West Kootenays Elk Hunt

[lank1234]

Hey all,

After reading through many great discussions on this website I decided to make my first post to this forum. I live in the Okanagan but would like to head east for an elk hunt this season. I understand there are some elk (rare but still some) around my neck of the woods (princeton, little white, connector etc.), but Id love to get away for a few days and get into an area that has a higher elk density. Im also expecting to be joined by the many other hunters heading east once the season rolls around. Let me start off by saying i'm not looking for GPS coordinates to a nice bull. I am more curious about how far west are elk found in any decent numbers and would you guys recommend trying closer to the border or heading a bit north? I am a young guy and im not afraid of a hike and backpack hunt if it means i can be away from the crowds. Any areas you may recommend? Im also relatively new to hunting elk so any tips or tricks would be greatly appreciated. Thank you.

Edit: I understand this is a cliche first post and im not looking to piss anyone off, just trying to gain some knowledge and this seemed like a great place

[OutWest]

Good call on heading to R4. It is a tough go for elk locally - lots of hunters, not a pile of elk. It only gets better the further east you go from Christina Lake.

[goinghunting]

Theres elk in region 4, the farther east you go the better the numbers. You want real elk numbers go north young man!

[HarryToolips]

Since when is/was there elk up the Connector???....Going hunting has it right, more elk the further east you go...

[lank1234]

Theres elk in region 4, the farther east you go the better the numbers. You want real elk numbers go north young man!

When you say go north what exactly are you meaning? Like jasper area?

[Brez]

When you say go north what exactly are you meaning? Like jasper area?

Ft St John and area. Fly in or jet boat. I know guys from Nelson that go there rather than the gong show around here. Up there, lots of elk, not so many people - apparently.

[lank1234]

I've never seen any up there but I've heard they are around those parts. Probably in small numbers mind you

[lank1234]

Ah I see, may have to look into that option as well. I'd prefer to get away from the crowds. Thanks!

[BgBlkDg]

Ft St John and area. Fly in or jet boat. I know guys from Nelson that go there rather than the gong show around here. Up there, lots of elk, not so many people - apparently.

There are LOTS of BIG bulls in the WK, although the numbers are down a lot from Wolf and some other predation.

The PROBLEM is the VERY rugged terrain, heavy forest cover to around 7000 ft. and the mild climate which results in legal bulls staying high in the toughest spots until past the end of the season.

Then, there is the private land issue, much of this is owned by Doukhobors and Yankee Draft Dodgers and other newcomers, so, we cannot hunt on it as we did in the '60s.

One of the most successful Nelson hunters is my cousin, but, he is younger than I and not gimped up like me. He has some huge racks at home and gets a bull almost every year.

Do your research, get to know some locals and GET IN SHAPE and you might score.

[J_T]

For the OP, it comes down to, do you want to see elk, more elk? Or hunt elk and have opportunity to harvest elk? Seeing more elk, doesn't always mean the opportunity to kill is better.

In my experience the best thing you can do is find an area, that is within reach of your home, and access it as frequently as you can. You must almost live in elk country to watch them and understand them. Find a pocket and spend a lot of time there.

Success isn't based on finding lots of elk (West Kootenay vs East Kootenay). Success is based on knowing what to do, once you find them. Knowing the terrain and their movement patterns comes from spending a lot of time in a particular spot.

Of course there are those lucky one off opportunities when you just happen to find something. But you don't want to be a road hunter exploring country during the open season. You want to be doing that well in advance of the hunting season.