Thought that I would share some of my mountian excitment with you all. Last weekend I went on a backpacking/ elk scouting/ deer finding/ fly fishing expedition. As always I had fun and learned a lot. When I am scouting for elk, I am not always looking for the elk themselves. Thye roam over a large area and just because I find them in August doesn't mean I will find them in the same basin come September. The mule deer are a little easier to pattern this time of year. They should still be in the high country in bachelor groups and doe/ fawn herds. So this year, I wanted to check out a new area, I have had this itch to get into some remote backcountry, away from other hunters and atvs, alone with myself.... so I scoured my map collection, as well as photos and satellite images. I came up with what I thought should be a prime basin. There was a big burn that blackened part of the basin two years ago. That is a good thing. The basin has two bigger lakes and four smaller ponds/ puddles. Elk and deer need water. Lots of little hidy-holes in the basin also. And several large open avalanche meadows. All good sign that elk and deer should be there. The bad news is that the trailhead is only two miles from the first big lake. The good news, there is almost 4,000 vertical feet gained and lost in those two miles. Its a ball buster for sure! I figured the hike would keep 99.9% of other hunters out. Unfortunately, I now think I fall in that 99.9%... I am in realtively good shape, I am young, but there is no way for me to effectively get a deer, much less and elk, out of the basin effectively. Too steep for horses as well... but I did have a fun time, never saw any elk, but did see several BIG tracks in the mud.... I think there are a couple old bulls hiding out for the summer. Lots of deer, even a couple wide old non-typicals. Didn't get any usable pictures of the bucks, but here is what I do have to share.
The trailhead.... you can't even see the ridge that you cross yet. 57 # pack... I figure that is what my elk bow pulls, so it would pull it to full draw...
Can't you just see a ghostly bull coming out of the woods here, letting loose a big old bugle?
Another meadow, another dream bull....
The view looking backwards towards the trailhead.
Into the basin
Hey, wait, thats me, get out of the picture!
Some alpen glow as I was glassing the basin. Not a soul is down there....
One more view from the top of the ridge...if you look closely you can see the burned areas.
Topic: "Elk Scouting Trip" (Read 836 times)
