How soon can you hunt a burn area?

[Lonesome_God_outdoors]

There's a 2500 acre fire that's currently 75% contained and hopefully will be out in the next week or so. What are people's thoughts on hunting it this fall? I have deer and elk tags for the area but was planning on hunting an area several miles away. Does game start to utilize burn areas that quickly? I think it'll be a real good spot next year but I don't know if it would be worth it to focus on the burn this year vs what my prior plans were. Hopefully I'll be able to scout it out in August.

 

[Topgun 30-06]

Depends on how hot the fire was and what the weather is from here to your hunting season. With enough moisture if the fire wasn't too hunt it's not uncommon for animals to return to start eating the new vegetation as soon as it's starts erupting. It sure wouldn't hurt to check the area out this year to see how quickly animals get back in there, but next year should definitely be good.

 

[matthausarchery]

Now I do not know firsthand how elk will respond to the burn area per say, I do have a good understanding in forest composition and growth. The area will begin growing immediately after the fire subsides and moisture is added to the area. Whether it be rain or in areas where moisture collects. Because rain might be hard to come by, the first areas to start growing will be low areas in a drainage. First you will see grasses which will grow about as fast as grass seed. I would image the elk would love this. More to the point though...
By the time hunting season comes around there should be areas of good feed for elk, not as much as you will see next year though. I would also imagine that the animals will recover from displacement and return to the general area soon after the fire is out.

I once watched a national geographic documentary with a segment on forest fires and they showed elk grazing for grass around areas that seemed to my eyes freshly charred.

If it were me, I would at least go scout there before the season starts, sounds like a great opportunity to learn and possible stick a few tricks in your back pocket most people might overlook. By the time fires are put out, most elk hunters probably have a good plan of what they are doing in the coming season.

 

[MJE2083]

Cant say for a forest fire but its amazing how quickly thing rebound. The game commission burned a field near me back in the spring and within a month you couldn't even tell that there had been a fire except for a few charred branches still laying around.

 

[sigpros]

I hope they show up. I have an elk tag for that area too. Fingers crossed

 

[Jeronimo 56]

I have tags for elk and deer this year in unit 16B (Elk) and 16 (deer) but there is a pretty good fire right in the middle of the Gila wilderness right now. Assuming they get that fire out before October, will there be any wildlife in a burn that recent?

 

[Otto Matic]

As soon as it starts greening up and developing browse.