Although the prices for elk hunts on Vancouver Island are steep, they will only increase as the supply of Roosevelt elk permits falls in other places, particularly with the closure of hunting on California's Santa Rosa Island in 2011. Unquestionably, now is the time to lock up a Roosevelt elk hunt in BC.
There are seven outfitters on the island with Roosevelt permits, and one outfitter on the BC mainland. Before I cover each of these operators, I should remind you that the number of permits reported make up each outfitter's new five-year allocation. I explained the advantages of the newly implemented five-year allocation system in a previous report (See Article ID 1872). Just remember that while outfitters have some flexibility in the number of hunts they book each year, they are limited to a total allocation for a five-year period. That means that although an outfitter may receive a total of seven permits for five years, allowing him to book more than one elk hunt on some years, he can take only seven elk in total.
Outfitters conduct these hunts 1 x 1 but often have more than one guide in the field looking for trophy bulls for the client. Most hunts are for 10 days and are priced in US currency. There are several archery-only hunting areas on the island offering hunts that start on September 10 during the peak of the rut.........(continued)
