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Elk Hunting mistakes!

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Elk Hunting mistakes!

Postby foxvalley » 07 28, 2012 •  [Post 1]

Paul, I hope I'm not highjacking your calling mistakes thread,but I feel,this is the fastest way for someone to learn, and there are a lot of mistakes made while hunting in general.

I believe that after all the time Iv'e spent in the mtns. since 1987, I truely am the master of elk hunting mistakes. This might be the fastest way to learn what "not to do" on these two threads. I can think of tons of mistakes that I have made so let me start.
mistake #1.
Your sneaking thru the timber and you "hear something". Sounds a little different than all the squirrels,so you wait a couple min.,but you have somewhere that you want to go,so you head out.STOP,SET UP!,BE PATIENT! Very possible it's an elk you heard.We are ALWAYS in to much of a hurry,slow down.Spend 20-30min.and then,if nothing shows up,or you don't hear anything, then go.
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Re: Elk Hunting mistakes!

Postby ElkNut1 » 07 28, 2012 •  [Post 2]

Not a problem at all, it's a very good idea! I'd love to hear some stories as well! I too have made my share of mistakes! (grin) I know I'm not done yet either! (grin)

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Re: Elk Hunting mistakes!

Postby foxvalley » 07 28, 2012 •  [Post 3]

Thanks, Paul!

Mistake #2

Get off the hogback.(ridgeline)
If you are running and gunning or locating elk, the hogback is a great way to cover ground. There seems to always be a great trail on top,elk sign etc.However,if you are hunting,get off the top, even if it is 20-30 yards from the top. As a gereral rule, the elk are not on the top, and they are not on the bottom, they are somewhere in between.Consider the hogback as a highway. Also, when the thermals are going down,try and be below the elk, when they are going up, try and be above them.
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Re: Elk Hunting mistakes!

Postby T/H » 07 28, 2012 •  [Post 4]

did someone say mistakes? :) i've made a few. bad setups, set up behind instead of in front of something, calling and staying put so i'm easy to locate by the elk and many many more lol.
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Re: Elk Hunting mistakes!

Postby foxvalley » 07 28, 2012 •  [Post 5]

Mistake #3 Calling without any noise.

When your close to elk, and the elk know you are there,by your calling raking etc. you need to make noise. If you call and thats all the elk hear,they will get nervous really fast,mostly when the action is hot. Have the caller crash around,stomp the ground,break branches etc. Elk NEED to hear all that because thats what elk sound like and expect to hear.
If an elk is coming in and stops,good chance he is trying to find you,have the caller,as soon as he stops, I mean right now, snap a branch, just one.Do not let him have 1 second to think about changing his mind. As soon as he hears the snap he should continue as he has now zeroed in.
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Re: Elk Hunting mistakes!

Postby easeup » 07 28, 2012 •  [Post 6]

how about this mistake......from way back of my past
you head up the rockies to hunt with grand expectations. By not really understanding where the game should be, you hunt for a week in the wrong areas and do not see a elk for the entire week. major disappointment right.
Here is the bad part....went back and did it again the year after......my only excuse was there was no mentor for this kid from WTex and Al Gore had not invented the internet yet.
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Re: Elk Hunting mistakes!

Postby CrazyElkHunter » 07 28, 2012 •  [Post 7]

Never use a cheap game bag. Every year I see and hear about hunters using cheap game bags like cheesecloth, where dirt and flys get in. You've invested a lot of time and money into the hunt, so why skimp on what will protect the best meat in the world. Ask a meat processor about all the meat that's brought into him that has been blown by flys and ruined. Quality 1/4 bags can be expensive, so I make my own out of medium to heavy muslim type material. A lot of hunters will use pillow cases. Anything that has a tight woven material will work. Recently I have been buying 4x5 painters drop cloths from Lowe's for $5.00 each. Cheaper than buying material from a fabric store. Total $20.00 for 4 premium bags. Only have to sew 2 sides and all edges are already finished. Will hold a entire 1/4 or a big bag of boned out meat. Sew a cheap shoe string close to the top opening to tie it off. ;)
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Re: Elk Hunting mistakes!

Postby Freebird134 » 07 28, 2012 •  [Post 8]

Sleeping too close.

Our first time backpacking in to hunt (3 first timers) we were tired. We found water lower on the mountain, and didn't feel like walking back up. So we set up our tents. Cooked our meals. Washed our underwear. Showered. Saw no more elk.

We were lazy and it cost us.
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Re: Elk Hunting mistakes!

Postby elkohalic » 07 28, 2012 •  [Post 9]

Never made a mistake ROTFLMAO !!!! Just happy little accidents
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Re: Elk Hunting mistakes!

Postby foxvalley » 07 29, 2012 •  [Post 10]

My very first time ever in the mtns. was a solo pack in hunt,I found the most remote area on the map, and started in. It was about 4:00am when I started walking down the creek with my 80lb pack,sometimes on the side of it,sometimes in it. Thick dew covered brush had me soaked to the bone in all my "cotton clothes".(1987) It was about 1 3/4 miles back in to where I had planned on camping,and made it without breaking both my ancles on the slippery rocks. Anyway,after I had set up camp and started looking around, I discovered a horse trail about 50 feet above my head the whole way in.
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Re: Elk Hunting mistakes!

Postby ElkNut1 » 07 29, 2012 •  [Post 11]

Drawing your bow too early & waiting an eternity for the elk to take two more steps!!! If you let down he will see your movement, man what a pickle! Now a days, I'll let the bull come as close as possible, as soon as he turns to leave or goes by me I stop him with a nervous grunt as I draw at the same time! Problem solved!

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Re: Elk Hunting mistakes!

Postby welka » 07 29, 2012 •  [Post 12]

Set ups, set ups and more set up mistakes. Really need to take the time prior to set up to think about proper placement of shooter/caller AND what to do if elk come from a direction you didn't expect. On blind set ups, really need to find a way to not allow the bull to get downwind (ie opening, rock wall, ledge, etc). If you can't get it "as right as possible", don't set up in that location and move on looking for another.
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Re: Elk Hunting mistakes!

Postby Swede » 07 29, 2012 •  [Post 13]

Tree stand setups need to be thought out carefully. A mistake I have made is to hang my stand in the afternoon and not think about how the sun would be shining on me in the morning. The reverse was also true when I didn't consider the afternoon sun. The morning sun at least gave me a nice warm feeling. The afternoon sun cooked me before it exposed me. It sure hurts when after waiting for hours or even days, you are caught out in the open.
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Re: Elk Hunting mistakes!

Postby Swede » 07 29, 2012 •  [Post 14]

Another tree stand set up mistake I have made is to select a tree for my stand on a hillside, where I am going to be sitting at near eye level with where the elk are likely to be. At that location I have had no way to hide, and sometimes elk came in directly towards me.
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Re: Elk Hunting mistakes!

Postby otcWill » 07 29, 2012 •  [Post 15]

I believe that the number one mistake elk hunters make causing them to be unsuccessful is the failure to leave a crappy or decent spot in order to find a better one. The places that they write about do exist! Just keep looking!
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Re: Elk Hunting mistakes!

Postby Lefty » 07 29, 2012 •  [Post 16]

Dont hunt elk like white-tails, mulies or blacktails,.. They are elk
Also I dont know how to explain being patient and aggressive for elk is much different than other game
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Re: Elk Hunting mistakes!

Postby ElkNut1 » 07 30, 2012 •  [Post 17]

When locating elk by sound go to them!!! Many hunters want the elk to come to them at this time! Get aggressive & be the aggressor, do not expect elk to do all the work & come running to you, make it convenient for them!

Aggressive actions kill elk!!!!!! When in doubt get aggressive no matter the dates!! Aggressive action comes in two forms, calling or repositioning!

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Re: Elk Hunting mistakes!

Postby easeup » 07 30, 2012 •  [Post 18]

otcWill wrote:I believe that the number one mistake elk hunters make causing them to be unsuccessful is the failure to leave a crappy or decent spot in order to find a better one. The places that they write about do exist! Just keep looking!


I will ride this horse!!
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Re: Elk Hunting mistakes!

Postby Gazelle » 07 30, 2012 •  [Post 19]

Anybody ever answer nature call and while your squating, You call, and in comes a bull? Me either... :oops:
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Re: Elk Hunting mistakes!

Postby Swede » 07 30, 2012 •  [Post 20]

I believe one of the greatest reasons hunters fail year after year is due to a lack of curiosity and the failure to see what is happening or has taken place. If we are not learning then everything is luck and the only thing I can do is to maximize my opportunity to be lucky. As an inexperienced hunter you should learn all you can before you go hunting, then observe all you can when you are out hunting. Come back here and relate the experiences you have, and share your evaluation. You actually will progress more from reading alternate views and even being corrected than from just stating the common truths. Tell Elknut you charged a bugling herd bull with the wind in your face and with plenty of cover, but he still left with his herd. Chances are Paul and others will give you some pointers, so the next time you do it you will have a better chance of anchoring the bull.
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Re: Elk Hunting mistakes!

Postby Vanish » 07 31, 2012 •  [Post 21]

otcWill wrote:I believe that the number one mistake elk hunters make causing them to be unsuccessful is the failure to leave a crappy or decent spot in order to find a better one. The places that they write about do exist! Just keep looking!


I'm concerned about this one for my group. We figured out the elk in the are last year, so the group wants to go back. However, I question whether it is a GOOD area. Sure, there may be elk there, and we may get some, but it might only be a dozen of them! How good could it be other places?
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Re: Elk Hunting mistakes!

Postby Vanish » 07 31, 2012 •  [Post 22]

When you draw your bow, make sure you have an arrow nocked!

Ok, it sounds silly, but here is the story.

Last year, first year elk hunting, early season. I split from my group for the morning to check out a different area. It is mid morning at this point, and I don't really know what I am looking for, so I set up in this nice cozy spot on the side of a meadow. I expect elk to come in from the sides or front. Lying on my pack, bow at my feet. Not 20 minutes go by and I hear crashing headed in my direction (from BEHIND me) for a good minute. Having not yet heard elk, I must have thought it was a bulldozer?

Looking over my shoulder, three cows step out from the brushy trees maybe 5 yards away. I sat there dumbfounded and watched them meander down the hill. Suddenly it occurs to me that I might be able to draw since they aren't looking at me. I grab my bow and do so, estimating range, settling my pin ... yep I can make this shot ... then letting down and slapping my forehead as there is no arrow on the string.
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Re: Elk Hunting mistakes!

Postby Swede » 07 31, 2012 •  [Post 23]

When moving in on a herd or a single elk, it is a common mistake to get so focused on the target, that you don't see others that are nearby. Getting busted by a surprise elk or even a deer has spoiled many otherwise perfect approaches. It is devastating when that unseen animal takes off running away, or the alarm is sounded.
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