How do you choose a unit for NR Idaho elk

[HighUintas]

I live/hunt in Utah and im considering hunting in Idaho for elk next year. I've never hunted the west as a non-resident, I'm very unfamiliar with the process of picking out a place to hunt where I've never been.

I'm wanting to either rifle or muzzleloader hunt and am fine with shooting antlerless. I want maximum chance to fill my tag, so bull or cow is fine. I live near salt lake, so staying out of the panhandle to shorten the drive is important.

I looked through some units on the IDFG site, looked at success rates, etc and I'm looking at the beaverhead elk zone, but not sure. It's the first place that caught my eye.

If you have some general info, warnings, things I should definitely know about that zone, please PM me. I plan on calling IDGF to ask about it too.

How do you guys go about picking a place for the first time? Are there any primary strategies you use? Just go off a list of priorities?

 

[realunlucky]

Thing about Idaho is it's a shit show on how you get in the queue and what's left when you actually got in and go to check out.

Good luck

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[WeiserBucks]

to shorten the drive is important.

This is mistake #1. Find the best hunt for you and do it. Couple hours driving won't mean jack.

 

[HighUintas]

Thing about Idaho is it's a shit show on how you get in the queue and what's left when you actually got in and go to check out.

Good luck

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Kind of like Utah's general season ALW elk tag sale 2019-2023? Or worse?

 

[jonesn3]

Have a list of options based on some key unit stats that are important for your style. Options 1 through 10. Depending on your random number, you might really have to take a shot in the dark based on what’s remaining tag wise. At the moment, I prefer opportunity in the form of %public land, size of the unit, and some form of population metric.

 

[HighUintas]

After researching heavily for a couple of days, I came up with five different zones that I would consider purchasing a tag for if I had the opportunity to do so today.

To my surprise, every single one of those sold out in the first 30 minutes! And then I continued to watch in amazement as nearly all tags except for FC, LOlo and Selway sold out, not much longer than an hour or hour and a half. I was #8000 on my phone and #20000 on my computer, with no real intent to buy a tag. I just wanted to see what would happen and how quick they'd go.

I think I will just have to start researching routes into the deep wilderness since I do not know how to fully abuse the Idaho online system as some do.

Or I'll just continue hunting my own state haha

 

[Dirtscoots]

As flustering as my home state is to draw or hunt general elk units…….. my experience is you may be driving away from elk to hunt wolves. Only half of my group got tags for 24 we didn’t even log in this year.

 

[LittleForkHunter]

After researching heavily for a couple of days, I came up with five different zones that I would consider purchasing a tag for if I had the opportunity to do so today.

To my surprise, every single one of those sold out in the first 30 minutes! And then I continued to watch in amazement as nearly all tags except for FC, LOlo and Selway sold out, not much longer than an hour or hour and a half. I was #8000 on my phone and #20000 on my computer, with no real intent to buy a tag. I just wanted to see what would happen and how quick they'd go.

I think I will just have to start researching routes into the deep wilderness since I do not know how to fully abuse the Idaho online system as some do.

Or I'll just continue hunting my own state haha

I was one of the poor souls silly enough to buy a Selway tag when my number came up. Now I have the daunting task of figuring out how to carve an elk out of that massive wilderness ridden with predators, on foot, and solo to boot.

 

[HighUintas]

I was one of the poor souls silly enough to buy a Selway tag when my number came up. Now I have the daunting task of figuring out how to carve an elk out of that massive wilderness ridden with predators, on foot, and solo to boot.

I'll absolutely get a tag for middle fork or Selway at some point, but I'll be considering it more of an adventure than a tag filling mission.

 

[High Climber]

I'll absolutely get a tag for middle fork or Selway at some point, but I'll be considering it more of an adventure than a tag filling mission.

That’s a good way to ensure a successful trip

 

[Dixie]

I was one of the poor souls silly enough to buy a Selway tag when my number came up. Now I have the daunting task of figuring out how to carve an elk out of that massive wilderness ridden with predators, on foot, and solo to

I’d recommend calling the local FS districts you plan to hunt about trail conditions as we’ve had some significant windstorms last fall in the Selway zones and with the current non-hiring of seasonal workers some areas might have limited access.
PM me and I can tell you trail conditions of the South end of the area,but definitely not where to find the critters.
Good Luck.

 

[Mooseknuckles]

I usually just wait to see what’s left after the 20000 people in front of me have gotten their tags

 

[jonesn3]

My buddy picked up a Selway tag pretty easily, one of the last zone available on his random number. New unit for him. Based on some information online looks like a difficult hunt to say the least

 

[717flyer]

My unit picked me as it was the only one left i could get a tag in! 38202 was my number.

 

[Soj51hopeful]

Op if you’re fine with shooting a cow you would be better off researching draw odds for a controlled hunt cow tag and put in for one of those.

 

[roadhntr]

Why the need to hunt Idaho? The reason I ask is because I'm also from Utah and I'd never consider Idaho to hunt elk. Maybe Colorado but since there's already a lifetime of areas to hunt elk in Utah and it's a whole lot less expensive as a resident.

 

[LittleForkHunter]

I'll absolutely get a tag for middle fork or Selway at some point, but I'll be considering it more of an adventure than a tag filling mission.

It'll for sure be an adventure. I've hunted CO twice for elk so I'm excited to see new country.

 

[LittleForkHunter]

I’d recommend calling the local FS districts you plan to hunt about trail conditions as we’ve had some significant windstorms last fall in the Selway zones and with the current non-hiring of seasonal workers some areas might have limited access.
PM me and I can tell you trail conditions of the South end of the area,but definitely not where to find the critters.
Good Luck.

I'm still fairly new to the site so once I've earned my way out of FNG purgatory I will do that!

 

[HighUintas]

Why the need to hunt Idaho? The reason I ask is because I'm also from Utah and I'd never consider Idaho to hunt elk. Maybe Colorado but since there's already a lifetime of areas to hunt elk in Utah and it's a whole lot less expensive as a resident.

Just to do something different. Different terrain, etc. also, Idaho actually has OTC firearm tags for cow elk. Utah, everything antlerless is a draw. Even archery.

 

[Maxam]

Northern Idaho is a tough but rewarding elk hunt . Seven devils