The real difficulty of elk hunting

[JeffRaines]

Hey guys,

I'm not sure I'll get around to it this year with so much going on, but I am definitely interested in elk hunting in the future. I know there are a thousand other threads asking about elk hunting, how to do it, where to find elk, etc... This isn't one of those I promise(not yet anyway

I know that elk hunting is physically hard, like you have to be in good shape hard. What I want to know is how difficult is it to find animals, really? When I started deer hunting last year, after doing a bunch of searching and reading threads, it led me to believe that finding one was going to be really hard if not impossible my first year. Season came and I was seeing deer almost every time I went out. Closing the deal turned out to be the real challenge. Reading past threads about elk, it seems like people are giving the same reputation to this animal as well.

So whats the real story?

[blackveltbowhunter]

What season are you hunting? Finding elk is more difficult in theory because they are not as widespread throughout the state, and tend to have larger home areas so odds of missing them is more likley. Going out now is going to be the best time to find elk IMO. If archery hunting they shouldn't be to far from where you find them now, on opening day. Pressure will hide them and you will be surprised at how well a dozen cow sized critters can vanish for days. But they don't evaporate, they just have to be dug out. Muzzy and rifle season their patterns will change a bit again as presssure dictates. If hunting high country elk in the later seasons, follow the snow below areas you may have found elk earlier in the year.

Also don't get to caught up in the "physicality" of it. Yes being in super shape wont hurt. And on alot of hunts is a requirement. But alot of "old and slow" guys are superb elk killers by A) not moving so much, especially in areas with elk. and B) making the right moves at the the right time. 

[DOUBLELUNG]

In places with a high elk density in Washington, there is usually a high hunter density which influences the distribution of elk to road avoidance.  if you get away from the roads in those areas, which is physically demanding, you will still see hunters, and will probably see elk on a regular basis.  Those elk will be on high alert, and will bust out of there at the first sign there is a human around.  Getting a shot opportunity on a legal elk is much harder than finding elk.

In places with low elk density, unless it is adjacent to a major population center, the hunter densities are low too.  Elk distribution tends to be more random throughout, and very spotty, with less road avoidance, making those elk even harder to find than relative elk densities would suggest.  Finding elk in that situation can be a real challenge, with few sightings.  On the plus side, once off the roads you are highly likely to not see any other hunters, and if you do find elk they will be less spooky generally.  I used to advise hunters interested in those areas to go bear hunting, and if they see a legal elk, shoot it.

 

[JimmyHoffa]

What weapon or season?  Can usually see a few animals in August but almost nothing but cows, calves, spikes by the time Nov rolls around.

[JeffRaines]

What season are you hunting? Finding elk is more difficult in theory because they are not as widespread throughout the state, and tend to have larger home areas so odds of missing them is more likley. Going out now is going to be the best time to find elk IMO. If archery hunting they shouldn't be to far from where you find them now, on opening day. Pressure will hide them and you will be surprised at how well a dozen cow sized critters can vanish for days. But they don't evaporate, they just have to be dug out. Muzzy and rifle season their patterns will change a bit again as presssure dictates. If hunting high country elk in the later seasons, follow the snow below areas you may have found elk earlier in the year.

Also don't get to caught up in the "physicality" of it. Yes being in super shape wont hurt. And on alot of hunts is a requirement. But alot of "old and slow" guys are superb elk killers by A) not moving so much, especially in areas with elk. and B) making the right moves at the the right time.

I'm thinking for my first season I'll be MF. I've seen videos of people bow hunting these animals and while I love bow hunting in general, I can see how getting close to an entire herd of animals undetected will be a hell of a challenge - especially for someone new to elk hunting.

[elkchaser54]

Myself I grew up in the Midwest archery hunting from a tree stand for whitetails, but now that I have moved out west learning to elk hunt has been a huge challenge.  I have hunted for four years now and every year I feel my skills have improved every year.  You can read every book out there but elk hunting comes down to watching your wind and moving slow.  Those two things I feel are the easiest to monitor and have the biggest impact on seeing game.  There is nothing like archery hunting elk in September and I wouldn't trade the bugles and sex-driven craze of the rut for any other type of hunting.

[theleo]

It's all pretty variable to the season and your style of hunting. During the season I archery hunt the elk are more consolidated to certain areas. I hunt open country so I just get some where high, glass some up, look at the map for likely watering spots and put myself in a good position to distract the bull off course when he's either heading to bed or getting up to eat. They hunker down in the September heat. By October things change and the rifle hunting still calls for lots of glassing but also being more aggressive and getting to them quicker because more often than not I'll have weather starting to push them to different areas rather than having them in established patterns. They my be going to they're normal spot the next day or a few canyons over. I just don't know so I prefer to get with in that 300 yard bubble and get them on the ground.

It's easy in theory but in application it can be a bit difficult. Even with horses covering, a couple miles as a crow flies can be quite the trek in the mountains. As for the in shape part, it never hurts but I know guys that are successful and are from 60 on up. Skills and tactics beat muscle, but it's nice to have both.

[Jpmiller]

I have never been the most successful hunter but I have always seen the most animals and had the most opportunity when I get as far away from roads AND trails. Find a good map and locate a few spots in your hunting area that are at least a mile if not more from roads and trails and look there.

[Jpmiller]

Just for the record I mean horse trails, bike trails, hiking trails etc. I don't mean game trails lol game trails are ok

[jhawk13]

Myself I grew up in the Midwest archery hunting from a tree stand for whitetails, but now that I have moved out west learning to elk hunt has been a huge challenge.  I have hunted for four years now and every year I feel my skills have improved every year.  You can read every book out there but elk hunting comes down to watching your wind and moving slow.  Those two things I feel are the easiest to monitor and have the biggest impact on seeing game.  There is nothing like archery hunting elk in September and I wouldn't trade the bugles and sex-driven craze of the rut for any other type of hunting.

Also knowing when to move quickly and aggressively!

[Chukarhead]

The annual success rate for elk hunters in Washington is roughly 7%, while the deer success rate is roughly 25%.  As the saying goes, if elk hunting were easy, it would be called deer hunting.

A lot of elk hunters go camping or driving for a few days in fall.  They escape their wives (or husbands) and jobs for a while, see some woods, and go home happy.  I'm not one of those guys, so I run, lift, and spend a lot of time on elliptical machines year-round so that when I need to be 900 vertical feet higher at a brisk jog, I can do it.

I have a hunting buddy that is chronically out of shape for elk season.  He *hurts* after a couple of days in the steep and deep, but guts it out.  Watching him pack quarters up a steep hill is painful.  He takes the mind-over-matter approach, and has killed more than his share of elk over the years.

I've harvested elk five out of the last six years.  If I wasn't in shape, it would have been two of the last six.  Those two, though, were "lucky."  I was in the right place at the right time early on opening day for one and the second day for the other.

[Humptulips]

 
Always hunted modern and on the westside in fact I've never hunted far from the coast.
I think there is a big difference in the how tos depending on where a person hunts. Me, it is brushy or in the timber, very seldom have I got elk in a clearcut. It has happened but more often it is where I start them not where I get one.
If there is one thing I can suggest is to get real good at reading sign. Elk are not everywhere. They range over a large area but they are only occupying a small area at one time.
One way or another almost every elk I have ever got, reading sign/tracking played into locating the elk.

[JeffRaines]

Pretty cool to see everyones input on it, definitely looks like it'll be a challenge!

Knowing me, I'll probably be going it alone whenever I decide to give it a go.

The annual success rate for elk hunters in Washington is roughly 7%, while the deer success rate is roughly 25%.  As the saying goes, if elk hunting were easy, it would be called deer hunting.

A lot of elk hunters go camping or driving for a few days in fall.  They escape their wives (or husbands) and jobs for a while, see some woods, and go home happy.  I'm not one of those guys, so I run, lift, and spend a lot of time on elliptical machines year-round so that when I need to be 900 vertical feet higher at a brisk jog, I can do it.

I have a hunting buddy that is chronically out of shape for elk season.  He *hurts* after a couple of days in the steep and deep, but guts it out.  Watching him pack quarters up a steep hill is painful.  He takes the mind-over-matter approach, and has killed more than his share of elk over the years.

I've harvested elk five out of the last six years.  If I wasn't in shape, it would have been two of the last six.  Those two, though, were "lucky."  I was in the right place at the right time early on opening day for one and the second day for the other.

How long did it take for you to get your first?

[gocougs]

Buy a wind checker all it is chalk in a bottle for telling the wind direction. Put the wind in your face as much as possible and go slow and try to spot the elk with your binos not you eyes before they see you. Buy a couple of trail cameras and find a good looking elk area and put cams on it and help figure out direction of travel and what times and days elk are in the area and keep at it.  The elk like swamps so stay near the swamps and you will find a bull! I personally have shot 5 elk in the last 5 years by knowing where to be by scouting and that was a lot done by trail cams! !

[deerslyr]

Keep moving till you find em. Once you find em just kill em. Best elk hunting advice I ever got. It may take a few days of constantly moving until you find them. People get hung up on hunting specific spots for what ever reason. Elk are big, noisy animals. If they're there, they're there. If they're not, they're not. Once you get into them you'll figure out how to kill them, really not that hard to figure that part out.