Building Blocks for Killing Elk Consistently

[Trophyhill]

it has to start somewhere so where does it start, and what does it take to make the jump from killing an elk on occasion or not, to putting meat in your freezer "every" year? whether you're hunting big bulls only or any elk.

[twinkieman]

These are the things that I believe helped me.
1. Dedication-- Thinking and learning about elk 365 days a year
2. Perserverance-- Never give up
3 .Learning the elk language-- Understanding what the elk are saying, and how to respond properly
4. Physical condition-- To hunt elk effectively, you have to be able to get to the elk
5. Shot placement -- Staying calm in with a bull screaming at you 10 feet away can be intimidating. Mental training is needed for calmness, shot placement and shot execution, no what weapon is being used.

[ElkNut1]

Yes, there are certain ingredients to this recipe. OTC public land hunts which most of us hunt requires ones to "know their areas" -- This is needed for "any elk" or "mature bulls only" -- Knowing ones area constitutes a real knowledge of bedding, feeding & transition areas for a start. Then include watering, escape routes from hunting pressure. In many areas you will find sparse water availability in other areas there will be an abundance of water. The later is tougher to pin down elk in these high water areas if water sources were your main way to hunt them. Once you've spent a few years in the right areas you will get a good feel where elk are found pre-rut, peak rut & post rut. Being in & around elk is key here to ones consistent success. What you do with the elk once found is where calling can apply as well as selective methods & techniques of use where no calling may be the answer. This is where "reading a situation" comes in. (grin) 1st & foremost, Know Your Area!

ElkNut1

[Still Hunter]

I agree with Paul 100%. It's important to learn the areas you hunt like your backyard. I have 10 different areas that I can hunt. They all have elk, but not at the same time. Different areas for the time of the year, and weather conditions. I scout 250 days a year, and it took me a long time to find these areas. I never use a GPS, because I know the areas so well now. I don't even own a GPS. I use d a map and compass to learn them, but now I don't even need those. I know where the elk feed and bed in all the areas. I know their escape routes. It's almost like I know what they're thinking. I've learned a lot of this by just watching them. I know where the cows go to have their calves. Being able to watch them year around without being detected is good training for still hunting. Everytime I head for the mountains it's like going to school. Elk school.

So, I suggest to any elk hunter. Get to really know elk. Learn all you can about them. Learn how they think. Then find good hunting areas no matter how hard they are to get too. Keep them to yourself, and learn them so well that you could be dropped anywhere in the area from a plane, and you'd know exactly where you were.

I think of elk 24/7. It's my last thought at night, and my first thought in the morning. I was 10 years old with my dad when I saw my first elk on the ground. I dedicated my life to elk ever since that moment.

Hunting elk is one of the pure pleasures God has given us. Give it 100% of your effort. The majestic Elk deserves no less.

[Toby]

Wow, I can't add much to what has already been said, great advice. I live a 24 hour drive from our elk hunting area, so getting out there for a 7-10 hunt each year is all we get. Been doing it for a dozen years or so, and I have to agree, as we have learned the area and where the elk like to hang out our success has gone up. Getting better at calling has also helped, thanks to reading all of Elknuts stuff. Determination is huge, as is being in good physical and mental condition, can't shoot them in camp.

Great question, glad you asked it.
Toby

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

All good answers. But if I had to sum it all up in one word, that word would be TIME!

It takes TIME to learn all the tricks to the trade. Rome wasn't built in a day!

And you have to spend Lots of TIME in the timber to be successful. When I was a kid, everyone said ole Don Kilmer was the best bass fisherman in the area. In reality, Don wasn't any better than anyone else. He just spent every spare moment of his TIME fishing. Same thing goes for elk hunting or anything else that a feller likes to do.

[cnelk]

For those that can only make one trip to elk country a year during season, I would probably recommend expanding your knowledge of the area each trip.
Take a day or two and dedicate it to scout/hunt a new spot.
It doesnt have to be that far away, just enough to put another piece of the puzzle together.

[Swede]

I agree with what has been written on this thread, but would like to add a few more thoughts. As WW said TIME in the elk woods is essential, but there are people who see, hear and perceive, and there are those who never figure it out. I have been on both sides of this equation. I admit I was slow to pick up on my own, the meaning of elk sounds. It was not until I started reading some of the stuff that Elknut posted on Bowsite years ago, that I started comprehending the notion that elk have a language. Oh, I knew if an elk barked that it meant trouble. I had witnessed the stampede that soon followed. But was it a warning or a reaction? I had no idea. Did cow talk have meaning or was it the sound of cows and calves moving around undisturbed? I had never thought about it. Once I read what Paul was saying, I could relate it to what I was experiencing. That made a huge difference in how I hunted. By knowing what a bull was saying, I could determine how to approach him.
Before reading Paul's posts, I knew some things do not work, and not to do it. Some things work once in awhile, but nothing had any consistency. The bottom line is that experience, or time in the elk woods, plus education will combine to make a more effective hunter. I am confident that I was a elk hunter years before Paul was, yet he figured out things I probably never would have on my own. Not every experience is equal, and we do not all process the things we see and hear the same. I also wonder at times how others like WW and cnelk figured out all they know. Were they mentored, or lucky or just smart? Why? I lived in the forest. They didn't.
Before Bowsite and ever hearing about Paul Medel, I too was a consistent elk bow hunter. Back in the 1990s, I could have shot 5 or 6 elk most years. I had learned where to set up a tree stand. For me calling was fun, but a well placed tree stand put meat on the table. That all came together for me one evening, when I was out cold calling. I found a water hole with a well worn elk trail leading to it. I had a home made tree stand just in case, that was sat in for about an hour total when I got bored with it. When I saw that trail and water hole, I knew where I should locate my stand. The next time I was out hunting, I moved my perch. It was late one afternoon so as soon as it was hung, my son and I left to set up a quick camp. The next day I killed a 5 point bull at that site. Finding that water hole led to an avalanche of tree stand hunting information that came cascading into me over the next several years. I have to admit that I am still learning but the cascade has turned into a trickle.

[bnsafe]

I was just thinking about retiring from elk hunting, that way I could honestly say I killed one every season I bowhunted them. seems a lot easier

[Still Hunter]

Retiring from elk hunting?

[Swede]

Bnsafe: I appreciate you buddy and what I say here is not intended to apply to you, but your post reminded me of another matter. It is easy to start thinking we are good at elk hunting when in reality we just got lucky. Only consistency over time will demonstrate who is really skilled.

[Wapiti]

Hands down no brainer.......walk into your area in the early morning darkness and sit and wait for a bugle !! I will sit there for about a half hour after sunrise for the elk to bugle. If no bugles come I will let out a quiet location bugle. The key here is not to call to every elk on the mountain. Just one that is close to you !! After that sit and listen for an answer........it will come so be patient.

When you hear him bugle put your call away and go into stealth mode. This comes easy for me as I used to be a NINJA when I was a kid !! LOL all kidding aside sneak into that bull as close as possible !! Try for 40-50 yards ! He should be bugling on his own now so you can keep tabs on him.

Go slow and try to be quiet and stay down wind no matter what. Your wind checker should be in your hand the whole time and check the wind constantly. Bulls usually will be pacing back and forth on a trail. Now wait until he goes down the trail and then move quickly in on his trail. Stay broadside to his trail and get set up and knock an arrow !!

Now comes the fun part. Get your favorite cow reed out and give two very nice simple mews. then get ready because he will turn around and be on you very fast so be ready. As soon as you hear him coming draw your bow........They cover ground fast !!!

You will need to have decided already if you want to take this bull or pass as you won't have time to score him and admire how pretty he looks. It will all be over in a matter of seconds !!

Meat in the freezer !! = Get as close as you can then cow call.

Keep it simple guys. Locate.....move in close.....cow call......shoot him !!!

[Still Hunter]

I have a question for you Wapiti. I assume you're a bow hunter, and hunt the rut?

How would you hunt a bull in mid to late October?

[JohnFitzgerald]

1. Lounge Chair Scouting with Google and Topo software.
2. Condition for your hunt elevation. (high altitude training mask)
3. Practice your elk calling daily. (every time you shower, take your reed with you)
4. Practice your cold shot. It's the only one that counts.
5. Hunt the rut.
6. Hunt where the elk are. This could mean 1/4 or 4 miles in. The deeper you go, doesn't always equal more elk.
7. Always remember the basics of hunting. (wind, never call from an open area)
8. Locate bugle in those key area's you found while sitting in your lounge chair.
9. Always consider the 7 Golden Elk Calling Rules when deciding on a calling sequence.
10. Don't think like a hunter, think like an elk. (If I was an elk what would I like and dislike about this calling sequence).
11. Understand what the elk is saying.
12. You can't kill elk sitting in a trailer.

My 2-cents!

[Wapiti]

I have a question for you Wapiti. I assume you're a bow hunter, and hunt the rut?

How would you hunt a bull in mid to late October?

Great question Still Hunter. I am only a bow hunter and I hunt right through rifle season with my bow. This past season I hunted all Sept and all of Oct. The bulls really got going about the 24th of Sept and bugled right through Oct. So my tactics worked right till my last day out. I went back to work on Nov 1st. Yes I was kicking and screaming the whole way to work !! LOL But I have to pay bills to keep the wolves away !!

But correct me if I'm wrong I think what you were asking is how would I hunt the elk when the rut was over ?

First off you can all but forget getting a big bull as they have left the herd already and went back to big bull land . They disappear just as fast as they appear in Sept !! Bulls just hang out away from pressure. Up here the cows and young bulls start to form huge herds 200-300 is common around the end of Oct into Nov. We usually have snow by Halloween which actually helps hunters with the right knowledge.

The best way to hunt these elk is the ambush in the evenings and mornings. We will know where they are feeding because we can see them in the fields. They will stay in this pattern for 3-4 days if not pressured. I like the mornings the best as I can get back into the bush 150-200 yards and wait for them to come past. We sometimes have a partner walk along the field edge and kind of push them your direction.

I am for the most part by myself though and once back in the bush set up I like to give a couple cow calls every so often ( 10 mins ) or so. Elk are a herd animal and therefore are very curious. Calling can bring them down the right trail and that can give you a shot.

I hope this helps and answer's your question. The late season can be the hardest time to get an elk in my opinion. Honestly I try to be done before the big snow hits around here. It just gets to cold and the snow is to deep and miserable to walk through !!

Trav

[Lefty]

Lots of correct answers.
While Im far from an expert on elk Ive been a successful hunter and trapper in the last 5 places Ive lived.
Part of that is knowing animals and what to expect in different situations, knowing elk habits and habitat, maybe that means knowing that deep dark canyon 4 miles in or that messy tangle on the edge of town
Learning about elk and their traits could mean watching lots of y tube, hunting videos, watching elk in Yellowstone, or in my case the city zoo and local elk ranches.
Personally I need to get better at closing the deal knowing the range and using the right pin
I also think my life would be that of an elk "killer" if I had a few more days to hunt each year, Friday night, Saturdays and Labor day inst enough

[Still Hunter]

Wapiti..............I wasn't asking for personal knowledge. I was just wondering how you changed your tactics when you couldn't call a bull in.

I should have looked at your location. Thanks for the response.

[Toby]

Cnelk, that is good advice for us once a year hunters.the last place we hunted for about 10 years, and after gaining familiarity with the country, everything became so much easier. Next year will be our third year in our new hunting territory, and while the learning curve is flatter the second time around, I agree with others that know the country is a huge advantage. Google earth and the Idaho F&G map planner have saved countless steps.

I still have a long way to go to learn the language. But, this forum is really a big help.

[Wapiti]

Wapiti..............I wasn't asking for personal knowledge. I was just wondering how you changed your tactics when you couldn't call a bull in.

I should have looked at your location. Thanks for the response.

Hey no worries Still Hunter. Any info I have that can help anyone is great. I have been helped a lot on here so i am happy to share my info freely !!

I also use a climber tree stand a lot for the ambush part as you can move any where fast. I only go up about 12 feet and the elk do not even notice you as long as you are still.

I hope this helps bud. Good luck.

Trav

[bnsafe]

I was just kidding. guess I missed that mark on that one. lol. your right swede, ive admitted on here that time will tell rather I got lucky or can kill elk. I suspect a little of both.

[Still Hunter]

Wapiti..............I wasn't asking for personal knowledge. I was just wondering how you changed your tactics when you couldn't call a bull in.

I should have looked at your location. Thanks for the response.

Hey no worries Still Hunter. Any info I have that can help anyone is great. I have been helped a lot on here so i am happy to share my info freely !!

I also use a climber tree stand a lot for the ambush part as you can move any where fast. I only go up about 12 feet and the elk do not even notice you as long as you are still.

I hope this helps bud. Good luck.

Trav

Check your PM's.

[Indian Summer]

I've said it plenty of times" Location. You can't kill what ain't there!

But... once you know you're in the right place old man Elknut is right on the money. Know your area! This starts with a MASSIVE amount of topo map reading and "flying" around on Google Earth til your head spins. Most people wouldn't believe how much time I spend doing that stuff. Not hours days or even weeks... MONTHS. If I'm considering hunting a new area I will have around 250 hours of staring invested. When I get there it's like I've already hunted it 50 times. No matter what it's going to look different when you get there so you better damn sure have done as much as you can before that.

Here's a few good points worth making: There are some areas I have hunted for over 15 years and guess what? I still look at the maps. And guess what... I still notice things I never realized before that were staring me in the face the last 99 times I looked at the same map. There's no such thing as too much homework. And instead of feeling like you've learned enough to quit looking at the topo think the other way... at that point you are now smart enough to know what you're looking for so keep at it. Sounds crazy maybe but I consider a topo a treasure map and they never get old to me.

Also... I do ok at killing elk. But I see guys in the same area that show up at their truck ready to hang themselves. "We saw plenty of tracks but can't figure out where they are" Why is that? Well let's see..... I've never seen you here before. ding ding ding.... Before I could leave the truck every day with nothing but confidence I hunted the place for 4 years. When I say 4 years I don't mean one week per year either. I mean I lived in there from late August until late November. So when me or Elknut or others say know your area it means no shortcuts. It means learning it the old fashioned way by investing time and boot leather. How many pairs of boots have you gone through while learning this area you can't figure out? One? ha ha ok.... You're an infant then. And if you wore that pair out covering ground along the ridgetops then you haven't even been born yet! Get down where the elk are where you know you'll sweat bullets coming back up. Then go through 4 pairs of boots down there. Now you'll feel like I do when you leave the truck.

There is one thing that can save you a few pairs of boots and a few years of your life: A hot tip from a trusted source. If a guy like Cnelk were to say hey man... you caught me in a good mood and you seem like a nice guy and I have a few killer spots that I just can't get to anymore....... you better listen up big time. Those conversations are priceless. I hear people say "I called the local game biologist and asked a few questions" lol... I never knew a biologist that hunted much. Most of them are tree hugger types. They work during hunting season. You've probably studied elk hunting more than they have. They count wintering elk in the snow when they're all herded up..... from an airplane. I have always though their counts were low. Once those elk scatter into the high country your guess is as good as theirs. All they can tell you are herd numbers and bull/cow ratios. Biology! And if they by chance do hunt elk keep in mind that you are number 999 in line. That'd be like calling Cnelk on one of his bad days.

My 2 cents. I never was much for candy coating things was I? lol

Find a good area/invest in it.

[Still Hunter]

I've never told anybody to call a biologist. I tell them to talk to the warden of the unit you want to hunt.