Backcountry vs. Mobility

[AggieHunter]

So I am planning to do OTC archery elk in Colorado this year and want some input on whether to do a full backcountry hunt or a base camp hunt where I would be more mobile. I am 16 and my dad 69 so we aren't the backcountry pair you would think of but did find some elk on a recent scouting trip around 7 miles in. Assuming my future scouting trips into other areas similar distances in are successful I am leaning towards spending a week packed into drainage I choose. We would probably rent some llamas for this as well depending on if I think we can get one out of the area on our backs. After listening to some Elk Talk podcast the importance of mobility in your camp kept coming up making me question my original plan. I have now begun to think about maybe looking at some different areas or units where I could do more day hunts from a truck camp knowing I will have mobility with my camp but the possibility of more pressure. I know there are big advantages to both but I'm curious about what more experienced elk hunters than I would choose or think is more important.

 

[diamond hitch]

I don't do archery any more but I know elk at least in western Montana. I would be inclined to establish a base camp that provided access to three or more drainages. Out of that you can run spike camps for 1-2 days to get the early morning access you desire.

My experience is that the elk move daily. The range is 3-5 miles. Without pressure the cycles are 3-8 days. My old partner always said they didn't like the smell of their own feet. They feed like horses in that they move steadily while feeding following a semi - predictable pattern. With pressure they tend to follow a grab and go pattern meaning they move into a feeding area at night and retreat to a bedding area during the day. Just not the same of either every day. Pressure can be from predators or other bulls. It's amazing how far they can move in an hour.

I hunt an area roughly 40 miles wide with a verticle range of 1500 ft. Within that block I have 34 traverses. Which drainage and which traverse is dictated by weather, pressure, and the elk. Sometimes when its sunny and warm I have a "Haven't been there before day!". It usually takes 3-4 sojurns into an area before a traverse is developed.

Until you develop an understanding of the area stay flexible and leave lots of options open. Stock gives you options but also limits you because of logistics. The major difference between you and your father is recovery time. Seven miles in requires 7 miles out - many times if you get something. For me, with horses, it takes a toll on me to get things quartered and loaded and get out. A couple three miles is comfortable. Three to five is a hard day. Greater than that is damn hard. Be careful!

 

[Deleted member 16014]

Unless you have several areas pretty well dialed in I'd hesitate to leave elk you've scouted just because they might not be there.

 

[2rocky]

DH made a good point about the sheer area elk cover. With that said, you have to look at your elk unit and see if there is a roadless area that will allow you to pack in, without having day hunters interfering. Don't forget about coming in from the other side opposite you. There is no point of packing in if you are gonna have hard MF'ers hiking in 2 hours before daylight past your camp.

Seems like 6-10 miles in is where stock users and backpackers find their sweet spot for camping. Often some yokel will camp right where you saw a bull last year. In fact the year after my father and uncle each killed a bull in consecutive nights at the head of a drainage, there was a wall tent camp smack between their two bonepiles.

For five years we rode 3-6 miles to the elk from a camp close to the trailhead and covered ground to find elk that got pushed around the roadless area we were in. Then for a 5 year period we packed into a camp 10 miles in and killed bulls within 2 miles of camp.

My idea is to be mobile to find elk, and when you do find them then commit to that drainage as long as they are undisturbed. The idea is if you go into the back country it is to find undisturbed animals.
Beau Baty did that in his post cancer hunt in one of the latest Fresh Tracks episodes. I think he glassed the elk one morning, packed in that night, killed in the morning, and packed out the next morning.

 

[ntodwild]

I don't do archery any more but I know elk at least in western Montana. I would be inclined to establish a base camp that provided access to three or more drainages. Out of that you can run spike camps for 1-2 days to get the early morning access you desire.

My experience is that the elk move daily. The range is 3-5 miles. Without pressure the cycles are 3-8 days. My old partner always said they didn't like the smell of their own feet. They feed like horses in that they move steadily while feeding following a semi - predictable pattern. With pressure they tend to follow a grab and go pattern meaning they move into a feeding area at night and retreat to a bedding area during the day. Just not the same of either every day. Pressure can be from predators or other bulls. It's amazing how far they can move in an hour.

I hunt an area roughly 40 miles wide with a verticle range of 1500 ft. Within that block I have 34 traverses. Which drainage and which traverse is dictated by weather, pressure, and the elk. Sometimes when its sunny and warm I have a "Haven't been there before day!". It usually takes 3-4 sojurns into an area before a traverse is developed.

Until you develop an understanding of the area stay flexible and leave lots of options open. Stock gives you options but also limits you because of logistics. The major difference between you and your father is recovery time. Seven miles in requires 7 miles out - many times if you get something. For me, with horses, it takes a toll on me to get things quartered and loaded and get out. A couple three miles is comfortable. Three to five is a hard day. Greater than that is damn hard. Be careful!

+1 FOR THIS! With almost 40 years of elk hunting this has been one of our personal favorites and successful ways of hunting an area.

 

[AggieHunter]

DH made a good point about the sheer area elk cover. With that said, you have to look at your elk unit and see if there is a roadless area that will allow you to pack in, without having day hunters interfering. Don't forget about coming in from the other side opposite you. There is no point of packing in if you are gonna have hard MF'ers hiking in 2 hours before daylight past your camp.

Seems like 6-10 miles in is where stock users and backpackers find their sweet spot for camping. Often some yokel will camp right where you saw a bull last year. In fact the year after my father and uncle each killed a bull in consecutive nights at the head of a drainage, there was a wall tent camp smack between their two bonepiles.

For five years we rode 3-6 miles to the elk from a camp close to the trailhead and covered ground to find elk that got pushed around the roadless area we were in. Then for a 5 year period we packed into a camp 10 miles in and killed bulls within 2 miles of camp.

My idea is to be mobile to find elk, and when you do find them then commit to that drainage as long as they are undisturbed. The idea is if you go into the back country it is to find undisturbed animals.
Beau Baty did that in his post cancer hunt in one of the latest Fresh Tracks episodes. I think he glassed the elk one morning, packed in that night, killed in the morning, and packed out the next morning.

The unit does have a lot of roadless area mainly consisting of steep drainages. Was climbing 600ft in 1/8 of mile to a glassing spot.

 

[2rocky]

The unit does have a lot of roadless area mainly consisting of steep drainages. Was climbing 600ft in 1/8 of mile to a glassing spot.

If it is that steep, saddles between drainages will be key. If you can find a "benchy" ridge with fingers coming off of it I think that is where you want to spend a lot of time.

 

[3855WIN]

So I am planning to do OTC archery elk in Colorado this year and want some input on whether to do a full backcountry hunt or a base camp hunt where I would be more mobile. I am 16 and my dad 69 so we aren't the backcountry pair you would think of but did find some elk on a recent scouting trip around 7 miles in. Assuming my future scouting trips into other areas similar distances in are successful I am leaning towards spending a week packed into drainage I choose. We would probably rent some llamas for this as well depending on if I think we can get one out of the area on our backs. After listening to some Elk Talk podcast the importance of mobility in your camp kept coming up making me question my original plan. I have now begun to think about maybe looking at some different areas or units where I could do more day hunts from a truck camp knowing I will have mobility with my camp but the possibility of more pressure. I know there are big advantages to both but I'm curious about what more experienced elk hunters than I would choose or think is more important.

ask your Dad what he’d like to do.

 

[AggieHunter]

ask your Dad what he’d like to do.

Good suggestion He is up for almost anything but if we go in deep would probably like if we did llamas. Did a sheep hunt for our first DIY western hunt last year which gave us a good introduction to backcountry hunting.

 

[bts09]

Good suggestion He is up for almost anything but if we go in deep would probably like if we did llamas. Did a sheep hunt for our first DIY western hunt last year which gave us a good introduction to backcountry hunting.

A sheep hunt was your first DIY western hunt? Wow.

 

[AggieHunter]

A sheep hunt was your first DIY western hunt? Wow.

I was very ambitious. We had hunted deer in the south and went on a guided elk hunt but never anything on our own. I had only cleaned probably one animal by myself before it. We joke a 15 and 68-year-old completing a diy sheep hunt has to be some sort of record.

 

[diamond hitch]

Cherish the hunts. They will be among your greatest memories.