If you could have been told just one thing.....

[tttoadman]

Take pictures of every hunt. Whether you are solo or with others. You never know which hunt could be your last for some reason.

Like Brandon said, pack only what need. Be confident in your ability and equipment.

Try to stay calm after a kill. I still tend to freak out to "get this animal out of the woods". Some of my stupidest ideas come when I am jacked up after a kill.

 

[packmule]

One that comes to mind deals with terrain. What looks like it would be manageable to drop down into is usually a royal pain to come back up out of.

 

[Musket Man]

One that comes to mind deals with terrain. What looks like it would be manageable to drop down into is usually a royal pain to come back up out of.

I agree, going down is easy but getting back out can be a different story. I always try to start at the bottom and hike in uphill if I can.

 

[Wild Country]

There is a lot of good advice here so try and get it all in your head. Learn to embrace the whole journey from start to finish and remember you will have to learn to embrace the "Suck" cuz every backcountry hunt I have been on has a sucky section...it could be weather, terrain, a missed shot or opportunity or your conditioning because no matter how good of shape you are in you will push your limits. There are a lot of first and a big one is slow down and be patient. But for me the biggest first thing that helped me was to do some short hunts first and I mean both distance and days before the big 5+ days. The longest I have spent in has been 13 days and I could have not even done half of that on my first backcountry hunt. This helps you learn what it is you deem most important to have on your back and what you really don't need. You also learn the order of how you want to load your pack and store the items you find out you use most often without having to go through your entire pack. Also I would suggest to buy quality gear! Good luck and be prep aired to change your hunting style.

 

[Matthoek21]

Good stuff. Preparedness is key. Be prepared for anything. My dad broke his leg six miles in one time. Luckily we had a sat phone and was able to get search and rescue in to haul his butt out. Also merino wool, good boots, and lighten your load. Your feet are going to ache like never before. Need to get your feet used to your boots and steep terrain. Going uphill downhill and sidehill is tough on your feet. Merino wool socks have been good for me. Have tried a liner sock under merino wool and it has always created blisters. I prefer no liner sock to just good quality merino wool. Lighten your load is key to. First trip I know I hauled 70+ lbs in my pack. I had 7 days of mountain house meals (breakfast, lunch and dinner). Took sandals to wear around camp etc...lol. Found out real quick I couldn't eat that much food in a month while in the backcountry...nor did I have time if I wanted to hunt.
Final thing everyone needs to realize especially if you come out from a humid climate is HYDRATION. You can't drink too much water on one of these hunts. Dehydration also enhances effects of altitude sickness. And trust me you don't want to be sick lying in a sleeping bag in the backcountry with altitude sickness with a bad headache for 2 days while you acclimate. I have hunted with stubborn people in the past that wouldn't drink enough water. These are a few things learned from my experiences.

 

[packmule]

I agree, going down is easy but getting back out can be a different story. I always try to start at the bottom and hike in uphill if I can.

My learning started on a shed retrieval down in a canyon. Going down was really steep, coming back up made me realize why ppl left that one. Should do what the STX guys do and have dogs trained to go find them and bring them back.

 

[Timberstalker]

Just to be clear, you don't have to back pack in to have a great hunt. I rarely back pack hunt, and have had some very good hunts from a very comfortable camp.

 

[ScottR]

There is a lot of good advice here so try and get it all in your head. Learn to embrace the whole journey from start to finish and remember you will have to learn to embrace the "Suck" cuz every backcountry hunt I have been on has a sucky section...it could be weather, terrain, a missed shot or opportunity or your conditioning because no matter how good of shape you are in you will push your limits. There are a lot of first and a big one is slow down and be patient. But for me the biggest first thing that helped me was to do some short hunts first and I mean both distance and days before the big 5+ days. The longest I have spent in has been 13 days and I could have not even done half of that on my first backcountry hunt. This helps you learn what it is you deem most important to have on your back and what you really don't need. You also learn the order of how you want to load your pack and store the items you find out you use most often without having to go through your entire pack. Also I would suggest to buy quality gear! Good luck and be prep aired to change your hunting style.

Embracing the good parts with the bad is a HUGE part of hunting. My deer hunting partner and I got stuck hiking into 11k elevation in a sleet storm. Sucked it up, got up the hill to camp and got our backpacking wood stove going. The fire fixed all of our problems, dried us out and made life much better.

I can't imagine how I would have felt if that had happened on my first trip. However, telling a new backcountry hunter about mental toughness and actually doing it are two very different things.

 

[hondo62]

learn how to use a topo map and compass and a altimeter before you go hunting in the mountains. Gps are great toys but they are useless when the batteries die and it is a lot easier to glance a compass as you hunt along. using a altimeter can guide you along a bench on a mountain especially if you can't tell how high you are. A map is useless if you don't know which way is north.

 

[Wild Country]

Embracing the good parts with the bad is a HUGE part of hunting. My deer hunting partner and I got stuck hiking into 11k elevation in a sleet storm. Sucked it up, got up the hill to camp and got our backpacking wood stove going. The fire fixed all of our problems, dried us out and made life much better.

I can't imagine how I would have felt if that had happened on my first trip. However, telling a new backcountry hunter about mental toughness and actually doing it are two very different things.

Very good point....you will have to learn the mental part and that maybe an even better reason to do a few short trips first before the big one. I only made it 2 1/2 days on my first solo backcountry hunt and now looking back it kinda makes me feel like a wuss but we all have to learn!

 

[Danbuilder]

Made my first trip this past year 4 of us we got 4 antelope and 1 mule deer buck.

 

[Danbuilder]

Get Eastman's Hunting and Bow Hunting Magazines. They helped us a lot and plan on doing it again this year.

 

[jjenness]

Here's one I haven't seen mentioned but I know that a lot of "new" elk hunters fall victim to, including me at one time. Once you actually find the elk don't run around so dang excited that you forget to keep your whits. What I mean is when you run into another hunter, or go back to town for a hot meal and shower, don't think you are just being friendly by telling everyone that you have found the elk. I know I get it, you are excited that you found the elk, and you want people to hear about your achievement. But mark my words it will bite you where the sun don't shine when the other guy shoots a bull right where you told him they were. On second thought just PM me where the elk are and I will go and help keep people out of there.

 

[Scott Allen]

first trip last year and the best advice I was able to find with all my research was the gps hunting maps.. It was invaluable and kept us out of trouble and able to navigate around some private land and led to one of our party getting a mule deer. hunted with danbuilder and one other hunter. eastmans has been a great resource as well.
Going back again this year and cant wait to learn some more.

 

[2rocky]

I moved to Idaho from California in the 90's to go to college. I moved back to CA but Hunting the Western 11 states has been my constant passion every year since 2005.

I found I had to "Think BIGGER" meaning; look farther when glassing, drop down deeper into the river canyons, conserve your energy for an all day hunt. You are going to be hunting multiple draws and fingers, not just the canyon behind the ranch.

Learn to break down animals without a saw. You don't drag Mule deer up out of a canyon like blacktails.

You have to find the elk before you can hunt the elk.

 

[gonhunting247]

Be persistent, I think it's not stressed enough, how much the mental aspect plays a part in success. When things go bad (weather, no action, physically worn out etc.) It's easy to get discouraged and head back to camp,the truck or home!
Most people are capable of pushing a little farther, longer and harder than they realize! Obviously, you need to use your head and be safe, but I have had many occasions where I have almost mentally gave in, then dug deep and scored on some of my very best critters! Remember to have fun!

 

[shootbrownelk]

Be persistent, I think it's not stressed enough, how much the mental aspect plays a part in success. When things go bad (weather, no action, physically worn out etc.) It's easy to get discouraged and head back to camp,the truck or home!
Most people are capable of pushing a little farther, longer and harder than they realize! Obviously, you need to use your head and be safe, but I have had many occasions where I have almost mentally gave in, then dug deep and scored on some of my very best critters! Remember to have fun!

Good advice Gonhunting, NEVER give up. NEVER quit. That stick-with-it mentality helped my hunting pal and I fill our elk tags the last 3 years running. Everybody else left when the weather turned bad, we stayed and got our elk. The other guys were unsuccessful for the most part.

 

[bluecat]

Always check the zero of your rifle at the elevation you're at. Makes a big difference if you are a flatlander hunting at 11,000 ft. Mine was 3" high coming from Kansas. A buddys was 5" high coming from sea level in Texas. Took a while for it to dawn on us but thin air makes a difference. Lots of really good posts on this subject.

 

[Timberstalker]

Persistence is my key to success, very rarely does a hunt go as planned on day one for me. Good advise gh247!

 

[Knappy]

Awesome thread!

I'll add a couple things... While your trekking through the backcountry, chasing elk, turn around and look behind you. Look at the country you just came from and remember key features and land marks. This may help you later on in the hunt.

Last year was my first backcountry, backpack bowhunt. I was in Idaho, deep in the mountains and a long ways from town. I was driving from one area back to camp along an old, muddy trail and came across another hunter. I just waved and kept on driving, not thinking anything of it. When I got back to camp I told my hunting buddies and they asked me if I stopped to talk to the man. You know... to make sure he's ok or see if he needed something. I was shocked I didn't even think about doing that! For all I know, the guy could have been starving or dying of thirst and I just smiled, waved and kept on driving. I felt so bad. I could have at least checked to make sure he was ok and didn't need anything. So if you're up in the mountains, far away from civilization, make sure you check on others.