22 April Spring Scouting for Elk Hunting Success April 22, 2020By George McQuiston (blog) Announcements, General Information Black Bear Hunts, Drop Camps, Elk Hunts, Guided Hunts, Idaho Hunts, Idaho wilderness hunts, Mule Deer Hunts, Youth Hunts 0 Spring is one of the best times of year to get out in the mountains and scout new areas for the upcoming elk season, which won’t arrive yet for another 5 – 6 months. The air is fresh and invigorating, and as the snow melts it exposes game sign from the previous fall that has been preserved in a deep freeze all winter. Game trails, wallows, rubs, and even some tracks still appear fresh. Timing is key when it comes to spring scouting though, as vegetation soon sprouts where the receding snow has exposed the wet ground to sunlight for the first time in months, and within weeks fresh growth will completely enshroud all ground sign. Rubs too, quickly loose their shine, making them more difficult to spot. In flat country, such as Northern Minnesota, the snow melts all at once, limiting the opportunity for spring scouting to about 2 weeks before ferns cover all traces of game sign left the previous fall. In mountainous country the timing is a bit more forgiving however, as the snow line recedes slowly in elevation. The trick here is finding the sign in the same elevation zone that elk occupy during hunting season (not where they have wintered). I’ve found that bull elk tend to rut in the same areas year after year, much like whitetail bucks do; and that here in Central Idaho, elk sign from the previous year’s rut is an accurate indication of where bulls will be during the upcoming archery and rifle seasons. (Take note of that last sentence.) I can’t count how many times I’ve found bull-rut sign in the spring and returned in the October rifle season to find bulls in the same exact spot. So far, I have not been able to do this with mule deer bucks, for the sign they make during the rut does not correlate with where they’ll be during the pre-rut hunting season. I’ve been scouting for big game sign in the spring now for over 30 years. Rarely have I encountered another hunter in the spring woods or noticed hunters’ vehicles parked at likely access points. How an outdoor activity that can be so beneficial to hunters is practiced by so few leaves me scratching my head. I’m not presenting spring scouting as a new concept either, for I read about it in whitetail magazines in the early 1980s. If you want to improve your hunting success—focus on hunting all year. Leave your fishing pole at home this spring. Instead, get out in the woods and figure out where the elk will be come fall. Good hunting, Joe Cavanaugh Related Posts Idaho Spring Bear Hunting Season Officially Opens Today is the day we have waited all winter for! It is officially Idaho spring bear hunting season. If you are not hunting with us (which we obviously hope you are) then hope you are hunting with another Idaho bear hunting outfitter. Bulk Bear Bait for a Successful Spring Bear Hunt We have begun selling bear bait at our Challis, Idaho location. We are excited about the possibilities of being a “one stop shop” for all things bear hunting and bear baiting related. We have been baiting bears in the Idaho backcountry for ten seasons now and have constantly worked to improve our system of baiting and over time have developed what we believe is a very “complete” system for baiting and are excited to share our system of scents, sprays and bulk baits. 2010 Idaho Hunting Season Comes to a Close Hunting season in Idaho’s backcountry unit 27 comes to an official close on November 18 and this year the snow began to roll in about then. So after 2 days of packing out camp it was time to chain up and haul livestock over the pass to winter quarters and begin the drying out of tents, tack and equipment. Riding in to pack camp after the last hunter leaves is always sort of a bitter sweet journey. Sun Sets on 2015 Wild Idaho Hunting Seasons 2015 will go down as one of Wild Idaho Outfitters most successful hunting seasons of our career. Beginning with spring Bear hunting where we enjoyed a full 75% opportunity rate to our fall hunting seasons where we went just under 100% opportunity rate on an animal. And most importantly, almost everyone who hunted with us this year lived. Those few exceptions were probably a little ill anyway. Yes folks that is one of my corny outfitter jokes. Bear Hunting with Our Next Generation I had an exceedingly refreshing hunting experience this past spring-bear season. In camp we had 2 youths; one was a 12-year-old boy, Austin, who was hunting with his father, the other was my 18-year-old daughter, Suzy, who was our camp cook. Spring Bear Season is Almost Here and There are a Few Spots Left Bookings for this years 2014 spring bear season have been brisk and we are grateful that so many hunters are putting their faith and hunting dollars in us and Idaho. That being said, we have just a few more spots left for this spring 2014 Idaho spring bear season. Comment (0) Comments are closed.