Last minute advice?

[Squirrel Master]

I will be headed to Colorado tomorrow for a 2 week hunt. Thing is, I've never been to Colorado!! I'm just nervous about the altitude and how the country and terrain will vary from East Texas where I live. I'm in good shape, have good boots, a good pack, GPS, map and compass, and I've hunted all my life. I was just mainly looking for last minute tips or things I may be overlooking for my first mountain hunt. I'll be hunting out of a base camp with 4 good friends so nothing just hardcore or anything. I'm looking at this as a learning experience, so anything you guys think I may need to be aware of please throw it out there.

 

[Backyard]

Hydrate, hydrate, hydrate. And more hydrate.
Pay attention to the wind more than anything.
Keep it fun, take pics, and enjoy hunting with your buddies. It sounds like you have the rest figured out.
Good luck!

 

[oldgoat]

Don't pass an ethical shot on a legal elk, unless it's too big for how far away from camp you are! Cows, Dink Bulls and calves eat way better than tags!

 

[Blockcaver]

Evidence of sex left on the meat...gutless method of meat care....game bags....watch the wind, understand thermals go down early and late and up in the mid-day times, etc. Good luck!

 

[mtnwrunner]

Shoot straight.

Randy

 

[Northernpiker]

Have fun but hunt hard, you have to wait a year before you can do it again...maybe take it a little easy the first day or two to acclimate.It’s a adventure, enjoy. Happy Hunting.

 

[darcytribe]

You will love it. Be prepared though, you’ll probably have a strong desire to return every year from here on out! Advice- slow your hunting hyper spider-senses often and soak in the environment. Enjoy the beauty of God’s creation all around you.

 

[CX5Ranch]

Go easy for a day or 2. If you feel like a headache is starting then slow way down. Day 3 you'll be like a gazelle.

Have fun.

Never hunt with the wind.



Sent from my SM-G930V using Tapatalk

 

[Squirrel Master]

Thanks for all the tips so far. Good stuff!! Thanks guys.

 

[rayporter]

don't give up altitude!!!!

don't sweat the small stuff.

 

[COmuleychaser]

This is purely anecdotal, but I have found that Tylenol Sinus helps me if I get an altitude headache (in addition to the hydrate/hydrate/hydrate already mentioned). I live here, but if I'm going to altitude I always have some with me.

 

[danarnold]

hydrate, burts bees chap stik. above advice is solid

 

[neverquit]

Never quit

 

[Mt Al]

Go easy for a day or 2. If you feel like a headache is starting then slow way down. Day 3 you'll be like a gazelle.

Have fun.

Never hunt with the wind.

Sent from my SM-G930V using Tapatalk

Sound wisdom!^^^^^

For me, 2 weeks with the same people would drive me and them plum crazy (because of me)! Might plan some solo time, a few restaurant trips to town.

Make sure everyone has a GPS at all times, with base camp "land marked", fresh batteries. Nothing sucks worse than a lost partner.

Not sure the season, but if you can bring a shotgun for birds, mountain grouse.

Have a blast!

 

[Whaledriver]

Have fun. Remember the good stories don't come from things running smoothly!!

 

[oldgoat]

Oh yeah, one more little thing, hunt uphill from camp!

 

[tracker12]

Hydrate, hydrate, hydrate. And more hydrate.
Pay attention to the wind more than anything.
Keep it fun, take pics, and enjoy hunting with your buddies. It sounds like you have the rest figured out.
Good luck!

This says it all.

 

[MGARZA913]

Last year was our first trip. Everything above is spot on. With hydration, take electrolytes! We were drinking a ton of water and still struggling. Ran into town and picked up some NUUN tablets and made all the difference. So, have some sort of electrolytes to add to water.

 

[ncstewart]

Stay in the hunt mentally and have fun. Once you stop having fun you lose the mental game and that’s a wrap to the hunt. You don’t have to hunt at the speed of someone that lives at altitude. Do what you can and just keep going. Be relentless and enjoy it.


Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk

 

[FlyGuy]

Don't be afraid to relocate if you are not seeing fresh sign.

Be courteous and friendly to other hunters, even when you don't feel like it. We are all out there living out our passion. Amazing how I can be so frustrated bumping into another hunter, then within 30 seconds of chatting I find myself wanting to get to know them more b/c of the common bond we all share.

You don't have to wear orange, but a blaze hat sure helps a shooter & caller team easily keep track of each other when separated by 100 yards in the thick stuff.

Don't waste ANY time. Ever. Two weeks seems like a long time. It's not. Don't waste time doing anything in CO that you could get done before you leave home (waiting to buy groceries, waiting buy tags or maps). And don't waste time doing anything in your base camp that keeps you there and not in the woods hunting elk. I'm not saying you can't relax and have a good time, but be mindful that daylight hours are fleeting and they are to be cherished. A few minutes here and there messing with gear or looking for a misplaced item becomes hours quickly, especially with 4 people. Prepack your daily food bags (I'm doing that right now) so you can grab and go quickly in the am. No thinking, no mistakes. Get your pack re-organized for the next morning as soon as you get back at night while your mountain house is cooking. Don't put it off to the morning. That's how people forget stuff back at camp and then have to turn the truck around and go back for a headlamp, etc. Tick-Tock-Tick-Tock...

Buy way more gallon jugs of water than you think you need. Like 3x more than you think.

Be uber respectful of the land and this gift we have to recreate upon it.

Every time it sucks... Every time you are standing there gasping for air after only gaining 30 ft of progress upslope... Every time you have to force your beat-down body out of the warm bag and into the morning chill... Every time your buddy makes a mistake and you want to react like Bobby Knight in the late '90s... Every time you drag ass back into camp without even seeing an elk and you wonder what the Hell you are even doing out there... Every time you re-tape your aching, blistered feet and gingerly slide them back into wet boots... Smile...

SMILE. Smile and remind yourself that you are FINALLY elk hunting! These moments that suck the most are the very same ones that you will most fondly remember. I don't know why that is. It just seems like the very things that threaten to drive you off the mountain and back to the comforts of your warm bed, those are the very 1st things that you begin to miss about elk hunting before you have even made it back home.

Sent from my SM-G610F using Tapatalk