North facing slopes and late season?

[steeliedrew]

I've been in the Winston the last couple days and it's been tough to say the least. Have seen a total of 4 deer and no elk. Haven't even seen fresh elk sign. Running into people where I normally wouldn't and Weyerhaeuser just keeps buying more and more property. This morning we had a half hour drive deep into the woods to a gate I was hunting last year. Got on the bikes and then read the new sign on the gate...Weyerhaeuser permit access only. 

I have a half day to hit it hard tomorrow and I'm planning on heading into an area behind a gate I haven't been to in a couple years. it's the north facing side of a creek drainage and the sun barely hits it. Glassing over to that side from the south facing slopes on Friday I could see most of the cuts on the north facing side were covered in frost the entire day. I'm wondering if during this time of year when it's as cold and crisp as it is, can a guy still find elk on the north facing slopes? Or would time be better spent on south facing slopes and creek bottoms when hunting timber company land?

I pretty much only had two spots dialed in in the Winston. One of them got clear cut last year and the other is now owned by Weyco. I hunt another unit in the early season that isn't open late. If you have any pointers on what to look for on satellite maps for late season elk please let me know. Just trying to learn and I'd love to put in the work and find a new spot that holds elk. looking for a starting point though. Creek bottoms? South facing slopes, north facing slopes? Reprod? Why? 


Drew

[bankwalker]

I drove all over the Peterman ridge wildlife area in mossyrock Wednesday night and Thursday during the day. Lots of snow covered roads and not a single elk track...hiked behind a gate a couple miles towards riffe lake and didn't see a single fresh  (less than a week old) track. Found and area they have been a month or so ago.
It's pathetic down there.
Hunted randle half the day Thursday and same song and dance.

Winston I seen 6 elk the night before early muzzy opened. That was the only fresh sign and elk I seen in there all early season.

I've tried it all in this cold late season so far. And haven't even found a set of tracks worth saying I was close to seeing an elk.
I'd just stick to timber and creek drainages.

[RadSav]

Lots of snow covered roads and not a single elk track...hiked behind a gate a couple miles towards riffe lake and didn't see a single fresh  (less than a week old) track. Found and area they have been a month or so ago.
It's pathetic down there.

And yet they are still handing out cow tags like candy and forcing bowhunters to shoot healthy cows while sick bulls suffer and spread the sickness.  WDFW wanted to stop the rate of winter kill...no elk = no winter kill.  I assume they think that is a success

We've seen twelve cows and a half dozen bulls so far.  But we covered one heck of a lot of ground.  Only fresh sign we've seen have had elk in them.  Half on north slope in open and half on south slope in timber.  Numbers will increase next week as we get more snow in the high country and cover up that flippin' yellow orb!  But it is pathetic what has become of the resident herds in lower elevations.  Makes you sick to your stomach.

Had one reasonably good shot opportunity at a healthy cow.  Passed on it.  The sick one was 142 yards away.  Sun hit my glasses and the gig was up.  Bucks where we are seem to be moving at night again.  That's what I'd really like to see in the daylight.  Passed a few doe with fawns at first light.  All bucks we've seen coming in and out have been on flats so I guess I can't give any first hand N/S slope info on that.  In years past most bucks post rut have been on south slopes, in Christmas trees, mid day during sun breaks.  Haven't even seen a doe on those slopes this year.

[steeliedrew]

RadSav,

I REALLY appreciate your response. I was affraid to hear if what you were seeing was somewhat the same cause I know you know how to get on them in there. by the way, I checked that one gate we talked about. Port Blakely has it locked so if you were to go in there from your end with the key on the Weyco roads you probably won't be met with a whole lot of pressure. 

[Fl0und3rz]

I don't know if this is stating the obvious or not, but a generally useful tool is google earth's ability to show the terrain at different times of the day/year. With that, you can find small knobs and clearings that get the earliest sun.  I found a small knob on a northwest facing bowl that had a late BT doe sunning herself in the early morning sun. Incidentally, an ATV had just passed within about 100 yards of her 30 minutes earlier, before she stood up and slinked off into the dark timber.

[RadSav]

I checked that one gate we talked about. Port Blakely has it locked so if you were to go in there from your end with the key on the Weyco roads you probably won't be met with a whole lot of pressure. 

Yeah, I noticed that.  Really chaps my behind!  I need a bunch of hunters in there to push them down to me.   A lot of my regular spots are reliant on hunting pressure.  Without it they are just another random batch of timber.  That spot you are talking about has been great for 25 straight years so I guess I can't complain.  But I did like being spoiled with easy elk hunting   Take some friends and hit that spot hard...I'd sure appreciate it

Those are the kind of spots you want to look for off the Weyco land.  I found a few of those escape holes by pure luck, but most were found using maps.  I take a topo and mark "Hunters/pressure here, here, here and here"  I then ask myself, "I'm an elk under pressure - where do I go to get away from all those hunters."  I then mark my guesses on the topo.  Lay that topo over the most recent Google Earth image and see if the three factors overlap (food, sleep, close emergency escape).  Highlight the ones that do and give them a try.  Sometimes it's not as much about how many elk there are left in the Winston...it's how many elk there are in that one special spot!!

Eight of my ten blacktail spots that reflected that this year were logged off!  I think someone at Weyco has been tracking my phone and choosing to destroy all the spots I spend time in Makes it fun and frustrating at the same time!  Add to it the estimate that we lost another 50% of the local resident herds to cow tags and hoof rot and it's been a very tough year for us.  I think "The Good Ole Days" in Winston are officially a memory of the past.  But, we'll play the cards we're dealt this year and make our decisions for the future after the 2016 multi-season draw.

[steeliedrew]

Take some friends and hit that spot hard...I'd sure appreciate it

Lol! that would be quite the day hike/hunt for us. Unless we were going to spike out in some state land but in this weather that would be one cold night! I'd be willing because I just picked up a new zero degree bag that would work well for it but my buddies would not be down. Haha

A little update from today. We found a herd of 12 at first light feeding in a south facing cut. The hunt was ruined by a couple idiots. Today's story might deserve its own thread though. Might take a while to type it out.  I just don't know what some people are thinking out there!?

[steeliedrew]

I don't know if this is stating the obvious or not, but a generally useful tool is google earth's ability to show the terrain at different times of the day/year. With that, you can find small knobs and clearings that get the earliest sun. 

That's an excellent idea. I'll see if I can play around with GE and learn that feature. 

[RadSav]

that would be quite the day hike/hunt for us. Unless we were going to spike out in some state land but in this weather that would be one cold night! I'd be willing because I just picked up a new zero degree bag that would work well for it but my buddies would not be down. Haha

Less than a mile in from that gate will do me just fine!

We found a herd of 12 at first light feeding in a south facing cut. The hunt was ruined by a couple idiots. Today's story might deserve its own thread though. Might take a while to type it out.  I just don't know what some people are thinking out there!?

That's the norm!  You are hunting the Winston after all, aren't you?  Any time I have a stalk that is not blown by idiots or return to my truck to find no one has dumped their spittoons on my door handles I feel lucky.  Something about late season Winston attracts the worst of Longview's worst.  But we do love the country, varied terrain/timber growth and the monster blacktail chances.  Make's it reasonably possible to ignore the idiots by season's end.

[steeliedrew]

Less than a mile in from that gate will do me just fine!

Oh well if it's that easy maybe I can help you out.  I have to see how next Saturday pans out first with the herd we found today. 

That's the norm!  You are hunting the Winston after all, aren't you?  Any time I have a stalk that is not blown by idiots or return to my truck to find no one has dumped their spittoons on my door handles I feel lucky.  Something about late season Winston attracts the worst of Longview's worst.  But we do love the country, varied terrain/timber growth and the monster blacktail chances.  Make's it reasonably possible to ignore the idiots by season's end.

  dumping spitters on your door handles!? Guess I should start wiping my door handles with a baby wipe before touching them. lol. People are ridiculous.

[huntingbaldguy]

I had elk pinned down all summer and most of fall.  Then i go up for late season, first major freeze, they drop 1200 feet of elevation the day prior to, or day of the opener.  Now they are just chilling on private land.  I nailed their entire schedule and found them in the same spots all weekend, but couldn't get to them.  It's maddening.  I hope they go back up with this rain.  If not i'm hosed.

[huntingbaldguy]

So in the crappiest wind and rain and at 40 degrees, where are you guys expecting elk to be this weekend?  I'm thinking old growth creek drainage, ferns, alders, etc... or 15 y/o reprod.  Any insight?  Looking like it will be crazy this weekend but i gotta get at it.

[steeliedrew]

I'll be out there as well testing out the Kuiu Yukon rain gear. I've actually been looking forward to some weather.   

[huntingbaldguy]

Hoping the current weather report holds true.  Should be a good rainless window Friday morning if so, but i expect some foggy conditions.  I've actually been hoping to use my new Rivers West poncho on a hunt.  This may be the weekend.