Drew the 27 early archery bull tag

[Bitter24]

Well looks like I drew the unit 27 early archery bull tag. Havent hunted that unit before, though have a buddy who has. Looking forward to this hunt, should be a good time. Curious on the rifle hunt prior to archery will affect the bulls. I have several spots picked out via google earth and such. Looking to head up and hike around to learn some of the land, between now and July. Should be able to make at least 6 trips up. Then going to scout hard in Aug. Hopefully find some water holes their using. I plan on being up on Sept 9th so a week before opener, to scout more for bulls from the 9th-15th. Then hunt starts on the 16th.

 

Any suggestions from anyone who has hunted this unit before? I plan on buring some boot leather myself, and hitting maps hard now.

[GreyGhost85]

Get in shape! Love 27. It's my stomping grounds. I am a fan of the archery hunts after early rifle, should be a much better rut. Early

Rifle shouldn't have much impact being that there are so few tags. Your success will depend on how hard you are willing to hunt. 27 is in my opinion the most physical elk unit

[double lunger14]

I'll let you know what I see!

[Bitter24]

Greyghost, thanks for the info! I heard its rough country and have been workig out. Plus I work in the mountains here at work. So prety used to hiking them. Though working on cardio more to help. Glad to hear you dont think rifle will have too much impact on it. I thought the same thing with the later dates should have good rut activity. Ill take any advise you can give me! Im still debating on where I want to focus on. I have several areas picked out though there all in seperate areas.

 

Dbl Lunger, Congrats!!! Id love to hear how your hunt goes. I will be up there by the 9th to set camp up and scout prior to the 16th. If you need anything. Help packing out etc let me know.

[assassin]

Like GreyGhost said. Get in shape. That country will take the fight out of you pretty quick if you're not ready for it.

[oldboar]

My personal opinion....

 

I had that hunt 5 years ago. You can get away from people if you want to. I never saw another archery hunter on my hunt. That's what made it so great for me....

Not that there isn't plenty of elk just off the roads. Just not my cup of tea.

 

In my opinion scouting trips in early to mid August, aren't going to mean much. Find the cows and your bulls will be there. Concentrate your scouting on the week preceeding your hunt if you want quality info. I found bachelor groups of bulls all the way up until the first week of September, then they broke/and joined up with the cows. One bull with distinctive antler formation. moved 7 miles as the crow flies, from where he summered. Intially found him at 6500 feet, and I saw him 9 days later, at almost 10000 feet.Those bulls move ALOT, the week prior to a normal opener, and being as your hunt is even later this year...I'd spend my gas money on scouting later. They will be vocal, and it should really give you a leg up.

 

I was in dang good shape, I'm a marathoner...blah, blah, blah. This unit will humble you, over the course of 6 days before I killed my bull.... it broke me down, day by day, little by little. Prepare to roll each ankle repetitively...skirting side-hill when working those herds of elk.

 

I chuckle remembering packing out 80 pounds of elk meat, legs quivering on those sidehills, stepping over rocks, down timber. Muscles losing coordination, starting an Involuntary twitch...exhausted. That night I literally felt as though I passed out from fatigue.

 

Hands down the best hunt I've ever been on. But, I love remote, rugged, and am somewhat crazy.

 

Enjoy it! To me, this unit is the most gorgeous blessed elk hunting in the state.

 

Regards,

 

Jim

[GreyGhost85]

My personal opinion....

 

I had that hunt 5 years ago. You can get away from people if you want to. I never saw another archery hunter on my hunt. That's what made it so great for me....

Not that there isn't plenty of elk just off the roads. Just not my cup of tea.

 

In my opinion scouting trips in early to mid August, aren't going to mean much. Find the cows and your bulls will be there. Concentrate your scouting on the week preceeding your hunt if you want quality info. I found bachelor groups of bulls all the way up until the first week of September, then they broke/and joined up with the cows. One bull with distinctive antler formation. moved 7 miles as the crow flies, from where he summered. Intially found him at 6500 feet, and I saw him 9 days later, at almost 10000 feet.Those bulls move ALOT, the week prior to a normal opener, and being as your hunt is even later this year...I'd spend my gas money on scouting later. They will be vocal, and it should really give you a leg up.

 

I was in dang good shape, I'm a marathoner...blah, blah, blah. This unit will humble you, over the course of 6 days before I killed my bull.... it broke me down, day by day, little by little. Prepare to roll each ankle repetitively...skirting side-hill when working those herds of elk.

 

I chuckle remembering packing out 80 pounds of elk meat, legs quivering on those sidehills, stepping over rocks, down timber. Muscles losing coordination, starting an Involuntary twitch...exhausted. That night I literally felt as though I passed out from fatigue.

 

Hands down the best hunt I've ever been on. But, I love remote, rugged, and am somewhat crazy.

 

Enjoy it! To me, this unit is the most gorgeous blessed elk hunting in the state.

 

Regards,

 

Jim

Great description. God's country for sure. I love those gritty, rough yet rewarding hunts

[Alpinebullwinkle]

It most certainly is a marathon....... rather than a sprint....... if you plan to hold out for a quality bull.

 

Now that I have reached "geezer status" I plan the whole 14 day hunt to alternate days/areas based on how strenuous to easy.....planning resting day (easy hunts) to recover for the next strenuous excursion. Sometimes we score on the easy days depending on where the hunters push the herds to. The best part I like about the unit is I can hunt in 3-4 different locations in one day looking for a cow in heat which increases your chances. As previously mentioned by others..... you can also get away from the hunting armies if you wish to hunt for quality...... rather than quantity or action.

[Bitter24]

Oldboar, thanks for the post! Ill take your advise and focus on finding cows. Then the week in advance that I am up there I will focus both on cows and bulls. I know the unit is rough country and that is what I like about it. Too me it looked like a lot of areas where a guy could hike or horseback in and be away from majority of people with ease. Does that mean its easy to do that, not a chance. Though I think worth it. Again awesome post, thanks!

[Bitter24]

Alpine, thanks! I be heading up you way soon, Im jealous of where you live haha. Yes as of now, my plan is to hold out for a decent bull. Though right now just trying to get my ducks in a row before anything else.

 

How is the hunting during the week, is it still made armies roving the roads? Looking on the map I located 8 locations I want to go check out and see what they look like in person. Some are deep back in there away from roads. Others not so much, with easier access. Sounds similar to how you have "easy" and "harder" spots to go. I plan on being able to hunt all 14 days, so also going to base where and how I hunt off the pressure of other people.

[Alpinebullwinkle]

Historically speaking about 95% of the tag holders seem to be out on the first three days of the hunt and then a lot less during the first week. The second week which is always closer to the rut always has significantly fewer hunters. It will be interesting to see if that scenario changes with the archery date change for the first time this year. Also, since I am basically an Alpine resident my scouting is more focused on where the hunters are....... rather than the elk. I know where the elk are generally and where they like to take refuge when the hunting armies invade them during the season. That often dictates the areas and days we hunt different areas.

[Bitter24]

Alpine, thanks again for the post. Good to hear majority of people head home, though I do agree will be intresting how the rut activety is this year. That makes perfect sense on how you go about, and very nice to live right there. Thanks again for your info, maybe we will bump into one another this year.

[Hatchet Jack]

I've only had the 27 late tag, but have had similar experiences as those above. I tried to hit it too hard the first few days and even put on several miles the day before my opener trying to find the elk, and I was worn down just a few days into the hunt. my right knee still isn't the same after taking a tumble while putting a stalk on the bull I ended up shooting on day 6. you'll also get really sick of jumping deadfall and trying to get thru the thorns for days on end if you hunt in the burn. they'll get ya right in the pouch if you're not careful. such an neat area and it'll make you earn it, but you'll have a blast. wish I was going. let me know if you need a meat hauler I'm only a couple hours away.

[GJMauro12]

I drew the archery tag this year also. I was wondering how the cell phone service is up there. Will I have to make daily trips to find service or is there pretty good coverage through out the unit? I use Verizon.

[GreyGhost85]

Good luck with cell phone coverage. Alpine is the closest reliable service. There is one spot on the highway near Josh Ranch where you can usually get a little service. Most of 27 is a black hole