Montana 332 for Elk

[cknlg1]

Wondering if your experience was the same as mine regarding:
1. Hunter overcrowding
2. More than one Grizzly issue
3. All around lack of opportunity (maybe in part to the grizzlies)
4. Or suck it up buttercup, at least the views are grand!
5. Its a big unit, is it worth giving it another shot?

Feel free to PM me!

 

[Brendan]

Sounds like a lot of MT to me...

 

[mtmuley]

Not really. mtmuley

 

[Selway]

I would love to hear about all the grizzly bears you encountered in the Pioneers...

JFC, one bear walks in front of a trail camera and all the sudden the griz have decimated the elk herds

 

[Brendan]

Not Pioneers, but a grizz did claim an Elk from a couple hunters on the other side of the Big Hole a couple years back.

 

[Selway]

I'm in the Bighole year-round. At MOST, there's a half dozen grizzlies in the upper valley in the summer, but I'm willing to bet at times there isn't a single one. Elk outnumber grizzlies at least 1000:1 in the Big Hole. If you're blaming not killing an elk on grizzlies, it might be time to take up golf.

 

[cnelk]

To the OP.

Are you getting the same info across all the forums you posted this inquiry?

 

[dreamingbig]

I was in there twice in September this year. I found active wolves, very quiet elk and only saw two other groups of hunters (2 in each group).

We had our chances for sure but the elk were definitely on edge and I would put money on the wolf presence not hunting pressure.


Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk

 

[slowelk]

I was in there twice in September this year. I found active wolves, very quiet elk and only saw two other groups of hunters (2 in each group).

We had our chances for sure but the elk were definitely on edge and I would put money on the wolf presence not hunting pressure.


Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk

Agree. Although I see more wolf sign on the west side of the big hole than on the west slope of the pioneers.

Grizzly bears are few and far between.

 

[cknlg1]

To the OP.

Are you getting the same info across all the forums you posted this inquiry?

Also posted on Stickbow and this is the only response thus far
"I hunted 6 days in 332 and 319 last year and never saw a single elk on public ground.
I spent way more time further south from there and got into elk every day, but was also competing against dozens of hunters everywhere I went it seems."

 

[cknlg1]

Appreciate the convo. Not blaming anyone or anything and my golf game sucks also . Bear encounter was west side and 2 in 3 days about 3.5 miles apart. Cant say it isn't the same bear but can't say otherwise. Either way, 1 is enough for me.

 

[Gumbo]

Suck it up, buttercup, it ain't Disneyland and you gotta pay your dues. Griz and pressure are a part of the game in general units in MT, although the Pioneers are one of the areas I wouldn't be too concerned about bumping into a griz, there just aren't many, if any, resident grizzlies.

 

[dreamingbig]

The one thing I couldn’t reconcile while in the Pioneers is how do the ranchers keep the wolves from eating their cattle? The cattle and the wolves were sharing the same valley. Anyone know how many cattle they lose in their while grazing?


Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk

 

[Gumbo]

The one thing I couldn’t reconcile while in the Pioneers is how do the ranchers keep the wolves from eating their cattle? The cattle and the wolves were sharing the same valley. Anyone know how many cattle they lose in their while grazing?


Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk

They shoot them. Don't know how many are lost to wolves though. The feds also remove wolves that start targeting cattle by trapping and aerial gunning.

 

[dreamingbig]

We were in there on two separate trips. The cattle didn’t exactly have security with them. We have the same issue in WA state with less wolves and they claim to try and remove the wolves too. Feedback is that it doesn’t stop the wolves behavior and they can’t kill them all.

I was just surprised they would run cattle in there with the thick presence of wolves. We heard them 2x and saw several tracks.


Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk

 

[Rawmeat]

It was my first year hunting elk.

Only ran into 2 other groups while in the field (Not crowded).

Found a raghorn and 2 cows on last day of 8 hunting days with no opportunities. Heard one bugle all week.

Saw one black bear.

LOTS of cattle, in areas I found elk in August and areas I only e-scouted.

It wasn't far off from my expectations as a newb. Learned a whole lot.