Jordan
You didn't mention what state. I know both Colo. and N.M. provided plenty of data on herd density hunter numbers and success rates. That along with elevation is how I picked units to apply for or OTC units to hunt.
I would look for a unit nearby that has similar terrain. You will no more of what your getting into.
I'm no expert. But, it seems to me people relate elk hunting To high mountains. I've been to tree line and to 5000 feet looking for them. By the start of muzzleloader season, they are most always low if human pressure is involved. Low means adjacent to private land. It also means a bunch of grueling work getting them out. People know that and act accordingly. Elk respond accordingly. Good luck and God Bless
That a great place to start as it means the herd number is over objectives
Elkaddict's Link
Likely, still very much worth it.
Some of the best & quickest ways are to locate elk through bugling 1 hour to 1-1/2 hour before daylight. Once camp is setup take an hour or so & drive the roads in your area, find areas during the daytime where you can utilize night Bugling off roads where areas look good or sound will carry afar! Select 6 - 10 spots. Look for roads where country is fairly steep & rugged, most hunters do not camp in these areas & most will not start their hunts in this type of terrain. You could drive one mile or 20 miles, doesn't matter, keep going until you locate them before daylight. -- Come morning head out to bugle in your pre-selected areas! Once elk are located or respond back, quit bugling to them, you can now grab your gear & head their way while still dark. Get as close as possible without alerting them, watch the wind direction, you do not want your scent going to the elk! It's tough to say exactly what to do next as situations can vary, either slip in silent with no calling if possible as soon as it gets light or prepare to setup & call them your way with a low volume low intensity breeding sequence.
Too, it's common for elk to move off as daylight appears, these elk will start their journey to their daytime bedding areas. This can take them 1-3 miles from where first found off the roads. This means they can take us further into the mountains if we are not fortunate enough to put them down close to their nighttime feeding/rendezvous areas. When this happens we can lose sight of hearing them as they crest various benches & ridge tops as we attempt to follow or dog the herd. Once we make the top we will consider glassing or areas we feel sound can carry a good distance we will call to relocate these elk if they are not talking on their own, if they are talking we do not call we simply move in as close as possible to them without being seen or winded.
There will be days that elk are not heard from the roads, not many but it does happen! What we now consider is that those elk are somewhere so now we have a back up plan to head to areas where they might be but we cannot hear them from any parts of a road. -- So what do we do? We head to some of those areas the elk took us on earlier hunts over the benches & ridge tops to glass & call from to see if they are over in those areas now!
In time you will accumulate many areas as this as the days, weeks & years go by simply from originally locating elk from roads! It can open a quick & new world in finding elk then & where their other haunts are such as water, wallows, trails, natural mineral licks, breeding areas, bedding & feeding areas. I like jotting much of this new found information on my topo map of the area I carry with me for present & future studies!
Anytime we get elevation we can both Glass where needed & above all use Location Bugles to find unseen elk that may be in the timber! Remember just like Glassing for elk Bugling at these points is for the same reason! We are FINDING them not trying to call them to us! Once found we quit bugling & get over to them just as you would if located through glassing!
As hunters gain knowledge of their area their odds & areas to consider will increase, it's then that they start to broaden their horizons. They need a starting point! This is where the original post comes into play. This offers a direction we have located 1000's of elk over the years with these methods & so can you!
Here's a couple of photos of the type of country we look for to locate elk from roads.
ElkNut1
ElkNut1
ElkNut1
