bigbore442001
50 Cal.
I'd like to querry the members of the board here and garner opinions on the best state or province for elk. Thanks.
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Best place for elk?
- Thread starter bigbore442001
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Bigbore, from what I understand, the best place in the whole entire world to GET an elk is the Valle Vidal area in northern New Mexico. It has a success rate of something like 90%, but is extrememly difficult to draw out for and is a once-in-a-lifetime hunt. But, if you don't draw, you get most of your money back, so it doesn't hurt to try.
As far as good chances for drawing for a good area, maybe the Colorado boys should answer that one. Bill
As far as good chances for drawing for a good area, maybe the Colorado boys should answer that one. Bill
What do you mean by best? Biggest? Then NM and Arizona should be near the top of your list, although anyplace that has elk can produce a big one. Pennsylvania comes to mind on that. But tags can be hard to get in all those areas.
Do you mean easiest to get a tag? Look at guided hunts in easern Montana or Colorado on private property.
You could also classify best by price of tag, altitude of hunt, ease/difficulty of hunt, total cost of hunt, guided/self hunt, etc. The more specific you can get the better answers you'll recieve.
Do you mean easiest to get a tag? Look at guided hunts in easern Montana or Colorado on private property.
You could also classify best by price of tag, altitude of hunt, ease/difficulty of hunt, total cost of hunt, guided/self hunt, etc. The more specific you can get the better answers you'll recieve.
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I believe Greenmtnboy guides for Elk in Co.
If you choose to hunt in any of the western states. And if you decide to hire a guide or outfitter, in some cases you will have to. Make sure you check them out very,very close.
The guide and outfitting firms can be very good or they can be just plain rackets. Make sure you contact the State Guides Association and check out the firm you are dealing with. Get the name of hunters they have guided and call them up. Many of the so called guides are not registered and work for firms that give horse back rides to dudes for big chunks of cash. Make sure you check out their food and camp service, big deal when you are on a Mtn. Will this be a fully guided hunt or a drop camp? Find out or you will pay big bucks for a camping trip. Will you be going out with a real hunting guide or a fishing and Yuppie photo guide? Find out before you pay. :nono:
The guide and outfitting firms can be very good or they can be just plain rackets. Make sure you contact the State Guides Association and check out the firm you are dealing with. Get the name of hunters they have guided and call them up. Many of the so called guides are not registered and work for firms that give horse back rides to dudes for big chunks of cash. Make sure you check out their food and camp service, big deal when you are on a Mtn. Will this be a fully guided hunt or a drop camp? Find out or you will pay big bucks for a camping trip. Will you be going out with a real hunting guide or a fishing and Yuppie photo guide? Find out before you pay. :nono:
I believe Colorado has more elk than any other state. If you are willing to work and get away from the crowds, you can have a chance at some really good bulls. If you are going self guided, I would recommend a back pack hunt in one of the states wilderness area's. If you are planning on a guided hunt, from what I have seen, Green Mtn Boy would be a great choice.
From my experience Colorado is the best state for non-residents and we usually hunt the MLer season every 2 years, just applying for a preference point in the in between year. We do not hire guides or horses and pack the meat out the hard way. My first elk hunt in 1985 in Montana was w/ a guide and a lesson was learned that prompted me to do it on our own. This guided hunt was a "Hollywood production" and was a total disaster, evidently based on "one-time" clients. In short, it was a scam! Most of the other western states charge too much and in general are inconsiderate to nonresidents whereas Colorado treats us fairly. I'm way past the "horny" stage of my life and normally apply for a cow tag but "youngsters" in our group go for the bull tags......Fred
If I were going to use an outfitter and had never gone that route before, didn't know anybody that had used him.. I would pay a Big Game Consultant for his services. Money well spent in that case. I used to hunt with some people who got burned on several different elk hunts until they started using Atkinson consultant.
I picked this guide on the advice of a friend who hunted w/ him. Booking a guided hunt through a consultant is the way to go and Atkinson is one of the best from what I've heard. After the lousy experience w/ this guide, all the hunts have been "on our own" and there was a considerable learning curve as to area and equipment, but it was all pure enjoyment and in spite of numerous mistakes, quite a few elk were killed. I never liked being just a "gun" which is what you are on a guided hunt but for someone that doesn't want to invest time in research, a guided hunt is probably best.......Fred
