Idaho 20A

[87TT]

Yeah I think it would be an awesome backpacking trip. Maybe take a fishing pole. Or a rifle and just a wolf tag. Much better places to elk or deer hunt.

 

[idahohikker]

Here's my .02 on the thing with the Frank: it's really vast, wild country. Animals will be really scattered throughout it until the very end of the season when some migration may be happening with weather. Wolves are in high numbers in there and bump elk regularly into different basins or canyons. You can't feel confident that any one spot on the map is going to hold one living creature.

Guys who get after it can and do cover a ton of country from an access point like a strip. If you covered 5-7 miles in all directions of the strip, you will have covered a lot and put yourself in a good position to harvest something. Moving 20 miles in one direction creates huge nightmares for packing out animals and doesn't increase your odds of finding game.

 

[Idguy88]

Rough is an understatement. My brother and I flew into Cold Meadows Airstrip. We then hiked up to Papoose Lake. Then over to Farrow Mountain. Then back to Papoose Peak. Then over to Cold Mountain, and then back to the airstrip. We are both in excellent shape. We figured we put on 55-60 miles in 7 days. I lost 12 lbs in the 7 days, and was completely wiped out. We did find a group of cows, and one big bull. However they were 16 miles from the airstrip. My brother wanted to shoot the bull with all his being. I however was the voice of reason. There was just no way to get that bull back to the airstrip. Never did see a deer, but we did see 2 wolves that were coming up the same trail we were going down. No time for a shot unfortunately. One of the best trips that I've ever been on, even though we ate tag soup. Good luck on your trip.View attachment 159511View attachment 159512View attachment 159513View attachment 159514View attachment 159515

Sounds just like the trip we are putting together. I appreciate the response and photos. What time of year and who did you fly with / what town did you fly out of if you dont mind me asking?

 

[Diamond K]

I have hunted out of Cold Meadows a lot. That is east of the Root Ranch strip which is east of where you plan to hunt. Back in the day before the fires it was almost a for sure thing to get a bull or two down if you were patient and had the time to wait. Now there are just pockets of dark timber with a lot of open ground. They tend to run in cycles, nothing for several days then you will have elk for a few nights and then they are gone. The mid September opening was great for bugling. Not to cold at night but we have been snowed on too.
Our first year we thought we could pack in and do it. We drove to Big Creek and hiked it from there going up Smith Creek towards Mosquito Springs. After a week of nothing but track soup we had a pilot drop us off at Cold Meadows.
Hunted Lower Cottonwood Creek and took 2 bulls out that year. As some have said, if you do get an elk down that is when the work starts. We packed the meat out to the strip and had the outfitter who had a base camp there call out for the pilot to come get us. But elk meat means more trips flying out, so factor in the extra expense. You can fly in from the west side out of Cascade and McCall. Arnold flies out of Cascade and was doing mail runs to the back country. You can get flights from Salmon and Challis on the east side.
After those early years of having someone fly us in I started flying the back country myself. That isn't something for every pilot to attempt but it has worked for me. Spent a summer flying with a local pilot who once lived in the back country. Flew fire equipment out of Boise into Gardner MT for the Yellowstone fire, that was something to see from the air. But that is another story.
Another option might be to consider driving from the north towards Mackay Bar by way of Dixie. Had some success south east of Dixie too. It is all great country to be in but you are on your own.

 

[PowellSixO]

Sounds just like the trip we are putting together. I appreciate the response and photos. What time of year and who did you fly with / what town did you fly out of if you dont mind me asking?

We did this trip mid October and flew out of McCall. The plane service we used was sawtooth flying service.

 

[Idguy88]

I have hunted out of Cold Meadows a lot. That is east of the Root Ranch strip which is east of where you plan to hunt. Back in the day before the fires it was almost a for sure thing to get a bull or two down if you were patient and had the time to wait. Now there are just pockets of dark timber with a lot of open ground. They tend to run in cycles, nothing for several days then you will have elk for a few nights and then they are gone. The mid September opening was great for bugling. Not to cold at night but we have been snowed on too.
Our first year we thought we could pack in and do it. We drove to Big Creek and hiked it from there going up Smith Creek towards Mosquito Springs. After a week of nothing but track soup we had a pilot drop us off at Cold Meadows.
Hunted Lower Cottonwood Creek and took 2 bulls out that year. As some have said, if you do get an elk down that is when the work starts. We packed the meat out to the strip and had the outfitter who had a base camp there call out for the pilot to come get us. But elk meat means more trips flying out, so factor in the extra expense. You can fly in from the west side out of Cascade and McCall. Arnold flies out of Cascade and was doing mail runs to the back country. You can get flights from Salmon and Challis on the east side.
After those early years of having someone fly us in I started flying the back country myself. That isn't something for every pilot to attempt but it has worked for me. Spent a summer flying with a local pilot who once lived in the back country. Flew fire equipment out of Boise into Gardner MT for the Yellowstone fire, that was something to see from the air. But that is another story.
Another option might be to consider driving from the north towards Mackay Bar by way of Dixie. Had some success south east of Dixie too. It is all great country to be in but you are on your own.

Thank you for the response!

 

[BAKPAKR]

We will set parameters so that we do not have 4 animals to deal with right off the bat.

Say someone shoots something day 2. Then 2 guys will be shuttling meat and camp all day, while the other 2 continue to hunt. Say if I tag out on day 3, then myself and guy who punched tag day 2 will be spending the rest of the trip moving meat, camp etc. it will be a constant shuffle. If all tags are filled on day 4, then looks like we will be shuttling meat for the next 4 days. This is just an example. Once a tag is filled by someone, that persons job for the remaining days will be shuttling meat, nothing else.

Its difficult to describe exactly how things will go because it all depends on when we find game. Keep in mind we will have deer and elk tags. Each person will only being filling 1 species so there is a better chance we will be filling deer tags more often than elk. BUT who knows

I cannot confirm from what you have posted, but is flying yourself and meat out from Chamberlain a backup plan? If not, it probably should be. My friend and I had a through trip planned where we wound up turning around at about the halfway point because of an unexpected snowstorm. We hadn’t thought of a Plan B for pick up should we have to return to the drop off location. Also, has your buddy’s father run the Salmon to your intended pick-up spot? I have heard it can be a little tricky in spots.

That area is beautiful and wild. It is also rugged and GoogleEarth doesn’t do it justice. I am a big fan of the late humor author Patrick McManus. He wrote a story called, “The Big Trip.” This sounds like it may be your “Big Trip.” I would be the last person to try to talk you out of it as I think everyone should have at least one “Big Trip.” I have had a few, and my friends occasionally remind me of one where I vowed to never have another. Fortunately, I have been able to keep my marriage vows longer than I kept that one .

Good luck, be safe, and enjoy the memories!”

 

[Idguy88]

Well folks, I thought I would post an update since I got a fair amount of negative comments about this trip. Just got back over the weekend and we did not fill any tags. Could have killed a few small bucks but did not see any of size worth taking and did not see any bulls. We did see a good amount of tracks/sign (fresh snow gave them up easily). Overall it was an awesome trip. Ended up clocking 1/4 mile shy of 30 miles from airstrip to pick up point. I would place the blame on not filling tags on the weather. We got hit with lots of precip both snow and rain and only got about a day and half of clear days out of the 8 that we were out there. At times we were in a near white out and glassing was not an option either because of the snow or the socked in clouds. Either way, it was a very memorable trip. If anyone in the future has plans on going into the frank and particularly unit 20A, please reach to me and I would be happy to pass on my experience / knowledge.

I did appreciate all the folks on here who said this hunt wouldn't be doable as you were my motivator throughout the planning process.

The animals are in there, you just need a good amount of days, patients and luck and you could have yourself a trip of a lifetime. Didnt see anyone other than the pilot who dropped us off and the cabin owners at the end. If you want an area where you wont see anyone, this is the place to go!

 

[Diamond K]

Good to know that there are a few left in the area. I was fortunate enough to hunt the area years ago before the Silver Creek burn, that changed the area. It wasn't uncommon for us flatlanders to pack out 2 or 3 nice bulls each year. Back then the elk ran on cycles and wouldn't be around for a week or so and then they were everywhere. Great country ....but you earn what you get.

 

[TXJaeger]

Well folks, I thought I would post an update since I got a fair amount of negative comments about this trip. Just got back over the weekend and we did not fill any tags. Could have killed a few small bucks but did not see any of size worth taking and did not see any bulls. We did see a good amount of tracks/sign (fresh snow gave them up easily). Overall it was an awesome trip. Ended up clocking 1/4 mile shy of 30 miles from airstrip to pick up point. I would place the blame on not filling tags on the weather. We got hit with lots of precip both snow and rain and only got about a day and half of clear days out of the 8 that we were out there. At times we were in a near white out and glassing was not an option either because of the snow or the socked in clouds. Either way, it was a very memorable trip. If anyone in the future has plans on going into the frank and particularly unit 20A, please reach to me and I would be happy to pass on my experience / knowledge.

I did appreciate all the folks on here who said this hunt wouldn't be doable as you were my motivator throughout the planning process.

The animals are in there, you just need a good amount of days, patients and luck and you could have yourself a trip of a lifetime. Didnt see anyone other than the pilot who dropped us off and the cabin owners at the end. If you want an area where you wont see anyone, this is the place to go!

Appreciate you posting a report. Sorry to hear things didn’t go differently with the animals, but glad you went for it, and came out healthy and safe. It’s enchanting country. I understand the allure. I’ve been bitten by the FCRNRW bug before. If your primary concern is filling tags, and easy pack outs, there is better country to hunt. But some hunts are about “trophy country.” You hunt that country and you are bagging a trophy, irrespective of whether you notch a tag.