Scouting Access - Margaret, Coweeman, Winston, Etc

[zackmioli]

My dad, godfather, and I are planning out our elk hunting season and it is looking like we are going to move to the West Side this year. Previously we have always put in for Rimrock but the general season without a Cow tag sucks. So we are going to move a bit closer to home to allow for more scouting time and a better general season opportunity if we dont get drawn for a tag. We are all meat hunters. I have 7 points this year and plan on putting in for Margaret, Coweeman, and Winston; bull and cow permits. I checked out harvest reports and those seem to be the three with the best success ratios. Now I am just curious what the preseason access for those units is like. I want to get in and do as much scouting and preperation as possible. If gates are locked I have a mountain bike that I recently purchased to get in that way.

Is Margaret part of the old Marble unit? We hunted Marble one year so I slightly remember that area.

Any help will be very appreciated! Thanks.

[zackmioli]

after reviewing some maps i can tell margaret was not part of the marble unit.

[WSU]

Scouting will probably be mostly by bike, at least in the areas I hunt down that way (weyerhauser).

[rackattack]

Access will be very limited until rifle deer season as Weyerhaeuser keeps the gates locked.  Walk or bike in if fire danger is not an issue will be your main options.

[Curly]

Scout as soon as possible before they shut the areas down in the summer for fire danger.

[Alan K]

If you're doing anything for general season in Winston and Coweeman, there isn't much use in scouting.  Guaranteed the animals will be shoved around hard.  That said, there are plenty of elk and you shouldn't have a problem bumping into some.  More often than not though, they won't be the same animals you'd scouted earlier in the year.

About the best thing getting in there preseason will do for you is familiarize you with the area.

[funkster]

What weapon are you using?  Pre season scouting is all by bike or foot. If you check the hotline often,they might open up the roads a few weekends before the season.

[Magnum_Willys]

If rifle don't bother scouting.  The animals are there its just a matter of who can get the shot off first - odds are any animal you see is being looked at by several other hunters.  Usually someone touches off at 700 yrds and then the fun starts.  Good Luck.

[washelkhntr]

If rifle don't bother scouting.  The animals are there its just a matter of who can get the shot off first - odds are any animal you see is being looked at by several other hunters.  Usually someone touches off at 700 yrds and then the fun starts.  Good Luck.

That is an understatement!

[zackmioli]

thanks for the info guys. i am going to put in for margaret as my number 1 for a cow tag since there is no general season in there. i have no problem getting on the bike and riding the roads to get familiar with the area. *censored*, thats what i bought the thing for, haha.

as soon as im done moving into my new house and stuff im going to plan my first little trip out. ill be sure to post pictures from my adventures and hopefully my first elk!

[Magnum_Willys]

You want a cow put in for the toutle too.  You won't need to scout just drive up and pop one.  Only problem this year is that all of us with a doz. points can put in for cow tags in those areas now this year without affecting our trophy points so your odds are going to be sliiiiiiimmmmmmmm.   

[zackmioli]

ya i understand the odds will be lowered by quite a bit. hopefully i get a bit lucky and can draw something. if not, ill go after a bull in the general season. im still new to elk hunting so itll be quite the learning process. ive learned quite a few things from here so hopefully i can put it all together.

[WDFW Hates ME!!!]

If you want an education to west side general rifle hunt the general rifle hunt in winston. The guys will teach you a ton about west side elk hunting...

We do not hunt it but it is a zoo.

[grundy53]

hunting the south west washington for elk.... there are a lot of elk... a lot of cover... and a lot of hunters. the best way to describe it is JUNGLE WARFARE!

[Little Fish]

So what is your weapon choice?

[zackmioli]

So what is your weapon choice?

modern firearm. sorry, thought i included that in the original post.

[shorthair15]

ive hunted all 3 units for deer and elk. be careful in the winston area ive seen bozos up there blocking the whole road with there vehicles during modern rifle. its a frickin zoo. i tend to stay away from the winston unless im hunting deer but there is quite a bit of elk in there. try and get a map from weyerhauser if you can it will list all the roads they help alot if your new to those areas.

[zackmioli]

ive hunted all 3 units for deer and elk. be careful in the winston area ive seen bozos up there blocking the whole road with there vehicles during modern rifle. its a frickin zoo. i tend to stay away from the winston unless im hunting deer but there is quite a bit of elk in there. try and get a map from weyerhauser if you can it will list all the roads they help alot if your new to those areas.

thanks i will do that.

[Cascader74]

I just went to check out the Winston area last week, I didn't see a single gate open. On the way back I stopped off at the WDFW office in Morton and talked to the guy, he said the timber companies are tightening down on access from all the bozos dumping garbage and such. He said it's a possibility they may not even open them up this fall but I don't see that happening. He said Weyerhaeuser also changed their policy of how if you got an elk behind a locked gate you could call the # and they'd send someone out to open the gate so you could drive in and get your animal out, they're no longer doing that according to him. The only gate I saw open was to the Goat Trail but that had a rock slide blocking the road so that was useless anyhow.

[bonecrusher]

thats good news if you ask me, the more blocked roads and closed gates the better. you should get out of the truck and head up those roads.

[sportsman002001]

I heard the gates are open this weekend. They opened the green river early for fishing and the sign at the 1900 gate had the black sack over it. I called weco and they said as long as the sign is covered you can enter.

[brew]

haven't hunted Winston in about 15 years.  My son had a modern tag and wanted me to take him out.  i loaded up my old partner from that area, my son and son in law and took off up to where we previously hunted.  going up a road into an area where we have previously taken elk before just after daybreak and heard a war going on.  had to go around a couple corners just to see what was happening and about fell over.  clear cut with 3 roads going through it and people were shooting off every one at a small group of elk and one bull.  the topper was the guy on top of the camper off the middle spur launching lead as fast as he could reload.  unfortunately someone actually hit the bull and was gearing up with his party to hit the reprod to look for it.  They didn't  have any two way radios so i lent them mine so they could be in contact with each other.  don't know if they ever got the bull as they never mailed my radios back.  haven't been back since.