class, guide or just wing it?

[Turkeytider]

Nope. Fellow newbs to western/elk like me.

Ahh…..to be young again with the assurance of invincibility!
Oh…will there be big bears in the area in which you would be hunting?

 

[hunt1up]

Take that time you were gonna put into a class and just go on a scouting trip. Go camping and get a feel for western terrain. It varies greatly depending where you are. The biggest adjustment for a midwestern deer hunter when going West if the size of the playing field, at least it was for me when I started many years ago.

Back home, 50 acres is a respectable piece of deer hunting ground. You can walk across that in a few minutes. Go elk hunting and the scale is in square miles, and sometimes 100s of square miles. Time spent in the country is more important than the tactics in my opinion. Elk behavior isn't some mythical code to crack, you just need to spend time around them. They aren't the keenest animals, nor are they the dumbest. I started elk hunting like I was dealing with whitetails and far too often wasn't aggressive enough. They're a big furry mountain turkey, and I say that with respect for both the elk and the turkey(I love turkey hunting).

 

[taskswap]

Back home, 50 acres is a respectable piece of deer hunting ground. You can walk across that in a few minutes.

Did I read that right or is that a typo? You must have way longer legs than I do if you walk 50 acres in a few minutes. I've got 5, and it takes more than a few minutes just to get across that! If you walk 2mph that's 88fpm so each "square" acre (208' per side) would be a bit over 2 minutes apiece. 50 acres should take an hour or more.

Yes, I am a nerd.

 

[hunt1up]

Did I read that right or is that a typo? You must have way longer legs than I do if you walk 50 acres in a few minutes. I've got 5, and it takes more than a few minutes just to get across that! If you walk 2mph that's 88fpm so each "square" acre (208' per side) would be a bit over 2 minutes apiece. 50 acres should take an hour or more.

Yes, I am a nerd.

You certainly nerded out. 50 acre square, ok, not a FEW minutes. But not long. Or you're slow.

 

[taskswap]

You certainly nerded out. 50 acre square, ok, not a FEW minutes. But not long. Or you're slow.

IDK man, 2mph is actually a pretty good clip for hunting.

 

[snowdog104]

Did I read that right or is that a typo? You must have way longer legs than I do if you walk 50 acres in a few minutes. I've got 5, and it takes more than a few minutes just to get across that! If you walk 2mph that's 88fpm so each "square" acre (208' per side) would be a bit over 2 minutes apiece. 50 acres should take an hour or more.

Yes, I am a nerd.

50 acres is about 1/3 of a mile. At 2 mph it would take you 10 minutes.


Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk

 

[WRO]

You can read whatever you want on the internet, but there’s no replacement for experience. If you want to kill an elk, I know a few guides who will get you opportunities at elk and will teach you a bunch. (I learned a ton from a couple of them that has made my success rates much better) if you don’t have a good mentor, you’re just setting yourself up for disappointment. I’ve hunted WT in the mid west some, it’s nothing like hunting the mountains out west. (Super fun and I really enjoyed it).

Apply for tags in no point states and start talking to good outfitters to get a hunt on the books. Then go from there. Going OTC is going to be a complete shit show that will likely turn you off the elk hunting.

 

[silver15tacoma]

I’m sure others have mentioned this but you can find all you need on forums and/or YouTube. All for free 99!

 

[jsig]

You can read whatever you want on the internet, but there’s no replacement for experience. If you want to kill an elk, I know a few guides who will get you opportunities at elk and will teach you a bunch. (I learned a ton from a couple of them that has made my success rates much better) if you don’t have a good mentor, you’re just setting yourself up for disappointment. I’ve hunted WT in the mid west some, it’s nothing like hunting the mountains out west. (Super fun and I really enjoyed it).

Apply for tags in no point states and start talking to good outfitters to get a hunt on the books. Then go from there. Going OTC is going to be a complete shit show that will likely turn you off the elk hunting.

So I've seen zero point draw units, is the only difference really just a much more limited number of other hunters in an area?

 

[WRO]

So I've seen zero point draw units, is the only difference really just a much more limited number of other hunters in an area?

No states that don’t have PP, there are plenty of states with hybrid draws to hunt as well.

 

[CodeMonkey]

Just go. Find a tag and go make mistakes and learn.

 

[MallardSX2]

Just mentioning taking a "class" on how to hunt something makes my skin crawl and makes me want to hide behind a tree to keep from being accidentally shot by someone who likely shouldn't be in the woods alone to begin with. lol

 

[TradLife406]

I'm a Montana resident. Done a lot of OTC DIY elk hunts. And I'm thinking about paying for a guided private land hunt. My buddy is a guide for a big outfit here. Figure it costs me a few grand to hunt here. Gas and food. Might as well spend a few more and actually get more than one shot opportunity in two weeks.

Elk hunting sucks. Most toxic relationship a guy can be in. When it's good got dang. When the elk do that thing you love and your eyes roll back... But then they kick you in the nuts for days on end lol.


My mom took Tylenol when she was pregnant with me, but only when she was hung over

 

[Chris in TN]

Just mentioning taking a "class" on how to hunt something makes my skin crawl and makes me want to hide behind a tree to keep from being accidentally shot by someone who likely shouldn't be in the woods alone to begin with. lol

Strictly speaking I see the logic behind taking such classes, but, yeah, I miss the world where you just did things the hard way and figured it out along the way.

If I knew thirty years ago what I know now about deer hunting, I would have done some things differently (like playing the wind better, and going to medical school). But man I had a lot of land to hunt on with a lot of deer and it was a blast.