First time hunting - heading to 101

[BernerPop]

Hi all,

This will be my first season hunting and in an attempt to avoid the crowds, I'm heading up to GMU 101.  I'm somewhat familiar with the area as I've taken several scouting trips this year, but unfamiliar with what kind of weather I can expect. 

I'm hoping to always stay below the snow line, and from the weather forecast it looks like this might be around 4,500 feet.  Anyone with experience up in the area care to chime in on whether or not this is correct and if there are any areas in specific I'm better off avoiding?

I'm planning on being north of Storm King / South of Bamber; just north of Vulcan; or somewhere up Boulder Creek.

[ne kid]

Avoiding the orange army could be a little tough, and I am praying for snow.

[LOlson45]

If you are hunting October you will very rarely have to worry about snow at any elevation. Sometimes you may need to be down to a shirt while hiking as it can get warm like September during the day. I would plan for dressing warm in the mornings and evenings.

[KFhunter]

There's big dead areas nearly devoid of game, so really pay attention to tracks and sign.

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[BernerPop]

Avoiding the orange army could be a little tough, and I am praying for snow.

It can't possibly be as bad as Ellensburg area, can it?

[MADMAX]

everywhere

if theres animals, theres people

[7mmfan]

Avoiding the orange army could be a little tough, and I am praying for snow.

It can't possibly be as bad as Ellensburg area, can it?

It's that way pretty much everywhere during modern deer season, especially opening weekend. If you can hint during the week it will be significantly better.

[h20hunter]

My meager advice is to do a few things.  Be neighborly....drop off whiskey at any camps you see. Get up early early and cover ground in the dark......get out and ahead of the pack well away from roads.  Don't be shy about hunting late morning. Good luck and shoot straight.

[bhawley76]

There's always lots of people in 101

[KFhunter]

There's always lots of people in 101

And 1/2 mile of walking will get you away from 99% of them

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[highcountry_hunter]

Good luck to you but I wouldn’t get your hopes up too high. I’ve hunted 101 my entire life and the deer numbers are very very low. I’m not saying it can’t be done, if you hunt hard you can get into some deer and you never know when you might luck out and find a nice buck in a weird place.
As mentioned earlier there’s a lot of county that is nearly devoid of life. A technique I’ve started using is find an area that looks like it will hold some deer, preferably near a wide spot on a road. By looking at the lay of the land find what looks like the best escape route for game, usually down a draw or canyon. Then on opening morning park your pickup a good distance away, stay well away from the good looking area, and with the cover of darkness sneak into a good vantage point of the escape route.
With any luck just after sunrise someone wearing 900$ worth of Sitka gear camo with an orange vest over the top of it will go tromping through the good looking area like a herd of elephants. He’ll never even see the buck that he pushed to you and you’ll have meat in the freezer!

[Mossy]

I’ve only ran into 2 hunters in that unit but then again, I’m nowhere near roads.  3 years ago I saw more wolves than people on foot.  As far as snow, one light dusting in 7 years.

[MooseZ25]

Good luck to you but I wouldn’t get your hopes up too high. I’ve hunted 101 my entire life and the deer numbers are very very low. I’m not saying it can’t be done, if you hunt hard you can get into some deer and you never know when you might luck out and find a nice buck in a weird place.
As mentioned earlier there’s a lot of county that is nearly devoid of life. A technique I’ve started using is find an area that looks like it will hold some deer, preferably near a wide spot on a road. By looking at the lay of the land find what looks like the best escape route for game, usually down a draw or canyon. Then on opening morning park your pickup a good distance away, stay well away from the good looking area, and with the cover of darkness sneak into a good vantage point of the escape route.
With any luck just after sunrise someone wearing 900$ worth of Sitka gear camo with an orange vest over the top of it will go tromping through the good looking area like a herd of elephants. He’ll never even see the buck that he pushed to you and you’ll have meat in the freezer!

Such a true story...but I wear first Lite gear

[BernerPop]

With any luck just after sunrise someone wearing 900$ worth of Sitka gear camo with an orange vest over the top

I never understood this. What is the point of having camo everything when you're just going to cover it up with bright orange?

[BernerPop]

Avoiding the orange army could be a little tough, and I am praying for snow.

It can't possibly be as bad as Ellensburg area, can it?

It's that way pretty much everywhere during modern deer season, especially opening weekend. If you can hint during the week it will be significantly better.

I'll be there for the full season!  Actually not setting up camp until Saturday, so I'll miss out on most of the first day.