Navigation of elk woods for lowest impact

[HighUintas]

I went out and checked my cameras recently in the area I had taken my wife elk hunting for her first time last year. We thought that a major fire really close to the area had pushed the elk out because we didn't see any after the first couple of days and that's when the fire got bad. Apparently they didn't leave the area!! I had lots of great pictures in the following days after we were done.

So, I guess we just had too much scent in the area and weren't moving through it undetected. I've been hunting my whole life, mainly whitetail in the Midwest though, so I'm much newer to 'best practices' for moving through the mountains and hunting a 3 mile radius area in the mountains while minimizing the impact on elk movement and mood.

This area seems harder to hunt to me than other places in the same mountains. The area where the majority of the wallows and sign are is relatively flat... Sort of like a plateau with gentle hills on top, heavily treed, and the winds love to swirl there. I've got two great water holes/wallows there with loads of great bull pictures, but I can't figure out the best direction to access them from. I also don't think they have a main bedding area there, or at least not that I can find. So, I'm not sure of the best routes at different times of day that I should take to avoid unknowingly having my scent blow into them. I ran into a couple of guys there last year, so I also don't want to blow the elk out and screw up their hunting.

Are there any generally accepted practices or rules of thumb for moving through elk woods that I should be doing to minimize the impact of my presence there? Any tips?

 

[Coveyleader]

Not knowing the layout of the land, access etc, and the fact it sounds like you are trying to access the wallow areas, coming up to them early morning from under them, and the same in the evening if possible.


Look at those wallows, and then on the map for the dark timber areas close by. That's where they will most likely be bedding. The key to any area is having the thermals work for you and never change direction once they get going.

 

[cnelk]

Rarely do I find wallows that have a good consistent wind that provides a good/approach or hunting.
When I do, it’s a real gem.

I’ve noticed that wallows that are lower in elevation are more likely to be used at night. Higher in elevation are better during the day.

 

[Sioux33]

If you don't want to bust them out, you need to play the thermals in the morning and evenings and back out before it starts swirling mid-day. If you can find a consistent updraft mid day, you can get above them and use it to your advantage, but that's not always the case. If it's a spot that just swirls all the time, you're better off throwing in the towel and looking somewhere that you can play the wind or catch them going in/out of there if possible.

 

[Coveyleader]

Rarely do I find wallows that have a good consistent wind that provides a good/approach or hunting.
When I do, it’s a real gem.

I’ve noticed that wallows that are lower in elevation are more likely to be used at night. Higher in elevation are better during the day.

Adding to this............. Wallows in a small drainage will give you this. You can slip in and out easy from below. Also, all of our waterhole spots are low in the drainage, it takes an elk 2 seconds to drop down to us from the top of the ridge. See it all the time but this is terrain related. Above timberline, or close to it, water everywhere. Not so in other areas that I tend to hunt.

 

[HighUintas]

Thanks. I was thinking about possibly just having to go in morning and evening when thermals are more stable, but even then they swirl a bit.

It's basically all dark timber, with a few parks and open rock slopes in a nearby drainage. It seems I've found bedding areas ALL throughout the whole area. I'll get a picture of the terrain drawn up and out on here to give y'all an idea of the layout, and maybe there's an easier route in/out I'm not thinking of

 

[HODL]

Early morning is great to catch them in transition, but if you've found bedding areas, don't discount mid-day. Bulls will bed the cows and be very susceptible to calls. Late morning can be a great time to locate a wandering and curious bull and get within striking distance. Obviously swirling winds play to the elk's advantage which is likely why they chose the bedding area they did, but don't count it out that you can get within the bull's comfort zone and draw him out. Not to mention roaming satellite bulls trying the same tactic as you.

 

[Beendare]

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