I've had this situation a few times. A real key is that there is little likelihood of another hunter boring in and blasting your elk out of the country. If you've got the elk to yourself, and you've got 10 days, I'd be real conservative the first 4 or 5 days, then get aggressive as time runs down.

I don't really buy into the notion that you've got to stay out of their bedding areas. I like to dive into a known bedding area, from above, about 10 AM every morning. You go in from above because of rising thermals. If you spook elk in there one day, you must absolutely give the elk the next day off, maybe the next two days.

This past year, I had a great piece of bedding cover (about 500 acres) above camp that had 15-30 elk bedding in it every day, including a 305ish and a 325ish bull. I dove in there 4 times in a 9 day hunt, and had the 325 bull inside a hundred yards 3 times. My point being that they didn't leave the area because I jumped them once or twice. I passed up three great shot opps and a fourth at the big boy because he was 5 yards past my personal 30-yard max range. I did give the place a day off any time I jumped an elk. If you plow in day after day they are going to get wise eventually and find a new hidey hole.