Elk Callin Help

[Ihuntelk2]

Hunted Elk for 6 yrs me and my friend got a bull elk on the 1st yr we hunted and ever since then ...just cant seal the deal...My question for everyone would be how do you do it. Bugle, cow call , both, one or the other and how much.. im getting so close I bugle to locate , then cow call and if i cant get another answer i bugle again and the bull is usually farther away dam i need to help....

[bucklucky]

There are so many directions you can take this it isn't funny. Its a vague question with many , many answers. You just have to understand the elk you are talking to better and it will start coming together for ya. Get Elknuts DVDs, that should help you out immensely ! www.elknut.com I think

When it starts clicking you will know!

[257 Wby Mag]

Hoochie mommas or the best thing since sex and peanut butter. Get a couple and use em..

[Ihuntelk2]

 Yah that makes since, I know its a tough question just some people dont bugle some do. I just am so frustrated on how close i get every year ...makes me want to scream kick the dog and drink heavily..lmao

[Ihuntelk2]

I have hoochie mommas so do you bugle at all or do you just cow call the whole time and if so does the bulls bugle back when you use the hoochie momma...

[Trailstrider]

Calling all depends on the mood of the bull. place your shooter out 30 yards in front of the caller (more or less) once set up caller should start off softly call one or two times (cow call) and wait 4 to 5 min. then a little harder and a little longer and repeat..... Time wise your looking at 30 min. minimum. Do not be too quick to move your location as the bull could be standing behind and obstruction just out of sight. My personal favorite call is a hyper hot mixed in with a different cow call. Best time to use is peak rut and just after the peak but can be used other times as well. This call can sound like two cows fighting and will entice a response. Best way to learn is to buy a call with a tape. The first time you use it, you will think it wont work but believe in this call. I have called in big mature Bulls in Eastern Oregon in late September from a mile out! Be forwarned that when they come in they are ready for a fight! Good luck and have fun!

[WVT]

i think people want to call to much, if the bull is talking and you know where he is why give your position away? most hunters sound like hunters when they attemt to bugle, they might answer you but just like you said as they are heading away because they know something isn't right. if the bull is bugling i focus more on the wind and try to stalk close, you can gain ground especially when he is bugling, but watch for his cows as they will bust you and blow your stalk...

[blackveltbowhunter]

Its very true there are many different answers and probably few, if any definitive ones. In GENERAL the more hunting pressure in a given area, the less i am inclined to call especially bugle. And less pressure may equal more calling including bugles. My personal experience and opinion is that elk in a given area may respond similarly to each other, but they are still individuals with different attitudes, moods and experience levels.

Goin silent can be your best option, especially if the bull is in an area where you may get spot and stalk opportunities, dont even let him know you are there. The exception to this, is if the bull talking but not in a position conducive to a successful stalk, maybe a call would pull him in. But maybe it will push him away.

Read all you can about calling, watch anything you can, even " canned " hunts can show good setups and good calling techniques, just keep in my mind these are often low pressured elk often on private land, and the bulls you are after may not respond the same.

IMHO don't hesitate to call if other methods aren't working. Setup so the bull has to "come see" you, and have your shooter setup to intercept him. Never ever call if the wind is wrong, if it switches shut up and move your setup; or the bull has you pegged. Your simply educating him to the sound of your "voice". If the bull goes silent give it some time and switchup your calls, he may just be gettin tired of hearing the same thing. In my area this year that was the case with the HM ( hoochie mama ). Bulls would bite on it and start to come in calling frequently then get tired of it. Some sexy calls with the mouth reed fired em right back up.Good luck!!

[Tony 270]

Wish I could tell you. I use a Baby Hoochie and the kind you bite on with the rubber band inside. I try to mix it up to sound like more than one cow, might help. Have had them come in silently and had some bugle and chuckle back. Have also pushed them away for whatever reason.

[wildmanoutdoors]

One of the big problems with the bugle is if you sound too big the bull may not come as he dosent want to fight.
If the bulls are in rut use a cow call. go easy and be very patient. Like others have said it can take a bit for one to come in.

If the bull already has cows he will want to stay close so get in as close as you can then cow call.

[Coasthunterjay]

Well if you are actively getting onto bulls and when you get closer or they get closer and you bugle back to them and they RUN....Then you are either doing something wrong..OR....and i do say OR...

You might be doing it so well that you sound like a rediculously huge monster bull and there afraid that you might beat them up..This does happen, i carry two buggles with me just because of this..I have basically the same approach that you do..different techniques but ill locate with my overly aggressive bugle...Rap em in a feww times with that, then ill walk about a 100Yrds away and make a different call with my smaller bugle..Makes it sound like theres a different bull in the area and it makes for a group fight...Ill even locate some large to grip size rocks on the ground and bang them on the ground as hard as i can like im a bull running or stomping my feet....(This really works..sounds stupid but i usually seal the deal when i do this.)

Then if the other bull still sounds interested ill keep bugling with my smaller one as he gets closer just because i need him to get hooked, i want him to think that hes got a for sure fight coming up that he can win......Then thats when ill throw in the cow calls, lean heavy on those and then if he bugles, throw one back..But remember if the bulls you are calling in already have cows, its gonna be a hard deal to seal anyways...Its gonna take time man.

I hope you the best of luck...and while hootchie mamas are nice...I dont use one at all....you have alot more flexability with reeds and there hands free. Practice, Practice, Practice...

Oh and like charlie said get one of those DVD's Ive got one lying around somewhere and it has some great pointers, And there fairly priced.

Good luck! And remember....sometimes playing the finesse game doesnt hurt...

[Wild Bill]

Hoochie mommas or the best thing since sex and peanut butter. Get a couple and use em..

"Dear God... Please forgive 2 fiddy.... Hes truly a good man.... He honestly does not wish this fellow hunter to be arrowed in the ass by another annoyed hunter..... But rather enjoys providing humors suggestions to lost soles on the matter of calling elk"....

Honestly though... I know of two nice bulls taken this yr with those damn things.... Guys couldn't call, used the ol' hooch and bam... Bull down... I personally would like to see them all burnt....

[Wild Bill]

Also to help out a bit, just my style....
I'm supper aggresive...... They chuckle.... Im runnin and calling in their face... Usually works out well..... They may shut up as i tend to sound mature and angry, but they almost always cannot resist a look...

[brianb231]

Just my two cents, but me and my hunting partner killed 2 elk this season by calling them in. We are about 20 yards apart and begin cow calling and intermixing estrus calls. We do this for about 10 min and then end with a bugle. Then we wait. After a while we start the whole thing up again. On the 1x2 bull and the cow that we got we only had to do the sequence one time. Call it luck..... or whatever, but I know that it works for us. Now for Big Bulls we do it differently and it is alot more work, but for general elk this season the calling worked like a charm.

Good Luck!