Toutle Bull Tag

[fish-on37]

Dont get mad but I had 4 points including this years. I know I got lucky.

[Jeremiah P]

You all might hate me but last year I drew with no points.

[fish-on37]

nice

[fish-on37]

If its closed for fire danger you can still walk in, right?

[furbearer365]

No.  They are really strict about anyone being in there if they have closed it due to fire danger even if you walk, no access means no access to them during hunting season or not.  I am not joking or trying to scare you, this is one of the main reasons i don't bow hunt, because you are flirting with the chance of not even having an early season if you want to hunt Weyco property.  make sure you know what is going on and check the hotline all the way up to the season.

[Shawn Ryan]

Drew the tag in 2004. Camped on DNR land just off the 3000 line and hunted various parts of DNR and Weyco.  Took a large 4 point bull on the very last morning after having stuck a 5x6 in the kill zone.  (On my 4th day of hunting him, I shot at 22 yards, saw the arrow hit, penetrated to the fletchings; think I misjudged the quartering away shot placement, didn't hold far enough back and only got the near-side lung.  Learned a lot re-thinking that shot over the years. Searched for the 5x6 for parts of 4 days.  I'm sure he died.)  I was just sitting overlooking the shot area watching for coyotes and crows on my last morning before helping my buddy haul his elk out.  That morning in two hours of sitting, I saw a 6x6 and 5x5 clash, a big 5x5 move his girls away from me, a small 4 point screaming, and the large 4 point I shot (who was run off by a big 6x6 that my buddy scared up when they went to fetch his elk).  Hate the feeling I get everytime I think of the bigger bull I know I killed.  Wonder whether I should have shot another or ate tag soup.  I shot the 4 point at 10 yards, while walking to meet my buddy and haul his elk, which was a gift I didn't figure I was supposed to pass up.

PM me and I'd be happy to share photos and areas we hunted.  If I drew it again, I'd spend a large part of my time hunting a different area, though.

Photo of the 4x4.  He doesn't look big, but his body was massive.  I've shot 3 other 4x4's and seen others dead on the ground. He was definitely the largest.

[bobcat]

If its closed for fire danger you can still walk in, right?

I drew the Toutle archery bull tag in '01, or maybe it was '02, can't recall for sure. But Weyerhaeuser was shut down due to fire danger and they had guards at the main gate on the South Fork Toutle and they wouldn't let anyone in, even to hunt the big block of state land in there. Couldn't even park at the gate and walk in. So I never got to use the permit. I thought about paying that helicopter at one of the st. helens visitor centers to fly me across the river and drop me off for a week on the state land. Wish I would've now. I'm sure I could've got into a lot of elk and all on state land with nobody else hunting.

[Antlershed]

My dad drew the Margaret tag the year the mountain started blowing steam and they shut the entire area down, and he wasn't able to use his permit. WDFW gave him his points back though...

[Skyvalhunter]

I heard they were giving peoples points back they were block out too. If it were me I would definately have requested that.

[Antlershed]

Yeah, but they didn't give them back until after he submitted his hunter report at the end of the year saying he didn't shoot an elk. Their reasoning was that he could have illegaly snuck in and still used his permit. So having told him that he could have snuck in, used his permit, shot a bull, AND got his points back.   

[Elkpiss]

If its closed for fire danger you can still walk in, right?

NOPE, no enty on wherehouser property at all during fire danger.. State land yes, but your screwed cause you have to go through wherehouser to get to it, off the 4700 line.. You will be ok though it wont be smoked out the whole season i can tell ya that, unless this is one hot summer but i dout it..

[Up a Creek]

I was near there last year in Pumis planes,  you shouldn't have any problem getting at least a rag horn like the one in the picture, We saw herds of small bulls like that every day. One day we counted 67 bulls and 40 cows in just one draw . Obviously we were in a area that was more open and a haven for the elk, but we still saw plenty in the Toutle on the way in and out. Just pray the areas not closed because of fire danger.

[Shawn Ryan]

If Weyco closes their land you can still access the DNR land from the east end. Its only about an hour hike, but that just gets you to the edge of the Toutle.  The Blue Lake trail/Trail 238, or what is left of it, meets the 216 at the S. Fork of the Toutle.  The 8123 road to the Blue Lake Trail head has been closed at the trail head for years and is now destroyed even farther back.  If you hike or bike, you can still use the 8123 to get to its end/Sheep Canyon Trail head/Trail 240 and the access to the S. Fork is easy from there. The Blue Lake Trail used to be an easy walk to the S. Fork.  I have not hiked it since the mountain fell down about 2 years back.

Once on the S. Fork, you can access the 216 G, which will take you directly to the 3000 road and DNR land.  From the truck to the 3000 road, that hike would be about 2-3 hours with a multi-day pack on.

[heavy hauler]

also because of the early season problems in the past they have added a second season on the special permits

[THINK_N_ELK]

I drew on a archery group tag as well. And we are hoping to be able to get in there as well.  The bad thing about limited access, is getting your animal out before the meat starts to spoil.

We was in the unit a couple weeks ago and saw a couple nice 6x6's  and a few rag horns as well cows with new calves.  Hoping to get another scouting trip in before the gates are closed just to learn the roads.

Looking forward to some serious bugling.  Having that 10-20 yard screaming tree thrashing eye glazed over Bull coming to kick my butt.