Quick Tips
- Study the road maps and find pockets of land that don't have logging roads going through them
- Find North facing slopes with heavy timber during September seasons. These are key bedding areas for elk during the heat of the day
- Use abandoned logging roads as access to different parts of the unit
| species | general Size | trophy potential |
|---|---|---|
| Columbian Blacktail Deer | 110"-130" | 140"+ |
| Roosevelt Elk | 230"-260" | 260"+ |
On The Ground
The Siouxon GMU is nearly 90% Forest Service land, which means it is almost entirely public land. This is a huge draw for big game hunters. This unit is large and the Wind River drainage is the main landscape feature, fingering out with smaller canyons and ravines from there. Much of the unit can be remote, with many logging roads that haven't been used in 20+ years, access to much of the area can be great with some effort. Elk numbers in the unit have been steady, while deer populations have been low in recent years, much like the surrounding areas. Attractive for its remote areas, the Siouxon unit also has the Indian Heaven Wilderness which remains unaltered. Elk hunting in this area can be fantastic, provided hunter effort gets them away from crowds. Lately, the Washington Department of Fish and Wildlife has been conducting studies to find out what is causing the “hoof rot” disease in elk. Because of this, any harvested elk MUST have the hooves left in the field.
Blacktail numbers are on the rise, tags for antler-less deer have been reduced in recent years.
Terrain
Most of the unit is based entirely off of the Wind River drainage and its tributaries, however, toward the northeast part of the unit, the Indian Heaven Wilderness can provide some of that alpine meadow type landscape with some flat terrain mixed in. Generally, the National Forest will be mostly heavy timber, so expect to cover ground versus sit and glass for game.
Roughly 443 square miles
91% public land
Elevations range from 1,000-6,000 feet
Vegetation
Heavy timber and old growth will comprise the majority of this unit. The exception being the wilderness areas which will have some open meadow country scattered throughout the alpine. Along with huckleberry bushes, vine maple runs rampant.
Access
Most of the unit can be accessed by a few main highways running through. From here you can hike, bike or horseback many old logging and recreational roads that have long been grown over. Main access will be from the FS90 road from the northwest side of the unit, along with the Wind River road coming from the south.
Hunter numbers will be highest along the main access roads
Modern lodging can be found in Woodland, Wa as well as Carson and Stevenson
Be sure to check campgrounds and make reservations in advance to make sure you will have space for camp
Camping and Lodging
Primitive camping on the National Forest land is allowed, during most of the year. Various fire bans and forest road closures may happen, so double check any restrictions or permits necessary prior to your trip.
There aren’t really any major cities or towns in the interior of the unit, so plan ahead for any amenities that you might need.
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