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Last minute advice

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Last minute advice

Postby js80138 » 08 26, 2022 •  [Post 1]

Travelling three hours west from my home next week in Colorado for archery. Last evening I enjoyed a webinar sponsored by OnX that offered some new advice and many topics I have heard before or read on this forum over the past several years. I ejoyed listening to the webinar almost as a checklist to compare to my hunt. My request is that you share advice. When I began hunting eight years ago WT was my single resource for advice from experienced hunters. I realize there are 24 hour tv shows dedicated to hunting however I prefer to take advice from a group I have leanred to respect. Please share reminders that we need to hear before and during our hunt. There may be some tidbits I have forgotten or new ideas/methods I can use this year.
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Re: Last minute advice

Postby Jhg » 08 27, 2022 •  [Post 2]

When you look at an area, where is the topography and trails telling you where to go? Thats where all the other hunters will be headed too. Join the herd or avoid it. Your call.
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Re: Last minute advice

Postby Lefty » 08 28, 2022 •  [Post 3]

I do best with a good nights sleep and quality food.
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Re: Last minute advice

Postby Wyo67 » 08 29, 2022 •  [Post 4]

Don't be too surprised at the topography - it's always steeper in person. Always keep track of the wind and enjoy the experience.
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Re: Last minute advice

Postby maxracx » 08 29, 2022 •  [Post 5]

Never pass on the first day what you would gladly shoot on the Last.
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Re: Last minute advice

Postby Tigger » 08 29, 2022 •  [Post 6]

maxracx, you have stumbled upon my personal pet peeve! I will try and explain my point of view.

I feel you should shoot what you want, when you want. That should be based on all of the information you have at the time. Are you seeing elk everywhere or maybe you haven't even seen fresh sign. Two different scenarios which may change your mind on what you want to shoot. Many times I (and others) have passed an elk on the first day only to shoot something more to our liking later-even though I may have shot the first one on the last day! I would have never gotten that chance if I would have followed that saying. My trips were more enjoyable because of it. I got to hunt longer (sitting in camp for a week after you shot something is not an optimal hunting trip in my personal opinion-no matter the size!). So my advice is this, shoot a calf 3 minutes into the season or pass on a decent bull...your choice. You will have to be comfortable with it. If all you want to do is kill an elk, go for it! But if you want to wait on a big bull for whatever reason, don't let a saying dictate your decision!
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Re: Last minute advice

Postby Jhg » 08 29, 2022 •  [Post 7]

This is kind of morphing into a when to shoot thread but here is my take on that subject:

Tigger wrote:maxracx, you have stumbled upon my personal pet peeve! I will try and explain my point of view....

I feel you should shoot what you want, when you want. That should be based on all of the information you have at the time...


I learned back in Maine going after big whitetails that if you take that doe you will not hang the rack of the mossback trailing 3 minutes behind her.

That said, there are times the next shot opportunity I am given I am taking. It all depends on the moment and where my head is with regards to time, freezer space, prevailing conditions. A wise elk archer told me once that its better to have a full freezer between 300 class bulls than only waiting for shots on 300 class bulls. The outcome is the same he said in regards to how many 300+ bulls you will tag. The only difference is one way is more realistic.

Sometimes you take whats given. Knowing when that next animal is the one to shoot regardless of score, is knowing yourself.
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Re: Last minute advice

Postby Indian Summer » 08 29, 2022 •  [Post 8]

My advice for anyone who lives just 3 hours from their hunting area would be to make as many trips over there as you can and learn the area. Just spend time there to see what you might see. I would have also gone there at some point and pre packed my spike camp in after all of my earlier scouting trips.
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Re: Last minute advice

Postby js80138 » 08 29, 2022 •  [Post 9]

Good reminders and I don't mind the discussion as it's relevant to my situation. I don't offer hunting advice on this forum because I have never filled a tag. Ever. I didn't start hunting until 8 years ago and this forum was the only one I actually enjoyed reading. Mainly for the attitude of the contributors. I have shared my hunts on this forum and never once been made to feel bad about my mistakes. When the day comes that I apply all I have learned and the oportunity presents itself I will take the first legal elk. Cow or Bull will not effect the pride and accomplishment I will feel. I have hunted and hunted hard. Temps from -18 to 86, miles and miles of terrain and tens of thousands of feet in elevation changes, archery and rifle. I simply haven't hunted well enough to put my self in front of the tag I am there to fill......yet.

The advice I will leave everyone is this. Remember your hunt to the best of your ability and share it here on WT. You never know when your advice will fill a tag and not just your own.
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Re: Last minute advice

Postby Tigger » 08 30, 2022 •  [Post 10]

JS, that is exactly what I am talking about...make the decision for YOUR reasons!

What are your plans? archery? Rifle? Muzzlestuffer? What state?

Tell us a little about your close encounters. All of us can learn from scenarios that didn't quite work out. All of us have had plenty of those!
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Re: Last minute advice

Postby Wyo67 » 08 30, 2022 •  [Post 11]

Indian Summer wrote:My advice for anyone who lives just 3 hours from their hunting area would be to make as many trips over there as you can and learn the area. Just spend time there to see what you might see. I would have also gone there at some point and pre packed my spike camp in after all of my earlier scouting trips.


2nd this. Went up July 4th weekend and trailheads were full due to the holiday. Went back a couple weeks ago and had the place to myself. Wyoming opening day of archery this week combined with the Labor Day holiday, I have a couple plans in place to get away from the added people on the trails. Found these guys in the morning of 8/13. Hoping to get a little closer to any one of them real soon.

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Re: Last minute advice

Postby >>>---WW----> » 08 30, 2022 •  [Post 12]

Keep your broadheads sharp!!! If your eye lashes don't fall off just from looking at them, they aren't sharp enough.
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Re: Last minute advice

Postby WapitiTalk1 » 08 30, 2022 •  [Post 13]

Can't wait to hear about your successful 2022 hunt mister!

Here's a few off the top of my head:

Bow, rifle, or muzzle loader....mark the spot where you shot from, where the elk was last standing and heading and sit down for a good 30-45 minutes to give him time to die, then, take your time tracking…. Do this drill each and every time unless you clearly see or hear the elk expire.

Be where you want to be right at daylight, and, stay in the elk woods until the last minute of legal shooting hours.

When cold calling, and you know elk have frequented that area before and/or there is fresh sign, commit yourself that spot for at least 20-30 minutes. They don’t always come in vocal; elk can be very, very quiet when they want to be. At least once every year, I don’t follow my rules and bust an elk that was coming in silent by leaving too early.

Take extra keys for all.

Take at least one pair of tire chains is you’re hunting above 5K from September on.

Hunting pack musts: Always take two headlamps with xtra lithium batteries (one trail light and one flood light for processing); take a small squeeze bottle of peroxide to aid in blood tracking. I've gotten to the point where I always carry a water filter in my pack; it's no fun when you drop an elk right before dark and you try to get all the field processing done and first pack out, when you're hydration bladder is running low or empty.



js80138 wrote:Good reminders and I don't mind the discussion as it's relevant to my situation. I don't offer hunting advice on this forum because I have never filled a tag. Ever. I didn't start hunting until 8 years ago and this forum was the only one I actually enjoyed reading. Mainly for the attitude of the contributors. I have shared my hunts on this forum and never once been made to feel bad about my mistakes. When the day comes that I apply all I have learned and the oportunity presents itself I will take the first legal elk. Cow or Bull will not effect the pride and accomplishment I will feel. I have hunted and hunted hard. Temps from -18 to 86, miles and miles of terrain and tens of thousands of feet in elevation changes, archery and rifle. I simply haven't hunted well enough to put my self in front of the tag I am there to fill......yet.

The advice I will leave everyone is this. Remember your hunt to the best of your ability and share it here on WT. You never know when your advice will fill a tag and not just your own.
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Re: Last minute advice

Postby js80138 » 08 31, 2022 •  [Post 14]

Truck is 90% packed with only a few items to load. Heading out early am to the Flatops in CO. I may not have done a proper scouting of the area however I brought my family camping this summer and we spent time hiking the specific area I hunt. I detemined that the approach to my hunting area would be less milage with less incline/decline if I camped two miles south. Keeping in mind both my hunt and also my pack-out as a solo hunter. It will also provide an opportunity to move my hunt south as a second option without changing camp. Friday-Wed are all the days I have to hunt for the beginning of archery season. Will have a few days at the end of the month if needed. Upon my return next week I will share every detail of my hunt in a manner that I hope is ueseful. I am laughing at my early posts as they contain no hunting advice and a lot of adventure. In other words, absolutely useless for a hunter. LOL.

Thanks again and have a safe successful hunt.
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Re: Last minute advice

Postby Pop-r » 09 02, 2022 •  [Post 15]

ALWAYS knock an arrow when calling.
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Re: Last minute advice

Postby js80138 » 09 05, 2022 •  [Post 16]

Back from my hunt and it was bittersweet. I didn't hunt as long as I had boasted prior to my trip. I have to be candid about my opening season hunt so I will sum up the experience as humbling. The temperature was brutal. I don' t recall a hotter experience or anything near to what I experienced the three actual days I hunted. I prepared for this season more than any other season. Hours in the backyard shooting a 3-d target at 30 yeards. I actually purchased a 70 pound tube of sand at Lowes, placed it in my pack and walked the 2 mile neighborhood path as part of my pack-out fitness regimine. The elevation at my house is 6k so I knew was prepared. What I didn't realize is that no matter how much I thought I was prepared Mother Nature was laughing.

My hunt began every morning at 9300 and peaked at 10.362 feet elevation. My energy drained quicker than I recall ever in my life. I attempted to mix glassing, sitting over wallows and spot and stalk but I was getting beaten down. At the end of the third day I decided it was enough. On the second day at 9536 feet I checked the temperture at 11:13 am and it was 81 degrees. It was hot, really hot. I half feel like I failed but the other half feels like I made a good choice. It was shocking not to hear any bugling. I would even get up at 2 am and listen for night bugling but it was silent. I don't recall silence at the beginning of the season during the night or during the day. Not only did I not see any elk the entire time, I also never saw a deer. I didn't bust any nor did I hear them snorting at me as I usueally do wearing a headlamp at 4:30 am on my trip into the timber. When I arrived home I was absolutely spent. Yes I have the opportunity to hunt the final week of archery and I hope that didn't influence me in my decision but that fact is I got it handed to me by Mother Nature. Frustrating to say the least. Tip of the cap to anyone who harvested the past four days in Colorado. I simply wasn't pepared for my experience.
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Re: Last minute advice

Postby Jhg » 09 06, 2022 •  [Post 17]

The Flats are tough because they offer great feed about every square foot of them. So the elk could be anywhere.

In the new normal- hot. It is important to really focus on the N slopes. Even a small pocket will offer relief to an elk. This year I have felt a significant temp diff between a nice N slope pocket and the area right next to them. The soil really absorbs the heat, stores it. So there is a big difference after a few days in ground temps (where elk lay) between a sun sheltered area and another not so protected.
Success is stacking small details like this until your odds really improve.
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Re: Last minute advice

Postby Thegreatwapiti » 09 06, 2022 •  [Post 18]

js80138 wrote:I got it handed to me by Mother Nature.


It happens to all of us. People don't realize that colorado at 10,000' is no joke. It sounds like your prep work was excellent. I've been out here for 15 years and by far the warmest weather. Hopefully you can get back out. Don't get discouraged, get determined.
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Re: Last minute advice

Postby Tigger » 09 12, 2022 •  [Post 19]

Jhg wrote:Success is stacking small details like this until your odds really improve.



That is one of the best quotes I have read on the internet in a long time.
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Re: Last minute advice

Postby Indian Summer » 09 12, 2022 •  [Post 20]

Tigger wrote:
Jhg wrote:Success is stacking small details like this until your odds really improve.



That is one of the best quotes I have read on the internet in a long time.


I like that one too!
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