The 1 Thing You Learned- ELK

[KyleSS]

The one thing I've always done and it has worked for me is be aggressive and don't worry too much about your noise. Elk are noisy animals and if you are walking and break the odd branch, don't worry about it too much; they won't really notice. They are far more likely to blow out over sight or smell.

 

[ElkNut1]

Aggressive action on our part can be exhilarating when used on a bull with the right mind-set!

Being wrecklessly aggressive to any or all bulls is a huge mistake but many hunters; it will result in a pile of lost encounters.

Here's a couple of ways to look at it!

#-1- Here's being aggressive on the Right Bull! This bull is bugling repeatedly & is being pressured by other bulls, he has no issues responding to your bugles/cow calls too. This shows defensive action & there is a hot cow in his presence. Get inside the Satellites, hopefully this puts you in the 100 yard or closer range & either Challenge him directly along with raking or start with calling the hot cow away then Challenge as he responds back, insults will be traded!

#-2- You have a bull bugling on his own repeatedly in his bedding area, doesn't matter if he has cows or not. This bull will defend his Domain if you get too close & advertise your presence with bugling, no cow calls needed. Get to 150 yards or so & get aggressive!

#-3- Do not get aggressive out of the gate with this bull or 'game over' --- This bull is seen heading into cover to bed, no calling from him at all. Or you come across this bull or another in cover that will bugle 1 - 2 or 3 times over a 15-30 minute span & he clams up. Get to 150-200 yards & Set-up, Start with a Slow Play Sequence & stay with it if he does not engage right off. If he does engage within the 1st few minutes then Amp it up to a quicker paced Breeding Sequence, this bull will be yours within 20-25 minutes with a solid set-up!

ElkNut

 

[Oregon Hunter]

The eastern guys have mountains to climb, maybe not as high but steep is steep. Its the guys in the midwest like me that have to get creative to get the legs in shape and used to climbing.

One idea is to put a backpack with a bunch of weight in it and run stairs

 

[Oregon Hunter]

Great tips everyone. I hunted Roosevelts in Washington on accessible timber land this year. Talk about a challenge!! My two tips are: 1) scout! If there’s going to be a ton of people in the area, you can’t just follow the crowds to the same places. Logging roads end and don’t always connect so you’ll be sitting at a glassing point wondering how to get to that road way over yonder where there’s no other trucks parked. 2) pay attention at first and last light. It’s so thick in Roosevelt country that even if they are moving during the day you’ll never see them. At dusk and dawn you can see them emerge from the timber to start feeding in meadows and on exposed slopes. These areas make great places to start your next day off at. But crawling through the rain forest is never going to pan out. You’ll make noise just standing still

Your tip about scouting is really valuable, especially to hunt in high pressure areas. I've heard of guys allocating most of their days off to scouting, so that when the season opens they can be in the right spot to make the most of those 1st precious days. I remember reading in one of the Eastman's books that if they had 5 days to hunt, they would plan to spend the first three scouting.

 

[Oregon Hunter]

The one thing I've always done and it has worked for me is be aggressive and don't worry too much about your noise. Elk are noisy animals and if you are walking and break the odd branch, don't worry about it too much; they won't really notice. They are far more likely to blow out over sight or smell.

I found this is true for archery hunting. Would you have the same approach with a rifle tag?

 

[Oregon Hunter]

Aggressive action on our part can be exhilarating when used on a bull with the right mind-set!

Being wrecklessly aggressive to any or all bulls is a huge mistake but many hunters; it will result in a pile of lost encounters.

Here's a couple of ways to look at it!

#-1- Here's being aggressive on the Right Bull! This bull is bugling repeatedly & is being pressured by other bulls, he has no issues responding to your bugles/cow calls too. This shows defensive action & there is a hot cow in his presence. Get inside the Satellites, hopefully this puts you in the 100 yard or closer range & either Challenge him directly along with raking or start with calling the hot cow away then Challenge as he responds back, insults will be traded!

#-2- You have a bull bugling on his own repeatedly in his bedding area, doesn't matter if he has cows or not. This bull will defend his Domain if you get too close & advertise your presence with bugling, no cow calls needed. Get to 150 yards or so & get aggressive!

#-3- Do not get aggressive out of the gate with this bull or 'game over' --- This bull is seen heading into cover to bed, no calling from him at all. Or you come across this bull or another in cover that will bugle 1 - 2 or 3 times over a 15-30 minute span & he clams up. Get to 150-200 yards & Set-up, Start with a Slow Play Sequence & stay with it if he does not engage right off. If he does engage within the 1st few minutes then Amp it up to a quicker paced Breeding Sequence, this bull will be yours within 20-25 minutes with a solid set-up!

ElkNut

Thank you so much for putting a bunch of time into these suggestions! One important point to make for the readers is that you started out by tailoring these approaches to the mindset a particular bull was in. That's really smart to look at it from that perspective

 

[Mosby]

One idea is to put a backpack with a bunch of weight in it and run stairs

I had my left knee reconstructed a couple of times and can't run any more. I have no cartledge and bone on bone is a bad deal. But I do use a weighted backpack and a lot of Advil. I have a really steep incline next to my house that I do with a weighted pack. Also one legged step ups are really effective with a pack on or barbells in each hand. I have some large flat landscaping limestone blocks around my driveway that work great for step ups. Football stadiums and some water reservoirs have some steep stairs also work great for climbing. Use what you got.

 

[Oregon Hunter]

I had my left knee reconstructed a couple of times and can't run any more. I have no cartledge and bone on bone is a bad deal. But I do use a weighted backpack and a lot of Advil. I have a really steep incline next to my house that I do with a weighted pack. Also one legged step ups are really effective with a pack on or barbells in each hand. I have some large flat landscaping limestone blocks around my driveway that work great for step ups. Football stadiums and some water reservoirs have some steep stairs also work great for climbing. Use what you got.

Sounds like you've mastered most important thing, which is mindset

 

[Mosby]

Sounds like you've mastered most important thing, which is mindset

Some people in my family think I'm a little off so that probably helps.

 

[Blackstorm]

My first is quality gear especially glass, I have good glass for scope and binoculars but a weak rangefinder and my partner had none at all so I'm upgrading that this year.
Practice shooting from multiple positions and twice the distance that you expect to build confidence

 

[KyleSS]

I found this is true for archery hunting. Would you have the same approach with a rifle tag?

I can't answer that to be honest. I have never rifle hunted, I only archery hunt.

 

[TheBootBowhunting]

What I learned last year is that hunting elk is 90% mental and 90% physical.

The math doesnt add up, but its absolutely true. If you think youre ready, you arent. Train more, suffer more. Get comfortable being uncomfortable. You cant suffer on demand. You have to know how to suffer and keep going both mentally and physically. If you are prior military, you likely have a boatload of those experiences to draw from.

"The more you sweat in peace, the less you bleed in war" applies here. Dont waste april-august. Make it count. Its also something that someone can tell you, and you dont fully understand it until you arrive for your hunt. I cant wait to head back....155 days.

 

[Oregon Hunter]

What I learned last year is that hunting elk is 90% mental and 90% physical.

The math doesnt add up, but its absolutely true. If you think youre ready, you arent. Train more, suffer more. Get comfortable being uncomfortable. You cant suffer on demand. You have to know how to suffer and keep going both mentally and physically. If you are prior military, you likely have a boatload of those experiences to draw from.

"The more you sweat in peace, the less you bleed in war" applies here. Dont waste april-august. Make it count. Its also something that someone can tell you, and you dont fully understand it until you arrive for your hunt. I cant wait to head back....155 days.

While I totally agree with the importance of preparation, I'd like to offer one idea from the devil's advocate perspective. If you have been dreaming about coming out West to hunt elk, don't wait until everything is perfect, just get out there and try it. I know so many friends who talk about all these grand hunts they want to do, but never do anything to actually make it happen. The best way to learn about something is to get out there and do it!

 

[Oregon Hunter]

My first is quality gear especially glass, I have good glass for scope and binoculars but a weak rangefinder and my partner had none at all so I'm upgrading that this year.
Practice shooting from multiple positions and twice the distance that you expect to build confidence

To add on to your excellent ideas, practice shooting after doing some short sprints. We often forget that we are usually out of breath when trying to make a shot

 

[Oregon Hunter]

We’ve had an outstanding response from all of you on these “1 Thing You Learned” series. I just created a new forum thread about glassing smarter.

Head over to this link if you’d like to share one thing you learned about glassing, horror stories, or want to learn a secret for making the most out of your hard work in the field!

 

[wardl_3]

Sept 2021, day 6 into the archery season, solo that morning… few hrs of cat and mouse in a wide drainage and i finally let my mind slip and tried crossing an more open area while continuing to bugle back. A spike showed up 30yds off my right shoulder(which was great) but the 5pt also came out and strait at me looking directly at me(my bugle giving my location)… 16yds and couldnt draw.
On my 2nd run out west, sept 26th, a very similar game in the same drainage with a 6pt… kept my calling to good locations and was afforded anothr 16yd shot and all ended as I hoped.
I replayed the first trip over and over even up to the seconds before i released the arrow… that one correction made all the difference on that occassion and filled my tag. Lesson learned… always stayed in the game mentally. Which isnt always easy lol!!

 

[TradLife406]

One thing would be tough. There's been so much stuff I've learned while teaching myself how to kill elk.

Probably one big one for me for archery has been that just because you're not hearing the elk doesn't mean they're not actively rutting during daylight hours. You're probably just not close enough to hear them bugle and you need to keep searching.

Last year I spent a day hiking and cold calling. Nothing. I went a mile up the drainage and further up the slope and was in a rut fest!

Sent from my SM-G975U using Tapatalk

 

[Gerbdog]

I'll add another to this thread that played out in a big way for me this last season (sorry if this is a repeat somewhere in all these pages of replies) but listen at night for the bugles if your not hearing a lot during hunting hours.

I sleep light at night so i wake up to the bugles anyway, and my brain is basically listening for me while im sleeping in the woods, but if you dont sleep light at night... spend a few hours to get up around 3- am and just sit and listen if you think their are elk in the area.... Yea i get it... its gonna suck cause your already exhausted from hunting all day... but it can give you a good lead on what direction to head in when you wake up in the morning

This year i woke up to a bugle across the valley from me, somewhere i never hunted, he ended up bugling once more while i was making breakfast and i went up after him, good sized bull for the unit! Never would have guessed he would be there though if he hadnt sounded off in the dark for me

 

[N.ID7803]

When I get discouraged when elk hunting my wife always tells me "it only takes a second", meaning it only takes a second for something to happen. This is the truth, so always be ready. Also don't try shooting through small openings, they are never big enough, be patient and wait for a clear shot.

 

[WPFY543]

I learned this year that time in elk country is the most important "strategy". Like most of us on here, I spend a lot of time in the off season reading books and forums, watching hunts online, and e-scouting. It's all fun but for me its 90% entertainment that doesn't always translate when my boots hit the ground. If I want to have more encounters with elk, I need to spend more time in and around elk.