Elk hunting in Forks....

[BigFoot02]

Hello all.. I have been looking into some potential hunting land in Forks. Whats the elk population like out there? What kind of success rate are you guys getting? Are there any quality bulls?

[STIKNSTRINGBOW]

Doing O.K., average, very few....

[timber tiger]

there are no elk in WA 

[7mag.]

My hunting partner elk hunted out there for the first time this year. We saw some elk, not a ton, didn't see anything legal. We saw quite a few other hunters, some had small bulls. It was wet and soggy, kind of miserable. I don't think that I will go back.

[STIKNSTRINGBOW]

It was wet and soggy,

Gotta love the coast !!, that is probably only on the days it wasn't raining !
Anybody watch Fred Eichler get wet on the coast and go home empty handed ?
(he also called a Black-tail a White-tail) lol !

[bod]

There is a herd that hangs out by the runway.

[HighCountryHunter88]

Watch out for giant wolves and vampires

[JimmyHoffa]

I find there are quite a bit of elk, but the terrain isn't very hunter friendly...so many elk will go unnoticed.  The more 'visible' elk are like stated above at the runway or down near the hatchery.  There are also herds that hang out near the highway out near Sekiu and near the bridge over the Hoh.  But once you get into the jungle they only have to be 50 yards from you to be adequately hidden by giant ferns and nursing logs.  The farther away from the park you get, the smaller/younger they seem to get.  You might find 5x5's running around the mainlines that are being logged, but there are 7x7's that patrol the park boundary--and turning gray from old age.  Maybe even larger.  The rain really seems to bother some people--as there can be lots of streams to cross and gear is always getting wet.  Unless you are in the 'prairie', the hillsides are generally steep and the soil loose...with a lot of downed trees from the coastal windstorms.  The area can be a real test to get anything out of, so some guys even use driftboats to get the elk out. 

[BigFoot02]

Thanks for the information.. Sounds pretty challenging. I heard there was some descent bear hunting out there as well.

[HuntNFish]

Been Elk hunting out of the Forks area for some time now.  If you like it wet and soggy than Forks is the place to hunt.  Not really a bunch of legal Elk to hunt around town though.  The local airport herd by Bogi Way gets way to much pressure and usually hangs out at the airport or in the farmers field come hunting time.  You will need to get away from the town of Forks and push into the swamps and reprod areas, and there is a ton of land for Elk hunting.  If you like pushing through thick reprod and lots of swamp and getting wet than Forks is the place to be.  And the Elk are all over the place.  Not to brag, but one of us every year out of the 3 of us gets an Elk so don't let anyone tell you the population is low.  Where around Forks were you thinking about buying the land?  My friend has land behind Bogi Way and also I hunt on private land on Undie Rd.

[HuntNFish]

Thanks for the information.. Sounds pretty challenging. I heard there was some descent bear hunting out there as well.

That is a true statement.  1st bear I took was outside of Forks around where I mentioned and we see sign all the time.  My Buddy once got his 2 bear in 2 days.  Shot the first off a logging road, went back the next day and shot his 2nd bear eating the gut pile of the 1st bear he shot. 

[greenhead_killer]

internet scouters...woot woot!!! gotta love em. lace up the boots, get a full tank of gas and start driving. how i find all my spots east and west side. find a great hunting buddy like i have, vandeman, and split areas up. scout scout and more scouting tho. only way to find the real hot spots.

[BigFoot02]

That is definately my plan when I get home.. I am in the Middle East on deployment with my Naval Reserve unit so I cant get out there to check it out. I put in for my spring bear tag and hope to land one, that way I can hunt and scout at the same time.

[funkster]

Thank you Bigfoot for your service to us all! I do not hunt the Forks area but if I did, I would steer you in the right direction.

[grundy53]

Thank you Bigfoot for your service to us all! I do not hunt the Forks area but if I did, I would steer you in the right direction.

  That is a VERY good excuse to do some internet scouting. If I hunted that area I would definetly help you out. Thanks again for your service!