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Elk Advice

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Elk Advice

Postby Trophyhill » 02 08, 2014 •  [Post 1]

other than the ole phrases "elk are where you find them" and "hunt where the elk are", what is the best piece of advice someone gave you in regards to hunting elk? for me so far, it was "don't be picky. don't pass up shot opportunities no matter whether bull or cow. get experience at killing elk with your bow (or any other game for that matter) and the process from start to finish. from scouting, to picking a camp, to learning about elk habitat and behavior, to calling, to killing, to field dressing, to packing, before you start getting selective. it isn't like the TV shows in reality. get that experience and never think you know it all"! thanks Rod AKA Slickstalker on another forum.
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Re: Elk Advice

Postby twinkieman » 02 08, 2014 •  [Post 2]

Get on Elknut.com and get the as much info that Paul Medell has to offer, and learn it.
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Re: Elk Advice

Postby Swede » 02 08, 2014 •  [Post 3]

Know your source. There are all kinds of people supposedly giving advice. Some are honest, knowledgeable and willing to help. Some are not. Some people want to sound like they know, but really don't. Others want to throw you off track. For them it is "yea for me and screw you", as cnelk wrote about.
For the inexperienced hunter it is sometimes difficult to determine who is what. I remember some things I was told that took years to clear out of my head, and get rid of.
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Re: Elk Advice

Postby cohunter14 » 02 08, 2014 •  [Post 4]

I'll tell you that 'good' advice about elk hunting is very hard to find. As Swede said, you never know a person's intentions. I will tell you that even after hunting Wapiti for 18 years, the information on this site has been more of a learning experience than anything else I have ever picked up in the field from anyone. There truly are great people here who want to help. The best advice I could give a newbie? The last hour of your hunt is just as important as the first hour. This is very difficult for a lot of people to accept in elk camp. Everyone is excited opening morning and when success doesn't happen then, or the next day, or the next day, people get down. It is amazing how easy it is to quit or give up, but that last 15 minutes of the last day can be the difference maker of a successful hunt and eating tag soup. Either that, or my advice would be to hang around here for a few weeks :D
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Re: Elk Advice

Postby Wapiti » 02 08, 2014 •  [Post 5]

Simply I was told along time ago by a great man that has long since passed............ Persistence............Be Aggressive. From experience this I can say, sometimes elk come easy and other times you can go three weeks and it seems all the elk have just vanished into thin air !!

I think for all of us at one time or another, have been beat down and totally deflated out there trying to find elk. They are there you just have to find the small pocket of them. They are very good at staying in a small area away from everything !!

I hope this helps everyone on there next hunt.

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Re: Elk Advice

Postby elkoholic » 02 08, 2014 •  [Post 6]

Persistence and patients, meaning doing your homework, hanging out on this sight, networking, scouting. No matter what "keep hammering". Nothing comes easy so patients is the key.
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Re: Elk Advice

Postby Indian Summer » 02 09, 2014 •  [Post 7]

cohunter14 wrote:The best advice I could give a newbie? The last hour of your hunt is just as important as the first hour. This is very difficult for a lot of people to accept in elk camp. Everyone is excited opening morning and when success doesn't happen then, or the next day, or the next day, people get down. It is amazing how easy it is to quit or give up, but that last 15 minutes of the last day can be the difference maker of a successful hunt and eating tag soup.


There it is again Ctdad! I've said that many times before. If you want to kill elk hunt every day like it's day one. Think about it... by then you are in the zone. You know what's going on better than you did on the first day. You've worked out the aches and pains that kicked you in the butt on the morning of day 2. You have a routine by then. The truth is the last day is probably BETTER than day one. Nobody ever thinks of it that way.

I don't always hunt elk. But when I do I hunt them to the bitter end. ;)
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Re: Elk Advice

Postby cnelk » 02 09, 2014 •  [Post 8]

ELF
This is a term I have coined myself.

Elk
Like
Flat

If you think about where you have encountered most of your elk, the terrain was probably flat.
Like a small bench, a small opening, a saddle or even big meadows
Sure they like rugged and steep sometimes, but not most of the time.
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Re: Elk Advice

Postby ElkNut1 » 02 09, 2014 •  [Post 9]

Good question David!

There is so much to learn & grasp on to in being a consistently successful hunter with so many avenues of hunting them to consider. Whether you're in glassing with spot & stalk, ambushing trails, water, destination spots, feeding, bedding, transition areas, etc I find calling to be the # 1 way to bring elk your way or to stop them for the shot. My advice amongst all the rest added above is to learn how to be a good caller, it builds confidence in your abilities & you will find elk! Most hunters do not call enough to locate elk instead they rely way too much on seeing them first. Learn the different elk sounds that can promote a response from elk that are close or a mile away, that is half the battle right there.

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Re: Elk Advice

Postby Trophyhill » 02 09, 2014 •  [Post 10]

ElkNut1 wrote:Good question David!

There is so much to learn & grasp on to in being a consistently successful hunter with so many avenues of hunting them to consider. Whether you're in glassing with spot & stalk, ambushing trails, water, destination spots, feeding, bedding, transition areas, etc I find calling to be the # 1 way to bring elk your way or to stop them for the shot. My advice amongst all the rest added above is to learn how to be a good caller, it builds confidence in your abilities & you will find elk! Most hunters do not call enough to locate elk instead they rely way too much on seeing them first. Learn the different elk sounds that can promote a response from elk that are close or a mile away, that is half the battle right there.

ElkNut1


thanks Paul, another piece of great advice I got was from you several years ago. "keep it simple". with all the information out there it is easy to get overwhelmed and "overthink" or complicate situations/encounters. I'm learning to "let the encounter unfold" and it really does get easier with each encounter.
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Re: Elk Advice

Postby Huntrgathr » 02 09, 2014 •  [Post 11]

The two best pieces of advice I can give are :

1- Get as much time off as you possibly can. Have your boots on the ground for as many days as possible. Every day spent in the elk woods is a lesson and another opportunity to kill an elk. It took me over 50 days of hunting to kill my first archery elk. I killed it on day 14 of my hunt. I know now that with the experience I've gained over those 50 days, that I could've killed an elk every year.

2- NEVER GIVE UP. Never, ever give up.

And one more minor point. If its your first elk, Shoot any legal elk. Get selective after you have a few under your belt.
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Re: Elk Advice

Postby cnelk » 02 09, 2014 •  [Post 12]

Confidence
In life, you are more successful to be confident in what you do.
Elk hunting parallels this
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Re: Elk Advice

Postby Swede » 02 09, 2014 •  [Post 13]

Years ago I was told to get to know my hunting area. I would add to that get to know your elk. What works in one area is not going to work the same in another.
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Re: Elk Advice

Postby easeup » 02 09, 2014 •  [Post 14]

for me as a NR hunter there never was anyone to get help from on this. I picked up stuff here and there and read stuff that looked like it had merit.
Of course most of my life I had one week vacation to hunt and go enjoy the mountains. With that said it was a SLOW learning process. thank you Al Gore :) for the internet and AT and now the coupe de gras elknut forum where real live people actually help one another. I have learned more in the last 10yr than the first 30. I will hang with the trophyhill post on the best advice to the younger guys.

OK...now for some horse advice for those who hunt with horses...
..........................."there is nothing like a good horse in new country".....Augustus McCrae
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Re: Elk Advice

Postby Csrbowhunter » 02 09, 2014 •  [Post 15]

The best thing I can tell you is get in as close as you can to the elk. They don't have very good eyesight not like whitetail but they pickup fast movement . I could have killed an elk the first year I hunted if I wasn't trying to hunt them like a whitetail. I'm not a pro or anything. I listen to all elknuts DVDs over and over again every year before elk season. Sometimes durning the hunt something will happen that I didn't understand watching his DVDs but then understood once it happened in the woods. Good luck this year hunting and don't give up. The year I got my first elk I got him on the day I was suppost to leave and I went out there hunting to give it one last try before the long ride home to Ohio. I was in the woods for 14days and got him on the last day.
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Re: Elk Advice

Postby Trumkin the Dwarf » 02 10, 2014 •  [Post 16]

Shot advice: Elk are big, tough critters. Until you put a hole through both lungs and some major arteries. :mrgreen: I aim about a third of the way up the body from the elbow on a perfectly broadside elk, but would rather hit further forward than further back. My philosophy is that, so long as you don't hit bone, there is no such thing as too far forward for the arrow to enter the animal. finding the elbow and going straight up will give you the largest margin for error.

However, elk almost never stand perfectly broadside. Which means you need to study elk anatomy a bit. :shock:
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Re: Elk Advice

Postby Kevrod3 » 02 10, 2014 •  [Post 17]

Trust your instincts! When you question yourself a lot of times you give up the one and only shot opportunity you may have had. First elk I've had in bow range I tried to take my pack off before shooting even though I had been practicing for months with my pack on. Got caught!

Know your equipment better than anything! Obviously knowing your game is very important, but if you can't make that shot like second nature then your not prepared!
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Re: Elk Advice

Postby Triplebhunters » 02 11, 2014 •  [Post 18]

It's already been covered but again. Know your equipment, and familiar area. Pulling that perfect arrow out of your quiver and coming to full draw without even thinking about it. Walking (HUNTING) through your area without staring at your compass, map, and GPS all the time. When you practice and something fatigues your consistency fix it leave it at home or camp you don't need it anyway if it hinders your hunt. Sometimes us gear junkies want everything made to hunt in reality some things just weigh ya down.
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Re: Elk Advice

Postby Washington Wapiti » 02 11, 2014 •  [Post 19]

Dad didn't hunt, but we fished a lot. I am a completely self-taught hunter. But with a lot of training and experience in backcountry and high-mountain travel and navigation. Early on, I just tried absorbing everything I could from magazines, books, and even some Primos' hunting videos. Those dudes crack me up and seem like a good group of guys. I learned how to mimick the cow calls they were doing on the vids, using a Lil' Dog Predator call. I suppose I was "Speaking the Language," but didn't fully know what I was saying. Still figuring it out with the help of y'all. I was obviously doing something right though, because even early on I was getting elk to respond or come in. I already had a lot of years of doing broadcast surveys for owls and other birds, so I "got it," in terms of trying to locate or bring in animals with mimicking vocalizations. Only, this time while calling, I was holding a bow instead of a banding kit. :D The parallels are closer than you might think. Because of my background, you would think I would be all about the calling and talking up a storm versus being the more quiet, mews here and there, ambush-style hunter that I've become. Weird.

Just getting out and hunting these wiley critters, observing behavior and how they respond to this or that . . .taking it all in has been a huge education tool. However, this forum has been the most comprehensive, varied, consistent, tried and true, solid advice I've ever found. Hey, let me tell ya. It sure beats trying to glean nuggets of wisdom from the drunk road-hunter in the little mountain town bar. Although, that is always fun too! LOL
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Re: Elk Advice

Postby Washington Wapiti » 02 11, 2014 •  [Post 20]

I should also mention a couple of things that helped me out this year, that are found in Swede's book. That was, backing off on the calling while in your stand. Also, paying attention to the height of your stand. Not just for scent control, but also where your set-up could put you at eye-level with the elk because of surrounding hillsides, to poorly paraphrase. :D
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Re: Elk Advice

Postby Trophyhill » 02 15, 2014 •  [Post 21]

after thinking about this some more and seeing it come up on another forum I thought I'd share this with you from my point of view.


when I started elk hunting in '08 I had no idea what to expect and was a "passive" elk Bowhunter. in other words I wanted and expected the elk to come to me. I hunted like this for the first couple of years. sure I had lots of responses and a fair amount of up close and personal encounters (even killed a couple cows) but I went back to camp and or home with a lot of "what could have been" or "if only I would have done this" moments. in 2011 I made a conscious effort to get aggressive and stay aggressive once I found elk. it's paying off and helping me unlock the "elk code". Aggressive calling is just one aspect. I think equally or more importantly are aggressive actions. so coming from someone with limited elk experience, I would tell the new guys (and gals) to be aggressive. if you want to see how a bull reacts try this, when you get that first response from a bull and know where he is, just run in on him and see what happens. you may or may not get a shot opportunity but it will open up an avenue to you that may take years to learn if you are a passive hunter. you will have more opportunities so don't let it get to you if you don't kill that elk. and too, don't be afraid to make mistakes. that is how we learn 1 encounter at a time. stay focused and aggressive. and above all, Never Give Up......Ever!
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Re: Elk Advice

Postby msd1228 » 02 15, 2014 •  [Post 22]

Not as interesting or exciting as some of the other advice here, but my contribution is DO NOT SKIMP ON FOOTWEAR. Cheap boots will end your hunt faster than just about anything. You're gonna be spending all day long (and a good chunk of the night if you locate at night) in them, and you'll be going over nasty terrain. Bad boots will take you out on the first hour of the first day.

Other than that, a lot of the things I would have said have already been said. I'm a huge advocate of being aggressive, not only is it more exciting, but its more or less a requirement for killing herd bulls. Remember, elk make noise, so if you have already been calling its ok to break branches and what not as you advance towards your target - you don't have to be a church mouse creeping through the woods. When a bull answers, its ok to RUN - ues, RUN - towards the bull in many situations. Also, if you are right on top of a herd bull and get busted by a cow, lets face it, your done. In such cases its ok to charge that spooked cow before she barks and blow her out of there, follow it up with a bull calling cows bugle, and hold on to your hat cause that herd bull will probably come hard and fast! If that doesn't work, re-locating sounds can work to your favor once the heard as scattered. Use your aggressiveness to prevent the bark! You can still kill from the herd if they don't know why they ran away.

Obviously, that applies to when the elk know you are already there from your calling, etc., if you are spot and stalking then the standard don't make noise if it isn't necessary rule applies.
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Re: Elk Advice

Postby Sneaky » 02 16, 2014 •  [Post 23]

Not so much something I heard but figured out through my elk mentors. Patterning elk hunters is just as important as patterning elk.
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Re: Elk Advice

Postby Wyo67 » 02 16, 2014 •  [Post 24]

To add on... Learn the gutless method. We gutted the first couple we go, and then switching to the gutless method. Never again will I gut an elk. Also, don't skimp on your pack. A hundred pounds or so in a poorly fitting pack is guaranteed to make you miserable.
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Re: Elk Advice

Postby zpd307 » 02 16, 2014 •  [Post 25]

I was told by a firefighter partner 3 years ago while prepping for our first hunt in Colorado, elk hunting is 90% mental and 10% physical. he went on to say that it gets to be very hard to get up in the morning on day 4,5,6, you name it when you have hunted that many days without seeing or hearing an elk. but you will never get an elk staying in camp. I have seen what being mentally exhausted does to a person in both of my hunting partners...
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Re: Elk Advice

Postby N5J » 02 17, 2014 •  [Post 26]

Swede wrote:Years ago I was told to get to know my hunting area. I would add to that get to know your elk. What works in one area is not going to work the same in another.


So true! We hunt heavy hunted public lands and because we know it so well someone in our party usually kills an elk every year. Some areas we'll call others we just rake. We've found if you see elk a specific draw one year, they will be in there the next.

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Re: Elk Advice

Postby >>>---WW----> » 02 17, 2014 •  [Post 27]

Don't get all excited over elk sign. It only tells you where they were, not where they are!
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