Hike Less for Success
By Nate Simmons ©Elk Hunter Magazine
Death marches aren't always the best answer for killing good bulls
The success rates for a public land elk hunter in most units out West are very low. Typically, in the average OTC or easy draw area, a good success rate would be between 10-20%. However, we all know hunters who seem to consistently beat the odds and find great success in the exact same areas where 80-90% of the hunters go home empty-handed. From my observations and experience, there are a lot of things that consistently successful hunters do that most hunters do not. This article sheds light on one thing that has helped me find success and also saves me a lot time and energy.
The author packs out a public land bull he killed by spiking out with a lightweight camp less than two miles from a road.
Be There When They Are
When I'm up on a mountain hunting for elk, I'm not just observing what the elk are doing; I'm also taking note of what other hunters are doing. Of course I'm always trying to find an area void of other hunters and rich with elk, but finding these types of areas is rare. If you do find one, you'd better enjoy it while it lasts, because it's only a matter of time before someone else discovers it or something changes that causes the elk to move.
The author takes a few photos of a successful public land hunt he shared with his dad where they had packed into a heavily hunted area with horses less than two miles from the nearest trailhead.
Normally, when I find areas with very few or no hunters, it usually means that the elk population is low and the hunting is tough. On the contrary, areas with plenty of elk usually also have plenty of hunters.
Even the hunters who don't fill tags often tend to find areas with reasonable elk populations, but one of the differences between successful hunters and unsuccessful hunters is the approach they take to hunting these areas. Having little competition is always nice and makes calling elk a lot more effective, but I've had just as much success in areas that have been heavily hunted and which house highly educated elk herds. I believe one big reason for this is the amount of time I spend in prime elk locations during peak activity times at first and last light.
Often I find that hunters I'm competing with are typically hiking to or from camp during these productive times, arriving after prime morning time and then hiking back to camp well before last light to avoid hiking in the pitch dark.
There are two ways to beat the competition in these areas and increase your odds of success. First, get less sleep than them and hike in the dark to and from prime locations that elk are frequenting.
Second, which is typically what I prefer, is to spike out with a light tent closer to the elk so that I can get more sleep and not be tired from hiking when I get to the location. This may sound obvious for hunting areas far from roads, but it really doesn't have to be a great distance to still put the odds in your favor.
By Nate Simmons ©Elk Hunter Magazine
Death marches aren't always the best answer for killing good bulls
The success rates for a public land elk hunter in most units out West are very low. Typically, in the average OTC or easy draw area, a good success rate would be between 10-20%. However, we all know hunters who seem to consistently beat the odds and find great success in the exact same areas where 80-90% of the hunters go home empty-handed. From my observations and experience, there are a lot of things that consistently successful hunters do that most hunters do not. This article sheds light on one thing that has helped me find success and also saves me a lot time and energy.
The author packs out a public land bull he killed by spiking out with a lightweight camp less than two miles from a road.
Be There When They Are
When I'm up on a mountain hunting for elk, I'm not just observing what the elk are doing; I'm also taking note of what other hunters are doing. Of course I'm always trying to find an area void of other hunters and rich with elk, but finding these types of areas is rare. If you do find one, you'd better enjoy it while it lasts, because it's only a matter of time before someone else discovers it or something changes that causes the elk to move.
The author takes a few photos of a successful public land hunt he shared with his dad where they had packed into a heavily hunted area with horses less than two miles from the nearest trailhead.
Normally, when I find areas with very few or no hunters, it usually means that the elk population is low and the hunting is tough. On the contrary, areas with plenty of elk usually also have plenty of hunters.
This article was originally published by our friends at Elk Hunter and Western Hunter magazines. They are just about the only print hunting magazines I read these days. I think you would like them, too. To learn more about them, CLICK HERE
-Len Backus-
Even the hunters who don't fill tags often tend to find areas with reasonable elk populations, but one of the differences between successful hunters and unsuccessful hunters is the approach they take to hunting these areas. Having little competition is always nice and makes calling elk a lot more effective, but I've had just as much success in areas that have been heavily hunted and which house highly educated elk herds. I believe one big reason for this is the amount of time I spend in prime elk locations during peak activity times at first and last light.
Often I find that hunters I'm competing with are typically hiking to or from camp during these productive times, arriving after prime morning time and then hiking back to camp well before last light to avoid hiking in the pitch dark.
There are two ways to beat the competition in these areas and increase your odds of success. First, get less sleep than them and hike in the dark to and from prime locations that elk are frequenting.
Second, which is typically what I prefer, is to spike out with a light tent closer to the elk so that I can get more sleep and not be tired from hiking when I get to the location. This may sound obvious for hunting areas far from roads, but it really doesn't have to be a great distance to still put the odds in your favor.
Hike Less For Success
Consider that when hunting from a base camp along a road, you'll often wake up extremely early (but often still not early enough), make coffee, start a fire or heater, get the lanterns going, get your pack ready for the day before starting the truck and driving to the place from which you plan to start your hike. The amount of time varies, but on average for me, it's this: wake up 20 minutes before I leave camp, drive for 10 minutes to my parking spot, hike for an hour (2-3 miles) to reach a promising location.
The author gets ready to pack out the final load after another successful hunt while implementing tactics discussed in this article.
Same thing in the evenings, other than it's probably going to take longer than 20 minutes in camp to make dinner and get to bed. So, in the course of a day's hunting this way, I would hike 4-6 miles just to get to a decent spot and spend three hours or more getting to and from my hunting area. That's assuming I stay out all day and don't retreat to camp midday to nap and eat lunch.
By simply spiking out with a lightweight camp, I gain at least three hours of sleep each night vs. the alternative. This is huge during September rut hunts when the nights are shorter than on the later hunts, but even then, you're saving a lot of energy.
Obviously, sleeping in cots is nice and having coolers and camp cooking supplies is great for preparing nice meals, but it takes time and energy. I love a good night's sleep and a good meal as much as the next guy, but I don't go elk hunting for the food or the comfort; I can enjoy all that when it isn't elk season.
Working Smarter, Not Harder
I try to camp just far enough away from the elk to keep from being detected via scent or sound. By camping out with the elk, even just a couple miles from a road, it also helps eliminate the temptation of going back to base camp for lunch or a nap in the middle of the day. I've been rewarded many times for staying out all day, and it just makes sense - the more time you're out hunting, the more likely you are to run into elk.
On days when it's really warm and the elk activity is nonexistent, I'll sometimes decide to take a nap, but in a location where I can hear and see fairly well. This way I can glass a little between snoozes and hear a bull if one happens to get fired up midday. I have been woken up from many naps by the sound of a bugling bull, and unlike morning and evenings when other hunters are out, midday bulls I normally have all to myself.
When I run into other hunters who see my backpack camp in areas they are day hunting, the normal reaction is "Wow, I wouldn't go through that effort to hunt here." The way I see it is that they're the ones working too hard…not me. I feel like it's a whole lot easier to just stay out there, hike less, and get more sleep. It's proven to be a lot more efficient for me.
I've filled more tags by spiking out than hunting from a base camp, and a lot of the time, less than three hiking miles from a road. You don't need to be in really awesome condition to pack in two or three miles; it's a manageable distance to pack an elk out on your back under most conditions, especially if you hunt with a buddy.
The author gets ready to pack out the final load after another successful hunt while implementing tactics discussed in this article.
Same thing in the evenings, other than it's probably going to take longer than 20 minutes in camp to make dinner and get to bed. So, in the course of a day's hunting this way, I would hike 4-6 miles just to get to a decent spot and spend three hours or more getting to and from my hunting area. That's assuming I stay out all day and don't retreat to camp midday to nap and eat lunch.
By simply spiking out with a lightweight camp, I gain at least three hours of sleep each night vs. the alternative. This is huge during September rut hunts when the nights are shorter than on the later hunts, but even then, you're saving a lot of energy.
Obviously, sleeping in cots is nice and having coolers and camp cooking supplies is great for preparing nice meals, but it takes time and energy. I love a good night's sleep and a good meal as much as the next guy, but I don't go elk hunting for the food or the comfort; I can enjoy all that when it isn't elk season.
Working Smarter, Not Harder
I try to camp just far enough away from the elk to keep from being detected via scent or sound. By camping out with the elk, even just a couple miles from a road, it also helps eliminate the temptation of going back to base camp for lunch or a nap in the middle of the day. I've been rewarded many times for staying out all day, and it just makes sense - the more time you're out hunting, the more likely you are to run into elk.
On days when it's really warm and the elk activity is nonexistent, I'll sometimes decide to take a nap, but in a location where I can hear and see fairly well. This way I can glass a little between snoozes and hear a bull if one happens to get fired up midday. I have been woken up from many naps by the sound of a bugling bull, and unlike morning and evenings when other hunters are out, midday bulls I normally have all to myself.
When I run into other hunters who see my backpack camp in areas they are day hunting, the normal reaction is "Wow, I wouldn't go through that effort to hunt here." The way I see it is that they're the ones working too hard…not me. I feel like it's a whole lot easier to just stay out there, hike less, and get more sleep. It's proven to be a lot more efficient for me.
I've filled more tags by spiking out than hunting from a base camp, and a lot of the time, less than three hiking miles from a road. You don't need to be in really awesome condition to pack in two or three miles; it's a manageable distance to pack an elk out on your back under most conditions, especially if you hunt with a buddy.
Hike Less For Success
Case in Point #1
A few years ago, I was hunting a canyon in Idaho where I had located some good bulls about 2.5 miles from the nearest road. I had seen and heard other hunters in the area, and there were plenty of boot tracks (it was a great spot and it didn't surprise me that I wasn't alone). It was only a 20-minute drive from base camp to where I needed to park my truck, and an hour's hike to get to the elk.
Public land and a general tag isn't your season's death knell. The fact is that thousands upon thousands of elk live within decent striking distance of a road system on public land.
In order to stack the odds in my favor, I decided to pack a lightweight camp in on my back. This worked out great for me as I ended up taking a great 7x7 bull just after sunup.
I had located the bull before light because I could hear his bugles, and this allowed me to be within 400 yards of the bull by the time it was light enough to see. The sun had not been up very long when I was able to get an arrow through the bull, which proved to be just in the knick of time, because other hunters were closing in on him.
I heard a hunter's call up the hill from me only a minute or two before I let my arrow fly. No doubt they would have been close enough to spoil my hunt if it had taken me any longer to shoot the bull that morning. Spiking out next to the elk was key to my success on that hunt for sure (you can see this hunt on the Season 1 DVD of The Western Hunter).
Case in Point #2
Another good example was on a recent hunt with my dad where we tried to pack into a spot I liked, but couldn't make it due to a storm that had left the trails too slippery and dangerous for our horses. We were forced to hunt another spot that I knew would have a lot more hunting pressure, but which had safer trails for our horses.
The area we resorted to hunt was only two or three miles from a trailhead. Figuring it wasn't far enough for most hunters to consider packing in, we decided to pack in to give ourselves an edge over the hunters we knew would be hiking or riding horses in from the trailhead each day.
As expected, we ran into other hunters. Consequently, the elk only showed themselves at first and last light, when the other hunters were on their way to or from the trailhead. Since our camp was so close to us, we had no problem waiting until just before dark for the elk to come out to feed. Because of that, my dad ended up taking a great six-point bull as the light was fading. The other hunters we had seen in the middle of the day were more than halfway back to the trailhead (you can check out this hunt on the Season 2 DVD of The Western Hunter).
So, it really doesn't matter if you have horses or not; you don't always need to pack in "deep" to justify packing a camp in.
Going the "Extra Mile"
There is no secret recipe to always tagging a bull; everyone will get their rear end handed to them from time to time; that's just public land elk hunting. However, there are always ways to increase your consistency and keep your freezer full if you're willing to do what other hunters aren't.
A few years ago, I was hunting a canyon in Idaho where I had located some good bulls about 2.5 miles from the nearest road. I had seen and heard other hunters in the area, and there were plenty of boot tracks (it was a great spot and it didn't surprise me that I wasn't alone). It was only a 20-minute drive from base camp to where I needed to park my truck, and an hour's hike to get to the elk.
Public land and a general tag isn't your season's death knell. The fact is that thousands upon thousands of elk live within decent striking distance of a road system on public land.
In order to stack the odds in my favor, I decided to pack a lightweight camp in on my back. This worked out great for me as I ended up taking a great 7x7 bull just after sunup.
I had located the bull before light because I could hear his bugles, and this allowed me to be within 400 yards of the bull by the time it was light enough to see. The sun had not been up very long when I was able to get an arrow through the bull, which proved to be just in the knick of time, because other hunters were closing in on him.
I heard a hunter's call up the hill from me only a minute or two before I let my arrow fly. No doubt they would have been close enough to spoil my hunt if it had taken me any longer to shoot the bull that morning. Spiking out next to the elk was key to my success on that hunt for sure (you can see this hunt on the Season 1 DVD of The Western Hunter).
Case in Point #2
Another good example was on a recent hunt with my dad where we tried to pack into a spot I liked, but couldn't make it due to a storm that had left the trails too slippery and dangerous for our horses. We were forced to hunt another spot that I knew would have a lot more hunting pressure, but which had safer trails for our horses.
The area we resorted to hunt was only two or three miles from a trailhead. Figuring it wasn't far enough for most hunters to consider packing in, we decided to pack in to give ourselves an edge over the hunters we knew would be hiking or riding horses in from the trailhead each day.
As expected, we ran into other hunters. Consequently, the elk only showed themselves at first and last light, when the other hunters were on their way to or from the trailhead. Since our camp was so close to us, we had no problem waiting until just before dark for the elk to come out to feed. Because of that, my dad ended up taking a great six-point bull as the light was fading. The other hunters we had seen in the middle of the day were more than halfway back to the trailhead (you can check out this hunt on the Season 2 DVD of The Western Hunter).
So, it really doesn't matter if you have horses or not; you don't always need to pack in "deep" to justify packing a camp in.
Going the "Extra Mile"
There is no secret recipe to always tagging a bull; everyone will get their rear end handed to them from time to time; that's just public land elk hunting. However, there are always ways to increase your consistency and keep your freezer full if you're willing to do what other hunters aren't.
