Early Rifle Elk Hunt in MT

[Ben Long]

RoamingPublic. It was a great adventure. Weather was horrible. We were on the cusp of a historic blizzard that put down about 4 feet of snow. All our shots on elk happened the first day, when it was just windy and rainy. Then came one clear, windy day for packing and five straight days of horizontal snow and sleet. But you know you're alive.

 

[TheJason]

@Ben Long the three times we hunted in there we saw snow totals of about 16” one trip, four days of fog and snow another trip, and a full on gale of a windstorm that scared the shit outta me during the night. Getting out was like doing the steeplechase with a pack string.

 

[theat]

Right Now I think if I were to do this hunt on foot out of a backpack I may take a page out of @Big Fin play book and hunt 150 around those burns up by Puma Peak and Gust Mountain. There are a handful of age classes of burns in that area. Has anyone ever been up in that country? from there basically north and west along Young's Creek. Looks good on an Aerial. 10 miles in should keep the foot traffic out...

P.S. sorry if I am giving away someones honey hole! ha

I have always wanted to do one of those wilderness rifle rut hunts. After spending a bunch of time goat and sheep hunting in 316 and several backpacking and pack rafting trips into 150, I realized that without pack animals it would be extremely foolish of me.

I was pretty intrigued by that same area that you are talking about as well as the ridge running east from Sunday Mountain. Unfortunately, I found out that that area gets hit pretty hard by an outfitter as well as handful of other horse hunting groups every year. there is a big outfitter camp in Leota Park as well as big campsites with lots of horse sign near the mouth of Marshall Ck as well as near Big Slide just east of Puma Peak. I was in the Seeley area during mid September a couple years ago and decided to check out a couple of the trailheads. The Pyramid Pass TH was packed to the brim with even more rigs with horse trailer parked along the road and at pullouts before the trailhead. I then went to another spot that I thought would get me away from the crowds as there is not an official trail going up over the ridge into the Bob and in many places it is more of a goat trail or no trail at all. It blew my mind when I got to the pullout and saw 18 vehicles parked there. I messed around a bit further up the road and when I came back by there were a couple of young guys that had just gotten out. They had hiked in two days before the season started and had been there for 6 days total. They said that they saw 2 cows the whole time and bumped into multiple other hunters every day once the season started. They did see a very nice muley though. Not the type of wilderness experience that I am looking for. In fact, as far as hunting goes, I think that there are much better "wilderness" type experiences to be found on non official wilderness public lands in Montana. Good luck if you decide to give it a try! Oh, and bring a few strong friends that don't hunt or are terrible shots.

This is looking down Youngs Creek from Leota Park in 2016. Probably looks a bit different now as a lot of that area burned up in the Rice Ridge Fire in 2017.

 

[406dn]

A half a life time ago, my brother in law and I backpack hunted east of the Bob. We camped six miles in from the trailhead. While we never saw an elk, we did see bighorn sheep and deer. One night the bottom fell out of the thermometer and we froze our a$$es off that night.

When we came out, the invasion of Granada had happened without our knowing or caring. We got a room above a bar in Augusta. That town was partying that night. Jose Cuervo you are a friend of mine blared endlessly until well past 2AM. Good memories.

I'd think long and hard about getting an elk or two from that far from a trailhead on your back. I could have done it then, not now, without using horses.

 

[BigHornRam]

I had moose tag on the eastern side of 316 20 years ago. The terrain was fairly mild as far as the Beartooths go. Backpacked a moose out of there that was 2.5 miles in on my own. There were some scattered elk around back then as well as a healthy grizzly population. Today I would venture the grizzlies are doing better than the elk are. Regen in some of the burned areas is pretty thick now and can make hunting difficult. Lots of good grass in the area that extends well up above timberline.
I had Indian summer conditions on my moose hunt in early October, and saw no one in the backcountry once leaving the road. Could think of worse areas to try out a backpack early rifle elk hunt in Montana.

 

[MTGomer]

This raghorn would test your backpacking mettle. He was the only bull seen in a 11 day trip and was 14 miles from the truck.
I wouldn’t even consider shooting him.

 

[MThuntr]

I can't offer much about elk in 150...spent 20 days of 2019 working there and really spent most of our time digging holes and dodging packstrings and outfitters and associated piles of poop so I don't think wildlife respond favorably in those areas.

Youngs Creek below confluence with Babcock (burned 2017)

Youngs Creek at Big Slide (burned 2006 and 2017)
Dropping into Jenny Creek off Young's Pass (burned in 2017)
Salmon Lake (area burned 2017 and partially 2019)
This area burned in 2017 and again in 2019 (at Salmon Lake Ranger Station)

 

[IEATELK]

This raghorn would test your backpacking mettle. He was the only bull seen in a 11 day trip and was 14 miles from the truck.
I wouldn’t even consider shooting him.

View attachment 130485

Fuuuuggin seeennd it!!!!!

 

[RoaminPublic]

I can't offer much about elk in 150...spent 20 days of 2019 working there and really spent most of our time digging holes and dodging packstrings and outfitters and associated piles of poop so I don't think wildlife respond favorably in those areas.

Youngs Creek below confluence with Babcock (burned 2017) View attachment 130487

Youngs Creek at Big Slide (burned 2006 and 2017) View attachment 130488
Dropping into Jenny Creek off Young's Pass (burned in 2017) View attachment 130489
Salmon Lake (area burned 2017 and partially 2019) View attachment 130490
This area burned in 2017 and again in 2019 (at Salmon Lake Ranger Station) View attachment 130491

What kind of work were you guys doing digging holes? Studies associated with the burns? Runoff?

 

[Sytes]

Again, it's good to heed advice from those who hold reservations about traversing the backcountry though in the end, you are your own best assessment of your abilities - pending honest reflection of your abilities.
My partner w/ a few extra years under his belt, would like another go though had an honest reflection and we're saving up for an outfitter run 2021.

I'm doing the sled hunt solo into the Bob this year.

 

[MThuntr]

What kind of work were you guys doing digging holes? Studies associated with the burns? Runoff?

We are creating a soil survey of the Bob Marshall Wilderness Complex for the Forest Service...it's at a pretty broad scale due to remoteness, time, and general need (it is wilderness so management is limited) but part of the product is to help predict potential erodibility post disturbance. Some of the soils in the western edge of the complex have high amounts of ash (Mazama ash from Crater lake) and we're also trying to map that out as it does affect site stability. Vegetation classification does help for long term monitoring of the forest areas. The biggest thing we've noticed is there is a ton of erosion and veg destruction associated with "over loving" of the area by users and the big horse camps

 

[Schaaf]

My daughter and I camped up Buffalo Fork in HD 316. Holy sh*t there were lots of Griz in there.

I'm told the reason for the early rifle hunt in these remote areas is that they get snowed in early on and would otherwise be inaccessible. Been that way forever.

I'd place a wager that it is potentially the most densely populated grizzly area in MT.

 

[IEATELK]

Packed into the scapegoat a few years ago. That def makes a guy feel small.. big country puts alot into perspective. I also noticed the difference between mules and horses.

 

[RobG]

We are creating a soil survey of the Bob Marshall Wilderness Complex for the Forest Service...it's at a pretty broad scale due to remoteness, time, and general need (it is wilderness so management is limited) but part of the product is to help predict potential erodibility post disturbance. Some of the soils in the western edge of the complex have high amounts of ash (Mazama ash from Crater lake) and we're also trying to map that out as it does affect site stability. Vegetation classification does help for long term monitoring of the forest areas. The biggest thing we've noticed is there is a ton of erosion and veg destruction associated with "over loving" of the area by users and the big horse camps

Sheesh, they were talking about issues with overuse 40 years ago. I guess progress is slow.

 

[MThuntr]

Sheesh, they were talking about issues with overuse 40 years ago. I guess progress is slow.

We're heading to the Benchmark area this next summer and we're all dreading the packstrings, dust, poop, parking, and people.

 

[sapperJ24]

This is looking down Youngs Creek from Leota Park in 2016. Probably looks a bit different now as a lot of that area burned up in the Rice Ridge Fire in 2017.

From just above Leota Park in the fall of 2017.

 

[MTGomer]

Anybody do any early rifle hunts this year?

 

[diamond hitch]

I packed into the Great Bear in 93 to help the DEQ check on mining claims. It was early Sept and was chewed to the dirt along the middle fork. The geology and scenery was nice but I'm not attracted to crowds and likely wouldn't go back. I have more solitude near my home ground. All the people in those areas are not in mine so it is a good place.

 

[Tecumseh]

Hunted 150 in the Bob in 07-08-09 early season took a bill on my first trip after that the wolves have done a number on the Elk!

 

[Flyfish4ever]

Anybody do any early rifle hunts this year?

I did. Bob Marshall. By far the best hunt I’ve been on if I was just looking for adventure and enjoyment. Not nearly the amount of game as I was expecting. I saw a total of 3 bulls in 20days of hunting. I harvested the middle sized one of the three. He’s a young 6x6