Elk Calling for Beginners

[Fibonacci4u]

I am a newbie elk hunter from Ohio. I have never called elk and would like to learn how. I am looking for advice and recommendations from calls manufacturers, types of calls, techniques, and learning resources. Thanks for your help!

 

[Raghornklr]

Straight to the point YouTube is your friend here. Has a ton of videos on every type of call and how to use them. From virtually every call maker. That horse has been beat to death twice on there.

 

[dlee56]

The elk hunting institute by Chris Roe is priceless. Pay for the subscription, watch the videos and pay attention carefully. This is all you will need. In one summer this class took me from complete beginner to calling in multiple bulls and shooting one at 7yds.


https://www.elkhuntinginstitute.com/

 

[spike camp]

Elk Nut, and as mentioned Chris Roe.
Who’s the baldish guy that hunts with his brother Donnie?
Awesome videos.
I prefer Phelps diaphragm calls.
All you need is a few diaphragms and a tube.

 

[ADk7]

Elk Nut, and as mentioned Chris Roe.
Who’s the baldish guy that hunts with his brother Donnie?
Awesome videos.
I prefer Phelps diaphragm calls.
All you need is a few diaphragms and a tube.

The baldish dude is Corey Jacobson. Elk 101 is their channel. I think Donnie's a friend. But shrug...him along with Randy Newberg (Fresh Tracks) also do a podcast called Elk Talk....mostly rambling and the like...but good info.

 

[jonnyviceroy]

+1 for Elk Nut he has some great episodes on the Exo podcast and might have his own I can’t remember. Honestly just watch as many videos you can of actual elk. Even if it’s some Nat Geo or taking the family out to Estes or Yellowstone and just being around them. It goes a long way to just become more familiar with them as a whole.

 

[spike camp]

The baldish dude is Corey Jacobson. Elk 101 is their channel. I think Donnie's a friend. But shrug...him along with Randy Newberg (Fresh Tracks) also do a podcast called Elk Talk....mostly rambling and the like...but good info.

Thank you..Cory Jacobson is a great source of tactics and obviously a fantastic caller.

Agreed, Randy isn’t someone I’d lean on for crunch time info, but he certainly is a good person to listen to ramble.
Just gotta filter out to much of the the fluff imo.

 

[mahonsr]

Elknut app helped me a ton, get the app and listen to him on various podcasts

 

[TaperPin]

I am a newbie elk hunter from Ohio. I have never called elk and would like to learn how. I am looking for advice and recommendations from calls manufacturers, types of calls, techniques, and learning resources. Thanks for your help!

Don’t forget about the lowly cow call. It’s easy to learn, useful while hunting most animals to stop them for a look, and the funniest thing I’ve ever seen was a homesick spike that was kicked out of the herd and thought I was a cow just waiting for him to come hang out, and ran as fast as his legs would go until 10 yards away when his eyes got really big. lol

 

[cnelk]

I carry 3-4 different external reed calls, half dozen diaphragms.
You just never know what call will trigger an elk.

Last fall, I wasn’t getting any responses with the variety of calls, so I decided to pull out the ol Hoochie Mama and within minutes I was done.

You don’t need to be an expert caller to trick an elk.

 

[Gerbdog]

Good advice in here, nothing to add to the names dropped, watch those videos, download the apps, and listen to the podcasts ..... you'll be fine. Cnelk nailed it on the head.... you never know whats gonna work and just because your calling sounds bad to you, or i, or your neighbor doesnt mean the elk wont respond and walk right into your lap. Bring a few different kinds of calls and try to space out their use as your hiking.... i wouldnt stand in one spot and just cycle through all your calls... but hike a bit to where you think your gonna have a difference in where the sound carries to in the mountain terrain and try again

 

[NorthIdahoDude]

Hoochie Mamma is as good or better than anything I've ever used. Fair warning, calling elk rarely works the way you see it go on hunting videos, at least in my experience. Maybe twice in 20 years have I had a bull come stand on the open and scream at me like they do every 5 mins in videos, LOL. They mostly come sneaking around in the woods vaguely near me looking for the source of the call.

 

[Beendare]

Calling works but realize that in heavily hunted units it can also run them off.

Subtle calling...and calling in the right situations these days has been the ticket for me versus blowing a call every 100yds up a trail.

 

[NealS02]

I found the elk calling content on Elk101 and associated Outdoor Class super helpful. Corey walks you through equipment, how to call effectively, and when/when not to do it. ElkNut is also excellent.

 

[PA Bob]

Calling good is not as important as WHEN to call. If your hunting public it's even more important when NOT to call, nothing beats experience.

 

[Ross]

My hoochie got tossed decades ago when it came out in 2002 it was the bomb then it got used so much I could tell it was being used and the elk started hightailing from it. If you can learn diaphragms they are the best, because your call does not become repetitive, nor canned. Learn to use calls, but also learn when to use them. So many bugle way to long and simply should not grunt. Rifle second day of season 2 of last 3 yrs both encounters started late morning and went for over 2 hrs until the shots at 12 and 40 yds. All the resources noted are very good, practice and practice more. Try many, many reeds, they are all different and everyone’s palate is different. Would equate it to finding boots for your feet.Nothing like calling them in close Will say I started using reeds in 1986 and today’s reeds are so much better

 

[D_wit22]

Spend little time learning to call
Spend more time planning how to find elk and learn elk habitat. I know many guys who kill elk without using any calls

 

[Beendare]

My hoochie got tossed decades ago when it came out in 2002 it was the bomb then it got used so much I could tell it was being used and the elk started hightailing from it.

That Sceery Cow cll was another one....you could tell it was. hunter from 1/2 mile away.

If we could tell....don't you think the Elk knew?

Just like whitetail hunting, there is a difference between a rag horn bull- read dumb as a brick- and a big cagey bull. Oh sure, elk aren't as smart a some of those older whitetail bucks but I've seen them display some pretty smart behavior.

They lose a little bit of their good sense in the rut when they are all worked up....but many times they need a visual confirmation to go along with the calling.

 

[TheTone]

As others have said I think diaphragm calls are the best but you can call a lot of elk with external reed cow calls and the learning curve may be shorter for making good sounds. I also used a berry thunder bugle for years with good success before I ever figured out how to bugle with a diaphragm call. The thunder bugle is super easy in my opinion

 

[Hunting183]

Many people have said it already, but don’t overcall. It will do more harm than good.