Map Scouting for Elk

[Wink]

When studying your topo maps, what do you seasoned hunters look for as far as likely ares that may hold elk?

 

[BrownBear]

I look for roadless areas. The second hour after the season opens, that's where the elk go. Kinda nice to have all the road hunters out there herding the elk to your favorite hunting spots.

 

[the11]

I look for the area where I am not going to be, as they are sure to be there. :haha:

 

[dyemaker]

This is not traditional hunting but you could use google maps. There is a satelite view and a terrain view. Use the Search for Lake Winnibigoshish and zoom in on the northern part where the flowage enters the lake and zoom in further so you can clearly see Stoney point and Mallard point for example. Just a thought.

 

[Vaino]

When the weather is warm during the MLer season, north and east facing slopes are good. Slopes w/ benches and areas w/ seeping, slow moving springs should also be considered. Of course looking at maps should only be the preliminary to actually walking the areas because fires and logging operations greatly change the timbered areas. We hunt the San Juan Nat'l Forest and there's a network of numbered and logging roads which facilitate access but we've never had "other hunter" problems because of the steep terrain and in fact, have never met another hunter outside of our party while hunting....Good luck.....Fred

 

[Fullstock58]

Topo Maps are a "General" 1st stage for me, almost all of the Elk holding/movement places will not show up on any map. Knowing the area you hunt is the only way to be sure, I hunt in colorado, the weather can be cold/hot or anything inbetween. So water holes (enough for good wallows and drinking) and deep dark timber are places to know, plus the way Elk get to and from those places. I have poured a lot of my life over maps, with deer or elk high points and ridges are animal magnets.

 

[longcruise]

Many of the topo maps you purchase from the Feds are notoriously out of date. Check the dates at the bottom of some of those maps. Some go back to 1967. :shocked2: Of course, the topography has not changed (except for mt st helens :shocked2: ) so in that department you are ok. The roads depicted on most of those maps out of date. Many are now closed and new logging operations have created new roads.

These maps are very useful for your co hunt.

Link

Generally, check the maps for areas that have the slopes as Flehto described and small openings that will have some feed available. Most important, IMO is to figure out where the sanctuary areas are where they will go when the pressure is on.

 

[Little Wattsy]

I look for roadless areas. The second hour after the season opens, that's where the elk go. Kinda nice to have all the road hunters out there herding the elk to your favorite hunting spots.

BINGO! The deeper, darker, and nastier the better.
Just remember you gotta get-em out though :wink:

 

[BrownBear]

I look for roadless areas. The second hour after the season opens, that's where the elk go. Kinda nice to have all the road hunters out there herding the elk to your favorite hunting spots.

BINGO! The deeper, darker, and nastier the better.
Just remember you gotta get-em out though :wink:

Just pack a fork and a hearty appetite!

 

[tg]

On the West coat I would look for deep canyons with wide flats at the bottom this is often an indication of the presence of Beaver meadows or natural meadows, the no road deal is a real plus as well, there is nothing that can beat time in the woods year round and local know;edge.

 

[oletymepreacher]

Two years ago, a terminally ill friend wanted hunting partners to accompany him to his 'spot'. He can't get around too well and uses an ATV. I topoed the area then Google Earthed the area. The maps showed where not to hunt-too close to roads, with a lot of ATV trails all over the place. BUT, there were a few good spots to ambush an elk. After the Division of Wildlife sends the elk a telegram outlining who is coming and when they are coming, the elk get more nocturnal than usual and hold up in the steepest, downed timbered, highest elevation around. What to look for: heavily forested north slopes, west slopes. They will bed down on a point above steep slopes, one slope fairly open, with escape routes into the dark timber on the other slope or by running higher. Look for a point with enough 'level' ground to park a pickup. They will feed at night during hunting season, but generally feed downhill a considerable distance from their bedding area, depending on hunting pressure. A good idea is to find one of these points about 4 AM and wait for them there. They will take a small feed late morning and will become active about 10-12 noon, look for small areas where the forest is open enough for ground grazing, get there before 10 and set up in the edge and make meat. Above all, when hunting, be flexible, try something that makes absolutely no sense at all and you just might bust an elk. Cow elk are more numerous than the bulls, but the bad news is that they have survived more seasons than the bulls and are more wary, especially the lead cow. For moisture, elk seem to stay away from noisy streams, which makes sense since they depend as much on their ears as their noses for safety. Look for swampy, boggy areas. During the muzzy season it still may be hot, and the bogs are cooler and are quiet. The bulls roll around in the mud-some elk version of cologne. Where there are bulls, cows are nearby.

The maps should show no roads, paved or dirt, no ATV trails. We did get into elk one day while hunting with the above mentioned friend. Bulls were bugling and a big herd was moving up right near camp. The Queen ( my wife not the friend) and I ran uphill, passed the herd and set up where the map told us we had to be, no small feat. Too bad we were about 100 yards shy of where we needed to be. As complete as maps and Google Earth were, they didn't show us the trail the elk used, but they got us close. Looking back, we should have scouted the terrain on foot prior to season. We found the elk trail about an hour after the herd passed us. That's why we call it 'hunting'.

 

Wink,

I definitely use Google Earth as a scouting tool as it shows small secluded meadows and such as well as some of the most recent road coverage.

As has been mentioned here, elk tend to head for the more remote spots when hunted. Several years ago I was part of a research project looking at elk movements in response to hunter pressure in a large Colorado Wilderness. We collared a bunch of cows and followed them with an airplane. The week before the season, all the outfitters moved in and set up their big camps right in the meadows where all the elk were hanging out. Immediately, the elk moved down into the rougher country or down to private land and stayed there through the season.

My suggestion is to look at maps and GE for sites that won't get much traffic. These might not be terribly far off road, but are out of the way or secluded enough that most hunters won't find them. Look for drainages and saddles that can be used for pathways to and from water and good grass. Elk tend not to travel in the bottoms of drainages or on the tops of ridges, but instead on the slopes near the bottom or top.

My suggestions would be to:
1) Talk to someone local or who has hunted the unit and ask them generally where large numbers of elk tend to hang out during the time your hunt occurs. Up high in the mountains, down low, general areas that hold elk and travel pathways. Also ask where most of the hunters go.
2) Use GE and maps to find several areas that reflect what you hear in terms of elk habitat that also appear to have good grass and water. Assess the access for yourself and other hunters. Look for adjoining terrain that could be used as escape habitat.
3) Go a few days early and check out those areas in mid-day to look for elk sign. When you find it, scout that adjoining escape habitat and look for game trails and ambush sites that allow you to use the rest of the hunters out there to drive the elk to you. Try to end up with several areas you can hunt before opening day.
4) Very important. Make sure before you pull the trigger that you can get that animal out from where you shot it without killing yourself.
5) A big duh here, but I'll say it because everybody seems to do it. Elk tend to hang out in pretty places where people also like to camp. Don't drop your camp right in the middle of where you find elk.

Best of luck with your hunt. Where are you going?

Sean