Anyone think animal movement was not like in years past?

Millsworks

New Member
Nov 23, 2017
42
0
Augusta, West Virginia
Heard from many locals around the Sunlight basin in northwestern Wyoming, that deer especially, were not in places they had normally seen them this past season.
Some saw bucks early in October in spots they were usually at in November. Others said they still haven't seen any sighns of a migration even now in December, though.

Second week of October I saw over two hundred bucks near the two dot ranch along the Chief Joseph highway. But two days later we drove through there again at dusk and could hardly find a dozen deer total. Week later we saw none there at all.
I saw less and less bucks in the high country near the top of the world store as I hunted there this past October from the third to about the tenth. Found game lower and lower every few days. I moved much lower for the rest of my hunt still trying to find a bull elk. But never saw a bull in my unit. The bulls I saw that had been taken by other hunters were all shot miles below where I was hunting. Much lower than I had been told I would find elk at the beginning of October.
Talked to some that saw deer still high at the first week of November, though not many and small.

Now that the years about up, what has been the experience of some of you guys this year compared to others?
 
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Millsworks

New Member
Nov 23, 2017
42
0
Augusta, West Virginia
None of you regular Wyoming hunters have an opinion on this one?
This was my first Wyoming hunt this past fall. Don't want to bank locations for " unusual" spots to find game in the near future.
Though still good to have for a repeated weather pattern year.

Maybe it was business as usual? Or a sighn of a change in deer and elk habitat and thier adaption to the surroundings?
 

meathunter

Active Member
Jun 6, 2012
181
8
Idaho Falls, Idaho
Next door in Idaho, the deer and elk moved down later. Maybe a few factors, Lots of feed from last years snow & rain. With good feed and not much snow, the migration seemed later this year. Also, I think it's also location specific, different areas, movements change. Last week, most bucks were in a mid elevation range. IMO
 

wy-tex

Veteran member
May 2, 2016
1,064
347
SE Wyoming
Things were pretty usual for us. Private land elk did herd up early this year but due to pressure across the fence.
Archery elk were about the same on the forest for us. Early snow helped the public land deer hunters here, pushed some big bucks down for good harvests.
We need snow now for the range next spring!!!
 

JimP

Administrator
Mar 28, 2016
7,317
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Gypsum, Co
I know that in Utah and Colorado the animals acted quite different than in years past. In Utah they headed to their winter range earlier than normal and now here in December some are moving back up to the high country due to lack of snow.

Colorado was about the same. Places that held the animal were vacant this year.

At least this was my experience.
 

ScottR

Eastmans' Staff / Moderator
Staff member
Feb 3, 2014
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NW Wyoming got the first snow in the high country around the 14/15th of September. By October 1 it was thigh deep on the high ridges, in my unit the elk were migrating early.
 

mntnguide

Very Active Member
There are under 100 elk on the national elk refuge winter ground currently... there are usually 5,500+ out there this time of year. The early snows followed by nothing.. have made this a very weird fall/early winter in terms of animals around here. And it's not like I can go for a drive and see the missing thousands of elk...i don't know where they are right now at all

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Millsworks

New Member
Nov 23, 2017
42
0
Augusta, West Virginia
Thanks for the input guys.
Sounds like in at least some areas the animals moved early ,then may have relocated back to at least slightly higher elevations for some reason.
Sounds like an unusual situation to me.
It does sometimes go to show that just when you may think you know what an animal is going to do or where they intend to do it.
They throw you a big plate of humble stew.
No wonder I have heard so many conflicting assessments.