2019 IDAHO HERE I COME!!!!

[camomatt_ca]

First year hunting elk and Idaho. very excited to get boots on the ground.  Any advice from peeps who have hunted Idaho before. I don't wanna know spots just like were bears a problem for you? did you backpack in or camp by the trucks.  did you end up moving to a plan b spot after not seeing elk? thanks in advance

 

[ribo451]

Depends on what part of the state you are hunting. North Idaho has grizzlies and I believe some parts around the Yellowstone area do as well. They can be a problem as much as black bears but they are more intimidating. If it turns out to be a bad berry year then they could be more aggressive than usual but as long as you keep a scent free camp and do all the things your supposed to to avoid bears then you shouldn't have a problem. I would buy bear spray though.

The whole state has wolves so I would definitely buy a wolf tag and be prepared to change areas if they are where you are hunting because the elk likely wont be there. Or wont be there for long.

I don't know of any areas where you are going to get away from people so I would have as many plan B's as you can. I have about 10-12 plan B's and I went through all of them this year looking for places that didn't have people camped in them or loggers working in them or wolves howling in them or some of them just didn't have any elk this year.

 

[camomatt_ca]

Great thanks for the advice.  I already have bear spray on the gear list. But I am going to have a few backup plans to make.

 

[cohunter14]

One piece of advice I'd throw out there is I highly recommend camping from your truck the first time. Backpacking into an area takes time and if you guess wrong on your spot, you are going to waste quite a bit of time in that area. Be mobile from a base camp, which allows you to get to your Plan B, C, D, etc spots.

 

[Bull_Fighter]

Personally, I'd only be concerned about bears if you're hunting in eastern Idaho, near Yellowstone area. Of course, it never hurts to have bear spray either way and you should always keep a clean camp.


I have been fortunate enough to find a spot that holds a lot of elk every year. I backpack in a couple of miles and have encounters daily so I haven't needed my plan B's in the past 5 years in this spot. I think that's pretty rare, though, so you'll want a plan B, C, D, E, and maybe even F since you're unfamiliar with the country. I'll second what cohunter14 said about camping from your truck the first time. It's a solid plan.


We've all heard the saying before, "Never skip a leg day!" That saying was coined in reference to hunting in Idaho.

 

[camomatt_ca]

yes I know I have a lot of work to do conditioning wise and leg back and core strength.  even if I get one opportunity the whole trip it will be worth it.  I am not expecting to kill and elk but if I can get within 100 yards it will be awesome.  I will camp from the truck for the first couple days so I can at least get a lay of the land and how many hunters there are.  I am most concerned about the weather.  coming from California it doesn't get cold here... so im hoping its not gonna snow or storm to bad. I have the gear just not looking forward to it

 

[Realwarrior]

Are you planning to Bow hunt or Gun Hunt? I'll be archery Elk & Deer in Units 43/48.

 

[Elkslayer83]

First time in base camp . If you locate elk in further then decide if you want to spike in or hike everyday . When I locate elk in a ways I spike in to save my legs . If I don?t see elk I get out move to another location . Have both setup base camp and spike unless your [emoji817] certain your packing in for a few days or the entire trip. My wife and I will be hunting multiple states this season New Mexico Colorado and Idaho . Have any questions feel free to pm .


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[rfra]

I'll add to the recommendation to hunting from a relatively portable truck/base camp.  If you dont know the area you really need to be willing to move around until you find elk.  Even if elk were there during a scouting trip they might not be there when you're hunting.  Packing into a camp is fun and rewarding but could be a huge waste of time if the elk simply aren't there.

 

[Wenzel747]

I hunt elk every year in bear country for last 10 yrs. only one encounter but he was haulin but. But be very aware and if you put one down try to get it out before dark. If you cant hang it far from gut pile and high enough. All bad bear encounters I know of are because of human error. Good luck