Most Important Elk Gittin Tool

[Swede]

Not counting what you shoot, bow & arrow, rifle, muzzle loader, etc., and not counting things like calls or tree stands, what do you consider the most indispensable item you take out daily on your hunt? Jeff of elkmtngear can claim his umbrella as that is the kind of thing I am interested in hearing about.
For me it is some extra warm clothes most of the season, and second to that is my range finder, until I get very familiar with the distances to different objects around my tree stand.

[Lovellj]

Binos

[Elkonthebrain]

I would say range finder and a good set of boots.

[elk-n-walleye]

I know you are looking for equipment but for me it is my legs and lungs. So if I had to put it in terms of equipment it would be pre-season work on the treadmill. the last few years I've been living in AZ at 1000 ft elevation and I have been hunting in my home state WY at high elevations. Because of my work on the treadmill I haven't missed a beat when covering ground at those high elevations. a little soreness from using sidehilling muscles but nothing major.

[Olydog09]

Maps ,good boots and gps all tied. If I had to pick one and leave the others, Good Boots. But I kind of consider boots in the same vein as bow, arrows, etc. They are essential items. So with that in mind, I will pick maps. Even in famiilar country I read my maps everyday looking for an advantage with the current wind set up or to try to find a funnel between where I have learned the elk are moving or to try and find some new untouched hell hole. I just love maps.

[Indian Summer]

Hardware: Binos

Otherwise: Attitude/Sheer determination

[Trophyhill]

For me it's my elk brain. Without it I would be wandering the elkwoods aimlessly

[elkaholic]

Hard to pick between my Spotter/binocs and my boots. Glossing for hours at up to 6 miles in a normal thing. Having a good pair of boots to get you there is a must as well. My Elmer's glue bottle puffer ranks high on the list as well.

[ThinAir]

Good boots and picking them up and putting them back down.

[elkmtngear]

Jeff of elkmtngear can claim his umbrella as that is the kind of thing I am interested in hearing about.

Wow Swede...I can't believe you stole my thunder

[ElkNut1]

JohIIj, welcome to the Forum!

For me my most important item is my GPS & Topo Map combo! You never know where the days hunt may take you out here! 2nd, my pack with my needed items for the days hunt!

ElkNut1

[navet]

JohIIj, welcome to the Forum!

For me my most important item is my GPS & Topo Map combo! You never know where the days hunt may take you out here! 2nd, my pack with my needed items for the days hunt!

ElkNut1

+1

[ishy]

Determination

[Swede]

It is sure obvious our equipment priorities reflects our hunting style. For example, I like good boots, but are hardly at the top of my list as a tree stand hunter. My GPS is important, but I am not getting lost in my stand, and don't have to keep track of where I am or where I am going. I can be very sedentary for hours, so some extra warm cloths can mean the difference between staying or leaving, being able to draw my bow or not, and can even be a safety issue. I have to admit that my day pack has to be very high on my list of valuable equipment, as that is where I store my snacks and reading material.

[rowdycwby1]

For me it's my gps and a good pack.

[Swede]

John and Thinair, I do not think I have welcomed either of you, but it is good to have you in camp. Pour your own coffee and have a seat around the fire. Elknut and Indian Summer are normally pretty dignified and mind their manners, but keep an eye on RJ. When he is awake, he is scheming.

[Triplebhunters]

Water
My Plan

[WapitiTalk1]

Many of the good tools have been mentioned so I'll have to go with..... my big ears I rely on my sense of hearing to locate vocal elk, to pattern elk moving through the underbrush, to radar in on big stinky raking a tree, to hear bullwinkle crossing a slow moving stream or splashing in a wallow just over the ridge, to identify the unmistakeable squawk of a hoochie mama moving in to the area I'm hunting, to feel wind/thermals shifting as the breeze hits the side of my egg shaped head, to hear the low groaning of a bear coming up the alder choked trail I'm standing on, to quiety communicate with my hunting partner as we plan our move, you get the picture. I sit and listen "a lot" when I'm out in the elkwoods. I imagine I'll also be putting these big ears into maximum use as I deploy a tree stand (for the first time ever) on some of my hunts this September.

[jswbga]

1. toilet paper
2. good boots
3. gps
4. binos
5. rangefinder

in that order

[stringunner]

I can honestly say that my gps is the one piece of equipment I never leave the truck with out.

[Lefty]

Attitude

[pointysticks]

A close family member that owns a ranch!:)

[westaner]

Bear spray or pistol , feel naked without!
phone for emergency

Most helpful
GPS helps find dead elk
Wind checker

[ferris bugler]

Water for me. If I get dehydrated I lose motivation, attitude, determination, and everything else. If I forget anything else at home I will still continue to hunt but if I don't have water I won't leave the truck.

[Fridaythe13th]

Good friend to help me stay motivated. I'm already the last one out of bed in the morning. I would maybe not get out of bed if it was raining or reel windy.
my bow.
boots
my wife
not in any order

[slim9300]

My Kifaru pack.

GPS is #2

[Toby]

I would have to say GPS, even though our hunting area if fairly easy to maneuver, I feel much safer always having it along.

[ElkNut1]

Another note on the GPS &Topo map use in my case & a big reason I always have them doesn't pertain to getting lost but it allows me to jot down all types of info that I can review at a later date. I think I have as many marks & notes on mine as the map maker does! (grin) I mark down all kill spots, bedding areas, water holes, wallows, good elk trails, feeding areas, breeding areas, etc. After a few years of doing this you can look your maps over in all the areas you hunt & start to get a great minds eye view of how the elk are using these areas during pressured & non pressured times! My biggest things I look for in an area are bedding & kill sites, they are very close together as a whole after review of many years of note taking! -- My GPS & Topo map are both set to USGS 7.5 minute 1-24000 so they both read exactly the same, this means wherever I'm standing on the face of the earth I can see on my map where I'm at by locking in my GPS & it will show me exactly where I'm at on the map, not kinda where I'm at but right on the spot to find a dime if hidden out there! (grin) This means the map also shows me the surroundings & possibly the best way out after a kill or real bad weather setting in no matter if it's fogged in, dark or no landmarks to be seen because of heavy timber. -- So lots of reasons I choose that combo!

ElkNut1

[Swamp Buck]

Every time I go on a hunting trip I have a new favorite or most needed piece of equipment. I think it really depends on when, where, how you hunt.

First year : GPS

Second year: Russel Zephyr L3 pant and jacket / Wind proof fleece

Third year: Gaters

[Indian Summer]

I like the "my partner" answer. A partner really can make or break a hunt.

On a side note... Swamp Buck, did you really pack that rack all the way to the truck like that? I spin mine the other way around so I can hold on to the main beams. The brows will curl back & down over the top of my pack. The whole thing is just tighter to my body. In this pic I have an entire camp on my back too or it would be even lower and tighter.

[Swamp Buck]

You darn right I did and pretended to be a bull the whole way. With all the small pines and overhang I had to trudge through there was no way I could have packed it like you did. Maybe with those Narrow Racks you shoot you can curl them around your belly (grin), but that 45" inside rack on my back you would look like a kid pretending to be an airplane...

That and it was the first one we ever shot and didn't have any prior experience to learn from, you should have seen me try to keep the proof of sex....that was comical.

[slim9300]

I like the "my partner" answer. A partner really can make or break a hunt.

On a side note... Swamp Buck, did you really pack that rack all the way to the truck like that? I spin mine the other way around so I can hold on to the main beams. The brows will curl back & down over the top of my pack. The whole thing is just tighter to my body. In this pic I have an entire camp on my back too or it would be even lower and tighter.

That's the easiest way when it's thick, but if I can help it, I like to flip them around like my avatar. I am generally carrying 110-130 lbs. since my partner and I take them out in halves, so I like to sit down on a regular basis. Sitting down with a rack being carried like that is impossible for me without a raised log. I packed this one out like that and I got to sit once in 5+ miles. It was certainly 'memorable' and the weight wasn't even more than 90 lbs (the load was split 3 ways).

ImageUploadedByTapatalk1396540051.422662.jpg (184.87 KiB) Viewed 10789 times

[slim9300]

I like the "my partner" answer. A partner really can make or break a hunt.

On a side note... Swamp Buck, did you really pack that rack all the way to the truck like that? I spin mine the other way around so I can hold on to the main beams. The brows will curl back & down over the top of my pack. The whole thing is just tighter to my body. In this pic I have an entire camp on my back too or it would be even lower and tighter.

Btw. If I thought of my partner as a piece of gear, he would be #1!

He called a nice 6x6 this year for me into 15 yards on day one (wait that sounds just like last year too). Don't ask me how I screwed that shot up and ended up shooting a dink instead!

[Trumkin the Dwarf]

Water
My Plan

This and TP.