Home Forums Hunting & Shooting Elk Hunting how many guys have successfully still hunted elk?

I've always wondered how the human race survived and thrived wearing slick soled moccasins......I would think most people would've broke their necks before they hit adulthood.........


Casey

I'm not sure how they did it either? I wear moccacins in the dry and fairly level ground. I fell too many times to wear them when it's wet.
I did try some spikes that slip over the mocs, but then I wasn't quiet anymore, so I might as well wear boots and be dry.

I've been successful at it a number of times.

It has just as much to do with recognizing likely habitat and hidey-holes as the stalking itself.
You have to know when to do it and plan for the area you are moving into.

Breeze and snow cover can make it pretty easy.
Dry conditions can make it impossible.

I like the fact that when successful there is a good feeling of fair chase accomplishment (i.e., that it was earned) and that the kills tend to be fast and clean.

If they are at any real elevation I have no chance to quick hunt.

50% of my archery elk kills were from still hunting. About 30% of my rifle elk kills were from still hunting. Elk are not that hard to sneak up on.

How I elk hunt depends on which side of my state I'm hunting and what weapon I choose to use.

On the east side of the state we have private access on some wheat fields about a 1/4 mile from state timber land. The elk on any given day will at some point either willingly feed out onto the fingers and fields or be pushed out by hunters. For that I typically set my butt down on a likely looking finger and camp out. If the elk come out further away then I feel confident shooting I will try to spot and stalk. With all the rolling fingers on that land it works well.

On the west side of the state it is mostly dense thick timber land although I do have some dairy fields I hunt as above. More often then not it's set on a field for the first few hours hoping the elk come out to feed. If all works they will feed where we can get a shot or use the terrain to get closer. If that doesnt pan out as it rarely does, then it is still hunting quietly through the timber trying to find bedded elk before they bust out.

I manage to get my elk most every year I choose to buy the tag it just matters what terrain I choose to hunt that day whether I'm spot and stalking or still hunting.

This year I decided to bow hunt the west side timber and had my inital goal going into the season set as a decent 5x5 bull or better. I passed on multiple cows and several smaller bulls the first 3 days of the season and unfortunately due to the hot weather most of the private timber lands got locked down for fire damage.

Late season I was busy with work and only got out once but watched a herd of about 30 cows cross a clear cut at about 450 yds and head into the timber. I gave them about a half hour to settle in, looped above them into the timber and found the herd bedded in some hellaciously thick timber at the base of a small ridge. Snuck in as close as i dared and after about a 45 minute wait i ended up shooting a nice cow as she rose from her bed at 26 yds. Nothing super glorious and not my first bow elk but certainly one of my most memorable on several fronts.

Why wouldn't you do it 100% of the time if it's easy?

Are you off your med's again? Or maybe back on them? Tough to tell the difference.

No meds, but I get annoyed when someone tells me still hunting is easy.

Sitting on your butt is a tree is easy.

Glassing and taking 300yd shots is easy.

Maybe you're not sneeky enough? Elmer Fudd has some wonderful tutorials on sneeking thru the woods. You have to be vewy vewy quiet!

Colorado is noisier than Montana.

Does walking up to (less than 15 yards), of a sleeping "spike" count? Stalking conditions were ideal, light snow during night, melting early making for very quiet movement!! memtb

Wow, that's a big one. Is that 370 SCI or 370 B&C? SCI doesn't care if you shoot them in a high fence, sure-bet area. And "still-hunting" doesn't apply as they are TAME like a happy black lab puppy.

I just made it a bit harder for myself. I'll be using a flintlock and a PRB from now on.

I have no option but to get close now. Cool.