Wilson Unit wireless Elk Hunting Camp report

[StevenB]

I can hear distant traffic on 26 from my tent. Maps and planned hunts are at least 8 miles from camp. I'm camped in this part of Wilson Unit for the cell signals and it's fairly central too.

Plan for day one is to hunt up a lonely ridge I've come to know and love. Beyond that ridge are few square miles of terrain that just might hold a bull.
Like Dale the elk detective I don't have to see tracks with hooves still in the to have a good day of coastal elk hunting.

Near toy in my day pack is a Jetboil stove. Moutain House lunches ought to be real short order now.

Still wearing my Xtra Tuff boots even during this dry period. It's all about sock combinations and layers. Not holding fire if I see a spike. Looking for big bull but will shoot his small bull body guards.

Hunting partners are my folks. At 88 dad is staying in camp. Mom at 82 will hunt a region that's not too rugged yet has provided a spike three seasons back. My folks spoil me by staying healthy.

The eve of elk hunting is something I'm savoring this year as I hunted the Cascade in 07. Coast range just feels more like home for me. I know more about what has to be coped with and how the elk behave. There are always some new twists and loops to make it interesting every day.

I like to end the day coming out onto a road around dusk but with a GPS and LED lights it's sometimes not what has to happen. Then again Wilson Unit has a lot of places where footing is steep for night travel. Time to quit savoring the eve of elk hunting. I'll need some strength to savor the eve of day two of elk hunting.

[HOGGEMIN]

Good luck to you and happy hunting. I have spent many late archery seasons there when they offered a late season archery tag.

[sschwab]

Sounds like a special time and place for you. Keep us updated?

[3fletch]

Good luck to you and your parents...

[Rank Amateur]

Good luck StevenB! Yes, that special time of year is here again. Is it really elk hunting without rain???

[StevenB]

No Rain and yet no frost either. Pineapple Express! Can probably watch the chantrells grow... if I could stand still that long.

Dale maybe you or someone else could pm me an email address in case I have a post worthy photo. My hardware is an iPhone, it's not ifish photo friendly.

[Rauly]

Have a safe fun hunt with family. You are a lucky man. I hope you get a good bull and post up some picktures.

[strictlyRUM]

Now that sounds like a hunt. Cant wait for the report.

Jason

[ehunter]

Steven hope all goes well, I ahve a feeling you will get into them...

[StevenB]

Originally Posted by ehunter

Steven hope all goes well, I ahve a feeling you will get into them...

So far so good. Not scouting is my handicap though. It's as though I am doing my homework on the bus again.

Ehunter your hunch was right. Today I tracked a herd with at least one spike. They swam a river (a creek on most days) and lost me for the day. I didn't know so many bridges were washed out. Many from a couple years back it seems.

Met a pair of elk hunters who had knocked down a spike. They'd been glassing a herd Thurs & Friday. They had done their homework at home?

My leggs are holding up. A lot of camps and hunting effort this season. It has to be the great weather. Going to lighten the daypack load. More hand warmers and no extra clothes. Battery is low better go.

[No Fences]

Originally Posted by StevenB

So far so good. Not scouting is my handicap though. It's as though I am doing my homework on the bus again.

Ehunter your hunch was right. Today I tracked a herd with at least one spike. They swam a river (a creek on most days) and lost me for the day. I didn't know so many bridges were washed out. Many from a couple years back it seems.

Met a pair of elk hunters who had knocked down a spike. They'd been glassing a herd Thurs & Friday. They had done their homework at home?

My leggs are holding up. A lot of camps and hunting effort this season. It has to be the great weather. Going to lighten the daypack load. More hand warmers and no extra clothes. Battery is low better go.

Good luck, looking forward to more updates.

[bigjake_888]

Go steve, work hard!

[StevenB]

Originally Posted by bigjake_888

Go steve, work hard!

My boots are off and it feels great.

Great post. I like to crack the whip or simply find modivation along with the adventure. Also trying to work smart.

I took a tour that included the Salmonberry River. (The last two October Wilson rifle hunts that's where I tagged my bulls. Since then have not seen any elk.). Spotted a couple nice steelheads ready for spawning.

Other than a few day old single tracks crossing the trip down just offered some satisfaction that I wasn't missing out on finding a bull. There is a point, 700 ft elevation and lower, that I get some distress about having a huge packout uphill. The Sberry river tracks are no longer an option in many areas. Back at my vehicle with no elk down I cannel my distress to getting an elk before the seasons end. I also enjoy some relief that I didn't shoot an elk "way Down Upon The Salmonberry River..."

At 10am I realized I'd not packed a flashlight! Decided to try and get back early enough to have at least an hour to cruise another below the road spot. Had only been there once before but I liked what I saw that time. Though sloped there are some level areas with a lot of trails and decent feed.

It's a place I can move fast without making much sound due to bare trails. It worked out well no bull sighted but saw two different groups without spooking one of the groups. Identified 4 antlerless elk and due to fading light I was content to have a strong reason to go there tomorrow.

Took two rides from some kind hearted hunters to get back to my morning launch spot. I learned a good theory for the high number of hunters. Seems there are a lot more locked gates and then Hyway6 is still being worked on. I have to find some of those gates next season.

The two best days of the hunt are left. Still planning to travel light as today. I will bring a headlight this time.

Moms planning to tour a place 1/2 mile SE of where I saw the elk today. It's an easy access packout from where she will be.

Tonight is tent sauna night. No elk down so no more than one beer :@(

[HOGGEMIN]

good luck Steve................:applause :

[Art Vandeley]

Thanks for keeping us posted, I enjoy reading ! Good luck.

Mitch

[hrbassin]

Keep up the good work! Reading this is already more fun than my elk hunt this year. oh well, it happens. Keep at it.


Mark

[woodsy188]

We're looking forward to tonight's update. I heard some cow calls yesterday to get me excited. Wish I was back today!

[StevenB]

Originally Posted by woodsy188

We're looking forward to tonight's update. I heard some cow calls yesterday to get me excited. Wish I was back today!

No antlered elk seen yet. It's getting real dry in the woods and a few gusts of wind are kicking up for a few minutes at a time. Can see dust in the headlights when driving behind someone.

I'll keep this days report short because I want to relax for a while and the study took maps the rest of the evening. I need to find some more trAcks with elk feet still in them. As tomorrow is the last day I plan to elaborate on today and tomorrow Tuesday evening.

My biggest goal (as always) is to finish the season with no injuries. Logs seem to be on the top 5 biggest risks list. Somewhere after that comes taking an elk with as few shots as possible.

No quitting early tomorrow so I can take down my tent before dark. (unless I get my elk out by noon.)

[StevenB]

On Monday morning the idea of sighting a bull was eating away at any external or internal distractions. The conditions underfoot though was a valid distraction because the elk tracks from the day before were tedious to read or follow on the dried soil.

I seldom hunt elk in the same place two days in a row. Because I'd seen no sign of other (human) hunters and a decent amount of elk sign I thought I'd make a day of it. About 2.5 miles south my mom was patroling an area with several old logging grades.

I made about .5 miles progress tracking the elk herd from Sunday evening. At one point I passed an eight foot high bull rub on an alder. It was weeks old but it was a meaningful inspiration that I still reflect on. At the time though the dried bull rub made it clear I should find an area with more dew moisture.

Changing areas takes away time in the field but I was convinced my 2008 bull was going to live past Tuesday if I kept cruising the dew free areas. Too noisy and difficult for reading tracks. By 1pm I had caught a ride from my mom to my ride. In 30 minutes I arrived at place I could cover ground with some stealth and read tracks with more ease.

Three hours later with a half hour of shooting light, having seen nothing related to an antlered elk aside from the elk rub, I gave a lot of my efforts to just leaving the woods. If plain old luck wanted to hand me an elk I would be ready to recieve. And then there was day for which started with a heavy mist/rain. Or was that a massive amount of dew?

Today (soon to be yesterday) I decided to invest in hunting where I hunter Monday. The area was freshly soaked and it had a lot of good qualities such as thickets to hide in and food to eat. At eight am I sighted my last two elk for the 2008 season.

The two elk moved into cover and I paralel followed them. About 300 yards later I was 50 yards from the two elk that seemed to be alone. They were a cow and a calf.

If my hunting speed on day one was like that of an Ironman Race today it was more like a game of hide & seek. (I guess I'm still it then?) Sorry no critter to punctuate the narration. I think I'm due for getting the workout and no elk. This is my first time since 72 not tagging an Oregon elk two years in a row.

There is an active thread here on ifish posted by ehunter. It asks what is our greatest weak spot for elk hunting. I've given my answer as of now has to be not scouting. After that I think that looking back on my "good ol days" of elk hunting isn't helping very much. Why there was a time back in the day when...

Posting from camp has been a good experience for me even though editing with my iPhone can be trying. At times it''s like using a muzzle loader compared to a PC.

[Blacktail Slayer]

Thaks for sharing your hunt with us.

[Rank Amateur]

Your late post gave me hope. Sorry about the tag soup, you are catching up with me. Looked like tough conditions to me as I drove back and forth to work. The any of the hunting seasons can be a toss of the dice, sometimes the odds really get stacked against you.

[woodsy188]

Thank you for your stories. It allowed me to get into the woods when I had to be at my desk.

[Silver Eagle]

Good Story and I was pulling for you, have hunted the Wilson and it can be tough........Ray

[ehunter]

Steven I feel for you I have had tag soup for a couple of years in a row not for lack of trying. I know that you hunted hard. We need to get together and commiserate our seasons. Maybe we should wait until Dale gets done then if its a positive for him it will rub off and if its a negative we call all cry together over a burger and a beer

[StevenB]

Originally Posted by woodsy188

Thank you for your stories. It allowed me to get into the woods when I had to be at my desk.

Glad you enjoyed the hunting notes from the early season. I like Rank prefer the late season. This year though I was working out of state a lot more (over half the year) so the away from home time was adding up. Short ans sweet was my hunt but I can almost remember every hour of it. Thanks for the positive feedback.

Originally Posted by Silver Eagle

Good Story and I was pulling for you, have hunted the Wilson and it can be tough........Ray

There are few of us who would call the Oregon coast habitat for elk goods country. I recall being in Larry's Sporting Goods in Oregon City buying one of my first elk tags. Ahead of me was a big man asking to buy an elk tag. The clerk asked "Eastern or western Oregon?" The guy ahead of me almost lost his temper with his answer. "Eastern elk !!! I'd never want to hunt that thick bush on the west side !!! One experience that made much of the Oregon coast very tolerable and even God's Country was hunting (as a non-resident) the north cascades of Washington State.

Originally Posted by Rank Amateur

Your late post gave me hope. Sorry about the tag soup, you are catching up with me. Looked like tough conditions to me as I drove back and forth to work. The any of the hunting seasons can be a toss of the dice, sometimes the odds really get stacked against you.

I think one can scout too much as well as too little. Not scouting at all has been the norm for me. My theory is how hard can it be to find a 600 to 900 pound animal with yellow/orange hair & antlers? (weather permitting)

Originally Posted by ehunter

Steven I feel for you I have had tag soup for a couple of years in a row not for lack of trying. I know that you hunted hard. We need to get together and commiserate our seasons. Maybe we should wait until Dale gets done then if its a positive for him it will rub off and if its a negative we call all cry together over a burger and a beer

By all means ehunter. I'll bring my roebuck mount. (See story in coming weeks)

No tears of sadness though. Better yet lets look to the future elk hunts and enjoy the sweetness of those in the past. The herds are not what they used to be but neither is the forest.

Originally Posted by Blacktail Slayer

Thanks for sharing your hunt with us.

ifish is a place worth sharing hunts on. I have enjoyed many relived hunts here too. I even enjoy reading about hunting I'd never want to do here. Any kind of Oregon Big Game hunting is what I like to hunt. Many thanks to
Jennie !!! And all the moderators for making this forum what it is.

[woodsy188]

"By all means ehunter. I'll bring my roebuck mount. (See story in coming weeks)"

You might drop us a line on this thread to let us know when the story is revealed. Just in case I don't check into IFISH for a few days... thanks!

[StevenB]

Originally Posted by woodsy188

"By all means ehunter. I'll bring my roebuck mount. (See story in coming weeks)"

You might drop us a line on this thread to let us know when the story is revealed. Just in case I don't check into IFISH for a few days... thanks!

I'd be glad to woodsy188. By December things get mostly ducky around here.