What's busy?

[huntingaddiction]

I have hunted WA my entire life and started hunting out of state in 2017. I started with Idaho and have since moved on to Montana. Will hunt Wyoming one day soon and probably Oregon at some point as well as back in Idaho. What I find interesting is other states idea of "busy" or "crowded". In our time out of state, we have been fortunate enough to have people help us and give us tips on where to hunt. We hear about areas being busy a lot and when we get there we will find 5 to 10 camps.

In WA that would be almost no pressure, yet in Idaho that area would be considered heavily pressured. So my question is, what do you consider a "busy" or "crowded" area?

 

[Trapline]

In California here and know what you mean. But as far as spots if I see another person the entire day, its busy and crowded and I didn't drive far enough to get away from the masses.

 

[trophyhill]

You should have seen CO OTC during the height of the Rona if you want to see “busy” lol

 

[huntingaddiction]

You should have seen CO OTC during the height of the Rona if you want to see “busy” lol

I was in Montana during the height of it, I'm sure Colorado is busier than Montana but it still doesn't seem like it can be as bad as WA. You can get a lot more remote in Colorado. I've never been there, so who knows?

 

[trophyhill]

Remote is very subjective. Yes it looks remote on OnX, and guys like Newberg will push it on their videos with llama's and such, but the changes I've seen in CO in the backcountry are ridiculous. 2 years ago I hiked into a "remote" area and had it all to myself the first weekend. I went back 2 weeks later when I was able to take time off and the elk had disappeared. Gone! I ran into several groups of hunters and found out there were 11 people hunting the area and had moved in while I was back at work. So much for remote. I packed up and did truck camp after that and was back into elk.

 

[missjordan]

My idea of busy is when your driving to plan A and you see camps pulled off at 75% of the available spots. And you get the spot A and one car is parked there. So you move onto plan B and someone else is there too. So you move onto plan C, nobody’s there so you park and walk in and at some point see another hunter or two in the distance where you wanted to be.

I’m sure other states are worse and just have to try the best you can given the circumstances. I personally don’t like to park on top of someone but that’s just me


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[huntingaddiction]

My idea of busy is when your driving to plan A and you see camps pulled off at 75% of the available spots. And you get the spot A and one car is parked there. So you move onto plan B and someone else is there too. So you move onto plan C, nobody’s there so you park and walk in and at some point see another hunter or two in the distance where you wanted to be.

I’m sure other states are worse and just have to try the best you can given the circumstances. I personally don’t like to park on top of someone but that’s just me


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Agreed, and I understand that. In Idaho, one of the places I am referring to will literally have nobody in there as we hike in four miles from the top and overnight it. Road is 7 miles in and once the gate locks it is a ghost town. Not worth hunting the first couple weeks of season but a couple days after the gates close, there will be bulls everywhere. In WA we have killed elk with a bow and had 4 people walk by by time we have the elk gutted.

 

[Haro450]

I think busy is all relative. I always figure if there are people hunting it must be alright hunting. I have hunted areas that I always see others hunting when I am out hiking. Than other areas where I don't see another car parked let alone another person out hiking. Rifle seasons every where seem to have more hunters and camps across the board. One reason I stick to archery. My local rifle hunts are jam packed with hunters! Camps in every perceivable pull out and people doing hot laps on the main roads! Even with that many people there are little pockets of forest to get away from people where the animals go to hide.

 

[Geewhiz]

If theres someone where I want to be, thats too busy for me.

 

[CenterPunch]

CO OTC where I hunted 2019-21' I'd definitely consider busy. Typically a camp setup along the FS road anywhere that was ideal and atv/truck parked at every drainage or logging road. Ran into hunters several times a day usually. I was able to take advantage of the pressure to find the pockets of elk though.

 

[huntingaddiction]

CO OTC where I hunted 2019-21' I'd definitely consider busy. Typically a camp setup along the FS road anywhere that was ideal and atv/truck parked at every drainage or logging road. Ran into hunters several times a day usually. I was able to take advantage of the pressure to find the pockets of elk though.

That sounds like hunting in WA.

 

[timekiller13]

You should have seen CO OTC during the height of the Rona if you want to see “busy” lol

Flattops second rifle OTC.

That’s the busiest place I have ever seen.

Everywhere else I have hunted I wouldn’t even consider it moderately pressured. But the Flattops was down right dangerous.

 

[Jaquomo]

I have a photo of 72 vehicles at one wilderness trailhead on opening weekend of CO archery season in 2020. That didn't count the three groups a packer packed into drop camps. I consider that sorta "busy".



Anywhere Born and Raised makes a video will be jam packed the following year. Wish those guys would keep their hunting locations quiet, because they sure screw it up for all the hunters who hunted there for years, even decades, before they invaded.

 

[Ucsdryder]

I define busy as hearing other people bugling daily and having people moving in silently on bulls you are working. Nothing more frustrating than a guy cutting you off (silently moving between you and the bull) while you’re actively working a bugling bull.

 

[Maverick1]

First year elk hunting: went the third week of the season, thinking it would be peak rut. Hunted fire one week. Elk sign everywhere, no elk. Must be due to hunter pressure. Decided to make a different plan for year #2.

Second year elk hunting: went to the same place as year #1. Ran into 21 hunters in the drainage I was hunting. In ONE week! That explained the lack of elk the year prior. Decided to make a different plan for year #3.

Third year elk hunting: went to a different state, hoping for less pressure. Picked out a “super top secret” trail head using digital scouting. Got there the day before the season and there was 32 trucks parked at the trailhead.

That is what I call busy.

 

[mtwarden]

Montana with it's six week rifle season tends to "spread the wealth" a little and now that I'm retired I can pick middle of the week to hunt (I typically skip opening weekend). I'll sometimes see a few other vehicles where I'm parking, but am typically hiking in 3-6 miles and that seems to thin things out considerably. It also means that my pack outs usually suck too!

 

[RSather528]

My definition of busy is the sun lighting up all sorts of blaze orange dots around me. This is a slug only area so every 200 yards there is someone in blaze orange. The volley of duck hunters and deer hunters shooting at the same time at legal light is insane.

 

[matthewmt]

Montana with it's six week rifle season tends to "spread the wealth" a little and now that I'm retired I can pick middle of the week to hunt (I typically skip opening weekend). I'll sometimes see a few other vehicles where I'm parking, but am typically hiking in 3-6 miles and that seems to thin things out considerably. It also means that my pack outs usually suck too!

The flathead has probably seen a 30% growth in the last few yrs, I've noticed many out of state plates changing in to local so I'm worried what the fall will bring in the mountains.

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[madtinker]

When 40 tags are issued for a unit and they all camp in the same draw…

 

[jgilber5]

When I drove out of an otherwise empty drainage with a rack in the back of the pickup and there were ten trucks there by the time I made it back from the butcher.