Hunting bull elk on public land is no gimme or an easy task to say the least. With more & more hunters out there wanting to hunt these great animals it's no wonder they get educated. It's up to us as hunters to understand what makes elk tick? We need to know when to Stalk/Ambush elk & with no calling. We need to know when to call & what sounds are best depending on the encounter at hand! We need to know the best times & what wallows are best to hunt considering time of month & day?
We need to establish a herd bull or sattelite by appearance or by sound. You cannot work both with the same techniques & calls with any decent level of success, they must be worked differently. Herd bulls hang-up much more so than Sattelites. You shouldn't use intimidating sounds towards sattelites. You can & should against herd bulls when everything is right & in your favor! Closeness is key! Never call your way to a bugling bull, you will bump him more times than not.

Knowing these basic things & other sounds so you can understand what's happening when one is fortunate enough to hear these animals is very important, as you may only have a few close encounters each year. Knowing what to do & handle each one accordingly is crucial to ones consistent success! To take full advantage of every opportunity one has to be knowledgeable & on his A game, if not, the elk will win most every year! By educating ones self & not the elk we can stack the odds in our favor more so than the other way around! It's a continual learning process & a school no one ever graduates from!

ElkNut1