Top Ten Tips.....
 

If you were doing a Top Ten list of everything that a turkey hunter from Alabama needed to know if he wanted to head West and chase a bugling bull........GO! Let's hear it!

I'll take a shot at it.

#1) Get in shape! There is a world of difference between hunting turkeys and elk.

#2) Get used to carrying a load. Packing an elk is hard work.

#3) Hump the hills. Walking in hills and mountains is different than walking in flat land. I've spent a lot of time in AL and there isn't a decent mountain in the state but there are some hills.

#4) Decide what you want to hunt. Are you happy with any bull or are you only after a monster? Some places have lots of elk and some places have fewer but bigger trophies. Frankly if I was on my first elk hunt I'd go for a cow and not a bull anyways.

#5) Pick a specific area ahead of time and learn as much as you can. Contact Game Depts, get topo maps, use google earth etc... the more info ahead of time the better.

#6) Decide how you plan to hunt. Bow, rifle, blackpowder? Do you intend to camp out? Backpack? Go with an outfitter? Go with friends? Do you want to use horses? Have a plan.

#7) Learn to hit your shot at 300 yards. The time to find out that neither you nor your weapon is up to the task is now and not after you wounded an elk.

#8) Learn to care for the meat. Elk are a lot bigger than deer or turkeys and the carcass must be properly cared for. Waste of game meat is frowned on everywhere back west.

#9) LEAVE THE TAPE MEASURE AT HOME!!!! Any elk taken cleanly and under fair chase is an animal to be proud of. Don't get wrapped up in inches of antler.

#10) Enjoy the hunt even if you don't get an elk. Not everybody fills their tag every year. Anybody that says they do is a liar. The experience of an elk hunt can't be beat. Taking one is a bonus.

Here are mine, Except there are thirteen:

- First of all, hunt where there are turkeys.
- Forget what you know about deer hunting. Turkeys aren’t deer.
- You can’t be too early, but you can be five minutes too late.
- Know your land, know your turkeys.
- You can call too much, but you can’t hardly call too little.
- When you think you’ve sat long enough, sit another half hour.
- Make the right move at the right time.
- They’re always closer than you think, except when you’re shooting.
- A turkey is a 20 pound eyeball.
- They don’t evaporate after 9:30 am.
- It’s always easier to call a turkey if he’s going there anyway.
- Turkey hunting isn’t a “gun” sport.
- You may not get a turkey, but you always get a lesson.

Just an observation but I believe the man was asking for elk hunting advice and not turkey hunting advice. :wave:

Elk aren't evenly distributed over their habitat like eastern whitetails and turkeys. Finding them is the biggest problem to solve. Once you find them they aren't that hard to kill if you have some hunting experience under your belt.
Where to hunt elk is far more valuable knowledge than how to hunt elk.
The only way to learn the where is to spend time in elk country or hunt with someone who has. Don't get bummed out if you come up empty on your first couple trys. Hang with it and keep learning.

That'll teach me to read these posts before I've had coffee. My bad. Carry on.

Haha....I've got the turkey thing down pat.

I vacationed with the family last June in the Mountains. Flew into Denver and drove up to Yellowstone. I was quite honestly surprised at how little the altitude bothered me. The kicker is that a few weeks after getting home I had a heart attack and had to have a stent put in. I'm not saying that I would be running marathons up the mountains but I was really surprised at how little it zapped me. I mean I jogged a mile and climbed a hill at the end and still felt good!

I think BC made an invaluable point. :D:party0005:

I have one tip. Be prepared to make several trips before you tag one. Although some tag on their first trip, but stats show it might be awhile. Just don't set your expectations too high or you'll be disappointed. It's not like you see on TV.

Don't want to be a downer but I see it time and time again. People venture out west expecting an outdoor channel episode to lay itself out before them, and they leave cursing to never come back. I live here and haven't tagged a bull in 3 yrs.

My $.02 is to take a legal bull when you get the chance and do not wait for a huge 6x6 like you see on TV. TV shows often show guys passing on bulls and ending up with a monster later in the show. First time elk hunters usually tell me that they will hold out for a 6x6 ("even a smaller 6x6 will do - I'm not picky").

My goal was to shoot a bigger bull than I have shot before, or a nice meat bull. If you have never shot one before that sets the bar fairly low.

"It's not like you see on TV"

Very true.

I personally like a tasty young spike or cow...they eat so well and don't taste rank and nasty!!! and just a quick little note here ....no matter how long ya boil bake or broil them antlers they still are not fit to eat!!!!!

I always have a cow tag in my pocket while hunting my real game of choice........ mule deer bucks.

Gotta fill the freezer and there isn't anything better. Not to mention, if I go into December without fresh elk meat in the freezer my wife feeds me dog food.

My plan (if we get the trip together) is too buy a cow tag, bull tag, and Mule deer tag. I would love the experience whether I tagged on or not. I know that is load of money for an out-of-towner but I may never get another opportunity.

Just some advice, but if you are looking for an outfitter and want to hunt CO I suggest you contact Dick Dodd of Elkhorn Outfitters

http://www.elkhornoutfitters.com/

He has a huge amount of property under lease in Northwest CO and due to the huge herds of elk in the area he has access to a lot of bonus cow elk tags. He hunts under the Ranching for Wildlife Program on some properties and under normal guiding criteria on others. There are a lot, and I mean a lot of elk in that area and some great deer. Dick Dodd can probably help you if an outfitter is the way you want to go. Because he has the bonus cow tag you don't have to worry about drawing a tag and most of the bull tags in that area are over the counter tags. He also can arrange landowner vouchers if that is what you want. All you have to worry about drawing is the deer tag.

Now for the disclaimer: I have not hunted with Dick Dodd but I have hunted some of the ranches he has on a public Ranching for Wildlife tag. That means I had to get the ranch info and check in/out with him. He struck me as a good guy and there were a couple of times when he had his employees help us get elk out of the field when the weather turned. He didn't have to do that and he didn't ask for anything in return, he was just helping hunters out. If I was going to do a guided hunt and I wanted a bull elk, a cow elk and a mulie, Dick Dodd would be on the short list of people I'd contact.

# 1 You gotta see them, before they see you.

Let's start there......................!

Let me throw this out there.....When do you guys like to hunt? Early season archery/muzzleloader or later season rifle?

I really, more than anything, want to hear the bugle of a bull elk. Just watching it on TV gives me chills. I equate it to hearing the first gobble of turkey season.

You may not know it, but you have already answered your own question. Most states with elk have their archery and mybe their muzzleloading season during the bugle period. The rifle seasons normally are held after the rut. Now since the time of the rut fluctuates from year to year, occasionally the rifle seasons include the rut. So, if you want to hear them bugle you need to hit the rut which means early (mid-Sep seasons for the most part).

I can't speak for the rest of the people but I prefer to either hunt the muzzleloader season in my native CO if I want a bull and one of the late seasons if I want a cow. Since I'm normally more interested in the meat, the later seasons appeal to me. But then I grew up in elk country so I was always able to hear them bugle even if I didn't have a tag.