I agree on the pirvate ground surrounding the public not a whole lot you can do about it though.the tag situation you can't go anywhere else any cheaper and have such a good time though,which you would have gotten a elk,were they bugling much?did you get to see any herd bulls?we are heading out first rifle we are going to have to hunt a new area ours burnt up a couple of weeks ago.i think the darn fire started right in my favorite place and then spread to every where i have hunted in the last 15 years,i guess it will be better in the long run though still a bummer.