Gao.... Apologies if I came across as abrupt.
Was in a hurry and just wanted to throw my
before heading out.
Heres some general info about the area, some of my experience and my OPINION on why your time, energy and resources would be spent better elsewhere.
Elk Numbers: Someone mentioned "decent". Unfortunatley decent is a subjective word so whats decent to you may be terrible to me, vice versa. 10 years ago, or even 5 years ago I would have said it was for sure worth your time. But since the opening of late cow tags combined with the explosion of "rot" numbers have been significantly reduced. You may go out now and find small bunches here or there, but a good bit of scouting is required to be in elk consistently throughout the season, as they are not in every drainage and timber patch anymore. Even having "no elk" days is becoming more common place in many areas and depending on how much terrain your able to cover.
Quality: As it pertains to branched bulls I wouldn't pass anything legal, raghorns will be most common with 5 points thrown in here and there. There is the occasional dandy tho. They tend to stay in the thick and nasty and are killed by being curious more than being vocal. As the season as is, they are much more visible a week after the season closes than during it.
Access: Im making an assumption here, You do not have a Weyco south permit? If you do, PM me and I will point you toward some holes that used to be nearly sure things. Although things could have changed as I havent hunted it since the permit went into effect.
If you do not have Weyco the next big player is SPI. Followed by State land with a good size block to the south and smatterings of holdings here and there around Winlock, Vader and Ryderwood (Although I am not real current on access status of the smaller blocks). The State land down south is good access with vehicle access and some camping with DP. The highest density of "good" bulls were on state land in my experience. But overall number of elk is less, pressure is an issue here, and quad use is rampant don't expect to get away from anyone.
SPI. Walk in access only. Pressure has increased since 2012 with the Weyco permits not only pushing people out, but I know and have ran into several guys that drive in to the top on weyco and coast through to the bottom, making access much easier to areas that used to be a bit more difficult. But here is the biggie... FULL CLOSURE!! Last year was great and the rain came and kept the woods open. The 2 years prior they were closed before the weekend after the opener, so plan to kill early, if the woods are open at all. Weather models as of right now don't look good, pray for rain.
Private Agriculture: Several farmers along wildwood and around ryderwood used to be pretty generous with granting permission to access. I have heard as the elk herd has been reduced, so have the number of ammicable landowners. But If everything else is closed it might be an option to do some door knocking. I have done this myself with mixed results, both in terms of gaining access and elk encounters once I had it.
Terrain: The state land is a mix of varying age clearcuts and old growth stands. Some truly gorgeous areas in the crick bottoms of the big timber. SPI, is mostly clearcut and jackfir stands. Some of it is pretty good, but the areas that have been thinned are impossible to hunt. Weyco is a little of everything.
Overall: You asked if it was worth your time? Again I am using some assumptions, Based on the fact you posted this now, I am assuming you are looking for a plan A? If not, by all means it is worth scouting, but putting your eggs in that basket could be very frustrating if you dont have any other options and private timber closes land. Also it looks like you live aways from the unit, IMO you would need to spend some time scout to prep for the season. You might find elk right away now, but after day one knowing where they will be is when scouting will pay off. You will likely be hunting pressured elk, if your chosen area is open at all. I think your time would be better used scouting areas that you know will be open, and then using ryderwood as a plan b or c that can be moved to plan a if weather and circumstances permit.
