Rocky mountain front 2020 results

[Irrelevant]

Bad weather, fewer hunters lead to decade's smallest elk harvest along Rocky Mountain Front

A combination of unseasonable storms, low hunter turn out leads to smallest Montana elk harvest in decades.

www.greatfallstribune.com

Interesting that weather and hunter effort was the excuse for low elk # but then completely omitted for the bumper WT harvest...

 

[golfer]

be curious if the first big storm caused alot of this. Spoke to one local that said there were 500 elk on the game range and 100 bulls there after the first big storm.

 

[Bambistew]

They have to blame it on something... I mean it couldn't possibly be low game numbers their models say they have a surplus of animals.

 

[MTTW]

About time to close that check station permanently.

 

[D4570]

"About time to close that check station permanently."

I agree they base all the number off 4 stations, that is not very representative of what is the real stat of our wildlife.
The truth be known, and anyone that has gotten more the 500 yards off there 4wheeler, would know. WE have more elk now than ever before. With the amount of range, we have allotted them we are WAY overblown with elk. That can be seen by the decline of Mule deer. The MD just can't compete with the elk, the elk are so much taller in the winter they can reach the food the deer can't. I have been hunting for 50 years and I find elk in places that never had elk in my lifetime, kinda like Grizzly bear dut that's a different fight.

 

[MTTW]

To clarify my above post...that was more of a prediction than a suggestion. I am more fond of hard numbers than wild assed guesses. MtFWP seems to prefer the latter judging by the lack of operation of the Gallatin, and Gardiner check stations.

 

[MNElkNut]

So how does the fact they they closed the seasons due to the quotas being reached play into this? Hard to harvest more elk if you close the season? Something tells me there is more to it than what is in the article.

 

[Irrelevant]

I don't get why harvest isn't based on mandatory reporting. Sure you have to wait a little longer but you get much better data.

 

[golfer]

I hope they implement mandatory reporting. I wonder how much would change after a season requiring mandatory reporting from a management standpoint?

 

[PacificSon]

I took an elk from the area last year and got waived through a checkpoint, i had to self report.