I don’t think there is any question that you can greatly improve your odds by returning to hunt the same unit year after year. You learn the terrain, learn a herd’s patterns or the hideouts that bulls like, sometimes meet a valuable contact, and it really helps when planning and organizing a hunt.
On the other hand, there is also something to be said for roaming around. Setting foot in a new unit is exciting in a way that is hard to understate. It is seldom mentioned but hunters venture into places that very few other outdoorsmen ever have reason to go. Going to a new unit intensifies that. The possibility always exists that you are going to find a hunting area that suits you better and anything you did previously
I have hunted 12 different units in Colorado. I hunted more than 12 seasons in Unit 74 west of Hwy 550. In that unit I know the various herds, their summer and winter ranges, and where they go when pressured. I miss hunting in 74 but will probably never return there because with current regs there are better opportunities considering both points and success. By now I’ve got a handful of units that I’d love to return to again – and a few more that I’ve heard about and want to hunt. I would certainly hunt other states, as well, if my time and money permitted.
What say you?
How do you decide whether to hunt the place you know or keep exploring and adding to your range.
How many seasons in the same place or how many units (states and countries for some) have you trodden.
