North and east facing slopes...

[mandrroofing]

I hear a lot about hunting north and east facing slopes for elk.Now does that me ignore the south and west facing slopes?Just trying to clean this up for myself,Thanks!

[WapitiTalk1]

As a general rule, the N and NE slopes are the cooler areas in the mountains and, elk like cool areas to feed, bed, rut, play Thursday night poker, read the Elknut playbook, etc. One could do a lot worse than to target N and NE facing timber, relatively close to water and feed (benches, meadows, clearcuts, etc.). There will probably be elk there dependent on how accessible the area is by hunters (and the quantity of hunters who frequent the area). A couple of variations to this general rule are in very thick, alder choked areas, elk sometimes seem to have lost their compasses and can be found consistently on any slope, including S facing slopes in very thick areas. In an area where there is abundant water, i.e., the W side of WA state, elk seem to really be where ever they are, regardless of slope orientation. I think this may be attributed to the many wet, small draws that stay relatively cool even if running E to W. I've seen a herd bed, in the middle of a S facing mountain side clearcut, in 90 degree weather and stay there all day? Strange creatures. Back on topic...... as a general rule, the N and NE slopes are good target areas for elk but don't discount the rest of the area, regardless of slope direction.. just my thoughts ..

[one_elk]

Well it certainly depends on the time of year (the later in the year and the colder the temps the more you will find them on the south and west facing slopes…), vegetation coverage, slope, where you are hunting etc. but elk certainly do utilize the south and west facing slopes but not as much as they do the north and east facing slopes at least that is what I have seen and also what our location data would show…but with said I would not completely ignore the south and west facing slopes….

[RockChucker30]

A smart hunter uses "mostly", "probably", and "likely" instead of "always", "definitely", and "never".

Play the odds, but keep an open mind.

[cnelk]

Elk hunting is hard enough!
I wouldnt limit the odds by 50% in the course of only concentrating on the North and East slopes.
Many other factors depend on where the elk may [or may not] be - i.e access/weather/hunting pressure/previous month or 2 climate

[welka]

I am in a different camp. For those of us who only get 7-8 days in the mountains a year, you have to concentrate your hunts. If its warm in September, you will be hard pressed to find an elk on a south or west facing slope from sun up to about 30 minutes before dark. Hence, you have to hunt the north facing timber and watch for those cold east facing areas that don't get much sun and stay cooler. If you hunt "upside down" (elk feed up, bed down) you have to get down to the bottom of the valleys where you can feel the thermocline change. For a great post on other counter traditional thoughts, see the post from Indian Summer on the attraction power of the food on south facing slopes with escape cover to the north or west. Great question and sometimes your odds will be higher with concentration on the north slopes more than any other. good luck

[>>>---WW---->]

A smart hunter uses "mostly", "probably", and "likely" instead of "always", "definitely", and "never".

Play the odds, but keep an open mind.

I like that answer.

[Trophyhill]

Whoever coined the phrase "elk are where you find them" couldn't have been more correct