States with most remote backcountry

[Neckbone]

I'm at work browsing the forums wishing I was scouting, and it got me thinking..

I see a lot about "Getting 5 miles from any road" an "Going way back". Since starting hunting the west I have been to UT, MT, WY, and ID. Poked around several areas of some of these states. There weren't a whole lot of areas that I found that you would have been able to get 5 miles from an established road or trail. Now I'm sure there are areas in those states where getting 5 miles from a trail is very possible.

So without being too specific, what state or regions of state would you say has the most available, way off the beaten path, ability to get far far away from anything a 4x4 or ATV could possibly cross?

 

[Geewhiz]

There aren't near as many of these places as people think there are. 5 miles as the crow flies from any established road or trail requires big country. There is very little of that in the lower 48.

 

[Sierra Hunter]

AK

 

[Skerhunter]

Canada

 

[Poser]

Its a very overblown/exaggerated idea that is often suggested by hunters. I believe that it has been posted on Rockslide before that there are only 4 areas in the lower 48 where you can get more than 8 miles from a TH/access point. If this is true, I live right next to one such area and I can assure you there are hunters all over the wilderness area. A handful of obvious access points "get you in deep" by forcing you into a canyon trail for 8-10 miles before the terrain opens up. I assure you these trials are full of hunter's broken dreams. Going for a casual hike on these trials during archery season is almost a sport unto itself if you enjoy seeing a trailhead full of "rigs" with hunting stickers and expensive coolers and a trail full of guys decked out in the latest and greatest mopping along after hiking 10 miles one way in to area full of hunters where they have effectively zero chance of seeing any elk and despite all of their effort, turns out 10 miles with a heavy pack is a lot more difficult than they anticipated and they would have been entirely incapable of packing an elk out on their own. But wait, there's more: drop camps are at every single alpine lake.


The more time I spend here, the more exploring and scouting I do, the more comical the efforts of many hunters becomes: The vast majority try the exact same strategies over and over again, year after year in the same exact locations using the same exact THs and trails and ever single year there is a new crop of hunters doing that and they think they are doing doing something that no one else is willing to do because its 8 miles back. I recognize that you can only know what you know and a certain percentage have to fail, but its interesting that so many people think that they are thinking outside of the box when they are literally driving within a 1/4th of a mile of elk to hike 10 miles back where there are no elk at all.

 

[RockAndSage]

what state or regions of state would you say has the most available, way off the beaten path, ability to get far far away from anything a 4x4 or ATV could possibly cross

That's the rub - and what most people don't include in the definition of "road". But it's not roads that are the issue, it's the combo of human pressure and deer habituation. Find a place that's a half-mile away from a road and 100' below your line of sight from that road or behind a hill or rise, and as long as there's cover and especially feed, that's just as likely to have a nice buck in it as some place 5 miles from a 2 track fitting the same description.

 

[Dennis]

Greenland

 

[justinspicher]

I hear Sibera is pretty isolated….

 

[The_Jim]

Not to mention that most of the time even 1 mile of off trail travel SUCKS let alone 5 miles of bushwacking.

 

[Nickofthewoods]

Search Google for list of wilderness area sizes and you'll get several results that will answer your question. National Parks also offer some large roadless areas but are generally not huntable.

 

[dirtytough]

I’ve come upon multiple unmarked trails from outfitters or other hunters. And you will occasionally find trails made from climbers.

It’s not the distance that separates hunters. It’s the terrain.

 

[Pony Soldier]

The concept of good hunting is directly related to wilderness and distance from a road is, in my mind, a flawed program. I have had areas with multiple herds of elk for years and then a fire either elimonates habitat or creates habitat and its time to start over. A couple of really hard, long winters and all your herds can move, die or split up. Because of the flexibility of elk herds, every year for every area is a new program. Weather can make or break the success of every season.

I focus more on areas that have limited exposure to vehicles or avoiding access that facilitates large volumes of hunters from an upper road to a lower road. A long distance hike into the wilderness tends to focus a large number of hunters onto a limited number of trails while removing the flexibility of hunting options.

After working for 50 years in most of the wilderness areas/roadless areas, there are many that I never encountered sign of any big game. Some had so many camps, that I would have had more privacy at a state fair. Some were outfitters and some were locals. Nice places but I wouldn't commit a season to camp there. That's after I walked them, rode through on horseback and flew over them on a helicopter. I'm just not prone to hunting in crowds. just because it's a long ways from anything doesn't mean it won't be crowded.

 

[CorbLand]

If you are including trails, I dont know that you could get more than 5 miles in the lower 48.

When people say get way back there, I dont think they are necessarily saying away from trails. Most are referring to roads.

 

[mighteywhitehunter]

California. Has the most Wilderness in the lower 48 and you dont need to pay a guide or outfitter to access it. Now to find huntable game in that wilderness... thats the tough part.

 

[willfrye027]

California. Has the most Wilderness in the lower 48 and you dont need to pay a guide or outfitter to access it. Now to find huntable game in that wilderness... thats the tough part.
View attachment 849256

You beat me to it!

Hard to find critters but we’ve got some amazing alpine backpacking that’s not very crowded. Plenty of places you are not likely to see anyone for days or weeks.

 

[Marbles]

I AK, if you can land a plane within a few miles, don't count on being alone. On the other hand, if you have the stones to bust up 2000 feet of alder covered mountain to an area with no trail to the alpine and no place to land, you can literally look down on others and never have no one in your hunting area. There is a reason for that. If you have not spent 8 hours to trave less than 1.5 miles and been dog tired afterwards, you either don't get how bad it is, or you are a very impressive human.

On another note, you can get more than 23 miles from a road or land vehicle access without leaving Anchorage City limits. You will be only about 12 miles from boat access though.

 

[nphunter]

Most western states have plenty of places away from open roads. That’s what I consider back country. I know of several areas that are well over 5mi across that are seasonably closed for wildlife escapement and many of those are much better hunting than 10 miles deep in the church.

 

[FAAFO]

I AK, if you can land a plane within a few miles, don't count on being alone. On the other hand, if you have the stones to bust up 2000 feet of alder covered mountain to an area with no trail to the alpine and no place to land, you can literally look down on others and never have no one in your hunting area. There is a reason for that. If you have not spent 8 hours to trave less than 1.5 miles and been dog tired afterwards, you either don't get how bad it is, or you are a very impressive human.

On another note, you can get more than 23 miles from a road or land vehicle access without leaving Anchorage City limits. You will be only about 12 miles from boat access though.

I love a good alder busting trip. You know it’s a good one when you have to camp in it…unexpectedly

 

[Alpine4x4]

The North Cascades of WA have some extremely remote terrain, especially if talking proximity to a road. There also isnt a lot of game there except very early in the season as our ungulates are extremely migration orientated in those areas. It's also loaded with hunters getting "way back" during the early alpine season. You're better off finding a nasty draw down low that people look over and walk around.

 

[Sccritterkiller]

If you are including trails, I dont know that you could get more than 5 miles in the lower 48.

When people say get way back there, I dont think they are necessarily saying away from trails. Most are referring to roads.

Big difference between marked trails and used trails...
I have spent a week in the Cranberry Glades WA and not seen a soul. I did have to walk the old railroad bed in about 6/7 miles and then north over a couple ridges...I came across marked trails on a map but it was obvious they haven't been used in months.

I have spent time in way smaller wilderness areas and not seen people as well...its amazing how 50 yd calf deep stream crossing keeps folks out.

Difficult access/topo is way more important than marked trails if you want to be alone, IMO