Overview: Elk can be found throughout the unit. The majority of the elk now spend most of the year on forest service land. However, a relatively small number of resident elk persist in traditional winter range, which is mostly on state trust and private lands. These lands are not public land, but they are open to hunting. Concern over the forage base (from elk residing year-round) and hunter distribution, led to the creation of the Two Guns, Twin Arrows and Grapevine subunits in 2001. This has allowed us to increase hunting pressure on the resident elk population in this area. Hunters need to pay close attention and be knowledgeable of their hunt unit boundary during each hunt. Three large private ranches occur on the winter range: the Flying M, Bar T Bar and Hopi Three Canyon Ranches. Please be respectful of these landowners. Close gates, stay on roads and pack out all of your trash.   

The privately owned land sections of the Hopi Three Canyon Ranches are now Hopi Trust Lands. This effectively means that they have the same status as reservation lands. The Game and Fish Department and the Hopi Tribe have entered a cooperative agreement which allows the Department to manage wildlife on these lands. Access is granted to hunters on Hopi Trust Lands and all Game and Fish rules and laws apply. Please treat these lands with respect.

The elk population in 5B is strong but hunts over the past few years have been designed to reduce the population from its high of the 1990’s. The elk population is now being managed for the current forage conditions to prevent damage to habitat and to minimize competition with other species.
 
Areas: 5BN
After opening morning of a rifle season it is unlikely to catch any elk out on Anderson Mesa during daylight hours. If you are not lucky enough to fill your tag first thing then it is time to look a little harder. Travel corridors to and from feeding areas are a good start. Elk will still use the open grasslands but primarily at night. Being on a travel route to or from a bedding area in the morning or evening is a good bet. Look for trails that connect a mountain or canyon bedding area to a feeding area. The area above and below the Anderson Mesa rim from Chavez Pass to Walnut Canyon has numerous well used travel corridors.

Early Seasons: Elk will be found throughout Anderson Mesa. As noted above they will not likely be in the wide open areas for very long after daylight. Look around the rim of Anderson Mesa. If water is a critical factor elk will likely be found within a mile of standing water both early and late in the day. Some areas to check out include the stretch from Jaycox Mountain to Kinnikinick Lake, Ashurst Run, and the area between Ashurst Lake and Marshall Lake. There are also good numbers of elk below Anderson Mesa. Elk tend to concentrate around the canyons on the east side of the mesa. Elk can be found anywhere from Walnut Canyon on the north side to Diablo Canyon in the south. There are also scattered bands of elk between Winona and Padre Canyon out near I-40.

Late Seasons: Elk locations don’t change a lot during the hunting season unless there is significant snowfall on Anderson Mesa. If the mesa has a fair amount of snow on it then most elk will move to lower elevations. If there is little to no snow then all of the above mentioned areas will still be viable places to hunt. The possible exception would be for mature bulls. After the rut many of the adult bulls will head to lower elevations whether there is snow on the ground or not. The canyons on the north and east side of Anderson Mesa are a good place to find bulls. In the late season one can expect to find spikes or raghorn bulls still running with the cows but the mature bulls will be off by themselves or in bachelor herds. Generally one should look for rugged country with few roads and very little disturbance.

Areas: 5BS
This unit is approximately half as large as 5B north but the elk population is estimated to be almost double that of 5B north. There is no part of the unit that is not elk habitat and as such elk can be found just about everywhere. 5B south consists primarily of national forest land but there are a few residential areas in the unit. Hunters should be aware of the locations of these developed areas and be cautious not to trespass on private property and not to shoot within ¼ mile of any structure.

Early Season:
The early season hunter has numerous options. Since elk can be found throughout the unit the hunter only has to decide how many people they want to deal with. Most hunters will be in the vicinity of Hutch Mountain, Pine Hill and Duke Tank Mesa. Those looking to get away from others should look at areas such as the Sawmill Hills, Sawmill Wash, Turkey Mountain and the area around Hay Lake. In areas of high road density the elk will tend to stay away from roads during daylight hours. Often only a short hike away from the roads is all it takes to find elk. Be sure to move slowly and keep the wind in your face. Many hunters also find success by sitting on game trails. In areas with high hunter pressure elk will often get “pushed around” and by sitting on or near an “escape” trail a person can let others push the elk to them.

Late Season: 
As with 5B north it takes a lot of snow to get elk to move to lower ground. A couple of inches of snow in the high country will not mean that all of the elk have moved out. Snow will only make them easier to track. For antlerless elk all of the areas mentioned above will have elk. While bulls can be found throughout the unit during the late season the best places to look are going to be those that offer security. Look for areas with low road density. Within these areas bulls will tend to gravitate toward canyons or hills as bedding and cover areas.
In 2010 the general season bull elk hunt combines both 5B North and 5B South into one unit that includes all of 5B. Hunters are free to pursue elk throughout the unit. This was done to address the high bull to cow ratio within the unit. By allowing hunters to pursue elk wherever they can be found within 5B the hope is that more bulls will be taken and the ratio will be brought to within Department guidelines.

 
Special Note: The Hay Lake property is now in public ownership and is open to hunting. However, a vehicle closure for the area is in effect and there is no vehicular retrieval of game.