Home Forums Hunting & Shooting Elk Hunting Starting to elk hunt is overwhelming.....

Well [bleep]...... I guess I should just stay home than Mikie . Thanks for the great advice. All I was saying is it’s overwhelming to look at all these different states and different ways u can or need to buy tags. All the stuff u need to do it all the research u need to do when going into an area like that. All in between everything else we all have going on in life. I guess I’ve just been over thinking it this whole time .

I think it is also important to mention that those public land harvest statistics often include people who didn't hunt at all, but for whatever reason bought a tag. I am not sure if Colorado's survey system and statistics pulls that kind of thing out or takes it into account or not.

Looking at things like Idaho's second draw (which only involves redrawing controlled tags that were drawn originally in the initial draw, but the tag was not bought in time) and myself knowing a good number of people who buy elk tags every year just in case they decide to hunt but never do, those statistics can seriously be skewed. That is not to mention quite a few people who just hunt one or two days by just driving around with a case of beer (not that there's anything wrong with that).

So you need help with regulations?

I guess I’ve just been over thinking it this whole time .

Yup.... That is what I am saying.... Just go buy a tag.... and take it from there.

There is more to elk hunting than picking an area... you have to assemble a camp... work out food... transportation... and dead animal retrieval... if it's warm weather, you have to get the meat cooled....

Goodness, Sitting and doing research in front of a computer screen is the easiest part... And if you don't get it right, you can switch areas next year.

Just go buy a tag... your first trip may turn out to be an expensive camping trip.... every one eats a few tags.... get over it and do better next year.

I'm in the same boat as the OP, I've spent the last three summers in Montana, Wyoming and Colorado hiking and just basically exploring the states. I've concluded the same as others have, that it's a private land game and prepare to spend lots of money. I'm sure it can be done DIY on public land but he odds of success are very low. Additionally, as others have said, if you are hunting by yourself and you happen to have success, that's where the problems really start, I can't imagine packing an elk out of the woods alone for any distance. So it's a locals, outfitters or group game in my observation. I think of hunting in Europe as being an elitist game, only for the upper class. Well, I would consider myself upper middle class (whatever that means these days) but an out of state elk hunt is just beyond what I think is reasonable. I hope to have the opportunity to hunt elk in the near future but I just can't find a way to feel good about spending $10k to do so.

I don't agree this is a private land game, but it could seem that way if you aren't being successful right away. Once you learn a couple different units and figure out where the elk are, they are usually there every year or close to the same area. Some states have more easily accessed public land than others, but there is still plenty of good DIY hunting on public land or private land that is open to the public. Drawing tags in those units can be difficult and expensive for non residents, which is why a lot of us who live out here don't hunt out of state. But the hunting is available and can be very productive if you put the time in to learn how and where to go. We hunt public land exclusively and I have harvested and elk 7 out of the last 10 years, mostly on spike only tags. Which can really be a downer when you see a huge 6x6 or bigger walking by like he owns the place several years in a row....

The camping set up, retrieval , and other logistics can be overcome but can get expensive for the initial investment. We probably have $2- $3 invested in our tents, cook set up, and other items we take to camp to make our lives comfortable for a week, but it can be done for substantially less if this is something you don't do every year.

When it comes right down to it, for a guy who is planning their first hunt out of state it makes a lot of sense to look for a guided hunt just to learn what to do and not to do. There are some pretty inexpensive guided hunts in cull units where they want some cows removed or low scoring bulls removed from the herd. Accommodations are usually supplied or available as part of the package and retrieval of your game is handled by the outfitter. A little time on the computer will help you sort some of this out, then the planning really begins...

Good luck, it is definitely worth it when you get your first elk on the ground...

Bob

I read in Outdoor Life awhile back that the the non-resident DIY success rate in Montana was 3% (bull and cow). Go the first time with a guide and see how it's done. I'm hunting this year on a ranch in NW Colorado where I have seen over 600 elk in a day, private ground surrounded by semi-landlocked BLM. FYI, we hardly ever see anyone on the BLM, it's a1 mile hike to the private property line.

Do you sleep under Harbor Freight tarps and cook in used soup cans to keep the cost that low?

Unless a guy just wants to hunt out of a pampered camp, there is no need to spend thousands of dollars on camping and cooking stuff, though if kids are in the picture as the OP indicated that may change things. I have had no issue killing average bulls on public ground/general tags without a tent, stove or a lot of other gear often deemed as "necessary". A guy just has to have the right mentality.

the guided hunt suggestion above has some merit, just to get an idea of what to do especially concerning how to break an elk down. Horseback hunts are nice but I don't think it would translate well into learning how to backpack hunt very well other than how to find elk. As stated earlier, it may be cheaper to do this in the long run vs taking several years of burned non-resident tags and effort.

Nope, I'm just a cheapskate and I watch for sales, used items in good shape, etc.... my estimate may be a little low, but this year we were talking about it and realized we have had most of our camp set up for going on 15 years now, so the amortization works out pretty well so far... funny thing - we took a new guy up hunting with us a couple years ago (my son's new hunting buddy since I'm going to stop some day) and he was shocked at how luxurious our camp was compared to what he was expecting....

Of course, I didn't include the cost of the new utility trailer I built to haul camp up to our hunting unit, or other sundry things like tarps, etc....

Bob

I have 2K in camping gear that I use on deer and elk hunts.... but it doesn't have to be... My last hunt was a December cow tag in Grizzly country.... I stayed in town at an Airbnb... Made my own breakfast every morning... had wifi... and went out to dinner every night...

One thought that might help the op is... if you figure an area out that you are gonna pull a tag for... You could get a turkey tag for the same area and test your elk camp in the spring so you get all the bugs worked out for the fall hunt... and you would really learn the area by truck and by foot.

Another thing to think about is to hunt the late seasons in Colorado or December for a cow in Wyoming. More than likely you will be the only one out where you are hunting... I normal hunt the 3erd Rifle in Colorado and by Tuesday.... I'm the only hunter for miles and miles. A 4th season Colorado hunt is even more lonely.

Get a cow tag for Wyoming that will let you hunt in December and pull your quarted elk out on a kids plastic sled all in one trip.

I wouldn't spend an azz load of money on an outfitter until I had some elk experience myself.

We hunt private and some public land, from a cabin. Cabin plus trespass is $2000 each. Tags are NR tag prices. Works out to about $3000-3500 a guy with tags and expenses. We've done cheaper, we've done more expensive. This works for us. Its not about killing, its about hunting for us. If you have to kill something to be successful or have a good time, that's ok. Its not who we are. Can you do it cheaper? Yes. Can you pay more? Yes. YMMV

Like it or not, money is how society rations things which are scarce. If it is free, everyone will do it and it has no value.

To the OP, either figure it out on your own, or hire someone like an outfitter to figure it out for you. Really that's your choice, isn't it?
Yes, that is the choice. Its not rocket science, its easily figured out and either do it, or don't.

Make yourself a friend in elk country. Double rewarding.

I love how a bunch of jackasses tried to tell everyone that it was anything other than 2-4%, like I already said. Those guys are idiots with their panties misalligned.

The DIY public land success rate is tiny. That's a FACT. If armed hiking with no elk in sight appeals to you, by all means buy a tag and give it a try. If you want a horseback ride in the wilderness and a hard hunt after less than ideal elk, a outfitted hunt on public land may give you that. If you want your pick of trophy elk, a trespass fee or guided hunt on private/tribal land (which implicitly includes a trespass fee) will give you that.

Pay to play, or take your rifle for a walk. Your choice

Sometime when you are not patty yourself,get a copy of CPW allocted tags and see how many tags say private land only vs how many are public land.Up until two years ago when health started to fail me. I did 95-110% success for many years,every year. You haven't a clue that is for sure and the only jackass I see is your braying which is rather hilarious as your sign is is Llama _Bob. Kinda tells the story right there.

Are you really that much of a moron? Just because a tag ALLOWS you to hunt on public land does not mean it was USED on public land. The vast majority of elk taken on private land in CO are taken with regular OTC or draw tags, but where the hunter has paid a trespass fee (either directly, or through their outfitter) to hunt private land.

The success rate for DIY public land hunts is minuscule We can argue whether it's 2% or 3% or 4% (Wyoming is right in the same range), and it varies by year, but it's so small as to be effectively zero. Parks and Wildlife likes those beautiful out of state checks so much they do everything the can to hide it and mix DIY failure with private land and outfitted success though.

Incidentally, New Mexico has a decent success rate for DIY hunts and far superior herd management so there are actually some elk, but good luck drawing... and no OTC of course.

Ok.... getting back to the OP problem of being overwhelmed... What ND2506AI is saying, is he practically needs an attorney to counsel him to get through all the regulations that it takes just to get a tag....

I know his pain.... But he has to just get over it.... do your research, read the regs... do more research. and just buy a tag.

Once you get a tag... get on the ground... tag in pocket with gun in hand. You will be on your way. Next year, you will know more.... and the year after that... you will improve your game.... You will understand how to play the game of building preference points while still hunting elk every year... Play off three or four different states, Wyoming, Colorado, Montana and New Mexico or Idaho.

My success rate on filling elk tags is just short of 70%, all on public land... that 30% that went unfilled was all in the early years... Go every year... improve your game every year... upgrade your camp... upgrade your pack out system. Get better tags. Get better boots. I don't have an ATV, I don't have horses... I don't have Llamas.. Everything I have and use to hunt elk fits in an 8' truck box... including the dead elk on my way home.

What I am telling you ND2506AI is just go... just go once.

As far as this nonsense Llama Bob is spouting... I can, no buslls!t now... On a well traveled, Forest Service Road in Colorado... during the 3erd season... and 4th season.. sit on the side of the road at the end of the day and glass up one bull for sure... and some times 3-4 bulls on the same hill... And I can do it from a Forest Service road. In the same place every year.

I've hunted in Colorado a few times but nowhere else, for elk. I've considered other states but haven't spent much time looking into them. Mainly due to the way you have to buy a tag. Colorado is nice with the over the counter tag, that's a big attraction for many and why so many go there. It's also easier to get to for me, living in Missouri. One thing is for sure. If you don't go somewhere you're going to miss out on something in life that you'll regret. It's called hunting for a reason. For me the enjoyment starts in the planning then the day we leave. The mountains the elk live in are the only country I pull over and take the time to look back at after the hunt is over and wish it was the beginning of the hunt and not the end. Go somewhere and ignore the arm chair advice.

All good info, thanks