Drew a unit 53-1 tag! First tag I've ever gotton that wasn't over the counter! I'm pumped! I know this is going to be a real challenge - but I feel I'm up for it! I'll be hiking in and sleeping with the bears during archery and if I don't fill then, I'll be back with Llamas for the rifle season. Anybody have any expereince in this unit that they would be willing to share? If so, please PM me. I'll probably go out in July to do some scouting and then back the middle of September to archery hunt. If needed, I'll come back in October to rifle hunt. This will probably be my one and only unit 53 hunt since it takes 10+ points to draw. I don't plan on letting my points get that high again! Life is too short!
Unit 53 Elk
- Thread starter BKhunter50
- Start date
LCH
Very Active Member
mntnguide
Very Active Member
You might want to check on that whole archery hunt idea... there is a specific 53-9 tag for archery. Pretty sure your type 1 will not allow archery season. Not all type 1s allow archery especially when there is a type 9 specific to that unit. And in the archery section of the 2017 regs..53 type 1 is not listed as allowed
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Check the regs well. Some will allow you to hunt after Sep. 15 or something similar, others not at all. Some type one tags let you hunt the entire unit while rifle is only allowed in certain unit portions. Lots of minutia to examine.
Thanks for the heads-up. I'm a little disappointed that I missed that because I love to archery hunt elk, but I'm not going to let it get me down too much! Still have a good tag in a good unit! Might as well make the best of this terrible situation 
Again - if anyone if willing to share any infor on the unit, I'd really appreciate it.
Again - if anyone if willing to share any infor on the unit, I'd really appreciate it.
mntnguide
Very Active Member
In a nutshell...I hunted it when it was unit 121 right before becoming 53...I hunted in late november in the area that is now 53 though. Jim mountain and Dead Indian. . It was by no means an easy hunt. I would 100% not hunt that area without horses. The two main trailheads that access it are many miles from where the elk actually might be. And from what I was told by the game warden, they are even deeper in the unit earlier in the season. Back then there wasnt an October hunt, just 1 tag for both archery and november. Since turning it to 53, you will notice the draw odds for residents are almost 100% on the november tag because of how tough a hunt it can be. It might look like a small unit on google earth, but that country is vast and very big and rough. We were riding 2 hours in the dark every day just to get to where we would start glassing even further for elk. We covered over 20+miles a day horseback for a week straight before harvesting our bulls. I would think the October hunt would be a little easier than the November one, but i would not be camping in there without an electric fence. The grizzlies are rampant and known problems.
I would highly suggest talking to a few outfitters and the Mooncrest Ranch for a possible drop camp or trespass fee into the head of the unit especially if you do not have horses or arent comfortable renting them. Your llamas will only do so much before you physically are beat up in that country. Jim mountain Trailhead and Four bears (i think) are really your only options. Logan Mt, is completely private locked to get up onto legally. Rattlesnake Creek is entirely private to mooncrest ranch, which is why a phone call to them could be very beneficial to you. IF i was in your shoes, id either get a drop camp deep into the unit hopefully, or find a way to utilize horses.
I would highly suggest talking to a few outfitters and the Mooncrest Ranch for a possible drop camp or trespass fee into the head of the unit especially if you do not have horses or arent comfortable renting them. Your llamas will only do so much before you physically are beat up in that country. Jim mountain Trailhead and Four bears (i think) are really your only options. Logan Mt, is completely private locked to get up onto legally. Rattlesnake Creek is entirely private to mooncrest ranch, which is why a phone call to them could be very beneficial to you. IF i was in your shoes, id either get a drop camp deep into the unit hopefully, or find a way to utilize horses.