YOUR success rate on elk.

[BradNSW]

Hmmm...embarrassing. 0 for 2 solo archery hunts in Idaho OTC. 12-14 days spike camps up at 8,000ft.

Into elk both times, nice 5x5 and a 6x6, both btwn 25 and 30 yards but the shot never materialized.

Hoping 3rd year (this year) breaks the streak...first elk (spike/doe/6x7) is getting my best shot!

Tough learning curve, from hunting mulies in S. California manzanita (8 in 7 years) but who said you can't teach a 56 year old dog new tricks!

 

[MuleyFever]

I am 2 for 2.

I have hunted elk 2 times. First elk hunt was a cow tag and I filled that in one day.

The 2nd hunt was a bull tag and I filled it in 5 days if I remember correctly.

 

[mproberts]

1 elk hunt in 12 years (just focused more on other hunts)
0 elk taken
Archery
Public land
OTC
8 hunting days

I won a very hard to draw NM Archery tag this year so hope to change those stats.

 

[ChrisAU]

I'm 0/0...going in October. Super pumped.

 

[BrentLaBere]

6 years elk hunting (will be my 7th with another draw tag)
4 elk
archery
Draw
2 to 15 days of hunting

 

[5MilesBack]

I started rifle hunting in 1980 at 15 with my best friend who was 16. I can't even tell you how many elk I've killed, I haven't kept track of them. But I do remember three rifle seasons where I didn't shoot anything. And I've had multiple tags and kills in a season as well. Since switching to bowhunting success rates haven't changed, but I have a higher success % in OTC than draw units as I'm less particular in OTC. For OTC I average ~7 days hunting, but for draw tags I average closer to 20 if I remove my 2-day hunt last year.

 

[fishslap]

CO

First three seasons I hunted with a co-worker who was also joining a family friend's camp. Heavily dependent upon him and his camping gear. He would always leave early.
Season 1: 2nd season OTC bull tag, cow tag, buck tag, doe tag. Public land. Only hunted 2 days. No kill.
Season 2: 2nd season OTC bull tag, cow tag, buck tag, doe tag. Public land. Only hunted 2 days. No kill.
Season 3: 2nd season OTC bull tag, cow tag, buck tag, doe tag. Public land. Only hunted 2-3 days. No kill.

Next season I switched to a place my grandfather used to hunt.
Season 4: 2nd season OTC bull tag, cow tag, buck tag, doe tag. Public land. Hunted 4-5 days. Killed a small buck and a doe, no elk seen.

From here on out I switched to 1st rifle with one muzzy hunt. Started going solo.
Season 5: 1st rifle either sex tag. Public land. Hunted one day. Killed a cow.
Season 6: 1st rifle cow tag. Public land. Hunted 4 days. No kill.
Season 7: 1st rifle bull tag. Public land. Hunted 1 day. Killed a bull.
Season 8: 1st rifle bull tag. Public land. Hunted 1 day. Killed a bull.
Season 9: 1st rifle bull tag. Public land. Hunted 1 day. Killed a bull.
Season 10: 1st rifle bull tag. Public land. Hunted 4 days. No kill.
Season 11: 1st rifle bull tag. Public land. Hunted 4 days. Killed a bull.
Season 12: 1st riffle bull tag. Public land. Hunted 1 day. Killed a bull.
Season 13: Muzzleloader either sex tag. Public land. Hunted 5 days. Killed a bull.

 

[loggerchas]

Just over the 60% mark in 25 years of elk hunting as near as I can remember, all OTC or easy draw units, all public land (1992-2002 UT, 2003-present CO) 4 bulls+12 cows, 3 archery, 3 ML, 10 rifle, average 5-7 days dedicated to elk hunting.

No spectacular racks, just lots of vac-sealed packages in the freezer.

 

[fap1800]

2 for 7.

 

[204guy]

I've been elk hunting 8 years.
Killed 7 bulls (2 archery and 5 rifle) and 4 cows.
With that said I'm 0-4 in MT as a NR with 0 chances at a legal bull. Passed on cows on various occasions. Very humbling.
Hunt elk for myself 2-14 days a year.
Have helped another 6-7 people get their first elk.
All public land.
Mostly OTC.

 

[NDGuy]

Perfect 0/0 so far hopefully next year 1/1.

 

[mathews8pt]

Ive made 2 trips out west to elk hunt, previous to that id never hunted west of the Miss.
Taken 1 Bull
Archery
Public
OTC
Hunted 9 days the first trip and 2 partial days the 2nd trip to kill my bull.

I felt 100% more confident my 2nd trip out. I was willing to be more aggressive and had a better idea of how the country laid out and how elk used it. Im heading back out this year to try again, and/or just get my buddy his first elk.

 

[efnm]

6 years hunting.
2 cow tags, both muzzleloader in NM draw
2 cow tags punched
4 days on one, 2 days on the other

Still don't feel like I know what I'm doing and feel fortunate to have been 2 for 2.

 

[wind gypsy]

I'll lower the % with all these killers posting up.

3 years in NW MT General zones, avg of 15-16 days hunting per year, all but 3 days were during rifle season.

Year 1 - Tag punched on a young 6 point
Years 2 and 3 - Tag soup but took part in a few other bull pack outs.

Planning at least 18 days this year unless I tag out in WY and MT in less than that.

 

[KyleSS]

- Years hunting
20 year hunting
- Elk taken
6 - 6 point bulls or better and 20+ cows
- Archery, Rifle, ML?
All archery
- Public land or private
Private land
- OTC or draw?
All OTC
- Days per year spent hunting
Our season is 91 days, I will usually hunt 45+ full days plus a few evenings

 

[Coveyleader]

Years hunting = 17

- Elk taken = 15

- Archery, Rifle, ML? = Archery

- Public land or private = Public

- OTC or draw? = OTC

- Days per year spent hunting = 7-10

Side Bar, Didn't connect on my first year but missed. Bad shots on a few along the way or I'd be at about 20 I suppose.

 

[missjordan]

I started hunting in 2008 as a teenager.
Harvested my first bull in 2011
Went from 2012-2015 and didn’t harvest any elk
2016 harvested my second bull
2017 harvested my third bull

All were OTC with a rifle. Haven’t harvested a cow elk yet. My first elk I just happened to stumble upon and really in the years 2015-present did my hunting style change for the better. Started doing more research on how to be a better elk hunter and also digging into the areas more in-depth in the off season. Started studying what to look for, and even starting glassing the terrain for the first time ever during this time. Putting more effort into elk hunting overall has paid off! Used to only hunt elk on the weekends up until 2015 now I dedicate 20-30 days or so chasing elk between bow and rifle season.

Hoping to harvest my first elk with a bow sometime soon! Going to try hard this year to make it happen. Came close on several occasions and it should work out when the time is right




Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk

 

[archer wapiti]

7 years
2 bulls: 2 days, 5 days; average 11 days for hunts I didn't get an elk.
only one year I didn't have a shot.I lost my first elk I ever shot, winged one with a nonlethal hit, and 3 clean misses in two years
archery draw tags in New Mexico, public land, DIY

 

[Joe Schmo]

12 years hunting
6 elk hunts
PUBLIC LAND
Archery/Rifle/Muzzy
4 elk taken
3 draw tags, 3 OTC
3.5 days per hunt

 

[tttoadman]

38 years off and on.
Maybe 10 or 12 elk in that time.
3 with a bow and the rest with a rifle
about 1/3 of those on private land in EO where my folks lived for awhile.
my success rate was low early as expected, but I am now steady at 50% or better.