Ebike for elk hunting: pulled the trigger!

[txhunter581]

This is a pretty good resource too

Forest Service Visitor Map

Explore your National Forests and Grasslands with the new and improved Visitor Map 2.0

www.fs.fed.us

 

[ndbuck09]

Do you folks who are jumping on this craze of the use of another type of motor ever consider 10-15 yrs down the road when access into elk areas has become even more easy for a number of years? Have you realized/seen the increases in pressure as result of the use of a resource like gohunt and onx which has lowered the barrier's to entry and changed the game in the hunting world?

Now we as hunters have these electronic machines that a large contingent want to make legal to use to punch into remote drainages on regular non-motorized trails where an MTB could have been used for years, just with some summer riding and putting in the effort, ie: 100 miles a week in the summer. I see sponsored, well respected, incredible elk hunters pushing the use of these bikes, profiting from taking them to the masses, all in an effort from the manufacurers to normalize the use and pressure public land agencies into allowing them to be used widely.

To get this pushed into complete legality on any non-motorized trail outside of the designated wilderness just seems like completely backwards considering how cool and appealing all of the "conservation" orgs and discussions that have become trendy over the past 5 years in western hunting. I mean, we're wanting to conserve the resource of Elk/deer but then we want to make it 10 times easier to get into areas where previously it was more difficult so that we can be even more efficient at hunting them. We won't hardly have any seasons left.

Do we learn from the past? Ie: people wanted to be guarenteed eventually that they'd get a tag so older folks instituted point systems, the 3 wheeler and 4 wheeler came out and so people got specific trails for those (and the pressure on the public lands systems is always to increase these miles). It's a very slipperly slope and I hope you all are considering years into the future how the already stressed resource of animal numbers and increasing hunter numbers in the West will be impacted by such a perceived personal advantage. It all contributes to a downward trend in the hunting experience that we all initially came here to love.

 

[Gerbdog]

Do you folks who are jumping on this craze of the use of another type of motor ever consider 10-15 yrs down the road when access into elk areas has become even more easy for a number of years? Have you realized/seen the increases in pressure as result of the use of a resource like gohunt and onx which has lowered the barrier's to entry and changed the game in the hunting world?

Now we as hunters have these electronic machines that a large contingent want to make legal to use to punch into remote drainages on regular non-motorized trails where an MTB could have been used for years, just with some summer riding and putting in the effort, ie: 100 miles a week in the summer. I see sponsored, well respected, incredible elk hunters pushing the use of these bikes, profiting from taking them to the masses, all in an effort from the manufacurers to normalize the use and pressure public land agencies into allowing them to be used widely.

To get this pushed into complete legality on any non-motorized trail outside of the designated wilderness just seems like completely backwards considering how cool and appealing all of the "conservation" orgs and discussions that have become trendy over the past 5 years in western hunting. I mean, we're wanting to conserve the resource of Elk/deer but then we want to make it 10 times easier to get into areas where previously it was more difficult so that we can be even more efficient at hunting them. We won't hardly have any seasons left.

Do we learn from the past? Ie: people wanted to be guarenteed eventually that they'd get a tag so older folks instituted point systems, the 3 wheeler and 4 wheeler came out and so people got specific trails for those (and the pressure on the public lands systems is always to increase these miles). It's a very slipperly slope and I hope you all are considering years into the future how the already stressed resource of animal numbers and increasing hunter numbers in the West will be impacted by such a perceived personal advantage. It all contributes to a downward trend in the hunting experience that we all initially came here to love.

I appreciate the response, and I agree with the assessment, especially considering how sensitive elk are during the calving months, however, studies are showing that its pretty much ANYONE that busts these mother elk during calving months that kills the calves. Its not necessarily an increase in hunters getting into the backcountry that is altering the hunting experience but just a general increase in the population that are out enjoying the wilderness, at all times of the year, that is having a massive effect. I do tend to lean on the side of "get back there on the quads God gave you" and think that access to the backcountry by just about anyone is having a negative impact on the wildlife populations. I have zero solutions for this "problem" and I'm glad people are getting outside more, its a great place to be. I also probably just contributed to derailing this thread, sorry, nice bike and I hope it contributes to a successful hunt for you!

To add to the thread, I also considered investing in an E-bike this year I'm just not convinced how long the legislation allowing for them on most trails will hold up and it was a big enough investment for me personally that I'm going to hesitate and watch how it all plays out. My hunting partner asked what else I would use the bike for and when I had zero good answers to those questions he said I'm probably better off saving my cash.

 

[Pbast81]

I have an ebike that i took to Colorado and used where it was legal and let me tell you that you better be a professional mountain biker to use it on some of the trails I went down. I put it up and went back to hiking. The only useful place i found for it was atv trails and closed roads that allowed bikes. I also agree that wilderness areas should remain closed to bikes. I still enjoy hiking or accessing by horseback to those areas.

 

[txhunter581]

The sky is falling!

Not! It’s a tool just like scope, binocs, and rangefinder and your $50,000 truck you drive to the trailhead. I will be using it instead of a 4wheeler on legal trails. No trailer required and so much quieter. And when a gas engine breaks I have no idea what to do. But with electric motors there is no much less to go wrong/ fix. So instead of a 4 wheeler I will have a bike.

And no, I won’t be taking it into sheep country and I will still be doing lots of hiking. At 62, I bet I have hiked and backpacked about as much as anyone here. Killed this deer on a backpack trip 5 miles from And 4000 ft higher than my truck

In the area I hunt, they have closed off many of the logging roads that used to be open to 4 wheelers. And I am glad for that. But will I also be glad if they allow me to someday use those roads on an ebike: yep. No trailblazing, no off-road riding, just allow me to ride my pedal assisted bike where you can already ride a pedal bike.

So no, I don’t think the sky is falling.

 

[Gerbdog]

The sky is falling!

Not! It’s a tool just like scope, binocs, and rangefinder and your $50,000 truck you drive to the trailhead. I will be using it instead of a 4wheeler on legal trails. No trailer required and so much quieter. And when a gas engine breaks I have no idea what to do. But with electric motors there is no much less to go wrong/ fix. So instead of a 4 wheeler I will have a bike.

And no, I won’t be taking it into sheep country and I will still be doing lots of hiking. At 62, I bet I have hiked and backpacked about as much as anyone here. Killed this deer on a backpack trip 5 miles from And 4000View attachment 203632 ft higher than my truck

In the area I hunt, they have closed off many of the logging roads that used to be open to 4 wheelers. And I am glad for that. But will I also be glad if they allow me to someday use those roads on an ebike: yep. No trailblazing, no off-road riding, just allow me to ride my pedal assisted bike where you can already ride a pedal bike.

So no, I don’t think the sky is falling.

Sky's always falling for some reason or another depending on the day and person you are talking to, but that's a nice buck! thanks for sharing the photo and some of those logging roads may already be E-bike accessible, look up the regulations in that particular area