Idaho elk hunt 2011

[wingnut]

This hunt was a long time in planning.  We had tried to pry John Havard out of the mountains of Alaska and his annual Moose hunt since our first hunt with him in '04.  Finally he decided that he needed a shot at elk.

The area in Central Idaho was well know to Jason and me.  Heck I'd hunted it for nearly 20 years and knew it very well.  A couple of things were in the mix as wild cards however.  The first is wolves.  Since there introduction in the area I'd watched the elk population reduce by more then 50%.  The second was the big fire five years ago.  We'd switch to an unit west of it because of it and hadn't been back since.

Anyway the experience of years won out in deciding where to go.  In 20-20 hindsight the other area might have been better.

Our plan was to meet John in Boise on Sunday the 11th and get our supplies and stay the night.  Early on the 12th we were headed up the highway to elk camp.  A short stop for gas and we headed into the hills a couple hours later.

Our primary camp spot was taken so off to a secondary location I'd wanted to use for years we went.  We lucked out and it was empty.  So the process of setting camp started.  Now we don't carry our camp on our back or even in our truck for that matter.  It fills our trailer.

Our home away for the two weeks is a 16-20 wall tent equipped with a 5 dog stove, 5 gal water heater and a new oven Jason built for the other side of the stove.  

Our cots are the Cabelas XL with 3" foam pads.  John and I both use C-pap machines so we had 12 volt batteries to power them at night.  John also brought a 2 kw generator to provide electric lights and a fan in the tent when running.

 

[wingnut]

The camp kitchen is 10 x 20 and is equipped with 5 burners, an oven and even a waffle iron this year.

Dining table with settings for three also.  LOL

 

[wingnut]

Here are a few pics of the inside of the tent.

 

 

Here is the stove.  Note the box on the near side as that's Jason's new oven.

 

[Bel007]

[wingnut]

After setting camp a thunderstorm roared in over the mountain an dumpped a bunch of rain for about an hour or so.  

As soon as the rain passed we put together a quick dinner of moose steaks in red gravy with mashed potatoes.  I was apologizing to John about the lack of complexity in the dinner as he was raving about something with Mountain House in it.  I didn't catch it all but I think he liked dinner.  LOL

We decided to give our old favorite "grouse ridge" a visit the first night as it was only half a mile or so from camp.  We managed to see a few deer that evening but also saw that the fire had wiped our all the larch trees the grouse love so much.  As a result, grouse ridge became "grouseless ridge".

Lucky for us I'd brought some boxes of hardwood scraps along for firestarting and we used some of these that first evening and the next morning.

[Hopewell Tom]

The early disclaimer about maybe the other area being better sounds "interesting" and what a cosy looking camp. You boys sure do know how to do it up right. And you haven't even gone hunting, yet.
Looking forward to more of this.

[Mudd]

   

PS: Tell grandma Connie hello for me and daddy Jason as well.

[Jerry Jeffer]

Looks very nice for a camp. But hey if you are there for 2 weeks.... Gotta be comfy. Waiting for the rest.    

[Green]

Now that's a camp setup!

[wingnut]

The next morning we decided to head accross the valley and check out a placed we'd had many elk encounters in over the years.  It was a morning filled with sidehill crossings of ridges and setups but no elk and not even one set of fresh elk tracks.  We covered a couple of miles and came back to camp scratching our heads.  We did see a little deer sign and the south end of a north bound mule deer but that was it.

Looks like we need to find the edges of the burn and see what green timber holds.  So as we headed back to camp in the truck we worked a plan for the afternoon hunt.  There is a back road that traverses the area and should provide more data.

Back to camp to make breakfast and cut some wood for the stove.  As we were in the middle of the burn, wood was available within 100 yds of camp.

We whipped up some hashbrowns with sausage, peppers, onions etc for breakfast and threw in six eggs at the end.  This is a meal we call "glop" for the sound it makes when it hits the plate.

 

 

 

[shortstroke 91]

WOW Mike, you guys were really roughing it huh? No satelite TV?

[shortstroke 91]

Glad to see Jason didn't work you too hard either.

[Whip]

You sure do know how to rough it Mike!  So many guys think elk camp is all about pain and suffering through a Spartan existence. Doesn't need to be that way!

[Bernie B.]

Great looking camp!  My little backpacking tent worked great last month in Colorado, but I'm envious of all your "creature comforts"!  Looking forward to your continuing story!

Bernie Bjorklund

NC Iowa/Sw Wisconsin

[Acuna]

Now THAT is an elk camp!

[elkken]

What time do the maids come in to make the beds ? I have stayed in motels that aren't that nice ...  

[wingnut]

I turned 60 last month and as time has gone by the creature comforts have made it easier for me to go for 2 weeks and not break down.

Our routine in camp is too have coffee and a muffin in the morning.  Return to camp when the elk bed down and make a big breakfast.  Get our camp chores done, take a nap or read for a bit.  Then make dinner before we head out for the evening hunt.  On day two it was my turn to cook so I made pasta with a moose meat sauce and mushrooms.  Jason was wanted to try his new oven so he made fresh sourdough bread to go along.  Add a glass of wine and you have a pretty hearty dinner.

 

 

 

 

[John Havard]

Mike and Jason put on one heck of a camp and feed, let me tell you.

This was the first year since the mid-70's that I haven't hunted in Alaska (lived there for much of that time so hunting there was easy).  During all those years the hunts I've been on have been fly-in, often with severe weight and bulk restrictions.  No such restrictions existed with this camp!

I decided with some urging from the Westvang clan that I'd have to give the L48 and elk a try.  I must say that this is the first and only hunt I've ever been on when I did not LOSE weight.  Those boys know how to cook and I know how to eat!

[ron w]

Outstanding.....I'm drooling and that bread looks just fantastic.... On my Elk hunt this year I lost 8 pounds in a week......I'm thinking you guys did not!!!    

[John Havard]

I drove over from my new home just north of San Francisco and met them in Boise.  I knew things were going to be pretty cush when we bought some new PILLOWS and pillow cases for our beds.  Heaven forbid that we'd have to use a stuff sack filled with socks or something like that for a pillow!

In Alaska I furnish the camp (16-man tipi, wood stove, small cots, so it's not totally spartan) but now the shoe was on the other foot.  Mike & Jason furnished the camp so I brought along a few luxury items.  In addition to the 5 gallons of home brew that Mike & Jason brought, I added in a case of wine along with some sipping tequila for when we felt the urge.  Otherwise we'd have to survive on food and water alone!