Nooksack Over 65 special permit

[soccerguy]

I'm one of these 65+ guys and have a few points for that elk pool.  I've noticed that the regs have an "Any Elk" hunt there for us old guys to apply for.  I know a little about the area, but noticed that this hunt is limited to only part of the area as follows:

That portion of GMU 437 beginning at the intersection of State
Route 9 and State Route 20; east on State Route 20 to Concrete-
Sauk Valley Road; south on Concrete-Sauk Valley Road over The
Dalles Bridge (Skagit River) to the intersection with the South
Skagit Highway; west on South Skagit Highway to State Route
9; north on State Route 9 and the point of beginning.

Can anyone simply tell me that this area still includes some of the best area in the unit and/or private timber co land?

[Tbar]

This area is almost 100% private. There are lots of elk there but more and more prime land is being taken over by anti hunters. I think there will be quite a few disappointed tag holders come season.  There are a couple parcels of public land that they frequent but behaviors change come season.  Good luck if you do draw.

[ghosthunter]

Waste of time. All private property for the most part.
I doubt unless you know someone you will find no access.

[Practical Approach]

I don't think it is a waste of time.  There is a lot of private property and some of those landowners do not like elk on their property all the time.  I would recommend contacting WDFW office out of LaConner and talk to their elk damage specialists.  That hunt is there to address elk damage issues and I bet the specialist can connect you with landowners that would let you hunt their property if you drew the tag.

[BOWHUNTER45]

Unless you have permission before hand there is no sense in applying ..All private ...same for the youth tag .

[ghosthunter]

I don't think it is a waste of time.  There is a lot of private property and some of those landowners do not like elk on their property all the time.  I would recommend contacting WDFW office out of LaConner and talk to their elk damage specialists.  That hunt is there to address elk damage issues and I bet the specialist can connect you with landowners that would let you hunt their property if you drew the tag.

I live in Mount Vernon. I lived in Birdsveiw for 4 years. Was in the fire dep.t there.

You might find one person to give you permission.

Damage hunts are handled through the Master Hunters as of late. And most property owners only let Master Hunters on because the state insists on it or the property owner may not get damage tags themselves.
Many property owners complain just to get the damage tags, money or free labor for fences.

They might let someone they know hunt if they were drawn.
But the chance that some outsider is going to knock on a door and get permission is so remote that it is a waste of time and points. 

The area described is loaded with homes and small farms. The river runs through the middle of it. You can drive it in two hours and see the whole area.

If you want to hunt this area get a Master Hunter card. otherwise there are far better options for 65 and over and a better use of hunting time. 

[CP]

There are some nice elk to be had if you can get permission:

[Bob33]

If you have time to do some scouting, and knock on doors it could be a very good opportunity.

[Tbar]

I don't think it is a waste of time.  There is a lot of private property and some of those landowners do not like elk on their property all the time.  I would recommend contacting WDFW office out of LaConner and talk to their elk damage specialists.  That hunt is there to address elk damage issues and I bet the specialist can connect you with landowners that would let you hunt their property if you drew the tag.

I don't think it's a waste of time either. I do think it should be a buyer beware situation.  Those elk do a ton of damage throughout the year and spend the season (all three weapon) on the Trask property where they are untouchable.  It is extremely frustrating and will undoubtedly lead to disappointment.  I also realize that those aren't the only elk in the unit.  With the extreme allocation and subsequent extreme reduction in LOPs there are more than a few upset landowners that aren't going to welcome you with open arms come season. I also wouldn't say it's all gloom and doom either. There will be some harvest for sure, but with a limited season and altered behavior it's not a slam dunk.  The master hunters had to put in quite a bit of time this year and many didn't harvest. 

[BOWHUNTER45]

They have tried many things to solve their problem ..It is pretty straight forward ..Have a hunting season that will minimize the elk crossing over on Hwy 20 ..the elk they are trying to harvest were most likely born along the river and are never leaving ..The master hunter thing is not all that great either ..I have heard of many horror stories from landowner about the master hunter program ..we have more elk getting hit by cars these days than what gets killed hunting ..very surprised no one has been killed yet ! And I think it is very unfair for them to pick out certain user groups since now they are allowing a rifle to be used ..How about 3 or 4 permits for each user group ..then it would level the playing field and anyone wanting to draw this tag can put in ..I sit dead center of the herd .. I can take a leak north east south or west and see them  You guys need to think about one thing ..This whole Nooksack thing is not a slam dunk ..on either side of the road ..I seen some go home happy but most go home with nothing ..if you know someone that is willing to help you then your chances are better ..But as most know the people up here are not all that friendly when it comes to hunting grounds 

[soccerguy]

Thanks everyone for the responses.  With a Wyoming limited entry bull tag for next fall already in my pocket in one of the best areas in the state...not sure what I'll do about this hunt.  Sounds like could be disappointing.

[kodiak 907]

You could somehow sign the tag over to me!  I have been putting in for a while to kill one of those Bulls just up the road...

[ghosthunter]

The boundary of this hunt the way I read is south of Hwy 20 and north of south skagit Hwy. And there are heavy restrictions on big bulls or bulls at all. Master hunters could shoot cows only.

Dont mis-understand I am not touting Master Hunters. But being one gives you a better chance at access in this area.

Everyone's idea of a Quality Hunt is different. This area even though I live 15 minutes away offers nothing that I want from hunting. I have hunted it as a Master Hunter and taken a cow. Only because in January it was the only option.

During other seasons or options I would not even  consider it even it, it were 100% success.

Both Bowhunter 45 and Tbar have vast knowlege of this area. 

All I am saying to the OP is this.....If you have no other options to hunt any where else than, hey go for it.  But if it were me and I had other viable options I would not waste my time.

[spin05]

What happened to hunting the hancock or whatever it is and them giving you keys to the gates like in the past? Is the 65+ area not the same???

[3nails]

 Waste of time, no one will give permission, drought will kill off all the elk, bigfoot the others,.....      says all Skagit Co. residents.....     

[johnsc6]

Unless you have permission before hand there is no sense in applying ..All private ...same for the youth tag .

 

[Tbar]

What happened to hunting the hancock or whatever it is and them giving you keys to the gates like in the past? Is the 65+ area not the same???

To answer your question, no.  This is the valley floor, a checkerboard of private land ownership of varying size parcels. There are a few very small parcels of public land (a guess would be 90+/-% private).
 

[westside bull]

There's also youth tags call the wdfw and get the  list of land owners who get money for the elk that damage there land etc. From what I've been told if a land owner is getting money from  damage they have to let hunt there land!

[Tbar]

One thing that bugs me a bit is the semantics.  This is not a Nooksack tag.  It's a damage mitigation tag in the Sauk (437) GMU.

[BOWHUNTER45]

The only thing that bugs me is how this state manages things .. Look at the east coast ..They can hunt in city limits with a bow ..if they caught you hunting here within city limits you would be charged with reckless endangerment  We all love to hunt and I am not trying to be an ignorant butt hole but it really stiNKS for all the hunters we have in the valley and one of the healthiest elk herds in the state and we can not hunt them .. they need to come up with a tag that benefits the local people ..not just here but down south or any other place where they give out damage permits ..It just makes local hunters sick when they can not use the resource available to them , when they live in the heart of the herd ..  I know they are not managing the herd because if they were they would be giving out some cow tags in 418 ..you can not just keep killing bulls ..You have to kill a few cows too ! I should have ignored this thread ..just hard to do 

[Boss .300 winmag]

The timbered land west of Hearns field is all Forest Service land, so you could hunt that and those elk frequent that a lot especially during the rut.

2516 Nooksack U WF, WM, WA Sept. 21-23, Oct. 5-9, and Oct.18-31 Any elk Elk Area 4941 5 NEW.

So who gets to hunt when? The way I read it WF is Sept. 21-23. WM is Oct. 5-9. WA is Oct.18-31.

If that's the case WF would almost be a slam dunk west of Hearns field where they rut, herd bull is always chasing the satellite bulls back into the forest service land there. And some of those bulls would be herd bulls in other units with less bull to cow ratio. 

[baker5150]

The only thing that bugs me is how this state manages things .. Look at the east coast ..They can hunt in city limits with a bow ..if they caught you hunting here within city limits you would be charged with reckless endangerment  We all love to hunt and I am not trying to be an ignorant butt hole but it really stiNKS for all the hunters we have in the valley and one of the healthiest elk herds in the state and we can not hunt them .. they need to come up with a tag that benefits the local people ..not just here but down south or any other place where they give out damage permits ..It just makes local hunters sick when they can not use the resource available to them , when they live in the heart of the herd ..  I know they are not managing the herd because if they were they would be giving out some cow tags in 418 ..you can not just keep killing bulls ..You have to kill a few cows too ! I should have ignored this thread ..just hard to do 

Arent the cows harvested by the Master Hunters and Damage permits?   Maybe that's their grand plan for herd management? 

[Tbar]

The only thing that bugs me is how this state manages things .. Look at the east coast ..They can hunt in city limits with a bow ..if they caught you hunting here within city limits you would be charged with reckless endangerment  We all love to hunt and I am not trying to be an ignorant butt hole but it really stiNKS for all the hunters we have in the valley and one of the healthiest elk herds in the state and we can not hunt them .. they need to come up with a tag that benefits the local people ..not just here but down south or any other place where they give out damage permits ..It just makes local hunters sick when they can not use the resource available to them , when they live in the heart of the herd ..  I know they are not managing the herd because if they were they would be giving out some cow tags in 418 ..you can not just keep killing bulls ..You have to kill a few cows too ! I should have ignored this thread ..just hard to do 

Arent the cows harvested by the Master Hunters and Damage permits?   Maybe that's their grand plan for herd management? 

No, not part of the herd plan overall.  Cows are only harvested to mitigate damage. That's where the master hunter program comes into play.

[BOWHUNTER45]

notice the word mitigate ...at 1st glance I thought it said migration  lucky I read it again before opening my trap  Like I said most of these elk were born on the valley floor ..they live there mostly all year long ..going to hard to control them unless you kill them all ..this problem will go on forever unless the take drastic measures ..I love seeing and hearing and eating them ...the only thing missing is the eating part 

[Tbar]

Like I said before it's not all bad and I applaud the WDFW for providing the opportunity.  There will be landowners that will allow access but it's a politically charged area.
     Here's a brief history of this hunt.  This area was first 941, an area created to address crop damage and keep the elk off the valley floor.  There were unlimited otc tags and was a largely exclusive hunt for people who had access (there was little to no success with door knocking,  asking for permission). There was a very long season starting first with archery and following with muzzy, creating a 3-4 month general season. Somewhere around 20 years ago they changed it to 4941 (with a smaller boundary than we now know) it continued with both seasons until around 08(guess) when they eliminated the muzzy season, citing various safety concerns. This hunt continued as a damage hunt as archery only until 09(Dec 29 I believe), this was the end of the otc hunt.  The end to this hunt put the entire workload onto enforcement as they were tasked with damage control, which imo they did great (although this spread them quite thin). This was the beginning of a valley floor population explosion and when the majority of the valley floor elk became "residents" and non migratory.  Fast forward to 2013 and welcome Brandon Griffith, a damage control specialist. In beginning I was in complete support of him(although I later did a180) . Brandon issued what seemed to be limitless damage tags for cows and created the management nightmare we are experiencing now. (Brandon has moved on and taken his career elsewhere).
On the bright side it's a positive step, there is opportunity now where there wasn't before. Also this hunt will cater to the least able, again a positive step.

[baker5150]

The only thing that bugs me is how this state manages things .. Look at the east coast ..They can hunt in city limits with a bow ..if they caught you hunting here within city limits you would be charged with reckless endangerment  We all love to hunt and I am not trying to be an ignorant butt hole but it really stiNKS for all the hunters we have in the valley and one of the healthiest elk herds in the state and we can not hunt them .. they need to come up with a tag that benefits the local people ..not just here but down south or any other place where they give out damage permits ..It just makes local hunters sick when they can not use the resource available to them , when they live in the heart of the herd ..  I know they are not managing the herd because if they were they would be giving out some cow tags in 418 ..you can not just keep killing bulls ..You have to kill a few cows too ! I should have ignored this thread ..just hard to do 

Arent the cows harvested by the Master Hunters and Damage permits?   Maybe that's their grand plan for herd management? 

No, not part of the herd plan overall.  Cows are only harvested to mitigate damage. That's where the master hunter program comes into play.

I wouldn't be so sure.  I talked with a gamey about it at Rasar a couple years ago.  He said they go into each year assuming a set amount of animals will be harvested thru the damage program.  Which is smart I guess.  But if this is the case, opening up a cow season would make better sense, rather than paying for damage, and shelling out tags to only have the Elk come right back the next day. 
They should also be giving incentives to land owners for opening up their property to hunting, even if it's for a certain quota or season. 

[BOWHUNTER45]

I done a remodel on Rasar Park ...all the land around it is private ..I killed elk in there in the past until all this crap started ..One spot you could actually hunt without being near the Highway ...when I was doing the park the wardens always drove in to check on JB  making sure Jb did not have one hanging in a tree since they past by all the time .... Man I sure miss the good old days ..my horn supply has definitely decreased since then