MU 3-18 Ashcroft-Highland Valley-Barnes Lake roads

[Jelvis]

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[Leaseman]

Saw one of my biggest mulies on the way into mile high... infact if I remember right, that was the area that I shot my first mulie in the mid 70's.....

Use to be some very nice country up there.....

[Jelvis]

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[johnk]

That area up from the sunny little Cafe' town of Savona is tree mendous country no doot a boot it. Either side of Durand Durand-Creek. The Farner road heads westerly just up from Savona a few km. When on to Farner go west passed Indian Gardens creek to Barnes (Huge Antlers)Lake cuz your already on it. While were talkin Indian Gardens creek.
Savona Mt, the one with the towers on top-has some habitat that will blow your fort garry woolen socks completely off. Can I get a witness?
Trophy bucks on either side of the small Duran Valley and blue grouse the size of butter-ball turkays friend-a-mine! The higher you climb the bigger the bucks and grouse. Best hunting when you see a 200" Typical muley.
Drive about 15 km up Duran Creek from the highway by Savona it's the old highway to Logan Lake from Savano it runs North/Sorth. North end Savona. South end Logan Lake. Simple as clock work. More on this fabulous area a little later.
Savona-stage right-from Quichon-MU 3-18-Barnes+
The reason I said drive up approx 15 km, was it's a place where a decision should start being made the road forks in a few places there.Google earth it-topo it-plan-it-hunt-it
Jel-it

Hey J-Lo, the road you're referring to is the Haywood-Farmer Road and Jim Farmer owns the most westerly of the three Indian Gardens' ranches. In 2006 on the night of Oct.26 we had 5" of snow. The next morning I went to one of my muley hotspots at 4500' and not a track to be found. That afternoon Jim stopped in and said that morning he counted 65 muleys in the hayfield adjacent to his house. In Nov/03 while the rut was in full swing we had 26" of snow in 24 hours and the muleys didn't budge. It is amazing what the anticipation of pending sexual encounters will do to a guy!!:p

We have been up at the towers on Savona Mtn. in the winter for beer and weinie roasts and have been blown off the top! By February there is usually 4' of snow up there and the amazing thing is we still saw muley tracks in every frozen sled track and right until spring when they come down to the powerline by the hundreds to feed. There is a great view of Kamloops Lake from the top and it looks cool when there is a layer of marine cloud above the lake.

As far as Greenstone goes two summers after the big fire we started seeing some huge 2 pt. muleys. I heard a tale of a 30" but the largest I personally saw was around 26" and the "powers that be" attribute that to charcoal in the soil promoting antler growth. Don't know for sure, thats just what I was told.

[Jelvis]

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[Machinist]

Barnes Lake is my favorite fishing Hole , Never thought of hunting around there , guess i will have to give it a try :p

[Jelvis]

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[johnk]

One hunter from Abbotsford had a snow machine and went up the Mt Savona in the snow and came across a huge deer hoof track following a trail of does. He shut her down and followed in. He could smell the buck's rut smell and sure enough. KAPOW! Shot a 190 typical mule deer buck.
Hey johnk that big steep rocked wall and basin under the east side of Mt Savona looks incredible to hunt if you were a rock climber lol. Sheer rock in places but I saw where a large buck had walked into it and melted away like a ghost whisperer. Mt Anne another jewel to get the biggins.
Talk about 4100 and where these end up if you would or could. Jayolo's-Mt Savonna basin for chasin.

You can actually access that east side. As you're going up the Savona Mountain Rd. there is a road/goat trail that goes up to Savona Caves which is on that east side. Don't quote me on it but I believe the turnoff is between 13-14k.

If you take the 4100 west of Tunkwa Rd. you are at 23k and at 15k the road forks and becomes 4200 and if you stay right you drop down to Indian Gardens and if you stay left you better have a pass because you're entering my playground!

[Jelvis]

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[Machinist]

JEL , I only fish in the spring :cool: I went up that road on the dirt bike last spring , seen a ranch up there on the Right in a nice little valley kept on going and i seen the marsh you are talking about , i kept on going and ran into a couple of Hillbillies with a junk yard back in there :confused:
they were not impressed , started yelling at me to get the hell out , so i gumbooted it outa there :!:

[johnk]

Sorry 'bout dat pardner! Didn't mean to yell so loud. I reckon its 'cause me and the missus hate being disturbed when we're playing the banjoes down by the still!:p

[Jelvis]

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[Machinist]

What about the other side of the Valley , up to Blue Earth lake , Venables Valley , I have been up there a few times , never shot a deer in there .lot's of grouse and have seen loads of does but no bucks , seen a few cow moose as well around the lake, have driven in from Spences Bridge all the way across to Ashcroft , again lot's of Grouse 8)

[Jelvis]

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[happygilmore]

We have a saying... Where there's grouse there's deer, but the reverse isn't always true:):)

[Jelvis]

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[johnk]

What about the other side of the Valley , up to Blue Earth lake , Venables Valley , I have been up there a few times , never shot a deer in there .lot's of grouse and have seen loads of does but no bucks , seen a few cow moose as well around the lake, have driven in from Spences Bridge all the way across to Ashcroft , again lot's of Grouse 8)

The problem with Blue Earth is you can end up stranded during the fall with even an hour of rain. That clay makes driving impossible.

[Jelvis]

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[Jelvis]

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[Jelvis]

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[Glenny]

West on 4100 above Indian Gardens I found a grave. A couple of makeshift benches and a little fire pit. I went up one summer to show a friend to find the whole sight had been ablaze. We had to put out the rest of the fire. Kinda spooky. G

[johnk]

Are you talking about the fenced off family graveplot up the west slope of Savona Mountain accessed off the 4200 Rd. just west of the intersection with the 4100 Rd.?
That family had lived in the Savona/Tunkwa area for years and the surviving relatives kept a trailer at the resort for years. About five years ago they were at the resort for their annual two week holiday and the wife went into Kamloops for supplies and got t-boned by a loaded logging truck. Spreading of her ashes was split between Tunkwa Lake and that gravesite.
There is a lot of family history up there.

[Jelvis]

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[Glenny]

Are you talking about the fenced off family graveplot up the west slope of Savona Mountain accessed off the 4200 Rd. just west of the intersection with the 4100 Rd.?
That family had lived in the Savona/Tunkwa area for years and the surviving relatives kept a trailer at the resort for years. About five years ago they were at the resort for their annual two week holiday and the wife went into Kamloops for supplies and got t-boned by a loaded logging truck. Spreading of her ashes was split between Tunkwa Lake and that gravesite.
There is a lot of family history up there.

No John. it was a single lonley grave. West on 4100 from savona road . I am not sure how many kms. There is a little road to the right that goes into a cut. where the road splits I went right and the grave is around where the cut ends and meets the bush. It was a long time ago. I think I can still find it. I think I will go in spring when the Leighton ice thaws. G

[Jelvis]

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[Jelvis]

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[Bud]

hey guys
I was just up in that area 2 weeks ago and we saw a few vehicles heading in after dark up into the hills, one car saw our truck parked and turned around and took off.do you know if there has been alot of pitlamping going on up there? 5 days hunting for 4 guys and only one shootable buck spotted. Bucks seemed pretty scarce in the area

[johnk]

I hate to say it but this community around Walhachin has lost a stud buck a real fighter and warrior who took on more than it could handle today---A train locomotive---the rut crazed buck---witnesses proclaimed the largest mule deer buck ever seen in the Walhachin area is said to look like a Rocky Mountain Elk with it's antlers massive and high. Apparently Kamloops Daily News is covering the story and will be out in the paper this coming week.
Apparently so involved in a love tiangle he failed to move from the spot and got hit by a locomotive on the tracks. Train stopped and the fellas cut the massive rack and head off together to show and tell.
They said he was the largest buck any of the older locals can recall starting whispers of a new record mule deer buck. Already fighting over who could claim the massive creatures set of magnificent antlers.
Lets all take a second to think how relevant this is to trophy buck hunters in the world.
Let's hope he bred a lot of does this season and left his offspring to carry on his massive proportions.
Jel---Massive buck gets killed on railway tracks at Walhachin-B.C. MU 3-18 Nov 15th-08-

I told you months ago Jelvis, some of the biggest bucks in the area are taken between Indian Gardens and the Thompson River. Prime muley habitat!

[johnk]

hey guys
I was just up in that area 2 weeks ago and we saw a few vehicles heading in after dark up into the hills, one car saw our truck parked and turned around and took off.do you know if there has been alot of pitlamping going on up there? 5 days hunting for 4 guys and only one shootable buck spotted. Bucks seemed pretty scarce in the area

Used to sit on the deck of my cabin at Tunkwa and watch all the pretty lights moving across the hills behind the lake.

To date the resort has had twenty bucks hanging in the meatshed. I wouldn't say there is a shortage of bucks there! Perhaps your timing or locations hunted led to your lack of success. Now is the time for all the "Hawg Stories" to start surfacing.

[Jelvis]

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[Bud]

Tell me how no one had seen this oversized behemoth until now? How could he hide that bull elk sized rack from eager trophy hunters all over those roads driving from dawn til dusk everyday of the four-point season for mule deer. Ask yourself that question and try to come up with a realistic answer cuz no one I talked to can as of now.
Jel---stickin out like a sore thumb

all I can say to that is they don't get that big by being stupid, and most likely totally nocturnal till the rut kicks in

[Salty]

Hoooo wee.. I'm gonna get me a locomotive sized rifle next year I'll tell ya :grin:

Seriously the ungulate love nutz deal is something else all right. i remember as a kid in Prince George where this rut crazed moose took on a highways snow plow! The truck won but the plow got broken off and folden to the ground :eek:

[johnk]

Tell me how no one had seen this oversized behemoth until now? How could he hide that bull elk sized rack from eager trophy hunters all over those roads driving from dawn til dusk everyday of the four-point season for mule deer. Ask yourself that question and try to come up with a realistic answer cuz no one I talked to can as of now.
Jel---stickin out like a sore thumb

C'mon J-Lo you aren't that much out of touch are you? In regards to Bud's post my logger buddies used to tell me about the hawgs they see at 3am that I never see in the 150 days of the year that I spend in the bush.

I've been eluded and outsmarted by mature bucks smaller than him more times than I'm man enough to admit!

[Jelvis]

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[whitespringer]

Hey Jelly, seen any action around the pimianus lakes area or chataway? Done lots of fishing in that area but never seen deer, just the odd moose.

[Jelvis]

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[whitespringer]

thanks for the info Jelly, our family loves that area, spent some of our best time there. Would love to take the family and bring home the bacon!

[johnk]

Hey Jelly, seen any action around the pimianus lakes area or chataway? Done lots of fishing in that area but never seen deer, just the odd moose.

Hey Whitespringer,

I cut my "flyfishing teeth" up at Chataway and there are some hawg muleys up there. Seven or eight years ago I saw the same buck three or four times over the summer between the lodge and Dot Lake but couldn't find him during hunting season and then Paul from the resort took him at Dot Lake in mid-Nov. He turned out to be an 8x10 not very wide but very junky.

Dot Lake is where those two sledders had the head-on crash last winter totally obliterating both sleds and killing themselves. It was all over BCTV news.

Just north of Roscoe Lake if you stay right where the road forks around the fishless Mystery Lake it deadends at a huge cutblock with lots of sign all over it.

The Antler Lk. Rd. which hooks up to Billy Lk. Rd and then Le Roi Lk. is another great area with lots of muleys and then in behind Gypsum there are some new cutblocks that are definitely woth a look.

I've never seen a buck wider than 26" up there but they all are big-bodied with lots of mass and junk.

[Jelvis]

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[Bud]

Hey Jel
I'm going to be up in your area end of next week or the first week of Dec. you know any places to stay around there that caters to hunters in the Ashcroft area, I don't need too much just a place to sleep and hopefully hang my deer. B&B or even a cabin.
let me know if you can
thx

[Jelvis]

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[Jelvis]

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[grizzlydown]

I used to live in Logan Lake and hunted the Indian Gardens, Mt Anne, Savona Mtn, Tunkwa........those were the days my friends!!!! Biggest buck I ever seen was in the Indian Gardens ranch #2 in the bottom field where the Haywood-farmer and Tunkwa meet. 7-8 inches past each ear big deep forks, he was easliy 200-210 gross, standing 60 yards away on private land during November!!! Hey Jel don't forget to tell everyone about Cinder hill just on teh Ashcroft side of the mine!!!!

[Jelvis]

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[Ike]

So is this area around Mt. Savona crown land or private? Obviously the Indaian Garden Ranches are private but what about the rest? Would hate to drive all that way to find I can't hunt it ;)

Cheers

[Jelvis]

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[Ike]

Depends on the weather, whether or not you can make it through from Savano to Barnes lake .. Lots of deer and wonderful hunting country ..
Above Savona on the Indian Gardens turnoff through to Barnes Lake and down to Ashcroft .. or the other direction if you come from Ashcroft.
Jel .. awesome area for hunters to hunt .. walk, drive, hike, hunt it .. ba hucks .. huge mules ..
.. Be ready to chase some mulies in some fantastic habitat, mule deer, some whites and some moose ..

So this is Crown land and not private?
Don't wanna waste 10 hours driving to look at a KEEP OUT sign.
Cheers

[Angel]

if you turn off the #1 and head along the Highland Valley RD to where it becomes the OK connector there are a few shoot off roads that will actually lead you in a big loop back to the OK Connector and there should be some good options for hunting there. I would try google earth and see what you think. You could also try the Duffy Lake RD, but watch out for the Provincial Parks area. good luck.

[grizzlydown]

Go through Ashcroft climb the big ass hill right at the top is a road the turns to the right and crosses the back end of highland valley copper's tailings pond, stay on it and you get into the back country in behind Calling lake OK lake take some side roads and come out in lower Nicola. Great country and grat deer hunting.

[SimilkameenSlayer]

interesting thread, anyone going to 3-18 soon? or has a recent report?

:)

[Stresd]

Was there last weekend. The Barnes /Savona rd is still open. Few inches fresh snow above barnes at the powerline that disappears just past the Wallashein drop rd on way to Savona. Few Does & dink bucks but no shooters.

[Sangstercraft]

Yeah I was up in 3-18 along the Barnes Lake area, and there were no bucks to shoot at. Might be ok for the 'any buck' season though. Just nothing big.