lyle_destroys
WKR
I was successful in my 1st elk hunt in 2nd season Colorado this year. Thanks to some help from the rokslide community and hours of research. I wanted to share some things that I found were valuable and hopefully someone else can use them.
-The drainage I wanted to hunt was on fire when I got there, have serious backup plans and the mental attitude that you WILL have to adjust the plans you've been making all year long.
-I was into cows the 1st day of hunting, they were high through 1400 feet of elevation and LOTS of blowdown timber. There was no pressure up there. I literally had the whole place to myself. Bulls I know were in pockets a little higher than the cows.
-Be aware of food, this area had green grass even through the dark timber all the way to treeline. The elk didn't need to come down, if you didn't climb to almost 10000 feet you would think this area was empty.
-Dont leave elk to find elk. I've heard this many times but it really hit home. We broke camp to scout another area when I was seeing cows everyday. With a little motivation from @BeastOfTheTrees I decided to go back and killed a bull the next day.
-If it's real cold, forget the Camelback and carry bottles, my hose froze up multiple times so I had to stop and take my pack off to drink water.
-Talk to everybody, some guys wont share specifics but its surprising how many people want to see others successful. Talk to the old dude in mossy oak smoking a cigarette outside the hotel. He pointed to spots that hold elk on a map, not where I was hunting this year but it's good information to have for a backup plan or another hunt. Another group had hunted the drainage I was in for 15 years, older guys that knew it but couldnt go to the top anymore. They can tell you what the terrain looks like without you having to stomp through it.
-Change elevation until you get into fresh sign, from 9800 to 10200 there was sign like crazy but it was all from the rut. Very little was more recent than that. After the rut the elk moved up to where getting to them was an absolute suckfest.
-Know your limits, I pushed myself a little too hard for a few days and ended up losing a full day of hunting to recuperate. Take breaks when you are hiking and eat.
This is a start, I'm sure more will come to me that I learned during the process but I hope this will help someone.
I've attached pics of the beautiful 5x5 I was lucky enough to harvest, after I had him broken down and in bags what had just happened hit me. It was the closest thing to a spiritual experience I can imagine.
-The drainage I wanted to hunt was on fire when I got there, have serious backup plans and the mental attitude that you WILL have to adjust the plans you've been making all year long.
-I was into cows the 1st day of hunting, they were high through 1400 feet of elevation and LOTS of blowdown timber. There was no pressure up there. I literally had the whole place to myself. Bulls I know were in pockets a little higher than the cows.
-Be aware of food, this area had green grass even through the dark timber all the way to treeline. The elk didn't need to come down, if you didn't climb to almost 10000 feet you would think this area was empty.
-Dont leave elk to find elk. I've heard this many times but it really hit home. We broke camp to scout another area when I was seeing cows everyday. With a little motivation from @BeastOfTheTrees I decided to go back and killed a bull the next day.
-If it's real cold, forget the Camelback and carry bottles, my hose froze up multiple times so I had to stop and take my pack off to drink water.
-Talk to everybody, some guys wont share specifics but its surprising how many people want to see others successful. Talk to the old dude in mossy oak smoking a cigarette outside the hotel. He pointed to spots that hold elk on a map, not where I was hunting this year but it's good information to have for a backup plan or another hunt. Another group had hunted the drainage I was in for 15 years, older guys that knew it but couldnt go to the top anymore. They can tell you what the terrain looks like without you having to stomp through it.
-Change elevation until you get into fresh sign, from 9800 to 10200 there was sign like crazy but it was all from the rut. Very little was more recent than that. After the rut the elk moved up to where getting to them was an absolute suckfest.
-Know your limits, I pushed myself a little too hard for a few days and ended up losing a full day of hunting to recuperate. Take breaks when you are hiking and eat.
This is a start, I'm sure more will come to me that I learned during the process but I hope this will help someone.
I've attached pics of the beautiful 5x5 I was lucky enough to harvest, after I had him broken down and in bags what had just happened hit me. It was the closest thing to a spiritual experience I can imagine.
