This rain could ruin my elk hunt
Elk
The last 3 miles of road where I am hunting is clay, and is on a slope with a rock ledge in the left and a 100' drop on the right. At the end of the road you can find a few campsites and hike in a couple miles from there.
I am told that if it has rained or will rain while in there you are screwed and it's best to park before getting to the super slick spot. Some folks have lost ATV's down the dropoff thinking they could continue on.
This adds 3 miles of walking through muck, to what was a 2 mile hike in last year...5 miles of hiking just to pitch a tent. 5 miles of hiking one way if we put an animal down.
Last year the road was dry but rutted like crazy from people traversing it while wet.
This may add a whole new element for The Boy and I.
That would suck to ruin your hunt but I think the rain is probably more critical right now in Colorado and elsewhere in the west. Hopefully you guys can still get back in there without too much trouble!
Chains help a man do things he couldn't do without them.
I'd be thrilled as you'll have the area to yourself. Good luck!
Ruin? Change maybe. Good luck on your hunt, the rain is a welcome change in the big picture.
Another reason not to have all your eggs in one basket! You should have near a 1/2 dozen back-up areas not just because of weather but because there could be hunters in your area or no elk worth hunting, stay mobile, pour over your topo maps, lots of areas to hunt that are away from roads or trailheads! Be adventurous, elk hunting is a challenge! Good luck & have fun!
ElkNut/Paul
I’m with Will, see if you can get rained in. If you can get in while it’s dry and are able to get any cell signal you could hike meat or camp out to meet someone if it rains and get your truck later.
I say give me the chance to hunt where others are not even give me the slightest chance I'll be spending an extra day carrying out my animal. Look at this as opportunity sir. I'd be smiling.
Where we hunt in the Book Cliffs you don't try to drive when the roads are wet. They are slick as snot, but that is not the worse part. The adobe clay that is thrown up sticks to everything. The clay is very heavy and builds up in the wheel wells to the point that you cannot turn the steering wheel. Just Don't do it!
Good thing about Colorado, if you don't like the weather give it 15 minutes. Usually we wait 2 hours after the last rain drop and the roads are usually good to go.
The heck with a hunt the rain could ruin your life if you end up flirting with those roads in bad conditions.
This is the exact reason I got and ATV. Just to get my camp in and out. Leave the truck safe in low country. Could you chain up an ATV? You could also coat the underside plastics with silicone. That'd shed the mud to some extent for a little while. I used to do that before a muddy motocross race.
Take the time to pack your camp back there on a game cart. Sounds like it’d be worth the effort. Your elk hunt would really be ruined if your truck went over the side especially with you in it. Look at it as a blessing in disguise.
Buy some rain gear and hike it the extra miles. Bring a sled for the mud to slide gear on.
No elk hunt is worth damaging your vehicle or yourself. And do not get your truck in a spot you can`t get out, it could be next summer before you have another chance. Formulate a plan and hike it in. Don`t try to take it in one trip if you can`t. I would much rather kill half a day hiking into a area no one else has the guts to get into.
5 miles on a road will take 2+ hrs to walk. Do like MP said and use a game cart and get after it
Game cart or atv. And pray that it keeps raining. Seems like the best case scenario to me. Lick either up at the originally planned parking area, pack meat out to them. That isn’t ruined. That’s ideal. Take your time. 5 miles is a walk in the park if you don’t push too hard.
“Pray that it keeps raining”
Yeah because hunting in the rain is productive and fun. Spoken like a true elk killer.
If it's raining, sneaking up on bedded animals is easier. Plenty of movement and plenty of sound cover. A ten yard shot at a bedded elk would be exciting.
personally I like the rainy years. It's a lot cooler. I have been in some really slimy mud though.....without chains you would be screwed. I have not used them yet.....but pretty cheap investment for a more bullet proof trip. I have been in 15" of snow and damn close to putting them on in around 2012 during the last rifle season at 12,000'.
Glad I posted this as you guys give me a new perspective. I appreciate it!
Oh man I wish people couldn’t drive into a spot I like to hunt. I would hike in that extra few miles smiling. You will probably have a much better hunt. I think if you hike 2 miles from a the nearest road, you already shed 90% of Hunters that are not willing to do it.
Lark, let me clarify. When I said pray that it keeps raining, I wasn't implying that you want it to rain during your hunt. Not that it would keep me from hunting unless it was a severe storm. Only that you didn't want the road to dry out before your hunt. Making your cart or ATV useful to get you to where others couldn't go with their truck.
Lot of tough guys here.
5 miles is still 5 miles more then what the hunt already entailed. Especially with your boy in tow. That's a big difference. I think Elknut was spot on with having a back up plan and another spot to check out. Good luck to you and your boy I hope you guys have a great hunt and make some memories together. Sometimes tough conditions or unexpected things can end up being a blessing in disguise. Found one of my best spots while looking at a map on the side of a closed road that we were planning on driving up to hunt. Big rain flooded the road and it collapsed. We turned around and headed down a different road about 2 miles and pulled over to try and come up with a plan......heard a bugle while standing at the truck looking at the map. The rest is history. You never know!
