With a good forecast for the Wilson and Trask units, expect some company this fall. "Based on public-land ownership and abundant places to camp, realize there are going to be other hunters in great numbers," says Nezum. "Even given that, if people work at it, they can find spots away from the crowds."

He suggests that elk hunters target clearcuts in order to find the biggest bulls.

"The elk don't range over wide areas too much," Nezum states. "They will stick to some timber and work the clearcuts in the mornings and evenings."

While the Wilson and Trask are among the best general-season units for elk in Oregon, the Cascade Bull Elk Season units are also well worth hunting. The group of units includes the Santiam, McKenzie, Indigo, Dixon, Evans Creek, Rogue, Keno, Metolius and portions of the Upper Deschutes, Fort Rock and Sprague units. The Santiam, Dixon and Rogue units often produce the best hunting in the Cascades group of units.

"Without a doubt, the Rogue and Dixon units have the most elk and the most public access, and that's where I send folks," says Mark Vargas, an ODFW biologist based in Medford.

Like the Wilson and Trask units, the units of the southern portion of the Cascades general-season hunt saw low harvest numbers in 2006. While 101 elk were taken in the Rogue Unit, that was only a 5 percent hunter-success rate. The Dixon Unit had a 4 percent success rate.

"It really comes down to weather for the general Cascades season. If we get some snow, that really makes a big difference," Vargas says. "If the weather is warm, concentrate on higher elevations, north-facing slopes where it's a little cooler."

During dry weather, sneaking up on big bulls is more difficult. "Some years it's so dry it's like walking on cornflakes," he says.

Last year, Vargas had predicted a higher harvest in Southern Oregon. But the low harvest in 2006 is good news for hunters planning on buying a general-season tag for this fall. The Cascade Bull Elk Season runs Oct. 20 through 26, and tags can be purchased up until the day before the season begins.

Hunters new to the southern portion of the Cascades season can find plenty of access on vast stretch of highways and logging roads. Highway 62 near Prospect and Union Creek leads to good elk habitat, while elk also can be found near the Butte Falls Highway, Highway 140 between Medford and Klamath Falls, and Dead Indian Memorial Road. Fish Lake, Howard Prairie Lake and Hyatt Lake are good areas to begin scouting for elk in the Rogue Unit.

"If people want to get away from the roads," Vargas says, "I'm sending them to the Sky Lakes Wilderness Area and Rogue-Umpqua Divide."

Also, a fair amount of industrial timberlands grant access to hunters during elk season. Many will open their gates during hunting seasons, or allow hunters to park beside the logging roads and walk into gated areas,

Many public forest roads in Southern Oregon are closed to vehicle traffic during elk season, which has help elk flourish in the Cascades over the past 20 years. "Elk numbers were really low, about four or five bulls per 100 cows," Vargas says of Cascade elk numbers in 1987.

"We proposed a change in the two November seasons to make it one October season. That allowed more elk to escape harvest. Over the course of a few years, the elk herds started to increase. Over time, the herds built up. Those travel management areas provide great bull escapement and provide an opportunity for a better quality hunt that allows hunters to walk on a road and not have a vehicle come by all the time."

Check the regulations carefully for road closures during elk season in the Cascade units.

With high bear populations in southwestern Oregon, Vargas says that elk hunters also may want to carry a bear tag. Many of the bears harvested each fall are by elk hunters who run across a bear in the Rogue, Tioga, Chetco, Applegate, Dixon and Powers units.

"Southwestern Oregon has some of the higher bear populations in the state," Vargas says. "Coos and Curry counties are probably the highest. It's a great opportunity for elk hunters. We have lots of bear, and we have lots of cougars. I would suggest people carry a cougar tag as well."

An Oregon hunting license costs $22.50 for residents and $76.50 for non-residents. Elk tags are $34.50 for residents, $361.50 for non-residents. General-season tags can be purchased up until the evening before the season opens. Bear tags must be purchased by the day before general deer seasons open.