Home Forums Hunting & Shooting Elk Hunting What is it about elk.....

What is it about elk that makes people stupid? Do elk release some type of pheromone that erases any bit of intelligence? Seriously people, they are elk. Really big deer. Not some sort of mythical, manhood enhancing aphrodisiac. What is it about elk that make people drive over/through fences, cut the same fences, trespass, become combative and belligerent when told no (if they bother to ask) , they can't shoot the one cow elk standing in the middle of a group of several cattle between two houses. What is it about elk that makes people buy 10's of thousands of dollar's worth of vehicles, gear, and equipment so they can then spend days driving up and down anything that resembles a road or trail hoping that they can shoot an elk crossing the road with their new 87 mega magnum with the Hubble telescope mounted on top. I have hunted elk for the last +/-40 years, after what I saw this last general season, it is likely I won't again.

I grew up in CO long before it was invaded by morons from CA and to us elk was a food supply. We never considered them anything really special and definitely not something worth breaking the law or getting stupid over. Living year round in elk country we knew we would eventually get a shot and could afford to be patient. But then we hunted cows mostly and didn't care about big elk racks and we didn't come from a place that didn't have elk. I guess the mentality is different if you lived in CO, WY, MT, ID UT etc... than if you came from some place like NY, VT, MO etc...

People are dumb. Some more than others.

Always had a percentage of locals, typically 20 somethings out with their buddies & a case of cheap beer doing something stupid - that was to be expected. Generally, out of state hunters were decent & usually displayed some manners. Not so much anymore. Adult locals acting stupid, Minnesota and Washington plates acting stupid, neighbor told me of a phone call from an individual in New Jersey, must have found him on a cadastral site - when politely told no, there would be only a limited number of people allowed on his property to hunt each season & the dates were all filled - became an instant tough guy, trying to bully his way on from 2000 + miles away. All for a damn elk.

When I was a kid we had a large Elk herd on the ranch,they were some where around all year around, they were hell on hay stacks in the winter we kept Elk fences around our stacks and they would come down to cattle feed grounds and eat with our cattle, my Granddad said we feed them year around they are ours, when we needed meat we would shoot a young dry cow, only time we ate beef was having a hamburger in town.

These Elk Threads always amaze me, What Gun, what Chambering, what Bullet,How far, That's not enough gun, this bullets no good , this bullets the best,makes it sound like Elk are Bullet Proof, What a bunch of B.S. they are just big deer nothing more. your pecker does not grow if you shoot one or more. Rio7

Killing them isn't hard, finding takes a little more doing. All the gun gack in the world won't help you doing that.

Mine did, but only after my second 5x5.




P

I think there's always been a rowdy bunch in the woods. Doesn't matter if it's elk or deer. Some dudes just get so hooked that laws don't matter. Around here it's overcrowding that's the issue. Seems like at least half the hunters in CO now are from out of state. Camps with 20 rigs in them is common. Gun seasons are done in two days now. It's an all out egg hunt with swarms of hunters opening weekend. It's almost a full-on whitetail style drive hunt with 1000's of hunters. If you don't see an elk by the end of the second day, best just to go home. They have moved onto private land by then.

Had a young guy from Pennsylvania move into the area a few years ago. Nice young guy, shot his first elk, a raghorn of some sort, & was very proud of it. Showed me photos & I asked him what he shot it with. He proceeded tell me that he used some Remington Ultra mag (I forget which one), because you can't kill elk with anything less than a 180 grain bullet & some arbitrary velocity. Seriously. He said that. Just smiled & nodded, as I said earlier, he is a nice young guy. Where he came up with that bit of nonsense I couldn't say.

The hardest part of all is usually getting the tag.

Finding them?? Gawdam, half the season, the bulls are screaming at you to come shoot them, the other half they stand out like a big yellow school bus and the cows are in big bunches are in the wide open! And all the time they are as big as a billboard to shoot! Hahaha

In all fairness I think they are special. Yes they are just big deer. And living with them and fixing fences and having to having to deal with them gets old. Working one over, even the small ones is never just a piece of cake. But there is something majestic about a big bull that never gets old.

I can't answer this question because I always hunt on public land. But the reason I like to hunt elk more than other big game is where they live during the early seasons when they're in the rut.

I'd rather spend a week or more camping up where elk live and go home with my tag in my pocket than shoot one in a hayfield.

I can accept fixing fence the elk tear out, is part of the price we pay for being where we are. It is the torn out fence purposely caused by hunters I have a problem with.

Yes sir that will piss you off. I’m curious though, how much deeded land you you own, is it in a checkerboard area? Have you caught and prosecuted. Again I’m just curious not wanting to fight.I feel for you if you have to deal with ahole trash. That gives hunters a black eye and you’re in a hunting forum so I assume you hunt yourself.

I finally figured out this last season how to have an elk herd all to yourself.

Hunt in 0 degrees temperatures. Hunters scatter faster than bulls after the rut.

Deer make people stupid too. I live on a large lake - I literally have idiots asking me if they can "hunt my yard" for these semi-tame suburban deer. I'm like you know I hunt so if I wanted them shot, I'd be doing it myself now "F" off.

[quote=RIO7]When I was a kid we had a large Elk herd on the ranch,they were some where around all year around, they were hell on hay stacks in the winter we kept Elk fences around our stacks and they would come down to cattle feed grounds and eat with our cattle, my Granddad said we feed them year around they are ours, when we needed meat we would shoot a young dry cow, only time we ate beef was having a hamburger in town.

That's pretty dang cool right there.

The 87 mega mag and hubble telescope is pretty freaking funny.

People will do some dumb stuff for antlers.

NMPistolereo - have a fairly small deeded place, lease some other private pasture. No federal or state leases. Trouble is the deeded ground is bisected by two different county roads. Haven't caught & charged, all I've been able to find is gut piles, drag marks, pickup/SXS tracks, and cut fences.

I missed a nice 6x6 this year, and mine shrunk a bit. sad day.

I hate to hear it. Maybe some discreetly placed trail cams could help? At least in helping in prosecution. Although if your G&F is anything like ours a case would have to jump up and hit them in the face. We had a Landowner get threatened and have pics on his phone of trespassers with a business name and number on the side of the pickup and they wouldn’t investigate. People are the worst.

As elk tags become harder to get, things will only get crazier. Throw in the money involved in NM authorizations and people do some crazy stuff.

I guess I’ve been pretty lucky and haven’t had some of the issues I hear from others.

Perhaps that is what Montana needs - more difficult to obtain bull tags. Some areas are drawing for bulls, most are an OTC tag. The area I'm in is OTC for brow tined bulls, drawing for cows. I think. Seems to change every season. Never have I understood the brow tine thing. Instead of people shooting spikes, they shoot raghorns. Not sure what difference that makes. Other than raghorns seem to make the pumpkin army even more stupid than spikes or cows.

If the elk can get thru one season passed the spike, they usually get a little smarter in order to stay alive, but I confess I have killed lot of really stupid raghorns. Then too, spikes are usually still running with cows which makes them easier to find. In Colorado where it is 4 on a side or a 6"brow tine, we saw more mature bulls passed the raghorn stage after it took effect.Before that, most bulls killed were spikes that never got a chance to mature.

They are not big deer.

They are not easy to find.

Elk are magnificent animals and there is nothing in North America as spectacular, available and desirable. Sure, there are other species that have similar qualities, Sheep, Moose, Goats, etc but elk, through their range and opportunities, present something that other game doesn’t.

Intoxication isn’t confined to liquor, there are other things that take over a person’s ability to think clearly, elk is that drug.

Once the attention is paid to any animal or sport, people become more aware of it and then all Hell breaks loose and things can deteriorate. Elk have been highlighted in every form of media and the attention to them is prolific.

How do you not know that there are big elk out there and one is waiting for you? People come to Montana thinking the state is covered with elk and opportunity. The truth is, big elk; 340+ are scarce, and the % of success for getting that elk is minuscule.

Few understand elk and elk hunting, but many try. Next time you visit Las Vegas, look at the lights and casinos and you will clearly see the similarities with people winning a jackpot and elk hunters killing a big bull…

they both have money?.....

shrapnel, You sure as Hell have drank a bunch of the Elk Kool-Aid, They are big Deer, not hard to kill but hard to find, you have killed more Elk with A F-250 than anyone one the fire, say's you where did you find them ?? on the Hi-Way? Rio7

Sorry, but they are not big deer. That isn't because of their DNA, it is that they are an elegant and unique animal that is different than what deer are considered.

Yes, I'm sure I've killed more than most, and they can take a ton of punishment before dying. As far as Elk Kool Aid, this site seems to give the idea that fast twist and small calibers are elk killers. It's not that elk can't be killed with small calibers, it is just Kool Aid to think a 243 and such is more than enough to hunt elk.

Any time you want to compare notes, feel free to ask. Killing elk and being around killed elk will number past 200 for me and I am talking about first hand experience, not hunting sites and magazine articles.

I thought if you didn't twist dials and have a 1:7 twist, you couldn't kill anything period. Those old 30-06 bolt rifles with a good 10 power scope will more or less make bullets bounce off animals lol. I think people more or less get caught up with a different environment in which the elk live in and then when they see them in the wild, thoughts enter the brain that can't be explained. I think it's awesome to get fired up about hunting, but when it's illegal, dangerous, or your tearing up stuff to "get it done" that's when it's bad. 25 years ago it was a whole different ballgame. Just my two cents. Also, the hunting "reality shows" didn't make things any better.

87 mega mag and hubble telescope. That one is still getting me.

Shrapnel,

Killed my first of many Elk in 1948, with a model 94 30-30 at about 60 yrds, I doubt you were born yet, I don't know how many Elk I have killed never kept tabs, but i doubt your 200 would exceed my #s,

Yes i carry a fast twist 6mm daily, but I normaly hunt Elk with my 300WBY and 180 gr. AB, but have killed a few Elk with my fast twist 6mm, I have killed Elk with a number of chamberings including 38-55,
44-40- 45-70-32-SPCL-30-30 270-30-06, 308 German 8mm, killed a spike bull with a bad parrot mouth with a 22-250, have seen 2 bulls killed with a .223 55 gr sp both were killed inside of 100 yrds by disabled vets, I have never been a fan of gun and hunting rags.

I greatly admire your Gun Collection and Admire your using them to hunt many different critters, but keep in mind you are not the only one here with Elk hunting experience. In all my years living around Elk And Deer I have never hit one with my pickup, just luck I guess. Rio7

Rio7. My first elk was about 18 years later than you (66). Since then, 30-06, .308, 7mag, 45- 70,30-30, 44 mag carbine, .375 Winchester, 3 different 50 cal muzzle loaders. More than a few, buy not as many as some. From 15 yards to almost 400. I could never tell much difference in how they died, as long as I put the bullet where it needed to go and found they were not hard to kill. As shown I am not a fan of smaller caliber/light weight bullet rounds.

This past season was the first elk season I missed as far as I can remember and not of my choosing. I don't hunt out of state, I have only been one guided hunt in my life and that was required in Alberta. My success rate is probably 90% +.

I came close to hitting an elk with a little Subaru Hatchback years ago, but lucked out when she dodged. Deer , 3 so far in my life. I hit none of them. They all hit me. One jumped on the hood of a 56 Chevy off a bank. One jumped into the wheel well, driver's side door of a 98 Dodge truck, and the last one jumped into the side of my horse trailer.

There are some members here that if you say some thing contradicting to their ideas, it is like pulling on Superman's cape and they have a large following. So I don't d say much about them.There are more than a few here that have a lot of elk hunting under our belt.

Have good year.

There just isn't a deer that eclipses a Monarch like this...

Good stuff Rio and Saddlesore. Well said.

They are some neat beasts. Never gets any spicier than an elk cartridge thread!

Thank you, but it was you that said I was drinking the Kool Aid, hence my response and it wasn't to be snide. Please don't confuse me with Buzzh..

Well said, Shrapnel.

This is also the magic of hunting Iowa's Late Muzzleloader season for whitetails...you'd have to hunt hard to find another hunter!

shrapnel, I don't think you are being snide just stating your opinion. Rio7

Saddlesore, We have covered a lot of the same ground hunting Elk on the Flat Tops, and South Fork of the White River, I sold my place on the White River a few years ago, and bought a place West of Durango, next to my son's Ranch nothing better than having owners permits on private land. hunting in Colorado has changed a lot sense the old day's, Been many miles on Horse back and Mules, packed a lot of Elk And other critters, out of the mountains just as you have, now my day's of hunting the mountains are over at 84 old age has taken over. Rio7

Again, great stuff fellas. I enjoy hearing about the elk hunting of old.

Rio, I’d love to see more pictures similar to the big mule deer you posted a few times.

Several years ago. I was packing out a cow I got at first rifle season in NW CO.. It was the first or second year I hunted alone. Made camp almost two weeks before opening day. Hadn't spoken to anyone in that time. A game Warden stopped to check me, and I was excited, and talked his ear off. He was really nice about it, and humored me, even though he had a lot of work to do.

Fast forward about nine years or so. A man and his wife made camp near mine in September muzzleloader season. Same location. I stopped by to chat. He said he didn't like people running their ATV's up and down that road as it was posted unlawful at the entrance. And he intended to stop and harass anyone doing so. I've never owned an ATV and had switched to that season for better crowd avoidence. I thought privately that his intentions were foolish, but wished him luck.

In an effort to shorten the story. Turns out the first four wheeler he stopped was the Game warden. As it happened the same guy from 9 years before. Well he had his badge hidden, but later came back secretly to watch the guy. Guess he got suspicious about him. When he checked me, I recognized him, and we spoke awhile. When he further questioned me about the man and his wife, I asked about his interest? He said, "they're in trouble." I didn't inquire why because he had a very serious tone that seemed final. Turns out that they had put salt out near a tank. I don't claim to be an elk expert, but I thought the act really stupid.

Point is. I think I understand the gist of this thread. And I don't know why people behave so strangely sometimes. It's a puzzle.

Time was I would get as excited as anyone when I shot an elk. Lot of it was, and is, an excuse to get a different rifle out for a walk. Neither my neighbor/hunting partner nor I can use a whole elk, so we have split one for the last several years. He saw them first this year. If we didn't can the entire thing, would likely not have a reason to shoot one at all. Son shot a nice bull this last fall, even though he is in his 20's was fun to see someone get excited about hunting again vs being a crabby old prick (me). Rest of the story? Even though we could hunt from home, we traveled 100 miles away & set up a camp to try and escape some of the bizarre occurrences sure to take place locally. Came back feeling better (wall tent time will do that) until I discovered the cut fences.

This year my son took his front stuffer and drove his Jeep up the trail behind his house, where he was seeing a lot of Elk sign, there was about 8" of snow on the ground, he walked into a herd of Elk just above the trail,he knelled down behind a tree and watched them walk by at about 60 yrds, he picked out a big dry cow, and put the cross hairs on her shoulder, and he got hit with Buck Fever and started shaking like a dog chitten a peach seed, couldn't see the sites, the Cow just stood there looking at him, he finally got it together and shot the Cow, he said when the smoke cleared the Cow was sliding down the hill, so he ran to her and kept kicking her to keep her moving she stopped in the trail about 10 yards behind the Jeep, he said it was one of the easyist and most fun Elk he ever killed, he had me laughing hard while he told me his story. he gets excited and loves to hunt. Rio7

beretzs, Wish I could show you some more pictures of hunting, but most of my old photos burned in a house fire in 1996, what the fire didn't get the fire dept soaked with water. they were in a book case on the other side of the wall from our cloths dryer that started the fire. makes me sick to think of every thing we lost. Rio7

Damn buddy. Sorry to hear that.

Hope the hunts and outdoors activities are going well for you.

I wonder sometimes if all this crappy behavior by people isn't symptomatic of the general societal decay we see everywhere. People have gotten so selfish....just look at how they drive near any large city.

I can't drive anywhere without have a head shaking moment. I marvel at peoples stupidity and selfishness. Common sense isn't common.

But, why does it make you want to quit hunting? No way to escape the idiocy?

bertezs, Just finished a week hunting with the vets, will fill you you in by P.M. bunch of Quail hunters here now, may be a few day's. Rio7

I never have understood all the hype and nonsense about elk.

In areas of big timbered country and low numbers, they're hard to find for sure. In other places and with decent numbers, not tough at all.

Hunting bigger bulls in tougher on general tags, but in decently managed areas, even bigger bulls are not tough to find.

You don't have to be super human to hunt them, they aren't tough to get close to, they're a very large target, they leave a ton of sign, easy to glass, and they die easily with a half way decent shot.

They are fairly large, but not as big as most guys claim. Packing them can be a bit of work, but anyone in half decent shape with some time can get them out of the woods.

There's lots of them to hunt right now, and they are very good eating...why I usually kill 3-5 per year.

Lots of things I'd rather hunt than elk.

Jfw042: Don't YOU give up Elk Hunting because of other "Hunters" bad behavior. I suggest doing what I started doing decades ago - get into the backcountry via horse or humping on foot.
And by backcountry I mean 5 miles in.
Haven't been "offended" by "slob Elk Hunters" (both resident and non-resident!) since.
Good luck.
Hold into the wind
VarmintGuy

Sounds good. Looking forward to the update Rio!

In Colorado, that 5 miles isn't much different than 2-3 miles now. It is hard to find a drainage without either an outfitters camp or 4-5 DYI er's camps. That is in Wilderness areas. Colorado does not have the big wilderness areas that WY, MT had. If you go in 6-7miles, you will meet, riders, pack strings and even foot hunters coming in from the other side.

I did that 5-7 miles in for years, with a small pack string. Finally gave it up, and in the last years, camped at the trail heads and rode in3 miles or so. I found areas that the foot hunters would not hunt and the big pack strings passed.The secret is get in there first before anyone. Which means a lot of riding in the dark.Then ambush those elk as they head for their hidey holes. In Colorado, you hunt the elk by determining what they do and where they go because if hunter pressure.

Saddlesore Nails it, as usual.

Came back feeling better (wall tent time will do that)
That it will....

I don’t know about that Sharp, granted I’ve never hunted elk but I’ve honestly never had the desire to hunt them either. My dream hunt and favorite deer species is European Roe Bucks.

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Elk hunting to me is the smell of a musty herd in the woods, the sunrise on some of the Lord's finest Creations and the sound of bugles in the dark. The presence of large animals in close proximity during archery season always gets blood flowing. The times in the woods and the team work to get them back add to the illusion of a great hunt. The meal months later that bring back the flood of all this is a bonus........

I've been hunting southern Idaho for 60 years. I've seen a lot of elk and a lot of mule deer but I've probably seen more really big bulls than I have seen really big muley bucks. I think those big bucks are smarter and hide much better than bulls. If a big buck on a ridge 1/2 mile away sees you, he's gone. They blend into the sagebrush so well that he can just vanish while you're watching him.

I totally agree with this. Those big mule deer are pretty awesome too. But I don't think nothing holds a candle to what the sheep hunters go through. A full curl ram would be the pinnacle of hunting in my opinion.

That is a shame. Maybe people in general are getting dumber? I was just at the local range a bit ago testing out a new rifle and there were 2 guys at the range shooting as well. I was done shooting and put my stuff away, then told them that when they need to check their target, we'd call a cold range. They agreed. As we started to head to the targets, one of the younger guys loaded a cartridge in his rifle and laid it on the bench pointing towards the targets. I asked if he would open the bolt and take the ammo out of the chamber, as that is pretty much customary at any range. Open bolt so you can see that it's clear. He didn't look like he was happy that I asked, but I believe some people need to be educated. He was younger and stupid like you are saying. It's sad to see hunters doing stupid and unsafe things like you say.

I completely agree with this^^^ Right before popping my last bull, I was thinking to myself, "IF I see one, it's going down". Making the shot is cake. Finding them, not so much. Especially in a unit with 4% hunters success.

That is true, not everyone is a fan of elk or elk hunting. However, there is a big difference in the pursuit of various species and elk do attract a few more hunters than Roe deer. That picture is a painting by Charles Russell who is a much collected and revered artist from the frontier days in Montana. That picture stirs my blood due to content, Montana history and the artist...

[quote=bsa1917hunter

That is a shame. Maybe people in general are getting dumber? I was just at the local range a bit ago testing out a new rifle and there were 2 guys at the range shooting as well. I was done shooting and put my stuff away, then told them that when they need to check their target, we'd call a cold range. They agreed. As we started to head to the targets, one of the younger guys loaded a cartridge in his rifle and laid it on the bench pointing towards the targets. I asked if he would open the bolt and take the ammo out of the chamber, as that is pretty much customary at any range. Open bolt so you can see that it's clear. He didn't look like he was happy that I asked, but I believe some people need to be educated. He was younger and stupid like you are saying. It's sad to see hunters doing stupid and unsafe things like you say.
[quote=SMalloy805]

At our private range when a cold range is called you do not touch your firearm while people are down range or even forward of the firing points.One warning. 2nd incident you are no longer a member.

That’s a fair assessment as far as American hunters go no doubt, globally I think there would be more Roe hunters.
Elk are beautiful creatures no doubt!

I won’t argue the merits or pitfalls of elk hunting or elk hunters. I attempt to steer clear of the dipsticks and drunken yahoos and hunt elk at my own pace and style. In recent years that has been private land with no public access. I enjoy hunting in peace and safety. I deer hunt on a 2,200 acre lease (no fences) where there is seldom more than 5 hunters, except maybe on a Saturday which I don’t hunt, spread out on 40 to 100 acre blocks. Tranquility is priceless.

The 'monarch' is probably that cow with her nose in the air right behind him. The meanest, raunchiest old cow in the herd runs the show, not the bull. The herd bull's main job is to pass his genes to the next lead cow.

But you never hear of anyone ever killing one of those. Hell, every cow killed on this site is described as being a "nice, young cow"....... How the heck does everyone know their disposition?......grin

Roe deer hunting is neat due to their association with the British aristocracy, though they live all over Europe and normally in much more gentle terrain.

I have killed both roe bucks and plenty of elk and will take elk myself, simply due to the habitat they live in and they way they're normally hunted. They're both fun as hell and rewarding though. No doubt.

Roe deer are a tiny member of the deer species.
Red deer are large Elk like animals.

If you had a time machine.

My '21 elk was a sultry yearling cow. She was a very sweet young thing who innocently stood there fluttering her eyelashes at me while I administered her medicine. However, even the young ones take the advice of their older friends and quickly start playing hard to get so you can't give them too much time to change their style of flirtation.

How cool would that be!

I don’t know that I would agree with that. I have never heard anyone say, “wow, look at that lead cow, I want to shoot it”!

Besides that, anyone hunting elk will have witnessed the biggest bull coming into view after most of the other bulls have passed. There is always a better reason to lead from the rear…

I killed one cow in NM that I think was too old to walk off the mountain.Another one in the north end of the Gila in NM with a ML.

Both pretty tough. The toughest killed was an old cow moose on a RFW hunt on Silver Spur Ranch near Walden, CO. CPW said she was at least eight years old, but could not tell me how old after that.I t took me 5 years to eat her.

Usually though, cows area a lot better eating that stinky old bulls in rut.

Don’t forget to sneak up and give her a tug to make sure she’s “dry”. If she really is nice she probably won’t mind.

Shot a big ol cow once. First thing I did was pull down her lip and see she had no front teeth. She was huge, went all into burger. GFP said she could have easily been in her late teens or 20.

I got one of those once, picking the largest cow in a bunch. Not many teeth and she was aged around 17. It was like eating cardboard, dry and terrible tasting…

The last elk I shot was the biggest cow in the herd and was the lead cow. I butchered it myself. I tried eating a steak. Then I ground the meat in my grinder. The hamburger was tough. I gathered it all up, took it to the local butcher. It's now salami, different kinds of sausage and sticks. I was planning on doing the sausage thing myself but didn't.
I think I'll be looking for a younger animal this year. I'm applying several places and have my fingers crossed.

If Irish Elk were still around I presume they’d mainly be on preserves or estates like Red Stag are in the UK, but I’d pay to hunt one anyhow. Holy hell that’d be awesome…

My dad was a serious elk hunter starting in the 50’s—back when there was a small fraction if he elk we see today, and even smaller number of elk hunters.

I started following my dad elk hunting on pack trips as a kindergartener in the early 60’s. Killed my first elk in 1971. Killed my second elk with a Bear Grizzly 55lb in 1972. Elk hunting has indeed changed. The popularity of elk hunting is beginning to work against elk and hunters it seems.

As to the three ring circus that elk hunting can be, these last few pandemic years brought lots of people out of the woodwork who never hunted, or were occasional hunters at best. I think (maybe a hope), that some of this will subside. Especially as success has become more difficult in recent times.

As an added note, technology is adding to the impacts and visibility of hunters as we are out hunting. The advent and popularity of 4wd’s in the late 60’s, ATV’s, UTV’s, GoreTex, rangefinders, GPS, Google maps, all this tech is increasing the impact—on critters and us hunters in the field.

AlpineCrick,

Well said!

Regards,
Manny

Deer are meat to me. Enjoy it, yes. But doesn't make me stupid.

Elk are something different. Great meat, yes. But the hunt is something different.

I studied them a bit in high school. To me they were the coolest animal going. Something about an animal that looks like an elk with moose antlers.

Imagine the [bleep] show over what caliber needed to take an Irish Elk Ted! Hahahaha

I’d gladly join your campfire for that sorta hunt. Imagine packing those rear legs..

Spot on Alpinecrick

People seem to have more money and time to travel to hunt. Demand for non-resident tags is shooting up. Idaho offers some non-res deer and elk tags by draw and some OTC. They had to put a quota on the OTC tags as demand was outstripping the number of tags they could issue. In Dec, they put a total of about 30k non-res OTC deer and elk tags on sale online at the same time. The demand was far higher than in past years. They had 64k hunters online all at the same time and it crashed the system. I'm guessing that they'll all be by draw next year. This was a real mess.

The internet has made the world a smaller place. Easy to access things, including hunting tags. Imagine applying with a form in an envelope. Also, the adventures are shared on platforms like YouTube. No secret what awaits the hunter on the other side of the country.

I waited 50 years to go Elk hunting and my biggest regret is not going sooner. It will only get more expensive and harder to get tags.

Ah but a secret does await most guys that watch YouTube and “E scout” before heading out west. That secret is that many if not most of them will never see let alone kill an elk on that trip. That’s likely part of the reason for acting like idiots in some cases. Desperation.

If you are a non-resident, keep your old truck 2 more years and hire a quality outfitter.

My choice: https://www.trophymountainoutfitters.com/

Dustin at work,

And placing a cashiers check with the form. Depending on where and for what species you could have between 3 to 7 thousand dollars in play for 6mo

I imagine most of us could afford that if we drove that old vehicle for 2 more years, skipped the latest neat gun/scope and drank at home.

I've done 4 once in a lifetime hunts. All were expensive and worth every dime.

My sacrifice is driving a 18 year old 911.

'monarch' references the number of points.

I'm surprised more people don't look into Elk hunting West Texas, free range Elk, no draw, no Elk lic. Required, only over the counter Texas Hunting lic. there's some good outfitters in that area, and no crowds, hunting private land, whats not to like?? I know it's not the Rocky Mountains, but it's rough as hell, with some steep mountains, Plus some places have free range Exotics and other critters you can hunt. Rio7

Do you have any recommendations RIO? Sounds pretty cool.

Absolutely. It’s definitely the sleeper. Not cheap but nothing is. Bubba Glossen I believe has some good country leased by the observatory. They kill a bunch of elk on the Longfellow. High west kills some bulls. Some big bulls on the 06. Wildlife systems offers hunts. Elk range from van horn to Marathon in pockets. Seems like bigger bulls come from the Davis mountains proper.

Kaleb, You might try Mulie Mike he posts here and has a good reputation, look him up. Rio7

Thank you

Didn't know about them honestly!

Why doesn't Texas manage elk like the other states?

Here is one of the places in Texas. https://harvardhotelandlodge.com/elk/
https://www.youtube.com/shorts/S_u1TRvNYWc

Might be that there hasn't been a recorded native population? Only speculation.

Some history on Texas elk
https://www.depts.ttu.edu/nsrl/mamm...ounts_Artiodactyla/Cervus_canadensis.php

https://pitchstonewaters.com/are-elk-native-to-texas-yes/

Texas considers Elk a non- native Species, Elk, are not controlled by the TPW They can be hunted year around just like Exotics, or Predators, by anyone with a Valid Hunting license, But their are still as big and as bullet proof as the Rocky Mountain Elk. Rio7

Thank you. Interesting read.

That’s pretty interesting. Thanks Rio.

Check YouTube for Texas elk. I think I saw an outfitter hunt on there. I bet there is a lot more.