East Coast Hunters?

[tommymo]

Hi everyone,

I'm working on working through my travel plans for the upcoming 2017 Idaho archery Elk season and was wondering what someones itinerary looks like for a pair of guys driving from the East Coast out West. From the looks of it driving is going to take 30ish hours to arrive granted we don't run into any hiccups. I guess my main questions are:

• Are you driving straight through?
• When are you leaving and when do you expect to arrive?
• If your not driving straight through how many days does it take you to arrive?
• How many days do you leave for your hunt?
• How is the drive home? I can imagine the drive out is exciting, but the drive back could be rough seeing you've been running around the mountains for a week or more.

I'm really on the fence right now with regards to flying or driving, I love the idea of driving,seeing the country, not having to worry about all of the logistics of shipping meat and head gear back home(HOPEFULLY!!!). On the other hand the time savings almost make if feel worth it.

Thanks in advance.

 

[camping1601]

This is how we now do it.To CO from PA.
We leave after work and drive till around 10-11.
Get up next day and drive to just east of Denver.
Get up drive to hunt area and chill out.
Pack in next morning.

We have done it in much less time, but it seems the bill still comes due on the lack of sleep in the end.

Edit: I should add that I still leave time for 2+ weeks of hunting.

 

[N2TRKYS]

I can't stand that drive anymore, so I fly.

 

[FLAK]

I'm with Aldeer Turkey guy., Driving uses up too much vacation time. Gotta fly.

 

[DWinVA]

In 2015 me and my cousin hit the road from SW VA to New Castle, CO around 4:00 am one morning and drove until just after midnight midnight which put us in Colby, KS (spent almost 2 hours at the Cabela's in Kansas City). We slept in the vehicle at Wal-Mart until about 6:00 am the next morning and drove on into to New Castle arriving around 4-5 pm since we stopped a bunch all through CO taking pictures and such. MapQuest said it would have been a 26 hour drive straight through. We had a 5 day hunt booked and left several days early so we could acclimate and site see before the hunt started. Coming back we took a scenic route diagonally down through CO to hit I-40 home and it was 30 hours straight only stopping for gas and food. The main reason we drove was so my cousin could see the country....it was my 2nd time driving out west. The only thing we killed was a coyote about 1 am somewhere in OK...$800 body damage to my van.

This past season we flew, didn't kill anything to have to get back home but I stressed over that and gear getting lost or damaged a lot. No issues with bow cases or luggage. We did a 7-day drop camp so we flew in the day before and flew out the day after. In my opinion unless you have plenty of time off work and can be away from home 2 weeks or so flying is the way to go.

Good luck and God Bless.

 

[Backpack Hunter]

I typically drive 12-15 hrs each day just to get the drive over with. Typically takes me two days. I try to leave early, but also try to time my drive where I'm not hitting rush hour near any major cities...hate rush hour.
Hunt duration is as many days as I can get away. I don't think I have ever done less than a week.
The drive home is not any worse (or better) for me as I'm usually looking forward to seeing the family again.

 

[Huntin wv]

We have driven from West Virginia to Wyoming or Colorado several times. We typically leave in the evening and try to time things to miss rush hour in the big cities. We've driven straight through just taking turns driving and sleeping. Other times we've spent a night in a hotel about 3/4 of the way. One thing for sure is the drive home after a hard hunt sucks. It helps the drive a little though if your hunt is successful.

 

[philos]

I typically drive 12-15 hrs each day just to get the drive over with. Typically takes me two days. I try to leave early, but also try to time my drive where I'm not hitting rush hour near any major cities...hate rush hour.
Hunt duration is as many days as I can get away. I don't think I have ever done less than a week.
The drive home is not any worse (or better) for me as I'm usually looking forward to seeing the family again.

This

 

[jdmaxwell]

Past 6 yrs we drive from PA to Co straight thru 27 hours non stop.
Leave super early AM arrive next afternoon. Stay overnight in town.
Head up on mountain next day..

 

[tommymo]

Past 6 yrs we drive from PA to Co straight thru 27 hours non stop.
Leave super early AM arrive next afternoon. Stay overnight in town.
Head up on mountain next day..

JD how many drivers.

 

[moeleo]

It takes two of us 26 hours of straight driving to get to where we hunt in CO. We run around 6 hour driving shifts. Drive out actually seems rougher to me cause of the anticipation and can't sleep. Makes it a longer drive out I think. Drive back your so exhausted and just talking and reliving thoughts. We use a total of 2 weeks for the drive and hunting. 2 days driving, 2 days packing, 10 days hunting. Basic breakdown.

 

[TurkeyBowMaster]

I drive until I'm so sleepy that it want take long to get to sleep, crawl in the back of the pickup and sleep until I wake up and drive some more. I get to Montana in a couple days. Getting there on a Monday gives you the best chance to kill quick...usually by Tuesday they settle down from the weekend warriors and start acting normal.

 

[JDeanP]

The one time I drove out there for play itself instead of work, I left my job and told everyone I would be in the woods till I decided to walk back out. Didnt see a single elk, but I wasnt eyeing my watch the whole time either.

If youre hunting at elevation, leave yourself as much time for the drive out there and pre hunt time at elevation as you can. Especially if youre going to a new-to-you elevation. The more gradually you can adjust, the easier it is on yourself. You can put the rush on for the way back, but aclimate on the way up.

Ive driven from East Tennessee to the Colorado Rockies several times. Usually it involves a couple hours racked out in the truck at a rest area. I tend not to sleep well when I have that far to drive, so I just grab 2-3hrs rest as needed where I can. Hunting, even for tiny rodents, gets me so amped it would be wasteful to spend money on a hotel.

Also, IF you know you want a hotel, be sure to bring enough cash to pay for a cheap stay. Ive seen enough and heard enough from others to know better than to use a card in BFE for a hotel. Jokers are likely as not to steal your info and suck your funds dry.

 

[jdmaxwell]

JD how many drivers.

Sometimes 3 of us. Last 2 years just 2 of us..

 

[Trial153]

I drive alone from NY yearly. No matter where I am hunting I am looking about about two days drive time. I leave home about midnight and get about 20-22 hours in the first day. I either stop and sleep in my truck or get room. Either way I am on the road again about 4-5 the next day and could finish most of the drives. Most years I am making two or three trips through the fall and winter. I also fly about half the time if it's logical for the trip with gear ect... just makes it shorter and give me extra hunting days.

 

[Brendan]

I drive solo from Boston. Have done Montana twice, Wyoming once. Had a buddy with me for the drive out year 2 but that didn't change the itinerary. Figure 2500 miles each way.

Friday after work, 8-10 hours. Saturday - 17 hours. Sunday 10-12 hours and hunting that evening.

I wake up at 3:30, driving by 4. Drive until dark or a little after, then pull over and get a good night sleep at a hotel. I stop for gas / stretch / food every 3 hours and make sure I have enough Podcast episodes and elk hunting / calling audio to last me the whole trip and more

 

[elkguide]

I drive because I can't bring enough gear on the plane as well as having mobility when I get where I'm going. I leave early in the morning and drive 18 - 20 hours or until I get tired and either crawl into a sleeping bag in the back of my truck or get a hotel depending on how I feel. I do walk around the parking lot for 5 - 10 minutes every time that I stop for fuel and sometimes just because I feel that I need to stretch my legs. It's 35 hours to the area that I hunted in Idaho this last fall. As to how long I stay. EVERY day that I can!

 

[Deepshax]

Im by the beach in NJ, takes me about 28 hours to get to Denver. I like to leave for long trips late afternoon, 4-6pm. I drive straight through with another driver only stopping for gas/bathroom breaks (usually at the same stop). I will be flying this year though,

 

[tommymo]

Im by the beach in NJ, takes me about 28 hours to get to Denver. I like to leave for long trips late afternoon, 4-6pm. I drive straight through with another driver only stopping for gas/bathroom breaks (usually at the same stop). I will be flying this year though,

Hey deep,

I'm from northern NJ, how many days do you normally give yourself for a trip?

 

[Deepshax]

Not that Im a pro but 10 days should get you 7 solid hunting days depending in where your hunting.