RE: What do you consider Elk hunting.
 

I' ve only hunted elk 5 times but the area we hunt in Colorado is a mix of timber and open meadows. It' s rare to see them in the open once opening day rolls around so it' s the sneak and sit, sneak and sit method for me. The two bulls I dropped were both shot within about about 40-50 yards max. I' m heading back next year for a bow hunt for something different. I' ve been turkey hunting for years (Addict) so I am looking forward to hopefully hearing some bugling and the calling aspect of it. I know the chances of getting one are slim with a bow but I' ll give it a shot. It' s such a rush to see them close (bull or cow) and they can be there and gone in the blink of an eye. Man, can they move...

RE: What do you consider Elk hunting.
 

:DElk hunting is the highlight of my year! A whole week of getting up before the buttcrack of dawn, hiking into hell-holes you swear every year you will never go into again. Freezing your butt off in the mornings, starting to kinda enjoy it by mid-day, then praying you can make it back to the truck alive at night. If you hold your fingers on the truck heater vent all the way back to camp, you should regain enough feeling to light a fire, eat something, go to bed, and get up the next morning to do it all over again. But when you' re going along, and find yourself in a herd (never mind if sometimes the brush is so thick and tall you can' t see them---just hear them and smell them), then it was all worth it, even if I don' t kill one. At least I can tell other guys the well-used line, " Yeah, I was on some earlier this morning, but I couldn' t get a shot!" :DMan! I can' t wait! My season starts Oct. 18th!

RE: What do you consider Elk hunting.
 

OK, I just got back from elk hunting and have to work a few days before I go back. Elk hunting to me is having a tag in my pocket and really sore legs and lungs

RE: What do you consider Elk hunting.
 

I understand the spirit of the thread so with that in mind my " perfect" way to elk hunt would be using calls and a bow miles from the nearest road. Just plain out smarting them and beating them at thier own game.

Now on to reality. In my state (Utah) its feast or famine when it comes to elk. You can draw a limited entry tag (which averages 10-15 years to get), hunt private land (which I do not have access to). In those cases there are elk everywhere, relatively speaking, big bulls, everything an elk hunter dreams of. Or you' re stuck on what seems like a million acres of the most gawd awful rugged country chasin 50 elk with a couple thousand other hunters. I' ve gone on a couple hunts and never saw an elk in a week. Not hangin, not in the back of a truck and not out in the field. I' ve been out in the peak of the rut and not heard a darn bugle the whole trip. And we were supposed to smack in the middle of elk country. Other hunts I' ve seen one bull and a couple of cows and thats it. Thats your shot, take it or leave it.

Like handloader1 in reality any legal way I can. That right there my friend is the reason for the occasional 300+ yd shot. The number of elk is going up on public land but so are the number of hunters here in Utah. I' ve found a great spot to hunt opening day but once the shells start flying during rifle season they are absolutely gone.

RE: What do you consider Elk hunting.
 

the good . the bad. and the ugly. thats elk hunting:D the good being the close encounters, the harvest and the comradery. the bad being the physical and emotional abuse we put ourselves through to attain the good. and the ugly. well. the ugly is what you look like crawling out of some of the holes elk live i:D

RE: What do you consider Elk hunting.
 

It' s kind of all of the above, i like to get on their trail and catch up to them,but after hiking up mountains to 7 or 8000 feet and back down, I see a good bull(any legal bull is a good one) then I won' t pass on a 300 yard shot either, with my recent luck a 300 yarder is as close as I' ve gotten from a bull lately[:o]

RE: What do you consider Elk hunting.
 

ELK HUNTING,

Strategy: Get to know the lay of the land real well and mark every elk kill you ever come across on the GPS and map it. Visit your hunting area at other times of the year besides elk season. Take enough " camp" with you that your can stay comfortable in adverse conditions to where you can just keep hunting instead of wearing out, freezing out, or whimping out. Use enough technology that you can EASILY naviage both ways to and from camp in pitch black darkness!

Tactics: Position yourself at an advantageous ambush position where you know they will be coming, especially if they will be pushed by the " late out of bed" bunch (I got to love them). Take a horse so you can hunt further from the road and still be fearless in being able to get it out.

ELK HUNTING -- To me it is much more than just a fall event.

COUNT DOWN:
Months of anticipation for the hunt,
Summer scouting (exploring the area),
Sorting out the " talkers" (dreamers) from the " excusers" (always something) from the " real ones" --- Thank God for the " real ones" .
Weeks of preparation -- lists, chores, errands, double checking, stockpiling,

Departure from town, loaded heavy
Arrival at the camp site at late night -- Sleep Under The Stars,
Camp setup day -- Elk Camp (home sweet home) is built
" Lazy" days of scouting (lazy compared to the hunting),
Dealing with horses, horse behavior, and horse care,
Thursday, serious hunters arrive -- and welcome as a change in pace....
Banquet night.... " It don' t get much better than this!"
Friday, the " hunter' s ritual" -- final preparations.... knives, guns, ammo, clothes, food, water, forecasts, plans....

SHOWTIME:
100 a.m. Alarm
The worlds best breakfast! (No matter what it is!)
230 a.m. departure
Hiking far in the dark to the ambush stands,
Arriving, layering up, chilling lightly in the darkness,
Heavy rounds clicking into heavy rifles,
Quietly becoming one, with the forest, virtually disappearing and becomeing one,
Watching red sky of pre-dawn while chewing the jerky of last year' s elk, shot not far away,

Zero Hour,
The sound of the first gun shot far in the distance,
More shots, some closer,
Your first sight of the day' s first elk,
Your primal response as it guides your logical mind,
The killing part -- KThump! No real noise and no real recoil -- things are slow, but fast -- intense, bitter-sweet, and short lived,
Elk down, the real work now begins!

THE BEST PARTS:

Tribal/Communal " One For All, All For One" Behavior -- Not Found In The City
Camp Life,
Camp Fires,
A Hot Shower - pure heaven
Gourmet Food and Drink,
Friends,
Adventure,
Elk down (respectful moments)
Field dressing (Wow, they are BIG)
Quartering/deboning (keep it clean!),
Packing them out, (thank God for horses),
Throwing that first quarter and backstrap on the cutting table and washing it down. (Greeting each quarter with " Oh, what a nice piece of meat!" )
Everyone wielding a knife, a cutting board, a beer and a cup of coffee -- its a long day!
Big pieces turned into small pieces: Steaks, Roasts, Jerky, Burger, Discard,
Meat, bagged & labelled laid out and freezing in the 15 degree night air,
The ice-like " clack" of frozen meat of sorted meat going into coolers the next morning,
Pictures, farewells, until next year....
A treasure trove of memories and experiences,
Camp Breakdown and load up,
Driving away as a group -- Civilization here we come! Re-entry,

For me, that is elk hunting -- much more than just killing an elk -- that is a small part -- hardly matters as long as some in our group score.

Never Go Undergunned,
EKM

RE: What do you consider Elk hunting.
 

Im leaving tomorrow night for Garden Valley ID to bowhunt for Elk. This is my 5th Elk hunt, all with bow and I' ve taken one cow.
I hunt hard glassing and calling at times and play the ambush game in years of little rain but mostly calling.
I see Elk hunting as a learning experience. This trip will start with a 1800 mile drive to the hunting spot, about 8 days in the mountains and hopefully include a nice Bull Elk to pack out. Either way I figure Im a very fortunate person to be among those that get to hunt these magnificant creatures. Therefore I hunt Elk with a smile on my face and a bow in my hands:D

RE: What do you consider Elk hunting.
 

I just returned from my muzzleloader hunt and had a blast, but had to work for the fun (that' s hunting, right?)

The first 2-3 days I had bulls going, but a ways off and they wouldn' t commit. Sunday I had a big ol 6x6 (very tall, but narrow) going from 500 yards, and had him to about 200 when he ducked in a small draw and I lost last light. Finally on Tuesday AM, it all came together....textbook style. From camp at 4:30 I could hear one going down below camp, in an area I saw a decent 5x5 the day before. I was unsure where exactly I was going to go that morning, but made my mind up quick. When I got settled in my area well before shooting light, he started up again. I waited for a short time and let the first short bugle with a few chuckles go, and he instantly responded. Waited, then a few cow calls and he was back again...we went on until about 7:15 then he shut down and I thought of going after him, but decided to sit tight and wait a bit. Over the next 20 minutes I cow called just a few times with different calls. Twice, I heard very distinct branches snapping below me, but not a peep. Finally at about 7:45 or so I said to myslef, just one more try.... I let one short bugle go, with no chuckle, and I could still hear the echo down in the draw from the call when he presented himself at about 75 yards and as quiet as a mouse. He took a few cautious steps, then the .50 caliber found an opening. One shot behind the shoulder and he side stepped twice and tipped like a ton of bricks. A nice 5x5. Nothing huge, but nice long eye gaurds and a fun few hours leading up to the harvest.

RE: What do you consider Elk hunting.
 

I' m going to jump in here with a question from Virginia. Tennesee and Kentucky have reintroduced elk into the area, and inasmuch as the elk weren' t given a map, they have wandered over into my mountains. My wife recently saw a bull eld not far from our house. My question is how does one go about hunting elk, and as they are new to the area, should I take one. Our state doesn' t really want them here, and we have a high population of deer and I don' t know what effect they have on the deer population. You guys sound like you can give me some good advice. For the record, I only hunt with a Hawken muzzle loader, just to add a little challenge to the whole effort.

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