MT General Elk (and Deer) - Opening Week or Delay?

[Brendan]

Trying to make up my mind if I want to be in Montana for the opening weekend of General Elk / Deer, or delay a little bit later in the season.

Have the general combo, and have always archery hunted when I've been in MT. This year I'm having shoulder issues and can't use my bow, so rifle season it is. Guessing that the orange army will be out in force - what's your preference, be there for the opener and deal with (and use) the pressure? Or delay later in the season, even if only a week?

I do have the deer tag too, so realize delaying into November would probably be better. I will probably be targeting some of the places I've been before in the western part of the state during past archery seasons.

Coming up fast, thinking I need to make up my mind!

 

[S.Clancy]

I think it is prob sixes as far as go opener or go later from a success perspective. That said, it is usually a hominid shit show opening weekend....

 

[KHNC]

Long as it isnt NW Montana. Rifle season elk dont really exist up in that country in my experience. lol

 

[Brendan]

Long as it isnt NW Montana. Rifle season elk dont really exist up in that country in my experience. lol

Nope - not up in the NW.

 

[BuckeyeRifleman]

I’ve always been an opening weekend guy. I’ve always found success… and pressure.

That said this year my trip for WY elk will start about a week after the opener due to the fact my hunting partner had a scheduling conflict. Supposedly after about a week the hunting pressure drops significantly and elk go back to doing normal elk things… We’ll find out if that’s true I guess.

Sorta uneasy about it still, but if I went for the opener it would be solo vs my buddy and his son with me to help. Either way it should be a great trip!

 

[Brendan]

For what it's worth, I'm leaning towards delaying a week. Starting hunting around Halloween.

Works better for me logistically, and I have a deer tag too and theoretically there should be more deer opportunity if I delay a little bit.

I get there will be pressure, but not a fan of crowds if I can avoid them, I get plenty of that at home.

 

[MTSasquatch]

The choice between the two comes down to what you want from the hunt. If you have the experience and local knowledge, you can be successful either on the opener or later on. If you’re unsure then the quality of your experience will come down to what you can realistically expect from your hunt, aside from the consideration of whether or not you’ll punch a tag out here. You mentioned archery hunting while in Montana. Elk rifle season out here is drastically different than bow season, in my experience mostly in terms of where they are and how you find them. And while it is possible a fella with limited time and rifle experience can expect to see elk and deer in the same area at the same time during rifle season, it’s also my experience where it’s good for one critter usually isn’t as good, if at all, for the other in most public land situations with general tags.

Simply put, I’d decide which critter to focus on and do that, rather than looking for both at the same time. Especially, if your elk rifle experience out here is limited. Obviously, deer will get easier the deeper into Nov you wait, but elk will remain challenging throughout the season. I have never seen a considerable uptick in deer activity in October, and it typically doesn’t happen until mid November. Weather can help them stay active, but rutting activity is primarily a factor of length of day/night.

At any rate, you’ll be out there mixing it up and hunting. Best of luck

 

[BuckeyeRifleman]

For what it's worth, I'm leaning towards delaying a week. Starting hunting around Halloween.

Works better for me logistically, and I have a deer tag too and theoretically there should be more deer opportunity if I delay a little bit.

I get there will be pressure, but not a fan of crowds if I can avoid them, I get plenty of that at home.

I’ll say this after hunting MT a few years… Opening weekend pressure can be a benefit as long as you know what it will do to the elk and be in the right place. I’ll probably continue to hunt opening weekend.

That said it is true the pressure drops off significantly after a week and there are still plenty of elk to be found on public land.

The bigger question is weather. Snow can spark the migration and make for excellent hunting. It can also cause visibility to drop and make for tough going from a glassing perspective.

My biggest concern is weather, not the date on the calendar IMO. Unfortunately weather is just luck of the draw unless you have some flexibility in your calendar and can go when the weather looks good.

 

[Brendan]

Just so everyone knows where I'm coming from - Not a total rookie. Have been to MT 3X since 2014 although all in September. Mix of perfect September weather to 2' of snow and wind in the mountains. Came home with one 5x5 and one whitetail from those 3 trips. I can also throw in a rifle bull in each of WY and CO, a WY pronghorn, and a couple other trips where I came home empty handed (I have a couple Elk and a muley that'll probably haunt me for the rest of my life). Every successful trip has been solo. But, latest I've been out there is middle of October.

My first stop will be an area of MT that I've spent ~25 days in during September because I know it. This area will be biased towards "pre migration" if the weather hasn't hit. If I'm not seeing anything, or there's snow or weather that could drive a migration, I have two new areas on the list. One of them is a 698-00 B Tag where General Deer is open too.

Calendars are the toughest parts about planning these trips, you pretty much have to pick a time and go. I've had years it worked out, and years we got crushed and frustrated because of it.

 

[406flyfish]

MT rifle opener is comparable to going to Costco on Sunday.

 

[Crapshoot]

MT rifle opener is comparable to going to Costco on Sunday.

Ya, but that's when they have the most free samples.

 

[Tradchef]

I would wait the extra week. I usually can’t go because of work on general opener and could honestly care less about it. Once guys get their jollies off and weather turns to shit as said above….limited pressure and still plenty of animals. Plus you know your area and that always helps. Again…they most likely won’t be in your September spots but you’ll find them. Good luck man

 

[137buck]

My kid and I are skipping the shit show of opening weekend and going waterfowl hunting instead. Have had way too many bad experiences on opening weekend to go any more, we'll wait until the weekends warriors are gone.

 

[huntercole]

Last year we left on October 28th and the bucks were really starting to move that last evening and following morning. I'd want to be there the last week of October or first week of November for the spot we were in. I'll be there the 2nd week of November this year due to another hunt pushing this one back.

 

[jimh406]

I would look at the long range forecast before you decide to wait or go. Opening day will be better if you want to hunt pressure, but on the other hand, there should be less people in the woods after the first few days.

Also, consider where you will have your animal processed if you aren't doing it yourself.