Where to hunt?

[drahthaar]

Montana raised the price of the combo right in the midst of "there are no elk left in MT, the wolves ate them all." "I saw it on the internet."

The fact of the matter is I have never ever seen so many bulls, big bulls, and huge bulls getting harvested in bow season. I can't imagine what this rifle season will hold. Texts and emails have been crazy! Even up here in R1. How could it be???

Barn, if you want to hunt MT, go to the FWP site and start studying harvest totals in hunting districts. Its broken down very nicely into total elk, bulls, cows, 6 or better, etc. At the very least you can see where maybe NOT to go vs where a guy may stand a half descent chance at whackin a bull.

You can also come here and ask about what terrain is like in areas if that is a concern. Guys are more apt to at least give you an honest assessment of what hunting an area may be like. As was stated earlier, MT is so diverse in our ecosystems, there is an experience for everyone. Some is easier to hunt and some is downright idiotic.

 

[RobG]

With limited elk knowledge, I have to agree. I have never elk hunted. Paid extra for MT N-R tag (0 preference points), hunted with a buddy who has hunted MT. On the second day of our archery public land hunt, I shot what green scored 352 2/8. Lucky? Don't know, but I'll take it.
Yea, I'll pay extra for a quality tag.

That wasn't luck, it was divine intervention.

 

[psinclair]

Keep studying Econ, counting your bonus points and how many people return MT elk tags. I'm going to my garage to fondle this years bulls antlers.

Laffin'....you've been rubbing down a different big elk rack in the garage every year for what, the past 15 years?

We have it good here...six weeks of bow hunting, followed by five weeks of rifle hunting, and if we choose, we can hunt everyday of both seasons, year after year. There are big mature bulls to hunt in every general season district if you're willing to do some walking, hunt hard, pass on the average, and lose the road...

 

[The Hedgehog]

Was thinking about the "economics" of my elk hunting choices.

Adding in the license fees, and preference to the non-resident elk hunts on my horizon, AZ will cost me $3500, UT around $2500, and WY around $1500. This is counting in annual license fees and preference points, and assuming I'll draw in the next 3-5 years, which I should.

Montana doesn't even have a close second, well Wyoming... but it ain't close.

 

[Barn]

As long as my 'odds' were pretty good wherever I hunted, I don't care how many inches it scores. And I guess I'd at least have to harvest a cow to make the trip worth it. I'm a 'meat hunter' and not even a very good one at that.

 

[gwhunter]

Alright Greenhorn, you talked me into MT for the years I don't draw the WY general tag. This will make it so I can go elk hunting every year as I also don't want to make this a once or twice in a lifetime kind of thing. I looked at the MT website briefly and can't find out if they sell the elk license by itself. Do they? Or are you required to get the combo tag. Compared to WY where the license is 577 and two years of preference points to guarantee a general tag is an extra 100 puts me at $677 vs. the $971 for a combo in MT. While $300 doesn't eliminate the hunt for me it is my share of the gas bill. But, it's also worth it to be able to hunt every year. Go figure. I also hope to go to my garage to fondle my antlers one day

 

[belly-deep]

I've seen how this story ends:

1) Roadhunter will throw in a few more half-baked replies
2) Kurt will question Roadhunter's sexual orientation and/or make some comment involving a blumpkin
3) Roadhunter will challenge Kurt's skills as a hunter
4) Kurt will post a seemingly infinite photo collection of big critters, which Roadhunter will be unable to top
5) Roadhunter will slink away, going back to his day job of cleaning bathrooms at the Wilkes mansion

 

[Festus]

Alright Greenhorn, you talked me into MT for the years I don't draw the WY general tag. This will make it so I can go elk hunting every year as I also don't want to make this a once or twice in a lifetime kind of thing. I looked at the MT website briefly and can't find out if they sell the elk license by itself. Do they? Or are you required to get the combo tag. Compared to WY where the license is 577 and two years of preference points to guarantee a general tag is an extra 100 puts me at $677 vs. the $971 for a combo in MT. While $300 doesn't eliminate the hunt for me it is my share of the gas bill. But, it's also worth it to be able to hunt every year. Go figure. I also hope to go to my garage to fondle my antlers one day

The big game combo is $976 (elk and deer). The elk combo is $826 (elk only).
You won't be disappointed.

 

[LopeHunter]

Lots and lots of options for archery hunting a 260" - 300" elk. If that is the only bull elk you hang on the wall of the cave then will dwarf any whitetail you have.

The challenge is if you then decide to get a 2nd elk since a 260" 6x6 elk with 6" tines and not much mass will look sickly if put a 320" or 350" elk on the wall next to it.

If is going to be a one time hunt so want high success then look for a guided hunt during the rut. If are happy with a 260" elk then will be 1/4 of the cost for a 350" class hunt.

You can build a few elk points in WY and get a bull elk tag for a wilderness area which requires using a guide. Since MT raised prices on non-residents, they have surplus tags so can wait until you see if draw WY before need to worry about putting out any cash in MT.

How likely are you to harvest a bull elk using archery equipment if you have never hunted elk and are going without a guide or a seasoned hunter? I would say 5%.

If you want to hunt elk until get one, year after year, then I would look at CO. If you want to hunt once and get a bull elk then look at NM landowner tags or CO landowner tags for archery hunts in pre-rut or rut.

If are not going to be happy with a 260' bull elk yet want to hunt just one time then you need to line up a seasoned elk hunting partner or get a guide.

I prefer to hunt more often so I am not caught up in the horn porn but do focus on representative, mature animals when hunt.

Be honest with yourself and you will not be disappointed if can hunt elk in the pre-rut or rut. A bull elk bugling at midnight or as daybreak approaches is good for the soul.

 

[ShootsManyBullets]

If you want to hunt every year, MT has tags for you.
You can get out every year and learn areas and see game. I'm not a fan of how they changed their fees, but now you can go whenever you want and seasons are long. If you're rolling all the way from TX its going to be an expensive trip anyway. Grab a guy or 2 and split some costs then you're good to go.

You don't have to invest in ever-changing point schemes and fees - just buy the tags and go when you want. Seasons are long too.

 

[----]

Alright Greenhorn, you talked me into MT for the years I don't draw the WY general tag. This will make it so I can go elk hunting every year as I also don't want to make this a once or twice in a lifetime kind of thing. I looked at the MT website briefly and can't find out if they sell the elk license by itself. Do they? Or are you required to get the combo tag. Compared to WY where the license is 577 and two years of preference points to guarantee a general tag is an extra 100 puts me at $677 vs. the $971 for a combo in MT. While $300 doesn't eliminate the hunt for me it is my share of the gas bill. But, it's also worth it to be able to hunt every year. Go figure. I also hope to go to my garage to fondle my antlers one day

If you can swing the time and money, that couple hundred extra bucks for a MT deer tag is a steal. There's a ridiculous amount of opportunity for deer. across the state.

 

[LCH]

While $300 doesn't eliminate the hunt for me it is my share of the gas bill. But, it's also worth it to be able to hunt every year. Go figure. I also hope to go to my garage to fondle my antlers one day

That $300 share of your gas bill will also increase significantly, and also add a day of driving each way depending on what part of Wyoming vs. Montana you hunt. NW Montana is about 8-9 hours and another 600 miles from central Wyoming (coming from Indiana).

Not that it isn't worth it if the hunting is that much better, just something to consider.

 

[gwhunter]

If you can swing the time and money, that couple hundred extra bucks for a MT deer tag is a steal. There's a ridiculous amount of opportunity for deer. across the state.

That's what it looks like if the elk-only combo is only 100 bucks cheaper. While I probably wouldn't target deer unless my elk tag is full, I wouldn't pass a 4 point if it walked in front of me.

I do want to hunt every year so I think as the years roll on I might start getting better at it. So hopefully I won't have the 5% odds that LopeHunter projected for a first time bowhunter. Maybe one day I'll have 10-15% odds

I know I didn't start the thread, but thanks for the additional info.

 

[JohnCushman]

No point in making your hunt a 'once in a lifetime'. Why not come up every couple of years? Find a spot that you like and learn it and keep hunting it and enjoy the meat and success that will come in due time.

 

[DAVIDKERR]

maybe you should hunt mule deer in west texas instead. are there public areas in west tx you could hunt? you may want to get a rifle also.

 

[Barn]

I should have been more clear on my initial request, I guess. I have watched enough TV to have an idea of how it's done, but I'd like to have a paid guided hunt on public lands, so I can learn the ropes, and then return whenever I could to hunt again. Paying to hunt on private land isn't really in the financial cards on a regular basis. I plan to pay once and return later and use the knowledge I paid for earlier.
Does that make sense to yall? It does to me.

Thanks for the responses, and Greenhorn, what state are meaning?

 

[Barn]

As far as I know, there are no public lands to hunt mule deer in Texas. Draw or pay to play.

 

[LCH]

Does that make sense to yall? It does to me.

Not really to me.. You could probably do at least 3 or 4 hunts on your own for the price of 1 guided hunt, and you'd probably learn a lot more that way just due to the extra time you'd have to spend hunting.

Also, if a guide packs you several miles into the backcountry on horses, that won't do you a lot of good since you probably can't replicate that style of hunting later on your own.

My first hunt out west, I paid to hunt private ground. Once I got out there and saw what things were really like, I realized I could have good hunting on my own, for free on public land.

 

[WRO]

I should have been more clear on my initial request, I guess. I have watched enough TV to have an idea of how it's done, but I'd like to have a paid guided hunt on public lands, so I can learn the ropes, and then return whenever I could to hunt again. Paying to hunt on private land isn't really in the financial cards on a regular basis. I plan to pay once and return later and use the knowledge I paid for earlier.
Does that make sense to yall? It does to me.

Thanks for the responses, and Greenhorn, what state are meaning?

Oregon has a lot of options for that. The costs between private and public guided are pretty much the same, at least here locally. I do some booking for a couple outfitters that I can put you in contact with. I think coming in blind, to an area you've never been, looking for a quarry you've never hunted is a recipe for very low success. I've been a part of killing some good bulls on public and part of killing some good bulls on private. I've killed a pile of cows on private and public as well.

If it were me, I'd hunt private with a good guide and ask him a ton of questions. Once you know elk behavior and preferred habitats, they are pretty easy to find in any area that has elk.

I'd go against the grain on applying for every state (that being said, I apply in a bunch) but it costs me a couple grand a year in a lot of states the hunts I am applying for have such low odds I'll likely never draw them. Doing the math, if i took the 2 grand I dump a year and invested it, I could go on a great hunt every 3-5 years by purchasing a LO tag or voucher. My friend does this and killed a giant bull on public land in NV this year.

Its not for everyone, and given the choice I always prefer DIY (not necessarily on public). I run a higher success rate on DIY, but that is in large part because on the few hunts I've been guided on I have been extremely picky.

If you are going to get an outfitter or guide, DO YOUR HOMEWORK, there are a lot of shady characters out there in the guiding community.

 

[hank4elk]

Lots of advice....but NM is right next door and has a couple elk.
I think the cost is less than others.Less than 1k No point bs and if you don't draw you can still hunt with LO tag.
Heck you can get a guided hunt for $3000 or so......$1200 for cow