Need help with where to hunt elk
- Thread starter cal71
- Start date
We are not trophy hunters. We would like to get shots at bulls but mainly we just are looking for zones that have good numbers of elk. I looked into zones 30 and 31 and talked to a game warden in the Green River area. He said it is very hard to draw in those zones even with max points. We are first time elk hunters so we don't have a lot of experience and do not have a lot of experience researching. I would appreciate any help I can get.
birdhunter
Active Member
Do you hunt archery or just rifle. If you are willing to hunt archery, there are more than plenty elk in areas 1 or 117. Also the big horns have a lot of elk. rifle season in 1 or 117 is hit and miss. But there are plenty of areas in wyo to hunt and see a lot of elk. There are more elk in the western side and a lot more public land.
gman1
Active Member
We hunted the Washakie wilderness this fall on got our elk but you have to watch out for the bears. You will see a good population of elk in that area.
Thank you both for your respone. We only hunt rifle. We only have a limited amout of time due to the boy's school schedule. We would prefer to go where there are NO grizzlies or NO wolves because of my teenage boys. Can you give me some good hunt area numbers that I can look into?
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gman1
Active Member
gman1
Active Member
NDHunter
Veteran member
I assume you must have been with an outfitter gman1?
Just some FYI cal71, you can't hunt in a wilderness in Wyoming without a guide. That really limits some of those western units that you can hunt in. The bighorn's units are mostly unit's 33-49. A few of those are on the fringes of the mountains.
birdhunter
Active Member
I would stay away from the NE corner unless you can come back a couple times since the elk run into SD every now and then. The bighorns i think would be your best bet. Area 38 would be my first choice. Maybe area 36 but it gets pretty crowded. All the areas in the bighorns due so you have to be willing to hike up high away from everyone. You might also want to check into the sierra madres which are west of encampment, wy. There are a lot of elk there also.
gman1
Active Member
The research I did showed Unit 45 in the Big Horns was a good area I have not hunted it but would like to in a few years.
gman1
Active Member
FYI.... a registered resident of Wyoming can also get you into the wilderness area ..Something to consider if you have a friend in Wyoming. Good luck and happy trails.
jenbickel
Veteran member
I would also recommend the Big Horns... With all the areas I suggest, you are going to have to keep in mind that Wyoming weather is extremely unpredictable. Especially in October... so it is going to be kind of hit or miss depending on that.
Unit 45- Is an awesome area. There are a lot of elk in there. There are no grizzlies here. In all honesty, you are going to have wolves just about anywhere you go now. But Area 45, there is not an abundance of them. The terrain is a little difficult in places, but a little nicer compaired to some of the other areas in the Big Horns. If they get a bunch of snow around that time, the elk will be down low and the valley over there is pretty easy to hike around with kids and such. I have taken my 6 year old there.
Unit 38- This is the area that I generally hunt. It is a very good area for archery. I have heard that rifle tags also rock for this area but have never drawn one myself because I always put in for archery only. This area can eat you alive if you let it. The terrain is pretty intense... especially if you want to get off the beaten path and actually get into elk. But there are normally a really good number of elk in here.
Unit 37- Definitely a hit or miss area... There are a lot of people with success here. It is a general, over the counter tag for Wyoming residents and so you will have a lot of people hunting this area also. But as long as you are willing to work a little for it and hike, I think you would have good luck here.
This is purely my opinion... I'm sure some other people that live in the area might think differently than I do. This is just my experience. If you have any questions, feel free to message me.
Unit 45- Is an awesome area. There are a lot of elk in there. There are no grizzlies here. In all honesty, you are going to have wolves just about anywhere you go now. But Area 45, there is not an abundance of them. The terrain is a little difficult in places, but a little nicer compaired to some of the other areas in the Big Horns. If they get a bunch of snow around that time, the elk will be down low and the valley over there is pretty easy to hike around with kids and such. I have taken my 6 year old there.
Unit 38- This is the area that I generally hunt. It is a very good area for archery. I have heard that rifle tags also rock for this area but have never drawn one myself because I always put in for archery only. This area can eat you alive if you let it. The terrain is pretty intense... especially if you want to get off the beaten path and actually get into elk. But there are normally a really good number of elk in here.
Unit 37- Definitely a hit or miss area... There are a lot of people with success here. It is a general, over the counter tag for Wyoming residents and so you will have a lot of people hunting this area also. But as long as you are willing to work a little for it and hike, I think you would have good luck here.
This is purely my opinion... I'm sure some other people that live in the area might think differently than I do. This is just my experience. If you have any questions, feel free to message me.