First elk hunt last season

[Sask hunter]

Congrats!

 

[Muleyewyo90]

Thanks, and I was pretty shocked myself, especially to see four legal bulls on the first day! I really wish my buddy could have kept with me, as he might have had a shot to, but the altitude was really kicking his butt. On the last day, him and I hiked in two miles to a meadow, and had 8 elk come out, all cows except one sub-legal bull which we watched for a while. We screwed up for sure by not buying those cow tags..

On the 3rd day, my brother and his buddy had lunch overlooking a herd of about 12. All cows, calves, and two spiked bulls. Just unbelievable, and so much fun!

I know the feeling too well! I was on a 3rd season CO deer hunt last November and saw hundreds of elk... and bull tags were for sale OTC to nonresidents... I did see a few solid 6 points but nothing that convinced me to drop that kind of cash on a tag. Always fun to see elk though.

 

[undercover]

You found the holy grail on your first quest. Thanks for sharing

 

[Mainewoods]

Nicely done, congrats!!
My first elk hunt was also just this past season, and also at age 46, but my outcome was the opposite of yours...Didn’t even see an elk while actually hunting lol!

At 46, we have a lot of time left, but certainly wish I'd started elk hunting much earlier! Good luck next time!

 

[Mainewoods]

Welcome and congrats. Excellent first post. Looking forward to next years write up.

Not sure if I'll make it west this fall. I've got 20 preference points towards a Maine moose hunt, so maybe I'll get luckily in that lottery. If not, I'll be spending a good chuck of November hunting whitetail in Maine.

 

[Hem]

Congrats on your elk. You did your homework and had a little " luck"...that's all part of it. Not bad at all for a Maine-a!!

 

[kansasdad]

Congratulations and welcome to HuntTalk.

How about showing us some of your Nor'easter hunting too.....nice submission

 

[Mainewoods]

Congratulations and welcome to HuntTalk.

How about showing us some of your Nor'easter hunting too.....nice submission

Haha, yeah, no problem. I'm a tracker when there's snow and still hunt if it's bare ground. Nothing like putting a lot of miles on legs and seeing new country. Here's a few of my best and I'm still learning.

I shot this buck in 2002, the day before Thanksgiving in the White Mtns of NH. We got fresh snow the night before, and I was able to cut his track and get a shot within an hour. 11pts, 187lbs, fully dressed.




Track this big boy down in Northern Maine in 2008. I went for days with no deer sign, then climbed up high and into a saddle and this guy had been all through there hooking trees and putting down scrapes. I wasn't able to get him out of the woods until the next day. 10pts, 195lbs dressed.




Took this guy in Maine still hunting in 2015. I jumped 3 bedded bull moose and they headed into an old overgrown cut and jumped this guy out of the cut right to me. 9pts, 186lbs dressed.

 

[Mainewoods]

Here's a couple more.



I took this guy in Maine still hunting in 2016. He had huge shoulders, and man, did he drag hard on bare ground! Came out way after dark to my truck, but there's no place I'd rather be then dragging out a nice buck! 9pts, 192lbs dressed.








The 2018 Maine hunting season was awesome! Last day, 12 inches on the ground and snowing like crazy! Cut this bucks track at 0800 and after jumping him a couple times, finally got a shot at around 1100. It was a special deer, because I got him with a rifle (7600 30-06 carbine) that my dad had bought in 2015, and never got to shoot before he passed. Perfect hunting conditions for a peeped sighted carbine! 8 pts, 213lbs dressed.

 

[targetpanic]

Way to go MW! Congrats again!! (Read it originally on HC)

 

[Mainewoods]

Way to go MW! Congrats again!! (Read it originally on HC)

Good to see another HC member on here!!

 

[TheBenHoyle]

Congrats and Thanks for sharing the story and photos.

 

[JTHOMP]

Awesome hunt! Congratulations to you and your group!

 

[Missourian]

new to the forum as well. Congrats. Iam also going on a first elk hunt this year as well and hope to have the same experience as you also. Any great info on 4 as well is much appreciated. Been planning for a 1 1/2 now and looked over every bit of maps,YouTube forums talked to planner also. Just ready for a new adventure from the same ol deer hunts in MO.

 

[Missourian]

Hi all. Been planning 1st elk trip to co unit 4. Planning for 1 1/2. Excited and can’t wait. I’ve talked to a hunt planner,biologist,watched the YouTube clips maps etc. never been there nor Able to scout it out. But the fun part is planning and prepping for it. It’s definitely not a Missouri deer hunt but was wanting any info on if there are a lot of outfitters around the nf. And info on blm land around that area. Can I hunt it,do I need permission. Better to know than find out I’m not suppose to be there. Thanks

 

[Red Fox]

Well you are hooked now

 

[Mainewoods]

Hi all. Been planning 1st elk trip to co unit 4. Planning for 1 1/2. Excited and can’t wait. I’ve talked to a hunt planner,biologist,watched the YouTube clips maps etc. never been there nor Able to scout it out. But the fun part is planning and prepping for it. It’s definitely not a Missouri deer hunt but was wanting any info on if there are a lot of outfitters around the nf. And info on blm land around that area. Can I hunt it,do I need permission. Better to know than find out I’m not suppose to be there. Thanks

Welcome to Hunttalk! I do not have a lot of info on that unit, but yeah, it seems like you run into outfitters on most of the public land (see there camps and horse trailers, but not in the woods), but on the other hand, the land tracks are huge, so easy to get away. If it's BLM or USFS land, you can hunt it for sure, but my advice to you is to get OnX on your phone, as you really need to know the land boundaries. The biggest factor is going to be how in shape are you, and are you comfortable trekking at least a mile from your vehicle in the dark and coming out in the dark. If you are, and you play the wind and thermals right, you should find elk or at least elk sign. IF not, move to a different area.

Opening day elk were lower and in the aspens, but after that, come first light they were up higher in the timber, but certainly still reachable. I don't treestand hunt, and instead love to hike and get way back in the woods hunting whitetails, so this was ideal hunting for me. Have a proper pack and means to carry a rifle, like the kifaru gun bearer, was really helpful.

 

[Missourian]

Welcome to Hunttalk! I do not have a lot of info on that unit, but yeah, it seems like you run into outfitters on most of the public land (see there camps and horse trailers, but not in the woods), but on the other hand, the land tracks are huge, so easy to get away. If it's BLM or USFS land, you can hunt it for sure, but my advice to you is to get OnX on your phone, as you really need to know the land boundaries. The biggest factor is going to be how in shape are you, and are you comfortable trekking at least a mile from your vehicle in the dark and coming out in the dark. If you are, and you play the wind and thermals right, you should find elk or at least elk sign. IF not, move to a different area.

Opening day elk were lower and in the aspens, but after that, come first light they were up higher in the timber, but certainly still reachable. I don't treestand hunt, and instead love to hike and get way back in the woods hunting whitetails, so this was ideal hunting for me. Have a proper pack and means to carry a rifle, like the kifaru gun bearer, was really helpful.

Thank you for the info! I do have onx and is really helpful as is any info. Can’t ever have enough. Looking forward to it

 

[BullyBull]

Great Job!!!
You are an inspiration to many new comers.