Elk Hunting Basics...Your Move, Thread #2

[Harmy]

To follow-up with another basic encounter:

My wife and I had an early pre-dawn start with a 3-4 mile hike up into the area we wanted to hunt. This is a very busy trail-head that has had horses and hunters using it to approach the high country for the last 3-5 weeks. It is the second week of October. Clear skies. No discernible wind. New snow fell 5-6 days earlier and now there is 2-4 inches of super crunchy snow on the trail and it is very loud walking. It is about a half hour before shootable light and we have headlamps on. We are making good time moving quickly as we are not concerned about noise this low on the trail. We are 30 minutes out from the vehicle. Suddenly, about 50 yards away in thick pines a bull blows a nervous grunt. What do you do?

[Still Hunter]

You were making lots of noise, and got to within 50yds of a bull. Right off the bat that is very unusual. Lets agree he knew you were there.

Since you can't shoot for 30 minutes. I'd say hello to the bull , and keep on going where you were headed. If you think the bull will hang around until it's shooting hours you can wait. Personally, I wouldn't wait. Once the elk see me. I'm off to another area.

[stringunner]

Next question for me is does he know YOU are there or does he know something is there? Three options come to mind, 1) give him a nervous grunt back and wait to see his next move. 2) side step the trail, monitor the wind and wait for shooting light and then make a move on the bull assuming he didn't blow out (this also assumes no one else comes up the trail and blows the bull out before you can make a move, you said it is a heavily used trail by hunters, so this is a likely risk). Or 3) he is alerted that something is there and probably won't stay around another 30 minutes so keep gaining ground to your intended destination.

[Swede]

I think I would just turn around a run off for 50 to 100 yards and wait till daylight. At that time I would slip back a ways and give out a location bugle. It is likely the bull is still nearby if you did not spook him.

[archery bum]

With crunchy snow I would be surprised if he didn't already have his eyes on you at 50 yards and 30 mins til legal shooting time, I think I would keep moving.

[Bullnuts]

I'm with Swede. I would wait until daylight and see if I could relocate him. Just because we're making some noise and have headlights on doesn't mean that the bull is spooked. He hasn't run off yet, so maybe it's time to just sit tight until shooting light. If the wind is still favorable, I sit.

[Harmy]

Yea, once I settled back into the trail after jumping out of my skin I decided my best bet was to simply walk on. I do not believe the bull saw us but no question he certainly heard us. We had just come over a short rise and were in really thick timber. He barked at us very loudly but did not run off (I assume as I heard nothing and that snow was loud). I thought about calling but with so much time before it was light enough I decided to simply head up the mountain and stick to the plan. At the end of the day on our return we found his bed and tracks. He had been alone. He had been walking around in small circles around his bed and then his trail walked off but in a direction that paralleled our trail for about 100 yards then crossed the trail and went off into the forest. He did not run which I found surprising.

[Bullnuts]

It may be that with the amount of traffic on that trail the bull wasn't skittish to the sounds of others on the trail. He may have been bedding there for the past few weeks and you guys made jus the right noise to set him off and get him barking, while others had passed him by with him never making a peep.

[Still Hunter]

He was one of those bulls with a watch. He knew he had 30 min to walk away.

[Indian Summer]

Still hunter could very well have hit the nail on the head. BUT... never turn down an opportunity. Locating a bull is half the battle so it's time to see if you can put something together. My answer is short and sweet.... imagine that

Id have the one hunter freeze and sit there until shooting light and the other keep walking like nothing ever happened and go from there. Maybe the walker would circle REALLY wide to the opposite side of the bull... he has to go one way or the other.