We've hunted unit 12 the past 4 years and just have begun to figure out the pattern the elk use in 1st rifle. The White River herd is the largest in the state (44,000), but they are also scattered out over a large area. The real nice part of hunting that unit is the fact that you can get an either sex tag for 1st rifle. That tag is good for a bunch of surrounding units, so you have lots of ground to pick. We've seen elk every year during season and harvested 2 out of the 4 years. We've met guys that have hunted that particular area for 20 years getting their elk 95% of the time. I did notice this year that some of the harvest numbers were down. Not nearly as many elk in the camps as the past couple of years, but I think some of those guys are transient hunters (new faces) and don't really know the ground they are hunting yet and therefore are not as successful.
On a side note, those units are some of the most beautiful in the state, especially in June/July. Great time and place for family camping/scouting trips....Hint, hint
