Home Forums Hunting & Shooting Elk Hunting Best tips for closing distance on bull elk during rut

When I still bowhunted I always had a small grouse feather tied to the upper limb of my Black Widow recurve, the slightest breeze would move it. Wind is everything in elk hunting.
In my part of Idaho the elk are bugled so hard that very few ever get called in, its much better to use a cow call. We are hit very hard with non residents, many of them work harder than the locals & some don't like the competition.

Dick

Dick:

Yeah, about twenty years ago or so, I gave up on calling 6-10 year old bulls. After the rage of calling set in back in the '80s, older age-class bulls became very wary. It didn't matter if it was Arizona, New Mexico, Oregon, Colorado or wherever, large bulls were conditioned and they became very, very wary.

So instead, I started using a bull's own vocalization to pin-point location/movement and to thereby use that information to get set-up on him, or the herd he might be with. That tactic is a game of patience, however. Nevertheless, it's a really good tactic on call-weary bulls.

Mav

Listen a lot and get in close - then stay close to the herd but not so close as to risk spooking them. Eventually, they will turn into you and close the distance. all you have to do is parallel them for as long as it takes and let them make the wrong move.

You can run into, or be run over, by a whole lot of satellite bulls while doing this and some of them may be worth taking.




I'd lose the calls, esp the bugle and the range finder. Wear the softest shoes and clothes you can get away with. Face netting or war paint on face and hands is good.

GPS in your pocket (not pack) so you can mark and refind your gear pack, water, etc if you have to ditch your pack - or have to come back to find your dead elk.

Water in collapsible bottles that won't slosh.

Good luck - that is the most exciting type of hunting I've ever done.

I'd no sooner leave my rangefinder behind on an archery hunt than I'd leave my arrows. Mis-judging distance is probably the most common way to miss a shot.

Same with the bugle. Lots of guys overdo it with a bugle, so don't fall into that trap, but they can be very useful, especially if you can work your way into a location where there aren't a lot of other hunters serenading them.

However did Fred Bear do w/o a rangefinder?

To each his own but in getting close, less is more in my opinion.

And a cow call in close will be all you need - at most. I did fine w/o any calls. But everyone has his own style.

I've never used a bugle. Cow calls always worked well, but to be honest. I don't call much. That just shows where i'm at.

Same way Ted Williams hit the curve ball.

Instinctive is WAY different than sights and such... instinctive it just takes care of itself if you practice a lot and know your limits. Just like sports as noted.

Sports is a good analogy, but that's not where I was going with that. What I was saying was, just because Ted Williams could hit a Major League curve ball doesn't mean that you or I could. Same with Fred Bear.

Elk area 1009 is it. Will access unit via TeePee trailhead or Diamond Peak trailhead. I did not look at the roads but have fall turkey hunted for Rios near Dayton a few times so know that route from Vancouver.

I will hunt the last 7-10 days of the season so will be close to peak but I now realize will not in the peak since Sept 19th is last day of the hunt. Should be interesting if get some cool nights.

We bought a house in AZ a couple of years ago but my work is in WA so I bounce back and forth. WA resident.

I have 19 elk points in Oregon so will likely draw the archery hunt elk in Wenaha on the Oregon side in a couple of years. I heard they are considering adding tags for bull elk in Oregon's Wenaha then shifting the spike hunt out of the bull hunt. Time will tell.

Antelope Poker (Lopesticker):

You might also consider the Ochoco's.

Mav

If you shoot a compound, just stroll up to 40 yds from 'em. If you shoot a recurve, kneepads are handy.........


Casey

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