Elk camps no show

[TL23]

We have a cabin on Twin Buttes. I drove in early Saturday morning to see my dad and the rest of the crew. I did not see one track on the way in. On my way out Sunday morning I saw one lone deer track. Far less camps than there are normally. I would love to draw a Quality Tag in there to say, “I was able pursue a branch antlered elk at the cabin.” Not sure if there will be elk in there to pursue if I am ever lucky enough to draw a tag, with 15 points.

[270Flat]

Definitely elk in there… hardest part is drawing the tag!

[TL23]

Oh yeah I know they are in there. It’s just too bad that the numbers are so low. Yes, drawing the tag is quite the challenge. That’s what worries me, if the numbers continue to decline and it take however many more years to draw, will it be worth putting in for….?

[Dark2Dark]

This year  muzzy we had two 342 cow tags in camp. Six hunters. We have hunted this unit for years.
We scouted in Sept. and counted 17 cows two with calves and one Spike in four days.

When the season opened we saw no elk until the last day when we came close on the cow tags.

I know guys who won’t go u less they draw a cow tag, because it isn’t worth hunting spikes.

Next year we may not hunt elk if one of us v doesn’t draw a cow tag.

Mule deer was no better.


Too much hunting of baby makers and predators is my thought. I would like to see a total ban on hunting cows for three years. And an increase on Predator hunting .

Out of curiosity, if you think killing cows is part of the problem and they should eliminate it, why are you guys in there with cow tags?

I suppose if you don’t draw them someone else will. Maybe just draw the tag and don’t hunt them if you want to do your part. Obviously, nobody is going to do that.

The start and the end of the post just seem kinda contradictory.

[Dark2Dark]

This year  muzzy we had two 342 cow tags in camp. Six hunters. We have hunted this unit for years.
We scouted in Sept. and counted 17 cows two with calves and one Spike in four days.

When the season opened we saw no elk until the last day when we came close on the cow tags.

I know guys who won’t go u less they draw a cow tag, because it isn’t worth hunting spikes.

Next year we may not hunt elk if one of us v doesn’t draw a cow tag.

Mule deer was no better.


Too much hunting of baby makers and predators is my thought. I would like to see a total ban on hunting cows for three years. And an increase on Predator hunting .

Out of curiosity, if you think killing cows is part of the problem and they should eliminate it, why are you guys in there with cow tags?

I suppose if you don’t draw them someone else will. Maybe just draw the tag and don’t hunt them if you want to do your part. Obviously, nobody is going to do that.

The start and the end of the post just seem kinda contradictory.

[hunter399]

This year  muzzy we had two 342 cow tags in camp. Six hunters. We have hunted this unit for years.
We scouted in Sept. and counted 17 cows two with calves and one Spike in four days.

When the season opened we saw no elk until the last day when we came close on the cow tags.

I know guys who won’t go u less they draw a cow tag, because it isn’t worth hunting spikes.

Next year we may not hunt elk if one of us v doesn’t draw a cow tag.

Mule deer was no better.


Too much hunting of baby makers and predators is my thought. I would like to see a total ban on hunting cows for three years. And an increase on Predator hunting .

Out of curiosity, if you think killing cows is part of the problem and they should eliminate it, why are you guys in there with cow tags?

I suppose if you don’t draw them someone else will. Maybe just draw the tag and don’t hunt them if you want to do your part. Obviously, nobody is going to do that.

The start and the end of the post just seem kinda contradictory.

My two cents....
WDFW job to manage resources when it comes to antlerless tags.
No one can expect a hunter to draw a tag,use years of points,then not hunt it.
Even if hunters make suggestions to our commission or otherwise.
They wouldn't take us seriously anyway. It counted as hearsay, nonscientific ,ect,ect.

Basically you have to point the blame at the person who offered a tag opportunity for revenue.
Not the hunter who has waited years to draw a tag.
Just my opinion.

[Dark2Dark]

I definitely get that side of the argument.

I guess if I was very concerned about the herds in an area and felt like there were minimal elk there, I’d use my points to dry and draw a cow tag elsewhere. Especially if I was convinced that cow tags were a part of the problem.

I get that the problem there is that someone else will still probably buy and hunt the tag.

However, if people are seeing 75 cows and none have calves, to me that doesn’t really point to lack of cows for breeding. Sounds like poor survival conditions, poor bull to cow ratio, high predation during calving season, etc.

[Bullkllr]

I never read where he said he held a cow tag. Maybe it was guys he hunts with. Not seeing how he has control over them.

[jrebel]

Curious if the lack of camps for elk was isolated to the SW corner???   We hunted muzzy elk because my buddy drew a cow elk tag and we saw more camps than we usually see.  My observation is skewed as we have usually hunted the same area during archery season and only hunt the muzzy season if we draw a cow tag. 

I can say, we have stopped hunting elk unless someone draws a cow or bull tag.  To chase spike elk with a bow is not my idea of fun.   We spend that time hunting bear and deer now. 

As for the lack of cows....not sure I see it that way.  We consistently see more elk now in our normal haunts than we have ever seen.  I know the SE corner is the exception, but the rest of WA appear to have a very healthy elk herd and taking a few cows isn't going to hurt a thing.  We have also seen more bulls than ever in the last 5 years.  WDFW could definitely up their bull tags in my humble opinion.   

[hunter399]

It's like my situation right now.
Think I have 7 or 8  points in antlerless elk or something like that.
Next year will be 8 years I've been waiting for an opportunity.
If I ever draw ,I bet your bottom dollar ,I will hunt it.

This will be pretty harsh here....
It could be the last cow in the unit. If they are stupid enough to hand me a tag for the last animal. I'll hunt it.

I guess since my suggestion on regulation,and just standard wildlife observation is not good enough for consideration.
I feel it is not my job to manage resources at this point.
The commission and department chosen a path that doesn't include hunters in wildlife management.
Is what it is.

[westsidehntr]

It's like my situation right now.
Think I have 7 or 8  points in antlerless elk or something like that.
Next year will be 8 years I've been waiting for an opportunity.
If I ever draw ,I bet your bottom dollar ,I will hunt it.

This will be pretty harsh here....
It could be the last cow in the unit. If they are stupid enough to hand me a tag for the last animal. I'll hunt it.

I guess since my suggestion on regulation,and just standard wildlife observation is not good enough for consideration.
I feel it is not my job to manage resources at this point.
The commission and department chosen a path that doesn't include hunters in wildlife management.
Is what it is.

Yeah we all get that you are going to do what’s in your best interests, all the time. Screw everyone else. Typical of the modern world we live in.

[ghosthunter]

I never read where he said he held a cow tag. Maybe it was guys he hunts with. Not seeing how he has control over them.

Yes I had a cow tag. We hunted that unit past 10 or more years.

I think cow tags should go away across the board. But as long as tags are offered I will put in. I’ve paid my money over the years and  when more opportunity comes along I am going to take it.
Yeah I could draw it and not hunt it. But that serves no purpose. We are either all in or all out.
Going into the season I felt we had a chance to fill at least one tag. We actually had three tags. One guy didn’t hunt his tag because of a health issue.

We hunt this unit because we know it and like the terrain. We have hunted most the Yakima herd units over the years and like 342 the best. Our camp mostly tents is 6 miles off the Hwy and the road is rough enough to keep the big RV out.

But over the years the numbers in the area we hunt have gone down.

[baldopepper]

Curious if the lack of camps for elk was isolated to the SW corner???   We hunted muzzy elk because my buddy drew a cow elk tag and we saw more camps than we usually see.  My observation is skewed as we have usually hunted the same area during archery season and only hunt the muzzy season if we draw a cow tag. 

I can say, we have stopped hunting elk unless someone draws a cow or bull tag.  To chase spike elk with a bow is not my idea of fun.   We spend that time hunting bear and deer now. 

As for the lack of cows....not sure I see it that way.  We consistently see more elk now in our normal haunts than we have ever seen.  I know the SE corner is the exception, but the rest of WA appear to have a very healthy elk herd and taking a few cows isn't going to hurt a thing.  We have also seen more bulls than ever in the last 5 years.  WDFW could definitely up their bull tags in my humble opinion.

Never saw many elk in our area until the Carpenter road fire in 2015.  That fire seemed to have pushed elk north from the Fruitland area up to our area and they just stayed.  They have plenty of private ground sanctuaries to stay on so the herd has really grown. Don't see a lot of elk hunters around and I think it's due to the lack of public ground holding elk. These past big fires have repositioned lots of animals.  Can kinda say the same thing about the predators that got chased north and decided to stay.
 

 

[hunter399]

Curious if the lack of camps for elk was isolated to the SW corner???   We hunted muzzy elk because my buddy drew a cow elk tag and we saw more camps than we usually see.  My observation is skewed as we have usually hunted the same area during archery season and only hunt the muzzy season if we draw a cow tag. 

I can say, we have stopped hunting elk unless someone draws a cow or bull tag.  To chase spike elk with a bow is not my idea of fun.   We spend that time hunting bear and deer now. 

As for the lack of cows....not sure I see it that way.  We consistently see more elk now in our normal haunts than we have ever seen.  I know the SE corner is the exception, but the rest of WA appear to have a very healthy elk herd and taking a few cows isn't going to hurt a thing.  We have also seen more bulls than ever in the last 5 years.  WDFW could definitely up their bull tags in my humble opinion.

Never saw many elk in our area until the Carpenter road fire in 2015.  That fire seemed to have pushed elk north from the Fruitland area up to our area and they just stayed.  They have plenty of private ground sanctuaries to stay on so the herd has really grown. Don't see a lot of elk hunters around and I think it's due to the lack of public ground holding elk. These past big fires have repositioned lots of animals.  Can kinda say the same thing about the predators that got chased north and decided to stay.
 

 

Yup,know the area well.
Few friends of mine hunt elk around there.

[hughjorgan]

I never read where he said he held a cow tag. Maybe it was guys he hunts with. Not seeing how he has control over them.

Yes I had a cow tag. We hunted that unit past 10 or more years.

I think cow tags should go away across the board. But as long as tags are offered I will put in. I’ve paid my money over the years and  when more opportunity comes along I am going to take it.
Yeah I could draw it and not hunt it. But that serves no purpose. We are either all in or all out.
Going into the season I felt we had a chance to fill at least one tag. We actually had three tags. One guy didn’t hunt his tag because of a health issue.

We hunt this unit because we know it and like the terrain. We have hunted most the Yakima herd units over the years and like 342 the best. Our camp mostly tents is 6 miles off the Hwy and the road is rough enough to keep the big RV out.

But over the years the numbers in the area we hunt have gone down.

A few years ago my buddy drew 342 for the archery late hunt. There were a lot of elk in that unit and not many people harvesting cows when you look at the harvest reports. I highly doubt that we need to restrict cow elk hunting even more than it already has just cause you didn’t see what you have in the past. From what I’ve seen for elk numbers in 342 and the 352 the elk numbers are good, hopefully the game department increases some opportunity for all weapons.