Who gets an OTC bull every 1-2 years? Any state...

[luvmystang67]

I was thinking, certainly there are people on here who have 50% success rate or better on bulls.  Or know people that are.

For those people, I'm not asking what your secret to success is, but there is something special that you do, so what I want to know is what is the leading factor that, if lost, would cause you to drop below that rate?

1) Spot/location?  If I moved you would you be successful?
2) Time of year... If I made you hunt 3 weeks away from when you normally hunt, would you be as successful?
3) Weapon?  If I made you switch weapon types (and associated seasons), would it impact your success rates?
4) Calls.  If I took your calls and made you switch types (no more bugle tube or no more cow call, whichever you rely on) would you still be successful?

What do you got?  I'm kind of looking for X-Factor so I can try to find mine.  Is it a money spot? Gifted with calls? Really figured out muzzy season? Great at hunting the rut but would be horrible post-rut?  What is your X-factor?

If you're doing worse than this, you're the same as the rest of us and I don't want your x-factor.   

[Stein]

I'm not in that club, but hunt with a guy that is.  He is close to 100%, I'm sure there was a year he didn't get one I just can't think of it off the top of my head.

Here are the reasons I think he is successful.

1.  He hunts MT as a resident which means he has a ton of time to go out, 12 weeks or longer if you count shoulder seasons.  He hunts a bunch until he gets one.

2.  He hunts local which means he can scout and get out a ton, short hunts, frequent hunts, many days out there to get to know where they will be.

3.  He hunts the same areas every year.  He knows where they usually are at different times of the year and under what weather conditions.

4.  He has several spots so he can move if hunters blow out an area or they just aren't there for whatever reason.

5.  He is not picky, he will shoot any legal bull which is raghorn or up.

6.  He hunts hard.

[grundy53]

I think moving to a completely new area would have the most dramatic effect for me.

Sent from my SM-G950U using Tapatalk

[HUNT JR]

I agree, but the guys I know who do get a bull every year have hunted the same areas for 20+ years and really know what the elk are doing there.

[Igottanewknee]

I aslo am not one of those  successful hunters, but I have a buddy who has success every year for the last 15 to 18 years. He's only 37 I think. I believe he's had to shoot a couple cows in the late season, but pretty much 100% on bulls otherwise.
He hunts archery, he hunts really hard (not afraid to go straight up a mountain), in the woods all the time collecting sheds. He's had 1 quality tag about 5 or 6 years ago and shot a nice 360 bull. He's really good with a call. Here's a western Washington bull he shot last week.
I posted a couple bulls he shot a few years ago about 10 days apart. One in Washington and the other in Montana. Both nice 6 points. Pretty sure you throw him in the woods anywhere, he'll have it figured out.

[Magnum_Willys]

Its like steelhead fishing, keep trying different spots until you find success in a spot.   Eventually you have a number of good spots and you keep hitting those at good times. 

If you haven’t found success spots -move!

[luvmystang67]

So, (in my best Trump voice)

"I hunt hard, nobody hunts harder than me..."

Okay, kidding aside.  I am in pretty great physical shape every year, I chase elk around in circles and try to get them to turn and fight or f*#@ me, which they hardly ever want to seem to do.  Clearly I need to work on that strategy, but I see a theme coming here.

I don't love the spot that I hunt now, but I have started to develop a plan that looks like this:

If its hot and early season, I hunt my stand at the water hole.

If they're bugling, I chase bugles.

If there's a lot of pressure, they tend to go in this hole...

(Still haven't figured out where they go in the wind and the rain)

If its late season, the cows and raghorns like this area (still not sure where the bigger bulls go).


So, it sounds like the more successful people have hunted a place long enough to kind of fill out that table/equation with "If this... then here".  On top of hunting hard and being a great caller, is that a key part of the secret?

I'd love to see someone who has success every year, pulled from their area and put somewhere new to see how long it takes them to get their mojo back.  I don't know that I think too many hunters are "plug and play" when it comes to being successful with elk.  Maybe they are and I'm just not one of them.

[Quackwhacker]

I think knowing an area like the back of your hand is a huge reason for success. Time in the elk woods is also very huge. I also think that if you put a guy that is very successful into a new area, they will find the elk. It may take them a little longer, but they will look at the map and find the likely locations. Then they will use the elk to their advantage to find their location. I admire the guys that have the passion for the success every year.

Sent from my SM-G975U using Tapatalk

[kentrek]

I think all of your factors would pull the rug out from under anyone's feet...but to makes you feel better ive never had a year a couldn't have filled multiple tags in multiple states...but September in Wa kicked my butt !!! I had ran 10ish cameras all spring summer..had my goals set pretty high...nothing but mature bulls for this guy  now its time to go back to work and my tag is as clean as the day I bought it

Still might get out a couple afternoons but its looking slim esp with the storm coming in

[trophyhunt]

Area, persistence, wind, and the most important factor... Luck.   But I always tell people, you are never going to kill an elk by sitting on the couch.  I try to hunt every minute of the day when I'm hunting, I take my time, walk real slow, sometimes I'll stop in one spot for an hour or two, just depends what my conscience is telling me.  I rely a lot on just instinct, keep that wind in your face, notice everything.  I was killing elk every year in Idaho when I was going there, I started killing elk at least every other year before they made my west side unit permit only.  I truly feel it's just in some guys/gals to kill elk, a connection some how to nature or the elk, I know that may be weird but I swear I feel it.

[huntnfmly]

I know this sounds real basic but you have to hunt where elk are I don't care how good you are at any of the points you made.It sounds like you will soon be one of the successful hunters because you're learning the area you hunt and already know where some will be.find the cows and you'll find the bulls during the rut of course

[DOUBLELUNG]

I've killed several elk but I'm no means that guy.  I do know several guys who've killed bulls every year for 20+ years, none of them live and hunt general seasons in WA - though I've heard rumors such exist, I can't name one.  I do know serial elk slayers in ID, MT, WY and CO.  Except for one guy who is a fanatic archer who hunts WY (resident) and MT (nonresident), they nearly all hunt the same area every year and aren't picky.  All of them are fit and able in the backcountry, and all are able to carry an elk out by themselves over a couple miles of rough terrain.

I know one guy in Wyoming who has killed an elk opening morning every year for 29 years in Wyoming - he prefers cows, so kills a cow when its open for antlerless or he draws a cow tag, otherwise he kills a bull.  He will tell you he knows very little about elk hunting, he's killed every one from the same spot overlooking the same little saddle meadow by 10am, and is not done packing it out until midnight opening day.  One of the things I like about this guy (an emeritus professor in fisheries biology), is he moved from the Midwest to Wyoming having never hunted elk, but when he knew he was making the move read all the literature he could on elk behavior and habitat use, and used that data to predictively exclude areas on a national forest topo map until he located what he considered the highest probability locations to kill an elk.  His #1 spot worked out so he never visited the others.  I know he has only ever taken one other person to that location, it's a 2 hour uphill hike in in the dark.  His success depends on it being opening day and having identified an escape route to high security cover from a large area of more accessible forest land, and that after he kills his elk he will usually see multiple groups of other elk using that route while he is processing his kill.  He has yet to see another hunter there by the time he's taking his last load out, other than the one grad student he took there once.  I think this last part may be possible in some WA elk herds, probably not in the Colockum or Yakima herds.  Certainly far more challenging.

 

[JimmyHoffa]

I think time in an area with repeatable conditions. The camp I used to go with had been at it in the same area since the mid 1960's. They had the elk dialed in. When spikes were allowed on the wet side until the 80's they were hunting for bulls for a week and the guys that didn't get a branched bull all shot spikes. After spikes were removed I think they went down to about 50%.  Logging changes, gates, most other variables didn't affect it much. The inclusion of early muzzy season dropped them down to about 20%. But part could be the group shrinking and taking different approaches. A few went archery, some went eastern washington, I do muzzy now, etc.

[Jingles]

A co worker of my son has taken one home every year the 10 years they have worked together, he hunts local and is in the woods scouting and patterning every weekend and often during the week, can almost say he knows the elk better than the elk do.

[WSU]

I’ve got one each year the last 5 or 6 here in Washington.  One nice bull and the rest raghorns.  I think the number one key is effort.  Don’t sleep in, don’t be lazy and be persistent. Some years it’s the first or second day and some it is tenth. 

One other thing that has really helped is learning how to seal the deal when the chance comes. It’s often unexpected and you have a second or two (literally) to get a good shot off.  Sometime it’s more obviously but often it isn’t.

[theleo]

I hover around %50. Change the area, depending on the terrain you put me in, and that'd go down some. If you really wanted to see it plummet though, just remove my access to stock. My success usually has to do with getting away from roads and foot traffic, then cover a ton of ground to find elk willing to play.

[trophyhunt]

I’ve got one each year the last 5 or 6 here in Washington.  One nice bull and the rest raghorns.  I think the number one key is effort.  Don’t sleep in, don’t be lazy and be persistent. Some years it’s the first or second day and some it is tenth. 

One other thing that has really helped is learning how to seal the deal when the chance comes. It’s often unexpected and you have a second or two (literally) to get a good shot off.  Sometime it’s more obviously but often it isn’t.

agree, especially when you said on what day it can happen.  My biggest bull was on the last day, hunting partner already had our wall tent and everything packed up when I got back from my half day/ last day hunt.  One last cow call at 12:30 after eating lunch on the mountain and the woods blew up with elk, boom!  Hunt till the last minute, always!

[idaho guy]

I don’t belong in the elk master Slayer category but over last 20 years I had 5 or 6 years straight punching my tag then started getting one every other year or 1 out of 3 years and last 4 years 100 percent again and a 2 of those years with multiple elk taken in same year. This year I haven’t even gone out yet  .So I have had really consistent success, mediocre or periodic success and for me a run of great success. Looking back at the difference for me success has been tied all to effort and location especially just knowing where the elk are and actually hunting hard. I have had success with rifle, bow, muzzle so not sure weapon is a big factor. As far as calling great callers can make things happen when most people can’t. I used to hunt with a guy who went I think 35 years straight killing an elk with his bow. He could get elk in when most people can’t. I still don’t think calling is that important because I have been out there on “that” day where I swore I could have farted and had a bull come screaming in.  it’s knowing your hunting spots and effort for me which a big part of is time in the woods you hunt. I have gotten some of my best animals in a spot with low annual success that’s actually pretty crowded but I know it like the back of my hand. Also the elk slayers I know that have decades of filling tags hunt elk and then maybe deer hunt after they get an elk. It’s all about elk for them I actually enjoy hunting predators and deer too much to become part of that club. Good post I’m interested to see what others think are the keys to success

[Humptulips]

I went out in the garage and counted 32 sets of horns in exactly 50 years hunting. I killed one cow in that time too and all of them came from a circle  with a radius of about 15 miles from my house so I think that plays into the "know your country".
It took  me 6 years before I killed my first elk so I do believe there is a learning curve to it.
I hunted hard all season. I can think of several killed on the last day. One literally at the last minute of light, the last day.
I would be lost if I changed method or location I think.
When I was younger I could not always take time off work to hunt and that made it tough. Once I got out of only being able to hunt weekends my luck improved so time, persistence, knowledge are key IMO.
One thing that may play into things, I trapped that area also so I would see elk during trapping season and I always had another place in my head to go if a place fizzled.

[RClare1223]

It took me quite a few years to kill my first bull. Since then i have killed 7 in the last 9 years and guided my wife to her first last year. I have killed them in several gmus on the westside and one eastside bull. Some have been called in and some were just being in the right place at the right time. All of them have come down to spending time in the off season scouting and spending as much time as possible in the woods during the season. This year i have a gimme tag so im pretty sure ill be 8 for the last 10 years!

[dewandgin]

I am by no means a master of this by any estimate but have killed 37 elk in Washington since 1987 when I moved here from WY. I know that is more than the years available but my dad is a disabled hunter and I have a couple other friends that are also disabled hunters and have shot their elk for them where legal. I hunt from before sun up until after sun down every day of the season that is available to me. These have been in multiple different units on the westside with modern firearm. Couple of Toutle bull tags, Margret Bull tags and numerous cow tags. I like elk meat and if it is legal I am not a horn hunter by any means. Learning a new unit is exciting to me.

[Matth]

I am by no means a master of this by any estimate but have killed 37 elk in Washington since 1987 when I moved here from WY. I know that is more than the years available but my dad is a disabled hunter and I have a couple other friends that are also disabled hunters and have shot their elk for them where legal. I hunt from before sun up until after sun down every day of the season that is available to me. These have been in multiple different units on the westside with modern firearm. Couple of Toutle bull tags, Margret Bull tags and numerous cow tags. I like elk meat and if it is legal I am not a horn hunter by any means. Learning a new unit is exciting to me.

This seems reasonable to me. maximum effort, even in a new area usually prevails.

[luvmystang67]

These are some really great replies.

If I were to summarize from what I've gleaned from this (and I've experienced some of this myself):

1) Know your area.  Scout it, hunt it, go back year after year.  Find where the elk go and hunt there.  Avoid hunting where they're not and go to where they are.

2) Persistence... hunt hard.  Especially if you don't know your area.

3) Elk hunting isn't a sure bet, even for the people who get one every year.  Those that do spend a lot of time scouting, hunting and running hills.  Even with this, it doesn't sound like people are ever CONFIDENT they'll get a bull every year.  They put together a string of successes, but if you had asked them 10 years ago that they'd go 9/10 or 10/10 they'd probably have not necessarily predicted it. 

Keep the comments coming, I find this very interesting.

I guess my follow-up would be, how long did it take you to learn your area?  We are all always learning, but how many years into hunting an area did you kind of stop the exploring and settle into your "spots"?

[Henrydog]

A buddy of mine has shot 8 elk in the last 10 years all OTC.  A couple of things I have noticed 1) there is elk there 2) he hunts everyday and scouts weeks ahead of time 3) He is there at o' dark 30 and stays until the other o'dark 30

[JimmyHoffa]

Thinking more on this, I do know of 2 guys that do/did go long streaks at 100%. I think both guys were also done on opening morning. One guy was a rifle hunter and would hunt timber company and dnr he'd walk to from his house. Would shoot first legal bull. The other guy was archery and a logger. He'd hunt down the road from his place~2miles. He was only interested in big bulls. Had a ton of big racks in his shop.  Both guys were just always in the woods, watching elk year round. The one guy would keep track of certain elk since they were calves.

[luvmystang67]

What I'm beginning to understand is that the idea of using June, July and August to ensure my wife is happy before I leave for all of September is not a winning elk strategy.

Also, trying to conserve vacation days and doing add-ons to weekend warrior sprints is probably also not a winning strategy.

Changing locations every couple of years... probably doesn't help either.

I think I've identified the core issue... marriage.

[Reidus]

Some people are just lucky and shoot one or 2 every year.

[7mmfan]

What I'm beginning to understand is that the idea of using June, July and August to ensure my wife is happy before I leave for all of September is not a winning elk strategy.

Also, trying to conserve vacation days and doing add-ons to weekend warrior sprints is probably also not a winning strategy.

Changing locations every couple of years... probably doesn't help either.

I think I've identified the core issue... marriage.

Ding ding ding! Just kidding. My wife supports my hunting, but I do like you and spend most of July August with the family and bank those brownie points. I've killed elk 4 of the last 5 years, but much of that I attribute to crazy good luck.

[Bango skank]

Some people are just lucky and shoot one or 2 every year.

Thats not just lucky.

[TheHunt]

I am over 50% with OTC bull and a few WDFW draws this is all archery.   

[WapitiTalk1]

What I'm beginning to understand is that the idea of using June, July and August to ensure my wife is happy before I leave for all of September is not a winning elk strategy.

Also, trying to conserve vacation days and doing add-ons to weekend warrior sprints is probably also not a winning strategy.

Changing locations every couple of years... probably doesn't help either.

I think I've identified the core issue... marriage.

You do know that marriage is the leading cause of divorce    Coming from the cat that has been married for almost 35 years. It is a balancing act.

[luvmystang67]

To follow up on this... ITS ALL GOOD.  Tag punched, good for another year until I reach rock bottom mid-sept next year.

Thanks to everyone for the commentary.  I hope that I feel like I'm in this group some day.  Maybe 7/10 years and I'll feel like I have a formula!

[CoryTDF]

I have had decent luck the past few years.

If you moved location on me that would be the hardest to overcome at first. I archery hunt WA and rifle hunt ID so with weapon is fine for me. There is really something to be said for learning the land and that takes time. If you uprooted me it might take a bit to learn the land and find the critters. I am confident I would find them though, being presented with a shot opportunity is always it's own challenge.

[dreamingbig]

I don’t really put myself in this category but I have shot an elk with my bow 8 of the past 16 seasons.  3 of those were wasted on spike only tags in WA.  Going out of state the past 5 years has helped.


Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk

[Buckjunkie]

I know a 70 year old guy who has over 80 bulls under his belt. I have known him for 30 years and I can only remember one year he didn’t kill one in Wa. If I had to nail down a couple reasons for his success, I would say 1)He scouts year round. He’s alway in the woods and 2) He is a smart guy. Very logical and makes good decisions based on years of experience.

You can spend more time if your marriage can take it. The experience will come if you don’t give up.

[bkaech]

I am right at 50% since switching to Muzzy elk hunting.... that's 3 bulls in 6 years. My Entire hunting party is about the same. The biggest thing is the location, and not that we hunt an awesome location (SW Washington) but my dad has hunted in this area for 50 years, combined with uncles and cousins and now me and my brothers we know the area really well and if we moved areas it would likely take 4 or 5 years to get to know the new area like we know this area.

[haftard]

Dude its elk hunting. You just need to get in an area and learn the elk herd. Having access to less pressued elkl is a +, but learn about elk and learn the elk in the area. Like where they like to rut, feed, sleep, ect.

[Michaelw]

I run about 70% rifle hunting and 67% bow hunting.

  For me it’s really down to one thing.  Location.

  I elk hunt in Oregon.  Rifle hunting late season.  It’s a area that my family has been hunting for generations.  Their are always at least some elk in the area.  I know the area like the back of my hand.  Or better.  Where they feed, where they travel, where they bed.  How they react to pressure.  Also, I’m not a glassing person.  We hunt more dark timber and thickets.  It’s up close and personal most of the time.  Many may not agree with this but I’m the guy that goes in and makes things happen one way or another.  For better or worse. 

  I don’t use calls. Weapons don’t matter to me too much.  Although I prefer rifle now just because it allows me to hunt with my father and that means more to me as I have gotten older

But drop me in a new area and I’m sure that I would not do as well.  Or it would take me a bit longer to figure out where the boys are hiding. 

Also, I don’t scout at all.  I know the area well enough after 20+yrs of being in there.  The elk usually don’t move into the area until fall anyways.  Scouting in summer has no impact on what’s going to be there in November.  At least in our area. 

So yeah.  I think personally the biggest keys to me is to find areas that have elk consistently.  And learn the area well.  Also, learn where the elk go when pressured.  In our hunting area they really don’t leave per say.  But they hunker down even more.

  If you can find areas where elk like to move to when pressured big bonus.

  Also, don’t be afraid to mix it up in the thick stuff.  Every elk I have killed with a rifle has been in thick junk.  From 20-100yds.  Sure. It’s not easy, and you will spook lots of animals.  But the more you get into them the better your chances are of connecting.