Stay withan area or look at new

[Rooster52]

Do you always hunt the same area that you know has animals or do you like exploreing new units ?
I have hunted the western states for 30+ years and like exploreing new areas. To me the hunt is more than killing and animal every year.This year I am returning to a unit that I havenot been to in several years .Just to see how much it has changed.

 

[Big Fin]

For the sake of TV, its hard for me to get tags in the same states/units every, so I end up moving around a lot. It is fun to research and see new country, for sure. In fact, the anticipation of a new area makes it more fun to research.

 

[BuzzH]

I do both. I hunt whitetails ( and kill elk there inadvertently quite often), in the same place I started hunting when I was 12.

I think there is definitely value in hunting the same areas and really getting to know them. You learn more and more all the time and eventually picking the right days, hunting the right spots, the right way, will net some great rewards.

The downside is that a person can sort of get stuck in a rut and quit looking for something better.

I spent a lot of my younger years trying to hunt elk in a place that really had pretty poor elk hunting. I killed a lot of elk, but shot the first legal animal I saw. Even at that, the only reason I got them is because I hunted a lot of days.

I should have cut and run from that area, elk wise, a longgg time ago.

The flip side to that is guys that never hunt the same spot twice. They try different areas all the time and never spend enough time anywhere to get to know the country or animals.

There is a balance and a hunter needs to recognize when its time to move to a new area when they aren't finding the correct quality of hunting they are after.

 

[pointingdogsrule]

Sometimes I get "stuck" in the same unit (antelope). With other species I like to change units. I especially like to hunt the unit one year and then come back the next to build and learn from the previous year.

good luck to all
the dog

 

[drahthaar]

Oh this is the eternal question.

I used to hunt many different basins, but now I have pulled back closer to home, after a lost bull and a bad bad experience, I realized I needed to hunt closer to home and really learned one area, it holds deer elk and bears, and now it is pretty much what I stick to.

As Buzzh said, stuck in a rut; my buddy calls it a curse. After hauling so many bulls out of the same 200 yard radius of an area, why do I go anywhere else? He laughs at me when I go wandering off into unknown areas, when I end up killing myself for nothing. That is what I mean, it is kind of a curse. I want to see other country, but then I always wonder what I'm missing when I'm not in my spot.

I have started picking up some other spots, really trying to get to know them as well as I know my spot, documenting every pile of scat, and rub I see, so I know when something is different.

Don't get me wrong, this unit I hunt is not an elk mecca, I go days and days without seeing an elk, but there are big bulls that die of old age up here never having been seen by a person, it's just too thick and steep to even think you are seeing everything. That is why I am always on the lookout for areas they feed in, or areas they travel through. When they are around, you gotta be around too.

So I guess I fall into the find an area and stick to it crowd. But always take some time each summer and fall and scout for plan B!

 

[ShootsManyBullets]

Tough call for sure. I think most of us fight that battle but in the end you can always go back to the old spots if new ones don't work out.

 

[PatrickK]

I try to learn a new area every year. That way I have several options during the season if things don't pan out like I think they should.

Because I live where I hunt I can also combine trips. Fishing and scouting in the summer, or spring bear hunting in an area I think might be good elk hunting in the fall. I get an idea of what the land is like and satisfy the need to explore new ground while not wandering around during precious fall hunting days.


Patrick

 

[Gr8bawana]

We have been hunting basically the same 2 areas in NV since the late 70's and there are some real monsters there. We have been lucky enough to take a few big boys. Just seeing a couple every year
and knowing they are there makes it worthwhile. It's very rugged so very few people are willing to put in the effort to get to where the game is.
The mtn range is so big you can always find someplace new to look and then fall back on the areas that you know like the back of your hand. I guess we are creatures of habit.

 

[mixedbag]

I like to look at new spots and fall back on where I know if it doesn't work out.Find more challenge in hunting a new area.I'm not into the whole horn porn thing and just as happy in figuring out a new spot,and seeing a new place/people.If a spot beats me I will go back and see if I can figure it out which is probably stupid but we all hunt for our own reasons

 

[WIbiggame]

As a newbie to western hunting, I found myself asking this same question this year. It will be my second time out to MT to chase elk. I thought about trying a new area but with the luck we had in the area we went to in 2013 had to go back. I fall asleep at night dreaming of those hills! All of you folks that live in the mountains are very lucky!!

I would like to try new spots to see more of the area but just can't swing it time wise and financially.

 

[idnative1948]

I agree with SMBs. Tough call. We have tried a couple of new areas, but always check in with the BIO's and the places in our area we have been hunting for 20+ always seems to be a good choice (controlled hunts). Sure some years we will miss animals by 3-4 days, but others we are dead on. Up high this time, down low, who knows?

 

[mtmander]

I enjoy going over the next mountain to see what is there. I guess I have always been looking for that special spot. I do hunt the areas near town when I don't have the time to explore but I like looking for new country.

 

[ShootsManyBullets]

I enjoy going over the next mountain to see what is there. I guess I have always been looking for that special spot. I do hunt the areas near town when I don't have the time to explore but I like looking for new country.

I don't know how many times I've done the "I'm just going to go over to the next mountain" and ended up doing it 4 more times then having a long walk back to the truck.

 

[LCH]

A little of both for me.. I like seeing and exploring new country, but only if I have legitimate reason to believe it's a better area than what I already know. I can always see new country during the summer with just a pack, then go back to a familair spot when trying to fill a tag.

I'll hopefully be hunting elk in the same area in 2015 that I did this past season, only for a bull this time. I had a cow tag last season, but saw several nice bulls. I feel a lot more confident going in late September with a bow, now that I've hunted early October with a rifle.

If we draw, I'll also be hunting a new area for antelope. From my research, there's not much to be had in the way of trophy quality, but tons of accessible public and lots of animals. I'm taking 2 BIL's with me for their first western hunt, and I think it will be a good time.

 

[2rocky]

Depends how often I can draw the tag....

When I have a spot that produces I'll stay in that area until I think I can do better. Usually I have a list of places to check out during a hunt, and go through them in order. Usually takes a few days then I evaluate if I wanna repeat in those same areas.

The off season is when I look at "new areas". Mainly just getting to know the lay of the land, where the water is and where the trails and roads go. If I am going to switch units, that is usually for better access, better support from camp mates, more favorable season dates, or first hand intell that it has more and bigger animals.

I try not to "leave animals to find animals".

 

[SagebrushSlayer]

I have been an explorer and while I haven't had the success I have hoped for, I have hunted a large variety of areas based on wanting to explore new country.

I started hunting with my friends family and going through the same routine on the same mtn range, where they have been successful for 40+ years. However, I read/heard/imagined hunting as being much more than what I encountered. Once I graduated high school, I started exploring new areas and tried to improve my hunting skill set.

By exploring new areas and choosing different animals to hunt, it helped me figure out when to hunt, what to hunt, and where to hunt. I might have had an elk tag and only turned up deer, but took pictures and made notes on the areas and number/quality of deer I was finding.

Keeping notes, pictures and following up on different "explored" areas years later has helped me with getting to know certain areas better. I still put in for draw tags in areas I've always wanted to hunt, but can't unless I draw a tag.

I try to hunt with friends that draw tags in areas I have always thought about. Its a great way to learn new areas, learn how/why friends hunt the way they do, and to help friends with trying to accomplish their hunting goal for that tag. I also enjoy hunting known areas with new hunters and kids. Teaching lessons and providing opportunity in known areas is a lot more fun.