RE: When to rifle elk?
Personally I hunt the general rifle season, and as you said I do a lot of glassing and preseason scouting, now I have been lucky so far and have found a high mountain meadow that elk frequent after the rut is over just before they move down into the lower elevations around the IDF&G winter feed sites. So I don't or haven't had to do a lot of looking for them they have been in and out of this location for the last few years and like clock work they seem to move from the BLM land to private property in the first two or three days of general rifle season so I usually slip in between them and their route out and take one every year so far. I do some scouting during this time of the year while out bear and turkey hunting as to see what the winter weather havoc has wreeked on the elk herd and where they are moving at his time frame, then again in Aug. Sept. time frame during our archery season and our upland game season I am watching them and trying to pattern their movements; I have yet to bag an elk with my bow but this year is showing some promise if I do not end up taking a job in Ky. this year!!!