To wilderness or NOT to wilderness?

[dylanthered]

Okay, after 3 years of hunting GMU328 Naneum north of Ellensburg I decided that I'm going to try my luck of getting away from the crowds.  I'm happy to work for it (hike obscene miles carrying quarter elk back and forth).  

So I thought I'd try scouting some wilderness areas per some advice I got online.  My goodness it's thick back there.  I scouted some of Rimrock and the Nile.  Are people really hunting elk in the wilderness with 20 - 40 yards of visibility?  Is the idea to walk through the seemingly impentrable woods to get to sligthly more open areas?

I'm doing modern rifle, hunting elk, no draw.

[Ray]

Don't hunt the jungle unless you know something is traveling there. Get on a ridge top, glass a chute/gulley or some area that holds critters (or looks like it might during the morning and evening).

[yelp]

timberline and above..get high and spot.

[tonymoe]

I love hunting the wilderness!! If you want to get away from the crowds, you got to get away from the roads! I am 7-10 miles deep and see one other hunter every year, his name is Steve and he is my hunting partner!

[colockumelk]

I love the wilderness areas.  You never see other people.  The animals are not call shy and while yes it is thick and you have to get close shots, it makes it that much more fun to call them in.  I don't rifle hunt but think about it what's more fun and exciting.  Calling one in to 20 yds (rifle or bow doesn't matter) or shooting one that just happens to run by you at 200 yds. 

[sako223]

A number of hunters go up the nile and line the perimeter of the wilderness. A few get one. Many get bunched up for a circle shoot. You have to shoot a big magnum fast and have good running shoes and a bullet proof vest to tag it.
A few hunters drop off into the wilderness where there are chances. There is also an area there nicknamed the black forest where hunters have been known to go in circles lost for periods of time. Then there are the horse hunters who would be nice to know if you get one down in there. In some years the undercover agents go into the wilderness to bust horse hunters that get the days mixed up when they shoot the elk. There is also the ravens roost road to drop off into the wilderness. Behind rimrock you have to be careful of the imaginary line of the rez. The road signs have names I have never heard before and the people back there just stare at us. pretty soon you get a free ride out and maybe a ticket and or no gun anymore.
The only other other place there are very few hunters is east of Yakima near highway 24. It is a large open area with many game species including elk. You have to watch for the perimeter flights and dive under a bush and might be best to pack out at night when it is cooler. You do risk a free ride to town in a helicopter there too though.

[dylanthered]

timberline and above..get high and spot.

Alright, so you suggest I go high, glass an open area, and when I spot some elk start making my way down into the thick trees if necessary.  Fine.

Given that modern rifle season starts 10/31 isn't there going to be too much snow at the timberline? 

To successfully hunt the wilderness should a person go with bow or muzzle loader so you have warmer weather at those higher elevations?

[colockumelk]

The Wilderness areas are definately better during the bow and ML seasons.  It's warmer and they will still be up high in those wilderness areas.  Plus it's during the rut and since it's thick a long range rifle isn't really an advantage.  During the rifle season it would be hit or miss up there.  If it's still warm without any snow then they will still be up high.  But if it snows then go lower and hit their travel routes to where they winter. 

[fishm@n]

You don't have to hunt wilderness to get away from people especially if you give up that rifle (at least in this state). What you do need is physical fitness and the right gear. Pickup Cameron Hane's BackCountry bow hunter book. The guy is a bit whacko but it will give you some great tips on hunting the BC. I did a non wilderness bow hunt this year in 336 and never saw another hunter and was in elk every day except one. I did hike until every part of me ached every day to get into those places though.

[bow-n-head]

A question for all you wilderness hunters. Are horses a must or have you packed critters out on you backs? How far. I have packed elk 4 miles on my back many times, and every time I swear I will never do it again. (slow learner). I don't have access to horses. I want to hunt the Bob Marshal Wilderness for mule deer. But the 10-12 mile hike just to get there is a little exhausting just thinking about. Not to mention it is full of Griz.

[boneaddict]

Horses can be nice and they can be a pain in the ass.  The last time I paged Idabooner to come fetch me, by the time we were done fighting stock I could have had the deer out. LOL    Then again, when I was done packin that last one out about 14 miles I was wishing I had that horse.(deer)   I've brought a moose out 9 miles though so I can be considered a bit weird.

[jackelope]

i think an important thing to remember in all of this is that once you kill and animal you have to get it out. with an elk this means likely 4 trips unless you are some sort of incredible hulk type guy, but 1 tripping an elk is not a feat achieved by 99% of the hunters in the woods, maybe 100%. if you are 4 miles in this means 4 8 mile hikes in the same day...or 2 days if the weather is right, but either way thats a *censored* ton of walking, even for the best of us....good luck with that in the early archery season when it is 80 degrees. we owe it to the animal to keep it realistic in terms of getting them out before meat spoilage sets in. you can be the greatest backpacker/hunter in the world but if you are so deep that you can't get the meat out in a timely manner, you should not be going that deep.
 

[sako223]

Many guys don't have a clue what they are getting into and if it is a first time don't realize how overwhelming it can get. I am sure many here have seen the bad stories first hand as I have.
One time we dropped off the nile into the wilderness We saw another hunter take a nice bull but we kept a respectable distance. He really struggled to get the head/rack up out of there. In the four days we continued hunting that spot that guy never returned.

[coonhound]

There is nothing I can think of that gets me pumped up more than a backcountry elk hunt.  Outside of the maintained trails I never see another sole.  As far as getting an elk out, after the pain subsides and you're all healed up the pack never seems like it was that bad.  To me the extra effort packing an elk out 5 miles makes it even sweeter. 

The biggest killer to a backcountry hunt is not getting in shape 1st, if you're dead tired all the time it takes allot out of the hunt.  You do the prep and it's an adventure you'll never get tired of participating in.  If I had to do the combat style of elk hunting most people do I wouldn't be hunting elk anymore.

As far as the thick stuff, I don't mind that either, in fact I almost prefer the close quarters hunting.  Half the adventure is scouting out new honey holes, there's a ton of country that rarely gets touched. You will also find a wide variety of terrain and cover from open Meadows, to tough rocky ground to open timber to the thick white fir thickets and waste deep huckleberry.  Spend the time and you'll find something that fits your style.

Man I'm gettin a chubby just thinking about it...

Coon