With an arrow, or bullet whether from a rifle or muzzleloader I always figured on disrupting TWO major organs to bring down and recover a big game animal. Lung-lung, lung-liver, heart-lung etc. I have no experience with elk but I know moose have lungs the size of a beach ball and tracking a beast in heavy timber with one collapsed lung don't make my list for a desirable hunting experience.
I have recovered whitetail deer other hunters have taken by cutting femoral arteries and sliced neck veins but one time the tracking job covered a mile in melting snow and standing corn over a 24 hour period. When things go wrong I lose sleep. I don't care to repeat that experience.
Frontal shots? Only once - through the neck patch on a large doe while carrying a very accurate, scoped Knight muzzleloader under 20 yards. DOA!
