gmu 666 question

[rebal69972]

i hate having to keep asking for help but we all have to learn some how. i have a few family members coming in from out of state for mod firearm season Ive been tring to scout gmu 666 off of 507 and i haven't seen much sign and i cant find much info on the area. i want to give them the best opportunity to harvest an elk. my dad has been tring to get a chance to hunt elk for the better part of 20 years. i have 2 cams up in there and I'm just not seeing much. have i picked a bad area or will the elk migrate in? I'm i just on the wrong track or just not spending enough time there Ive spent every sunday for the past 3 months and I'm covering alot of ground Ive seen some tracks I'm just seeing any elk should i try to find a different area or stick with it. i think my first mistake was that i was tring to stick close to water Ive also been glassing a few clearing and walking the woods. could i just be missing tracks the ground is kinda hard. the game trails dint seem to be used at all. i dint know what I'm doing wrong. i  know this is kinda long winded and rambling. thank you all

[Alan K]

To be honest unless you live in or very near the unit and can keep the elk 'pinned down', you'd be better off hunting an area that has 'normal' regulations and a lot more elk.  There aren't many in there, and that's the goal with the any elk regulations for it, so you really need to be there a bunch keeping tabs on them.

[bobcat]

I definitely wouldn't waste time elk hunting in 666, especially if you've got family members spending money on non-resident tags. Go somewhere that actually has good numbers of elk. Almost any GMU would be a better choice.

[Alan K]

Not to mention I'd bet they'd still have a blast just getting into elk even if they don't harvest one. 

If they haven't had the opportunity to hunt elk in their lives yet, giving them the opportunity to experience being into elk with a small chance to harvest one would probably be more valuable to them than a very small chance at getting into elk at all, but being able to shoot one that you do see.

[rebal69972]

thanks guys. im going to cut my looses and get my cams and move them to the area i hunted last year and spend the rest of the time till season scouting there

[youngbull]

the elk will leave sign even with the hard ground. if your not seing sign move.  however with all food available they probably not moving very far.  sounds like your doing the right thing with all the scouting.  Elk cover a lot more ground than deer but usually stay in the general area unless pushed.  Getting out at before first light and using a spotting scope from vantage points can save yopu some boot leather or gas money.  Clear cuts and farm fields bordering timberland will usually give you a clue what to expect in terms of number of animals.
lewis river, naselle,willapa would be some decent choices for modern fire arm even though its a little bit of a drive.

[akirkland]

Did you say 507?!?!? I hope you meant to say a different highway. Im not bustin your chops by any stretch and i certainly mean no disrespect whatsoever but you should probably look for the elk somewhere else. I live off of 507 and sure, the elk stroll through here from time to time but there is no concentration of elk around here at all. I wouldnt even look for elk in 666. I havent seen a bull in 3 years and all the cows tend to be on private property. My advice is go to the big woods. At least try the Mashel. I personally would go to Packwood or Randle. This site is extremely helpful and i wish you nothing but the best of luck.

[STIKNSTRINGBOW]

I am surprised that nobody suggested Winston,, 
Real crowded, lots of hunters, lots of Elk, it would give them a pretty good picture of what Elk hunting in Washington is like....
But I agree, almost any unit would be better than 666, unless you had some contacts (landowner) and knew the local herd.

[slim9300]

Isn't 666 any sex with a rifle? That means the state is trying to eradicate them in the unit. =)

PM me and I will give you a place to hunt that actually has elk. You seem like a dedicated guy.

[p-ohana]

I've been scouting 666 like crazy and not as much sign as my usual GMU. I'll be using the ML this year because I won't be here for the mod season. Having a toddler and a new born limits the time i get to scout and hunt, so I'm stuck hunting close to home.

[rebal69972]

yeah i said 507. thats why after a month of sundays  i had to ask on here to make sure i wasnt crazy. my thought was any elk meant lots of elk well leave it to the wdfg to confuse me  i hunt mossyrock in e/a and my wife huntes the 3 corners of 652, 654 , and 667 around the white river. it seems like a pretty desent area. im not sure if this is anywhere close to where anyone has said would be a good choose. 

[PolarBear]

As someone who lives near 507 on the 667 side, 666 is a lousy unit for elk.  There are a bunch of elk in the unit but if you are hunting near 507, all of those elk are on private land and most landowners around here will not let you hunt unless you are relatives or pay for trespass.  The tiny amount of public land gets hammered because folks from out of the area see in the regs (any elk) for all 3 seasons and think that it is a slam dunk with a ton of critters, not the case.  In all honesty, you would be better off going to just about any other unit to hunt unless you know a farmer with some land.   

[iRem]

To be successful and harvest an Elk you must go where the Elk are.  I would suggest go else where.

[Alan K]

Winston wouldn't be a bad place to go if you don't mind the crowds.  I've only ever hunted it during late archery, but I've yet to go in there and not get into elk. The people keep them moving, making for fresh tracks everywhere.  Just drive around until you've got fresh tracks crossing the road and hop on them.  Just don't be surprised if you push them across the road and by the time you get there there are other hunters' boot tracks in them!

[deerslyr]

If your havin people from out of state coming in take them to the winston, willapa hills or williams creek area. Just get behind some gates and scout the hell out of it

[STIKNSTRINGBOW]

Winston wouldn't be a bad place to go if you don't mind the crowds.  I've only ever hunted it during late archery, but I've yet to go in there and not get into elk. The people keep them moving, making for fresh tracks everywhere.  Just drive around until you've got fresh tracks crossing the road and hop on them.  Just don't be surprised if you push them across the road and by the time you get there there are other hunters' boot tracks in them!

If your havin people from out of state coming in take them to the winston, willapa hills or williams creek area. Just get behind some gates and scout the hell out of it

I agree with these comments, except in the case of Winston....
use the advice of Deerslyr, If you have the time to scout, find a good spot away from the road, escape routes and travel corrridors will pay off in Winston, be there first and wait for the Elk to make tracks in front of you, following them sucks !
I wont say anything about Williams Creek, except there are no Elk there 
Willapa Hills, even the WDFW wont estimate how the herd is doing, so Scout, scout, scout.. 

[Yelm hunter]

I would go to WINSTON CREEK... GMU 520 or Mossy Rock GMU 505.... Good Luck!!