Elk Transition Areas, Do They Vary By State?

[WapitiTalk1]

I hunt pretty thick areas (WA, ID or MT year dependent) and the elk transition areas (travel routes between bed, feed, water, 7-11, etc.) mostly consist of trail systems though thick (alder choked side hills) or timber bordered routes to maximize their cover/concealment/safety. They frequently pause in staging areas oftentimes on saddles or benches, to grab a quick bite, chew their cud, grab a beverage, bugle a bit, or perhaps roll around in a cool wallow. Are the transition routes (geographical/predominant vegetation) routes/areas similar in other states? Just curious

[Indian Summer]

In my experience that holds true 90+% of the time. But in some of the more open places I hunt it can be different. It can be what dreams are made of... elk standing out in open meadows until after 9 am and then the lead cow lifts her head and lines everybody out to the bedding area which can simply mean moving from the open to the nearest available cover with no staging at all in between. I love those places. If you can spot elk early or late you know they aren't going very far or haven't come a long distance. Easier to figure out.

[ElkNut1]

In similar country as you refer to Dave it pretty much is the same from state to state. Elk are more comfortable in timbered/brushy areas during their travels into the wind for most part as they head for desired destinations. Elk can travel 1/2 mile to 4-5 miles each direction from feeding to bedding areas, the most common distances would be 1-2 miles from such areas. Along the way they generally look for the easiest route to & from but wind plays a big part in travel direction so weather can also change travel routes even though destination is the same.

Watch the Elk shows on TV & you'll see the type of terrain for the time of day these encounters take place & their distances traveled to & fro.

More open areas are different for sure as Joe mentions.

ElkNut1

[Indian Summer]

It's interesting and a good learning experience to watch elk go about their procedure for bedding. They go from a single file line to spreading out, still feeding around. Some seem to pay attention to each other but some, especially on opposite ends of the herd don't seem to car where the others are. Then there's the bull. I like to try to figure out his thought process. I would think he'd want the wind in his face from below and the rest of the herd at his back. But lots of times I've seen them prefer to be uphill from the herd with the ability to look and listen from above. Often with some space between them and any other animals. The vast burns in the Bitterroot are a great place to be able to watch all that. Interestingly, elk still bedded in the same places even after the trees were burnt.

One of the toughest things to do can be spotting a few elk between the trees and not knowing where the bull is. Wondering where all the other eyeballs are. Especially if you don't know the lay of the land in that exact spot. It's nice to have images in your mind of how other herds bedded.

[Lefty]

Hmm how do I reply:
transition areas are from water and or cropland to bedding. Sometimes it is just a short 2-3 mile walk through open grasslands and sage.
Other times it might be miles and miles and miles 6,8, 10, 15 miles traveling through rough rockey ground to find a secluded place. Other times the elk run from place to place and stay where they arent bothered until they are bumped again moving away from human traffic. Or maybe they just hang out in a corn field all day and wait for the pivot to rain on them.
Maybe its on the side of a rise in the land to catch the wind to keep the bugs off, maybe to a favorite clump of sage to hide against to gain some shade, or just a wide open plain where they can see everything for a mile or two, or three

[slim9300]

Glad the elk in 'my' MT basin only move about 1/3 to 1/2 mile! (Unless we push them)

Coastal WA elk generally only move a few hundred yards in my experience, but that's probably due to logging roads being everywhere. Generally they feed in the clearcut or on the edge, and then bed down in the nearest stand of timber or doghair.