24hourcampfire.com
24hourcampfire.com
Previous Thread
Next Thread
Print Thread
Hop To
Joined: Dec 2005
Posts: 968
C
Campfire Regular
OP Offline
Campfire Regular
C
Joined: Dec 2005
Posts: 968
OK, I'm giving serious consideration to setting up a spike camp in the back country while Elk hunting in CO during 2nd season (late Oct) this yr.

I want to get your input on camp site selection. More specially do's and don't about where. I got some things like not being next to the creek or on top of a mountain if there a chance of a (thunder) storm.

But what about:
How far from where you think you might be on elk?

Is it acceptable/advisable to setup in or on the edge of the dark timber?

What if high winds are expected, stay in the dark timber? (widow makers)

I assume you want to keep a low visibility profile? (not in the middle of a meadow or be sky lined) correct?

Do you hang your food every night? (if blk bears might be in the area).

Last edited by claybreaker; 04/29/16.

"...buzzards gota eat same as worms" Josey Wales
NRA lifer
Hunting is Conservation
RMEF Member
BP-B2

Joined: Jan 2006
Posts: 69,069
Campfire Kahuna
Offline
Campfire Kahuna
Joined: Jan 2006
Posts: 69,069
Late Oct can bring some real cold weather. Heat rises, cold sinks. At night the low areas around water will get colder than higher places as the cold air flows downward.

If you have a spot that might hold elk, camp downwind. As long as you avoid getting winded, you really don't have to be all that far away unless you like to sing really loud over your evening snort.

I like edges. I like to be just far enough inside to be semi-hidden. Elk will often move out of the timber at dusk to feed and you don''t want your camp where they might spot you. Stay out of the black timber where elk bed. If you scare them out of their beds, they're gone and won't be back for 2 weeks.


“In a time of deceit telling the truth is a revolutionary act.”
― George Orwell

It's not over when you lose. It's over when you quit.
Joined: Apr 2010
Posts: 1,604
K
Campfire Regular
Offline
Campfire Regular
K
Joined: Apr 2010
Posts: 1,604
I avoid the bottom of a drainage if i can, usually tucked in some trees. I usually camp around 10K, but on occasion have camped as high as 12K (which is much colder).

As far as how far away from elk ? I've had elk come within a couple hundred yards of my camp and be there all night, fighting, bugling, mewing and what not. I try to not be on top of them, but in the area I hunt most often ... if elk are there .. they might be everywhere and barely outside your camp.

I don't hang food very often. I have a few times, and might if I am leaving it for an extended time. I sometimes carry my food with me.


Lightweight Tipi Tents and Hunting Tents https://seekoutside.com/tipis-and-hot-tents/
Backpacks for backpack hunting https://seekoutside.com/hunting-backpacks/
Hot Tent Systemshttps://seekoutside.com/hot-tent-combos/
Joined: Jun 2006
Posts: 45,731
S
Campfire 'Bwana
Offline
Campfire 'Bwana
S
Joined: Jun 2006
Posts: 45,731
"Downwind" generally means downhill during the times of the day and night when elk are most active.



A wise man is frequently humbled.

Joined: Mar 2001
Posts: 6,958
KC Offline
Campfire Tracker
Offline
Campfire Tracker
Joined: Mar 2001
Posts: 6,958
First there are the standard considerations regarding where you camp, as follows;

Find a flat spot for the tent, within a 1/4 mile of a clean water source with something to protect your tent from the wind and hopefully conceal your camp, not in a flood plain and with some readily available firewood. Groves of mixed aspen and evergreens often provide all these desirable elements.

Then I make considerations for hunting;

I like to set my camp within a mile of, and downwind from, where I think the elk are hiding and/or where I want to hunt. If I can, I like to hunt uphill, so that I can haul the elk down to my camp instead up to my camp. This arrangement is also often favored by morning winds which blow uphill more often than downhill. I look for isolated water sources and/or isolated food source. Oozing seeps seem to grow green grass after everything else has turned dormant for the winter. An isolated spring, maybe the highest point where a creek first seeps out of the ground, is a good place to setup in the afternoon and wait to see what comes to drink.

KC



Wind in my hair, Sun on my face, I gazed at the wide open spaces, And I was at home.





IC B2

Joined: Jun 2006
Posts: 45,731
S
Campfire 'Bwana
Offline
Campfire 'Bwana
S
Joined: Jun 2006
Posts: 45,731
Originally Posted by KC
I like to hunt uphill, so that I can haul the elk down to my camp instead up to my camp. This arrangement is also often favored by morning winds which blow uphill more often than downhill.


I think you said that last part backwards.....



A wise man is frequently humbled.

Joined: Mar 2001
Posts: 6,958
KC Offline
Campfire Tracker
Offline
Campfire Tracker
Joined: Mar 2001
Posts: 6,958
Originally Posted by smokepole
Originally Posted by KC
I like to hunt uphill, so that I can haul the elk down to my camp instead up to my camp. This arrangement is also often favored by morning winds which blow uphill more often than downhill.


I think you said that last part backwards.....


Yep. I wrote uphill but I was thinking downhill and therefore into camp from where I intend to hunt.

I guess it depends on whether or not the morning sun hits the slope.

If the sun hits the slope, then it will warm the surface and the air. Warm air rises.

If the slope is in the shade in the morning, then drafts will probably be going from the cold shadows to the warmer sunlit area, wherever that is. That may be downhill but might also be uphill, depending on the terrain.

So I guess you're right. It's not accurate to say that morning drafts go uphill or downhill. It depends on sun exposure and terrain. Notice that I wrote "often".

These basic facts of physics, which may affect the microclimate in a small area, may be totally overwhelmed by the prevailing wind, that in my experience seem to be most often out of the northwest in the Rocky Mountains. A study of the wind roses for airports might confirm or deny this personal impression.

I just took a look at the wind rose data for Colorado Springs Airport. It's interesting to note that for every month, the wind blows most often out of the north-northwest during the day and out of the south during the night.


http://www.wrcc.dri.edu/cgi-bin/wea_windroseclim.pl?laKCOS






Wind in my hair, Sun on my face, I gazed at the wide open spaces, And I was at home.





Joined: Jun 2006
Posts: 45,731
S
Campfire 'Bwana
Offline
Campfire 'Bwana
S
Joined: Jun 2006
Posts: 45,731
My only point was, you said it backwards. No big deal, just wanted to correct it for the OP.

In most of the places I hunt, the morning breeze blows downhill until the air warms up, some time between 9 and 10 AM, when it reverses. That's for the early seasons in September, before daylight savings time kicks in.

And it generally reverses and blows downhill around dusk, and stays that way all night long while the elk are most active. That's why you want to (generally) camp down hill from where they hang out and feed at night.

Of course, most people can cite examples of how and when they've broken these rules and still killed elk.



A wise man is frequently humbled.

Joined: Sep 2003
Posts: 23,268
C
Campfire Ranger
Offline
Campfire Ranger
C
Joined: Sep 2003
Posts: 23,268
Good questions. Good camping skills are key to good backpack hunting.

When I camp, I am in close proximity to my glassing spot, which is usually in close proximity to where I am going to kill something. It is key to be at where you want to glass before first light, so unless you want to hoof a mile or so in the dark via headlamp blowing everything out, camp close to your glassing spot and very quietly slip into position without waving your light around. Darkness will conceal your movement. Then, don't move for a few hours as it gets light and good things will happen for you. Know the forecast and know what direction the wind is going to be blowing from. Camp and glass accordingly. Never skyline.


Moderated by  RickBin 

Link Copied to Clipboard
YB23

Who's Online Now
285 members (007FJ, 160user, 222Sako, 22250rem, 1Longbow, 12344mag, 32 invisible), 1,975 guests, and 917 robots.
Key: Admin, Global Mod, Mod
Forum Statistics
Forums81
Topics1,187,728
Posts18,400,812
Members73,822
Most Online11,491
Jul 7th, 2023


 







Fish & Game Departments | Solunar Tables | Mission Statement | Privacy Policy | Contact Us | DMCA
Hunting | Fishing | Camping | Backpacking | Reloading | Campfire Forums | Gear Shop
Copyright © 2000-2024 24hourcampfire.com, Inc. All Rights Reserved.
Powered by UBB.threads™ PHP Forum Software 7.7.5
(Release build 20201027)
Responsive Width:

PHP: 7.3.33 Page Time: 0.085s Queries: 14 (0.002s) Memory: 0.8330 MB (Peak: 0.9181 MB) Data Comp: Zlib Server Time: 2024-03-29 11:03:12 UTC
Valid HTML 5 and Valid CSS