general season stories

[outdooraddict]

I know most elk camps are still camping (I mean hunting),  my dads in the umtanum, seen a couple cows and he said minimal shooting.  no spikes have been posted yet.  lets hear some stories of the pumpkin patches

[SniperDanWA]

I was up in the umptanum yesterday for a visit.  I heard two spikes were taken and a 7x6 on opening and nothing since.  Not my info to share on 7x6.  Only stories I heard is, it is bleak up there.  I did a couple of my old runs and ran into multiple guys doing the same.  Fewer camps, but bigger ones as far as I could tell.  More banner signs marking their camps.

[Naches Sportsman]

I haven't bought a tag, but I had a spike on cam again during shooting light yesterday and there was 3 cows that I could see eating apples in the neighbors orchard early this morning. They are taking advantage of harvest being done and living the good life down low 

[C-Money]

Saw very few elk in the Colockum. My traditional elk areas have been off for about 4 years now. Very few animals where I hunt lately.

[bhawley76]

During deer season I had some person  sneak up on my 3d deer 30 yards from my back door with a flashlight right at dark. The wife asked him what the hell he was doing his response was its deer season. I'm glad I wasn't home would of been bracelets for me.

[CAMPMEAT]

During deer season I had some person sneak up on my 3d deer 30 yards from my back door with a flashlight right at dark. The wife asked him what the hell he was doing his response was its deer season. I'm glad I wasn't home would of been bracelets for me.

The nerve of the local crackheads.....

[GlockGuy56]

Hiked around on opening day in Ahtanum. Didn't see any elk and heard one shot ring out all day.

[slowhand]

Up in the Nile there was a big camp that had a large Elk/Deer 3d target that they would take the occasional shot at just to make sure they were ready for the opportunity should it arise.
Well there was more than one time, ok I will be honest it happened 3 times, that on the way back to camp I might have jumped out of the truck and started to knock an arrow. I want to point out that I was a kid and hell bent on getting My first Deer or Elk.
The Messed up part was My Dad would let Me, LOL. I would say "Elk!!!!!" He would stop the truck let Me Fly out. I would turn around and He would say "that darn thing got me Too" laughing under his breath. Funny how often We took that way back to our camp. I think Dad was messing with Me. Not cool Dad! not Cool!

[HoofsandWings]

Yesterday morning, my partner came across a 6x6 bull who was gut shot. He would turn his head, but did not move even though my friend was 10 yards away. He did get up once and move 50 feet.
There were quite a few hunters with big bull tags, but they had left.
A sad story.

[Moe the Sleaze]

Heading up to the Colockum tomorrow through Sunday.  I have to say the reports I've been getting have been very poor.  I'll give it a good try, but to be honest, I'm not very enthused. The "true spike" rule seems ridiculous.  Anybody care to guess how many true spikes might be running around in the entire Colockum herd?  My feeling is not very many.  I'm hoping for 1 in the 25 square mile area I usually hunt, but frankly our advance party has seen no elk at all there this year.  I'm thinking general season elk is pretty much a lost cause unless you have a cow tag.  Good for beer drinking I suppose...

[slowhand]

Anywhere that has true spike bull only is a joke. Go hunt someplace else. 
 

[Hilltop123]

Figurativly speaking, 340 and 342, are ghost towns. Was not sure why, until I checked the game regs, the state cut the cow tags for those two GMU's 90%. Last year 340 issued 350 cow tags and 342 issued 200. This year 340, 35 cow tags and 342, 20 cow tags. There is probably half if not less, camps this year than in the last 14 years.

[slowhand]

It gets harder and harder each and every year. You just got to adapt. learn a new weapon or a new area. There are still options.

[elkinrutdrivemenuts]

Yesterday morning, my partner came across a 6x6 bull who was gut shot. He would turn his head, but did not move even though my friend was 10 yards away. He did get up once and move 50 feet.
There were quite a few hunters with big bull tags, but they had left.
A sad story.

I don't think I could pass on that.  I'd probably have to take my chances with fish and game and hope they could see the wound was old and the one I put in his head was fresh.  I am sure with my luck I would get some young punk who thinks he just received a gift wrapped poaching case, but Ill take my chances. 

Ill pack it out and they can donate it where ever, but a suffering, wounded animal that is going to waste is something I wont walk away from.  I guess I am just compassionate respect the animal to much.  We shouldn't be afraid to do what is right by the animal.

[SniperDanWA]

I haven't bought a tag, but I had a spike on cam again during shooting light yesterday and there was 3 cows that I could see eating apples in the neighbors orchard early this morning. They are taking advantage of harvest being done and living the good life down low 

I walked a lot yesterday.  Got back to the truck and 200’ from the truck was a small herd of cows and possibly a couple spikes (could not tell in the trees).  They ran into the trees too fast to tell.  I hoofed it around them, they ran back towards the truck, I hoofed it around them again and back into the thick stuff.  An hour and a half in a 20 acre or less patch of trees.  Never could get enough of a view to know how many and of what gender.

[face]

Ya , its been slow in 342. I guided my 14 year old nephew into getting his first spike        opening morning . This was an amazing hunt . A couple of hunters tried getting in front of us on the way up the hill, we stopped and started glassing and I spotted the spike and 4 cows way up in a big basin but heading our way. The 2 other hunters seemed to not    know where they were and headed back down to there truck. As they were heading back the elk were on the side of the hill about 200 yards away. Thank god they never looked behind them. Lol. The elk bedded and we made our move. I will post some pictures after the season is done. So I don't have any company in the coming days. Good luck all !!!

[runamuk]

Yesterday morning, my partner came across a 6x6 bull who was gut shot. He would turn his head, but did not move even though my friend was 10 yards away. He did get up once and move 50 feet.
There were quite a few hunters with big bull tags, but they had left.
A sad story.

Did you call wdfw? They often can put a tag holder on situations like this. 

[acrocker]

Just got back from 346 - been trying to fill a Peaches big bull tag and can't find any elk at all! I've been out in it for 9 straight days and it wasn't until today up at Mt. Clifty that I finally found 2 cows and 2 calves. Prior to that I had seen only 3 cows off the 1900 road while driving back to camp one night. I've hunted Clifty, Blowout, Gold Creek, and off the PCT south of the 1900 rd and just can't find any elk - heading back over tomorrow to go for my Hail Mary or it's tag soup for me.

One note - did find a bunch of wolf tracks on and around the PCT at Blowout Mountain, could be part of the problem...

[ghosthunter]

Figurativly speaking, 340 and 342, are ghost towns. Was not sure why, until I checked the game regs, the state cut the cow tags for those two GMU's 90%. Last year 340 issued 350 cow tags and 342 issued 200. This year 340, 35 cow tags and 342, 20 cow tags. There is probably half if not less, camps this year than in the last 14 years.

Good

We use to hunt 342 back when it was 500 tags, than the state raised the amount of permits and success went in the dumpster. So we moved out.

[Jpmiller]

Just got back from 346 - been trying to fill a Peaches big bull tag and can't find any elk at all! I've been out in it for 9 straight days and it wasn't until today up at Mt. Clifty that I finally found 2 cows and 2 calves. Prior to that I had seen only 3 cows off the 1900 road while driving back to camp one night. I've hunted Clifty, Blowout, Gold Creek, and off the PCT south of the 1900 rd and just can't find any elk - heading back over tomorrow to go for my Hail Mary or it's tag soup for me.

One note - did find a bunch of wolf tracks on and around the PCT at Blowout Mountain, could be part of the problem...

I cut a wolf track in the snow a little ways north of there. We also had a stalk on elk blown when a couple guys parked at a landing about a mile across valley. Not their fault, elk were just really spooky. We ran into alot of sign to go along with the elk and a few mulies too. Good season for just a weekend for us, even with no notched tags.

[treeclimber2852]

My son and I found several wolf tracks in Bumping on Sunday.  I think it's safe to say we have a wolf problem.

[Duckhunter14]

Heading up to the Colockum tomorrow through Sunday.  I have to say the reports I've been getting have been very poor.  I'll give it a good try, but to be honest, I'm not very enthused. The "true spike" rule seems ridiculous.  Anybody care to guess how many true spikes might be running around in the entire Colockum herd?  My feeling is not very many.  I'm hoping for 1 in the 25 square mile area I usually hunt, but frankly our advance party has seen no elk at all there this year.  I'm thinking general season elk is pretty much a lost cause unless you have a cow tag.  Good for beer drinking I suppose...

You'd be surprised.

[Stein]

Yesterday morning, my partner came across a 6x6 bull who was gut shot. He would turn his head, but did not move even though my friend was 10 yards away. He did get up once and move 50 feet.
There were quite a few hunters with big bull tags, but they had left.
A sad story.

What unit?

[HoofsandWings]

Yesterday morning, my partner came across a 6x6 bull who was gut shot. He would turn his head, but did not move even though my friend was 10 yards away. He did get up once and move 50 feet.
There were quite a few hunters with big bull tags, but they had left.
A sad story.

Did you call wdfw? They often can put a tag holder on situations like this.

I think I mentioned there were several tag holders, but they gave up the day before. We knew who they were, but they had left.

[lilshootergirl]

Heard ppl saying others were tagging spikes they claimed they shot! Pretty hard up! No pride in that, if I found one I would open it up let it cool, and maybe they would find it?better than it rotting?

[runamuk]

Yesterday morning, my partner came across a 6x6 bull who was gut shot. He would turn his head, but did not move even though my friend was 10 yards away. He did get up once and move 50 feet.
There were quite a few hunters with big bull tags, but they had left.
A sad story.

Did you call wdfw? They often can put a tag holder on situations like this.

I think I mentioned there were several tag holders, but they gave up the day before. We knew who they were, but they had left.

I know but did you talk to any wdfw representative? They can make judgement calls.  I also have another option to at least not see waste happen.  There are legal means to put down something like that.

[huntandjeep]

Heard ppl saying others were tagging spikes they claimed they shot! Pretty hard up! No pride in that, if I found one I would open it up let it cool, and maybe they would find it?better than it rotting?

Happens alot.

[steeleywhopper]

We had 1 Dayton Bull permit in camp and he hunted his butt off, didn’t see one bull until I spotted a 2x2 that he ended up shooting on day 11. Wolves were howling nightly and elk were non existent where we were at. I think we’re done hunting the Blues.

[elkchaser54]

Where did you hunt in the dayton unit and not see a big bull??? There is 3 wolf packs in the blues now.  FYI

[BigBuckBandit]

I ended up out on the coast looking for a big Roosevelt. Got some intel from some forester buddies that had eyes on a few legal bulls in a herd. Ended up hiking in behind a gate a few miles just to find that they had burned some slash piles the day before. That would have been fine except the fires got away from them and ended up burning into the tree line pretty well. Didn't see a damn thing except for a doe. I'm pretty sure every animal within a couple miles smelled that smoke and headed in the opposite direction  . Debating on dragging the girlfriend out to the coast again for another shot.

[Rob Allen]

I brought home dinner out pf 578 yesterdsy...

5 lbs of the seasons last chantarells.

Lots of elk tracks on the state  and private forest lands but there are soo many people that they are high tailing it to thr refuge..
Saw one kid fill a cow tag but that's  it. Lots of people spending lots  of gas money. Very few people walking.. as soon as you start  walking  behind s gate and feel you are in a good  spot, there is another road.

This area needs lots more gates

[Humptulips]

I guess I have not run out of hunting luck yet. I got one Sunday.
Sorry no Pictures. It is not a very impressive set of horns anyway, a 6x2 but you would laugh if you saw them. Barely legal so no bragging but I thought you might enjoy the story.

I had hunted all day Saturday and saw nothing but brush on what I thought was pretty flat ground but at the end of the day my knees were killing me. I had planned to go up on the hill Sunday but the knees changed that. Saturday morning they were as stiff as stove pipes but I put on a couple ace bandages, popped a couple pills and away I went.

I went down to the Fish hatchery and crossed the creek on the dam. There is a small tributary runs in right there and I was going to hunt up the right side of it until I came to some leased ground, cross the creek and hunt back down to the car. Flat country and about 90 year old hemlock timber. Brushy in spots but open on the bench above the creek. It was raining so not much chance of seeing tracks. Tough to track in that country anyway.

I came in sight of the clearing that is the leased area. I was on Forest Service land. I crossed the creek and it was much brushier on that side. About 6 foot high salal brush with and assortment of huckleberry and vine maple. I had worked my way north of the creek quite a way trying to find some good going when up jumps this bull about 200 feet from me. That is a long shot in there.

After fiddling with my scope covers for what seemed an eternity I got my gun on him. I probably should not have done it but I took a head shot and normally when you do that the animal is either dead or gone. In this case he turned and took off when I shot.
Krap! I just missed more then likely the only bull I will see this year.
 
I ran up to where he had been as fast as I could go. Did I mention my knees were killing me? No tracks that I could see. I was hoping there were more elk so I might have a chance at tracking them but as it turned out he was all alone.

I walked down somewhat of a trail where he had gone for about a 100 feet and there he is, pointed straight away from me with his head down and about 30 feet away.
In retrospect he looked sick but it did not register at the time. He presented absolutely no shot. I watched him for what seemed like forever but in reality probably only 30 seconds or so. He would swing his head from side to side a little but never enough to take another shot at his head.

Then his head comes up and I try a shot over his back to the back of his head. Boom and down he goes. No pat on the back for a good shot though. I just clipped the top of the hump at his shoulders. It turned out no spinal damage but the shock of getting a couple of those bones that stick up broke paralyzed him at least temporarily.

I walked up and he was flailing around more vigorously as time went by. I think he would have gotten up eventually but I gave him a finishing shot to the back of the head.

On inspection my first shot had hit him right on the bridge of the nose halfway between the eyes and nose. From the angle it should have went under his brain. Lot of bone there though. I still am blown away that I could hit the elk there and not at least knock him down. He never even seemed to flinch. I shoot a 300 WSM by the way.

The reason the elk was alone is likely because he was a cripple. It looked like he had broke his left front foreleg some time ago. It was healed but pulled up and the joints were stiff.. He could not use it and his shoulder muscles were atrophied from not being used. There was a little discharge from his foreleg but I whacked it off at the elbow and everything above seemed fine.

The pack out was a little disconcerting because I was only about 300 yards from a road but had to pack it about a mile because I could not access the road.
I hung it and skinned it Sunday and because I am not to smart ended up packing the front half out that day getting out about dark. I think I might have mentioned my knees are killing me.  I started a little late Monday and had the last of it in the pickup at about 2:30.

[E35alex]

Congrats on the bull! great story

[DavidM]

Hunted the Colockum area up near the reserve near Colockum road. We saw a lot of Elk, big groups and not just in the mornings. There were big groups out all day. The problem was not very many true spikes. I saw only 5 total either hanging in camps or being hauled out. We saw a lot of 1x2 bulls and I mean a lot of them. I spent a few days during the Deer season up there and saw a lot of bigger Bulls 5 point or better. There was a big 7x7 bull taken at Dairy springs up there in Sept. by a hunter with the Governors tag. It was cool seeing all the big Bulls this year. We can't hunt them but seeing them up there again is very cool. I have been hunting there for 40 years and there were more Elk up on top near the reserve than I have seen in a long time. That being said the state needs help to figure out the true Spike thing it's not working for the hunter any more.

[lilshootergirl]

Why is it we hunt spike elk in washington, unless you hit the lottery?, and other states allow branch bull? I would think the branch bulls would breed its off spring? Or maybe there's not enough bull for everyone? Just wondering!

[runamuk]

Actually you hunt 3 point or better in western WA it's only eastern that has spike rules.  Deer are the exact reverse east side we hunt 3 or better west side you can hunt spike on up in most areas.

Its,about money people pay a lot of money into the draw game hoping to "buy" a chance at an east side bull.

[SureThing]

Before when it was any bull on the east side there were only a handful of bulls killed and most were rag horns at best. Since they went to the permit draw the herd has diversity and you at least get to see the big bulls if you don’t hit ghe lottery.
If you do hit the lottery, you get a chance at a true quality bull and a hunt worth remembering. I think it is one of the best things the WDFW has done. If you don’t like hunting for spikes only then hunt a unit that allows you to shoot any bull.

[Naches Sportsman]

I am not going to go into detail, but I sure hope the guy who pointed a rifle at and darn near shot a local  tells his story here.

He doesn't deserve to be hunting nor deserves to own a gun with a shoot anything that moves mindset.

[Duckhunter14]

Before when it was any bull on the east side there were only a handful of bulls killed and most were rag horns at best. Since they went to the permit draw the herd has diversity and you at least get to see the big bulls if you don’t hit the lottery.
If you do hit the lottery, you get a chance at a true quality bull and a hunt worth remembering. I think it is one of the best things the WDFW has done. If you don’t like hunting for spikes only then hunt a unit that allows you to shoot any bull.

  its called management. Talk to anyone who hunted the units managed for big bulls now, 20-30 years ago and they'll point to a couple dinky raghorn racks and say that was a huge success back then. The herds are healthy and as mentioned if you don't want quality or to wait out the draw system then go hunt an any bull unit or travel out of state.

[Buzz2401]

I like the way the elk seasons are set up now.  It sucked when it was any bull back in the day.  Ya it can sometimes feel impossible to shoot a spike but it wasn't much different back when it was any bull.  At least now we have about same odds and then a chance to have a really good permit hunt if your number is drawn.  Open it up to any bull or even 3 point min on eastside and first year or two will be really good then it will be right back to same old crappy hunting. 

[Stein]

Why is it we hunt spike elk in washington, unless you hit the lottery?, and other states allow branch bull? I would think the branch bulls would breed its off spring? Or maybe there's not enough bull for everyone? Just wondering!

In other states, they either have more bulls, less hunters or both.  It's simply a numbers game, WA has a ton of hunters and a modest herd so there just won't be as many opportunities as some other states.

[Skyvalhunter]

Modest? well I am glad you are being modest about your modest statement.

[heavyhorned]

Why is it we hunt spike elk in washington, unless you hit the lottery?, and other states allow branch bull? I would think the branch bulls would breed its off spring? Or maybe there's not enough bull for everyone? Just wondering!

In other states, they either have more bulls, less hunters or both.  It's simply a numbers game, WA has a ton of hunters and a modest herd so there just won't be as many opportunities as some other states.
[/quote
so why don't they allow elk to disperse into other areas. i hear of elk going into areas and the next year they list the unit and say any elk. why not let them expand and maybe become larger herds. it seems Washington state only wants the herds to stay in just certain areas. we have two very small herds and ever since it was noticed by game dept they list it as any elk. funny to see 100 orange suits looking over a area for 5 elk.

[Woodchuck]

We camped in the snow, ate some good food, had a nice warm tent, had a good time with good friends, only destroyed one tent.
Saw very few elk, I squeezed the trigger 0 times.

[ASienkiewich]

Hunted all but 3 days of the season here on the west side. Couldn’t do it without my dad(right) and brother (left). Great time camping and getting after it day after day. Hard work pays off!


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[dupedc]

Hunted all but 3 days of the season here on the west side. Couldn’t do it without my dad(right) and brother (left). Great time camping and getting after it day after day. Hard work pays off!


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Way to go guys! That’s what it’s all about! Three elk on top of that is a bonus!



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