Originally Posted by
glob3006
Frankly....I'm with AKJ on this ......and Muley you pretty much said the same thing.It's about proficiecy with your call. I've called in bull's with a bugle.............way back in. But in any area that I've hunted that has a bit of pressure and guy's calling that shouldn't be calling. You're done............At best a cow call will help in these areas. I mainly stalk and use a call to get a shot not create one. But that is Colorado. Montana is a little less populas.
In my hunt area I'd go for the cow call.
GLOB
Well, what I really take exeption to with AK, is two statements, one that calling is not very effective in his first post, and two that they only bugle at night. One thing I've learned is that elk speak the same language where ever you go. I am not aginst cow calling. Last year I had a nice bull on a ridge doing some real light locates. I can't tell you why, but I felt like he had just been whoopped, so I lightly cow called for an hour and a half, he slowly came in and my hunter got an arrow in him. If I had bugled he would have beat the trail. However, most of the bulls I call into bow range, 150+ over the last ten years, are called with the bugle. The bottom line is to use both, but tailor your calling to the situation at hand. I feel that bugling is been sold down the river, it is still more effective calling. Running around cow calling in the early season is nuts, bugle your butt off, run and gun, they will respond. Sure you can over call, but is that worse than undercalling? Think about that for a minute. The best thing you can do is learn to adopt to the situation at hand, that is why I promote situational calling. Learn to understand what message you are sending to that bull, and how he will respond to it. I study elk, read books, listen to stories, consider post that folks make, I still think of myself a student, but I've learned a few tricks along the way. I few years ago I set a guy up and the bull hung up at 70 yards, wouldn't budge. I did the sweet talk/bull intercept call you name it, wouldn't budge. I run down to the guy and tell him I am going to do a "see ya" bugle at the top of the ridge. Well I stomp up the slope making a ton of noise, and when I get to the top I do a fading locate bugle then stomp over the ridge. About 5 minutes later a 5x5 comes out of the timber, nose down, looking to 'smell' the bull that is gone. My hunter missed. I learned this after watching bulls move in after the other bull left, and hearing bulls we bumped do one last bugle after they were well out of range. we actually call it an FU bugle.
