Idaho elk report?

kvw4x4

Lil-Rokslider
Joined
Jan 30, 2018
Location
Lynden, WA
Might be a little early but I got 2 weeks until Ill be hunting there, What’s your report? Mid eastern Idaho will be my hunting area. Would love to hear what’s going on. Thanks!
 
rut in full swing. if bow hunting ,I prefer now to two weeks from now when bulls have rounded up more cows . but I suspect you'll have a great time. good luck ! and don't forget the camera
 
In my area, we're having a tough time. Not talking and bulls are still together weirdly. Should start good next week. I have the 20th-30th off so should hit the peak rut.
 
In the area we hunt we have not heard or seen an elk in person. I did get a couple bulls showing up on our trail camera at our wallow but no cows with either of them. Only had cows on the trail camera once in the last two weeks. Hopefully as it cools down in the next couple weeks the action will pick up. Pretty hard to locate them if they aren't talking. I took a couple days off mid September so hopefully we will be able to get some good rut action by then.
 
Elk are alive and well if they haven’t been shot.

Joking. Punched my tag aug 30, so I’m lucky, but they seemed to be a bit behind this year. Two talking softly, but that was it. That can change very very fast, and never follows a schedule it seems.
 
I could here a bull this morning at my house. still way early.
2 weeks ago at my house again, seen a small 5x5 with cows, I assumed he was with the herd all summer and has not been kicked out yet by a herd bull.
 
Blew out my first basin on accident, but the herd is always there so hopefully, I'll get another chance at the bull in a couple of weeks.

Wolves came into the other basin I went in about 45 minutes after I popped the top of the ridge and everything went silent.

Gather ye dice....
 
BTW weather up in N. Idaho area this season is far more the norm for this time of year than the past 3 years. Cooler temps in the evenings now and some precipitation is on the way for this weekend. Have seen some cow elk down in the valleys feeding in the early AM within the last two weeks.
 
I was fortunate to tag out solo on Saturday. Three day packout, which is brutal in this heat. The meat made it fine, I barely made it. Around 25 miles total for the three trips I made. We saw a few herd bulls with cows, lots of solo bulls, and lots of bachelor groups (one with 32 bulls). In our area, we regularly see bachelor groups of bulls well into September twenty-something. A few random squealy bugles. Give it time, the rut will happen. Good luck!
 
Had 4 wolves come into my two bugles on Monday evening. Popped off with my 10mm handgun at about 60 yards lol...just gave em a good scare.

In all seriousness though, we heard wolves howling in our "A" drainage on Saturday morning. Been hunting it since 2015 and only heard wolves one other day since that point. That's probably upwards of 40 days in total. Then moved to drainage "B" and there were wolf tracks all over. Did get bugles Monday morning but the wolves came into me on Monday evening in this drainage as well. This is over 3 miles from the first drainage. Never before seen wolf sign nor heard them in that area before this year.

I think Idaho FG has relaxed the gas pedal on keeping these things in check. Back in 2014/15 they were hiring Professional Hunters over the winter and removing wolves with helicoptors I think. Haven't really heard of any state sponsored management for a few years and I think the wolf population is rising again. Hunting wolves definitely is not cutting it on keeping the population in check.
 
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