RE: How far back do you go?
For Elk:
25 miles of easy graded dirt road to the main camp (by any vehicle as long as snow is minimal, 4WD advised).
4 miles of trail to spike camp on foot leading pack horse (no ATVs allowed in this area thank God).
From the spike camp we range on foot from 150 yards (actually a good spot) to up to 2 miles further back in on foot (from the spike camp). The more people we have along the more we have to "range out" to get some separation.
EKM