Distance between camping spot and hunting spot?

[12gauge]

Hey Guys,
Was curious what the distance is from your camping spot to your elk hunting spot?

I usually try to camp in a "central" location, that way I can have multiple options if one spot has no activity.

If drawn, I'm thinking about a new camping spot that's closer to one of my honey holes, but was concerned it may be too close. It will be 3/4's of a mile away. It is a "primitive" spot, that gets camping activity/traffic in the summer.

Would you refrain from having a camp fire so close? Aren't elk used to the smell of smoke from forest fires?

Thanks again!

 

[bobby]

I too always have a central spot to camp reason being as you mentioned is so i can hunt other spots im my prime area is being hunted or bothered. AS always on public land that seems to happen you think you have your spot and boom people are there right in it .

I say stay centrally located so you can have room to roam if needed. Its not uncommon for me to drive 45 min to a new hunting spot in the am just gota wake up a bit earlier.

On the camp fire stuff that is bs yes they smell it and not only that it stays in your hair too and they will run away from that . I save the camp fire for after the kill

 

[Ltsheets]

I usually camp about 1/2 - 3/4 of a mile or so from where I want to start glassing. Last year it wasn't intended but ended up only a couple hundred yards from where we would get into elk every morning. That was in one of the best units in the state though with high elk numbers and in a more remote area of the unit.

 

[leftturnabq]

We've setup camp close to the road so as to avoid being too close. Then had elk actually wander thru our camp at night. We've had them bugling close to camp daily...carrying on like business as usual despite our presence, despite whether or not we have a fire at camp.

However, I do agree about getting the campfire smell on your person...especially on a bow hunt.

 

[hank4elk]

LAST EDITED ON Apr-15-16 AT 09:34AM (MST)[p]I do the same & camp off road centrally located for mobility to other areas. I can usually hunt right from camp too.

I had a fire last year during a hunt just to try and dry my rain gear some.
I usually don't. I get back to camp after hunting all day,eat a meal & climb into the bag,4 am comes soon.

 

[BUGLEnmIN]

LAST EDITED ON Apr-15-16 AT 12:05PM (MST)[p]I hunt the wilderness units as much as the draw allows so we have actually had elk in camp more then once. Hunting a roaded unit 3\4 of a mile is not bad. Like Lt stated at least to where you can start glassing. If you are gonna camp 3\4 mile away, just to jump on an ATV and drive a quarter mile from your spot , stop and bugle (like I've seen some morons do) then what's the point? If you're gonna hoof it from camp good. I to save the camp fire for after I'm done , unless i need to dry clothes or run out of stove fuel.

 

[Jagerdad]

I have, many times through many decades, detested bumping into Hunters on Public Lands and adopted a manner that helped me, quite well.

I packed a bare essentials pack and hiked up to the highest or deepest pocket, like a dream spot (always before opening day) and laid out a sleeping bag, set dried foods, water etc over to the side and just sat there glassing until the sun went down. While sitting I looked for branches near me that would either make noise or block a view come morning. This became my Home hours before the sun set and I learned the habits of various birds, small game, memorized the terrain and things were great. There's many sounds to hear if awaken and come morning, I was warm and the Rifle loaded, the Hunt began with the rest of the world elsewhere.

From such a warm spot, I had the luxury of hearing distant vehicles and seeing either the birds or small game move, kinda announcing, here come's a Buck. I had such an advantage that I knew I didn't need to shoot right away. This also rewarded me in watching additional Bucks appear and when I knew, now's the time, I shot and was done Hunting. I've always wondered why I don't hear large numbers of guys doing this. It has been my experiences that game knows where they want to walk to and humans spotted will change their path, but only enough to avoid being seen and they continue to their destination. It's an eye catching scene of drama when you view this afar and wonder if the Hunter will spot the game. Usually the game just out waits the Hunter and you'll see all of this. Whatever the case, there's my 2 cents. After all, if camp is a short distance, why be there.

 

[muleywhisperer]

Wow Jagerdad that was like a scene from a Sandra Brown novel or right from Broke Back Mesa.
The truth is elk are dumb and don't care if your camped close by or not. I usually stay up drinking beer until 3 am blaring my radio to New Mexico music,smoking my Marlboro 1000's then take a 1 hour nap and kill them right off the road at first light within a 1/4 mile from camp. J/K!
Elk in the Gila they seem to be more tolerant to human presence camping than the northern part of the state. My guess is they find humans allot safer than the wolves.

 

[NMWapiti33]

We camp right next to a decent road with 2 trucks, a camper and a couple 4-wheelers, have camp fires and cook in our camo, and hunt elk right out of camp within a couple hundred yards. We have NEVER had problems with the elk smelling us, seeing us or getting pushed out by our presence, or our scent. Gila or up North in 52, same story. I was never a big follower of the scent control thing, and never will be. Killed plenty of "respectable" animals while not worrying about it!

 

[leftturnabq]

I've found an elk's best defense is it's nose.

 

[Dirtbag]

>Wow Jagerdad that was like a
>scene from a Sandra Brown
>novel or right from Broke
>Back Mesa.
> The truth is
>elk are dumb and don't
>care if your camped close
>by or not. I usually
>stay up drinking beer until
>3 am blaring my radio
>to New Mexico music,smoking my
>Marlboro 1000's then take a
>1 hour nap and kill
>them right off the road
>at first light within a
>1/4 mile from camp. J/K!
>
> Elk in the Gila they
>seem to be more tolerant
>to human presence camping than
>the northern part of the
>state. My guess is they
>find humans allot safer than
>the wolves.

Ha ha.....that is good......

 

[DW]

Guy in our group has killed a bull last 4 yrs in a row opening mornin within 300 yds of our spike camp with smoke still comin out the woodburners stack. Just sayin.

 

[12gauge]

Thanks again to all who replied...

 

[SDBugler]

I will throw in a few comments.

I strongly feel that elk are MUCH more tolerant of humans at night then they are during the day. For example - if an elk sees/hears you driving up the road during the day they are gone. At night they will run into cover and then come back out into the field again 30 minutes later.

As mentioned elk will walk right through your camp at night. I have had this happen several times. Once during my son's youth hunt in unit 34 we had a full moon and 4 nights in a row the same bull walked through the middle of our camp around 11:30 pm bugling. One of the those nights he was so close that he cast a shadow from the full moon onto our tent - Can you imagine my 14 year old son watching/hearing that from inside the tent!! It was priceless.

Another time I had a bivy camp in the Gila Wilderness. I had a bull wake me in the middle of the night bugling as he came walking toward my camp. I could hear him approaching within feet of my tent. He stopped at my tent and pressed his nose against the tent just inches from my face and I could her him sniffing. As he walked away he snagged his hoof on one of my tent ropes and pulled the corner of my loose. He just walked off bugling.

On the flip side, I have had elk come into camp at night and as soon as they got wind of human scent, they ran off. Each elk is different.

 

[BUGLEnmIN]

100% accurate


>I will throw in a few
>comments.
>
>I strongly feel that elk are
>MUCH more tolerant of humans
>at night then they are
>during the day. For
>example - if an elk
>sees/hears you driving up the
>road during the day they
>are gone. At night
>they will run into cover
>and then come back out
>into the field again 30
>minutes later.
>
>As mentioned elk will walk right
>through your camp at night.
> I have had this
>happen several times. Once
>during my son's youth hunt
>in unit 34 we had
>a full moon and 4
>nights in a row the
>same bull walked through the
>middle of our camp around
>11:30 pm bugling. One of
>the those nights he was
>so close that he cast
>a shadow from the full
>moon onto our tent -
>Can you imagine my 14
>year old son watching/hearing that
>from inside the tent!!
>It was priceless.
>
>Another time I had a bivy
>camp in the Gila Wilderness.
> I had a bull
>wake me in the middle
>of the night bugling as
>he came walking toward my
>camp. I could hear
>him approaching within feet of
>my tent. He stopped
>at my tent and pressed
>his nose against the tent
>just inches from my face
>and I could her him
>sniffing. As he walked
>away he snagged his hoof
>on one of my tent
>ropes and pulled the corner
>of my loose. He
>just walked off bugling.
>
>On the flip side, I have
>had elk come into camp
>at night and as soon
>as they got wind
>of human scent, they ran
>off. Each elk is
>different.