Summer Migration of Elk

[streamer]

Do Elk tend to move again from summer to fall, or are they in the home range right know. Reason I ask is that my hunting buddy went out and scouted an area a week ago (June 25) and did not find much for sign in the area he scouted. This was a 20 hour drive / vacation for him and we don't plan on going out again until fall should we write this area off to scout again this fall or may there be elk there then?

 

[rmyoung1]

When in the fall are you going to be hunting? If you are going to be hunting in November, then I wouldn't be alarmed at not seeing much elk sign in the area in June. The elk tend to be very high this time of year. Later in the fall they tend to move down if the high country gets snow and feeding becomes difficult.

 

[drahthaar]

I still look for rutting sign in areas whether I see elk in the summer or not. Should see some rubs, maybe some wallows, old scat, etc.

 

[2rocky]

4th of july last year, I never saw squat for sign except a few single elk tracks. We heard elk every night and were in them nearly every day when elk season rolled around.

Summer scouting is more for getting to know the lay of the land. You still might need a couple of days to "find " the elk come hunting season, and then figure out where the pressure is pushing them. It becomes a process of elimination eventually. Sometimes it seems like you are just a day behind them.

Don't give up on the area if you have a feeling or other experienced hunters say there are elk there. Give it a chance during hunting season and if there is no sign then, then it is time to move to the next drainage.

 

[DreaminofMT6X6s]

2Rocky said it best. Don't be alarmed if you don't see any elk. If you don't see any sign (rubs, trails w/ tracks, wallows, etc.) then be worried. Where I hunt the elk don't move out until the snow is up to the belly roughly so mid to late November.

Rmyoung said it well too, early in the season where I hut they will be high up at the tops of drainages where it will be cooler, but later inthe season they will progress down the mountain and move around at lower elevations.

If you're hunting a spot that continually has elk in the fall this season shouldn't be any different. If it's a totally new area maybe ask a few folks that have experience there (maybe a local bow shop or something would be more forthcoming). Again, like everyone else has already stated. It's the sign you should be concerned with not the sighting of actual elk.

 

[mdunc8]

I usually don't have much time to scout during the summer, so I'm far from an expert in making any sense of elk sightings during that time of year. Ten days prior to the archery opener we found two groups of elk totaling with nearly 50 bulls between them. We hiked back in the day before the season opened and setup camp for a three day hunt. There were no elk where we found them on our scouting trip. They had moved several miles and dropped about 2,000 ft in elevation.

 

[streamer]

My hunt starts sept 26. with rifle in Wy I'm more neverous that with hunting presure they will either go deep which then I will go after them or go into private and then I'm screwed. Not sure if I should push in deep right away and spike camp or be moble until we are on a good number of elk?

 

[belly-deep]

I don't know if those suckers ever sit still for very long.

 

[hornart]

here in New Mexico they tend to migrate to the high country in spring and come back down in early fall,,but there are some residents that dont migrate at all,,remember that you will find fresh rubs twice a year,,first when they are stripping their velvet off getting ready for the rut,,and in the spring when they are ready to shed their antlers they will rub again.

 

[DreaminofMT6X6s]

Streamer - shoot the first legal elk you find! Belly-deep is right, who knows where they'll be.

 

[streamer]

Sorry Dreamino, got my first few nice elk already, know it's time to go after the big one. I will be waiting unless it's a NO Brianer.