Where did the Elk go....wolves?

[kidd332]

Hi all,

I new to the site and this is my first post. This post is inspired by my frustrating archery hunt this year. I have been scouting a herd in this area for two years and have always been in elk. This year I hung a few cameras and was having outstanding results. I had 3 shooter bulls, two spikes, at least a dozen cows and 3 calfs. The herd was at the camera at least 3 times a week. Well, until September 3 which was the last picture on my camera. I had set up a blind three week prior to opening day and I saw no change in the elk habits on the cameras. The season arrives and I hunted the area as hard as I could without driving the elk out of the area. I was not calling.....at all! I knew they would come on their own.  I did three all day sits (which nearly drove me insane) with no results. The Fourth day I did a stalk around the area which is about a 2 by 3 mile area. No fresh sign anywhere. I could hardly walk 10 yards and not see week old cow and bull scat but nothing fresh. I left the camera up and had no new pics at night or when I let the area rest for a day or two. On the last day of our hunt one of my partners thinks he might have heard a pack of wolves. He has been a K9 handler for 10+ years and has hunted the area his whole life. He told me he has never heard a sound like that in the woods. This is in the Siouxon unit 572. Has anyone heard about wolves here or did my elk own a hunting calendar? 

[kidd332]

more Pics

[BUTTER]

The word is they are here

[KFhunter]

Sometimes I make it past the 5th and they're like clockwork on camera every day, other years I make it only to the 2nd or 3rd then they take off.   

First week of sept they head out herding up and start early rut.  You just need to figure out where their rendezvous is or get them in that very small window before they leave. 

[Jim/WA]

Two years ago I was into elk all season in a similar area as yours so I put out cameras the following summer and had zero hits for almost six weeks right up until the last week of August then...boom...elk almost everyday thru September. Almost your situation in reverse. I suspect it's more the elk doing what elk do and not wolves.

[pd]

You mentioned that you have been scouting this area hard for a couple of years.  In years past, have you ever seen elk in that area in mid-September, or even October??  As another person said, perhaps yours is a summertime residence, and they boogy to someplace else come September.  This is my thought.

Of course, wolves might be part of this.  But I think you need to first find out where they go come rutting season.  That is your mystery's answer.

[Jonathan_S]

like KFHunter said, those first few days are incredible how much the elk change their patterns. It's like a college town and then school is out.

[coachcw]

one reason why I'm not a huge fan of cameras . they get your hopes up . elk move with the rut and pressure. cameras are cool to see trophy potential  but I wouldn't let them decide your hunt . one thing would be to set them up in dark nasty holes where elk like to go once hunters hit the woods .

[Elkrunner]

one reason why I'm not a huge fan of cameras . they get your hopes up . elk move with the rut and pressure. cameras are cool to see trophy potential  but I wouldn't let them decide your hunt . one thing would be to set them up in dark nasty holes where elk like to go once hunters hit the woods .

 

[pianoman9701]

Welcome to the forum and thanks for the trailcam porn.

Two questions I see is 1. Where did the elk go, and 2. Did the wolves eat them? I'm not a fan of the wolf program. But, noting that you've captured several animals on camera within a week or two of your hunting trip, I would suggest that they didn't all get eaten by wolves. It could possibly be that once the bulls connected up with the ladies and kiddos, they moved them out to an area where they felt more secure, for whatever reason. And, I wouldn't be at all surprised to learn there were wolves in Siouxon. They're in 560 and up around Mt. Adams. 572 is not a stretch.