montana DIY for 2010

[JAppleton]

thanks for your help guys. so how long does it ussually take to get the limited entry tag for the breaks?

 

[Breaks Runner]

The odds are a lot better for archery than rifle but you must first secure an elk license then apply for the special permit....

Sunrise over the Dry Arm.....

 

[belly-deep]

You'll wait a long time for a rifle tag. You would have to look up the odds to be sure, but I think NR have a decent chance to draw archery in most units in the Breaks.

 

[JAppleton]

sounds good I am trying to look some stuff up on the fwp website right now. thanks for all your help guys.

 

[Big Fin]

Man...I had fun those couple days!! Tell you what...lets both draw that permit next year and go back and hunt!!

You got my vote. See you there. You can hold out for the whopper, and I will take care of making sure we have at least one on ground. I am not real picky.

 

[JAppleton]

one more question fellas. is there plenty of public land to hunt there? by the way after checking the montana fwp site the chances for drawing an archery permit is almost 100 %

 

[belly-deep]

Yeah, don't worry about finding places to hunt in the breaks. You've got three types of land. CMR wildlife refuge, which is the stuff around the reservior, State and BLM land, and then BMA land, which is private land open to hunters through some sort of a sign up system. The breaks are full of all of it, so you won't have to worry.

 

[Gerald Martin]

A little heads up, not to throw ice on the fire, but you probably won't be alone in either region.

 

[JAppleton]

well gerald throw some ideas out there! I am open to ideas!

 

[EasternMTHunter]

The Breaks is definitely a good area for big bulls although the area we hunt isn't what it used to be 9 or 10 years ago, but with the changes in the regs and limits, hopefully in a few years it'll be much better. I'm not certain the NR draw odds, but in the past as long it was your first choice and you had an elk tag it was 100% success. The last few years they put a limit on the tags in my area of around 2500 which limits the NR to 250 or so tags. The hunting may change a bit as well as Ft. Peck is now 82.5% of full pool. After the spring thaw that may go up more. It has resulted in much of the river bottoms flooding and if it continues it should push more of them into the hills. If you are looking to get away from people on ATVs considering hunting the CMR since they are not allowed and if you spend a lot of time hiking into an area you won't have some fool on an ATV ride up first thing in the morning and screw up your hunt. Good luck!

 

[belly-deep]

A little heads up, not to throw ice on the fire, but you probably won't be alone in either region.

I don't think you're alone anywhere anymore. The reality of public land hunting today.

 

[Dinkshooter]

I applied and didn't draw a breaks archery permit in 2008.

 

[JAppleton]

does anyone know about custer national forest area?

 

[Gerald Martin]

"well gerald throw some ideas out there! I am open to ideas!" J Appleton- I'm sure there are a lot of guys on here with more experience on both these regions than I, but here's my impressions. I've only got experience hunting in three of Montana's regions so I won't comment on any regions I don't have first hand experience in. BTW, if Breaks Runner, Greenhorn, or Bigfin say any of my advice is full of it, I would recommend listening to them.

Here's the regions I have experience with. Region 1. I live here so this is my home hunting turf. Elk population.- Good, but scattered. Some drainages have quite a few elk, while others 20 miles away haven't seen an elk in years. Thick, dark timber, brush, rocks, think almost rain forest. We have a lot of average bulls and occasionally a true monster in the 370-390 range. In my opinion, region one offers the best chance for a hunter with a general tag to stumble into a monster. Average elk is between 250-270. It also offers the best chance for a hunter to go home without seeing anything. You will not see huge herds.
Hunter pressure. There's a lot of hunters but most of them concentrate on areas that have easy access via closed logging roads or trails. Its not hard to get away from most hunters. There are a lot of areas where I personally would not consider shooting an "average bull" because of what it would take to get him out.

In archery season the elk can be called but many have gotten wise to that game. The classic calling scenario here is having a bull respond , then he'll sneak in downwind of you @75-100 yards. You can't see him that far and the next thing you hear is what sounds like a herd of elephants rampaging down the mountain. Game over.

Region three. It really depends where you hunt. I've had hunts where we've seen 200 elk in three days. I also had a trip in a different unit where five of us didn't see any elk in 11 days. The most popular units typically feature lots of elk, mostly small bulls, and lots of hunters. The area I hunt in region three is my favorite in terms of pretty country, and just a fun, fun hunt. Part of the reason I like to hunt there is because there isn't any BRUSH. I can see! The elk are very callable and we have a lot of bugleing activity. I do not expect to shoot a monster on these trips. I figure top end on the units I hunt to be around 300. Average is 220-250. There are units in region three that produce some of the states largest bulls but they are usually either from private land (forget about getting permission) or from wilderness units.(Most of these have been decimated by high predator numbers.)

Missouri Breaks - I haven't decided whether I love this country or hate it. I has treated me great in terms of producing nice bulls, but it is tougher than it looks. Its easy walking (unless it rains). You can see forever. It seems like its either 90 degrees with a blazing sun or else it rain and gumbo mud or a blizzard. You CAN get stuck on these roads when it rains. You will NOT be going anywhere until the ground dries out.

The elk. These aren't really elk. They are a freaky alien subspecies imported from another planet. They are as skittish as a Pennsylvania whitetail deer on the third day of gun season. They have the eyesight of antelope and they do not let you get by with anything. I've had them spot my head from 600 yards after I inadvertantly skylined myself. You are not going to call these bulls. The big boys know the game and all your calling will do is let them know where you are. (disclaimer- I did cow call one bull in that we killed, but I now consider it to be a freak. It was a matter of being in the perfect place at the perfect time.) Rifle tags are VERY hard to come by. Don't plan on drawing. You will probably draw archery. You will have a lot of company on weekends.
Elk activity- The times I've hunted the elk were active for about an hour after daylight. They would then bed down untill an hour before dark. You will be amazed at how a herd of 15-20 animals can just disappear when there isn't a tree for hundreds of yards. There's a lot of down time when you aren't seeing animals.
Size of bulls. Some people seem to think that 350 bulls are everywhere. Not so. They do exist, but more realistic expectations are that most of the herd bulls will be in the 310-330 range.

Here's pictures of what I consider good average bulls from each of the regions. I'll post pictures in the order that I covered the regions. Region 1, Region 3, Missouri Breaks.

 

[JAppleton]

hey thanks for the great info!!! region 3 is out! we have plenty of average bulls in my neck of the woods. honestly we have some pretty nice bulls in my neck of the woods. I am really going to hold out for something around 330 or better. As far as calling goes. while I don't know what the elk are like in montana elk here are very skitish to calling as well. But I have found that the reason is that people use the wrong call at the wrong time. There are many many ways to hunt elk and calling is only one method but it is an effective one when done properly. I have a freind who will come with me who has shot 57 branch bulls in his life time. he will be calling for me.

 

[EasternMTHunter]

I can't speak on personal experience about Custer forest but I do know from the people I speak with there are Bulls in the forest near Ashland and over by Ekalaka. From what I've heard they are some what scattered. Many of them find refuge on private land and almost all of it is outfitted (that I know for certain). Most of the BMAs in the area with elk get hit very hard in the beginning of the season but if you find a rancher with them getting into his haystacks you might be able to kill a cow, even on private ground. Don't know if this helps much.

 

[JAppleton]

I have a freind that manages a 5000 acre ranch in that area. he said I could get on there! but before I get too set on that place I am exploring all of my options.

 

[Gerald Martin]

J-Appleton- re- calling in the ' Breaks. Its not about being able to call well. Its just that if the bulls can't see another elk they will not come. The bull I called in was bugling on his own. We were able to get within 100 yards of him in the same coulee. He was just around the corner. I made one very soft cow call. He came walking to where he could see around the corner and spotted my Montana decoy. He s focused on the decoy and walked fifty yards closer. That put him 23 yards from my buddy and he made good on the shot. That bull scored 326. The bull was on pins and needles as he came in and actually almost ducked the arrow.

A bull that scores 330 is a realistic goal but in my opinion is going to be towards the top end of what can be expected. If it were my tag, I wouldn't pass anything over 300 to wait for something bigger, but then I've never killed a 300" bull either.

 

[JAppleton]

thanks gerald! I see what your saying about the calling now!good job with the use of the decoy. we have been doing that down here some too!

 

[belly-deep]

Another bit of info...regions 1 and 3 have lots of grizzlies in some areas. Just so you know...