Hi all
Today my rancher buddy, who lives 2 miles from my 'honey hole' elk mountain, came into my office with bad news. The BLM has sold the logging rights to the timber in the very basin I hunt. :scared: He started with "Hey Joe I saw your tree go by me house this morning" I have gotten 4 elk and 2 deer out of the same tree. That sacred tree is now destined to be fire wood :bigsmyl:
PS. Well, I've got 5 months, 1 week and 10 hours to scout until the season starts....
Major bummer! You are in the right area and perhaps you will find even better. :thumbsup: :thumbsup:
That sux!
Get out there....get out there soon. Put the time in. You'll be rewarded, I have no doubt.
I know your pain! I had a tree stand up for the late blacktail season. Walked in opening morning to find they had logged the whole slope and saddle AND the tree my stand was in!!! Gone!
But you have a long standing history with your basin and it's elk country...bummer.
Sorry to hear. Maybe you will find something.
I know how you feel. I ended last season to the sound of chainsaws and falling trees. My honeyhole is being developed for new houses. Looks like I have to look elsewhere.
QuoteOriginally posted by Bjorn:
Major bummer! You are in the right area and perhaps you will find even better. :thumbsup: :thumbsup:
Totally!
Sorry to hear that Joe. It;s kind of like losing a close friend. Land I hunted as a youth was sold after hunting it for 15 yrs. But thats life I guess.....nothings forever. Have fun with your new quest, I'm sure you will find new hunting ground to make more memories.
Oh man know that all too well. They are doing sooooo much cutting out here. Mostly due to the beetle kill and the fires. Sorry bout that. Bummer for sure. Where in the state are you?
As bad as that is Joe, you will be glad to know that the tree will now be contributing to the Global Warming they keep talking about which will hopefully get rid of all the snow and cold up here.
All kidding aside, it is always a bad day when you realize your favorite hunting spot is gone. I've been there a couple times, and don't wanna go thru it again (we all know how hard it is to find the "Perfect" one.
It's an (unfortunately) familiar story. Several years ago, one of my hunting buddies and I had access to a small (10 acre plot) that was next to a large farm. We took many whitetails there. One year the farm sold and the developer also bought the 10 acre plot we hunted. We drove through the housing development that stood in its place the next season and tried to use the topography to figure out where our "kill spots" were. It was very sad.
God luck with your search for a new honey hole!
Kingsnake
It's a sad thing for sure. Same thing happened to me several years ago. My favorite tree stood on a spot that is now the middle of a golf course surrounded by 3/4 of a million dollar homes.
Think about it from the elk and deer point of view...they are going to have to adapt to the change...think about how they will do that and let it point you in the direction you need to go...and thanks for giving me a vision of what I need to do...I have access to some great elk country and I need to put in the time to sort out how to be in the right place at the right time...we have some great farmland elk hunting here in Alberta
DDave
Yikes, that is a bummer.
My story is different than yours but....
In the early 80's I built a stand in a very large old tree next to a large swamp in Northern Indiana.
I walked in months later on opening morning in the dark. I couldn't find the tree to save my life. I sat down to wait for daylight.
I was sitting near my tree. The tree had been blown over!
Been there. Loggers just completed a 2-year clearcut on my favorite acreage-- left a big mess, hurts my heart to see it. Plus my super honeyhole was a casualty of a divorce. I'm running out of local options......
I concur with the above statements.......bummer!
Bisch
Sorry to hear that!I went through the same deal, awhile back.They clear cut my honey hole, but the good thing about it is, they left the tops lay! There is more deer in that patch now,than ever before, but also a lot of pain in the butt traversing the mess, along with major briars.They may have done you a favor,if you can establish hunting rights again.
Much of my hunting and fly fishing property belongs to the logging companies, so I've seen it too. I feel your pain.
Bummer Joe!! Looks like you're gonna have to tighten the laces and find a new honey hole. Good luck!!
Think positive even though it looks bleak right now, In a couple years as that starts to grow back, there will be more game there than ever.
I hunt a farm that logged my favorite corner. They actually did it to save it, in order to buy out a 1/2 owner outside the family that wanted to sell it. It took several years, especially since my favorite stand trees are all gone, but I simply figured out new ways to hunt the same spots in different ways, but I see more deer than ever in there.
That sucks Joe...I have the EXACT same tree...but it here in Pennsylvania. Sorry for your loss.......first your gun rights last week...now this. Bummer..
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I know your pain. The natural gas boom is starting here. I have lost close to half my stomping grounds to well pads and pipelines. Looks like they are here to stay. :dunno:
dang
While the 'loss' of a favourite spot is felt, it isn't lost.
Whether logged or burned, western forests need regeneration. We have messed too long fighting every fire that has come along, and now with the Pine Beetle kill, we either harvest and reduce fire load or have truly destructive fires, rather than the regenerative fires that would normally occur in nature.
True nature is in constant flux.
Now having said that, big difference when a golf course or mini-mall sprouts up rather than initial transitional forage for wildlife...
Man thats Sucks
I've been there many times, however many times I have found a better spot. Good luck!
I feel your pain. They cut my Turkey honey hole this past winter. Still have a log skidder bogged down out there.I still hear them gobble but now they fly down on the other side of the small swamp on posted land. Still got a lot of other places to hunt but I had years of figuring out invested in these birds.RC
Thats brutal.
On the plus side I've heard areas cut in the previous couple years are good bear hunting areas. Maybe you'll get a nice bruin there ina couple years .... might be more suited to rifle, but you could try it with teh stickbow for sure.
Plus you never know, might find a spot thats even better. When you chose that location you had 20years less experience. Now you're an expert.
I know it feels bad. But I have seen how deer and elk will quickly begin returning to a clear cut. They like the fresh growth and wide line of sight. You will have to change tactics if you want to hunt the same area.
thanks guys.. here is the deal. the elk will still be there and the water is still water. so I will just get to scouting set up on the trails leading to the H2O. they will be there....
TTT
I had just the opposite problem. I bought land that was adjacent to a "hot spot", and as that surrounding land "matured", my property became dormant. In the last 3 years, I've seen exactly "ZERO" deer-either personally or on trail cams!!!
Sorry to hear that, it's a shame. Good thing you have a few months to scout before season! Good luck.
Dang, that sucks. I would hope I never have to find a new elk tree. They are hard to come by. Good luck.
I too feel your pain.I have losts 2 great stands to major forest fires and then logging.I was bummed.Then mother nature showed me that her rejuvination and the animals will to survive had the power to change things quicker than I ever imagined.Hang in there.
I hope your tree still has its mojo and the change to the area doesnt effect the animals movement. My buddy and I lost a great lease to loggers. It sucks and our favorite tree is now a pallet.
Quiet often, a little thinning opens it up for browse for deer and elk. They can't chew that big stuff; although it is pretty to look at. I'll bet it gets even better over the next few years, given there is water, cover and no roads.
Good luck Joe, don't give up on it too soon.