How Far Should I Hunt from a Burn

Joined
May 10, 2017
Messages
2,160
So burns are great to hunt and I enjoy doing so. I understand that they are attractive enough to elk--and deer and bears--that they can draw animals from a distance away to the burn. If you can't hunt the burn for whatever reason and want to hunt somewhere else close by, how far away does it need to be to have drainages with low elk density because they are eating or living in the burn?

I hunt an area that has burns and nice alpine meadows. One of the burns is pretty new and should have a lot of animals in it this fall. I'd like to have a backup option of some meadows that are anywhere from 2-6 miles away. I'm thinking that 2-3 miles is within a zone that elk might be absent because they're in the burn but that's just a guess. What do you think?
 
OP
I
Joined
May 10, 2017
Messages
2,160
Ttt. Somebody's gotta have an idea of the distance that a burn pulls animals from. I really appreciate any thoughts on this.
 

ElkNut1

WKR
Joined
Feb 25, 2012
Messages
2,395
Location
Idaho
Here in west central ID we hunt countless burn areas from more recent burns to burns many years old. I like where green timber meets the burn pockets. Sometimes these burns are a mile long & who knows ho wide in places. At any rate green timbered mountain sides creeping towards the burns are great areas to consider! We call a lot of bulls where these two areas meet! I don't have a distance where most elk are located but it's not that far, usually within hearing them bugle from the green timber with the burns being close by! Areas can vary & many of the years past burns are now growing green vegetation in abundance! Worst part about hunting burns is the downfall you will have to navigate through or around. Some of it is brutal! (grin)

I took this bull in a burn that took place a few years back, you can see some downfall & all that short stubby growth. As I walked out I actually traveld through some hotter areas where the woods look like black tooth picks with little green undergrowth. Elk aren't far from burns that have had a year or 3 to recover!

ElkNut/Paul
 

Attachments

  • Paul 2015 Five Point 25.jpg
    Paul 2015 Five Point 25.jpg
    100.2 KB · Views: 78
Last edited:
Top