Montana unit for Elk

[dbeatty65]

270 bull. Not all raghorns. Lots of old burns like that. View attachment 143758

NICE bull pal!

 

[Airborne1]

What part of MI? I'm from MI myself the Jackson-Ann Arbor area.

I am in sterling heights. I hunt in calhoun and barry counties.

 

[dbeatty65]

I am in sterling heights. I hunt in calhoun and barry counties.

I get back when I can to see family while there seeing customers

 

[dbeatty65]

Geographically it's a big unit. Yes, you can expect wolves so buy a tag.

There's a good bit of hunting pressure as it's a draw unit for residents, but it has to be your first choice and it's a guaranteed draw for residents.

I hunted it this year during rifle and saw more orange than elk. I shot my bull on the second day of rifle and saw a lot of road hunters so expect a lot of pressure. I've taken bulls out of this unit in '17 and '19 and they were both raghorns. While you can find big bulls, it's predominantly raghorns that you'll see as it's managed for opportunities.

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Which side of the unit did you hunt Darby or Anaconda?

 

[MTbowhunter36]

I've hunted the whole unit; north, south and everything in between.

Not sure what you are asking about Anaconda as it's a couple units east.

 

[dbeatty65]

I've hunted the whole unit; north, south and everything in between.

Not sure what you are asking about Anaconda as it's a couple units east.

Unit butts right up to the border of Anaconda area...I have hunted it year ago also

 

[MTbowhunter36]

Unit butts right up to the border of Anaconda area...I have hunted it year ago also

Ahh, gotcha. It's 211 I believe.

 

[Indian Summer]

I believe he’s referring to the Anaconda Pintlar Wilderness which is the southernmost portion of 270.

 

[dbeatty65]

Anyone been up and around Bald Top Mountain area?

 

[daberry95]

I have hunted this unit 3 times. Every time I have seen multiple bulls. Some rag horns and two 300+ Missed two bulls. Seen some mountain lions, their den and also wolf tracks, never seen or heard one though. But overall I like the unit. There is a lot of elk in there, you just need to find them. My very first time I opted to learn from a guide and we were in elk 4 out of 5 days, one was my miss judged distance causing a miss. The rest of the hunts were DIY. I would be going back there again this year but I was in a different unit for 2019 and am going to go back to that unit for 2020. Try something new. I personally wouldn't hesitate to go back. Oh and some of the muley I have seen are great! I meet a woman and her father there two years ago that drew a muley tag and she shot a brute. They also passed on multiple bulls during archery.

What outfitter did you go with when you went with one the first time?

 

[Airborne1]

What outfitter did you go with when you went with one the first time?

You probably wont find a lot of reviews for him, as he is someone my buddy that lived there knows. He certainly knows his spots.

Montana Elk Hunting with Montana Hunting Fishing Adventures

Montana Elk Hunting Rifle and Archery Elk Hunts with Montana Hunting Fishing Adventures on the Bitterroot National Forest

montanahuntingfishingadv.com

James Mitchell
MT Outfitter # 9961
(406)363-3510
Cell (406)360-7238
870 Sleeping Child Road Hamilton, MT 59840
[email protected]

 

[daberry95]

Thanks for the info. I ended up going with an outfitter in that unit. Great people but was pretty disappointed to come home with nothing. We were there late in the season and he had ran quite a few other hunters through the same camp and the elk were very pressured. We hiked a lot of miles and seen 3 bulls all in one day and the rest of the days all we seen was a group of cows. It was nice country and always it’s always nice to be out in the mountains we hunted up the east fork trailhead.


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[Indian Summer]

Anyone been up and around Bald Top Mountain area?

I know every inch of that country.

 

[Indian Summer]

Thanks for the info. I ended up going with an outfitter in that unit. Great people but was pretty disappointed to come home with nothing. We were there late in the season and he had ran quite a few other hunters through the same camp and the elk were very pressured. We hiked a lot of miles and seen 3 bulls all in one day and the rest of the days all we seen was a group of cows. It was nice country and always it’s always nice to be out in the mountains we hunted up the east fork trailhead.


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Who was your outfitter?

 

[daberry95]

Who was your outfitter?

East fork outfitters


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[Indian Summer]

East fork outfitters


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Bob Zikan. Great elk hunter. Rough camps though. I used to live next door to his log home on the Bitterroot.

 

[daberry95]

Bob Zikan. Great elk hunter. Rough camps though. I used to live next door to his log home on the Bitterroot.

Yes and a great guy no complaints from his service at all it’s just a bummer not coming home with one. We were told we were the most in shape group they had all year and boy after that week Of climbing those mountains it was sure nice to sleep in a warm bed!


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[Indian Summer]

I hear you. Lots of guys say it’s about the experience and tagging an elk is just a bonus. But for all we put into it the experience sure is better when you kill a bull. He does hunt a decent area. I punched 13 tags straight there. But before you get too excited I was outfitting and spent more time in the hills in one season than some can in a lifetime. Over a month of bow hunting and 5 weeks of gun and sometimes I didn’t punch a tag until the last week.

 

[dbeatty65]

Anyone hunt it this year yet? I'm 99.9% sure applying for next year.

 

[jmh00043]

Anyone hunt it this year yet? I'm 99.9% sure applying for next year.

I chose to buy and build points.