Jumping the String

[Rangerz]

Curious to hear about other archers experience with elk "Jumping the String".

[Swede]

I have never experienced it. Maybe it is mostly because I have shot from a tree stand. At least I am fairly certain they don't jump at the sound of the bow. They will leave immediately on being hit.

[ishy]

Elk will definitely jump the string. Not nearly as much or as fast as a whitetail, but they will especially if they are nervous at all. Swede you probably have the least anxious animals possible from a tree, but I would put money that in all your shots you've had some jump the string at some point. Our eye/mind connectors don't pick up on those fraction of a second movements all the time. Some guys say everything goes into slow motion when they shoot, I think I go the other way and everything seems to speed up! I wish it was the other way around for me.

[>>>---WW---->]

I always hate to hear the term, jumping the string. I feel it gives newer hunters a bad impression of what actually happens. The term is usually used for deer or elk that actually (duck) the string. In reality, they duck or crouch down in order to load up to make that first quick jump to bound away from what ever scared them.

Most experienced hunters know this. But it seems to be just one of those silly terms we all use. Yes I'm guilty of it as well!

[WapitiTalk1]

I personally have never had an elk jump, or duck, my string/shot. I'm sure most of that is due to me shooting a Darton Archery bow, the most powerful and fastest bow in the world. . . . . (insert Dirty Harry picture here with his big ol' magnum pistol); heck, I have to be careful so I don't break the sound barrier when I hunt . I have, however, over the years, had a couple of elk decide to take a step forward at the exact moment I released. The first was a enormous Roosey cow which my arrow hit smack dab in the "mid section". I backed out immediately, came back before daylight the next morning, tracked her to her bed and put a well placed arrow in her to finish the job. The other was pretty nice 6 PT Roosey bull. I'd called this joker off his cows for the second time (first time, my buddy Joe couldn't get a shot). The second time he came in, he circled around me to get my wind (although I don't know why, I don't smell), stopped broadside at 25ish yards, and as I released an arrow (older bow, shooting 2219 fenceposts and 140 GN Wasp Camlocs), he took one large step forward.... I saw and heard that disgusting sound of my arrow smacking him in the right rear hind quarter. The bull moved back towards his cows and continued to hurl insults at me (I tried but he was done coming in). Joe and I sat down for 1/2 hour and started tracking the bull. After only a handful of drops of blood in 80 yards or so, we found my entire arrow laying in the huckleberry brush (looked like it only penetrated maybe 10 inches). I'm sure the bull was sore for a while but lived just fine through that ordeal.

[Lefty]

I wish one time a bull would have dropped to load-up

We’ve spooked elk that I’ve seen drop and spin; or humped up on a hit
But I can’t think of a release where an elk “ jumped the string” but that could be due to lack of shots

[Swede]

lder bow, shooting 2219 fenceposts

Isn't that 2219 supposed to be the fps speed of the Fenceposts? I shot the super lethal 2117s for years.