I am getting excited again! Love this elk stuff. I like to creep into the woods and be in an oak thicket at least an hour before light and have done well waiting for elk to walk by. Later in the morning I stalk and use a small pack for essentials. If I hear or glass a close elk I put on bears feet and do the creep. I nap early afternoon then go out and sit a water hole in a ground blind. Have killed elk from trees but always sitting in low branches as I don't like tree stands. You can usually find a tree on a hole with a couple of boards the old timers nailed up. I did buy a Double Bull blind last week for elk and turkey as my buddies do real well with them. I don't know how it will be lugging it around though. Probably put it in the truck when I want to stalk. I only bow hunt now so the blind should help. Good hunting.

Hey all you boys know your stuff!! I really love to cover ground and call in elk it just more exciting. I have sat wallows though and had luck. When we hunted NM we sat over water almost every night.

Best mocersins thet you buy 'stead of make are from Alaska or Canada. Inuits make some fine ones. When it comes to mocersins, think MOOSE! Its tough to work, an' the feller thet made mine cain't work it no more cause of his arthritis, but thet's the way to go. I like mine a lil' big so I can get a pair of wool socks on with 'em. Yer feet don't have to be too tough with hard moose hide mockersins. Jus' try to stay off the rocks an' they will last years and years. An' I see yer confusion 'bout the "margins" thing. I meant the margins betwixt dark timber an' other areas. Transition zones is what the smart fellers call 'em. You gotta stay in the cover, an' critters prefer the same. But those more open areas are where the food is, so they will move thru the heavy cover to get to an' from the dinner table. A good trail thru the cover on a margin is a prime place to stalk.

I don't mind gettin' anal 'bout this stuff with ya Elk, but there's some things ya jus' gotta do, an' don't come to words real good. Like what I said 'bout sensing game. Some fellers here will get it, some won't. The one's thet have sensed the presence of game, an' have learnt to listen to their gut while huntin', are the real hunters in my book. If we were still a tribal people, they'd be the ones respected for huntin' skill, not the guy with the GPS, rangefinder, 10x scope, an' shootin' stix. Some things jus' come natural. If I was good at writin' lessons down 'bout huntin' so city people could be instant hunters, I'd be a rich man 'stead of a feller thet's gotta stoop unner hosses all summer, an' has to eat game all winter. Hell, some things about livin' high in the city are good. Like them breakfast burritos at McDonalds. I bet some fellers git those ever day. I'm lucky to see one on a yearly basis. Cain't you jus' see ol' BJ with a cell phone in one hand an' a breakfast burrito in the other, headin' to my publisher's office in a fine camel hair overcoat an' some shiny shoes? Don't reckin' my skinnin' knife would fit in the pocket of one of them coats.

BJ

PS,
Cabelas fall catalog has many types of longhandles in several colors. Don't git the expedition weight fer stalkin' though.



Edited by - BeaverJack on 02/04/2003 09:56:57

Lots of good advice here from BJ and others.

Where I hunt in Western Washington its all thick cover broken up by clearcuts. You might see a spike or raghorn out in the open, but almost never a mature bull during rifle season.

The only thing I would add is about pacing your movements. Course it helps if you know the woods you're in...

In marginal cover I move pretty quickly- and I do get surprised once in awhile- but if you move at a "stalking pace" all of the time you will cover precious little elk country.

Course slow and careful when your in good cover or on sign. Didn't see too much in earlier posts about following sign; but if you get good at it your chances of coming up on animals and not spooking them increases dramatically.

Sometimes, the exact opposite, or an all-out sprint is called for. If elk are moving ahead of you, and you can figure where their going, that kind of ambush is the best chance to score, far better than catching up to them or sneaking on them bedded. See elk or hear elk but can't approach. Run, if needed, as far as neccessary to get in front of em without spooking. You may have to loop or detour. Keep the wind right. If you plan it right and are a bit lucky they will be right there. BOOM! Gettin excited just thinkin about it!

Some good advice from "real" elk hunters. It was not until I started hunting saddles, crossings, etc that I started killing elk. I've still hunted the dark timber & to be honest I've seen more rumps than elk. I guess I'll stick with being at the saddles at 1st lite.

FYI---As for the camp rookie I put him on the stand & try to convince him to hang out there all day. We seem to be taking more elk around noon than before.

Grandaddy allays said thet if yer seein' no game you need to slow way down. If yer seein' only rumps you need to slow down half as much agin. If deer are only standin' at noon when you see them, then you need to slow down half as much agin. If you can count their eyelashes while they're haids are rested on the ground in front of their beds, then yer movin' 'bout right.

BJ

Here, here!

Moving slow is best- when you know there's apt to be animals in front of you.

My point:If you "sneak" all day you cover what- 1/2 a mile? Better hope or KNOW its the right 1/2 mile! Or you'll be going for a very slow, very elkless stroll through the woods.

Scout. Know where they are. Then sneak, right.

If they're moving, you'll never be able to "sneak" up to them. Getting ahead for an ambush is a great tactic, albight one that is not always easy to pull off. Fails most of the time. Once in a while it gives you a great shot opportunity from what would otherwise end with seeing distant animals slip away in the cover. Helps if you know the elk are heading down a particular draw, creek bottom, etc. Also works better with 2 hunters. Just find a way to beat 'em to it. Moving quickly through the woods is indeed a poor way to see or get close to animals. In some situations its the only way to get a shot in an otherwise hopeless situation.

Good point. I'll add thet stalkin' elk is a lil' faster then rabbit deer. You gotta cover more ground. But here's where the "sensin" game comes in. After 'bout 3 minutes in a likely area fer game, I can tell you if there's game in the area. Took me 'bout 15 years to start listenin' to thet voice, but it rarely fails an' is a prime accessory fer a stalker.

BJ

Hey--BeaverJack---- Is that little voice any good on something REAL important?? Like Power Ball?? Sure would help !!! LOL- my friend<img src=icon_smile_big.gif border=0 align=middle>

Good topic folks and we each have our own strategy. If you go elk hunting, then go elk hunting, stay in the woods all day and learn your quarry. Sometimes its easy to get bored with a hunt after a few days but you got to hunt it with the same intensity as you did the first day, but stay in the woods, you'll get more elk there than back at camp.
To ambush or not, yes I most certainly do, and I also stalk. I believe in being in my ambush spot an 1 1/2 hrs before sunrise. I chase two seperate elk herds here and one is on the Tobbacco Plains and the other I hunt in the revenes and Mt tops up to 7500 ft. My strategy is different for both herds. It depends if its the peak of the Rut or if your hunting a Bull thats been bumped a time or two, but you got to be able to meet them on there turf and as said earlier,... move slower than half fast, and maybe even slower, they blend in with the scenery so good and remain absolutely motionless, that its difficult to see them. I just can't wait for that BULL to come screaming in on me this Sept., I'll greet him with a 125 Thunderhead. Later folks, Bobby<img src=icon_smile_wink.gif border=0 align=middle>