Elevation preference

[ZSD]

Hows it going,

I'm new to the forum and figured I go ahead and chime right in. I love the Info available, by what seems to be an extremely knowledgeable group of hunters, here on hunt talk.

Here's my question for the day: What elevation do you personally seem to be the most successful at during elk season? Whether you are archery or rifle hunting, maybe just include that to determine the time of year you are chasing them.

Zac

 

[Matt Foley]

Where ever the elk are at. I have seen herds that live in the junipers, under 6000 feet, all year long.

 

[the nikster]

I almost always hunt between 7500 and 9000 feet so that's where I see them. Both archery and rifle. I do sometimes see them lower but a lot of that land is privately owned.

 

[pabearhunter]

Welcome aboard.

 

[----]

There's a million variables there. I see elk at 10k+ in my regular spots frequently. I also spent all of last year hunting them at ~2500'.

 

[TheJason]

If I park at 5k feet, I seem to find the elk at 9k feet. If I park at 9k feet, I seem to find the elk at 5k feet. Funny how that works.

 

[RobertR]

Elevation preference for elk depends on the time of year weather conditions and available feed and if they are depending on fresh water,moisture from grasses or snow and hunting pressure. Depending where your located and what is low,medium and high elevation will also factor in. For the most part elk will be at the middle elevations or their safe zone or bedding area. It' all boils down to the bedding area,feed and water available.
For me it can be 5000 to 8000 feet in elevation but I find them consistently around 8000 feet. On a dry year where water sources are at a premium the elk are low. It's not rocket science, security bedding,food and water.

 

[mtmander]

You need to find the elk , I try to get as high as possible and glass to find them. Then I can plan how to get close to them.

 

[ZSD]

Elevation preference for elk depends on the time of year weather conditions and available feed and if they are depending on fresh water,moisture from grasses or snow and hunting pressure. Depending where your located and what is low,medium and high elevation will also factor in. For the most part elk will be at the middle elevations or their safe zone or bedding area. It' all boils down to the bedding area,feed and water available.
For me it can be 5000 to 8000 feet in elevation but I find them consistently around 8000 feet. On a dry year where water sources are at a premium the elk are low. It's not rocket science, security bedding,food and water.

When you say "middle elevation", is it because this is where you generally observe the 3 necessities, food, water, and cover at a convergence? I also guess that it provides 2 escape routes, Up or Down.

 

[SagebrushSlayer]

I have seemed to find most elk in areas that I hunt at 7500' plus or minus 1000'. Same goes for deer.

 

[Muley_Stalker]

My preference is 8000ft. That's the altitude I live at, but it's not always possible to hunt at that altitude. Sometime I have to go to timberline at 11.000 +ft.

 

[LCH]

The one time I've hunted elk, I started high (about 11k in my unit) and worked my way down. Found them at around 8500'. There was sign present from the top all the way down though, I think that's just where I happened to bump into them.

 

[Idaho Predator Control 1]

I've hunted Washington state for the last 30 years. When hunting on the west side I hunt near the coast and have had the best success at less then 200 feet above sea level. When hunting the east side of Washington I seam to find them between 2000 and 5000 depending on feed.

 

[Phaseolus]

The amount of hunting pressure will also determine at what altitude you find elk. In Western Colorado you will find them hiding in the oakbrush after they have been pressured. It's tough to hunt them in that stuff but that puts my hunting altitude at about 8000'

 

[ZSD]

So far, the answer that seems to be appearing most is around 8000'. My goal for this question was to very Basically see if one elevation was more popular than another. Obviously this has no real science behind it, but interesting still.

 

[Pagosa]

In Colorado by the 1st rifle season I have shot bulls/elk at the 9500-10500 range, by the 3rd season I would be hunting steep oakbrush canyons with no road access, and very steep.
Montana seems way different and I have a lot to learn up here, but last I ran across elk at 7000-8500 range.

 

[hank4elk]

Where I am it's 6500-10k,usually 7-9k. My place is 7450'.

 

[Muley_Stalker]

So far, the answer that seems to be appearing most is around 8000'. My goal for this question was to very Basically see if one elevation was more popular than another. Obviously this has no real science behind it, but interesting still.

You asked two questions which are quite different. You asked preference, and most successful.

I prefer lower altitude, because it's much easier. I kill more elk at timberline.

 

[RkyMtnELK]

When I lived in Western Washington I saw them at sea level along the coast and as many years as I lived in New Mexico I have seen them at 7000' and above. Find water, forage, and cover and you may find them. Look for what they eat. I forgot to say that it does not matter to me what elevation I find them.

 

[ZSD]

If more people answer with an elevation of around 8000' than any other elev. than it seems to me that it is the most popular answer to my question of "most successful".

Ive averaged out the answers given so far and 7593 ft is what I'm coming up with. Probably not an indicator of much, but I'm going to keep it in mind this year.




Zac