Wenaha Bear

[beardown]

Has anyone made it into the Wenaha yet?  Headin over next weekend and Im sure we will get into snow.  Just cant wait anymore!

[Timberstalker]

I dont think you will get in from the North side of the unit.
I think you will have to come in from the far south.
I was at 4000K last weekend in the blues and there is still 5'.  Not solid but the roads are affected.

[HoofsandWings]

The roads bordering Grouse Flat are probably a safe bet. The fs 40 goes south to north there and there should be a mile or two open.
Snotel at 4000 feet in that area shows only 1 inch of snow. In the big game pamplet there are elk permit opporunities there and I believe the phone numbers are posted. On page 50, it lists Grande Ronde Vista at 509-243-4851. Maybe they can provide some local road condition info.

[DeerThug]

So has anyone gone to the Wenah yet?  Killed anything.

I leave tomorrow...

[jackelope]

Check out mtncook's threads on this topic:
http://hunting-washington.com/smf/index.php/topic,75498.msg922477.html#msg922477

My inlaws got snow just a week or so ago at their place 3200' outside Pomeroy.
Good luck and keep us posted.

[mtncook]

I just looked at the 5700' snotel,  16 inches of snow and 55 degrees at 1600 hours.  the thaw is on, the creek by our place is above normal.  Trail crew has been searching for places to get into but snow has limited their work.  Hang in there the north side will open soon.

mtncook

[jackelope]

I would think based on last December coming in from the north side that it would be a really good idea to have a chainsaw and some extra time. There was a lot of wood down across the road last November/December. I don't know how many people have made it too far in that way so far this year and based on the weather we had end of November down there last year, I was probably one of the last few people in there with a vehicle except for those on snowmobiles.
Bring a saw,  a strong back and a bunch of extra time to cut wood. Maybe you won't need it but best to plan ahead and be prepared. It would suck to get almost to the unit to be turned back because of a large tree down across the road and no way around it if you don't have a saw.