Back from Idaho 20a

[530Chukar]

Sorry to hear the bad luck. We are flying in on the 10th for the late season mule deer hunt. Hopefully the rut can get some animals moving around. Going to be a cold MFer.


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[gkempf]

Learning the area is the key. Have hunted Idaho for three years now. First year saw hardly nothing. Second year found a really cool basin and shot a descent buck. Third year went back to the same basin and shot a 31” deer. I feel that people give up on an area too quick. It’s hard for us nonresidents to learn an area in just 10 days or however long your hunt is. Find a good area and learn it. I think for a nonresident western hunting is a long term investment. You can go to a different area every year but your not learning anything about the area. Every area has these little pockets that hold game. You just have to put your time in and find them.

 

[Indian Summer]

Did you hire a pilot but not an outfitter and hunt on your own?

I have a friend from Montana who kills a big bull over there every year. He owns the outfitting business I used to own so he has horses and knows what he’s doing. He rides about 15 miles to where he hunts. But.... he hardly sees any elk. He’s a long range shooter and he sets up watching openings in the timber and sits there for days. When he does sees a bull it’s abig one. It’s not what most people would consider a fun hunt. But if it’s all about killing an elk it’s a great way to get the job done.

 

[Broomd]

OP, some of us tried to tell you about that unit, and it wasn't hyperbole. It's a brutal mf'er. I'm glad you enjoyed the country and made it out safely, some don't.
Overall, it's fools gold that will be sought out again next year with multiple 'slide posts and predictable disappointment.

 

[idahohikker]

It's always amazing to me how much non resident pressure the Frank and Selway get. I mean I get wanting to see that incredible country, but my god is it low odds of success in there.

At some point predator hunting and backpacking and fishing should become the popular activity in those wilderness areas. Both can be good. Not the deer and elk hunting.

 

[idahohikker]

OP, some of us tried to tell you about that unit, and it wasn't hyperbole. It's a brutal mf'er. I'm glad you enjoyed the country and made it out safely, some don't.
Overall, it's fools gold that will be sought out again next year with multiple 'slide posts and predictable disappointment.

I show up to non Frank areas all over the state and find mature deer and elk quickly. In the Frank I work the same classic deer and elk habitat and see far less.

 

[mtnbiker208]

I am from north idaho. This thread is intersting , mainly because i am looking at buying an off grid cabin in 19, just accross the river. I have way better elk hunting 15 minutes from my house right now, than central idaho has. But the salmon river corridor is just an amazing place. There are many reasons besides the wolf that the animal poplulations are not what they where. So if you do go on a hunt to central idaho, it is an amazing place, steep, rugged, wild. But don't expect to have a hunt that most people tag out on. The front country, anymore seams to have the better hunting.

 

[njdoxie]

That was pretty rough without a hot tent setup. I learned a lot.

What did you learn? What would you do different?
To me scenery/views in no way makes up for hunting elkless country.




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[Indian Summer]

What did you learn? What would you do different?
To me scenery/views in no way makes up for hunting elkless country.




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Ditto! Some people say it’s not all about killing a bull. It’s beautiful country. We made great memories. Screw that memories are better with meat in the freezer and a set of antlers on the wall. I don’t pay the price for an elk tag without plans to kill one! It sure makes the cost and the drive home easier to deal with.

 

[87TT]

What did you learn? What would you do different?
To me scenery/views in no way makes up for hunting elkless country.




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Like a participation trophy.

 

[mtnbiker208]

8 out of 10 elk hunters typically go home without an elk. Idaho elk, is not easy in any way.

 

[huntnidaho]

8 out of 10 elk hunters typically go home without an elk. Idaho elk, is not easy in any way.

Yep. And that number includes the "frontcountry" units too. The hunting pressure in many of those units seems to have grown substantially in recent years - different challenges. Glad you had a good time. At least you didn't have to listen to frequent ATV traffic and plan your daily hunts around what other hunters in the area are doing. Nothing like a 3 mile hike in the dark only to see orange hats at the planned glassing spot at first light haha. We always seem to find elk though, killing a bull is of course a different matter.

 

[toursauce32]

I just got back from Unit 21 and had much better luck. We saw bulls every day however until the snow and cold (sub zero) came hunting was extremely tough. We harvested 2 bulls on day 6.

 

[Bisley45]

Like a participation trophy.

I'm going to call BS, I had a hell of a time. It was incredible to be so far removed from society. It's a country that I've never been in before.

 

[Indian Summer]

I'm going to call BS, I had a hell of a time. It was incredible to be so far removed from society. It's a country that I've never been in before.

In that case why bother buying an elk hunting license? Go out in the summer when the weather is nice. I’d rather have campfires under the stars and a stringer full of trout than an unpunched elk tag. That’s not the kind of memory I prefer!

 

[menhaden_man]

I wish I would have listened to all the folks about the lack of game in that country. Holy mackerel we flew in and hunted 6 days. In that six days we saw 6 whitetail deer and 1 red fox. We cut elk tracks in the snow twice. No rubs, no mule deer, no bears, saw some wolf tracks,.....Big, beautiful, and empty..

I’d still call it a great hunt! Filling a tag is great, but secondary to getting away for me these days. Not like 20-30 years ago when I had to hunt and fish to eat right living under the poverty line.

I’d take beautiful and empty over a goat show of folks on a foot race with cell phones and $1k outfits to whack the first critter.

Thanks for the update and sweet pics.

 

[530Chukar]

Bisley, I don’t remember if I mentioned it in our last PM buts we did see one really nice bull in there where we got into the deer as well.


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[Werty]

I hate hindsight it's always 20/20.

 

[Bisley45]

Bisley, I don’t remember if I mentioned it in our last PM buts we did see one really nice bull in there where we got into the deer as well.


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interesting!

 

[tntrker]

In that case why bother buying an elk hunting license? Go out in the summer when the weather is nice. I’d rather have campfires under the stars and a stringer full of trout than an unpunched elk tag. That’s not the kind of memory I prefer!

I'm sure NOONE wants and plans to do all the hard work , planing, and money to eat tag soup, but it is what it is. What's the point on you being on this forum if you're not a hunter and don't understand how someone can enjoy a bittersweet hunt?