Been there, done that, got the T shirt.......

[jmscon]

My biggest mistake was not hunting back to the truck. I can get frustrated and let my guard down when heading to the truck then seeing animals when my head is a different place because I’m hiking instead of hunting.

[PlateauNDN]

On 2 separate occasions in 2 consecutive years I was interacting with a bull and in pursuit when a spike would come strolling in quiet as a hummingbird as if he just wanted to come watch a fight or a adult film. Well the 3rd time this happened I was pissed that another spike was being stupid and as I put the rifle down to turn around the tree I was sitting under there was a nice 6pt just out for a stroll. He pegged movement so I froze hoping he would turn his head and i could grab the rifle laying on my pack on the other of the tree but nope........

[kselkhunter]

I could write a book on how to screw up elk hunting.  Have had some bizarre unexpected encounters, and a few cases of "buck fever" losing my mind for a second and doing something stupid.   Which example to use? 

I guess my favorite was an archery season in Oregon.  Walking to pick up my buddies late one morning to head back to our backcountry camp for lunch.   Come around the corner and sure enough...an elk herd is walking right towards me.   I immediately freeze as I'm completely exposed and in the open.  Amazingly none of the elk saw or smelled me and kept browsing right towards me.  I know my buddy is set up to the right of me, closer to the elk.   I'm standing as still as I can, waiting for the herd to clear in front of where I know my buddy is so he can shoot one.  There's about 15 cows and a large 6x6 bull, spread out a bit a they browsed.   This is an any sex tag area....a cow stopped broadside 20 yards in front of my buddy and HE DOESN'T SEE IT because he hunkered down so deep in a bush he can't see anything in that direction.  Nor did he see the 6x6 bull that I was guessing was 40 yards in front of him.   After more waiting, they're getting so close now that I can't believe they haven't noticed me.   I'm in full camo including face camo, but have a bow in my hand with an arrow knocked as I knocked it before I started walking.   I really want my buddy to shoot any darn elk as this was his first archery elk hunt, so I'm hoping he's just waiting for a good shot on one of these elk and I stay frozen.

Alas, impatience got the best of me when the 6x6 bull turned perfectly broadside to me, and the nearest cow was way to close to me now that I was certain she was going to notice me any second (having already walked right past my buddy and he didn't shoot).   My rangefinder is in the pocket on my hip belt, but I don't dare rustle around for it.  I have a 3-D archery range in my back yard and shoot enough to be familiar with distances (or so I think).   So I "guess" the bull is at 30 yards, quickly draw and fire.   WAY too low.  My 3-D archery range is all just smaller deer targets and is what my brain was calibrated to on judging size and distance.  My brain didn't compensate for size of elk in guessing distances.  Needless to say my arrow went just under the belly just behind the front leg and THWAPPED the tree behind the bull ridiculously loud.  Poof goes the elk herd.  No amount of calls would stop them for a second shot.  We searched for quite awhile to make sure I did indeed miss and no blood splatter.

Total buck fever moment, and impatience.   My buddy had just hunkered in so deep he didn't have good visibility through the bushes on my side of him, but it turns out there was a smaller raghorn bull that was trailing behind the herd and to the right that he was focusing in on.....and he was pissed when he heard my arrow as he was about to shoot the bull on the other side that I didn't know was over there.....was just giving it a couple more steps to get a better shot.   Doh!

I kick myself every year for what I could have done differently on that hunt as my buddy still hasn't filled his elk tag.

[TommyGun496]

Last season I grabbed a quick loader to put the kill shot in my bull.  I opened up the quick loader and tipped it to pour the powder...nothing came out!  I looked in and my powder was mud.  The night before I had a long, wet miserable hike out of the woods and got home late.  I neglected to inspect my gear before I went back out the next morning and caused me and the bull some unnecessary grief.  I ended up having one of the four quick loaders being usable enough to put him down.

[HikerHunter]

One time, I had setup a ground blind on a game trail convergence spot because there were no good trees. The elk sign was thick and recent so I snuck in one late afternoon for an evening hunt to find no blind at all. The brush was all torn up where the blind was and the only thing I could guess was that one of the bulls had attacked it and it got stuck in his antlers. I searched everywhere and couldn’t find it. With the evening approaching fast I made a makeshift blind from other materials laying around. Sure enough a spike shows up 10 minutes later but he spooked as I drew. Not sure the exact lesson learned, maybe be prepared for anything!

[elkrack]

Awesome thread idea!

When you are calling for your buddy and he is moving in on a bull that is only responsive to bugles and you have a 320” 6x6 satellite comes flying in because your cow calls your throwing in here and there don’t forget to keep bugling to keep the herd bull talking so he can keep moving in on him. Buddy still ended up getting the herd bull but I almost blew it

[yakimanoob]

I think the mistake I seem to make most often is holding on to a non-ideal hunting spot.  Last year I hunted HARD where I got one the previous year -- despite the lack of fresh sign, the lack of elk on my cameras, and the stupid amounts of other hunters.   Finally gave up and when to my backup spot where there was tons of sign and way fewer people. 

First question is whether or not elk are present.  If you aren't even sure they're around, it's time to bounce to the next spot on your list.   

[buggy]

Awesome thread! It makes me feel so much better to know that I'm not the only one doing stupid stuff to screw up a hunt. This thread is pretty much a summary of my hunting career. 

[NRA4LIFE]

I would have to say my biggest mistake was starting to elk hunt in Washington.

[nitroelk]

Hunting by myself in the goose prairie unit I hear some bugling and I call him a few times and he gets closer and closer he ends up being a nice thick 5 x 5 or so bull now at about 75 yards tearing the crap out of an alder patch. I finally decided to give a cow call and he bugles right on top of my call, I do it again and he does the same thing, then turns and walks over towards me. Of course I start shaking and not bothering to breath normally , he comes over and stops at 17 yards broadside and I let fly with out picking a spot. Fortunately for him I hit him square in the shoulder bone and he falls down in the mud trying to get away then gets up and runs off no worse for wear. I found my arrow balanced on a Christmas tree limb 50 yards up the meadow with blood only about 2 inches up the arrow. AIM SMALL, MISS SMALL and try to remember to breath.

[nitroelk]

Another time in same area (Goose Prairie unit) I'm up on a log about 6 feet above the water crossing the creek when I look up to figure out how I'm going to get off the log and right behind the root wad about 50 yards is a cow coming my way and she doesn't have a clue. She comes by, goes behind a perfect big fat wide tree so I can draw my bow and she starts to cross the creek stops at 15- 20 yards upstream from me, so I let fly and again hit her right in the shoulder bone. She runs off with my arrow dangling by the broad head only and it falls out about 40 yards away with only blood on about 2 inches. Again aim small miss small. and when you least expect it expect it.

[vandeman17]

Another one that comes to mind was back when I first started archery hunting. I found a spot I liked and had pictures of cows and spikes all summer long. Few weeks before the season I went in a built a nice ground blind all tucked back in a thicket of trees in the shadows. Being newer to bow hunting, I ended up setting up the blind too close to the trails the elk used, especially being on the ground. One evening I had two spikes walk in a feed around for a few minutes. When I finally thought I had a chance to draw and did so, one of them caught my movement and it was all over. Live and learn

[W_Ellison2011]

Don't bring friends that get overly excited... Took a buddy of mine who had never been hunting in his life or seen a big bull before. When we came around a corner in a trail and he saw the bull he screamed out BULLL as loud as he could.... yeah.. he never gets to go with me anymore...

[WapitiTalk1]

Don't bring friends that get overly excited... Took a buddy of mine who had never been hunting in his life or seen a big bull before. When we came around a corner in a trail and he saw the bull he screamed out BULLL as loud as he could.... yeah.. he never gets to go with me anymore...

Lol, that’s awesome   

[W_Ellison2011]

Don't bring friends that get overly excited... Took a buddy of mine who had never been hunting in his life or seen a big bull before. When we came around a corner in a trail and he saw the bull he screamed out BULLL as loud as he could.... yeah.. he never gets to go with me anymore...

Lol, that’s awesome   

I wish I was joking about this situation but sadly I'm not... come around the corner and 30 yards is a good bull and that's what happened. Bull was probably in the next county in seconds... Funny enough I'm good friends with that guys younger brother and he is not even close to being like that. The younger brother is super quiet and is really putting in his time to learn about hunting, especially archery. His first year he shot a decent doe with his bow and when we see animals he doesn't start screaming at them lol!