Home Forums Hunting & Shooting Elk Hunting Helicopters

After a recent trip out west (for me at least) through Montana, Wyoming, Idaho, and Colorado, I noticed in each one of these states that there were a number of elk tags still available for lands that have difficult access because these lands sit behind private landownership. I imagine that some of these landowners would allow access on the payment of a trespass fee, and why shouldn't they, as people earn their livings off their land for all different sorts of reasons.

But my point of this thread is that I didn't see hardly any advertisement from small companies offering to fly hunters in and out of these remote spots by helicopter. I think that would be a nice little business, getting people in to hunt in areas where there are few hunters due to difficult access over privately owned lands.

There are some legality issues. As an example, see http://www.dfw.state.or.us/resource...ions/docs/2015_big_game_regs_001-022.pdf page 21, left column.

It could possibly be done but your hunters would have be be on the ground at least 8 hours after flying before they could hunt.

Helicopters are expensive and require maintenance. You'd have to find some sort of financially productive activity for them to engage in the rest of the year which was temporarily suspended during hunting seasons so that transporting hunters didn't otherwise interfere with their "bottom line."

It's a pretty sure bet if there was money to be made, someone would be making it.

Tom

Randy Newberg and his son used a helicopter to film an elk hunt on an island of public land in Montana. Cost was $700 per hunter

http://onyourownadventures.com/hunttalk/showthread.php?t=252739

Yeas ago there was a post from a guy-Ranger1 ????-that did the same. Rancher refused them access. On the way out they had two nice bulls on a chain and they flew them right over the ranch headquarters. Dropped them in the bed of their pickups and went on their way.

Was trying to remember who it was that had posted that account...

"Helicopters are expensive and require maintenance. You'd have to find some sort of financially productive activity for them to engage in the rest of the year which was temporarily suspended during hunting seasons so that transporting hunters didn't otherwise interfere with their "bottom line."


I was kind of thinking the other way around. The helicopters are already engaged in year around activity for their bottom line, and did this to be more financially productive for a few weeks each year.

I mean, people fly in to the north to hunt all sorts of animals, and fly all around the world to hunt. And they pay big money to do it.

There must be some great bulls hiding behind those private land fences!!!!!!!

A lot of it depends on the type of public land your trying to reach. IIRC, most/many USFS forest do not allow the landing of aircraft whereas on lots of BLM lands you can land an aircraft on existing roads.

Just ask around at your nearest airport(s) or call a small airport near the area you're trying to access. People at small airports (where you can't buy a commercial ticket into...think single asphalt strip, there are many more than most people usually know about) are generally more help than commercial airports. The pilot community is usually pretty small and will get you in contact with someone who could suit your needs. It's certainly not cheap, but for the money that goes in to a lot of hunts, getting a quick ride on rotary or fixed wing aircraft could pencil out to make sense. Just be sure to check on the rules relative to flying and hunting in that state.

Idaho prohibits any aircraft, including choppers, from landing anywhere except at established landing strips. If you want your elk packed out by helicopter, you have to get it to the landing strip first.

I guess what one would have to do would be to contact the landowners first and ask them what their trespass fee is. Obviously, if its less than a helicopter ride it wouldn't be worth it to hire the chopper. But then again, I would imagine there are a few landowners that have decided not to allow trespass for any amount of money because they want to enjoy the unreachable land for their own hunting.

Sling load the equipment and meat. Jump in. Stabo out.

This not correct. You can land anywhere it is not prohibited by the land management agency in Idaho. I know a guy who has made a livelyhood out of off-airport landings. He got in trouble once for landing in a wilderness but other than that, completely legal.

If you can find a helo that can take you, your gear, plus your buddy and then fly out an elk or two, at altitude, for cheaper than a trespass fee, you have hit the lotto.

You dont find many helos in remote areas because there isnt much work for them, other than USFS work.

A helo sitting, is losing money. Insurance has to be paid, the more you fly, the less it costs per hour. You have to pay the note on it as well, if it isnt paid for already. Pilots and mechanics have to be paid. Most operators prefer to hangar them, unless you own it, gotta pay hangar rent.

Not for hunting. This is copied from the Idaho hunting regs:

Sounds like Randy was hunting in the Durfees.

Sounds about right...

I thought you were simply talking about flying. Have no idea what the hunting regs in Idaho are.

Doesn't sound like that statute would prohibit flying your Super cub in to an off-airport site- just a helicopter.

Doesn't Idaho have a rule that restricts the size of a hunting rifle too?

For caliber, it has to be a center fire. It also has to be under 16lb. That came from a case many years ago when a local gunsmith and his buddies built a rifle that weighed about 30 odd lb. They had a monster scope on it and would fire it from sandbags on the roof of a pickup (as long as it's parked off the road, its legal). I heard they were shooting deer at 1/2 mile using an artillery rangefinder & spotting scope to walk the rounds in on the deer. . The IDFG couldn't find anything illegal they were doing so they outlawed the gun.

They don't specify that a fixed wing plane must use an established landing strip. I guess they figure there aren't too many pilots nuts enough to try it.