Elk Hunt.
 

Hey all, fairly new to hunting, and very new to Elk hunting. That being said, my wife and three kids and my self will be starting to scout for Elk this summer in the Cold Lake area.
I know the lake its self fairly well but haven't put much time in the bush up there. We wint have lots of time so we will need to maximize and be as efficient as possible while scouting.

My question is,
-where would a good place be to start looking?
Crown land is our preferred areas, but not limited to.
Thanks for any intel you want to provide.

Cold lake elk... that’s going to be a tough go, if you find them then you know where to be.

LC

Yeah I had to look it up on ihunter didn't even realize there was a season up there
If you're hunting in the November season I would start looking on private land fields
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I’d be looking on private land fields as soon as the fields start growing.

I would spend your time walking the Beaver River Valley as that seems to be their travel route. It won’t be easy though. I’ve lived in the area for a long time and spend a lot of time in the bush and I’ve only ran into one cow elk. The only ones that most people have seen are within a few miles of the river north or south.

Good Luck!

There is about 1 elk per every 100 hunters in the 4 WMU's in the area.....good luck.

Yes Yoda, that's definitely how it works! The Cold Lake area is vast, hence the question "where to start". Anyway thanks for the comical comment! Cheers.

Thanks for some starting points! Cheers

Where to start looking? Somewhere other than the cold lake area would be the best advice.

Food source
 

Elk have 3 main driving forces each one plays off the next at certain times of the year. Food, safety, breeding.
Generally speaking find the best feed and you will find the Elk.
Elk generally feed at night they choose feed sights based on quality of food and relative safety while on the feed. They will sometimes pick a second rate food source if it offers greater security as long as it fills the nutritional need. Elk bed during mid morning through late afternoon. They will choose bedding sites based on security first and water and light browsa second. Locate areas that offer security. Look for thick areas that might offer ok browse and access to water.
Breeding is the one time of year when bulls will grow caution to the wind for even just a few days at a time. The cows however often stick mainly to the food and safety rule. Find the cows at this time and you will find bulls.
Locating areas to begin searching can be done by E scouting. Once areas have been located boots on the ground to confirm. Often Elk follow a pattern set by the lead cow. Sometimes it's a 3 day pattern sometimes a 2 week pattern. Hard to say in a specific area. I have also noted a change in pattern depending on whether.the lead cow is harvested. One herd I witnessed in my area had the lead cow harvested and the herd changed majorly in where they fed and bedded and general habits of movements..my guess is the new lead cow had different pattern in mind than the previous one??

For other Elk hunting/ scouting tips look up the Elk tactics thread on here

That’s kind of what I was getting at :)

LC

I would have to agree with this. If you are really looking to fill an elk tag, there are lots of better areas with much higher elk density further west or south. Now, if you are just looking for an excuse to spend time in the bush with your family, then it is a great excuse and I say give it a shot! It’s definitely possible to connect on one here, but being new to elk hunting the Cold Lake area isn’t the place to learn. My two cents.

Elk hunting around cold lake I would guess success rate to be 0.01% unfortunately.

Probably 0.01% higher than the Fort Mac area :)

LC

Cold Lake Elk...………. yes they are there as I have observed them on several occasions. I will just say not on crown land from what I have seen but that does not mean they are not on crownland.

BAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHA!!!!!!!! They're all in Sask.

Where I hunt wolves are a huge factor in Elk movement and location.

Cold lake may not be the best area for a successful hunt, however even high elk density areas(not many of those on public land now) are hard especially for a decent bull.

Whatever the outcome enjoy your hunt.

elk
 

Cold lake is new area for elk, takes time to build up good elk numbers especially with high wolf and black bear population. Obsessed has given you some very good elk knowledge. Elk also want a river for safety as they head for deep water to get away from wolves.