Solo Elk Tips

[ElkNut1]

Yes, apply everything you can the best you can, it's a process for sure that comes with a learning curve.

With experience it becomes easier & easier to recognize the amount of emotion & intensity that can be derived from a bulls bugle! A Chuckle or hard Grunts at the end of a bugle or before a bugle are also signs of emotion which can be directed to another bull or cow. Watching a bunch of youtube videos & a bulls behavior & response will start to sink in when a bull is just sounding off or when he's issuing a warning or is getting frustrated. It's really common sense as to why bulls bugle or use any other elk sound, it's their way of sending a message through emotion. They could be talking in a conversational manner, raising their voice manner or yelling manner much the same as we do depending on the situation at hand that's affecting us or our families!

The more you can see & hear bugle before your hunt will aid you immensely if you want to be able to successfully call in elk! This is just a start!

If you'd like PM me your Zone to be hunted & I'll let you know if I'm familiar with the Zone as I live in Central ID.

ElkNut/Paul

 

[Billinsd]

Arctic Hunter already said what I think is most important for a solo hunter. Have SEVERAL local packers names and numbers on your phone before you leave home. I call them before I get there just to remind them that I am planning on killing and elk and if it's to hot or if it's to far from the truck, I will need assistance.

As far as hunting solo for elk, it's not as easy to call them in by yourself and you may want to have an open mind to your strategy to get one dead.

How about calling away from yourself and the bull, and/or calling and rushing in a ways and waiting?

 

[Tony Trietch]

How about calling away from yourself and the bull, and/or calling and rushing in a ways and waiting?

Elknut is probably the better one to answer that, I have tried it but with limited success.

 

[cnelk]

Whats not covered here on Rokslide, will definitely be covered in the elk woods

 

[bracer40]

How about calling away from yourself and the bull, and/or calling and rushing in a ways and waiting?

This worked for me this year.

 

[bracer40]

Lots of great stuff here. Not sure if I just missed it, but get the Elknut App now and start practicing in your car!

Second the book and Inreach if out of cell range. I didn’t have one hunting solo several years ago and I think I imagined every way possible I could die a slow, lonely death..

I think THE single most important thing I’ve brought on my trips has been a “NEVER QUIT” attitude. I had a mantra I must have said to myself a thousand times, “It can happen anytime” This helped me keep going during times of no sign, no calling, no luck...

Definitely bring trekking poles, made it possible to haul half my buddies elk up the mtn in a single trip....not bad for this old man.

This years solo pack out was easier due to making four trips.
NEVER has a whiskey and a beer tasted sooo good!

 

[1shotgear]

Solo hunting is all a head game. Spend a lot of time scouting to help build up your knowledge and in turn it will build your confidence witch helps you stay head strong in the field. Then when you are on the hunt remind your self of the basics, it is a lot easier on solo hunts to try and take short cuts. Short cuts while elk hunting either get you into trouble or let the elk know he is in trouble.

 

[Skyhigh]

Solo hunting is all a head game. Spend a lot of time scouting to help build up your knowledge and in turn it will build your confidence witch helps you stay head strong in the field. Then when you are on the hunt remind your self of the basics, it is a lot easier on solo hunts to try and take short cuts. Short cuts while elk hunting either get you into trouble or let the elk know he is in trouble.

Any scouting tips besides watching the Newberg videos? I will have a week to scout, and plan to pretty much backpack along the highest ridges to get a good view of everywhere.

 

[11boo]

Just don’t quit, and don’t overlook the close in stuff. I took a guy out last year who had one week to hunt. He was from out of state, and we hit every drainage. 5 days of humping up and down off trail was wearing on him. I had to run home for a couple nights, and he was played out. I told him to just hunt the small ridge above camp. It was close to camp, and involved very little climbing.
I no sooner pulled into my drive 2 hours later and he sends me a pic of a nice 300 bull, taken 1/2 mile from camp. And it was only 400 yards off a well traveled road.

 

[bivouaclarry]

How about calling away from yourself and the bull, and/or calling and rushing in a ways and waiting?

For a solo hunter, moving after calling can be deadly, if you can get a response early season. When you bugle, elk will know "exactly" where you are. Moving places you away from where they think you are, giving you an advantage. If I get a response, and the setup allows, I quickly close the distance and make sure to get the wind in my favor as much as possible, knowing a bull will circle downwind to smell their way in. I also look for good cover to setup in front of along the way.

 

[MtnOyster]

Gone solo from Kentucky the last 2 seasons, spend some time glassing starting before light and a little before dark then get to where you wanna be before daylight, don't even think about heading back to camp before it gets dark, if you do these things your chances of locating them will increase.

Oh...…………….one other thing, with all do respect if your scared of the dark...………...don't even think about it.

 

[bozeman]

Oh...…………….one other thing, with all do respect if your scared of the dark...………...don't even think about it.

Or go ahead and go solo and when you are done, you will no longer be scared of the dark...…..

 

[1shotgear]

Any scouting tips besides watching the Newberg videos? I will have a week to scout, and plan to pretty much backpack along the highest ridges to get a good view of everywhere.

That is a good start to scouting, staying high and being able to see into the tree line the best you can but try and plan your hiking loop. When I go I try and make a big loop from the truck trying to hit up two or three different spots I'm interested that are to deep in to see from the normal trail or road like watering areas or hard access canyons. My loops take me at least half a day but never more then a day and a half just in case you need to move to a new area in the zone to find elk.

When you find the bull you would like to take a chance at never go in after them before your season. This is when you should start studying the bull, learning were he sleeps and were he eats and drinks. All of this should take you a day or two to get enough info to move on and keep looking. While you are watchin and learning never brake 500 yards on the bull and never cut his trail with your scent. This will change his patterns and may push him out before the hunt even starts. Just locate, learn, and move on.

 

[Skyhigh]

That is a good start to scooting is staying high and being able to see into the tree line the best you can but try and plan your hiking loop. When I go I try and make a big loop from the truck trying to hit up two or three different spots I'm interested that are to deep in to see from the normal trail or road like watering areas or hard access canyons. My loops take me at least half a day but never more then a day and a half just incase you need to move to a new area in the zone to find elk.
When you find the bull you would like to take a chance at never go in after them before your season. This is when you should start studding the bull, learning were he sleeps and were he eats and drinks. All of this should take you a day or two to get enough info to move on and keep looking. While you are watchin and learning never brake 500 yards on the bull and never cut his trail with your sent. This will change his patterns and may push him out before the hunt even starts. Just locate, learn, and move on.

Most of my loops that I have planned so far are between 10-15 miles and I plan to do them over an afternoon of walking in, glassing the evening, camping at a predetermined spot, and then glassing again the next morning, then walk out. I will leave at least one day at the end to just go somewhere I wanna look at again, or somewhere new if I haven't been seeing much. Thanks for the input. It makes me more confident what I am doing is correct.

 

[bobhunts]

This is a big help. Can you tell me how to find people in each unit who will pack out. Game wardens, processing places. ( I do my own)
Thanks

Call hunting guides in the area you are hunting and see what they charge and how long to get to you. You will be secondary on the list. The clients they have are number one. Plus you have to get your meat to a place the outfitter can get a horse to. Keep that in mind also.

 

[goodgrouper]

I allways cary a decoy when I'm solo. I have a miss September rigged with some shock cord so I can hang it in a tree or brush and i dont have to cary the poles. I have had good success getting a bull going at the decoy then closing the distance quietly at the last moment and having him walk right by fixated on the decoy.

 

[Skyhigh]

I allways cary a decoy when I'm solo. I have a miss September rigged with some shock cord so I can hang it in a tree or brush and i dont have to cary the poles. I have had good success getting a bull going at the decoy then closing the distance quietly at the last moment and having him walk right by fixated on the decoy.

I have been thinking of getting a decoy for this reason. Have any other tips with it? I wonder if you could stalk in behind it like some people do with antelope decoys.

 

[nickstevens2588]

I have been thinking of getting a decoy for this reason. Have any other tips with it? I wonder if you could stalk in behind it like some people do with antelope decoys.

They do make ones that you can attach to your bow and shoot through. Sure, I suppose that you could use it to put a silent stalk on a bull and excuse some of your movement. I personally would not try to call (draw attention) and move tward the alert animal with the decoy. I have no personal experience at actually moving tward a bull with them though (maybe just my own personal lack of confidence in decoys). All I've ever known as far as elk and decoys is elk hang up just out of the kill zone at times. This is usually because they have gotten to a spot that they KNOW they should have been able to see the bull/cow in the bushes over here calling to him/her. So having the decoy set up behind you or on your bow just gives them that visual confidence their looking for to come in. I think especially in a solo game they can be well worth investing in and weigh hardly anything. Some guys just dont like adding this extra step into their setup. IMO if your intrested in the idea, Go for it!


Sent from my SM-G965U using Tapatalk

 

[goodgrouper]

This is usually because they have gotten to a spot that they KNOW they should have been able to see the bull/cow in the bushes over here calling to him/her. So having the decoy set up behind you or on your bow just gives them that visual confidence their looking for to come in.

I have had this happen a few times. I think it can be just as efective as a calling partner sometimes because a bull thinks he can see the cow that has been calling him. I have also walked in on bulls with a decoy a couple times. my brother and I used miss September in really really thick lodgepole and walked to within 15 yards of bedded bulls bugling mid day. it's just a blast to get the decoy out and try different things. may work, may not, but I guarantee it will be exciting.

 

[Whip]

I have tried a decoy on occasion but have mostly been frustrated with it. The problem to me when hunting solo is I set up the decoy, call and then move forward. Invariably, it seems I need to reposition and that means retreating to pick up the decoy again. Things often happen fast during encounters and I might want to move a hundred yards real fast to gain a better position. I don't like taking the extra time a decoy can require. Maybe it's just me and I'm not picking the best spot to begin with. But it just seems that rarely do I end up staying in one spot during an entire encounter.
I also have one of the decoys that attaches to my bow but have never tried it. I just can't get past the idea that it draws attention to me right when I am trying to move and /or stay hidden. I'm sure that in the right situation it could be deadly, but for every one of those there are many others where I don't want to be seen.