If you ask them about specific areas you will undoubtedly sound like you did your homework. If you say " x drainage, or x mountain looks like it has good cover and water, do you know anything about that area?" He' ll give you the info he knows about it. You' d be surprised what they' ll tell you. Then ask follow up questions based on his responses. Ask if hes seen or heard of a lot of elk coming out in trucks, ask about hunting pressure.

One year I asked a ranger by phone about a potential elk area in a unit I was thinkg about hunting. He didn' t have much to say except very vague answers. I then said " well x mountain looks good because it looks like it has some deep timber and a stream, what do you know about it?" He began to tell me that mountain had been on fire 2 years before and they couldn' t keep the elk off of it. They wanted the small quakies to grow but the elk love to eat em. I didn' t draw on that unit but found if you ask specific questions they really open up.

Another year I was already hunting in a Unit and asked a ranger driving by camp" where are the elk?" He responded by saying " oh they' re around." I then asked " how about x ridge? Looks like no roads for 2 miles and great feeding grounds on the map." He went on to tell me that 2 days earlier he heard bulging like crazy coming from that area. When he got out his spotting scope he said they were everywhere. We pulled two bulls outta there the next day.

I think the problem is they have so much knowledge that if you don' t ask specific questions they don' t know where to start. Besides no one really has much to offer a guy thats looking for a free lunch. I would say you do not fit in that category, keep on researching and you should find some great info.