Bedding Areas

[Deertick]

The question is not to hunt them or not ... though I know that\'s a commonly debated subject.

The question is how to find them.

\"North slopes\" ... \"Benches\" ... \"Benches on north-facing slopes\" ... \"2/3 the way up the \'mountain\'\" ... and ... \"On a north-facing slope bench 2/3 the way up the mountain\" are common answers.

Yet, I don\'t find them all that helpful.

Why? Because they encompass large (sometimes very large) areas ... so large that I\'m not sure how to use the information.

Pete (StillHunter) ... I know you know more about how to narrow down my search.

It just seems to me that there are a LOT of areas that would make an acceptable spot to lie down for the afternoon. But do elk really have defined bedding \"spots\" (\"areas\" may be too large) that one can outline on a map, and count on year-to-year?

 

[Swede]

I know what you are talking about. Tick. In some areas, what could be a bedding area as you view Google Earth, is huge. Sometimes there is no one well defined area, on the ground, that is \"the\" bedding area. You listed some points to consider, but ultimately it is what you find on the ground that matters. Where I hunt it is semi arid, and blocks of bedding timber are more limited than in parts of Colorado, or on the western slopes of Oregon. Even where I hunt, I check the well shaded areas to see if they are being used. I look for fresh and old beds and old and new rubs. Don\'t discount south and west facing slopes. With the right cover and in draws you can find solid bedding places. I prefer to hunt areas that have a lot of feeding places and some bedding grounds. You won\'t find that in a rain forest.

 

[Tdiesel]

not certainly sure on how to narrow it to spots most of them I have found have been after scouting and following up trails. As Swede said I know of bedding areas on south facing slopes also. I typically find a dark timber bench and then boots to the ground run along it within a little ways I\'ll find a game trail and follow along it sometimes I bust elk out of there other times you can smell them and find impressions where they have laid. truthfully going up after a snow if even in january and following tracks can teach you alot about how they move and places they bed in a sense you almost get thinking like an elk. Then once you think you got them figured they will do something different so IMO no set formula will get you to bedding areas have even seen elk switch spots from day to day without pressure.
best is most often if a bull is bugling midday or late morning more than likely its from his bedding area. you can generally get it narrowed down to a huntable size and location.

 

[OldMan]

John, my method is not what you\'re looking for. I\'ll be honest, and say I really suck at looking at maps, and figuring out where elk will be Brad is a 1000% better at that. I look at a map to get the general lay of the land.

My method of finding bedding areas is strictly by observation, and that takes lots of days scouting. Maybe I should say years of scouting. I watch what they do, and where they go almost year around. I watch where they go when pressured. It\'s the reason i\'ve hunted the same unit for so many decades. Once I know an area i\'m not interested in trying another unit.

I wish I could help more, but reading maps is not my strong point.

 

[cnelk]

Tell ya what.
It took me quite awhile to figure out what a bedding area was.
After continuously seeing / killing elk in a certain area, almost every time I was there shoulda been the first clue.
Then when I hunted the spot during rifle season and still seeing /killing elk I knew I was on to something.
What really showed me it was a bedding area was snow.

If you can scout your area sometime other than hunting season, like after the first major snow fall or cold spell that will tell you a lot, like beds, trails and all sorts of stuff.

 

[mtnmutt]

I once found 5 large bedding circles in tall grass next to a tiny creek surrounded on 3 sides by deadfall. Creeks are cooler than the surrounding areas. It was nice and cool in that spot and you would need to be a good spotter to see through the deadfall. They maybe using these at night between feeding and not during the day.

Once hunting season starts, they did not use those areas since they are more exposed. This was a wilderness area over 1.5 miles from the road.

I now check creek areas for bedding and then locate the trails that lead to them. I follow these lightly used trails out from the creek area until I find the major highway game trail that may still be used by elk after opening weekend. It is so much easier to find these creek bedding circles in the tall grass then in dark timber.

 

[BTL]

How large would you say the bedding areas are that you have found.
I have noticed in one year of map study and one year with boots on the ground in a new area, I feel like I have a general idea what to look for in the new spot im hunting.
Two spots I have in mind are North, North East facing slopes. Both had elk bed in them almost everyday I was there. I measured them out on GE and is shows them to be 350 yards square. And if I were to really narrow it down I could because of the outskirts only showed sign. Fresh rubs, scat and the smell was quite obvious. Looking at maps I noticed the general rule of thumb. North facing slopes, 2/3 to 3/4 the way to the top and relatively flat.
Being on foot and finding elk is the obvious one but what I did noticed is the undergrowth in both of these spots. Green vegetation with small saplings and green grass still growing thick. Is that with every bedding area? I dont have enough experience to say but it has stayed consistent with what I have found so far. And to look at the map with those general spots, highlight them and follow it up with boots on the ground. You can pick apart those spots.
IS really helped me with map reading. I was a green horn to mountains and I followed his guidelines. It led me to elk and once I found a spot I started to mark the X on my topo maps that had the same type of conditions.

 

[WW]

Two ways that have worked for me are as follows:

1) is to get a bull talking from a distance in the morning that is non-threatening to him. Usually, they will talk back and forth to you for a very long time. Once they get to a point where they are not moving and they start giving what I like to call a Lazy Bugle that actually sound more like an elks version of yawning rather than anything else, they are on the bed 9 times out of 10.

2)is when you are walking around on a mountain side and you stumble into an area where you actually feel the temperature drop several degrees. For lack of a better term, I have always called these types of areas Thermoclimbs (short for thermo climate). Elk are very heat sensitive and these cool places really attract them.

The problem is, for all you computer google guys, neither one of these ways will work unless you are actually out there in the field.

 

[elkmtngear]

Being on foot and finding elk is the obvious one but what I did noticed is the undergrowth in both of these spots. Green vegetation with small saplings and green grass still growing thick. Is that with every bedding area?

That is certainly not the case where I hunt. Especially after the elk are pressured. I have walked into many an elk \"bedroom\" right in the middle of the timber/ deadfall . Sometimes it may be on a large bench, sometimes not much of a bench. But most always somewhere around 2/3 of the way up on a North or Northeast facing slope.

 

[OldMan]

This is a bedding area that the elk use every year. I really don\'t think you\'d pick it out on a map. I discovered it by obsevation.

 

[JohnFitzgerald]

Like Bill stated, locate bugling is how I find all my elk. And knowing the country also helps when they are silent.

I guess I\'m a lone sheep when I state that I don\'t believe in the \"North/Northeast\" facing slope idea. In my experience, during hot days elk bed where it\'s the coolest. In theory, the north side of the moutain should be the place. But in reality, there\'s way more involved than slope position.

So when looking at a map take into account the following:

1) Sun position.
2) Timber density.
3) Nearby water sources.
4) Nearby grazing oppertunities.
5) Average wind direction.

Just my 2-cents.

jf

 

[Tdiesel]

WW is exactly describing my findings. and yes john I have found some bedding areas on south facing slopes too

 

[cohunter14]

Like Bill stated, locate bugling is how I find all my elk.

This is one of the \'fun\' things that us rifle hunters have to deal with...find the elk, bedding areas, etc without any bugling going on.

 

[BTL]

I agree with John when saying there are many factors. No doubt you cant know anything until you search your area on foot. If I could, I would pass up all the google stuff and map reading to spend time out in elk country. Its just not possible for me or some others. To help with the scouting curve you can look for the areas that fit the general rule of thumb. You may need to overlay resources. Google Earth and Topo maps for one example. Caltopo maps can provide shaded description of the mountainside and where the sun is at its hottest points of the day. But no matter where elk bed I imagine there is a reason. Security, Food and Water. Finding \'like\' areas on maps has helped the searching process in the field.
I guess I have to clear up where I found elk bedding....I would never say it would be the same in a different mountain range or climate for that matter. But find what they are looking for in your area and find those areas on maps and it might help out...

 

[JohnFitzgerald]

This is a bedding area that the elk use every year. I really don\'t think you\'d pick it out on a map. I discovered it by obsevation.

Yep, gotta put boots on the ground! Map work is great for finding a place to start. If you have a GPS, make sure to mark some promising way points.

 

[Swede]

Mtnmutt\'s post reminds me that there are night bedding sites too. I believe what she saw down along a stream was one of those. We have not been very careful to differentiate between the two. Elk bed down and chew their cud at night where it is cool. At night, shade is no issue, and down in the bottom along a creek it will be cooler than farther upslope. About 90% of an elk\'s day consists of feeding and resting. It normally takes about 2-3 hours for them to fill their paunch.
If you go out into an open meadow you can sometimes find elk bedding sites, and may wonder why you are always missing them. Now you know.

 

[JohnFitzgerald]

Mtnmutt\'s post reminds me that there are night bedding sites too. I believe what she saw down along a stream was one of those. We have not been very careful to differentiate between the two. Elk bed down and chew their cud at night where it is cool. At night, shade is no issue, and down in the bottom along a creek it will be cooler than farther upslope. About 90% of an elk\' day consists of feeding and resting. It normally takes about 2-3 hours for them to fill their paunch.
If you go out into an open meadow you can sometimes find elk bedding sites, and may wonder why you are always missing them. Now you know.

Ah, nice addition Swede!