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Your First Elk

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Your First Elk

Postby Swede » 05 03, 2022 •  [Post 1]

I had killed several deer by the time I shot my first elk, so it was another step in the journey. It was the result of perseverance more than anything. My first tree stand elk was based on planning and preparation. I found a good location to place a stand and got a nice bull the first day there. The biggest thing I see is the confidence that first elk brings. No more do you believe you are up to the task. Now you know. After that you build on your knowledge and come to an understanding you know what it takes to be successful on a regular basis. I went from hunting with a rifle to a bow, then to hunting from a tree with my bow.

Many of us here have killed an elk sometime and I suppose the others are trying to get their first. Was that first elk the result of good luck or something else? What did it mean to your overall elk hunting development?
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Re: Your First Elk

Postby 7mmfan » 05 03, 2022 •  [Post 2]

I started hunting at age 13, and killed a few deer before I started hunting elk at age 16. We started out bow hunting late archery seasons. In 2004, at age 19, I picked up a rifle for elk hunting. Over those years I had had several good opportunities to kill elk with a bow that I didn't convert on. Youth, inexperience, bad luck all were against me.

It was day 6 of an 8 day hunt. I had seen plenty of elk, but no legal bulls (spike only). That day, instead of staying in camp for lunch, I grabbed my rifle and headed back up the little knob behind camp. It bordered a huge deep canyon and had lots of thick pockets of timber in it with old spur roads that wound through it. I was easing along one of those spur roads through some thick stuff when I jumped an elk at very close range, under 20'. I saw antler, but didn't know what he had so I took a knee and followed him through the timber with my scope. I must have really startled him, I don't think he knew what I was as he trotted out into the open about 50 yards away and stopped and looked at me. I could clearly see one antler was a spike, so I aimed the best I could at his shoulder and fired. I was greeted by silence. I took off running through the woods and almost tripped on him as I cleared a down tree. He was magnificent. It was the first elk I had ever seen up close. I could not believe the size of it! I had my tag and and a knife so I quickly tagged it and since I was close to camp I hustled back and got my Dad and brother. We ended up gutting and dragging that elk about 400 yards to the edge of the hill above camp where we were able to easily drag him into camp at that point. My shoulder shot, ended up hitting him in the ear, just as he turned his head. He never felt or heard a thing, it was just lights out. But that's what buck fever does when you're drawing down on your first elk.

It was a few years after that before I killed another one, another spike. We killed two that trip. The following year I drew a cow tag and my Dad a bull tag. We both killed elk, his bull being his first elk ever. I was learning all the time though and the wheels began to turn. I've since killed close to a dozen more, mostly spikes and one nice bull. I just like elk meat so much that I can't pass the easy ones.
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Re: Your First Elk

Postby Thegreatwapiti » 05 03, 2022 •  [Post 3]

30 years ago (1992).....Rifle, Colorado last day of the hunt. 375 yds. All I heard was "legal bull, legal bull." It happened quick but I've been addicted ever since!
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Re: Your First Elk

Postby Indian Summer » 05 03, 2022 •  [Post 4]

7mm that brings back a memory. My first deer was a doe in the big woods of northern Pa. I had a .30-.30 with open sights. I had plenty of time but I didn’t waste any time. Lined up the sights on her shoulder and squeezed and she dropped like a rock. I ran down there and looked and looked for the bullet hole. It was in her left temple. I missed by a couple feet and made a quick clean kill. After that I had a gun shop put a side mount on the rifle and bought the best scope in the world. A fixed 4 power Weaver. I still have that gun. My mother gave it to me. I was 13 when I killed that deer. When I finally killed my first buck, a busted up 6 point, it was 1:30 in the afternoon on the last day of the season. I was 21 years old! My dad didn’t hunt. No internet. I was self taught and things didn’t come easy. But I loved the woods and it never crossed my mind to give up.

Eventually I did learn a few things. Got pretty good at it actually. Shot this one right out the back door years later. 23 3/4 inside spread. Few and far between on Pennsylvania public land. I’ll get to the story of my first bull another time. Time for bed!

Edit: No wait… that’s outside spread sorry.
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Re: Your First Elk

Postby WapitiTalk1 » 05 03, 2022 •  [Post 5]

DANDY whitetail Joe. My first elk was a bull…. a bull calf. Drug him out whole in the snow with help. Don’t need to tell anyone how tasty it was.
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Re: Your First Elk

Postby Jhg » 05 03, 2022 •  [Post 6]

My first elk were the ones I placed my hunters in front of. All broadside. All bulls. I took guiding very personally. I did care about pleasing the outfitter, but in my mind any guide worth spit did not need anyone else telling them to take pride in the profession. To be a guide, I believed, was an incredible honor. I always operated from that.
Here is my first elk. I was hunting the way I usually do: figure out what all the other hunters are doing and do the opposite. I had hunt/scouted this area hard and discovered some facts that others seemed to be ignoring.
It was a cold morning. Elk were using a travel tunnel to access their winter grounds (4th rifle). I actually had shot at another cow minutes before this one but at the shot she disappeared. Dead elk I thought but she had slipped on a snow covered log and gone to her knees right when I squeezed the trigger.
Lucky elk for sure.


She was a big animal, about 1/4 larger than an average cow elk. I was very happy about that. Two of the roasts were the size of footballs. I had to build a fire nearby to warm my hands during bag up. Eventually, when packing out, I was down to base layers, but the first half hour cutting her up was frigid.

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Exactly one year later to the day.

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Re: Your First Elk

Postby Lefty » 05 03, 2022 •  [Post 7]

My first two white -tailed bucks were killed in Saskatuewan . Minnesota had a closed deer season. I was 13. Killed a dandy 10 pointer with my dads .308. than a smaller 8 pointer with a Winchester 30-30.
Ihad bought a Remington ,308 carbine with paper route and muskrat money at 15. Killed a buck at 15, 16, 17. Then got into trapping. A buddy had been archery hunting. I bought an archery license most years in the late 70' early 80's but only hunted one year, too busy trapping.

I think it was 1990 .
First elk hunt in Montana.
Using my FIL 7mm Browning. Sitting in the Gravelies, The guy that had killed the worlds largest elk( in Russia ) Sent me to a tree to sit. 9:00 AMI thought I heard a woodpecker, a grouse drumming? After 30 seconds I realized it was a bull stomping his way towards me.
Then turned straight towards me.
At 50 yards I turned the scope down to 2x. Total frontal; Squeezed the trigger, The elk lunged to take off. I put a 2nd shot in him within the second and he was grounded. 5x6. I don't think I have any pics of that bull . I spent the next days glassing Red Rock Refuge wondering how to hunt waterfowl down there, wishing I had a shot gun. A few days later I figured out I had a deer tag :shock: Never did see a buck ,, and come to think of it the 20 days I've been in that area I've never seen a buck.
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Re: Your First Elk

Postby saddlesore » 05 04, 2022 •  [Post 8]

My firs elk was in 1966. I attribute it all to a mentor that took me under his wing and taught me, how to pack a horse.Showed me where the elk were and how to get to them . Although a 5 point,those antlers are still on my wall in my office.

This was a long time ago in a land faraway(NE New Mexico, NE of Questa))
Scanned photo before digitals)

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Re: Your First Elk

Postby Elkhunttoo » 05 04, 2022 •  [Post 9]

My first elk was a cow with a rifle…my dad and his brothers had hunted the area for over 20 years by the time I was able to hunt in the early 90’s…success was opening morning right where we needed to be
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Re: Your First Elk

Postby Lefty » 05 04, 2022 •  [Post 10]

saddlesore wrote:My firs elk was in 1966.

1st elk.jpg

Now thats a great picture!!!
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Re: Your First Elk

Postby 7mmfan » 05 05, 2022 •  [Post 11]

I guess I really didn't answer Swede's main question, "Was that first elk the result of good luck or something else?"

I'd say it was a combination of luck, perseverance, and knowledge gained. So all of the above.
- Luck: that he stopped to look at me long enough to shoot him, and hit him :lol:
- Perseverance: in that I kept hunting that day instead of sitting in camp for lunch
- Knowledge gained: because we had hunted that area for a few years and I knew it was likely that I would find an animal in that area at that time of day.

I think that most people that have hunted for a few years before killing one would have a similar answer. It's those first timers that stumble into one on their first trip, or kill one driving down the road that can really chalk theirs up to luck.
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Re: Your First Elk

Postby Tigger » 05 05, 2022 •  [Post 12]

My first was a 5X5 in a snowstorm in Colorado with a rifle. Put him to bed the night before, got on him in the morning. Had to wait out the heaviest snow to shoot him as it was so heavy it was hard to see him and impossible to range him.
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Re: Your First Elk

Postby Lefty » 05 05, 2022 •  [Post 13]

Luck does often play its hand. But not often for me!
My Father in law put us in some great elk country at that time. few grizzlies, limited draw, grazing had slowed down, limited access,,. So quality elk country .
I was in peak physical conditioning for a 30 something , running on a steep Nordic track twice a day.
Our base camp,,, had two other groups, hardcore hunters both groups had been hunting the area for over 20 years, They gave me all sorts of good elk hunting tips.

I killed my bull elk on day two. .

Now my archery elk,, a whole lot more perseverance and mentoring needed. I couldn't put white-tails behind me to hunt elk properly. I dont seem to have a problem finding elk or any other game. My theory , quality habitat,,, away from too many people.
I will say Archery talk and many of Elknuts and others responses were a huge part in my elk growth putting it together with my general hunting/trapping knowledge.
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