peaks.AZ gets snow,lots at that elevation.

 

[jryoung]

Wherever the elk will feel safe as a result of distance from roads and or topography that isolates them people. Have you downloaded Randy's Elk Hunting E-Guide? http://randynewberg.com/

 

[esracerx]

To steal Randy's post from another thread...


"If you look at the ruggedness of the terrain or distance from roads/trails and think, "There's got to be an easier place to kill an elk" you have found what is likely to be a sanctuary."

 

[AZBridger]

Unit doesn't matter. My post is about understanding their behavior in the late season as a whole

Whoa. Good way to make friends. Best of luck to ya. I've been on probably 40 late rifle bull kills in AZ and have just a tad bit of knowledge i WAS willing to share. Go with your gut. Big bulls love 11,000' elevation and 4' of snow. Heck, maybe just take the Snowbowl ski lift to the top and start there

 

[hank4elk]

whoa. Good way to make friends. Best of luck to ya. I've been on probably 40 late rifle bull kills in az and have just a tad bit of knowledge i was willing to share. Go with your gut. Big bulls love 11,000' elevation and 4' of snow. Heck, maybe just take the snowbowl ski lift to the top and start there

lol

 

[wannakillabigbull]

Whoa. Good way to make friends. Best of luck to ya. I've been on probably 40 late rifle bull kills in AZ and have just a tad bit of knowledge i WAS willing to share. Go with your gut. Big bulls love 11,000' elevation and 4' of snow. Heck, maybe just take the Snowbowl ski lift to the top and start there

Bridger, I'd love friends, but most people are pretty unhappy if you ask for help in a specific unit. I was actually trying to be friendly by not asking for specific unit details. I'm willing to bet you know exactly where the elk are but I don't want to be pushy about asking for it. 7W late rifle if you're wondering.

And looks like you took some true giant bulls back to back a few years ago. Congrats man!

 

[wannakillabigbull]

I find the oppisite
Down low in the steep canyon country filled with brush, rock, thorns

That's exactly what my intuition would say if the unit had country like that, but it doesn't. The elk either would have to stick to the high elevation and snow, or come down to the flat and relatively open country covered in roads where there's not many places to hide. I find it interesting to wonder which they would rather do...

 

[grandejuan]

If I was an elk I'd get to the top of a relatively high cinder cone and hang out till dark, then feed. The crater gives concealment and protection from the wind and prying eyes of hunters. GJ

 

[AZBridger]

You're right, unit doesn't matter. My apologies for coming of brash. I really do enjoy helping people become successful elk hunters. Nearly all the people in this forum are nonresidents to AZ so i don't mind helping them because it will not really have much affect on my spots or draw odds. Bulls in late hunts in my experience get the hell out of the high country MOST of the time. If there is a fairly recent burn in the area, +-7 years or so, even at high elevations, bulls will sometimes spend all winter in those spots depending on how much snowfall. The feed in burns is much more dense and grows taller so it will still be available even with a foot or so of snow on the ground. To my knowledge there are not any burns of significance in that area so I would definitely not waste time hunting high. There are not many elk on those big mountains at any point, much less the late hunt. Find canyons that are as secluded as possible. It might just be that they are not visible from a road. You don't necessarily need to get as far in as possible. 80% of hunters stay within a mile of their truck i would say. Bachelor groups of bulls like brushy, steep canyons with a food source (oak is good to look for in late hunts). I do not know if it is coincidence but it seems like canyons witb a definitive "rim" around them seem to hold more elk. If you are in the timber on that hunt, go lower

 

[wannakillabigbull]

grande and Bridger, thank you. That's exactly the kind of info that would help an AZ newbie like myself understand how these elk operate, and make me a better elk hunter. It's very different from my native Colorado and thus the elk behave differently. Good luck to everyone this year

 

[AZBridger]

Glad to help. PM me any specific questions you might have. I am not overly familiar with that unit, but most elk in AZ behave the same way in late hunts

 

[noharleyyet]

..pretty cool when a thread rights it's own ship. Nice save fellas.

Best of luck this season wannakill.

 

[grandejuan]

There is a 6-7 year old burn in the Sitgreaves mountain area. There are many north slopes with good sanctuary ridges and canyons there too. GJ