Thanks! While I'm still new to the sport, I am finding animals and still having fun being outside. I get itchy being stuck in the city, I grew up hunting whitetails and turkey in the midwest before moving here 10years ago for work. So when I see a line of rubs, my mind reverts back to old training.... I am finding though, these things are more like turkey's than whitetail. At least in how to hunt for them.
The bedding area make sense given the sign. Found this place deep in the woods near a creek. There is good over head cover and forest gets progressively more thick as near the creek. There is a pinch point that appears to be creek crossing, as the vegetation is very very thick right next to creek besides this one open spot. Also, the ground gets very soft, almost marshy, near the creek and skunk cabbage everywhere (which was beaten and matted down). The open patches in the trees that allow sun in are filled with thick big clover, there are rubs everywhere and the ground looks like a toilet. Even to my untrained eye, it looked "elky".
There is a big open meadow to the SE and a steep hill semi-thick cover to the West, further West on top of the hill is very dense new growth forest. There is a well worn trail up the hill and into new growth, it is a very wide trail, but not wide enough for truck, I assume it is an elk. My approach during muzzy was to sit on the hill, in between creek bottom and the very dense new growth at top of hill. There is a logging road also on top of the hill, I can get in quite and have a nice covered place to sit with the downed old trees. Around 11am I got tired of sitting and not seeing anything, I got up, moved down closer and before I could react, I heard a lot of noise and crashing down in the creek bed timber near where I got this photo. (Further support of bedding area, I assume). bonehead... After setting camera on a big rub (where I got this photo) i backed out and hadn't returned until this Saturday.
In general this is a med-high traffic area, plenty of trucks near trail head, but 3miles in and about 1/2mile from any logging road. There are a lot of clear cuts, which seem to attract more hunters than animals in my opinion. I have a few pictures of elk since July and this latest one is during modern firearm deer, with a lot of folks marching around, so I am hopeful he will stick around for another 1.5weeks.
As for a new strategy, would it be better to punch into the creek bedding area early in the AM? I assume they are in the meadow munching away at night and move in just before or after daylight. Or, did I have a good approach with sticking to side of this hill? Maybe the creek bed area is a staging area and the dense forest on top of hill is true bed???
I know, a lot of variables, this is hunting, but any tips would be much appreciated.
ty