Elk Hunting Basics...Your Move, Thread #9

[Trumkin the Dwarf]

The Situation: September 17th, 9am. temperature is 60 degrees, with the thermals still moving downhill. This hunt is in lower mountains, nothing above 7k. You have a spare cow tag, and you have never arrowed an elk. This is your first time in the area.

You and a buddy have been hiking and bugling since before dawn without a single response. You crest a saddle into a large, shallow bowl which is open and grassy down low, with a mixture of aspens, junipers, grass, and pine as the bowl runs up and rams smack dab sideways into a thickly timbered bench a couple hundred yards above you. However, the bench is not really important for this situation. What matters is that your path wound around so you are no more than a mile from roads on public land, with an old (hopefully gated) logging road running right through the fairly open meadow below you. As you let out yet another half-hearted bugle, followed by some cow talk, you hear a cow call from no further than a hundred yards out in the bowl.

Here is the catch, you can see most of the bowl, your wind is directly perpendicular to the line from you to the call, and you would swear that cow call was made by a Hootchie Mama. You sure don't see any elk, but you have a large clump of junipers right in front of you to sow uncertainty in the mind. You are still on the ridge line that defines one side of the bowl, about halfway up. The call came from the center of the bowl. Your move.

[Backcountry]

Let out another cow call. One more listen should indicate if it's a hoochie mama or not

[JGH]

Hey, I think I know where that is!

I think I'd sit and wait ... or try to get around the edge of the bowl, toward the bench. If it's an elk, it'll be headed there, and perhaps you can get a visual. If it's a hunter, he'll have a hard time being silent most likely, and will give away his position.

I guess the bottom line is that if I'm trying to sound like an elk, I should try to think like one, too! In other words, I won't go willy-nilly chasing any old hoochie mama, but instead I'll be cautious and try to sort out what I just heard from the safety of cover, and I'll probably keep my mouth shut.

[Mikeha33]

How about this? With the thermals still moving downhill, why not take advantage of the bench above you? Quietly back yourself and your partner up to that bench, with the caller 50-75 yards behind you, or as far back as you can effectively be to not let the thermals drag your scent down the hill, and rip off a big nasty bugle and rake a tree. If it's a hunter, I think he'd be likely to respond with the same exact sound you heard from the bowl, and perhaps, being that it sounds like a hoochie mama, it may be an inexperienced hunter, and he may try to close the gap between himself, and what he thinks is a fired up bull. Or, if it's not a hunter, and is actually a cow, being mid-September, there is a pretty good chance that there is a bull nearby, and you may entice some response from him, since your'e encroaching on his cows. If it's a cow, or cows with no bulls around, and she continues responding with interest, maybe she is callable up to the bench, and you can fill the cow tag. If you're not sure that it's a hunter, then I think it's worth a little bit of time to find out. I hear guys all the time saying they killed elk 1/2 mile or less off of roads, so it doesn't seem far fetched at all that it is an elk.

[ElkNut1]

Once you heard the cow call below & was unsure of its authenticity wait 30sec then give a nervous grunt out of your bugle tube. If it's a hunter he/she will likely start cow calling some more to calm down this elk they heard. (you) A real elk would most likely say nothing but may start slowly making its way towards you so stay patient & get the wind right just in case. This is a good way to weed out hunter versus elk! (grin)

ElkNut1

[elkmtngear]

I think I would just shut up, and try to get around to the downwind side of the bowl. I wouldn't want to take a chance of blowing those elk out of there with my scent (if it were indeed elk).

If I could get around there visually undetected using contours or cover, and I could still see the bowl, I would then try a little cold calling to see if I could get another response. Hopefully you could get a visual on whatever is cow calling.

[Trumkin the Dwarf]

I guess I didn't make it quite clear, but being on the bench would put a huge wash of scent all through the bowl. I never thought to nervous grunt at that moment, but it did come in handy later that morning. So far elkmtngear, and Paul are closest to the way we played this scenario out.

A real elk would most likely say nothing but may start slowly making its way towards you so stay patient & get the wind right just in case. This is a good way to weed out hunter versus elk! (grin) ElkNut1

I think I would just shut up, and try to get around to the downwind side of the bowl. I wouldn't want to take a chance of blowing those elk out of there with my scent (if it were indeed elk).

A lot more still to come in this scenario! This encounter was fast, and loaded with lessons for my buddy and I. Also, don't forget that the response came to a short herd calling sequence. If it is a real elk, it may be lonely and looking for company.

[otcWill]

I'd stay put and not make a sound. If its a hunter with a hoochie only then he has a low elk IQ and will soon call again and agin from the exact same spot. If its a single cow, she will be already on you by the time you nock an arrow so get ready! Cows don't like being alone. A lone cow is the easiest elk to call in IMO.

[cnelk]

I'd stay put and not make a sound. If its a hunter with a hoochie only then he has a low elk IQ and will soon call again and agin from the exact same spot.

Yup. This has been my experience with a hoochie holding hunter

[ElkNut1]

Well Malachi, that changes things?? (grin) From your first post I assumed you were trying to depict Hunter or Elk? I see now you are trying to possibly work this unknown. As I mentioned my 1st piece of business is to establish hunter or elk because of a road right there in the bottom. If hunter I move on, if elk I would re-position quickly to maintain wind. I agree with octwill on cows not generally being alone so most likely more elk are around. Too, they are not in a bedding area either, they are in transition at 9am. This means these/that elk is on its feet & still moving/feeding/dinking. With this in mind I'd move around them with favorable wind as Elkmountaingear mentions & setup right there except I would not call especially if this elk or group is saying nothing themselves. Knowing they are on their feet I should end up seeing or hearing them soon since I'm right near them. Calling at them would be a last resort, I'd be looking for a bull only so the cows can file past freely! If a bull is seen in tote I may cow call or choose a nervous grunt to stop him for a shot, all depends how quickly they were moving through the timber. A nervous grunt is best on fast moving elk & a cow call works well on slow meandering elk.

ElkNut1

[stringunner]

I like what Paul said about using a nervous grunt to decipher whether its an elk or human. Hadn't ever thought of that but I'm adding that the to official book of tactics. In the right situation I think that could work awesome.

[Trumkin the Dwarf]

As this is slipping down, I figured I'd tell the rest of the story.

We cow called one more time, and received an answer. It still sounded like a Hoochie Mama, but the timing didn't seem like that which a hunter would use. There was a good long minute of delay before the call came out. My buddy set up right were we were, and I slipped thirty yards down wind of him, and started forward into the bowl. I figured one of us needed to be downwind in case the elk tried to circle and catch our wind. As I got set, I saw that it was indeed a cow elk, and she went straight to the source of our original calls. Straight to my buddy, who taught us another hard lesson by setting up behind a juniper rather than in front of it. The cow came to 14 yards, and was broadside, but he had no shot angle. We got busted when he tried to move left and draw at the same time.

As she trotted off, I hit her with a nervous grunt. She stopped at 70-80 yards and started coming towards me. She tried to return the grunt, and every time she did, I'd hit her again with the same call. I had her at 60 yards or so and slowly working back in, when my buddy (who had lost sight of the elk, and didn't know what was taking place) came into view and she took off forever.

[elkmtngear]

Excellent encounter...so close!

[ElkNut1]

Ha Ha, so close! That's elk hunting isn't it! (grin) Glad it nearly worked out for both of you!

ElkNut1

[Trumkin the Dwarf]

It worked splendidly actually. I shot my bull an hour later up on the bench!