What is your routine?

[Yellowstoner]

Some really good insights here. I wonder how your strategy changes with migratory elk herds? Where I hunt, our elk herd is on the move out from high country. In my experience, if you're a mile away from an elk, chances are you aren't going to see him ever again. I try to anticipate where the elk are going to move, but it seems like a slight variance in their patterns and the elk are moving miles away from where they moved through the morning before. Is the trick just to get up high and try to set up somewhere you might intercept them? Are you mostly glassing from exposed ridge lines, or from treeline down below? Are you trying to be in a spot where you can glass multiple drainages, or are you focusing on one particular park or spot?

On a different note - since they are closing my unit down for the last 2 weeks of the season, I'm looking at hunting elsewhere in the state for those last 2 weeks. How do you find a spot where the elk aren't super pressured at this point in the season, on likely a general tag? Any tips for approaching a new area late in the season? I will likely try to backpack hunt at this point in the season, but it seems like it's rolling the dice to travel a day or two into the backcountry to potentially not even lay eyes on an elk, vs. traveling around a unit and hiking / glassing until you find them. Do you just convince yourself that you are going to go find elk in the backcountry, and then it normally happens, simply due to lack of pressure, and having certain areas pre-targeted to scope out?

 

[utah400elk]

Randy,

Those have to be the best post I have ever read about finding elk. I have almost the same routine...with the exception that I have the luxury of hunting areas year after year (for the most part).

 

[cedahm]

Man is there some good stuff in here. Bookmarked this post for what will probably be many years of reminders.

To piggyback on what Speeddmn said - One thing I've not done, but am already starting this year (new unit) is use a highlighter on Google earth along every USFS/County Road to put the area within roughly a mile of the road in yellow. Then look at what's left.

My buddy did this on a paper map before he tagged along with us to a place my family had hunted for years that gets pounded in the CO general seasons. We just knew from experience 4-5 routes the elk would move on once the shooting started (sadly 2 of those routes went right into private). Not only was the unshaded area completely accurate with our experience, but following it, we also found 2 new areas where we've seen elk since then.

 

[beancounter]

Good information on this thread. I like the focus on planning the hunt out before hand. I have only hunted elk once and I wasted too much time hunting the same area.

Do you guys generally plan out access routes to spots in advance as well even if you aren't able to see the area on foot? I would imagine you have to be careful not to tip the elk off while approaching.

 

[old man]

After the rut would the cows be easier to find than the bulls. Since it looks like i will probably end up with a cow tag AGAIN this year.

 

[claybreaker]

tag