Finding Elk Country

[MTLongdraw]

I know there is no substitue to actually getting out and putting boots on the ground when it comes to finding elk country. Unfortunately with the snow, work, being a father/husband I don't get to do it as much as I want. Do you guys have any other suggestions of what to look for when trying to find new elk and deer country on paper? My theory right now is looking at a map/Acme Mapper and finding where there aren't roads. Then I try to narrow it down for being at least 2-3 from a road for "good hunting" areas. I know you can find elk anywhere etc but I really feel it lowers your competition if you're willing to walk. Do you guys hunt trails a lot or just start going cross country? Any other advice when looking at a map?

Also I'll be hunting a new area this year for Mule deer that I have never hunted before. Tags are do in a month and I've never set foot in this area. I'm hunting it because its close to my house and I know there are bucks in there. The downside is its close to Missoula so the outskirts of it see a lot of pressure. I know if a guy is willing to work at it there are good bucks closer to the middle of the unit.

[easeup]

more of the same from me because it is a long way to elk country from here.

as a NR, I first get to the regs of each state to see where I can get a tag. Without it, it does no matter where the elk are.
From that and with a short list of units to hunt, then comes the forest maps and GE to see what the country looks like as for access, trails, road usage limitations, water, so forth. I dont bug the local wildlife officials until it is down to specific local.
This single issue to me is the most difficult one to become a successful elk hunter.

[Lefty]

Im a map freak
I use to set up traplines using road use indexies for fox and coyote, for mink I checked numbers of waterway crossing on public township and county roads
I set the area we bear hunt completely up by satalite pics
My current area I checked road maps and looked where the roads ran out, where others wouldnt go.
Most guys may want ot look at topography.
Honey holes can be found on maps and often close to high use areas
Ive discovered most "hunters dont like to climb a 1000 feet right from their truck than drop 1500 feet. Or float across a river to a remote location Some reallyy cool things can be found on satalite
I found a new cattle dug out last year, the shortcut elk were using from one pasture to another and a cool mineral lick
Local conservation Officers can be a big help too

[Trophyhill]

first i look at Google Earth and try to pick out likely elk "habitat". food, water, cover and space. then i call the local biologist and ask a few questions regarding the elk's habits, likely food/water sources that you have found on GE or your maps, bull to cow ratio, drought, predators etc. i've gotten great information that way and my hunches have paid off. i have found that when talking to the biologists in their language, they are more apt to give you little tid bits of information that you may not ever have considered rather than asking them "where are the elk"?

[Moose-head]

Great thread, lots of helpful info here. What do you consider when studying maps when you won’t be able to get into the woods in September, and will have to account for cooler weather and post rut animals (modern firearm season late October)?

[JohnFitzgerald]

Trails mean lots of foot traffic. We go cross country!

I'm lucky in Oregon, maybe elsewhere is the same. Google took pictures of my area around September 9th. If I look really close, I can see patches of green in the middle of dead brown grass. Which usually means year round water supply. Combining that with Topo maps is the best scouting strategy I've found.

[Sean_TeamNWHunting]

Habitat, habitat, habitat....it is like buying real estate where you are always looking for location, location, location Map work will always get you to 'likely' areas by looking for :

1. Areas away from roads, but if good habitat exists with roads traversing through the area you can still expect to find elk;
2. Look for grazing meadows that provide nighttime feeding, these meadows can be small and don't have to be large;
3. Look for water sources in proximity for wallows during the rut;
4. Look for bedding areas. North slope for hot weather and south facing during cold seasons.

I usually like to come up with lots of options and either spend time hiking these areas, finding high points that I can glass from, or riding horseback through the area to further narrow down the specific regions that the elk are using. From my experiences, elk move alot and can cover lots of territory thus the area you choose to hunt may have great habitat, but the elk chose to move out of that area a couple of days earlier and may or may not be back anytime soon. Happy hunting!!!

[Swede]

Some of what make good habitat depends on your style of hunting. I would rather hunt an area with few elk, but I can predict they will come to my tree stand, than hunt where many more elk are, but I cannot reasonably predict they will come to me.

[easeup]

Some of what make good habitat depends on your style of hunting. I would rather hunt an area with few elk, but I can predict they will come to my tree stand, than hunt where many more elk are, but I cannot reasonably predict they will come to me.

now this has got my ear! I cant predict anything but the rise and setting of the sun.
elaboration please?

[JohnFitzgerald]

Some of what make good habitat depends on your style of hunting. I would rather hunt an area with few elk, but I can predict they will come to my tree stand, than hunt where many more elk are, but I cannot reasonably predict they will come to me.

Style of hunting does comes into play. I'm a bugle chaser so prediction only comes into play when I'm within 100 yards of a bugling bull. But after reading Swede's book, I'm going to try treestand hunting the first part of the season this year. Prediction will play a huge roll during this time.

[Moose Man]

Another google earth feature I've found helpful is the "time slider". If there are multiple sat images (point in time) of your area, you can go back and forth between them, coupled with dates when they were taken. Really helps to showcase water/vegetation changes at different times of year etc.

MM

[JohnFitzgerald]

Another google earth feature I've found helpful is the "time slider". If there are multiple sat images (point in time) of your area, you can go back and forth between them, coupled with dates when they were taken. Really helps to showcase water/vegetation changes at different times of year etc.

MM

Great tip! Thanks, I didn't know that.

[Moose-head]

How important is elevation change (mountains/hills)?

[Harmy]

Everyone is giving some good advice. I too use maps, terrain, Google Earth and leg work. Here is an example that may help.

MyTopo.com. You can study maps without purchasing but resolution is not as good. So, area of interest. National Forest. North Facing slope with steep nasty timber. Some drainages that may hold water. Some lower angled steps facilitating feed and cover. Ah, found one.

Map.jpg (100.65 KiB) Viewed 8315 times

Note the drainage under the second A. The word Canyon next to the 35. Right under the C the drainage flattens out. I suspected this would be a good spot for water to build up. Looking from the North using Google Earth shows:

GE.jpg (91.76 KiB) Viewed 8315 times

My marker is a bit small but centered vertically and ¼ from the left. I figured with all the steep timber and gentle sloped aspen cover to the West (right) this would be a likely spot for a recon. What I found was amazing. As I approached I saw tracks, fresh scat, and recently vacated beds with urine in them. Then I came upon this nice little spot. Made me suspect Swede would have a tree stand nearby… But his camo is too darn good...

Water Hole.jpg (196.72 KiB) Viewed 8315 times

Now that looked like a fresh wallow and water hole to me. Unfortunately I did not get back to this spot last season for the actual hunt. Now, when I convert to archery and read Swede's book on tree stands I supect this may well be my first spot.

[MTLongdraw]

That's good work Harmy. Very intersesting.

[WapitiTalk1]

I've shot/packed elk within a 1/4 mile of a hardball road with both boom stick and bow, and, 456.23 miles back in the sticks (well, it seemed that far) . My pop used to say at the campfire, during our annual hunting camps in the big sky state when I was a pup, "do you guys wanna know where the elk are gonna be tomorrow"... Like EF Hutton, my old man would garner attention. He'd follow it up and say "exactly where they are". In many ways, he was on the mark. In elk country, particularly pressured country, elk are more than a bit mobile and may be here one day and over there the next. It's a bit different betwen rifle and bow season to locate elk for sure when you're researching an area. Elk will stay high till their bellies are dragging in the snow before they move down in high pressured areas; a consideration during rifle season.. Target historic travel routes to eventual winter grounds and you're on to something. During the SEPT archery rut? The boys will be where the girls are.. period.. many times, in the chick's summer grounds. Somebody asked me many moons ago where to hunt elk during the rut (archery season in many elk states.. well besides WA ..)... I told em, find the deepest, darkest, most inaccessible hole you can find and hunt there. Just some late evening ramblings from an older codger. RJ

[crazyaboutelk]

I look for drainages that supply lots of water even when it is dry. Often Google Earth with finding green vegation. I prefer to find an area on Google Earth and then take a look at a topo map. I hunt areas with lots of roads and have had no problem finding elk in the early season.
Drainages with lots of water also provide plenty of wet areas for wallows so game cameras can also be an asset.