Montana 2015

[BAGGEMandTAGGEM]

Hi
My dad and I are planning our first hunting trip to Montana. We plan to hunt Nov 2015. We plan on hunting deer and elk. I have been looking at somewhere in region 1 so that we can possibly hunt whitetails and elk. What I'm looking for is a little advice. Is it realistic to try and hunt whitetails and elk at the same time? should we look at other regions? If we did need to focus on one animal it would be whitetails. We plan on DIY public land. my dad will be pushing being 64 at the time of this hunt, so extreme terrain would most likely be out of the question. Any advice or suggestions would be appreciated.

 

[Poor packer]

Lot of closed roads in region 1. I am not sure how pm work. If you want some ideas where to hunt I can point the right direction.

 

[belly-deep]

Region 1 is not exactly brimming with bulls but the Thompson Falls area is probably your best bet for a combo hunt.

 

[drahthaar]

Exactly, not brimming with bulls, or elk for that matter, but they are around. They live a quiet secluded existence here. But they do run the same circles as whitetails here, no question. Look at the hunt planner for R1, the harvest stats, it is very clear as to which HD holds the best opportunity for elk in R1, it isn't even close. And I would hunt elk, and shoot the buck when you see it.

If you want a big whitie in nw MT, go find where the big lone bulls are hanging after the rut.

 

[Gerald Martin]

As posted by drahthaar and others, region 1 has elk but it can be tough.

If you want a big whitie in nw MT, go find where the big lone bulls are hanging after the rut.

This is probably the best advice you'll get. Where are the big lone bulls hanging out? Up on the ridge tops, away from the roads and trails. Sounds too simple, but pick a ridge, get off the road or the trail and you will eventually find success. You won't run into many hunters either. Let your Dad walk on out a gated road. He'll kill a buck with some persistance, maybe even a bull, but by and large the guys who are consistently killing elk are bushwacking cross- country off the trails and roads. I figure twelve days of hunting per realistic chance at a bull and I live here to put it into perspective. I figure two-three days of hunting during the rut per chance at a mature buck.
Follow Drahthaars advice and you will do better than 3/4 of the locals. Good luck.

 

[Pagosa]

I moved to Region 1 last year and based on my hunting experiences in northwestern Montana I elk hunted in region 3 and 4 due too the overall numbers of elk and elk harvested. I did deer hunt in region 1 and white tails are abundant and good pockets of mule deer. The terrain along the Clark's Fork would probably kill off your dad, it's steep and thick.

You could try my plan of elk hunting for several days in region 3 or 4 and then deer hunting in region 1. Come out mid- November and hope for a good tracking snow for finding elk and getting the deer moving. I used the same method of researching the Montana FWP hunt planner and Montana Cadastal to locate elk hunting areas. It's only about 4-5 hours between regions. Good luck

 

[drahthaar]

I would also add, regarding timing, for whitetails, something about Veterans Day, 3 or 4 days on either side of it, I notched tags, then of course the last week.

 

[rebel83]

I'll give you a little info on the Thompson falls area I live around 60 miles from there. I hunt the area religiously. I take my 60 year old uncle in there a lot of different trains. Elk are hard to find if you don't have any knowledge of the area but a lot of good deer. Pulled a nice 5+ 5 out of there during archery season saw a bull that would push well over 350 class, but be willing to compete with a lot of other hunters and put on the miles. Any questions on the area just ask im a local born and raised and run the country all the time

 

[BAGGEMandTAGGEM]

Thanks for the feedback. I appreciate it.