Home Forums Hunting & Shooting Elk Hunting successful in WY elk draw!

My buddy and I were lucky in the draw. A couple years ago we hunted mulies in WY but other than that we know little about the state and even less about where to try for elk and what guide or outfitter to go with. We could use some help and would really appreciate some guide/outfitter references. We enjoy hunting on foot and don't want to spend every day on a horse but wouldn't mind using horses to get into the back country. If you've had experience with this type of hunt and have some references you can share we'd appreciate it. Thanks

Well, I'll be the first........welcome to the fire and congrats on the draw, but sorry no info.

For starters it would help if you told us what unit you drew.

Congrats on the draw. If the Idaho Fish & Game would pull their head out I could maybe put in for something someday.

Congrats on your draw, and welcome (or should I say wELKome) to the 'Fire!

thanks for the warm welcome. We drew a tag which allows us to hunt in all the general tag areas. If you have information on a particular unit or units I can figure out if we can hunt there. A lot of the units are general areas. thanks

First decide what time of the fall you want to hunt that won't conflict with something else you might be hunting. General license hunt areas open on Sept. 1, Sept. 10, Sept. 20, Sept. 26, Oct. 1, Oct 15. The area that opens on Sept. 1 is mostly private land in the northeastern part of the state where elk have gone back out onto the prairie. Acess is difficult. The area opening Sept. 10 is the Thorofare, with access via very long rides on horses, and you can only hunt it with an outfitter. Many griz. The Sept. 20 opener is the west side of the Tetons, with thick timber, lots of tall hills, and relatively low numbers of elk, plus griz and wilderness areas. The areas opening on Sept. 26 and Oct. 1 are mostly near Jackson Hole and Cody, and can be hunted on your own or with an outfitter, but access to elk pushed away from the roads and getting an elk to the truck might be difficult on your own. You will have to dodge around wilderness areas unless you are with an outfitter, and again there are grizzlies, with clean camp restrictions, hanging meat 10 feet off the ground, and so on. The hunt areas that open on Oct. 15 are in the Bighorn Mountains west of Sheridan and Buffalo, in the Snowy Range and Sierra Madres west of Laramie and Saratoga, and up near Pinedale and Big Piney. The average guy can hunt these areas on his own, there are few wilderness problems, or grizzly problems, but success rates for outfitted hunters will always be higher because the outfitter is familiar with the area.
If you are going to look for an outfitter, look up the website for the Wyoming Outfitter's Association, get some phone numbers and start calling outfitters. I suspect some have already contacted you.
If you want to hunt on your own, send me a PM and we can discuss some options over the phone. Just remember, I can give you advice, but I can't transfer my experience, you have to get that on your own via trial and error.

THAT is great advice! And that comes from a long time Wyoming hunter. If it were me I'd be on the phone with him!

Thanks for the great information DrHJH. I talked to 4 guys who have hunted in Southern WY near Savery and have done very well. Yesterday we booked with an outfitter out of Savery for a 5 day hunt starting October 20th. It's on a private ranch that gets lots of elk pushed there from public land in the area. Sounds like getting an elk 300 or better may be tough but we should see lots of animals and most importantly have a great time. We can do lots of walking and spotting which is what really interests us. Supposed to be lots of good mulies too which may be an option for the future. Thanks again for the help.

Sounds like the Outfitter is not a BSer, you should have a good hunt.
I'll be on the NF above ya then we'll se if we cann't let a few by us. (grinn)
here's a little preview of what your Oct. mornings may look like.

Gotlost, beautiful picture, we can't wait!