Why not to hunt Idaho....

[Elk Hunter 338]

Well why not waste your time and hunt Idaho???? I don't have enough words or time to save you from this horrible mistake!! Don't get me started on it!!

 

[Elk Hunter 338]

This post shows that there is always more to the story. For the past 10 years here in Idaho we have hunted primarily unit 39 OTC tags, and also hunted easy to draw units like LE units in SC Idaho. On an age day we see about 30 elk and rarely see zero. The catch is getting close enough, even with ever increasing LR capabilities. Our teams success rate is about 50%, so above average. Success rate on LE hunts is close to 100% on shot opportunities.

While I admit Idaho is lacking on mature Bulls and even the genetics of some other states, I do believe our herds are doing well and have been improving the past 3-5 years. Wolves are not decimating herds, though they definitely can impact them when unchecked. Wolves have pushed them out of the openings and decreased typical herd sizes into smaller bands.

I do believe the biggest difficulty in hunting elk in Idaho is terrain. It's steep and/or thick up north and simply STEEP everywhere elk live in central Idaho. Southern Idaho has some great hunts, but not a lot of population, historically. We have a lot of pressure on these elk with OTC archery hunts in almost all units and OTC rifle tags in many of the most populated.

I have only hunted elk for 11 seasons and if I can find them so regularly so can others, but it's hard work getting shot opportunities and as we all know harder work getting them to the freezer. We are a true opportunity state.

Do you work for fish and game??

 

[yobuck]

You can say exactly the same thing about offshore fishing. $$$, lack of fish,(no bait fish to bring them here) and lack of interest in the younger generation, regulations.

Well you cant compare offshore fishing to hunting from a cost standpoint. The cost of the boats alone today make it off limits for even above average wage earners, not even considering the huge fuel cost today. But hunting actually cost very little to do at least at a local close to home level. Yet the numbers are way down. Many of the old hunting camps in prime locations aren't even occupied on opening day of buck season in PA anymore.
At some point the game will no doubt be called off because nobody showed up.
Im somewhat surprised that Western non res license sales are holding up as well as they are due to the high cost of them.

 

[Hatrick]

You are exactly right about PA. I hunt in Potter co and I can see in the last 20 years 75% of non residents are not there. I think the ones that can afford it are going west to hunt. The western residents are hunting adjasent states that allow oc tags.

 

[Farmerbrown]

I spent 10 days in the Selway-Bitterroot Wilderness in 2015. I covered a lot of country and never saw an elk or heard an elk. There was 9 hunters and everyone went home empty handed. The wolves have totally decimated the elk in there.

 

[wildcat455]

Visited Coeur d'Alene July 4 weekend this year .only elk I saw was in an elk farm there, and we were all over the state. That's some pretty thick woods with very limited visibility. Only saw a few deer, too.

 

[26Reload]

While hunting whitetail up coeurdalene area last year we saw a half dozen deer...one herd of elk on private land..and a few moose....talked to a local hound hunter whom had lost a couple dogs to other dogs....and he claimed the wolf population is way over board in the hills behind his home....and while in there we saw plenty of wolf sign....wolves picking off the easiest of the herd..calves....then they go bigger...so could,d's are going down for elk population in the woods....lots pushed into private properties which also limit access to hunters....but that is the game we face if we can't afford to pay to hunt private or the private just doesn't allow hunting.......sure..the states are not supporting the hunters like they should be since we flip the bill in not only license and tags but also in tackle, gear and components.......we as hunters are being forced in to a worsening predicament....do we shoot the first buck or bull or pass for sometime older........killing younger kills populations too....
It's sad...but it is happening....

 

[Mike 338]

I spent 9 days spiked on a ridge last year and three days in the Wilderness Area (different Units). Zero game seen in the Wilderness Area. On the 9 dayer, I saw a herd of elk before opening day but they went nocturnal after the shooting started. Also only nsaw two does. All in all, it was a pretty weak year but on the bright side, other than fouling the barrel, my rifle didn't need cleaning.

 

[BW64]

Not only do us older folks get around less the cost is sometimes a factor. Although some states have a very reasonable senior fee. Then you have Nevada where one hunter can get a tag for 3 or 4 different species or hunts while others get Zippo. Why not limit it to 1 tag per year per Hunter? That way this crazy draw system could be eliminated. Kind of makes some hunters disgusted by & not put in for a draw.


BW

 

[26Reload]

I feel the end to my hunting coming soon...
Bought my deer tag for the season...havent used one in previous two years......better off spending the money on other things...if you figure it out..i bet on average that serious hunters spend as much as $2500 during the deer season..all the scouting and then the hunting.....let alone the fuels to the range..bullets, powder....it runs the cost of that animal so far up that we gotta really start thinking if it is truly worth it....
My wife can only eat nonmarblized meat(deer and elk)..cant eat beef.....that in itself is a huge hit when she can't obtain a permit to harvest a cow from private property for sustenance.....and Idaho doesnt help her on her dietary need....but if one gets ran over, if she can locate it, or one is taken illegally and proven in court then she stands in a line to receive some......how stupid...
As a handicapped hunter with severe food needs she should be able to be called when a rancher decides he is gonna off an intrusive elk...hell in oregon certain ranchers are killing and throwing them in ditches............this country is screwed.....

 

[IdahoCTD]

You need to spend some time locating a rancher that will let you kill a cow on his property during the early "green field " hunts. In a hour or two you should have some contact info for some ranchers. My dad kills a cow every year that way. No one is going to give you a hand out so you will have to do the leg work.

 

[26Reload]

CTD....much appreciated....right now I have the sone and wife put in for 76 slopeheads.....

 

[IdahoCTD]

The green field hunts are over the counter but you have to hunt within a mile of a green field. Many of the ranchers with problems will let people hunt if you ask them and the game wardens know who those ranchers are typically. Also put in for the extra elk tags. It's one more chance to kill a elk. I drew a extra tag this year plus I have a regular bull tag and a non-resident tag. That is 3 elk tags and I expect to fill all 3. I've killed 2 to 3 elk a year for probably the last 10 years but I also have to bone out most of them and pack them up hill because I go where the elk are not where I want them to be. That means no roads and down hill in many spots.

The cost to hunt locally isn't really a concern to me. Sure it cost money but it's what I like to do and it's my biggest hobby. I spent 416.75 on a non-resident tag because it's cheaper then going out of state to hunt elk and I know ID a lot better than anywhere else out of state. I will probably buy a non-resident deer tag too since I drew a late deer tag for November. I saw a big whitetail elk hunting last year and didn't have a tag so I won't let that happen this year. That is about 725.00 for both non-resident tags and 125.00 for my resident Sportsmans pack. That amounts too about 70.00/month if you pro-rate it over a year. Sure there is a several hundred in fuel there too which would make it 100.00 or less per month. It should be relatively easy for someone motivated enough to save that. If not get a second job.

 

[26Reload]

****....you sound like my wife.....second job is taking care of her needs...as if I haven't been doing or trying to do that for years....
Their tags if they draw will be 76...if not all otc...and I don't dare get an elk tag just in case they do kill....i can easily handle one...two cripples me....three I might as well be dead...........