Idaho Mule Deer/Elk Hunt

[87TT]

I say go. It' will be an experience although expensive and maybe not what you are expecting . It's your life so just do it if you want.

 

[Customweld]

My advice is to call the IFG Southwest Regional office in McCall and talk to the biologist there. She is very helpful and has a lot of info for the fly-in hunts. There are a couple of roads that access portions of 20A. Both have substantial summits that you have to go over. If you choose to vehicle in, be prepared to get out in short notice. Everyone should experience the Frank once in their lives. It's a humbling experience.

 

[Customweld]

Also something to keep in mind is the airstrips. I believe there are only 3 public airstrips in 20A. Wilson Bar (USFS Strip on the Main Salmon), Chamberlain Basin (USFS) and Cold Meadows (USFS) Mackay Bar, Root Ranch and Campbells Ferry are private strips.

 

[nphunter]

If i ever go back to 20a it will be to wolf hunt or deer hunt. We saw more wolves than deer or elk when we were there a couple years ago.

 

[Jhaury7]

Very rough yet beautiful country. Unforgettable trip

 

[BeerBugler]

Haven’t hunted 20A, been into 27 quite a bit, I would never discourage anyone from hunting the FC at least once. The huntings what you make of it, nothing comes easy in there. Everything in there requires maximum effort. The hikings tough, the huntings tough, getting waters tough, even getting firewood can be difficult, but it’s all worth it. I’ve seen bighorn sheep, wolves, elk and deer all in the same day. I’ve never seen a bull in there much over 300” and I usually only see one big buck per trip but it’s s great experience. 20A might be different but my guess is it’s similar. We fly out of cascade with g and s (George) or Arnold (Walt), we always figure with gas, charter, license, and tags, the trips about $1,000.

 

[Eastman528]

Hey, I came across this thread while doing some research for my early archery mule deer hunt this year. I have hunted in 20A in 2014 was successful on elk, 2015 successful mule deer and 2016 where my wife had the elk tag and was not successful and I missed a shot at a wolf.i have also been shed hunting/ spring bear hunting. I have not read all of the replies so I apologize if I am reiterating what has already been said. The Frank is truly a special place and I have wanted to go back sense my last trip in spring 2017. Although I was successful on my first elk trip in there I will not likely go back for elk. Partly because I am more interested in Archery now and secondly because there are just far better places in Idaho to elk hunt that still have great rugged country and better elk populations. All that being said I intend to go back for Mule deer and wolves. I had plans to this year with a friend but I drew an archery deer tag. I would strongly recommend for a first time just buying a Mule deer tag and a wolf tag of course. I’m like you it’s really about the adventure and you will get all of that you can handle plus some looking for mule deer without the logistics or worry of how to pack out an elk. Just my thoughts hope that doesn’t sound discouraging. Feel free to PM me i’d Be glad to talk about it more with you.

 

[NomadHunter603]

Hey, I came across this thread while doing some research for my early archery mule deer hunt this year. I have hunted in 20A in 2014 was successful on elk, 2015 successful mule deer and 2016 where my wife had the elk tag and was not successful and I missed a shot at a wolf.i have also been shed hunting/ spring bear hunting. I have not read all of the replies so I apologize if I am reiterating what has already been said. The Frank is truly a special place and I have wanted to go back sense my last trip in spring 2017. Although I was successful on my first elk trip in there I will not likely go back for elk. Partly because I am more interested in Archery now and secondly because there are just far better places in Idaho to elk hunt that still have great rugged country and better elk populations. All that being said I intend to go back for Mule deer and wolves. I had plans to this year with a friend but I drew an archery deer tag. I would strongly recommend for a first time just buying a Mule deer tag and a wolf tag of course. I’m like you it’s really about the adventure and you will get all of that you can handle plus some looking for mule deer without the logistics or worry of how to pack out an elk. Just my thoughts hope that doesn’t sound discouraging. Feel free to PM me i’d Be glad to talk about it more with you.

Thank you! That’s exactly what I’m looking for! I bought an elk tag because it was cheap enough for me to do so and I know how my luck is. If I didn’t buy one I’d have one walk through camp or something.


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[ID_MW]

Have fun in the Frank. Forget the pack raft idea. A few miles on the middle fork that time of year would be all the flimsy little boat could handle and you’d just end up packing more garbage out.

Fly in, hike hard, find water, hike even harder and you might find a good one.

 

[NomadHunter603]

So I’m a little late on my post hunt update, but I figured I’d fill everyone in on how it went. Coming from the northeast, I can’t believe how many deer we saw. Lots of does and quite a few spikes. A lot of the people we met got some really nice bucks, even the ones that chose to stay in a wall tent at the airstrip. We didn’t find any monsters, but this was our first back country trip for mulies, so I’m sure that’s part of it. The Frank Church is some steepppp country. We landed at about 4500’ and hiked 2.5 miles to around 7000’. As soon as we got to the top, a smaller 3x2 came out of a little draw. We had 8 days to hunt, but we also drove 2,500 miles and I still had 2 other tags, so I chose to take this buck. I shot him off hand at about 140 yards, no tracking to do. At this point we just barely had enough time to get him quartered up, in game bags, and strung up in a tree. We got the tipi and wood stove setup right as it was getting dark. Only downfall was there was no water nearby and we each only had one Nalgene bottle full that day. So we went thirsty that night, except for the little bit of water that we filtered from a pretty gross looking puddle lol. The next day took us on a 5 mile round trip hike to find water from a spring. The rest of the trip involved a lot of hiking, glassing, and a couple of close calls for my friend trying to punch his tag. I guess there’s a few main takeaways for anyone planning this trip. Water being a huge one. When I hunted SE Colorado, even though there wasn’t water on the map, it was pretty easy to find little streams/creeks. That isn’t the case here. Finding a good camping spot can be a little tricky. We camped right on the ridge. It had a great flat spot and great views. It was only intended to be for the night and then relocate, but water the next day took priority. The downfall with a spot with a view is there’s no shelter from the wind. The second night, we hardly slept because it was so windy, Id say about 20-30mph gusts. Don’t underestimate the weather there, it can change quick. The second day I’m pretty sure it was close to 50 degrees Fahrenheit and then dipped into the negatives the day we left. All in all, it was an amazing experience and if you’re considering it, I say go for it. I’ll be going back at some point. I flew with McCall aviation and they were great to deal with, answered all of my stupid questions I had lol. The flight in and out alone is worth it, seeing all of those mountains and realizing that there’s almost 2.4 million acres there to explore.


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[RAM190Hog]

As someone who's floated the MFS 4 times, I would not recommend that course of action to anyone without extensive river experience and a lot of gear and training. The river is very technical, especially at the low flows in the fall. You can easily find yourself in a very bad situation in a swim w cold water / cold ambient air, or worse yet a raft pinned, and no one else on the river to aid in rescues. If you're going to fly in, hike up from the airstrips. My buddies usually set up a base camp on/near airstrips, and then spike camp from there. I have yet to do it, but hope to soon.

It looks like some gnarly terrain. I have highly considered the raft thing, but it seems like it could be a logistical nightmare, as this already somewhat is coming from New Hampshire haha. I appreciate the reference though, I'll take a look into them!

 

[RAM190Hog]

As someone who's floated the MFS 4 times, I would not recommend that course of action to anyone without extensive river experience and a lot of gear and training. The river is very technical, especially at the low flows in the fall. You can easily find yourself in a very bad situation in a swim w cold water / cold ambient air, or worse yet a raft pinned, and no one else on the river to aid in rescues. If you're going to fly in, hike up from the airstrips. My buddies usually set up a base camp on/near airstrips, and then spike camp from there. I have yet to do it, but hope to soon.

Ooops, playing catch up. I replied to you posts in the planning phase. Glad to see you had a good trip in the FC. Love that country!

 

[Outlaw99]

Sounds like a great experience, congratulations on your buck.

 

[Gutshotem]

So I’m a little late on my post hunt update, but I figured I’d fill everyone in on how it went. Coming from the northeast, I can’t believe how many deer we saw. Lots of does and quite a few spikes. A lot of the people we met got some really nice bucks, even the ones that chose to stay in a wall tent at the airstrip. We didn’t find any monsters, but this was our first back country trip for mulies, so I’m sure that’s part of it. The Frank Church is some steepppp country. We landed at about 4500’ and hiked 2.5 miles to around 7000’. As soon as we got to the top, a smaller 3x2 came out of a little draw. We had 8 days to hunt, but we also drove 2,500 miles and I still had 2 other tags, so I chose to take this buck. I shot him off hand at about 140 yards, no tracking to do. At this point we just barely had enough time to get him quartered up, in game bags, and strung up in a tree. We got the tipi and wood stove setup right as it was getting dark. Only downfall was there was no water nearby and we each only had one Nalgene bottle full that day. So we went thirsty that night, except for the little bit of water that we filtered from a pretty gross looking puddle lol. The next day took us on a 5 mile round trip hike to find water from a spring. The rest of the trip involved a lot of hiking, glassing, and a couple of close calls for my friend trying to punch his tag. I guess there’s a few main takeaways for anyone planning this trip. Water being a huge one. When I hunted SE Colorado, even though there wasn’t water on the map, it was pretty easy to find little streams/creeks. That isn’t the case here. Finding a good camping spot can be a little tricky. We camped right on the ridge. It had a great flat spot and great views. It was only intended to be for the night and then relocate, but water the next day took priority. The downfall with a spot with a view is there’s no shelter from the wind. The second night, we hardly slept because it was so windy, Id say about 20-30mph gusts. Don’t underestimate the weather there, it can change quick. The second day I’m pretty sure it was close to 50 degrees Fahrenheit and then dipped into the negatives the day we left. All in all, it was an amazing experience and if you’re considering it, I say go for it. I’ll be going back at some point. I flew with McCall aviation and they were great to deal with, answered all of my stupid questions I had lol. The flight in and out alone is worth it, seeing all of those mountains and realizing that there’s almost 2.4 million acres there to explore.


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Thanks for the update, sounds like an awesome trip. Any pics?

 

[Kurtisb1994]

Ill be out there hunting Idaho this year for elk myself, thank god for DAV licenses!

 

[Jim Carr]

I'm planning a hunt for this fall in the Frank Church Wilderness. I think it specifically is going to be in 20A, as we are mostly targeting mule deer. I'm getting an elk tag because it is very cheap for non-resident veterans. We're planning on flying in. That being said I'm looking for any info on air charters, air strips, what kind of weather to expect in the mountains, etc. I've read on some other forums about some air strips that are pretty good, however I'm having a hard time finding a lot of them on Onx, is there any better way to go about finding these air strips?

A good national forest map will have all the airstrips and allow you to see the whole at onceto put everything into perspective.

 

[NomadHunter603]

Thanks for the update, sounds like an awesome trip. Any pics?

I'll upload some in a couple minutes here. I also have a video from it on youtube. I won't lie, its not a great video, really my first time attempting to document a hunt. And we didn't even get my deer on camera haha. It all happened so fast that I didn't have time to give my friend the cam corder.

 

[NomadHunter603]

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[NomadHunter603]

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[NomadHunter603]

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