Coot,
I don't wish to burst your bubble, but Ryderwood can be very disappointing for a rifle elk hunter. There will be people at every turn and it's a brushy hell hole at best. The positive is that there are elk around, I have watched elk numerous times in clearcuts during legal hunting hours that go unnoticed because all of the lazy corndog eaters won't get out of their trucks and walk fifty feet to look over an edge. If you hunt the Monohan Creek drainage hard enough you will find them. Might not see them, but you will find them.
Good Luck and thank you for your service.