Least favorite elk conditions........

[Trophyhill]

Or toughest elk conditions, and how do you adapt to the hand you're dealt?

[Swede]

I hate rain. How I adapt depends on how much and how long it has been raining. It often means I put on my rain gear and start calling in areas I have not been hunting. I may try to do some spot and stalk hunting, but with my poor eyesight, I have to really work at this to be productive. I also pray more. The Lord knows I am handicapped greatly when I have to depend on my eyesight to find elk.

[cnelk]

#1 - rain & wind
If its raining and windy when its time to get up, just go back to sleep.
Just be prepared to be out there when its over....

[Arapahoe]

Same as above. Soaking rain. Agree on gettin out there when it clears. Dont know how many times a storm cleared in the middle of the night,the stars came out, and the bulls started sounding off.

[mtnmutt]

Rain in low temps (33 to 40s). Put rain gear on immediately.

If those conditions last more than an hour, I may head back to camp if my teeth start to chatter. I have experienced the early stages of hypothermia. Its more dangerous when you are solo.

Last year, I had those conditions for 40 minutes in high 30s without wind. It was not too bad, so I just continued to hunt.

[ferris bugler]

I hate when September is 80 degrees and sunny everyday. Seems like it always quiets things down around here. I adapt by going rifle hunting in October if that counts.

[elkmtngear]

Rain is no problem.....I just walk around with my elk decoy over my head all day.

I'm with Ferris Bugler....I hate hot dry days, they usually seem to go hand in hand with Silent Elk !

[easeup]

I dont like the wind. My hearing is bad enough anyway.

[Swede]

I like 80* weather just fine, but 90* is even better. It makes for thirsty elk, which come into the water hole to drink, and you know the rest of this story. The elk normally don't come in during the heat of the day, but sometimes they do. They usually arrive about sundown.
There are some things I like about cleaning, skinning and packing out at night. There are no flies or yellow jackets. It is cooler for working, and you get to sleep in a little. I can't sleep in much as I want, since I need to get the elk in the cooler as soon as the meat locker opens.

[one_elk]

I hate the heat in general but especially during elk season, but Swede does make a good point guess i should learn how to use one of my 3 treestands that have been given to be over the years.....but I don't know old dog, new tricks ????

[Indian Summer]

I guess the only thing worse than a relentless all day rain is thick fog. You can get lost in your own back yard.

[WapitiTalk1]

Heavy, wet, sleeting rain blows for sure. Can't hear or see much, and, rain gear is a pain to wear when you're moving and, hot as hell. Welcome to the late Washington archery season ..

Late snow melt areas, coupled with hot weather, bring on what i think I hate the most during an elk hunt. Airborne vampires..... BUGS! The skeetos and black gnats get so bad in my neck of the woods during the early season some years, it's very difficult to stay in the game. Headnets, long sleeve shirts, even gloves are necessary to keep them bass terds out of your eyes, nose, ears, etc. I've walked away from elk a few times during these years as I was being devoured, a bitefull at a time... hate the bugs.

[flystrait]

I would have to say the heat. When it reaches 80 plus and the nights are warm as well, the hunting is just plain tough. How I combat it is sleep in and hunt the evening pretty hard stay lower to the bottoms on the north slopes with water. My hardest days ever hunting have been with the heat and high winds. I will take rain anytime.

[JohnFitzgerald]

#1 - rain & wind
If its raining and windy when its time to get up, just go back to sleep.
Just be prepared to be out there when its over....

+1

[bnsafe]

definately rain, i hate the cold damp feeling rather your wet or not

[Backcountry]

I prefer nastier weather over most.. to an extent. A light rain is my favorite.

[Z Barebow]

Sunny and hot are my least favorite. It seems like the country is devoid of life under these conditions.

I'll take rain (light rain is my favorite)

[Harmy]

For me it's heat. Heat just saps me physically and then when you get an animal down you have to hurry to protect the meat.

I actually prefer hunting in the rain or snow. I have had my most successful seasons hunting in the rain. I like it because stalking is nearly silent and I can move more freely and quickly without making noise. Plus, with rain I have a continuous visual on wind direction and don't have to pay as close attention to where the wind is comming from. Plus, after 30 years of mountaineering and ice climbing I don't mind suffering in horrible weather (gear certainly helps a bunch though).

[Jaquomo]

I hate any kind of storm fronts, which bring 24 hour shifty wind where I hunt.

Favorite is high-pressure, clear, predicatable wind morning and evening. Temps aren't a concern as the elk don't leave, just adapt.

[LckyTylr]

I hate anything over 70. I'm a warm-blooded killer.

Most of my elk hunting is Early Archery, so it's always hot. When it's hot, I can't get bulls to bugle more than just a few times early morning and it seems like they NEVER move . . . yet I can't find them from following their last bugle.

I prefer a light rain. Usually a light rain has somewhat steady rain, I can stalk silently, and it keeps me cool. I love it.

[easeup]

trophy, it looks like no one else can alter the weather either.
Everyone just deals with it or if possible, alter the hunt plan accordingly.

were you thinking of something else?

[pointysticks]

elk-less area with a lot of hunters. brutal.

the rest i LOVE.

[ElkNut1]

I'm with Jaquomo,cnelk, storm fronts, unpredictable winds & lots of heavy rains. I will wait these things out! Everything else I can deal with!

ElkNut1

[Huntography]

Off season

Rudy

[CrazyElkHunter]

If we wake up to rain, we just pull the sleeping bags over our heads and go back to sleep. Not only do I hate getting soaked, but I hunting with bows, shooting animals and taking the chance on a washed out blood trail is not worth it. We have the entire archery season, so time is on our side. I am not fond of hunting in 80+ weather either, but bulls visit wallows and ponds more, and sitting on them has paid off several times. You have to take care of the meat quicker to keep from spoiling.

[otcWill]

Anything that settles in for a long time and is relatively serious. Rain and wind can slow a hunt down but a foot or two of snow will kill it completely. That said, the calm after the storm has consistently been awesome elk hunting for me in September.

[Trophyhill]

trophy, it looks like no one else can alter the weather either.
Everyone just deals with it or if possible, alter the hunt plan accordingly.

were you thinking of something else?

when i started the thread i had no idea so many hated the rain so much. i killed my first elk in a drizzling rain/thunderstorm/passing lightning. the lightning part was scary. i used a page out of the PlayBook on this occasion. my least favorite condition is pressure. CO OTC pressure.

what has worked for me finding elk in these pressured units is locating unpressured areas within the units. sometimes these areas can be really easy to find too. i've found spots like these that are so obvious nobody else bothers hunting these spots. other times it involves finding a hell hole where noone else will go. now that i am set up for any back country hunt (thanks ELK REAPER) sleeping with the elk becomes an option.

[Bowhunter]

I hate the heat. I like a cool day with constant winds from one direction. I have to agree with Huntogrphy. The off season sucks.....

[Lefty]

Heat with no wind
I would love for some snow during archery season. Ive had snow a few times but wasnt able to hunt the snow.
I like cooler days, after a good soaking

[elkmtngear]

Heat with no wind
I would love for some snow during archery season. Ive had snow a few times but wasnt able to hunt the snow.
I like cooler days, after a good soaking

We took our biggest bull to date right before a snowstorm, in a miserable wind. We cow called / decoyed him in from way down in a canyon..unreal!

It's like he could sense that the cold weather was coming, and he better get busy collecting cows

[JJ Overkill]

hot and sunny kills me. i enjoy a light rain, some light fog. LIGHT fog, snow is my favorite. it does make it tricky to climb though. but im still use to MN fall hunting weather. im still not climatized to CO.

[WapitiTalk1]

Geesh...I guess I'm the only girl on this thread that can't stand skeetos and flesh eating black gnats.. Hate them buggers.

[Trophyhill]

Geesh...I guess I'm the only girl on this thread that can't stand skeetos and flesh eating black gnats.. Hate them buggers.

I got into black gnats, biting flies and hoards of Mosquitos in CO while scouting late July a couple years ago and they were hungry. They were gone opening weekend thank God

[welka]

Let it rain!! I'll take rain over 80+ heat and especially when its 80 and anywhere close to a near full moon. Misearable. I fully realize that waterholes are magnets with heat, just don't have the luxury of knowing if water will be in old haunts year to year when you don't get to go out ahead of season and scout. Heat also cuts afternoon naps short due to waking up in a puddle of sweat!

[wideangle]

Hot dry dusty conditions with ATVs everywhere you go!

[slim9300]

I hate when September is 80 degrees and sunny everyday. Seems like it always quiets things down around here. I adapt by going rifle hunting in October if that counts.

This. ^^^

I'm very used to the rain being from the NW, but generally heavy rain shuts down the rutting activity of Rocky Mountain bulls. I have seen where a slight drizzle led to one of the craziest rutting frenzies in my time hunting elk however.

[Da White Shoe]

I hate when September is 80 degrees and sunny everyday. Seems like it always quiets things down around here. I adapt by going rifle hunting in October if that counts.

This. ^^^

I'm very used to the rain being from the NW, but generally heavy rain shuts down the rutting activity of Rocky Mountain bulls. I have seen where a slight drizzle led to one of the craziest rutting frenzies in my time hunting elk however.

I agree... light rain is an absolute "must be out there all day" type situation in the Rockies.
I've seen them bugle from daylight to dark a dozen different times in a light drizzle.

[eriks.]

I hate rain. How I adapt depends on how much and how long it has been raining. It often means I put on my rain gear and start calling in areas I have not been hunting. I may try to do some spot and stalk hunting, but with my poor eyesight, I have to really work at this to be productive. I also pray more. The Lord knows I am handicapped greatly when I have to depend on my eyesight to find elk.

Hey Swede, my eyes are good but my hearing is bad. If we team up, we might make one good hunter!

[montanabrown]

The worst conditions have to be sitting in town not being in the elk woods

[sreekers]

Wind and hot are my least favorite. Kills the rut when it gets hot