One area or jump from spot to spot

[rspecht55]

I recently was listening to a podcast where they were talking about focusing on one area meaning 30,000 or so acres or a couple drainages. Their reasoning was once you get used to and accustomed to that area it is easier to find elk. Others have said continue to move from area to area until you find elk.

What are everyone’s thoughts on this?


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[cgasner1]

Don’t leave elk to find elk


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[wapitibob]

Hard to find elk if they aren’t there.

 

[mossyoak52]

Stick to one area/ unit my wife & I have hunted the same areas /unit in 6 states every year for the 40+ yrs we know them well enough that pre season scouting int neccasary we know where the game will be at any time because we hunt the same area every year
Never saw any sense in bouncing unit to unit
Or area to area the more time you spend in one unit the more knowledge you learn about the area and the animals in it ymmv

 

[Jimss]

That’s often where scouting and research comes into play. Each particular unit may be different. Also is there lots of public vs little public? Is there lots of hunting pressure on public? What is the timing? Elk may be concentrated in one are in August and gone from sept through Nov. some area elk may migrate into or out of late in the season. How many conflicting cow, deer, hikers, etc. How easy or remote is the unit? Are there gobs of atv trails?

So many scenarios! It pays to have local knowledge, scouting time, etc.

 

[Next Ridge]

It’s both. The “one” area I focus on is 100,000 acres. But I move around till I find them inside it.

Couple years ago my first opportunity on day 1 was 12 miles from where I ended up killing on day 6.

 

[UTJL]

Learning a unit by hunting it several years is best. But within that unit you need to have 3-5 separate areas to hunt. In the last two seasons I’ve had one area shutdown by forest fires and another by a logging operation that was behind schedule. Don’t put all your eggs in one basket.

 

[Pony Soldier]

Over the years I have developed 12 hunts. I try to recon 2 new ones per year. Elk move for a variety of reasons. A major one is weather. Trying to match where they will be given the weather has been very productive.

My hunting technique is a process of elimonation. I cover miles to cut tracks then focus my search on where they are. They have particular patterns and you can learn them over time. Using my technique you also have to learn all the trails and closed roads so you can cover big loops in a reasonable amount of time and energy.

My normal range is roughly 12 x 60 miles. My day hunts cover 5 - 20 miles and gain or lose 2000 ft of elevation. I kill what is available to me. There are no trophies. They don't live that long.