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Hey, I’m giving you pearls here.

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Hey, I’m giving you pearls here.

Postby WapitiTalk1 » 06 23, 2021 •  [Post 1]

Ok, let’s roll with the 1-2 elk hunting pearls (tips) 2021 edition. Share a few elk hunting tips, from your experience, that may help somebody out for this falls elk hunt. And 3, 2, 1 let’s go….
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Re: Hey, I’m giving you pearls here.

Postby Elkhunttoo » 06 23, 2021 •  [Post 2]

Sit in a tree stand in a well placed spot! :D

Now that I beat Swede to that one he has to come up with something different :lol: :lol:

And I’m also not kidding, if you aren’t sure of a strategy and calling just hasn’t been a success, don’t be afraid to change it up and sit.
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Re: Hey, I’m giving you pearls here.

Postby Swede » 06 23, 2021 •  [Post 3]

Elkhunttoo just gave away the only thing I know about hunting elk.

Here are a few things you can try: Stay off ridges and high human traffic places during your hunt. Work the side slopes watching the wind. Stay in the shadows and go slowly when you are in fresh elk sign. Use a soft cow sound to disguise what you are as you advance stepping on dry sticks, etc.
If you are not seeing fresh elk sign it is time to relocate, but I have been in a dead zone and within a few yards found a lot of fresh sign. I suspect the dead zones I was dealing with were due to their proximity to the road. That fits some areas, but not nearly all. Being familiar with your area makes a lot of difference when it comes to knowing elk travel patterns.
Never get discouraged. Most of us are not hunting great draw units. Getting an elk is usually a whole lot of work and frustration. Be patient and persistent.
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Re: Hey, I’m giving you pearls here.

Postby Lefty » 06 23, 2021 •  [Post 4]

No secrets here.
Just the boy scout motto.

"Be prepared"

In as many aspects as possible. Your physical fitness, shooting, your vehicle, your gear, for the weather, , for a kill, for an accident, new area, food, an emergency!!




Just a thought,, If a truck backed up to your house right now could you have all you need, in the truck in two minutes,?, five minutes ?
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Re: Hey, I’m giving you pearls here.

Postby Trumkin the Dwarf » 06 24, 2021 •  [Post 5]

Find fresh sign, then figure out what it means. If you don't have fresh sign, keep hiking!
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Re: Hey, I’m giving you pearls here.

Postby saddlesore » 06 24, 2021 •  [Post 6]

Don't over look places that other hunters pass by.Sometimes these are close to roads. If you think you are moving slow enough, move slower yet. Elk hunting is not about covering 10 miles per day.
The only rule elk know is " Elk don't like people". Everything else is just sometimes.

You can hunt an area 9 days in a row and not see one elk, then find 20-30 of them in the same place. Elk move in a continuous circle unless they are pushed. It may be 2-3 miles,it may be 5-10 miles.Trust your knowledge of the are and instinct.If the elk are moving and you are moving chances of bumping into each other area lot slimmer
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Re: Hey, I’m giving you pearls here.

Postby 7mmfan » 06 24, 2021 •  [Post 7]

Hunt all day. The majority of all the animals I've ever killed have come between 10-2. A few have been late in the evening. Very few right at first light. You can't kill them if you're not out there trying.
I hunt therefore I am. I fish therefore I lie.
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Postby Swede » 06 24, 2021 •  [Post 8]

saddlesore wrote:If the elk are moving and you are moving chances of bumping into each other area lot slimmer


Now there is a real pearl of wisdom based on experience. I have gone into an area full of "fresh" sign only to realize I was only hours behind the critters. If you find fresh sign do you move or stay? If you are familiar with the area you can quickly figure it out. It may be two weeks before they return, or maybe they are behind the next bush. A careful examination of the feces and tracks should tell you if they are there or if they have moved on.
Two seasons back I left my son off at a stand and went on to another. My son thought the spot I left him was dead as far as elk was concerned. In fact he started to take a nap in his stand and closed his eyes. In a few minutes he heard activity down below the stand. He looked down and realized he had not even prepared his bow in case anything did come around.
When I dropped him off and saw there was no fresh sign there, I felt a sigh of relief. There had been no elk there for a week. I knew they had not passed by yet. Within the first hour he killed his bull there. The herd had just showed up.
If you go chasing the elk, you may be behind them forever. There are often some loners between the herds so you are never totally out of contention, but knowing the travel pattern of the elk makes a huge difference.
I enjoy being out in the forest, but seeing an elk makes it much better when I am hunting.
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Re: Hey, I’m giving you pearls here.

Postby saddlesore » 06 24, 2021 •  [Post 9]

Ditto Swede
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Postby Lefty » 06 25, 2021 •  [Post 10]

saddlesore wrote:Don't over look places that other hunters pass by. Sometimes these are close to roads. If you think you are moving slow enough, move slower yet. Elk hunting is not about covering 10 miles per day.
The only rule elk know is " Elk don't like people". Everything else is just sometimes.

You can hunt an area 9 days in a row and not see one elk, then find 20-30 of them in the same place. Elk move in a continuous circle unless they are pushed. It may be 2-3 miles, it may be 5-10 miles. Trust your knowledge of the are and instinct. If the elk are moving and you are moving chances of bumping into each other area lot slimmer

Kinda like those statements
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Re: Hey, I’m giving you pearls here.

Postby Lefty » 06 25, 2021 •  [Post 11]

Swede wrote:[If you go chasing the elk, you may be behind them forever.


Ive done pretty good following that advise
Wayne Gretzky “I skate to where the puck is going, not where it has been.”
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Re: Hey, I’m giving you pearls here.

Postby >>>---WW----> » 06 26, 2021 •  [Post 12]

Elk sign only tells you where they were, not where they are.

If you aren't getting any response from your locator bugle, try making one grunt sound at the start of your locator bugle. Often it will rattle their chain enough to get them to answer you.
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Re: Hey, I’m giving you pearls here.

Postby Lefty » 06 26, 2021 •  [Post 13]

>>>---WW----> wrote:Elk sign only tells you where they were, not where they are.

If you aren't getting any response from your locator bugle, try making one grunt sound at the start of your locator bugle. Often it will rattle their chain enough to get them to answer you.

Illadd that method to my calling

Do you use that single grunt more early?
I guess I can add: Ill break ( step on) a single branch for that stick crack , then a single lonesome lazy locate.


No a pearl, or even advise. While at a check station the F and game started a conversation about off trail ATV guys and complaints. I still had pics of guys that messed up elk we were on by driving in way off trails..
I gave him my pics. and locations they parked .
He told me he would call the "violators "and warned that they would be ticketed on the next offence,.. Those 5 ATVs never showed on the whole mountain where we hunted last year!
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