December Elk Hunting

GAoutdoors · Jul 20, 2018

Thanks to all the encouragement on HuntTalk, I have decided to go elk hunting sooner rather than later, hopefully in 2019. My only problem is that I begin school mid August and finish mid December.

I have looked at NM and WY for late December rifle hunts since that is the only time I have out of school. Although I would love a chance at a bull, I am fine with a cow tag.

I am really leaning towards NM because of the weather in WY. On the other hand, it is more difficult to draw the NM tag. Being from Georgia, I don't know if I could handle a December in WY high elevations.

Does anyone hunt that late December period in either state? Would it be feasible for a NR to handle the possible snow in WY?
Any other states I should look at?

Once again, thanks for all the advice!

Coach Chris · Jul 20, 2018

Late December here in NW Wyoming can be pretty harsh if you’re not used to that kind of cold and snow.
It’s really important to dress properly.

Idhikker · Jul 20, 2018

You live in Georgia? I hunted weekends in college living in Idaho. Not many bull opportunities in December. Plenty of cow. You could hunt thanksgiving week and I think the Montana combo tag lasts through Thanksgiving.

GAoutdoors · Jul 20, 2018

Yeah I live in GA. I had thought about Thanksgiving, but I only get Wednesday, Thursday, and Friday off that week. I would miss Thanksgiving and family. Maybe I need to just skip two days and hunt all Thanksgiving though.

GAoutdoors · Jul 20, 2018

Coach Chris said:
Late December here in NW Wyoming can be pretty harsh if you’re not used to that kind of cold and snow.
It’s really important to dress properly.

After watching some of Randy's WY hunts, I'm pretty discouraged to try out my luck in that kind of weather. Thanks for the heads up Chris.

TOGIE · Jul 20, 2018

There are some great december cow tags in colorado that are not that hard to pick up with a point or two. Certainly they can be generally more difficult to get a hand on for NR's. There are good places to go, and it can often be quite sunny and mild in december.

JohnCushman · Jul 20, 2018

A good proper layering system will do wonders in the cold no matter where you're from.

GAoutdoors · Jul 20, 2018

JohnCushman said:
A good proper layering system will do wonders in the cold no matter where you're from.

Thanks John, that's just a reminder I need to maybe get some heavier weight merino. I think I am more worried about driving in the snow than getting cold.

JohnCushman · Jul 20, 2018

GAoutdoors said:
Thanks John, that's just a reminder I need to maybe get some heavier weight merino. I think I am more worried about driving in the snow than getting cold.

I remember being in Ft Benning as a kid before my dad got out of the Army and we got slush storm...not even snow...and it shut the whole base down.

GAoutdoors · Jul 20, 2018

TOGIEGOAT said:
There are some great december cow tags in colorado that are not that hard to pick up with a point or two. Certainly they can be generally more difficult to get a hand on for NR's. There are good places to go, and it can often be quite sunny and mild in december.

I did not even realize that there were limited license hunts for all of December in public land units. I just looked back at the regulations and noticed them. My 1 point could come in handy next year after all.

GAoutdoors · Jul 20, 2018

JohnCushman said:
I remember being in Ft Benning as a kid before my dad got out of the Army and we got slush storm...not even snow...and it shut the whole base down.

Yeah us Georgians don't know how to handle snow/ice. But it really is a problem when we get it. I live about 1.5 hours south of Ft. Benning, and it never snows at home.

Coach Chris · Jul 20, 2018

Are Arizona, Oregon or California options?

nrpate05 · Jul 20, 2018

I tagged along on a friends cow elk hunt in mid December last year near Bondurant, WY aka the coldest place on the planet. It happened to be during a high pressure system which typically means brutal cold but sunshine. That it was. As cold as -10 in the AM getting up to probably 20 in the afternoon. Saving grace was the sunshine. We actually went in on ski touring equipment, which is something you should consider if there decent snow coverage. We hunted one day with just boots and progress was slow and frustrating. Skis made travel a heck of a lot easier. We hunted near a state feed ground as we figured the elk would be making their way to winter range. We saw probably 300 cows and spikes on the feed ground. The only elk we saw on public were 3 bulls. We didn't end up getting an elk but it was really cool to hunt that late in the season. Bring everything you can to stay warm and be careful. The nice thing about hunting that time of year is that the elk are generally in less remote country. Sometimes this means private land - OnX maps can help a lot with that. A good tactic can be hunting public that is adjacent to private winter grounds. Elk may bed in the timber on public and feed on the private. Especially if there is hunting on the private land. Sorry my thoughts are a bit scattered!

GAoutdoors · Jul 21, 2018

Coach Chris said:
Are Arizona, Oregon or California options?

I may consider Arizona, the website seems to be down or something. I assume you could draw some cow tags pretty easily in AZ?

GAoutdoors · Jul 21, 2018

nrpate05 said:
I tagged along on a friends cow elk hunt in mid December last year near Bondurant, WY aka the coldest place on the planet. It happened to be during a high pressure system which typically means brutal cold but sunshine. That it was. As cold as -10 in the AM getting up to probably 20 in the afternoon. Saving grace was the sunshine. We actually went in on ski touring equipment, which is something you should consider if there decent snow coverage. We hunted one day with just boots and progress was slow and frustrating. Skis made travel a heck of a lot easier. We hunted near a state feed ground as we figured the elk would be making their way to winter range. We saw probably 300 cows and spikes on the feed ground. The only elk we saw on public were 3 bulls. We didn't end up getting an elk but it was really cool to hunt that late in the season. Bring everything you can to stay warm and be careful. The nice thing about hunting that time of year is that the elk are generally in less remote country. Sometimes this means private land - OnX maps can help a lot with that. A good tactic can be hunting public that is adjacent to private winter grounds. Elk may bed in the timber on public and feed on the private. Especially if there is hunting on the private land. Sorry my thoughts are a bit scattered!

Thanks for the info pate. I was thinking the elk may be in lower elevation depending on the snow. May be a great tactic to learn how to hunt elk.

prhunter · Jul 21, 2018

NM does not offer cow tags for Nonresidents unless you get a landowner tag. AZ does have some late cow elk hunts which could be very good. PM me if you'd like to hear more options.

GAoutdoors · Jul 21, 2018

AZ may have better weather for the late season hunts than WY. The NM tag is a bull tag with somewhat decent chance of drawing. A guided cow hunt seems pretty expensive, but the guided hunt may be better if I am worried about the weather.

PrairieHunter · Jul 21, 2018

I am sure there are many options in both states but I think you are on the right track to try a cow hunt. If you research some of the units in WY there are a lot of opportunities on private land through walk in or HMA opportunities. I know unit 7 and 16 have some pretty good spots that are open for cow hunting in December.
https://wgfd.wyo.gov/Public-Access/Walk-In-Hunting
https://wgfd.wyo.gov/Public-Access/Hunter-Management-Areas#hmainfo

GAoutdoors · Jul 23, 2018

PrairieHunter said:
I am sure there are many options in both states but I think you are on the right track to try a cow hunt. If you research some of the units in WY there are a lot of opportunities on private land through walk in or HMA opportunities. I know unit 7 and 16 have some pretty good spots that are open for cow hunting in December.
https://wgfd.wyo.gov/Public-Access/Walk-In-Hunting
https://wgfd.wyo.gov/Public-Access/Hunter-Management-Areas#hmainfo

Would the HMA or walk in areas generally have lower elevation? From what I see, late in the season the elk may be low depending on the snow. Thanks Prairie!

PrairieHunter · Jul 23, 2018

GAoutdoors said:
Would the HMA or walk in areas generally have lower elevation? From what I see, late in the season the elk may be low depending on the snow. Thanks Prairie!

Yes but depends on each situation, these are generally areas which are overpopulated so these private ranches open up access in Dec and January for cow hunting.

December Elk Hunting

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