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Joined: Apr 2014
Posts: 1,374
Campfire Regular
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Campfire Regular
Joined: Apr 2014
Posts: 1,374 |
realitycheck,
You've received a lot of great info.
At risk of repetition, don't go by yourself unless you will be very close to an accessible road. Elk are huge animals. Were you to shoot one, you'll have to get it out. Even if you quarter one & take back straps, you'll be looking at a lot of weight, which means you'll have to make a lot of trips.
If you plan on mounting a trophy, you might want to have someone show you how to cape an elk. Antlers and cape will mean another trip out.
If you're going to do it yourself, you might want to get to your area a week ahead of time. This will give you time to scout & figure out elk patterns of movement. If you're going with an over-the-counter tag, it'll probably mean it won't be a rut hunt which will add difficulty finding them.
You don't need a mega-magnum to kill an elk. But if your bullet doesn't go where it needs to go, you will be tracking, which means you will assuredly be traveling deep in to rugged territory. That means you'll be packing it out of unsympathetic country. So my advice is to assure your rifle is perfectly sighted in, and take as much time as you can before shooting.
Best of luck to you. I hope you kill a huge trophy.
Happy Holidays,
SS
�If tyranny and oppression come to this land, it will be in the guise of fighting a foreign enemy.�
***US President James Madison***
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Joined: Apr 2014
Posts: 1,374
Campfire Regular
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Campfire Regular
Joined: Apr 2014
Posts: 1,374 |
realitycheck, Check out this Website: www.eastmans.comIt has a lot of great elk hunting advice.
�If tyranny and oppression come to this land, it will be in the guise of fighting a foreign enemy.�
***US President James Madison***
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Joined: Dec 2004
Posts: 20,379
Campfire Ranger
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Campfire Ranger
Joined: Dec 2004
Posts: 20,379 |
TFF.. soozy's an expert now.
I replace valve cover gaskets every 50K, if they don't need them sooner...
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Joined: Jun 2006
Posts: 45,993
Campfire 'Bwana
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Campfire 'Bwana
Joined: Jun 2006
Posts: 45,993 |
Elk are huge animals. Were you to shoot one, you'll have to get it out. Were you to not, you may as well bring some tiddly winks.
A wise man is frequently humbled.
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Joined: Feb 2008
Posts: 1,202
Campfire Regular
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Campfire Regular
Joined: Feb 2008
Posts: 1,202 |
Forget all of the magazine article magnums. I see the flatlanders show up every year packing them and the locals using their same old rifles. You wont go wrong if you have something in the 308 - 30/06 - 8x57 class, even a 6.5 Swede will work if you do your job.
My buddy was guiding one of these guys this year. He was shooting a 300 RUM with a light bullet so he could get some speed. He shot 5 times and only connected with the first which disentegrated on the shoulder.
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Joined: Apr 2009
Posts: 18,911
Campfire Ranger
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Campfire Ranger
Joined: Apr 2009
Posts: 18,911 |
realitycheck,
You've received a lot of great info.
At risk of repetition, don't go by yourself unless you will be very close to an accessible road. Elk are huge animals. Were you to shoot one, you'll have to get it out. Even if you quarter one & take back straps, you'll be looking at a lot of weight, which means you'll have to make a lot of trips.
If you plan on mounting a trophy, you might want to have someone show you how to cape an elk. Antlers and cape will mean another trip out.
If you're going to do it yourself, you might want to get to your area a week ahead of time. This will give you time to scout & figure out elk patterns of movement. If you're going with an over-the-counter tag, it'll probably mean it won't be a rut hunt which will add difficulty finding them.
You don't need a mega-magnum to kill an elk. But if your bullet doesn't go where it needs to go, you will be tracking, which means you will assuredly be traveling deep in to rugged territory. That means you'll be packing it out of unsympathetic country. So my advice is to assure your rifle is perfectly sighted in, and take as much time as you can before shooting.
Best of luck to you. I hope you kill a huge trophy.
Happy Holidays,
SS Are you from Oregon?
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Joined: Jul 2013
Posts: 9,189
Campfire Outfitter
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Campfire Outfitter
Joined: Jul 2013
Posts: 9,189 |
This applies to elk, too. Don't hunt where you're not willing to pack it out.
This is the most sage advice I've found for elk hunting on this thread... And it is the defining factor in where I hunt elk anymore. It isn't horrible to get a deer figured out, regardless of the terrain, but elk are big. Very big, sometimes. I think in the areas I hunt, bowhunters have a better chance of getting a good bull. Not that rifle hunters don't get it done, it's that the elk around here disappear when the shooting starts, and they are hard to find. Thinking of scouting into the Elkhorns next spring. Certainly am going to have to try new areas next season. With no snow and a week left in the season, I may get skunked again this year--two in a row. It wouldn't be that big a deal, but I've hunted hard the last few seasons. Have been out 12 days this year, all of them day-trips.
I belong on eroding granite, among the pines.
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Joined: Jan 2006
Posts: 69,249
Campfire Kahuna
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Campfire Kahuna
Joined: Jan 2006
Posts: 69,249 |
If you're going to do it yourself, you might want to get to your area a week ahead of time. This will give you time to scout & figure out elk patterns of movement. If you're going with an over-the-counter tag, it'll probably mean it won't be a rut hunt which will add difficulty finding them. If it's a popular area, by noon of opening day all of your scouting can be meaningless other than to show you where they were yesterday.
“In a time of deceit telling the truth is a revolutionary act.”
― George Orwell
It's not over when you lose. It's over when you quit.
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Joined: Jul 2001
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Campfire Kahuna
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Campfire Kahuna
Joined: Jul 2001
Posts: 60,052 |
Plus, a lot of elk movement out of a public area is caused by pre-season "scouting."
“Montana seems to me to be what a small boy would think Texas is like from hearing Texans.”
John Steinbeck
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Joined: Jan 2006
Posts: 69,249
Campfire Kahuna
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Campfire Kahuna
Joined: Jan 2006
Posts: 69,249 |
While scouting, you'd do well to stay out of the timber where they might be bedding. Kick them out of there and they're on their way to the next county.
“In a time of deceit telling the truth is a revolutionary act.”
― George Orwell
It's not over when you lose. It's over when you quit.
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Joined: Dec 2004
Posts: 20,379
Campfire Ranger
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Campfire Ranger
Joined: Dec 2004
Posts: 20,379 |
Stop it. Soozy's an expert now..
I replace valve cover gaskets every 50K, if they don't need them sooner...
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Joined: Jul 2001
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Campfire Kahuna
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Campfire Kahuna
Joined: Jul 2001
Posts: 60,052 |
I have also seen hunters "scouting" for elk by cruising around in ATV's during the day or two before the season. Elk know the sudden advent of considerable internal-combustion activity in the mountains means something's up.
“Montana seems to me to be what a small boy would think Texas is like from hearing Texans.”
John Steinbeck
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Joined: Dec 2008
Posts: 78,300
Campfire Oracle
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Campfire Oracle
Joined: Dec 2008
Posts: 78,300 |
Exactamundo. Scout in the last week of season while you are hunting. What you want to find out is where they elk go AFTER they've been shot at.
"...the left considers you vermin, and they'll kill you given the chance..." Bristoe
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Joined: Mar 2011
Posts: 2,601
Campfire Regular
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Campfire Regular
Joined: Mar 2011
Posts: 2,601 |
I can't be the only one that actually enjoys packing elk out. One the toughest most rewarding things to do No, you're not. I always like getting back to the truck and putting the meat on ice, then grabbing a lawn chair and a beer and taking it easy for a while. Nothing like it. When I get too old to do it, I'll be happy just remembering that I did. Something about the taste of a beer after a long, sucessful pack.
Nut
Experience hath shewn, that even under the best forms of government those entrusted with power have, in time, and by slow operations, perverted it into tyranny.
Thomas Jefferson
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Joined: Jun 2006
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Campfire 'Bwana
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Campfire 'Bwana
Joined: Jun 2006
Posts: 45,993 |
Yup, it makes me feel like a new man. Problem is, that new man wants another beer.....
A wise man is frequently humbled.
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Joined: Jan 2006
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Campfire Kahuna
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Campfire Kahuna
Joined: Jan 2006
Posts: 69,249 |
A cold beer tastes good after a short easy pack, too.
“In a time of deceit telling the truth is a revolutionary act.”
― George Orwell
It's not over when you lose. It's over when you quit.
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Joined: Jun 2002
Posts: 990
Campfire Regular
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Campfire Regular
Joined: Jun 2002
Posts: 990 |
Good info in here. Stay mobile, go where the elk are. If you aren't spotting any, they aren't there to stalk. So go spot somewhere else. Lots of guys spend a season watching areas the elk are supposed to be in...but aren't.
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Joined: Aug 2010
Posts: 47,943
Campfire 'Bwana
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Campfire 'Bwana
Joined: Aug 2010
Posts: 47,943 |
Good info in here. Stay mobile, go where the elk are. If you aren't spotting any, they aren't there to stalk. So go spot somewhere else. Lots of guys spend a season watching areas the elk are supposed to be in...but aren't. That's right Dave. You gotta find them first, then you can spot and stalk, track, etc...
I try to stick with the basics, they do so well. Nothing fancy mind you, just plain jane will get it done with style. You want to see an animal drop right now? Shoot him in the ear hole. BSA MAGA
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