The Elk Superhighway

For all the hunters out there, I have found the spot for you. The only problems are the questionable nature of the land ownership (not sure if it's actually public or private), and the fact that you have to hike a couple miles through the mountains to get to the spot. Carrying an elk out might be difficult. So maybe it really isn't the spot for you, but it definitely is the spot for elk. Right on the treeline between the meadow and forest near the summit of South White Peak was like a regular Elk Superhighway. The sign was literally everywhere you looked. Nearly every aspen tree had dozens of rubs on them, going back years, and some fresh from this year. Some of the rubs were 6'-7' high.

There were also dozens of sets of tracks along the forest edge. Since we were on our way to the peak of the mountain, we didn't follow any, but there was one spot in particular that 4 or 5 sets of tracks entered & exited the woods at the same spot. Most of the rest of the tracks followed along the forest edge. All of these tracks we saw in the snow, most of which looked somewhat old. I would guess they weren't more than a couple weeks old though, considering the amount of snow we've gotten up here (not much) and how hot it has been up here (in the 50's and sunny). Snow doesn't hang around long these days. I lost track counting the number of droppings, but I think it must have been somewhere north of 25 pellet groups. 

So there's definitely elk there, and hopefully we can spot some before we leave Colorado. I'm hoping we can go back up there a little later in the year, follow the sign into the woods, and find some antlers dropped at least!