Post by: Hurricane on February 23, 2011, 11:47:17 AM
Post by: chester on February 23, 2011, 12:02:24 PM
Post by: rtspring on February 23, 2011, 12:15:50 PM
my parents had deer, elk, cougar, bear in the yard all the time.......
drive around some, the locals will not help outsiders much. But lots of elk in the brushy stuff.......
Post by: Hurricane on February 23, 2011, 02:36:03 PM
Post by: chester on February 23, 2011, 03:23:58 PM
Post by: Hurricane on February 23, 2011, 05:55:58 PM
Post by: STIKNSTRINGBOW on February 23, 2011, 08:52:48 PM
Post by: bucklucky on February 23, 2011, 08:57:12 PM
Post by: AKBowman on February 23, 2011, 10:04:34 PM
I have never hunted in the Willapa area. During Archery does this area gets hit hard? With a 3pt min or antlerless area I thought it might be worth looking into.
Its not a three point min OR antlerless unit during any season. That changed about 3 yrs ago. Like STIK said three point min during early and antlerless during late. I've hunted both units and even thought the Winston is more crowded if you get off the roads I've had better results/seen more game in the Winston. Ryderwood is a good unit with lots of good walk-ins if you know where to go...its a huge unit good mix of private/public
Post by: Alan K on February 23, 2011, 10:26:52 PM
I've always had a blast in Winston Creek. Never been there during the early season, but during the late season I've never had trouble getting into elk. True, there are a lot of people, but there are more than enough elk to go around! You can even get away with just driving roads until you cut fresh tracks and go on them.
Post by: brichards44 on February 24, 2011, 04:40:22 PM
Post by: Hurricane on February 24, 2011, 09:42:20 PM
Post by: WSU on February 25, 2011, 10:01:13 AM
Post by: bucklucky on February 25, 2011, 04:44:36 PM
Pick an area with a lot of elk and learn it. Jumping from one place with elk to another place with elk will make it that much harder to learn the area and be successful. My :twocents:.
I kill elk all over the state ..... just sayin. I have found its not so much learning an area but learning elk habits and knowing what they do that makes me more succesful elk hunting.
Post by: Utah on February 26, 2011, 09:11:59 AM
We went scouting there this past weekend off the Elochoman Valley RD. At the end of this RD is a gate owned by Hancock Forest Management. Does anyone know if this gate is open during the Hunting Season? We went back about 4 miles behind it and looked around. Some of this area looks ok. Also is any of the gated Roads off highway 6 worth the time? I have no problem getting back miles past the gates. Any info would be much appreciated. I am trying to learn a new area to hopefully get My first ever Elk this year. My area we have been hunting is way over hunted and I want to learn a new area. Thanks for the Help. Bob
Someone else nailed it.. CROWDED!
Post by: teanawayslayer on February 26, 2011, 09:19:11 AM
We went scouting there this past weekend off the Elochoman Valley RD. At the end of this RD is a gate owned by Hancock Forest Management. Does anyone know if this gate is open during the Hunting Season? We went back about 4 miles behind it and looked around. Some of this area looks ok. Also is any of the gated Roads off highway 6 worth the time? I have no problem getting back miles past the gates. Any info would be much appreciated. I am trying to learn a new area to hopefully get My first ever Elk this year. My area we have been hunting is way over hunted and I want to learn a new area. Thanks for the Help. Bobtalk to lightningrider on here he is from there may be able to give you some more info.
Post by: Ziptie on March 15, 2011, 02:45:54 PM
I hope it is bad info, but it came from a friend that knows stuff.
Good Luck
Post by: funkster on March 15, 2011, 09:54:35 PM
Pick an area with a lot of elk and learn it. Jumping from one place with elk to another place with elk will make it that much harder to learn the area and be successful. My :twocents:.
I kill elk all over the state ..... just sayin. I have found its not so much learning an area but learning elk habits and knowing what they do that makes me more succesful elk hunting.
:yeah:
Post by: Hurricane on March 16, 2011, 06:46:18 PM
Post by: pianoman9701 on March 22, 2011, 11:37:01 AM
Post by: Ihuntelk2 on March 22, 2011, 11:48:12 AM
Post by: willapawapiti on March 22, 2011, 12:53:41 PM
Post by: Ihuntelk2 on March 22, 2011, 02:28:12 PM
Post by: grundy53 on March 22, 2011, 02:37:24 PM
Sorry, no elk left in the Willapas, hoof rot got'em all last year, better head east! :chuckle::yeah:
And all of the survivors headed to the Blues!
Post by: mazama on March 22, 2011, 07:49:03 PM
Post by: STIKNSTRINGBOW on March 23, 2011, 08:23:23 AM
Is Nasalle-Rosburg in the Willapa area,my ex has a farm there and i am thinking of hookin back up with her,i do remember seeing elk in pasture.Naselle area is kind of in between Williams Creek, Bear River, and Willapa.....that is where I have been hunting the last 3 years. Good area, especially if you have access to private property
Post by: fair-chase on March 23, 2011, 09:03:37 AM
Is Nasalle-Rosburg in the Willapa area,my ex has a farm there and i am thinking of hookin back up with her,i do remember seeing elk in pasture.
The things a guy will do for hunting privileges. :chuckle:
Post by: Ihuntelk2 on March 23, 2011, 06:38:37 PM
Post by: MattySuto on March 24, 2011, 07:04:05 PM
Sounds like a good motive to me! ;):chuckle: :chuckle: :chuckle: AGREED :chuckle: :chuckle: :chuckle:
Post by: sdwwaverider on March 25, 2011, 01:06:08 PM
Post by: grundy53 on March 25, 2011, 01:19:08 PM
Tight brush & steep. I don't mean put your treadmill on 12 degrees steep either. Put a couple of cinder blocks under the front of your treadmill and then put it on 12. Locals absolutely know the herds. If you want one, be physically ready to run up and down mountains all day long and come out after dark. & yes no camping, we saw the timber security having RV vehicles & trucks towed last season. I didn't hunt Winston last year but I have never found archery there too crowded. Good Luck wherever you go.
Yes they do
Post by: STIKNSTRINGBOW on March 25, 2011, 01:20:04 PM
I guess the biggest problem is getting out of your truck in the morning, and the first mile or so can be uphill, but if you hike all day, the downhill on the way out sure is a blessing !!
Post by: grundy53 on March 25, 2011, 01:26:35 PM
I understand the tight brush and all, but found the steepness not to be an issue myself, after 20 years of climbing from 3000' to 6000' and even 7000' on the east side, climbing from sea level to 1600' (Bear River Ridge) is not an issue, The highest point in Willapa Hills is 3,087-foot (941 m) Boistfort Peak.
I guess the biggest problem is getting out of your truck in the morning, and the first mile or so can be uphill, but if you hike all day, the downhill on the way out sure is a blessing !!
I think it's not so much the steepness that gets people it's how brushy the going is WHILE trying to get up the steep terrain. I agree eastern washington is steeper but try to climb those ridges when you are fighting brush most of the way. :twocents:
Post by: STIKNSTRINGBOW on March 25, 2011, 01:35:17 PM
I do, I find it easier to grab a branch and pull myself up, or hold onto one to go down (hanfull of Devils Club is fun too) than some of the loose shale and rocks, or that yellow grass I ran into on the East side.I understand the tight brush and all, but found the steepness not to be an issue myself, after 20 years of climbing from 3000' to 6000' and even 7000' on the east side, climbing from sea level to 1600' (Bear River Ridge) is not an issue, The highest point in Willapa Hills is 3,087-foot (941 m) Boistfort Peak.
I guess the biggest problem is getting out of your truck in the morning, and the first mile or so can be uphill, but if you hike all day, the downhill on the way out sure is a blessing !!
I think it's not so much the steepness that gets people it's how brushy the going is WHILE trying to get up the steep terrain. I agree eastern washington is steeper but try to climb those ridges when you are fighting brush most of the way. :twocents:
Brush is the major obstacle, but mostly because I could not get a shot through it.
Post by: grundy53 on March 25, 2011, 01:38:36 PM
I do, I find it easier to grab a branch and pull myself up, or hold onto one to go down (hanfull of Devils Club is fun too) than some of the loose shale and rocks, or that yellow grass I ran into on the East side.I understand the tight brush and all, but found the steepness not to be an issue myself, after 20 years of climbing from 3000' to 6000' and even 7000' on the east side, climbing from sea level to 1600' (Bear River Ridge) is not an issue, The highest point in Willapa Hills is 3,087-foot (941 m) Boistfort Peak.
I guess the biggest problem is getting out of your truck in the morning, and the first mile or so can be uphill, but if you hike all day, the downhill on the way out sure is a blessing !!
I think it's not so much the steepness that gets people it's how brushy the going is WHILE trying to get up the steep terrain. I agree eastern washington is steeper but try to climb those ridges when you are fighting brush most of the way. :twocents:
Brush is the major obstacle, but mostly because I could not get a shot through it.
:chuckle: :chuckle: Ya devils club is nice isn't it.
Post by: STIKNSTRINGBOW on March 25, 2011, 01:44:25 PM
I sometimes wonder if they are on the other side laughing at me !
Ripped clothes and itchy scratches, bloody shins... welcome to the coast !
Post by: grundy53 on March 25, 2011, 01:49:13 PM
more thorny stuff on this side thats for sure, ever follow a game trail into a patch of stuff, only to either get on your hands and knees, or turn around to get out ?
I sometimes wonder if they are on the other side laughing at me !
Ripped clothes and itchy scratches, bloody shins... welcome to the coast !
yup. your not in the thick $hit until your on you hands and knees trying to find a way through (cause you just know that wiley old buck is in that $hit hole some where).
Post by: Alan K on March 25, 2011, 02:11:55 PM
Post by: STIKNSTRINGBOW on March 25, 2011, 02:34:08 PM
Compared to leaving camp in the morning confortable, then sweating like crazy and shedding clothes during the day, walking on "corn-flakes", and seeing more animals, but most 40 yards or more.
Don't get me wrong, I enjoyed hunting Manastash for 20+ years, and will go back, but the change is refreshing.
Post by: sdwwaverider on March 25, 2011, 02:50:35 PM
Post by: mazama on March 26, 2011, 08:12:31 AM
Post by: STIKNSTRINGBOW on March 26, 2011, 09:37:34 AM
(except for the one guy who drives up to "????? creek" and shoots his Bull, then comes back home to help his g-paw pull a Cow elk out of his back field)
That is one of my problems with the places I have permission, after they shoot their Elk in the field, the elk are not their for me anymore, they move on..
I get permission, but the elk are usually on a different schedule than I am.... :chuckle:
Post by: bolsen on March 27, 2011, 12:19:56 PM
Post by: AKBowman on March 27, 2011, 02:12:17 PM
Post by: Nimbus3000 on March 29, 2011, 06:08:40 PM
Post by: AKBowman on March 29, 2011, 09:16:47 PM
Been hunting the Willapa Hills for close to 40 years. Thick and steep. Takes some time to learn the country. May not matter anyway, Weyco and the other timber companies are closing down more and more of the land to public access with vehicles. Weyco does allow walk in hunting but why bother since Weyco employees and retirees can drive in behind the locked gates. Be a real bummer to walk in several miles only to have someone drive past and shoot a bull. I would guess that within a couple of years there will be no public access to the Willapa Hills.
I would guess you are wrong. Probably wont be any non Weyco vehicle access but they would be giving up millions of tax dollars if they quit allowing walk in and non motorized vehicle access.
Post by: bobcat on March 29, 2011, 09:25:14 PM
Been hunting the Willapa Hills for close to 40 years. Thick and steep. Takes some time to learn the country. May not matter anyway, Weyco and the other timber companies are closing down more and more of the land to public access with vehicles. Weyco does allow walk in hunting but why bother since Weyco employees and retirees can drive in behind the locked gates. Be a real bummer to walk in several miles only to have someone drive past and shoot a bull. I would guess that within a couple of years there will be no public access to the Willapa Hills.
I would guess you are wrong. Probably wont be any non Weyco vehicle access but they would be giving up millions of tax dollars if they quit allowing walk in and non motorized vehicle access.
Tax dollars? What tax dollars? It's taxed as timberland. Doesn't have anything to do with providing recreational lands for the public, as far as I know. :dunno:
Post by: AKBowman on March 29, 2011, 10:02:36 PM
Been hunting the Willapa Hills for close to 40 years. Thick and steep. Takes some time to learn the country. May not matter anyway, Weyco and the other timber companies are closing down more and more of the land to public access with vehicles. Weyco does allow walk in hunting but why bother since Weyco employees and retirees can drive in behind the locked gates. Be a real bummer to walk in several miles only to have someone drive past and shoot a bull. I would guess that within a couple of years there will be no public access to the Willapa Hills.
I would guess you are wrong. Probably wont be any non Weyco vehicle access but they would be giving up millions of tax dollars if they quit allowing walk in and non motorized vehicle access.
Tax dollars? What tax dollars? It's taxed as timberland. Doesn't have anything to do with providing recreational lands for the public, as far as I know. :dunno:
Most, if not all timber co's get gigantic tax breaks or incentives (whatever you want to call it) for allowing full public access on the leased timber lands. There are lots of defferent incetives and requirements written into the leases. (cleanup, etc)If they dont allow any public access at all they would forfeit that tax money. You surely dont believe that they have been allowing public free access to lands they pay the govt for out of good faith do you? It's all about the $. Garbage dumping, fire season hazard and stolen property (wood cutting) caused them to lose a lot of $ so they did and continue to do the smart thing which is not to allow vehicle access for non employees. I dont see that changing any time soon.
Post by: AKBowman on March 29, 2011, 10:08:14 PM
Post by: bobcat on March 29, 2011, 10:31:36 PM
I don't think private landowners in this state have ever provided access to the public for the reason of paying less property tax. If that was the case, some of them wouldn't be getting into the business of selling permits for hunters to access their lands. I don't know- I've heard this same thing from others before, but I've never seen any facts to back it up. :dunno:
Post by: grundy53 on March 29, 2011, 11:14:39 PM
Didn't sound snobby to me so that's not a problem. But I've just never heard of tax breaks for timber companies for providing public access. They already pay very, very low property tax just for it being classed as timberlands. And what is this "lease" you mention? Most, if not all, of the bigger timber companies in the state OWN the land from which they harvest their timber. They do not lease it. Is that what you are saying? ???:yeah:
I don't think private landowners in this state have ever provided access to the public for the reason of paying less property tax. If that was the case, some of them wouldn't be getting into the business of selling permits for hunters to access their lands. I don't know- I've heard this same thing from others before, but I've never seen any facts to back it up. :dunno:
Post by: Curly on March 30, 2011, 07:39:08 AM
Post by: Alan K on March 30, 2011, 08:28:55 AM
I figure they must get some kickback if they still let people drive in when they steal Christmas trees, off road, put wear and tear on road, dump garbage, damage equipment, etc. :dunno:
Post by: bucklucky on March 30, 2011, 08:53:37 AM
Post by: Alan K on March 30, 2011, 11:59:11 AM
Post by: grundy53 on March 31, 2011, 12:02:28 PM
Been hunting the Willapa Hills for close to 40 years. Thick and steep. Takes some time to learn the country. May not matter anyway, Weyco and the other timber companies are closing down more and more of the land to public access with vehicles. Weyco does allow walk in hunting but why bother since Weyco employees and retirees can drive in behind the locked gates. Be a real bummer to walk in several miles only to have someone drive past and shoot a bull. I would guess that within a couple of years there will be no public access to the Willapa Hills.
The whole area behind the Pe Ell shop to stillman creek is already locked up except to Weyerhouser folks and they just a couple of days ago added all of the area from rock creek east to the Pe Ell shop/stillman creek lock up. The rock creek area is part of the willapa hills unit.
Post by: Alan K on March 31, 2011, 12:35:10 PM
Been hunting the Willapa Hills for close to 40 years. Thick and steep. Takes some time to learn the country. May not matter anyway, Weyco and the other timber companies are closing down more and more of the land to public access with vehicles. Weyco does allow walk in hunting but why bother since Weyco employees and retirees can drive in behind the locked gates. Be a real bummer to walk in several miles only to have someone drive past and shoot a bull. I would guess that within a couple of years there will be no public access to the Willapa Hills.
The whole area behind the Pe Ell shop to stillman creek is already locked up except to Weyerhouser folks and they just a couple of days ago added all of the area from rock creek east to the Pe Ell shop/stillman creek lock up. The rock creek area is part of the willapa hills unit.
Great news if you are or know a Weyco employee, horrible news if you don't or aren't. :dunno:
Post by: Alan K on March 31, 2011, 12:38:33 PM
Post by: Nimbus3000 on April 01, 2011, 01:49:07 AM
Post by: Ziptie on April 08, 2011, 09:55:09 AM
Also the tax thing is just a rumor it is not true, we really looked into it. We were thinking it might be an angle to keep things open.
“I was told that a certain timber company had put cameras out around there equipement last year in vail during deer season and found out it was employees stealing diesel, dumping garbage, and what not. Might have been a few years back, dont know if that rumor was true or not?”
This is true and they filed charges and fired employees over it. They also used it as a excuse to lock more gates last year. The employees get more private hunting….
My hunting group has been hunting there for 33 years, this is just not right.
Post by: deerslyr on April 08, 2011, 11:45:31 AM