How far do you really need to go?

[Kevin87]

I've been lucky a few times and found elk not too far from camp, but do better by hiking way in away from the rif-raf.

 

[Newtosavage]

Who you calling rif-raf?

 

[Southforkguy]

wapiti 1 moms sure have luck on there side! my mom is a regular pro when it comes to fishing with the boys

 

[rayporter]

an ol timer told me "the elk will be where they have always been"

 

[Moondoondude]

I look at it this way, the best hunters and most motivated dudes hike in on average 2.5 -10 miles. That puts that whole zone completely out of the question.

The average hunters and weekend warriors are about 1 - 2.5 miles in. I can't compete with average, meaning that zone is out of the question as well.

The laziest, fattest, truckhunters and rifraf are ALWAYS less than a mile in. That's my zone. I just got to be the best of the worst.

 

[DenverCountryBoy]

Effects of off-road recreation on mule deer and elk.

tl;dr
About 1/2 mile from motorized vehicles and bicycles, 1/4 mile from hikers and horses. Less for mule deer.

 

[FLAK]

Hunt your way in till you find them. You will be surprised how
close to the trail head they can be. Most people walk right past them. Course, I live on the Gulf Coast. What do I know?

 

[ljrunyanii]

Hunt your way in till you find them. You will be surprised how
close to the trail head they can be. Most people walk right past them. Course, I live on the Gulf Coast. What do I know?

I agree with this. When it starts looking elky or you see sign start hunting. Don't walk past elk to get to elk.

Sent from my SM-G892A using Tapatalk

 

[deerkiller]

I once killed a 5 pt at 15' (scope cover was still on when the smoke cleared) he was bedded in a pole thicket and my partner and I walked right past him (he HAD to have layed his head down as we went by) partner slipped on an icy log, bull lost his nerve, I swung, saw horns and fired, head shot - it was less than 50 yds out the rear of the wall tent and 5 of us had not been quiet getting ready and having bkfst

 

[deerkiller]

3 rules of Elk hunting: 1) wind is everything
2) WIND is EVERYTHING
3) elk are where you'll find them

 

[Graymumpower]

Killed elk 5 miles from camp and a half mile from camp... its a brutal game

 

[trophyhill]

A quote from an anonymous and great elk killer in his own right,

"Elk are where you find them"


If it's right out of truck camp, I'll be ecstatic! If it's 3 miles in, I'll be ecstatic. If it's 5miles.......oops someone's got that one covered already. Can't wait for opening day!

 

[Sundance]

Last year played out as such:
Day 1- Hike/Bike 20 miles opening day, saw 4 hunters heard one bull.
Day 2- Hiked 13 miles saw 10 hunter, no elk.
Day 3- (evening hunt)- Biked in 5 miles, no hunters and missed a good chance on a small bull.
Day 4-
Morning hunt- biked back in 5 miles, missed the same bull from prior night. biked another 5 miles w/ no elk or hunter seen.
Evening hunt- Left a public camp ground with 15+ hunter camps. Drove 1 mile. Hiked in 1/4 mile. Shot P&Y bull at last light.

Sometimes they are way back deep and sometimes they are right under everyone's nose.

 

[Stubborn_bowhunter]

If there's food, water, and cover.... There's probably elk. If there's not elk there's probably already people that blew them out.

 

[Bluegrassvw]

Well, I'll see in about a month and report back.

 

[Howell81]

Everyone goes deep these days and most places you run into the deep guys from the other side. So usually <2 miles from TH is a decent spot. Most guys heading in walk right on by.

 

[jb1316]

I was reading a journal the other day about exploring the furthest place from a road in all 50 states. In Colorado, the furthest place from a road was 8.8 miles (as the crow flies I believe). Now, there are cases where private land would or a river or something blocks access from “the other” direction or it is a highway where parking is not allowed, but 8.8 miles was the farthest. That tells me most spots are much closer than that. So, I’d say it’s not the distance that matters as much as what’s there and how difficult it was to access.

I live near the Sam Houston National Forest and hunted it a bunch last year. Everyone on the forums recommends hunting way back in off trails to go where no hunters go - but looking at the trail systems and knowing the forest a little it was absurd. You cant go 2 miles from a trail in the Forest the way the trails all zig-zag through the place. The only way to hike "miles from a trail" would if you didnt know there was a trail on the other side of that creek.

 

[Nickofthewoods]

One of the best spots I know for Elk is 1/2 mile from a major Highway. I wish I could get an official count on how many hunters blow by that spot on their way Wilderness Trailheads in the area.

 

[GregB]

One of the things you need to consider with how far in to go, is getting the meat out in a timely manner before it goes bad. I hunt by myself so I generally don't go any further than 4 miles, no way I'm going 10 miles in, to make 4 20 mile round trips and get the meat out before it starts to go bad. If you are with a group that can get it done in one trip then 10 miles is more doable. But if you don't go in 12 miles how are you gonna tell everyone you hiked in 12 miles.

 

[Btaylor]

One of the things you need to consider with how far in to go, is getting the meat out in a timely manner before it goes bad. I hunt by myself so I generally don't go any further than 4 miles, no way I'm going 10 miles in, to make 4 20 mile round trips and get the meat out before it starts to go bad. If you are with a group that can get it done in one trip then 10 miles is more doable. But if you don't go in 12 miles how are you gonna tell everyone you hiked in 12 miles.

In them mountains and by eastern count, 300 yards is a mile-mile and a quarter