The Current state of Elk Hunting

[madcalfe]

key to success is get off your quad and go places noone else would go. every elk ive shot has all been within 50 yards while they come in screaming at me. if you look at a area and say "yea theres no way im going down in there" 9/10 thats where they are unless you wanna shoot a little bull.

 

[WRO]

I think the OTC opportunities in my home on public land have gotten ruined in the last 10 years, and tracked way worse the last 5. Every dickwad with a reed and a tube thinks the cat road shuffle is the only way to hunt. I literally only hunt draw or private now. I've been on enough armed hiking trips to get my blue ribbon.

 

[Car7x]

For whatever identifiable reasons you'd select, a perfect storm - of technology, media, game populations, demographics, ease of entry for entrepreneurial personalities marketing outdoor adventure in all forms; for those who are well positioned, a recovering market/economy and disposable income, our focus on self gratification, the 'pig in a python' boomer and post boomer age cohort bulge - has brewed up a ton of activity. The last couple years almost resemble a 'blow off top' in a market boom/bust cycle. Irrational exuberance?

I think, and hope, that what we've seen over the last 30 years or so with climbing and flyfishing could play out here. There will always be that tension between those that got here first, wherever 'here' is, and the late(r) adopters. Economics will still perform a 'sort' to delay the beginning of any one potential user, and father time will hasten the end. The dilettantes, hobbyists and experimenters blow through and a certain percentage stick with it. The old guard, who could have got here the day before you, will bitch about the degradation of the experience. Folks will complain about the crowds, organizations will get involved for good or evil, and a new stasis is reached.

The positive consequence of increased usage is a greater number of stakeholders to help counter threats. This is no small thing. Of course, license revenue and support from commercial interests follows. Negative consequences are diminished possibilities for a larger user group.

Maintaining high personal standards, supporting the outfits that 'get it', bringing along youngsters and giving back are not just good ideas, but to me as important as training or drawing or notching a tag. I'm very grateful to live in a country where the balance between access and traffic, the 'difficulty' of buying a tag and the annoyance of having to share millions of acres of beautiful country of which I am an owner are our biggest issues. There's enough to go around; let's continue to help each other do it in good style.

 

[idelkslayer]

Whatever it is that has caused the rise in popularity, doesn't matter because it is what it is now.

My only thought on the matter is that no state should be giving out NR tags if they don't first issue enough tags to satisfy Resident demand.

 

[bmf0713]

Yeah. Information and surplus of money is what makes it possible for people like me to hunt out west. I do agree with idelkslayer that states should take care of residents first. That’s what Iowa does with deer and turkey tags. But most states dont see that. NR will spend more money In one year on NR tags and hunting trip than most residents will spend in 10 years.

 

[chindits]

I wish the bow hunt wasn’t so popular. I can’t draw my bow tag unit every other year, but my buddies and wife draw the same unit rifle hunting with zero points.

Eventually I’ll just hunt with a camera and skip the harvest.

 

[5MilesBack]

I wish the bow hunt wasn’t so popular. I can’t draw my bow tag unit every other year, but my buddies and wife draw the same unit rifle hunting with zero points. Eventually I’ll just hunt with a camera and skip the harvest.

I spend time in my favorite draw unit every bow season, even when I have a tag for elsewhere. I always know someone in there that's hunting, and also like to keep tabs on what's going on in there every year. Especially when I keep getting reports that nothing is bugling, so I show up and the first time out I've got three bulls responding.

 

[chindits]

I did that last year with a bear tag. I couldn’t believe all the elk I was getting into by not calling. I don’t like pushing elk and had to do some sneaking to not get busted. It definitely had me reconsidering the whole elk calling thing. I found my first bull I would consider a shirker.

 

[Bearshirt]

Can I travel East and hunt Whitetail Deer on vast tracts of public land with OTC tags every year? My perception is that I cannot. What I have heard from Midwestern and East Coast folks leads me to believe that I must either know someone with land or pay to hunt on a Ranch somewhere. Is the current state of Elk hunting suffering from accessibility? The few times I have had whitetail deer I was amazed at the quality of the meat. If I knew i could go somewhere that offered solitude, adventure, and a shot at some whitetails without breaking the bank i would probably go once in a while just to see some new country. Maybe there is and I just don't know about it.

Come to Michigan. Lots of public land to hunt, 4.5 million acres. During archery especialy during the week you wont see another hunter. Some areas have lots of deer and tags are cheap. You might get lucky and shoot a ok buck too

 

[njdoxie]

Come to Michigan. Lots of public land to hunt, 4.5 million acres. During archery especialy during the week you wont see another hunter. Some areas have lots of deer and tags are cheap. You might get lucky and shoot a ok buck too

Yes, there’s tons of public land in the East, tons, usually not crowded during archery, can get busy gun.


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[Nickofthewoods]

Come to Michigan. Lots of public land to hunt, 4.5 million acres. During archery especialy during the week you wont see another hunter. Some areas have lots of deer and tags are cheap. You might get lucky and shoot a ok buck too

Michigan has been on my radar for awhile. What would be awesome to me would be to combine a whitetail hunt with some lake run steelhead fishing in the Great Lakes tributaries. I have no idea about the regulations, timing, access, or anything at all but in my mind that sounds fun.

 

[el_jefe_pescado]

There is a huge gap between locking your truck on opening day at the trailhead and punching your tag. It can be intimidating and I’ve found you need quantifiable goals to measure your success. I found a cool way to check “progress” through your elk season (or elk hunting career for that matter) is to set a checklist of attainable/incremental goals that build on one another and eventually result in...filling a tag. I literally carry this list in my pack:

1. Be Safe and Have Fun: I hope to check this box everyday.

2. See Elk: I check this box after the first sighting of the season —any sighting. It could be a tail/ear/an animal that busts me. That might happen in the first 20 minutes of the season or after 20 days, either way it counts.

3. See Undisturbed/Unspooked Elk: As you know, it’s one thing to see elk that have already picked you off. It’s a totally different thing to encounter animals that are unaware of your presence. I check this box when I see elk that are totally relaxed and unaware of my existence whether that is at 15 yards or 1500 yards.

4. See Elk in Bow Range: It’s pretty obvious when this box gets checked. As we know it can be a pretty big accomplishment after a hard week of hunting.

5. Get a LEGITIMATE Shot Opportunity: In my opinion this is where the bar gets starts getting raised and the learning curve gets a little steeper. Prior to this point I might have seen elk at close range but the box only gets checked after I have an encounter that could have [or should have] resulted in a shot. Whether I capitalized is another story .

6. Take an ETHICAL shot at an Elk Downrange: This will have a varying definition based on ability. Just because that animal presented itself unobstructed and inside my effective range doesn’t mean that I had my bow drawn or was able to release an arrow. Pretty self explanatory when this box gets checked.

7. Make a LETHAL hit on an Elk: It might take a while (years for some) but just because you loose an arrow doesn’t mean you’ve got backstraps in your freezer.

8. Successfully Recover an Elk: Hopefully, I check this box right after I check of #7.

9. Successfully get ALL the Meat off the Mountain: This can be easier said than done in the September heat.

10. Enjoy the Meat with Family and Friends

I’m not advocating for participation trophies (my personal opinion is that punching a tag is the mark of success) and I also recognize that the details of everyone’s “checklist” will look different. Regardless of how we define “success”, I feel it is a critical and (often missed step) to break down the expectations of your hunt into more digestible portions. Especially, for those guys traveling across the country. You wouldn’t want to climb that mountain without breaking down your route on a good map...right?


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[S.Clancy]

Honestly, I think it's great right now. I live in MT, so I could have a bull and cow tag every year, can OTC in Idaho and draw the tags I want in AZ every couple years. Hard to complain about that.

 

[southsidenando]

I think for a lot of people who don't live near mountains, the appeal is the actual mountains/land. I bow hunt in the midwest and its nothing compared to seeing the sheer size of elk territory.

 

[Iamjigs]

I think for a lot of people who don't live near mountains, the appeal is the actual mountains/land. I bow hunt in the midwest and its nothing compared to seeing the sheer size of elk territory.

I think you are onto something here... it is a drastic change in scenery as you head west!

 

[KyleR1985]

I just like to poop in new woods, an elk tag is an excuse to drive 16 hours to do it...

 

[GordonFreeman]

I just like to poop in new woods, an elk tag is an excuse to drive 16 hours to do it...

Lmao

 

[Lark Bunting]

Same thing is happening with fly fishing. Most blamed it on "The Movie" (River runs through it). Maybe with all the Elk101, BRO, Hush, etc. videos out there people are seeing it and are finally doing what they wanted to try for years.

I'm an example though of a new hunter. I just began this awesome adventure 7 years ago when my son (10 at the time) asked if we could go hunting. I didn't grow up hunting so we took hunter's ed together and haven't looked back. I love it!

 

[KyleR1985]

Same thing is happening with fly fishing. Most blamed it on "The Movie" (River runs through it). Maybe with all the Elk101, BRO, Hush, etc. videos out there people are seeing it and are finally doing what they wanted to try for years.

I'm an example though of a new hunter. I just began this awesome adventure 7 years ago when my son (10 at the time) asked if we could go hunting. I didn't grow up hunting so we took hunter's ed together and haven't looked back. I love it!

That’s what it’s all about right there!

 

[Beendare]

Some good info popped up on this thread...roksliders helping others...thats cool.

As to the comments that tag demand will abate with the economy- I doubt it. Once a guy has a taste of elk hunting- its addicting.

How did you not draw a tag in Montana? They had leftovers they put up for sale after the draw. I'm guessing you applied for the "big game combo" instead of the "elk combo". The deer tag in Montana is the hard part.

You nailed it....my buddy talked me into, "The good deal" tag combo license thing. Then on the internet at 5AM for the couple hundred leftover tags and my computer going slow- didn't get one of those either.

Now they did call me a week later saying there was a glitch and out of the kindness of their heart they would sell me a $900 gen elk tag...by that time I was fed up and had already secured another tag.

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