The following is somewhat of a expression of frustration but there are reminders for all in hunting partners and expectations. Yes its long, but it was a frustrating week. I almost ended up leaving partway through as it how it was turning out, it wasn't worth my time, but my dad was with, so stuck it out and nothing good happened.
This story starts off from about 4 years ago, shortly after I started elk hunting and digging into randy Newberg and other elk hunting videos on YouTube and podcasts. I had a buddy I knew that invited me to go out with him to Colorado with others he knew to elk hunt an OTC unit.
The way this group hunted was go about 10 miles into the national forest and set up camp there. Near this camp spot were various meadows that they would sit only in the evening and they would be somewhat successful; about 1 or 2 elk a year on average. But group size was like 5 or 6 every year.
I went there when I was living in the Midwest 4 years ago, and 2 years ago as it was an excuse to get out west. 2 years ago my dad came for his first elk hunt. A little over a year ago I moved to north idaho and have more access to elk hunting closer to me.
Typically my buddy I first went out there with was on a 2 year cycle with his wife to let him go out west. So this year he looked at applying for a deer tag in a new unit while my dad and I would get elk tags.
This is where the turn goes wrong.
This deer tag was in a unit hit hard last winter and the elk tags were only good for 5 days. In addition it would be only the 3 of us, myself, my dad, and my buddy.
We had looked at this unit last year a bit and during application season, but after he drew not too much conversation occurred. After my September archery hunts I dug hard into making hunt plans for various areas of the units. I assume my dad will rely on me. But my buddy still didn't know 100% for sure if he wanted to use this tag as winter kill and animal densities were a worry for him. However, he never started looking at this area until late September/esrly October.
As it was a new area to us, we didnt know the deer, elk or animal location and behavior so I had put together about 8 different hunt plans areas that basically covered the unit for high probabilityof elk and deer. I sat down with him and my dad to go over the unit over 2 hours, describe the unit as its completely different than where we have hunted and walked through multiple areas. Basically, the goal was to be mobile in hunt areas to find the elk and deer and cross off areas where they are not. (The units we were looking at was about 36miles by 36 miles).
After I walk through specific areas, I get a message a few days later from him indicating the specific wilderness study areas in our unit that we can access. This was after I had mentioned them to him the overviewnight. So kinda frustrating that either he wasn't paying attention or that the other night was his first time hearing about that so it slipped his mind. Again, the only reason we were gonna be hunting this unti was because he was the one with the deer tag. Otherwise we would have been hunting elk like whitetail in the other unit.
A few days later, (in early to mid October) he started digging into message boards and Facebook groups about the unit he had is deer tag in and that really dissuaded him from hunting there due to the winter kill. He was thinking of returning is tag, but by the time he looked, we were 5 days out from leaving; regulation required at least 30 days. Once he drew the tag, research on that unit, especially with the winter kill should have started and looking at the regulations on decision making should have been looked at.
After he realized he couldn't return the tag, he did reach out to CPW and talked about the unit. But through talking with the game warden, a certain area got placed specifically in his mind; yet its one depended on migration. The 8 or so hunt areas and plan for being mobile got thrown out the window and he doubled down on an area that I actually ignored in my hunt areas as it wasn't and 2nd season elk looking area or an area that mule deer bucks would be (that area requires migration to occur)
I was supposed to meet my dad and buddy in town Thursday morning, but did not make it until the evening as I hit winter storms in Montana and Idaho. But when I got there. They had set up camp, about 5 miles (approximately 30 mins on good roads) back from a main county road. This would mean of I wanted to keep the hunt plans active I had looked at, I would be needing to drive 30 mins out to the main road, the maybe an hour after that to hit other areas. Unfortunately for my expectations, we had a bunch of snow and rain happen so those roads went from 30 mins in a truck to impassable until they dried.
We end up stuck back in a part of the unit (less than 0.5% of the total area of our hunt units) where elk had not moved into yet.
His hunt style has definitely been influenced by Midwest whitetail hunting as well as the other unit where they hunt meadows. When I proposed us walking to find deer (I had given up finding elk in this unit after Friday scouting it) he thought it was a new idea. (Saw 22 mule deer does, no bucks).
After two days of hunting, we packed up camp and moved to the unit where they sit meadows. Moving within the unit was not happening. We tore down camp Sunday night, drove all night and got into the other area with the people we know that hunt meadows.
We had two full days to hunt there, however it was cut short for me as my dad ended up with elevation sickness and needed to get down to lower elevation.
So no elk or deer were killed.
Basically the big take away I will give everyone from this is the following: as you start talking hunt areas and plans, make sure all people on the party are expecting the same type of hunt i.e., are we having a really accessible basecamp to get to various parts of the unit, or getting deep back in there. Also, make sure that hunt styles are similar. Even as I was trying to discuss and talk with my buddy that we can walk and glass and search for animals, he was still expecting to sit on a know and watch deer walk down the whole draw for him to shoot. He was not used to a spot and make a move kind of hunt. Also, effort needs to be taken in the hunt planning process. Even if you re-iterate in conversation over conversation about driving and checking out different areas, it doesn't always stick.
For me, it really just solidified for me that even in my 30's I don't want to waste a hunting season with poor planning and poor execution. As well as having mix-match hunting styles. There's something important about hunting the hunt how you want to hunt it. Yes adaptation needs to happen during the hunt, but when you end up in the corner of a unit, away from the hunt areas you had planned, it's definitely frustrating
Choose your hunt partners wisely...
This story starts off from about 4 years ago, shortly after I started elk hunting and digging into randy Newberg and other elk hunting videos on YouTube and podcasts. I had a buddy I knew that invited me to go out with him to Colorado with others he knew to elk hunt an OTC unit.
The way this group hunted was go about 10 miles into the national forest and set up camp there. Near this camp spot were various meadows that they would sit only in the evening and they would be somewhat successful; about 1 or 2 elk a year on average. But group size was like 5 or 6 every year.
I went there when I was living in the Midwest 4 years ago, and 2 years ago as it was an excuse to get out west. 2 years ago my dad came for his first elk hunt. A little over a year ago I moved to north idaho and have more access to elk hunting closer to me.
Typically my buddy I first went out there with was on a 2 year cycle with his wife to let him go out west. So this year he looked at applying for a deer tag in a new unit while my dad and I would get elk tags.
This is where the turn goes wrong.
This deer tag was in a unit hit hard last winter and the elk tags were only good for 5 days. In addition it would be only the 3 of us, myself, my dad, and my buddy.
We had looked at this unit last year a bit and during application season, but after he drew not too much conversation occurred. After my September archery hunts I dug hard into making hunt plans for various areas of the units. I assume my dad will rely on me. But my buddy still didn't know 100% for sure if he wanted to use this tag as winter kill and animal densities were a worry for him. However, he never started looking at this area until late September/esrly October.
As it was a new area to us, we didnt know the deer, elk or animal location and behavior so I had put together about 8 different hunt plans areas that basically covered the unit for high probabilityof elk and deer. I sat down with him and my dad to go over the unit over 2 hours, describe the unit as its completely different than where we have hunted and walked through multiple areas. Basically, the goal was to be mobile in hunt areas to find the elk and deer and cross off areas where they are not. (The units we were looking at was about 36miles by 36 miles).
After I walk through specific areas, I get a message a few days later from him indicating the specific wilderness study areas in our unit that we can access. This was after I had mentioned them to him the overviewnight. So kinda frustrating that either he wasn't paying attention or that the other night was his first time hearing about that so it slipped his mind. Again, the only reason we were gonna be hunting this unti was because he was the one with the deer tag. Otherwise we would have been hunting elk like whitetail in the other unit.
A few days later, (in early to mid October) he started digging into message boards and Facebook groups about the unit he had is deer tag in and that really dissuaded him from hunting there due to the winter kill. He was thinking of returning is tag, but by the time he looked, we were 5 days out from leaving; regulation required at least 30 days. Once he drew the tag, research on that unit, especially with the winter kill should have started and looking at the regulations on decision making should have been looked at.
After he realized he couldn't return the tag, he did reach out to CPW and talked about the unit. But through talking with the game warden, a certain area got placed specifically in his mind; yet its one depended on migration. The 8 or so hunt areas and plan for being mobile got thrown out the window and he doubled down on an area that I actually ignored in my hunt areas as it wasn't and 2nd season elk looking area or an area that mule deer bucks would be (that area requires migration to occur)
I was supposed to meet my dad and buddy in town Thursday morning, but did not make it until the evening as I hit winter storms in Montana and Idaho. But when I got there. They had set up camp, about 5 miles (approximately 30 mins on good roads) back from a main county road. This would mean of I wanted to keep the hunt plans active I had looked at, I would be needing to drive 30 mins out to the main road, the maybe an hour after that to hit other areas. Unfortunately for my expectations, we had a bunch of snow and rain happen so those roads went from 30 mins in a truck to impassable until they dried.
We end up stuck back in a part of the unit (less than 0.5% of the total area of our hunt units) where elk had not moved into yet.
His hunt style has definitely been influenced by Midwest whitetail hunting as well as the other unit where they hunt meadows. When I proposed us walking to find deer (I had given up finding elk in this unit after Friday scouting it) he thought it was a new idea. (Saw 22 mule deer does, no bucks).
After two days of hunting, we packed up camp and moved to the unit where they sit meadows. Moving within the unit was not happening. We tore down camp Sunday night, drove all night and got into the other area with the people we know that hunt meadows.
We had two full days to hunt there, however it was cut short for me as my dad ended up with elevation sickness and needed to get down to lower elevation.
So no elk or deer were killed.
Basically the big take away I will give everyone from this is the following: as you start talking hunt areas and plans, make sure all people on the party are expecting the same type of hunt i.e., are we having a really accessible basecamp to get to various parts of the unit, or getting deep back in there. Also, make sure that hunt styles are similar. Even as I was trying to discuss and talk with my buddy that we can walk and glass and search for animals, he was still expecting to sit on a know and watch deer walk down the whole draw for him to shoot. He was not used to a spot and make a move kind of hunt. Also, effort needs to be taken in the hunt planning process. Even if you re-iterate in conversation over conversation about driving and checking out different areas, it doesn't always stick.
For me, it really just solidified for me that even in my 30's I don't want to waste a hunting season with poor planning and poor execution. As well as having mix-match hunting styles. There's something important about hunting the hunt how you want to hunt it. Yes adaptation needs to happen during the hunt, but when you end up in the corner of a unit, away from the hunt areas you had planned, it's definitely frustrating
Choose your hunt partners wisely...
) Can't get your butt out of bed at zero dark thirty? I'm out. Better to not hunt together and stay friends. I lost one of my best hunting partners because it was my turn to make the day's sandwiches in the camper and I put mustard on his. We are friends still, but that was our last hunt. We still joke about it. He's a retired police tactical shooter and improved my marksmanship a ton. (I've never hunted with 
