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.
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