Free: Contests & Raffles.
They both can produce great bulls with the Blues obviously being the topshelf elk hunt. With that said it comes down to which area you really have time to scout and hunt because no hunt is a slam dunk and trying to kill a true big bull isnt easy. The most important to me that I see people get in a bind with is after they draw these awesome tags they have nobody to go with them to help. It takes a team for a good elk hunt especially in the tough country not only to hunt but to pack it out if successful. Most of the guys I have guided in the Blues are good hunters but didnt have a partner willing to give up their own hunting to go with them. Take a good look at the success rates on these hunts and realize it isnt just crappy hunters that arent killing their elk and many of the bulls killed are not even 300 inch bulls. I think the guys drawing tags like Peaches Ridge every 5-10 years are happy people are waiting lifetimes to hunt the Blues.
Might have met you while deer hunting / elk scouting on Sawtooth with my daughter?? Was blowing like a bugger that day, snow sideways?
I just went through the same dilema. I hunted the Nooksack herd for many years and took 12 bulls that I still remember as some of my most memorable and favorite hunts (no matter how wet.....very wet). Much younger then and alot more energy. That area held some of the most majestic bulls I've ever seen. That area was closed down in '91 (?) and I started goin' over the pass. It's certainly a change now in that we can only pursue 'true spikes' where my buddies and I currently call 'elk camp'. I've managed to collect 18 elk points and have stuck it out so far, but with so many years behind me and many less ahead of me, it does cause one to rethink their game plan. But as usual, I will likely continue to try for my current hunting units 'quality bull' tag, even though they hand out only about a handful each year. I know my current elk area so well (25+ years) that my confidence is quite high that a real wall hanger is possible, but each year I have less faith in getting drawn and getting that opportunity. I've taken many spikes and true spikes since my forced move east in '92 and cherish each one of those, as well. There's no better table fare to be had, but even though I've taken many nice Nooksack bulls, I really miss the opportunity to go after a major bull on the eastside.Age and our physical condition certainly has a bearing on many aspects of our daily lives. The fact that some of us are creepin' up on perhaps our last opportunity to get drawn for a 'quality' hunt, is a bit tough to come to terms with......at least, for me. Becoming older, albeit not nearly as exciting as the day of you're 21st birthday, can have many wonderful benefits. Being older with less than 100 elk points is not one of them........... .Good luck being drawn for your special/quality hunts to all those with such dilema's and to those 35-40ish aged guys and gal's out there.........as I and many others thought when we were your age, the possibilities for being drawn for several or many special/quality hunts before you're 'final hunt' may not be as likely as you might imagine.Sooooo........choose your choices wisely, check out other possibilities elsewhere and make the best of each and every hunt.Good luck!
I get confused all the time too many posts.
People say "the Blues" as if it's one unit. Each unit is drastically different in terms of terrain and land ownership. I say out in for the Nook if you want a big Rosie, and a blues tag if a rocky. IF you put in for the Blues, be VERY honest with your physical ability. I'm tired of hearing people putting in for premier units and finding out that it can be like hunting the Grand Canyon, after they pull a tag. Only to result in a quality tag wasted because they can't handle the terrain. Stang, this May or may not apply to you. Just a generalization for those permits. This thread is my dilemma as well. Getting to the point where I have a VERY small chance at a Blues tag, or it could take another 10 years to draw. Do I hunt a "lesser" unit and kill a 300-340" bulls every 5-6 years or wait 12-18 years for a CHANCE at a 380+? Remember, a quality tag doesn't guarantee anything, let alone a monster bull. Most people with those tags end up eating them.
