st helens trip

[heavy hauler]

i made a trip there today.the road was closed just past elk rock view point.lots of guys with snow machines .past there.i saw a bunch of elk in the valley (duh)  i broke out the spotter and there was alot of bulls with horns. i did see one , one horned bull.  i hope people stay out of the valley for awhile.sheds arent worth the cost this time of year

[bow4elk]

A bit early for elk...shouldn't be dropping till March/April.  And people should stay the hell out of winter range until then or later, preferably later.

[bucklucky]

Anything real big Curtis? See any other critters?

[heavy hauler]

i never got off the highway, so some of the elk i was looking at were a mile plus away.i did see some people with horses heading down into the valley.i saw one real stand out bull with real long swords.i also saw a ton of the st helens 5 pointers.

[rackattack]

Isn't the valley closed to public entry until April 1st for the wintering elk?   You should have gotten some license numbers, could have been some points for you.

[blindpig]

Thanks, for the info.  I would love to go there with you sometime.   

[huntnphool]

Its been several years since I've been down there but we used to go down about this time every year and take pics, I don't know if you can still get in there this time of year without getting in trouble

[Skinner]

Its closed until april 1st.  Its posted on the right side below the forest learning center!

[JoeVon]

Heavy Hauler, I saw a bull down there a couple weeks ago with one horn, the other was broke off right above the pedicle...wonder if it was the same one?

[heavy hauler]

awe man ,  i wish i could remember which side was missing.he was ALONG ways away. i know it is real early for them to be dropping.no license plate numbers, i totaly spaced it

[bow4elk]

He most likely hadn't shed.  Instead he may have been a one-antlered bull (defect?) or broke it off at the pedicle.  I've seen that a few times.  They shouldn't be shedding any sooner than late March but the timing always fluctuates depending on the health of the animals and photo period.

[heavy hauler]

what causes the elk to shed there antlers when they do?  i have  watched them for years and i am not sure.i will make a return trip asap and see if i can get a better look at the one horned bull.

[bow4elk]

The photo period is the main cause.  The length of daylight in a day = Photo Period.  When light levels hit a certain point it triggers the release of a hormone that slowly deteriorates the bonding layer between the top of the pedicle and base of the antler.  Health of a given animal may affect this process some but generally, unless you're dealing with a stag (never sheds) abnormality, elk will drop around the end of March or beginning of April.  I'm no expert but I've always been facinated by antlers, so I read a lot about the physiology of ungulates, especially elk.

Some good reading: "Elk of North America".  It's the bible of the elk world.

[heavy hauler]

awesome thanks