First timer - a few questions on 3rd season elk

[BilboBaggins]

I’m hoping you guys can give me some insight into a few questions I have. I’m new to hunting out west, though I have whitetail hunted in Missouri. I’m planning on doing an OTC, third season rifle elk hunt in Colorado this year. I’m not entirely sure how to plan things, partly because I don’t know yet if I’ll be solo or with a partner (I don’t have one lined up), and partly because I’m just new to this.

Here are my questions:

Since this is my first year, should I just truck camp i.e. drive to a trailhead, park, day hunt, and hike back to the truck each night to sleep? Part of me thinks that’s less fun, but it might be more practical for a first attempt.

I’d really like to set up a hot tent and hike pretty far into the mountains, but then the challenge becomes getting meat out if I do shoot an elk, especially solo. In that case, should I line up an outfitter with horses to help pack the meat out? Is that something people typically do?

If I do go the hot tent route, should I get an ultralight tent instead of a wall tent? Or do people actually hike far in with wall tents?

Lastly, if anyone happens to be doing a third season elk hunt in Colorado and wouldn’t mind a tag-along, I’d really appreciate the company and guidance. With every other difficult skill I’ve learned in life, I’ve had a mentor, so doing this without one is new territory for me. I’m 26 and in good shape, so I can keep up. I work as a marine engineer, which means I’ll have all of November and December off.

 

[patagonialuke]

Tons of different ways you could go about it, so I wouldn't say there are cut-and-dry answers to your questions.

If I were in your shoes, I'd start with e-scouting to figure out which unit(s) you want to focus on, and which zones in the unit(s). That will be a big (maybe biggest?) factor when it comes to deciding on day hunting out of the truck vs. hiking in deeper. Also affects the choice of regular vs. hot tent, and what sort of hot tent. (You could also flip this, deciding what style of hunt you want to do and then pick the unit based on that.)

In general, if you're going to an OTC unit you've never seen or just scouted once, my approach is to prioritize mobility / giving yourself options. In some places, you can do that by driving around and glassing into a bunch of different zones not far from roads. In others, that might mean you have to cover a lot of ground on foot, whether that's doing a big loop with camp on your back, or setting up a spike camp in an area with multiple zones to hunt from it.

A hot tent can be really nice if we get winter-like weather during 3rd rifle, especially if you plan on spending significant time at camp, but not a necessity. IMO the non-ultralight hot tents aren't practical to haul solo for more than a few hundred yards from the car (I've hauled a ~30lb one a few miles using a sled + skis, but that's highly snow dependent). The less time you plan on spending at camp and/or the more you plan on walking, the less I'd prioritize having a tent with a stove due to weight and bulk.

I won't be hunting 3rd rifle this year, but if you're eyeing units in the Southwest part of the state, feel free to DM me and I might be able to offer some thoughts.

 

[LongWayAround]

I’m hoping you guys can give me some insight into a few questions I have. I’m new to hunting out west, though I have whitetail hunted in Missouri. I’m planning on doing an OTC, third season rifle elk hunt in Colorado this year. I’m not entirely sure how to plan things, partly because I don’t know yet if I’ll be solo or with a partner (I don’t have one lined up), and partly because I’m just new to this.

Here are my questions:

Since this is my first year, should I just truck camp i.e. drive to a trailhead, park, day hunt, and hike back to the truck each night to sleep? Part of me thinks that’s less fun, but it might be more practical for a first attempt.

*Yes. You should absolutely plan on doing this. The elk are not all five miles out from the access.

I’d really like to set up a hot tent and hike pretty far into the mountains, but then the challenge becomes getting meat out if I do shoot an elk, especially solo. In that case, should I line up an outfitter with horses to help pack the meat out? Is that something people typically do?

*No. You do not need an outfitter. Even if third season is relatively warm, it will still be plenty cool to let meat hang for as long as you need. Figure about four trips if you are solo.

If I do go the hot tent route, should I get an ultralight tent instead of a wall tent? Or do people actually hike far in with wall tents?

*No one is hiking out a wall tent. If you go that route, it's some sort of tipi.

Lastly, if anyone happens to be doing a third season elk hunt in Colorado and wouldn’t mind a tag-along, I’d really appreciate the company and guidance. With every other difficult skill I’ve learned in life, I’ve had a mentor, so doing this without one is new territory for me. I’m 26 and in good shape, so I can keep up. I work as a marine engineer, which means I’ll have all of November and December off.

*My comments are in the above quote.

 

[Cohunter22]

We typically set basecamp on NF with a wall tent and day hike in and out. Depending on your budget a drop camp may be a better option for you, or day hike with a pack out service. But honestly you have tons of options, another one would be basecamp wall tent, then spike if you find animals back in there.


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[Kenai_dtracker]

My first elk hunt during 3rd rifle we did an airbnb. Bit of a drive every morning/evening, but we slept good and always felt refreshed. Opening morning temps were -13. That would not be fun in an ultralight tent.

I'd say have a solid base/truck camp with a good heat source if there's no other close by accommodations. Hike in an out in the dark and hunt all day with a light pack that can pack meat. November gets dark early, so plenty of non hunting time.