Elk are often nothing like Mule deer. Mule deer generally stick around an area unless pushed out. Elk have their areas they like to stick around, but in a day of feeding, they can cover miles and miles at a leisurely pace, while you can be jogging, and they are still gaining ground. So spot and stalk is often NOT productive with elk. Can spot and stalk be done successfully, of course it can, and it can also be a very good tactic at times. But if the animals are talking, there is no better way of determining where they are in short order, based on your location. However, they can go silent, and you'll need a different method of locating them. In short, no one method is going to work every time, nor in every situation. By far, the best method is to get to know an area, and how the animals use that area; that will but you miles ahead of those that don't know the area, animals...
For me, the same applies to hunting mule deer. I want to know the area, how the animals use the area, travel routes, escape routes, bedding areas... Sure I use my spotter, but more often than not, I put myself in proximity of their bedding areas before sun-up, and sit and wait for them to expose themselves. Sometimes that takes minutes, other times it takes hours, Other times, I'm just in the right spot and they come walking in on me. But blindly going to an area and hunting it is generally not productive for most. If able, I will scout an area during the season, as I want to know how the animals react to the pressure of being hunted.
