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Ten Commandments of Elk Hunting

I. Thou shalt be in shape, for elk dwelleth not in the flatlands, nor where there is oxygen.

II. If thine ass resembleth 20 pounds of chewed bubble gum, bitter shall be thy lot.

III. Thou shalt not whine that the pace is too swift, or that thou cannot get thy breath, or that thou seeest stars, for thy guide shall care not, and mercy shall not be yours.

IV. Thou shalt not stuff thy pack with all manner of goods. Thou needst it not, and it shall do naught but rob thee of thy breath and turn thy knees to Jello.

V. Thou shalt not slam truck doors, nor speak above a whisper, nor tramp through the forests like the hosts of Gilead, for thou art in the backyard of thy foe the elk, and sharp are his senses, and he shall flee from thee.

VI. Thou shalt practice thy offhand shooting, for that may be the only shot that thou receivest.

VII. Thou shalt learn to shoot as swiftly as the hawk flieth, and thou shalt not fiddle-f*** with thy gear, nor adjust thy scope, nor set up thy bipod, for thou hast not time.

VIII. While the elk yet moveth, thou must shoot, for blessed is he who endeth the life quickly, and accursed is he who letteth an animal suffer for the sake of a one-shot kill.

IX. Strong must be thy bullet; all else is but the dung of horses.

X. The worst day thou shalt have hunting elk is better than the best day of whatever else thou doest.

By David Petzal

Hike in, to your hunting area in the dark, hike out in the dark. Go high and glass long and hard. Late season elk are out in the AM, mid day and PM. Buy the best boots you can buy, sidehill walking takes a lot of ankle support. Be proficient with your rifle out to 400 yards. Bring enough rifle, they are not deer and do not always go down easy. Most elk killed are usually a mile from the nearest road. Elk hunting is a challenge, sometimes fun, most likely not. It, wears you out, and beats you up. They make noise, especially if they are in a herd, you can hear them from a long ways on a calm day. Pray for snow. I was on my first elk hunt in the late 50's and its been a lifelong adventure.

Everything that WAM wrote.

WAM, your post should be a sticky.........

Better yet, it started the day with a chuckle, thank you!

bring along a roll up plastic matt for cutting meat up, camp next to a stream or river , big cast Iron skillet, cookin oil ,big bag of onions ,20 lbs. of potatoes ,seasonings , lots of cans bush beans and do the camp meat thing. boys will have plenty to eat then , you could even make Bannick bread on the campfire . good luck enjoy your hunt ! Pete53

Watch the ridgetops in the evening. Often a herd will move out of the timber into the open just before dark. If you see a herd, be there before light because more often than not they will still be there. I've got elk several times by doing that.

Thanks again for the advice. I'm the only one on the group that has hunted elk. Much of what's been mentioned I've seen first hand. The altitude sickness is one of them. It can ruin a hunt or end much worse. That's one reason I told them we need to have camp set 3 days ahead of the opener. Every one of us has a pack frame in case we need to carry the meat out. I've skinned, deboned and butchered most everything we've killed in the past, elk included and with some extra help that goes pretty good. I'm 60 so out of this group I need more getting ready physically. These other guys are lean and tough but that don't always cut it out in the high country. 2 of them shoot .308s and one a .270. Handloads for all. I've always used my .300 weatherby but wouldn't hesitate to use the .270 either. It is well worth mentioning this isn't deer hunting. I learned that pretty quick. Thanks again for the great advice and well wishes!

No one has mentioned it,but hunting with an OTC tag in Colorado has become a circus. In the past three years hunter numbers have grown exponentially. I would apply for an elk tag for the 1st rifle season. Fourth season can be good too,but it takes a lot of equipment and warm clothes to get it done and chances of deep snow are real

Someone mentioned concentrating on getting an elk and then getting it out. IMO that is backwards. Have a solid plan on how you will get the meat out before you even leave camp. It may vary well determine the terrain and location of where you hunt. Killing an elk in some deep dark, blow down filled canyon may fill your tags, but you might not physically be able to pack the meat out or have an outfitter or get horses or mules to it.I have met too many hunters that think they are tough enough beg me to pack their elk out with my mules.

Be realistic. Success rate in Colorado hovers about 18-20 % for all elk killed, bulls,cows,calves. Be happy to tag one.Overjoyed to tag two.Even if none are tagged, it should be the greatest experience those young ones will have.

It doesn't matter too much what head stamp is on the cartridge each use, but select a bullet that will do the job and make sure everyone can put it where it should go.

If you are tent camping, be aware that fire bans might be in places. Have back up plans for heat in the tent ,
Everyone will give advice on how to hunt elk. Elk don't read those rules. There are no rules

I hadn't thought of the fire bans. Glad you mentioned that. I've been on 6 public land DIY hunts and one drop camp, all in Colorado. The drop camp was the biggest disappointment by far. The others were all great experiences with one of those hunts being a banner year for 5 of us filling tags. I've told these boys the chances are not all that great and we might not get a shot or even see elk. That doesn't seem to put a damper on them one bit. I know we're all going to brag on our grandsons but these fellows have earned any of that they get from me. Big thing is safety and having a good camp. I'm going to try very hard to get us into a place where we can see some elk. I've also got an added bonus allot of out of state hunters don't have. Friends that live out there and hunt allot. They are fanatical about it in some ways and are always happy to help me out. My hope is the bug bites them to spend time in the mountains and adding the extra bonus of hunting. To me a well planned and safe hunt do allot. Shoot I even enjoy the drive across Kansas!

You best get in shape, bring a 338 Win mag.

Get an elliptical machine, be able to hump it at least a couple of hours.

Words of wisdom ^^^^^

😬🦫

This^^^^^^^. Worked for my bull last year!

Prolly won’t work again…..

Trust me they've been getting plenty of this! I've been telling them they have allot of work to do. LOL. They're all fine young fellows though and will pull their weight and then some.

Also if you are hunting on top of a saddle of a Mt and hear what sounds like a herd of cattle get closer. My first hunt I goofed up thinking they would just come up this saddle trail and I would shoot one. Still kicking myself that I could hear them a few hundred yards away in the timber and I stayed put and didn't get closer. First trip to Colorado was a bust many years ago, but I got a good education and finally got a bull in KY in 2018.

I was bowhunting, walking along a trail a bit up from the bottom of a draw. There were cattle scattered up and down the draw and I was trying to get around them. There was a stand of trees and one of the cows was in there making a lot of racket in dry deadfall. I went into the trees without paying attention and kicked out a 5 point bull within 50 yards of the cattle.

These are some very good commandments.

Remind them that the entire effort is about being a TEAM - from the smallest to largest task. I’d also plan some pre-hunt hikes (equipment checks) or even stairmasters at a local gym to hang out, sweat & suffer together. Don’t underestimate the power of cheerful suffering (in a fun way) before hand.

Mental condition is even more important. Advising a team It would be essential to make sure we set obtainable goals and build on small successes to minimize letdowns. If the mental side Is solid, my bet is that no matter the outcome all will bring home awesome memories & experience.

What an awesome opportunity to lead a few young bucks into this pursuit! Go get ‘em & share pics when you get back.

Off my soapbox.

Beretzs is right - those boys are gonna eat!

In my opinion, this is a big one ^^^^. They can be physically fit and think they are ready, but if they are not mentally tough and ready, this trip could be disappointing, and might become an ordeal for someone. It can be easy to feel snakebit, get discouraged, and want to just pack it in, if you are not finding elk or getting a shot even when you are pouring in the effort, but that is not often how you get elk. They may have to tough it out to the last afternoon.

Other important points are making sure they can find their way around, and back to where they need to be. You might be in pretty big area compared to the deer hunting areas to which they are accustomed. It is a different feeling, as confirmed by some with deer hunting only background I have taken after elk in CO, MT, and WY backcountry.

Do have a plan for getting meat out if/when successful. To bring back a discussion from a few years ago, it is not just distance, but elevation gain and loss when packing out meat that adds a lot to the effort needed. You will have a group, and if they all pitch in it will go easily. If it is just one or two guys, it becomes a lot of work, especially with mileage. Boning does reduce the load. For every trip it is 2X mileage, and often a lot of elevation gain and loss. They need to be prepared for that. At least in CO you don't have griz, so it may not be necessary to carry everyone's rifles in and out each trip. One tip: having a couple walking sticks, even if just branches picked up, can make the pack out easier by adding a little arm strength to the packing, but also helping to keep from rolling an ankle or twisting a knee under load. Not bucking a joint or falling under a load is a good thing. Possibly this sounds more important as we get older, but why ruin a joint at 20-something and pay for it for decades? Voice of experience...

Have a plan for getting gear dry if there is a fire ban and an open fire is the way you intended to stay warm and dry things out. Not sure what you have for tents and/or possibly wood stoves for heat. A stove sure makes a tent nicer in bad weather. A nice sheepherder's (collapsible) stove with a spark arrestor is normally allowed in the National Forest. There are also little buddy heaters,etc, though not as good.

If you are not hauling all your water, make sure you purify your drinking water to avoid gerardia or other issues.

A good first aid kit with not just Bandaids, but larger bandages, antibiotic, benedril, tweezers, eye wash, aspirin/advil/ibuprophen, A bit of quickclot could be a lifesaver that hopefully will never be needed. Also include a set of clear safety glasses for wood splitting, we have had near misses which could have ruined a trip. A box of nitrile gloves that can protect hands for many uses, including field dressing and quartering/boning. They save a lot of little nicks that can infect later. Needle and thread, plus patch material in case of torn clothing, as well as a big roll of Duct tape which can be used for a lot of stuff from bandages and splints to taping your boot back together or patching pants.

It sounds like it will be a great trip!

WAM /Petzl commandments for the win!

I've taken alot first timers elk hunting in CO for the past 15 years or so. Here is the list of common issues I see in order:

1. Not being in adequate shape. It's really romantic to think you're gonna hunt over the next drainage, or even 2. You need to plan on a 2 hr hike, gaining 1-2000 feet elevation at 10,000+ feet. It is not good enough to simply get there. If it is a monumental effort just to get there you will not hunt every day plus, you won't be doing the 2-4 trips to get your 200 lbs of elk back to camp/trailhead. I tell guys - I don't care how good of shape you think you are in, it will still be hard.

2. Common gear issues: Boots. Many bulk at $3-400 boots. Many think they need 1000 grams insulation and then there zero understanding of sock systems. Sleeping bag. Seen people all over here. I've had people show up with a 40 degree bag their "buddy who elk hunts all the time" said would work in late October. I've seen a bunch of -20/-40 degree bags. A good zero degree bag works well - simply adjust for colder/warmer by the clothing you wear inside the bag. A $3-400 bag is a good investment. Jacket/coats. Especially whitetail guys, show up with Cabelas "system coats" that weigh 5 lbs and are waterproof in some way. They also tend to put all their clothes on when they step out of the tent. They are soaked within 1/2 mile of climbing.

3. Mentality. I see 2 common issues here. First thinking they will freeze to death when temps dip into the teens or single digits. Low humidity makes it not so cold. Second is the grind itself. Hiking and climbing steep slopes at high altitude day after day is hard. I find guys are good for about 2 days then they start hunting near camp/truck - with everybody else. And the elk have moved to hard to reach places - steep slopes or distance from everyone else.

These are things I concentrate on when planning for new guys each fall. Getting in shape is 10:1 the biggest issue.

All good advice - good broken in boots, conditioning, practice shooting field positions long distance (we practice to 800 yards off packs & sticks makes 350 seem easy), OnX on all their phones and carry an extra battery charger in the pack, watch YouTube gutless method for elk several times, watch Randy Newberg not guys shooting 1000 yard shots to sell guns.

Had a new guy this year take some unnecessary climbing risks waiting until after dark to go down a strange steep slope on a scout - I got his next of kin information & made sure he knew a serious injury screwed up everyone’s hunt don’t be a selfish jerk.

Meat care is a big deal - get the hide off quickly & have bags to hang quarters in trees overnight a little away from the carcass, big coolers & ice to allow storage in camp to maximize hunting time.

Camp chores need to be shared assigned so the old guy cooking isn’t doing too much cleaning & wood chopping. Let them know past 60 you need to pace yourself they need to do the more physical stuff - good kids will already have that figured out but they may think you are invincible like they feel.

Make up lunches the night before A big ham for dinner early makes lots of lunch meat. Nutrient & calorie dense snacks jerky, nuts, cheese, trail mix hard to eat as much as you burn.

Repeat explanations of layering starting out too light and chilly is better than too warm & sweaty. Getting some good radios on the same channel & checking in every 2-4 hours is a good idea. Show them how to use a hiking stick bring or make them there one of my grandfathers best tips I’ll never forget.

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Great Suggestions!

To the Point!