WSFS Why burn now?
 

I was wondering if anyone else was as disappointed as I was during the eastern Washington Muzzleloading season in the nile unit. My group had two cow tags for this area and the F*%^#@g forest rangers came in there and started random burns in several different areas of the nile unit. One was about 200 yards from our camp. They started burning on Thursday and left them unattended to burn out on there own. Is anyone else as discouraged about hunting in this state as I am? I think it is a plow to get the animals out of the area as quick as possible to eliminate the kill ratio. Unfortunatly we didn't even see an animal after they started burning, but on Wednesday there were elk all over the ridge we were camped on. WHAT can we as hunters do or say about this? Please reply, I think this is just crap!

RE: WSFS Why burn now?
 

ELK,

Yup, MAD AS HELL!

They had 2 weeks between archery and ML to do their burning but NO!!!!, they had to wait till the season started. If anyone finds out who to complain to please post here as I will write a letter.

Our group also had cow tags for the Nile though we camped off of the Bumping river road which turned out to be a good thing as we didn't have to put up with the smoke at camp.

We hunted alot along the 1706 and 1709. One in our group put a spike down off of the 332 spur but it got up and ran off without a blood trail. We searched the rest of the day but never did find him. Two days later in the exact same place we called in 2 cows but could not get off a shot. They ended up circling us and finally got wind and bolted. Those are all we saw in the Nile.

Our group ended up getting 2 spikes less than a 1/2 mile from our camp over on the Bumping which is odd considering we all had cow tags for the Nile.

Take care,
Lee

RE: WSFS Why burn now?
 

Lee, when did you get your spikes, I think we were the group that camped next to you on the bumping road? You came into our camp the day we were packing to go home. Did you guys get those spikes in the bumping just out of your camp? Congratulations on the spikes. I would like to know where you were when you got them because we hunted that ridge pretty dam hard and saw hardly any fresh sign. Remember us, we bugled in that guy in the truck as he was driving down the bumping road? HA HA!

RE: WSFS Why burn now?
 

ELK101,

Yup, Thats me. I am the younger fella of the 2 that came to your camp. Small (internet) world!!!!!!

The first spike was taken by another hunter in our camp the day after you left. Right down the road at the Cougar Flats camp ground. We were actually driving out at sun-up to go to the 1706 and had a cow cross the road in front of us there. We stopped and 2 of us went off road on the river side and the other 2 went into the woods on the other side. We bugled a few times and this crazy bull came right in to us. He would run in large circles all around us bugling like crazy. Well one of the fellas had went about 200 yds into the woods and was listening to this crazy bull when he heard something behind him. It was a spike at 50yds. BOOM! Meat on the ground.

I shot the other spike on Friday, the last day of the season. On Thursday afternoon we had walked across the road from our camp to that small field. We walked in and followed a trail about 1/3 mile up the ridge. There we found a small clover clearing and we bugled a few times and heard nothing. After 30 or so minutes we decided to head back to camp as it was getting late. We had only went 20yds from the clearing when we walked into 2 cows. That next morning we got up well before sun-up and went back to this same little clover clearing up the ridge. At sun-up, on the very first bugle we got an answer from this spike and he was VERY close. He came right in and I blasted him. More meat on the ground.

I guess it boils down to being in the right place at the right time. In other words "Dumb luck"!

Take care,
Lee

RE: WSFS Why burn now?
 

Lee so your telling me you got both of your animals on the bumping side? Fancy that. I can't believe we pulled out that early. It is a small world with this thing (internet) I am the smaller one of the two of us as well. So basically you shot your animal right above your camp on the other side of the road? How long did it take to pack the meat out. Was there any size to the spikes? How many cows did you see in that area? I saw only old sign, its weird the way the woods work. One day their in there and the next their not.

Congrats on the animals, are they your first?

RE: WSFS Why burn now?
 

ELK101,

Yes-sir-ee, I shot mine right across the paved road from our camp. In fact both of the elk we took were on the bumping side of the road.

We saw a total of 5 Elk around camp. Three cows and the 2 spikes we shot. We saw the one cow that crossed the road at Cougar flats on 2 different mornings. The other 2 cows are the ones I mentioned up near the clover covered clearing up on the ridge above camp.

Over off of the 1706 we saw 1 spike and 2 cows.

Since there are 4 in our group (and the fact that it was all down hill) we had my elk back in camp in about 2 hours. This elk was actually a 1x2 spike. I will have to measure the horns.

Also, yes it was my first elk and my friends first elk.

Take care,
Lee

RE: WSFS Why burn now?
 

I doubt it was by coincidence either[:'(] Commie Pinkos probably hate hunters as bad as anyone[:'(]

RE: WSFS Why burn now?
 

Down here in oregon they pulled the same stunt opening day of rifle deer in ukia unit

RE: WSFS Why burn now?
 

Hey Elk101 - a couple of those fires were still smoking on saturday.

The forest service does this every couple years in the Naches area. Don't know about other areas, as I grew up in Naches and really only hunted around that area.