MT Archery General License - First Timer

8andcounting said:
There’s elk and tons of people in all of them some just more elk or more people than others
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You are 100% correct and that changes quite a bit year to year. What is funny is I had a buddy who drew the general tag in Montana and he went to the exact same spots I went a couple years prior and he didn't see an elk. There was a bunch of old sign but no new sign at all. The year I went was really wet, the year he went was really dry. I had a resident try to point me in the right direction when I was there. I didn't find one elk where he suggested to go and all the sign was old. So even if guys talk specifics it changes so much I don't know how much it really helps.
 
iawhitetail3 said:
You are 100% correct and that changes quite a bit year to year. What is funny is I had a buddy who drew the general tag in Montana and he went to the exact same spots I went a couple years prior and he didn't see an elk. There was a bunch of old sign but no new sign at all. The year I went was really wet, the year he went was really dry. I had a resident try to point me in the right direction when I was there. I didn't find one elk where he suggested to go and all the sign was old. So even if guys talk specifics it changes so much I don't know how much it really helps.
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No year was more proof of that than 2021 . People didn’t find deer or elk in “usual” spots cuz of the drought
 
8andcounting said:
My god …. They weren’t a secret . Relax
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iawhitetail3 said:
I am just helping a new elk hunter out. Why? Because I was that guy at one time and a few nice people helped me out. What, it is a secrete that the little belts hold some lower end satellite bulls and an occasional big bull? I hate to break it to you, there are no more secrete spots or units in today's age. I guess I forgot to mention I called in several other guys on my trip as well. So the pressure is already there.
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It's not a matter of whether its a secret or not. People on the internet today are suckers for information be it good, bad, true or false. I could make a big long post about all the 340"-350" monsters I was getting into in some garbage unit and the entire thing could be made up and some people would read it and decide they were going there.
 
BuckRut said:
It's not a matter of whether its a secret or not. People on the internet today are suckers for information be it good, bad, true or false. I could make a big long post about all the 340"-350" monsters I was getting into in some garbage unit and the entire thing could be made up and some people would read it and decide they were going there.
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... and jam up every trailhead in the hunting district!
 
Well, due to this conversation, what is the etiquette for posting about my hunt, post-hunt? If I run into elk (harvest or not), should I mention what unit I was in, or do people just mention the region? I plan to do a follow-up post of my trip for lessons learned and for keeping a sort of journal of my own. Just curious now as opinions seem to differ across the forums.
 
Glaze said:
Well, due to this conversation, what is the etiquette for posting about my hunt, post-hunt? If I run into elk (harvest or not), should I mention what unit I was in, or do people just mention the region? I plan to do a follow-up post of my trip for lessons learned and for keeping a sort of journal of my own. Just curious now as opinions seem to differ across the forums.
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Trip reports are great and most people on here enjoy them. I think the main thing to leave out is the unit you were in, especially if its a general unit. Probably would also leave out the region, most people familiar with the state will be able to tell the greater region your in from your pictures. It's not that people on here inherently hate talking about specific units. The bigger deal is that while there may be 100 people who participate in a thread there may be thousands that find the thread through a google search, glean the info and show up your new hunting spot.
 
@Glaze some members here make up state names, or claim to be fishing a well known northern state river when they are clearly fishing offshore of Cancun. Or perhaps they will spin a tale of hunting antelope in a Mississippi delta region. A well told tale told the story of a float trip going down river of an adjacent state from where the actual action took place. “Winkie faces“ help a reader understand that you are deliberately hiding the true location.

I recall @Big Fin doing some satellite scouting videos where he deliberately scouted a National Park, so as to not step on other hunters who would someday draw a unit that he may have broken down for the masses.
 
Tjd said:
Breaks….. def hunt the breaks.
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Sadly, that is where I will be this year. I had it in my head that I wanted to hunt different type of country. I had heard about all of the problems and hunting pressure in the breaks, but figured I would give it a shot this year as I should have enough bonus points to get a tag. Then I went into a deep dive on some threads and I am regretting that decision. I am used to working around pressure but I have heard some horror stories about pressure. Doesn't even sound like scouting does much good as the elk get pushed around heavily.
 
iawhitetail3 said:
Sadly, that is where I will be this year. I had it in my head that I wanted to hunt different type of country. I had heard about all of the problems and hunting pressure in the breaks, but figured I would give it a shot this year as I should have enough bonus points to get a tag. Then I went into a deep dive on some threads and I am regretting that decision. I am used to working around pressure but I have heard some horror stories about pressure. Doesn't even sound like scouting does much good as the elk get pushed around heavily.
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Rolling the dice this year on the breaks as well. Hunted Central Montana last year and struggled to get on them due to the drought. Looks like your a fellow Iowan and have hunted similar spots. Would enjoy connecting sometime if/when you have the time. Good luck!
 
Hell... @blmedlin , @iawhitetail3 depending on the unit we could get could all get together this year at someone's camp or at least share info. I'm going solo this year.
 
Scott85 said:
Hell... @blmedlin , @iawhitetail3 depending on the unit we could get could all get together this year at someone's camp or at least share info. I'm going solo this year.
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That sounds like a fun time to me! I am going solo as well so having people around in case something bad happens or to help pack can make a huge difference. I will shoot both of you guys a PM.
 
blmedlin said:
Rolling the dice this year on the breaks as well. Hunted Central Montana last year and struggled to get on them due to the drought. Looks like your a fellow Iowan and have hunted similar spots. Would enjoy connecting sometime if/when you have the time. Good luck!
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Yeah my buddy went to central Montana last year and he struggled big time. I think the drought really made it difficult to find them. I'll shoot you a PM.
 
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