Scouting from home questions

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yemtig
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Joined: Sun Mar 27, 2011 9:33 am
Location: Albuquerque, New Mexico

Scouting from home questions

Post by yemtig » Sat Jun 11, 2011 7:48 pm

I have drawn an elk tag in Unit 51 in NM for rifle Oct 22-26th. I grew up in Texas hunting whitetail deer but this is my first try for elk. I know its a totally different ballgame and preparation and scouting are super important. I've got most if not all of the equipment I'll need except for a few items but wanted a little guidance from you guys who seem to be pretty knowledgeable on the art of preparation for my hunt. I have a nice Garmin gps unit with topo maps of the entire us and am planning on buying the BLM quad maps, along with the 7.5' topo maps of my hunting unit.
I have read about using google earth in conjunction with the topo maps to help find areas that would be good for elk such as saddles and benches. I know that in the SW and the drought we've been in finding water, a food source, and good timber to bed down in relatively close proximity is a good start once I hit the ground in the unit come October. I plan on going up there to scout a few times since I live within 3 hours of where I will hunt. I will call and talk to the rangers and such to see what they have to say when the hunt gets closer.

With that said, is there any advice anyone can provide that would make this a successful hunt? Oh, btw, I have a bull tag so I know I'm gonna have to hunt real hard to fill this tag and they will probably be post-rut by the time I get there...

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