Day before opening. What’s your strategy?

[savage10]

It’s almost that time. We head to to R4 on the 8th. Driving in and setting up camp.

This is my first time I will be arriving at a hunting area before opening day. What do you guys topically do the day before opener? This will be for elk and assuming you either haven’t been to the location before, or maybe you can only get there once per year (no boots on the ground scouting) due to distance.

If you were to get bugle responses, do you move in closer to verify if there’s a 6 point in the area or do you back out as to not pressure the elk?

Are you even calling? Or just hiking quietly looking for sign?

Let’s hear your strategies/suggestions.

[Ron.C]

No expert here, but With only a day to scout, I'd be cautious. You definitely don't want to call a bull in and educate him nor do you want to push cows out of their area. With only a day, I'd be getting high and glassing large areas from a distance (if your country permits this), or driving around (if that is how you plan to hunt) and seeing if I could locate fresh sign in areas where there's small creeks adajacent to the road. To be honest, I'd be more interested in finding of cows from a distance then blasting away on a bugle trying to get an bull to answer.

good luck!!!!

[Redthies]

My day before strategy involves waiting the 9 more days so I can use a rifle or shotgun instead of injury sticks!:lol:

But seriously, I will spend the 9 days getting my cameras checked, and checking my 3 rifles for zero with my new hunting loads. All three are going copper monolith this season. The .44 Magnum and .30-30 are running Barnes TTSX and the 7-08 is on Hornady Superformance GMXs. Oh, and it’s trap day on Sunday at the local club, so I’ll be bringing my sexy Italian lady friend out to bust some clays in preparation for the bird dog extravaganza on the 10th! I’ve got dozens of birds anxiously awaiting their demise!

[Redthies]

It’s almost that time. We head to to R4 on the 8th. Driving in and setting up camp.

Have you looked at the changes to Region 4 in the regs? On page 2 it says “it is unlawful to drive from Chilliwack to region 4 and hunt elk”. Guess you’ll have to go look for black tails…






:mrgreen:






Okay, jokes aside, only having a day on the ground is going to be tough. Have any in your party hunted this spot before? If not, pack a horseshoe and give it all you’ve got! Good luck out there!

[Redthies]

Ron, did you get a message from another member here on your whitetail area? I asked him to get in touch with you…

[HarryToolips]

It’s almost that time. We head to to R4 on the 8th. Driving in and setting up camp.

This is my first time I will be arriving at a hunting area before opening day. What do you guys topically do the day before opener? This will be for elk and assuming you either haven’t been to the location before, or maybe you can only get there once per year (no boots on the ground scouting) due to distance.

If you were to get bugle responses, do you move in closer to verify if there’s a 6 point in the area or do you back out as to not pressure the elk?

Are you even calling? Or just hiking quietly looking for sign?

Let’s hear your strategies/suggestions.

I have a spot in R4 where I am not able to scout it, and only have time to hunt it for the beginning of rifle season...but I scouted it years ago and know where some of the optimal habitat lies, which led to our success season before last.. when arriving, I started the calling right away, as well as of course looking for sign and glassing...but we were bow hunting while scouting for rifle opener, if you aren't bow hunting for them, I wouldn't recommend calling them as previously mentioned, I'd stick to scouting until then..

[TheObserver]

It’s almost that time. We head to to R4 on the 8th. Driving in and setting up camp.

This is my first time I will be arriving at a hunting area before opening day. What do you guys topically do the day before opener? This will be for elk and assuming you either haven’t been to the location before, or maybe you can only get there once per year (no boots on the ground scouting) due to distance.

If you were to get bugle responses, do you move in closer to verify if there’s a 6 point in the area or do you back out as to not pressure the elk?

Are you even calling? Or just hiking quietly looking for sign?

Let’s hear your strategies/suggestions.

Just 1 day before? Have you been in this spot before last year or ever?

They say scent stays on the ground and vegetation for 4 hours, less if its raining. Now i'm not sure if this is 100% accurate as i'm not an Elk or a Deer but I kind of use it as a guide. One thing I do know, is you will never beat their nose as i'm sure your aware, having some form of wind indicator(s) and playing the thermals is absolutely imperative for me now! So I always watch those and base/plan my day around them, but one other thing that is important is the scent you leave behind and there is literally no way you can eliminate it with spray etc. Most of the scent actually gets left behind from our breath.

I would start scouting on google earth now and hope that no new access has been created since the last image of the area. Check out other areas close by with good habitat, north/south facing, food, security, lots of water. I probably wouldn't bother going in, unless maybe had my boots on and was going in first light to see about rubs and wallows and yearly rut sign. One day is so little though and it being opener the next day myself I probably would just wait, go in there on opener and keep my camp mobile so if I didn't find much I can move on.

It's hard to have much say when knowing nothing of this area. But I would not access it from below unless going in in dark, and I would access it from above only when wind has changed and is going up ~mid morning (if its not stormy). Myself I would not call until I was in there on opening morning with weapon in my hand and in a set up (almost got ran over by a Bull last year 5 yards, I will never call again in my life without being in a proper set up or steps away from one, lesson learnt for me). And I would definitely not call from any sort of road or access if I plan on staying and seriously going in there to hunt i'll call when in there. But there are guys with 10fold more experience here than me and I haven't killed an Elk yet so take what I say for what its worth. Just what i'd do.

[savage10]

Thanks guys, we spent a week in this area last year for the first time. Saw over a dozen elk, no legal bull. So we know that they’re in there. Just a matter of counting to 6. Did a lot more e-scouting this year and have multiple spots to check out for sign/activity.

Definitely way more prepared than last year, was just unsure as to how to approach having the full day on the 9th.

Has anyone done any night bugling? I’ve heard it could bring some success. Head to a couple spots the night of the 9th and do a location bugle. If get a response back out right away and return for first light?

[TheObserver]

Thanks guys, we spent a week in this area last year for the first time. Saw over a dozen elk, no legal bull. So we know that they’re in there. Just a matter of counting to 6. Did a lot more e-scouting this year and have multiple spots to check out for sign/activity.

Definitely way more prepared than last year, was just unsure as to how to approach having the full day on the 9th.

Has anyone done any night bugling? I’ve heard it could bring some success. Head to a couple spots the night of the 9th and do a location bugle. If get a response back out right away and return for first light?

Haven't done any, could be useful for sure. I would back out right away and return for first light forsure. My mind is geared more towards being back somewhere, so I wouldn't night bugle like that incase they were close and came in fast. But if I was mobile and driving I would stop and go in the bush a ways and give it a shot. Good to listen most guys will be sleeping.

[Ron.C]

Ron, did you get a message from another member here on your whitetail area? I asked him to get in touch with you…

Yes I did. Thanks for the help!

[Redthies]

No problem! Hope it does help you out!

[swampthing]

I just got home from an early season muley hunt. I arrived two days early to scout. I steered clear of hiking and used the atv to scout, running the thick timbered roads looking for sign and accessing high points for long distance glassing. Deer sign was very low but the two days scouting gave me a solid plan for opening morning. No deer were harmed during this outing but I had plenty of fun!