New to archery elk hunting

[arees]

I will be on an guided elk hunt in Wyoming this year and have decided to make it an archery hunt.  I shoot with traditional equipment and have been for about 40 years on and off, just never hunted with archery gear.  I will be shooting a yew wood long bow my wife made for me a few years ago along with custom wood arrows.  I have decided against the self nocked shafts, hand tied fletching and iron broad heads she makes.  I don't want to make this too hard.

I am now shooting 50 arrows a day on the range in my back yard, on an exercise program and a diet.  Other than don't (or do) take a frontal shot, what advice do you have for me as I prepare for this trip?

[lostbackpacker]

learn to shoot 20 yards farther than you think you should.  that way a 30yard shot will be gravy

[arees]

Could a moderator move this to Bow Hunting? I probably should have started it there.

[STIKNSTRINGBOW]

I will be on an guided elk hunt in Wyoming this year and have decided to make it an archery hunt.  I shoot with traditional equipment and have been for about 40 years on and off, just never hunted with archery gear.  I will be shooting a yew wood long bow my wife made for me a few years ago along with custom wood arrows.  I have decided against the self nocked shafts, hand tied fletching and iron broad heads she makes.  I don't want to make this too hard.

I am now shooting 50 arrows a day on the range in my back yard, on an exercise program and a diet.  Other than don't (or do) take a frontal shot, what advice do you have for me as I prepare for this trip?

If you are going on a guided hunt, with a bow your wife made, why not use the arrows also ?
As long as they are sharp, and you can put them in the right place with sufficient energy (you did not mention weight, either bow or arrows) the will make the trip more memorable.
Talk to the outfitter, ask him about the probable shots, is getting within range an issue ?
Average shot distance on an elk can vary, a lot of "guides" are not archery hunters, even fewer are traditional archery hunters.
Is your hunt scheduled during the rut ? How many days ?
Is it a 1:1 hunt, or 2:1 ? (how many hunters per guide)
What class of animal can you expect ? (hate to pass on the biggest one you see) or is a cow legal/acceptable ?
Have a clear understanding of what to expect before you go, and communicate with the outfitter of any special considerations he should know.
If you are the only guy in camp hunting with a longbow, you don't want the guide that is really just a wrangler "guiding" during his off season that is used to riding a horse to a vantage point and having a rifle hunter shoot across the drainage at the elk 100+ yards away.
I know from my own experience, in the open areas of eastern Washington, Elk will only come towards you until they feel they should see the caller.
Unless you have set up in a spot where that is within range, the elk will "hold up" and you might have a great time, and see lots of elk, but no shots.
communication with the guide is important, it makes it hard when you are attempting to get set-up and have no idea what the other is doing.
Spend some time on the telephone, just because your trip doesn't start until.. (?) you don't have to wait until you get there to meet your outfitter/guide, and the better you will be prepared when you get there.
You can shoot 1000 arrows a day, and be in great shape, but if your expectations about the hunt do not meet with reality, I hope it is more a case of exceeding expectations than disappointment.

[arees]

The bow is 58 lbs and we are working up a new set of arrows so I don't have final measurements on the new arrows yet.  The guides I am working with prefer bow hunting so we are working on close encounters, assuming the elk are cooperative.  The hunt is 6 days of hunting starting September 15th and I went with the 1x1 option.  At this point, I would only do a 2x1 hunt with a close family member.

The area should be good for a 300 to 320 elk, and I have the option to return for the rifle season if archery doesn't work out.  I am not going to blow 6 years of points on a cow or something too small.

Thanks for the advice.  I am pushing hard now to make sure things go smoothly in September.

[STIKNSTRINGBOW]

Wow !! that sounds like one heck of a trip, I am jealous !
Make sure to take pictures and share !
Seems like you have a pretty good handle on this.
This being your first elk hunt, I recommend Elknuts DVD and playbook, it will give you a good understanding of elk hunting that will be of a significant benefit.

[sakoshooter]

Your set up will kill elk just fine but I'd definitely let your guide/ouitfitter know your intentions so he can make decisions based on your equip. An area suited for rifle hunting might not work well for archery hunting etc.
Best of luck to ya.

[cryder]

first off ,you are a lucky man to be able to hunt elk in Wyoming,I've been there and that is some of the wildest and pioneer like land I've ever seen so very best of luck and let us,regulated and limited hunters in Washington know how it goes !!!As for advice you cant shoot to many practice shots so keep at that and only one more thing so I don't open up to many cans of worms on this thread,patience ,patience !! let us know I'm very interested !~

[arees]

I am up to shooting 100 arrows a day and slowly increasing my range as my accuracy improves.  I am enjoying the practice and my son is shooting with me, using his long bow.

I have made it clear to the outfitters that I will be shooting traditional equipment and they say that they are up for it.

I am excited and there are only six months left to practice.

[deerhunter_98520]

This sounds like one fun trip...I'm looking forward to following this thread...keep us updated 

[JLS]

Get in better shape than you think you need to be in.  You'll invariably end up chasing elk up a hill, which isn't easy.  Factor in the elevation and it'll be darned tough.

[scotsman]

Last Fall in Colorado my hunting buddy shot a 5x5 elk at 7 yards with his yew longbow and wood arrows. It was a frontal shot that penetrated to the feathers resulting in a 50 yard tracking job. He bulged it in solo.... I was about 100 yards away pinned down by another bull. So yeah, keep practicing and know your effective range.