Arizona late season rifle hunt - Unit 5A

I was drawn for a bull in the late season rifle hunt in December. I have not hunted elk since moving from Montana 5 years ago and I am very excited. I have not spent much time in the unit other than camping with the family.

Does anyone have any success stories with this unit or any helpful information? I was going to do a summer scouting trip and a few more closer to December to see how the elk are reacting to the cooler weather. I have looked over the unit on google earth as well and it looks like the entire unit is dissected with roads. I am not much of a road hunter and love to put the boots to the ground and get more of a back country style hunt where I can get away from the road hunting pressure. Are there any large patches of this unit that do not have roads?

I still have plenty of research to do. I would love to hear what people say about the unit before scouting.

Thanks,

Chris

Turn the roads layer on in Earth, then watch Randy's 4 part video series on how he finds his hunt area. He and I do the exact same process.
Also, add the earthpoint topo server. Just Google "earthpoint topo" and click the Google Earth topo link when you get to their web page.

Hopefully you applied for deer in that unit. The season is a month before the elk season. That would be a hell of a scouting trip. Also contact the forest service and ask for their travel management plan map. It's free. A lot of the roads have been closed, although many people ignore it.

I do have a turkey tag in October in unit 23 south of Unit 5A so hopefully I can get my turkey early and go up on the rim and do some scouting!

I just got OnX maps and love the roadless areas layer. I think it will be helpful.

Great elk unit. Have not hunted it, but I've had a couple buddies come out of there tagged out. Have fun and take your time.

Great elk unit. Have not hunted it, but I've had a couple buddies come out of there tagged out. Have fun and take your time.