Too Obvious

[timberland]

Has anybody passed over spots that look too obvious thinking it will be over run with hunters, or do you check out everything starting with the best areas then working down the list. Time in the field is limited for many and scratching off some areas might help or hurt you. How do you prioritize spots that you\'ve found on the net for your next scouting or hunting excursion?

 

[cohunter14]

You don\'t necessarily have to \'pass over\' spots that look too obvious, you can still check them out. But, typically it is very easy to predict where 80%+ of the hunters will be, which is within 1/4 to 1/2 mile from the nearest road. At least that is my experience. Cnelk has mentioned this before, and I think it is a great idea: take a map and mark off every area within 1/2 mile of any road. That is an easy way to eliminate areas that will be pretty easy to get to, hence will attract more hunters. Now, that rule can definitely change a bit, for instance when that 1/2 mile off a road is straight downhill and someone would have to pack up it.

As far as prioritizing a scouting trip, that is what I made a post about here a few days ago. Generally, what I like to do is mark up the map with all of the spots I like. From there, it is typically pretty easy to come up with a way to \'connect the dots\' so to speak. You\'ll probably find that a lot of the dots are around the same altitude, allowing you to traverse along in your scouting. Depending on the size of the area and how many days you have to scout, you might have to prioritize it to figure out which areas you will actually get to see and which ones you might not and that is just going to be a personal preference thing. Or, you could always post up a map on here and have guys give you their input

 

[cnelk]

Another way to find some hides holes is to to watch when driving down a narrow forest road. The pull outs will be limited and no places to park/camp.
Have some one drop you off in these areas or park a ways down the road, hike to these spots and hunt right off the road. You will be very surprised what people drive by.

 

[Deertick]

I think people are on to something by looking not for elk, but for hunters.

Elk are tough to find ... hunters are easy to pattern.

Mark roads, and, like cnelk says, entry points (trails, good parking spots, camping spots)

Once you mark up a map with this info, you really start to narrow down spots to look.

I suppose in Colorado you can also mark up obvious back-country camps where outfitters or horseback hunters will go. This further limits folks.

I think we sometimes get to looking at Google Earth like we\'re looking for that perfect meadow with a bugling bull in the middle ... but approaching like this is counter-intuitive, but I think useful. It works, BTW, for all kinds of hunting; better in high pressure areas.