New to the forum, new to elk hunting

[Aggiejon]

Looking at elk hunting in 2016. Trying to prepare to get things put in for the draw. Looking at areas, trying to learn as much as I can. I don't expect anyone to spill the beans on their honey hole, just trying to ascertain some basics on location. There are four of us who are planning to DIY a hunt. Plan is to spend about 10 days in the mountain, with a couple of those days being early for scouting. Probably going to have to be 2nd or 3rd rifle season due to work and family constraints. We are all out of state. Experience hunting whitetail in TX, and lots of camping experience, but this will be our first outing in the mountains.

Looking at public land hunting across the southwestern corner of CO. We are planning to camp where we can drive in and drop camp. No horses. Possibility of a 4wheeler to haul out an elk, but would be open to areas that are off limits to ORV such as 4wheelers. I understand that the quest for a trophy will take many trips and many dry runs. Honestly, the four of us are all of like mindset. We would rather have the experience, the camaraderie of elk camp, the thrill of the hunt than to drop a royal every time we go out. That being said, our wives will expect us to bring back some sort of meat or else they will start to think we are just going to the mountains to drink whiskey and play dominoes. So we will say we are meat hunters who wouldn't turn down a wall-hanger.

I guess my foremost question is what GMU areas in the SW region would most support the type of camping we plan to do...drive in, set camp and walk out and hunt. I also want to shoot for an area that is productive, but not the coveted GMUs since we don't have any preference points already. Looking at going regularly for the next 20 years and want to concentrate on learning the terrain, the area, the game.

Thanks in advance for the advice.

[Swede]

Welcome to the forum Aggiejon. I can't help you with Colorado, but you are on the right track, planning for a ten day hunt, and 20+ years doing it. Don't be surprised if you are not a howling success the first time out. Anytime a new elk hunter scores on public land DIY, I consider them lucky. Elk hunting education is not always easy and quick. You will get there if you do your homework and stick with it.

[Deanmac]

I am sorta in the same boat, so I am interested in the response. I did go on my first hunt this year, 2nd season OTC.

[Aggiejon]

Dean mac, any suggestions from someone with a hunt under his belt? Anything you learned that you would share one novice to another?

[six]

2nd and 3rd rifle you will run into a lot of hunter opening weekend. Things kind of taper off after that. Don't give up. I'll send you a PM on some units that might interest you.

[saddlesore]

As Colorado resident and hunter for 40 + years here are a few of my tips.

Even if a unit is open to ATV's on trails, it is still illegal to take the ATV's off trails for game retrieval or anything else.

I would not reccomend a pack in for the 3rd season. Even 2nd seasons can get mighty nasty with snow at times. When you do pack in,don't camp in the middle of prime elk habitat

For those 2-3 days early for scouting, stay out of the dark timber. If the elk are in there,you will run them out.

Stay for the entire season and leave the Monday after it closes.You can kill an llk the last day of the season as easily as the first. I would trade days when the season is on for scouting days before the season if time is short. Especially for those later season when the elk are are already pushed form earlier seasons

Be mobile and go where the elk are , but be aware where there are no elk for 2-4 days, they might move in on the 5-6th day.

[Deanmac]

Dean mac, any suggestions from someone with a hunt under his belt? Anything you learned that you would share one novice to another?

I went with a guy that had hunted the same area for several years, and had taken elk in the past. We were hunting in Area 711 of the San Juan NF, we had OTC bull tags, basic strategy was hunting near water holes close to the rim of some deep canyons. We arrived on Thursday afternoon before the 2nd season opened on Saturday, So we had a full day to check for fresh sign and hang stands before opening morning. Well about 9 AM opening morning, it started to rain and it rained, sleeted and thunder storms on and off for 5 straight days, thus water was standing everywhere and sorta killed the idea of hunting water holes. LOL With rain in the forecast for the next 3 days we headed home on Wednesday. Everything was a total mess and the 4X4 UTV had a hard time getting around in places. On Tuesday afternoon we got check by DNR and he said he had only heard of a couple cows that had been taken. We did see a couple cows but they were at a dead run, I figured they had been spooked.
The guy I was with had always just hunted in the AM and went back to the hotel after lunch. We did stay in town which was sure nice to have a hot shower and a soft bed, but IMHO wasted a bunch of time going in and out each day.
I hope to go again this year, but will probably camp and hunt all day, sitting in the AM and late PM and stalking during the day. We will take ATV's but I feel the changes of seeing game riding on a ATV is pretty slim and will leave it in camp most of the time, but sure could use it to bring out meat from the nearest trail. I saw lots of secondary roads that went back for miles and miles and really way less hunters than I expected. Now some of the roads have been closed off and has non motorized vehicles only signs. I was considering taking a bicycle to get back into those areas with less walking. I have hunted with a bicycle on some of the coastal islands of Georgia, not a bad way to cover some ground to get away from the roads.

I am 61 (retired Educator) and consider myself in decent shape and can still put in a good days work. The area we were hunting was mostly flat a high desert plateau about 8200 feet. Being a flatlander I could really tell the difference when I walked up a little grade change in elevation. Packing in and out a stand and putting in up and climbing really did kick my tail. LOL

For you experienced guys please comment and offer any suggestions.

[CurlyTail]

Someone needs to say it.

You can double your fun, and cut the hunting competition by a factor of 10 by elk hunting in September during the archery or muzzleloader seasons. Your chances of success are only diminished slightly, and it is a better time to be camping in the mountains. I can't see why anyone would choose to rifle hunt unless perhaps they were targeting only Trophy size Elk.

Don't get me wrong - I would rather rifle hunt than not hunt Elk - but it would not be my first choice. Because - more crowds, no rut, colder unpredictable weather. Calling and getting close is the true prime cut in Elk hunting. For me.

[VT Sasquatch]

Hey Culytail: Based on your comments I am getting more interested in going in archery season. Again, I have no elk experience. I imagine you need to call for consistent archery success? I have never been able to stalk within bow range of a deer (I hunt from a treestand for archery deer). Are elk as cautious as a deer or a little dull like a moose? Thanks

[CurlyTail]

Elk are very cautious, and rely heavily on scent. Their eyesight is about like humans, and they are not timid by nature, but they will not tolerate human scent and they do not like human disturbance. There are multiple ways to hunt them with archery equipment. You can spot and stalk - very challenging, but maybe the most reilable way to take a big herd bull, you can sit wallows/water holes/trails/saddles like a whitetail hunter - effective but a bit passive for most Western hunters, or you can call the Elk which are highly responsive if you catch them in the mood.

If you are willing to kill a good Satellite Bull, and do not need a giant Herd Bull to be happy, then calling is the way to go. Nothing is more exciting than locating a Bull by getting him to answer your locator Bugle, then sneaking in close as you dare with the wind in your favor, and cow calling him into close range. It is a hunting experience that cannot be equaled.

Plus, and it took me years to believe this - Elk meat is tremendous. 10x better than deer to my taste buds. This simple fact makes even a cow Elk an amazing trophy

But it is not easy. Only 9% of permit holders take home elk. It requires a huge input of energy to find the spot, learn to hunt elk, get in shape to handle the mountain terrain, the altitude, and the pack out. Not for everyone for sure.

The Elknut Playbook is the Bible if you want to learn to hunt elk early season. I recommend reading it 4 times, then listening to it on audio 4 more times, then once a year for a refresher. I also recommend the Elk Hunting University DVD as a great intro to archery elk hunting, the gear and preparation, and calling. Those two sources, a good attitude, and a strong desire to succeed are all you need to make it happen for you and your buddies.

[VT Sasquatch]

I don't want to impose but could anyone suggest an OTC unit in Colorado that has a lot of public land with road or trail access to elk country? I am looking over maps and it is overwhelming just trying to pick a unit. PMs are welcome. I am not looking to steal your secret spot, just an idea of a region to narrow down. I'm afraid I'll get out there and not find access.

I'd like to set up camp in the area and hunt from a base camp. I'll bring a tent under 20 pounds so I can hike back a distance. I would rather not camp along a road or campground because I prefer quiet settings. ATV access trails are a bonus because I could get back in a ways and also use it to haul meat in the unlikely event of a kill. I would obviously not take the ATV off the trail but would carry the meat to the closest part of the trail. I am not concerned with a trophy.

My plan now is to apply for the muzzleloader draw in whatever unit fits what I am looking for. If I don't get picked (I have no preference points) I will get an OTC archery tag. I've been thinking about buying a new bow anyway.

Right now I am looking at Routt NF somewhere.

Thanks for any help.

[Lefty]

Nothing is more exciting than locating a Bull by getting him to answer your locator Bugle, then sneaking in close as you dare with the wind in your favor, and cow calling him into close range. It is a hunting experience that cannot be equaled.

While There are a few things as exciting,.. like being in a cave or up a tree with a mountian lion

The first bull I called, charged into 30 yards , I was shaking so bad I couldn't keep the arrow knocked
My first 7 days archery hunting I was under 40 yards to more bulls than I had seen hunting 7 years with a rifle.
this year the first time archery hunting, I put a big 6x6 in front of my daughter at 22 yards, Really hard to trump those expierience

[VT Sasquatch]

After a few hours of research I think I am closing in on an area but I'm not sure I should post it publically. I don't want to expose anyone's spot. It's in Routt NF.

[CurlyTail]

That is not anyones spot - that is everyones spot! Lots of elk, lots of elk hunters. You will have to work hard to find the right areas.

There really are not any "bad units" in Colorado. You could throw a dart at the map of Colorado (West of I-25), and you would be in a potentially decent area. Just need boots on the ground to find the spot within the unit. I prefer to hunt the less popular units as they have less hunting pressure.

[saddlesore]

Someone needs to say it.

You can double your fun, and cut the hunting competition by a factor of 10 by elk hunting in September during the archery or muzzleloader seasons. Your chances of success are only diminished slightly, and it is a better time to be camping in the mountains. I can't see why anyone would choose to rifle hunt unless perhaps they were targeting only Trophy size Elk.

Don't get me wrong - I would rather rifle hunt than not hunt Elk - but it would not be my first choice. Because - more crowds, no rut, colder unpredictable weather. Calling and getting close is the true prime cut in Elk hunting. For me.

I guess I quadruple my fun. I hunt the full 9 days in muzzle loader season using a "B" tag and then hunt the full 9 days in the 2nd rifle season using an "A" tag.In 2014 ,I killed an elk in each season.This year, only a bull in the 2nd rifle.. Good thing though as I don't know what I would have done with two elk and the moose I killed.

I actually see more hunters in the ML season than 2nd rifle and the majority of those are archers.

[saddlesore]

I don't want to impose but could anyone suggest an OTC unit in Colorado that has a lot of public land with road or trail access to elk country? I am looking over maps and it is overwhelming just trying to pick a unit. PMs are welcome. I am not looking to steal your secret spot, just an idea of a region to narrow down. I'm afraid I'll get out there and not find access.
I'd like to set up camp in the area and hunt from a base camp. I'll bring a tent under 20 pounds so I can hike back a distance. I would rather not camp along a road or campground because I prefer quiet settings. ATV access trails are a bonus because I could get back in a ways and also use it to haul meat in the unlikely event of a kill. I would obviously not take the ATV off the trail but would carry the meat to the closest part of the trail. I am not concerned with a trophy.
My plan now is to apply for the muzzle loader draw in whatever unit fits what I am looking for. If I don't get picked (I have no preference points) I will get an OTC archery tag. I've been thinking about buying a new bow anyway.
Right now I am looking at Routt NF somewhere.
Thanks for any help.

Look at Unit 25. Go north out of Dotsero off of I 70.Go a few miles .Turn left on Coffee Pot Road.Go in to the end about 30 miles ( It aint a nice road)

It ends at Deep Lake. Then hike north 3-4 miles. That will put you in prime elk country.

[VT Sasquatch]

Thank you. I'll check it out.