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Public land guided elk hunts

If you're going on a public land guided elk or deer hunt, what are the most important things. Things you need to justify hunting public over private. Cost? Opportunity? Over all experience?

Elk

Simple as that

Also there is public land non-residents can't hu t without a guide

I have been on 2 guided elk hunts and the experience was the reason I went guided. I was successful on both. Since then not much elk hunting, but I will be helping by brother in law this fall DIY, and Lord willing he will be helping in 2021 DIY.

Access to an area that is too far or too landlocked to reasonably do without horses or his access through private. No need for a guide, I am happy with whatever outcome my decisions and actions result in. I wouldn't turn down help packing or directions to the secret wallow though. :^)

So Don your saying you would prefer a drop camp over a guided hunt?

I'm sorta there with Glunt. I'd pay for access to public land that's basically inaccessible or unattractive to the Sitka Army (not designated wilderness, no trail access otherwise). But sure don't need a guide.

But for someone with less experience who wants a true "wilderness experience", a wall tent horseback hunt with an outfitter-guide-wrangler would provide that where a private land hunt with cushy cabins and fancy meals might not fit the image of a true western elk hunt. But they would also need to understand that the success odds are likely way lower on public land than on a ranch hunt. So it's all about the expectations of the experience.

"So Don your saying you would prefer a drop camp over a guided hunt?"

If I was paying for an elk hunt on public, yes. Or even just a packing service since I have all the gear and live out here. If I pay an outfitter for an elk hunt it would likely be a private land hunt. The right chunk of private is a different world from what most of us regular Joe, OTC, public land elk hunters normally experience. We get little tastes of it with a stellar morning or evening here and there.

Check out some of the checkerboard public/private areas. If you have access from the landowner you get to hunt all the public that no one else can access.

Just make sure it’s in Wyoming

If you have never hunted Elk before or hunted in the mountains before, I would think a guided hunt would be a good idea. You can learn a lot from a guide, whether you are successful or not.

After that you would be better prepared do it yourself going forward.

What about success rate? DIY is way lower in most states.

Success rate would likely be the biggest motivator I would think. That said, its not for me.

I like killing stuff and try hard to but the reward is only equal to the effort and challenge. A nice bull on a guided hunt may not mean as much to me as eating a tag on a DIY hunt where I tried hard and failed on my own.

Not knocking guided hunts. I outfitted and guided a lot and have went on a few.

I'd guess for a similar price you could pay trespass fee to get on some good private land DIY. Unless you are wanting a guide to show you the ropes, I'd prefer that to guided on public lands.

John. That would work great for a guy with time and gear. Packaging in,, setting up camp, scouting area is tuff if you got 5-7 days to hunt.

My first several elk hunts were self guided and drop camp. I didn’t know squat and wasted a lot of time. Never come close to getting a shot. Actually saw very few elk. They were really camping trips. Wish I had gone with someone experienced or guided.

Glunt is right. Anyone can kill a bull on the right ranch pretty easy.

IMO, 5-7 days is about right for a good ranch hunt on the right property. On public - if I was an inexperienced hunter in a new place, I'd like to have a guide for 8-9 days if possible. Or a DIY/drop camp of at least 10 days.

OTC will has a favorite saying, "Time kills elk". On most public land except premier draw units, guided or not, that's true.

What is a must for a drop camp. What makes a drop camp worth the money

Besides the obvious stuff (shelter, etc) I would want it in a place where the general public hunters can't easily access, and where elk will cycle through during the season from pressure elsewhere. Definitely not in a place where the resident elk were hunted hard by four go-getters from the same drop camp the week before.

I would also want the outfitter to agree to come in for a meat pickup if/when needed, via an InReach message or cell call if available.

Only thing a drop camp has going for it is a meat haul/pick up.

I don't know why anybody would want to be semi stuck in one area.

Are you starting a guide service? If so count me in!

A public land hunt is okay if you are happy to shoot any elk. A good way to learn about elk, elk country, and how to hunt them. In most cases, not the best choice if you want a really mature bull.

“23-Apr-20Private Reply Agree with Jaq. It’s the experience of killing a bull on public and telling people you got it done on public.”

I don’t really get this - I couldn’t care less what anyone else thinks about how I hunted.

Steve, I think he misinterpreted my post. I was referring to the experience of a pack-in wall tent hunt, which is how many envision an "elk hunt" should be. But for many, the whole "I got him on public land" thing adds a couple extra inches when having the big.....ummm..."buck" contest on internet forums.

I've done solo public and guided public. My two cents 1) Price: Whatever you spend solo, you will add several thousand $ for a decent guided hunt. That can be a deal breaker. The key is to get out there - the only guarantee is you will harvest nothing if you don't go. 2) Logistics: If you are in great shape, have access to horses, or are riding a good cargo mountainbike, you can pull off a solid DIY hunt logistically. It will be a LOT harder. The logistics of hauling in a camp with all your hunting gear means a heavy pack in, plus all the responsibility for feeding yourself and making sure you stay dry and warm. And as the old saying goes, the problem is you might get one. If you are say 3 miles in, if you are solo DIY you will be doing a minimum of 4 round trips with 80+ lbs of meat on your back for 12 of the 24 miles you will be hiking as fast as you can handle it. This typically occurs after you have been beating yourself up in the mountains for a week plus. A guided hunt typically relieves you of all the gear worries except for personal gear. Wall tents with a stove are nice. Hot real food is nice. A horse to haul out your critter is REALLY NICE. 3) Local knowledge and success: This is one of the keys to guided vs DIY. A good guide knows the area cold. We all know that on public land, there are days when you aren't going to see or hear squat. With a good guide who knows the area, you can be confident that the tide will turn. In a new area DIY, who knows? They may just not be where you get to. People can talk about easy versus hard hunts. My goal is always to get (at least) one legit chance at a critter. DIY you may not get that. Guided, if you do your part you should. Don't get me wrong. I've had solo DIY backpack hunts that I loved even without a legit shot chance. But you had better value a lot of the intangibles (I do) versus coming out of the woods with meat and maybe a trophy. Free time is precious. Having invested time and effort leading up to the hunt, and used up rare vacation days, where do you want to be when all is said and done? 4) Fitness and experience. If you are not in really good shape, and are inexperienced in camping in the high mountains where elk often hang out, hands down guided is better. The better shape you are in, the better your chances regardless of DIY versus guided. But if you aren't prepared to get up and down thousands of feet, with a load, at altitude, your odds of harvesting an elk DIY go way down. A guide is used to dealing with chubby checkers, and can design the hunt to accommodate varying levels (although picking a hunt and a guide requires an honest assessment of where you're at and are likely to be come fall). We all have learning curves, and paying dues ain't just for the blues. How many years and hunts are you prepared to apply towards learning what the heck you're doing on your own?

Gold! ^^^^^

Willieboat X2!

Here's how are would envision a drop camp. Day before opener pack me and 10 days worth in. I wander around aimlessly searching for elk. Day 9 kill elk miles from where I started. In Reach packer and get packed out on day 10. Bring the mules ;)

Guys, I'm not just saying this to book hunts but we always recommend a first time elk hunter to go fully guided, preferably on private land. Too many elk hunters hunt heavily pressured public land, never see or hear any elk, and don't learn anything about elk hunting. Then they do this year after year and get frustrated. Finding quality public land is a very difficult task. We have hunters from all over the country come to Colorado to hunt. To show you how difficult, I am 59, am a Colorado native, and have bowhunted elk for close to 40 years and I still can't find a good OTC area. The few good OTC areas I have found over the years have been extremely remote, nasty areas, where no one else has gone. And to be honest, I'm too old to go back to those places. What I usually do is apply for relatively easy to draw limited draw areas and hunt there every 2 to 3 years. When I don't draw I usually hunt deer and occasionally get invited to hunt elk on a private OTC ranch (i.e., last year). I've been fortunate to harvest 14 bulls over the years including 4 P&Y. But I can't stress the importance of being into elk and having someone there to teach you. Otherwise you are just spinning your wheels.

Heavily hunted private can be worse because you can't pic up and move to were the elk are. Takes a really big place to hold elk if they are pressured.

If you hunt just go hunt worry bout the rest later. Get out there, Just Do It.

To answer your original question, isn't it really a matter of what you want out of the hunt? What is most important to you? Everyone is different. If I were to ever use a guide, I would want it to be some remote wilderness area that I could never get to without horses etc. Some people want a high chance of success. Some want the overall experience. Some want to say that they killed a bull that anyone else could have killed, one on public land with access to all. Some like to hunt areas where the general public is limited, due to it being private, or public land with access only to adjacent landowners, while others would feel this would somewhat cheapen their accomplishment. Some like to be lead to the animal by a guide, others like to find the animals themselves. Is it more about having a big elk to stick on your living room wall, or about how you got it? I don't think anyone can answer what is important other than you.

The last time I've been hunting in that area, I was using thermal sight which I've got recently called AGM SECUTOR TS50- 384 ( got it from here: https://www.agmglobalvision.com/thermal-imaging/thermal-weapon-sights ). It was a great hunting evening and night. That's great when you have great optics especially thermal or night vision one for hunting purposes.

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