songdog

ok 2 years ago i got hooked on elk in colorado 6 out of 10 took cows with bows. blew my first elk shot on a 5by5. And hit a limb instead of a cow.now i`m hunting elk in okla. on military reservation.areas are generally 1 mile square. down low are trees oak and misquete (bad spelling) 5 ft johnson grass to blue stem prairae grass, water .food,cover. in the mts or hills around, no food no cover no water just brush 6 inches, rocks and dirt maybe 2 hunters to area per day. with little pressure elk should stay low right? found lots of fresh sign low and lots of old sign high.season will last 7-8 days.start high glass low move on spotted elk?or start low in brush in top of tree? any ideas will be helpful this hunt is on Fort Sill in Lawton thanks songdog

amosgreg

Do you have the same area each day?
If so, spend the first morning high and watch fro movement and try to see where they go to bed. IF the rut is on then listen for the bugling and work from there.
Are these areas fenced?
If not the elk could be bedding in another area and you need to see where they are feeding and be in position to ambush them as they move to feed at dusk and move to bed a dawn.
Hope this helps


Greg

"Getting close to the game is the joy of Bowhunting for me, the harvest is a bonus."

Live 15 ft Python after eating a small Antelope!

songdog

thanks greg thats kinda what i figured but wasn`t sure. this area has lots of dirt roads all over. it is a training area for the army they shoot the big guns here they go over head on the way to a closed area down range the animals dont seem to mind i watched 5 bulls 2 weeks ago a 1/2 mile from where they had the guns going off. i cringed they didn`t. troop movement all the time here ,it doesn`t seem to bother the animals either. the elk are not easy, only one bow kill last year on base with 15 gun kills out of70-80 hunters a day for a week.gets kinda funny feeling when 16inch shells go overhead i`ll keep ya posted thanks again. songdog

wyoelkchaser

If the weather is hot the elk will be near if not in the water that is available. North faces of hills/mountains are where those buggers bed down at during the heat of the day. I would start high and glass any draws that go down into the bottom areas. You may be able to pattern the elk and set-up in a place that they are passing by in order to get a shot.

songdog

thanks wy that sounds good days in the 80-90s nights in the60-70s will elk bed high if there is no cover or shade in this kind of weather when i say no cover i mean 3 little bushes 6-18in high on the whole north slope that is lets sayfrom 30 to 50 degrees maybe6ooyrds up and 1/2 mile across or maybe right on the ridge line to catch the breeze that sometimes exceddes 30mph?

rather_be_huntin

Start on a high vantage point overlooking the fresh sign you've seen first thing in the morning. Glass a lot and throw out a few cow calls and bugles, see if anything answers. (I'm assuming you'll be hunting during the rut.) Chances are you'll probably see or hear something and move in from there. Just make sure if you locate elk and that you move within 150 yds or so before you try and call them in.

If not then after an hour or so move to another area or vantage point and do the same thing. Eventually you'll locate elk and you can move in from there. When calling, call once every 5-10 minutes, and try different calls to see what the elk will respond to. If early in the rut don't bugle very aggressively, do more cow talk and cow in heat calls. If in the peak of the rut a aggressive bugle is ok but don't over do it. But the key is try different things and let the elk tell you what works. Eventually you'll find a lonely old bull looking for a girlfriend.