High Country Scouting - 3
I finally arrived at the bottom of the drainage in which I had spotted elk bedding out in the open the morning before from my high-country perch. I began to climb and figured I had about 800 feet of elevation to gain before I would pop out above timberline. Almost immediately I found an area with many rubs from the year before along an obvious travel corridor. I marked this waypoint in my GPS and continued up. It was mid-morning now and the sun was pretty warm. I was working up a pretty good sweat as I climbed with my 30 lb pack. I worked my way into the timber near the cool, fast-moving stream that ran down the mountain and immediately felt relief from the heat. I'm sure the elk appreciate this natural air conditioner too.
Eventually I reached the edge of timberline where the ground leveled off and opened up into a vast, green, grassy bowl. It was mid-afternoon and I was happy with how my body was feeling after the climb. In addition to finding elk and figuring out the nasty trail into the valley, one of my other goals on this scouting trip was to push myself hard to get in shape for the hunting season to come, and I was pleased with how I was doing in that regard. Where I live it is not easy or convenient to get to any large hills to train so when I'm in the mountains I feel like I need to take advantage of the opportunity as much as possible.
From my location at the edge of treeline I couldn't see as far into the open bowl as I had hoped, so I dropped my pack and set out with my binoculars to see if I could find some elk. I slowly eased up into the bowl, gaining another couple hundred feet of elevation. My view continued to change as I got to the top of the next rise or past the next clump of trees. I did not find any elk in the bowl, but the view was absolutely stunning and I was seeing lots of sign. I worked my way back to my pack and set up camp for the night. After a couple hours of relaxing I grabbed my binoculars and worked my way through the timber at the edge of timberline to the East heading for a large opening I had seen from down below earlier in the day. I found a good spot to sit and began glassing the opposite side of the valley. There was a good mix of open, grassy hillsides, avalanche chutes and timber. Below a large patch of snow and just above an avalanche chute I spotted four elk. With my 10x42 Zeiss binoculars I could tell they were all bulls and that three of them were solid 5 or 6 x. The largest bull lay on a rock outcropping looking especially regal overlooking his kingdom while the other three bulls fed around him. Who knows if he will still be in the area once the rut kicks into full gear, but I sure hope to see him again in September! That evening I slept with a big smile on my face picturing the four nice bulls.
The next morning I woke early and slowly worked my way around the shoulder of the basin I was camping in headed around the corner into the next basin. I was pleased to find out that I could get over to that basin without having to gain much altitude. The elk trails on this shoulder were heavily used and there were lots of old rubs. This would obviously be a good area to hunt come September. I didn't see any elk that morning but I felt great about what I had learned about how to get up to the areas I had seen most of the elk in from my glassing spots the morning before, and about how easy it was to move laterally once up there to move from bowl to bowl.
I had planned to stay up in this area for the rest of the day and another night, but I was feeling like I had really accomplished what I needed to. It would have been fun to do some more glassing up there that evening and the next morning, but I also wanted to explore a couple of other areas, so I decided to pack up and head down. On the way down, I did a fair amount of side-hilling to explore some other routes up and down from the high-country and to look for more sign. At one point I caught the unmistakable scent of elk musk and knew that elk had bedded close by within the last day or two. Once down to the valley floor, I headed back towards the trailhead along the nasty trail. I spent even more time perfecting my waypoints and notes to ensure that come hunting season I could bring my hunting partner up the trail with as little struggle, wasted time and wasted energy as possible. Not to mention that if we were fortunate enough to kill an elk or two, we would need to avoid wasting any extra energy getting the meat out.
Over the next day and a half I hiked into a few different areas looking for sign and stopping to glass for elk. I also hiked back up to the first glassing spot in the boulder field between the two valleys to confirm that I could glass enough of the northern valley from there that there was not a need to climb the extra 1000 feet to the top of the shoulder during the hunt. All the while I was formulating a schedule and plan for the seven hunting days my partner and I plan to spend in late September.
On the five hour drive back to the Denver Airport I had lots of time to think about what I had accomplished and what I had learned on this scouting trip. I now know so much more about the valley we plan to hunt than before. I am confident that I will be able to find the elk and confident that we can get deep into the valley day after day without burning ourselves out too badly. I am also extremely confident that my partner and I will have a wonderful time in some of the most beautiful country in Colorado. Most importantly my soul just feels full after spending several days alone in the wilderness of the Rocky Mountains and knowing that I will be back soon!
Andy Backus is a husband and father of two little girls. He grew up hunting whitetail deer in Wisconsin with gun and bow and over the years has been fortunate to hunt and explore most of the Western US states and Alaska. He plays soccer to stay in shape and also enjoys most other sports and outdoor activities. Andy is the Field Editor for Long Range Hunting Online Magazine and also manages the Long Range Hunting Store.
Eventually I reached the edge of timberline where the ground leveled off and opened up into a vast, green, grassy bowl. It was mid-afternoon and I was happy with how my body was feeling after the climb. In addition to finding elk and figuring out the nasty trail into the valley, one of my other goals on this scouting trip was to push myself hard to get in shape for the hunting season to come, and I was pleased with how I was doing in that regard. Where I live it is not easy or convenient to get to any large hills to train so when I'm in the mountains I feel like I need to take advantage of the opportunity as much as possible.
From my location at the edge of treeline I couldn't see as far into the open bowl as I had hoped, so I dropped my pack and set out with my binoculars to see if I could find some elk. I slowly eased up into the bowl, gaining another couple hundred feet of elevation. My view continued to change as I got to the top of the next rise or past the next clump of trees. I did not find any elk in the bowl, but the view was absolutely stunning and I was seeing lots of sign. I worked my way back to my pack and set up camp for the night. After a couple hours of relaxing I grabbed my binoculars and worked my way through the timber at the edge of timberline to the East heading for a large opening I had seen from down below earlier in the day. I found a good spot to sit and began glassing the opposite side of the valley. There was a good mix of open, grassy hillsides, avalanche chutes and timber. Below a large patch of snow and just above an avalanche chute I spotted four elk. With my 10x42 Zeiss binoculars I could tell they were all bulls and that three of them were solid 5 or 6 x. The largest bull lay on a rock outcropping looking especially regal overlooking his kingdom while the other three bulls fed around him. Who knows if he will still be in the area once the rut kicks into full gear, but I sure hope to see him again in September! That evening I slept with a big smile on my face picturing the four nice bulls.
The next morning I woke early and slowly worked my way around the shoulder of the basin I was camping in headed around the corner into the next basin. I was pleased to find out that I could get over to that basin without having to gain much altitude. The elk trails on this shoulder were heavily used and there were lots of old rubs. This would obviously be a good area to hunt come September. I didn't see any elk that morning but I felt great about what I had learned about how to get up to the areas I had seen most of the elk in from my glassing spots the morning before, and about how easy it was to move laterally once up there to move from bowl to bowl.
I had planned to stay up in this area for the rest of the day and another night, but I was feeling like I had really accomplished what I needed to. It would have been fun to do some more glassing up there that evening and the next morning, but I also wanted to explore a couple of other areas, so I decided to pack up and head down. On the way down, I did a fair amount of side-hilling to explore some other routes up and down from the high-country and to look for more sign. At one point I caught the unmistakable scent of elk musk and knew that elk had bedded close by within the last day or two. Once down to the valley floor, I headed back towards the trailhead along the nasty trail. I spent even more time perfecting my waypoints and notes to ensure that come hunting season I could bring my hunting partner up the trail with as little struggle, wasted time and wasted energy as possible. Not to mention that if we were fortunate enough to kill an elk or two, we would need to avoid wasting any extra energy getting the meat out.
Over the next day and a half I hiked into a few different areas looking for sign and stopping to glass for elk. I also hiked back up to the first glassing spot in the boulder field between the two valleys to confirm that I could glass enough of the northern valley from there that there was not a need to climb the extra 1000 feet to the top of the shoulder during the hunt. All the while I was formulating a schedule and plan for the seven hunting days my partner and I plan to spend in late September.
On the five hour drive back to the Denver Airport I had lots of time to think about what I had accomplished and what I had learned on this scouting trip. I now know so much more about the valley we plan to hunt than before. I am confident that I will be able to find the elk and confident that we can get deep into the valley day after day without burning ourselves out too badly. I am also extremely confident that my partner and I will have a wonderful time in some of the most beautiful country in Colorado. Most importantly my soul just feels full after spending several days alone in the wilderness of the Rocky Mountains and knowing that I will be back soon!
Andy Backus is a husband and father of two little girls. He grew up hunting whitetail deer in Wisconsin with gun and bow and over the years has been fortunate to hunt and explore most of the Western US states and Alaska. He plays soccer to stay in shape and also enjoys most other sports and outdoor activities. Andy is the Field Editor for Long Range Hunting Online Magazine and also manages the Long Range Hunting Store.
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