Live Hunts - Idaho Archery Elk Hunt - September 11

Live Hunts - Idaho Archery Elk Hunt - September 11 - Day 6

September 11 - Day 6
Idaho Archery Elk Hunt

Tuesday A.M.
This morning was no different than yesterday. No sign of elk, nothing.

Goodbye to these mountains....

Hunt Conclusion
This hunt was one of my most-looked forward to, yet most disappointing elk hunts ever. This area is supposed to be one of the prime archery hunt units in Idaho. The quality of bulls is obvious, as out of 8 elk that I saw during the hunt, 3 were very big 6x6 bulls. I talked to several locals, and forest service officials, and they all said that this year has been unusually dry, and that the elk haven't been nearly as visible morning and evening as in a typical year. This I have very well discovered. I don't think I have ever walked and glassed so much good looking elk country and seen so few elk on any other elk hunt I have had. There were also many, MANY cattle in all of the areas I hunted. Perhaps the dryness and availability of feed had the elk going somewhere else. Usually when I have observed elk feeding in the morning or evening, as long as they don't have pressure, I generally have been able to expect them to be there for the next few days, and that has typically been the case. Not here. I didn't see any elk at any place more than once.

I didn't see a single other hunter while I was hunting in the field, so I don't think that was a factor. I did talk to 3 hunters at a campground near where I was hunting, and they said they were seeing exactly the same thing as me - nothing. Lots of sign, but little of it fresh, almost no bugling, and almost no elk.

Well, there is always the next hunt to look forward to. And it's just around the corner. Check back starting this weekend for a Montana Archery Antelope Live Hunt, and I hope that it will be updated every day. I apologize for the difficulty with updating every day on this Idaho hunt. We were 60 miles from the nearest town, and the roads were not good. Probably why I had to get my 3rd flat tire from this trip fixed today. See you on the next hunt!

Trip Notes
This hunt takes place in central Idaho, roughly between Salmon and Idaho Falls. It is a self-guided hunt on National Forest, which is public land. It's my first hunt in Idaho - and it's always exciting hunting a new area. My pre-hunt research helped me to decide on hunting Idaho, and narrowed it down to a particular unit (which will have to remain un-named for the time being) in the central part of the state. Biologists and Forest Service officials have told me there are good numbers of average 5 and 6 point bulls in this unit, with the definite chance to run into a really big bull. This area is completely limited and draw-only for rifle hunters, so the bull:cow ratio is good and the bulls have had a chance to get big.

Equipment
I'm shooting a Martin Jaguar bow, set at 72 lbs. Arrows are 29-inch Easton 3-60 ACC's, with Wasp 125 gr. 3-blade SST Hammer broadheads. Depending on the terrain, I'm wearing almost exclusively Predator camoflauge. I have Fall Gray, Spring Green, Fall Brown, and Evolution with me on the trip, and will probably use all of them. Predator is awesome, and particularly in the Rocky Mountain West. I've also got a new Master Guide backpack made by Crooked Horn Outfitters that I'm eager to try out.

e-mail Joshua Flournoy

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