Any adventurous members sneaking out of NY on an ELK hunt this year?

[eaglemountainman]

No elk this year, but heading to Wyoming Oct. 9th for a pronghorn hunt. Good luck with your elk!

BTW, my rifle and all my gear will be in my two checked bags. My boned and frozen meat, (30-40 lbs), will fit in my day pack and carry on bag, above and below my seat. 

Edited August 29, 2019 by eaglemountainman

[wolc123]

18 hours ago, Pygmy said:

What time of the year did you hunt, Wolc…??...The reason I ask  is that  about 20 years ago a friend and I went on an early high country hunt  the first week of September...It was way before the rut and we both shot mature  4x4 s still in velvet..Mine had a spread of 28 "...Both of those bucks were  among the best  venison either of us have ever had... damn near as good as fat early September caribou, which  is wonderful...These bucks were well pre rut and grass fed above timberline....

My last hunt out there was a mid November hunt , at much lower altitude...The buck I shot was a big mature non typical with 15 scorable points..The rut was on and the landowner  suggested donating the meat because he said it would taste like crap so I donated it and came home with the cape and antlers... I   suspected that perhaps the rut  and the change in diet ( perhaps more sage) affected the quality of the meat... 

Perhaps they are similar to caribou...A late summer or early fall bull caribou is delectable,  and I have never hunted them during the rut, but the Alaskans say that a rutting bull caribou is so rank that dogs won't even eat it... I know that the few large rutting whitetails I have killed have tasted stronger than the yearlings and does that I usually shoot...

The 1.5 year old spike that I shot was killed on October 22, The other two were killed 4 and 5 days earlier (a very wide rack, est 4.5 year old 5 x 5 and a medium sized rack, est 2.5 year old 4 x 4).  We butchered them out there, hauled the boned-out meat home in coolers, and split it up equally when we got home.  It all tasted bad according to the other guys.   The brother-in-law of one of my buddy's,  who is a CO resident and set us up out there, loves to come up to WNY, because our whitetails "taste so much better".  He actually prefers that over Colorado elk (I think they are about equal) but I don't know if he has ever tried a pre-rut mule deer.  He did not want anything to do with the meat from the mule deer that we killed out there and could not seem to get it into our coolers and out of his butcher shop fast enough.     

[607 HUNTER]

10 hours ago, eaglemountainman said:

No elk this year, but heading to Wyoming Oct. 9th for a pronghorn hunt. Good luck with your elk!

BTW, my rifle and all my gear will be in my two checked bags. My boned and frozen meat, (30-40 lbs), will fit in my day pack and carry on bag, above and below my seat. 

How exciting, we are actually talking about that for the next trip. Best of luck, a nice pronghorn sure would change the look of any room !

[eaglemountainman]

22 hours ago, 607 HUNTER said:

How exciting, we are actually talking about that for the next trip. Best of luck, a nice pronghorn sure would change the look of any room !

Ha! And I'm doing either a muley or an elk hunt next year. Which ever I don't do next year, will be the following year. However, A Newfoundland moose hunt is trying hard to niggle it's way in there.....I do love moose meat!

[Pygmy]

15 minutes ago, eaglemountainman said:

Ha! And I'm doing either a muley or an elk hunt next year. Which ever I don't do next year, will be the following year. However, A Newfoundland moose hunt is trying hard to niggle it's way in there.....I do love moose meat!

Moose is the most universally liked of all the venisons...Everybody likes moose...

I think it is because it is so mild and the most similar to beef of all of the game meats....

[Hunter007]

On 8/28/2019 at 6:30 PM, Pygmy said:

For elk, New Mexico has the best combo  of fairly easy terrain, big bulls and a fair chance of drawing a tag...

Any place in Arizona you can draw a tag is great for big bulls, but even residents can only realistically count on drawing a tag every 6 or 7 years...

Colorado is good for numbers of elk, but big ones are hard to come by in OTC units... Limited draw units have big bulls, but you have to wait years to draw a tag..Also, the terrain in CO is pretty extreme in many places...Good state to hunt if you  are not trophy hunting and simply want to kill an elk...

There is good mule deer hunting in most all of the western states, albeit most if not all areas are draw units...The two mulie bucks I shot were both very nice and were taken in Colorado, one on an early high country hunt near Eagle, and the other  in an early November hunt down around Nucla..

 

Both my pronghorns hunts were done in Wyoming, near Casper...Pronghorns are fun to hunt....Lots of action... There are more antelope in Wyoming than people..

 

I would love to  someday just drive out someplace west and do some kind of DIY  hunt Mule pronghorn anything just for the experience. 

Drove cross country out there few times never on a hunt , love the landscapes out there . I Saw almost every big game animal in north America on those trips . Except a moose mountain lion and wolf . 

 

 

 

[BizCT]

On 8/27/2019 at 1:44 PM, 607 HUNTER said:

I will be heading to Vail, Colorado during 2nd Rifle this October on a DIY public land hunt. It will be my first out of state hunt, I have an Elk, Muley and Bear tag. I have been training all summer , I am equipped with 300 WSM with 185 GR. ammo, Kuiu pack and Leupold optics. My plan is to use onXmaps, and I printed out hardcopies also. I have done my scouting via google earth and some online videos, I am sure it will be much different in person but it will be a start when I get there ( I am arriving 2 days early to scout and get acclimated to the altitude) . Any suggestions/ recommendations feel free to post !

@607 HUNTER When is the hunt? Daily updates?

[BizCT]

@607 HUNTER any updates? did the hunt start yet?

[ltnic]

On 8/27/2019 at 11:44 AM, 607 HUNTER said:

I will be heading to Vail, Colorado during 2nd Rifle this October on a DIY public land hunt. It will be my first out of state hunt, I have an Elk, Muley and Bear tag. I have been training all summer , I am equipped with 300 WSM with 185 GR. ammo, Kuiu pack and Leupold optics. My plan is to use onXmaps, and I printed out hardcopies also. I have done my scouting via google earth and some online videos, I am sure it will be much different in person but it will be a start when I get there ( I am arriving 2 days early to scout and get acclimated to the altitude) . Any suggestions/ recommendations feel free to post !

That's awesome! I just did my Colorado elk hunt a month ago for early archery out near Meeker (a little further west). Great over the counter tag and got to hunt a beautiful ranch. I also ran my KUIU Icon Pro and of course onXmaps is a must (btw if you haven't bought the premium subscription for onX you can use promo code 'LandTrust' to get 20% off). I wrote a review of my hunt on the property listing here: https://www.landtrust.com/l/shults-cow-camp-elk-mule-deer-hunts/5d853e3b-116e-4b5c-99c8-0731c3765ec0

What I'll say is it's going to be a tough hunt and you need to hydrate a lot more than you think to fight the elevation. Identifying good potential glassing spots is KEY. You want to let your eyes do the walking in that kind of country. You'll have a blast regardless of success. It's gorgeous out there and getting out in the mountains is what it's all about. Hopefully you've got a buddy to go with too like I did! 

[607 HUNTER]

On 10/8/2019 at 12:34 PM, Biz-R-OWorld said:

@607 HUNTER any updates? did the hunt start yet?

Hey Biz sorry haven't been online, I leave Thursday. The hunt begins this Saturday, I have hardly been sleeping I am so excited LOL. 

[607 HUNTER]

On 10/10/2019 at 7:16 AM, ltnic said:

That's awesome! I just did my Colorado elk hunt a month ago for early archery out near Meeker (a little further west). Great over the counter tag and got to hunt a beautiful ranch. I also ran my KUIU Icon Pro and of course onXmaps is a must (btw if you haven't bought the premium subscription for onX you can use promo code 'LandTrust' to get 20% off). I wrote a review of my hunt on the property listing here: https://www.landtrust.com/l/shults-cow-camp-elk-mule-deer-hunts/5d853e3b-116e-4b5c-99c8-0731c3765ec0

What I'll say is it's going to be a tough hunt and you need to hydrate a lot more than you think to fight the elevation. Identifying good potential glassing spots is KEY. You want to let your eyes do the walking in that kind of country. You'll have a blast regardless of success. It's gorgeous out there and getting out in the mountains is what it's all about. Hopefully you've got a buddy to go with too like I did! 

That looks like a really cool ranch, and a fair price. I didn't see your post on there, how did you make out ?

[BizCT]

12 hours ago, 607 HUNTER said:

Hey Biz sorry haven't been online, I leave Thursday. The hunt begins this Saturday, I have hardly been sleeping I am so excited LOL. 

Cool, good luck!

[Uncle Nicky]

On ‎8‎/‎28‎/‎2019 at 10:58 PM, Pygmy said:

What time of the year did you hunt, Wolc…??...The reason I ask  is that  about 20 years ago a friend and I went on an early high country hunt  the first week of September...It was way before the rut and we both shot mature  4x4 s still in velvet..Mine had a spread of 28 "...Both of those bucks were  among the best  venison either of us have ever had... damn near as good as fat early September caribou, which  is wonderful...These bucks were well pre rut and grass fed above timberline....

My last hunt out there was a mid November hunt , at much lower altitude...The buck I shot was a big mature non typical with 15 scorable points..The rut was on and the landowner  suggested donating the meat because he said it would taste like crap so I donated it and came home with the cape and antlers... I   suspected that perhaps the rut  and the change in diet ( perhaps more sage) affected the quality of the meat... 

Perhaps they are similar to caribou...A late summer or early fall bull caribou is delectable,  and I have never hunted them during the rut, but the Alaskans say that a rutting bull caribou is so rank that dogs won't even eat it... I know that the few large rutting whitetails I have killed have tasted stronger than the yearlings and does that I usually shoot...

A little late to the party but....

A group of us were doing the Wyoming DIY thing for mulies & pronghorn about 15 years ago a few years in a row around Sheridan, WY. I shot one mule deer & more pronghorn than I can count. To me the pronghorn was edible, but had a "sagey" taste to it. It was a LOT of fun, & I have the mounts at home to remind me. The mule deer tasted a lot like a whitetail buck to me, but it was always early October, so maybe they weren't rutting yet? Another gang that started coming with us pretty much ruined it, they bought as many tags as they could & shot whatever moved, I don't see how they were going to eat 6 or 7 antelope each, but a couple years of pressure like that and the ranch wasn't the same, and I never went back.

It is ABSOLUTELY correct that a rutting caribou isn't fit for coyotes. I'd shot them in September in Canada & in the winter, both times they were as good as moose or axis deer. The one rutty bull I shot in October in Newfoundland was horrible, I should have listened to the guide who suggested I leave it behind. It tasted like VERY old mutton.

[607 HUNTER]

Back to NY, what a trip it was. Where I hunted was Vail, Colorado. Second Rifle, I was there for 5 days. 2 of the 5 days we got over a foot of snow on the Mountain I was hunting, it was very tough getting to my hunting spot( extremely bumpy steep seasonal road/cliffs next to the road with 50 foot drops) , let alone hiking through that much snow. 

Opening morning I knew a big storm was coming in the following day, I wasn't sure if I would be able to make it back to my spot the remaining 4 days. So I really wanted to get harvest a buck as soon as possible, I hiked about 25 minutes in the dark as the sun started coming up I found   a valley with open pines that connected to a dense hill side of pines. I sure picked a lucky spot, it looked like a funnel and it was.  With in minutes of sitting down I had a group of 10 does come right out of the dense pines, with out knowing the area and seeing 10 deer so fast I decided I was going to sit on this hill side all day. I ended up not needing to sit all day, at 9:30 a.m. a group of 6 bucks came running through the bottom of the hill. I had enough time to put them all in my scope, I picked out the biggest buck which was the last buck of the group. He had the tallest tines and whitest snout, I shot him at 130 yards and dropped him in his tracks. Upon butchering him I had 15 other deer come out of the pines, it was quite the spot. I sat there the rest of the day to see if any Elk would come through, no luck.
Continuing the next 4 days I hiked endless miles looking for an Elk or Bear, I came across 1 set of bear tracks. I saw approx 50 mule deer, 1 buck was bigger then the one I shot ( he was a true trophy) the rest were all does or smaller bucks then what I harvested. I didn't see any elk, the last day I found a hill side extremely steep and only had access from the hunting ground. There was a canyon on the other side of this valley, so the only access was from my direction and sure enough it was loaded with fresh Elk tracks in the snow. A storm rolled in extremely fast, so I was only able to watch the valley for about a half hour on the last evening.  I am hooked ! Mule deer were very fun to hunt, and now I am very confident I found a good hill side to find Elk. I will be back !! I am going to try to return in 2020

[Robhuntandfish]

Nice buck congrats !  And a great adventure. 

[607 HUNTER]

On 8/28/2019 at 9:15 PM, Cory said:

I just Mapquest it it’s about an hour. We camp at catamount in burns just northest of Vail. You will be fine in elevation. I would grab a blm topography map if you can. It’ll give you the lines for public and management lands so you don’t wonder on private land. 

On public access land there are markers on the ground that will give you the area layouts . Follow them so you don’t wonder on private land . I’m also going to shoot you a cell number . Just in case you need anything up there as a emergency or anything. It’s always good to have a local contact.

How did you make out in CO Cory ??

 

[607 HUNTER]

4 hours ago, Robhuntandfish said:

Nice buck congrats !  And a great adventure. 

Thanks !! Yes it was

 

[Cory]

40 minutes ago, 607 HUNTER said:

How did you make out in CO Cory ??

 

Dude nice buck congratulations . Our group of 9 guys took 2 doe. I didn’t get a shot at anything. I only seen deer the whole trip. Not one elk was seen by anyone in the group. I was hot on a bear trail for a day. I found a puke pile. He must have been overloaded with gut pile scraps. I got a glimpse of him but no shot. Always a great time in Colorado. 

[BellR]

I didnt get to go this year because of starting a new job, but next year I'm headed to CO unit 65 in first rifle for my second DIY public land hunt. Hoping to pull an either sex tag. Went two years ago and saw elk every day, just didn't get to seal the deal on one. Hopefully this year with some better local knowledge I'll get a shot!

Edited October 30, 2019 by BellR

[607 HUNTER]

On 10/27/2019 at 11:04 AM, Cory said:

Dude nice buck congratulations . Our group of 9 guys took 2 doe. I didn’t get a shot at anything. I only seen deer the whole trip. Not one elk was seen by anyone in the group. I was hot on a bear trail for a day. I found a puke pile. He must have been overloaded with gut pile scraps. I got a glimpse of him but no shot. Always a great time in Colorado. 

Thanks !! What a trip, I am hooked. I am 100% returning next year, I am confident I can get a bigger mule deer and I am very confident I will get a shot at an elk. If you want to switch areas my way let me know, I know we were extremely close already. I found great Elk sign in a deep valley surround by a large canyon the day before leaving. Next year there will be a 9 day break between 1st and 2nd rifle for the first time, I am really excited to see how that affects the movement !

[607 HUNTER]

On 10/30/2019 at 8:47 AM, BellR said:

I didnt get to go this year because of starting a new job, but next year I'm headed to CO unit 65 in first rifle for my second DIY public land hunt. Hoping to pull an either sex tag. Went two years ago and saw elk every day, just didn't get to seal the deal on one. Hopefully this year with some better local knowledge I'll get a shot!

Best of luck ! Very cool you saw elk everyday, you have quite the hot spot. I would love to go 1st Rifle, but I am hooked on 2nd rifle so I could hunt Mule deer and Elk.

[BizCT]

Congrats. Mule Deer hunting is addicting! Nothing like it in my opinion


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[Marion]

Congrats. Mule Deer hunting is addicting! Nothing like it in my opinion


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Agreed mulies and antelope are two super fun animals to hunt

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[bartm]

Congrats on the buck! I’ve had multiple tags in my pocket before and its not easy to fill them all or even two but it’s fun to try. This year I took 7 guys to Wyoming including myself. We had 6 antelope tags and 6 muley tags. filled 3 muley tags. Two doe and a 2x2 buck. It was their first time hunting them so they shot whatever walked. I was waiting on a bigin and he just never came. I ate tag soup for the second mule deer season in a row. It was delicious lol. I don’t mind tag soup. I want a mature buck.

Prior year i took 2 guys with me and we all shot antelope. That was a fun hunt. Hoping to draw an elk tag this year in NM, WY, or Id. If not ill be going over the counter in CO. Any advice?