Wallows and Bedding Areas

[Swede]

On the thread about the most encouraging sign we got to discussing wallows a little. To focus some attention on wallows, what do you see is the big deal with them?

I have sat hundreds, and maybe a couple thousand hours over wallows. Without good drinking water and active trails close at hand, I would not pay much attention to them. The problem I see is that, they are often used so sporadically, that the one you are at may not get used for the remainder of the year. Sometimes they go years without use. What are you folks getting excited about?

Bedding areas can be the same way. I like a tree stand near a good bedding area, and I like calling around them on occasion, but just because elk bed there sometimes, does nothing to excite me. It is the fresh poop and tracks, that tells me they are close, that spurs my interest, and gets me excited. The reason I mentioned on the other thread, that I like muddy water and a heavy elk stench in the air, is because elk often return. Water holes that are muddy and stink are getting recurring use.

 

[razorback]

The wallow I referred to was fresh. The bull proved me right when he bugled a few hours later up the hill a few hundred yards. Not being an experienced elk hunter, I assumed he would come to the wallow again when I should have moved toward him and probably hit him with some aggressive calling. That\'s basically why I think wallows are good sign, had it not been so fresh I\'m not sure I would have put as much confidence in it.

As for tracks and poop, I did find a lot of that and some very fresh but never encountered anything. The one cow I seen wasn\'t in an area with any more sign than other areas that I had found. One morning I did get into an area that I believe had a strong smell of elk (never smelled elk before) and there was sign litering the area but not heavy.

From my one season of hunting I think I could sum it up as I found a lot of sign everywhere but not a lot of sign that was really concentrated. Sometimes I reminded myself of those guys on the bigfoot hunting shows :lol:

 

[cnelk]

Depends on where the wallow is at.
If its near a bedding area, there is a good chance that elk are within hearing distance and I consider it a great place to setup.
Not necessarily right on the wallow itself, but in a place where I have the advantage.

Now this wallow is NOT a place I consider a great place to set up, even tho it has been used fairly recent

 

[Scot320]

I called in the biggest bull I have ever encountered in Colorado over a wallow...but it was in thick timber, the trail to and from was well used, the musky elk smell just hung in the air, and it was within ear shot of a bedding area. I went back the next year and their was zero sign and the wallow was dry.

I think the wallows in clearings are used more when they are feeding at night...I don\'t sit them normally.

 

[bowhunter]

The wallow Steve is talking about was on a flat in thick timber 2/3 up the mountain within a half mile maybe less of where I arrowed a bull a few days before. It was used RECENTLY. We heard a bull bugle and tried a few cow calls. We heard a bugle with soft chuckes after that. The next bugle we heard it was further away indicating the bull was heading over the peak away from us.

 

[flystrait]

On the thread about the most encouraging sign we got to discussing wallows a little. To focus some attention on wallows, what do you see is the big deal with them?

I have sat hundreds, and maybe a couple thousand hours over wallows. Without good drinking water and active trails close at hand, I would not pay much attention to them. The problem I see is that, they are often used so sporadically, that the one you are at may not get used for the remainder of the year. Sometimes they go years without use. What are you folks getting excited about?

Bedding areas can be the same way. I like a tree stand near a good bedding area, and I like calling around them on occasion, but just because elk bed there sometimes, does nothing to excite me. It is the fresh poop and tracks, that tells me they are close, that spurs my interest, and gets me excited. The reason I mentioned on the other thread, that I like muddy water and a heavy elk stench in the air, is because elk often return. Water holes that are muddy and stink are getting recurring use.

Swede, I never hunt wallows anymore. What it tells me is there are elk in the area. That area can be as far as a mile or more away, but it\'s a starting point.

 

[BTL]

I have yet to have any sort of encounter hunting wallows. It may be a combination of things. Not knowing when the wallows are being hit( middle of the night, early morning, early evening, afternoon) and the abundance of water in the area. The elk have too many options to pinpoint one particular water source or seep.
I do know of one that I have yet to give any time. It is located in a deep pocket of thick timber and blow downs. I have encountered elk above it and noticed elk will bed near by. If they happen to be quiet this coming fall, I might find myself giving it a chance.
Reasons that peak my interest. It is a little higher in elevation but not by much. Very dense cover surrounding it with absolutely no easy way in or out. Nice north facing draw with small benches at varying elevations throughout. Its located roughly 2.5 miles from the nearest trail. I think the elk could hole up when pressured by the surrounding areas. I would love to put a trail camera up but that\'s just not an available option for me.
Draw backs would be the wind currents. I sat at one the first time I found it. Looked like the perfect situation after reading your book, swede. Tough to tell from this distance but it had been used recently, with fresh tracks and droppings near by. Also had 4 trails from different directions heading to it. I believed the ones coming from right to left in the picture were the trails coming from the bedding areas. Coming from the left, could have been from the feeding areas in lower elevations. The wind was horrible for me. Cloud cover and cool temps were shifting the wind all afternoon. I did hear one small bugle as the sun set.

 

[Swede]

I guess it is time for me to go back to my ophthalmologist BTL. I can\'t see your wallow in the picture. :lol:

Anyway I am not opposed to hunting wallows. I like to have them where I set a stand. They are not the attraction that draws me to a location. If an area is getting a lot of use then it is attractive. Fresh rubs, trails that are being used, and isolated water are every bit as important or more, because of the fickle nature of wallow use. Many bedding areas don\'t receive regular use either. The point is don\'t go berserk when you see a bedding area. It may be a long time before elk go there again.

BTW: I like what I read and see about your hunting area BTL. It looks like a great spot to hold onto.

 

[Olympushunt]

I guess it is time for me to go back to my ophthalmologist BTL. I can\'t see your wallow in the picture. :lol:

Looks like a good wallow to me. :dk: Looks like a dandy dark secluded spot too.

 

[Swede]

Oly, you just made my point. We see what we want to. We see what looks like a pool of discolored water, that could be an elk wallow in a picture and claim it is good. What makes it good? Can we really see sign of active elk use? How about those rubs or trails? Is there even wet mud splashed out of the hole or whatever? Nada.
Without more to go on, sitting there waiting is a very risky proposition. You could wait there for days for nothing.

 

[BTL]

I guess it is time for me to go back to my ophthalmologist BTL. I can\'t see your wallow in the picture. :lol:

Ha, yeah, the picture really doesn\'t show all the detail I described. my apologies for a weak example. Clicking on the picture helps see it a little bit. There is no evidence of the surrounding detail.

 

[Two Bear]

As other members have pointed out, sitting an individual wallow can be a waste of time depending on the area. If you have plenty of wallows, it is a real crap shoot if a bull is going to visit the one you are on. However, \"wallow areas\" are a little different. I have an area I hunt that has 13 wallows over a half a football field sized area. Trails run down and several micro ridges dump into this area, it is elk haven. I really like finding areas with multiple wallows close as I believe these can be a hub of elk activity and routing and indicate a great place to work over.

 

[cohunter14]

As other members have pointed out, sitting an individual wallow can be a waste of time depending on the area. If you have plenty of wallows, it is a real crap shoot if a bull is going to visit the one you are on. However, \"wallow areas\" are a little different. I have an area I hunt that has 13 wallows over a half a football field sized area. Trails run down and several micro ridges dump into this area, it is elk haven. I really like finding areas with multiple wallows close as I believe these can be a hub of elk activity and routing and indicate a great place to work over.

That\'s great info Alan. Never heard of looking for something like that, but it makes perfect sense. :upthumb:

 

[Swede]

Two Bear, what makes your special spot a wallow area? Is it the only marshy area around, or is it unique in some special way that attracts elk, even though other spots are available? I know of a couple similar places outside my hunting area and one within, but they are strung out along a drainage. The trouble I have seen is that I can be sitting at one spot and the elk come in to another, out of shooting range. As you say, it is a real crap shoot.

 

[Two Bear]

Good question Swede, and the truth is I honestly don\'t know. I will give my opinion but remember, I am no elk biologist, and my opinion is worth the price charged Elk are traditionally a herd animal, roaming about in large herds and engaging in a certain amount of social activity. I find these wallow areas primarily in transition zones close to bedding areas where several trails and micro drainages come together. I think it is just a social \"down town\" area where the elk can smell and keep tabs on the local community, while remaining primarily in the own group. I think they have both social and functional attributes. I think they are very communal areas frequented by several different groups, each which has their own core area and preferred routes, but where all these intersect in a common area. It is a good area for the hunter to get into elk, but sitting any individual wallow when so many are around is still a crap shoot. Here though, the blind setter can combine sitting in the blind with a stalk or calling routine. Just because you are on stand doesn\'t mean you can\'t abandon and pursue.

 

[Swede]

Thanks Two Bear. Even though you are not a biologist, I think you are on the right track here.