Hunting Washington Forum
Big Game Hunting => Elk Hunting => Topic started by: WA hunter14 on September 22, 2016, 08:06:02 PM
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Im looking for some advice on a elk hunting situation. Where im hunting the bulls are not coming out into the open in daylight so i have to go where they're bedded after them. When you guys are sneaking into a area you know there is elk but they are few and fairly far between (possibly miles) do you cow call your way into it? if so how often? do you bugle when your in the thick stuff with them? Im a little worried that I will give away my position and be trying to sneak up on alert elk instead of at least somewhat unsuspecting? The terrain is very steep with some large pine trees and large areas of brush so you can see anywhere between 25ft and 100yrds. Thanks !
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I rarely try to sneak in on elk make elk sounds and crash in with wind in your face . if you have a buddy to call you can locate and have him stay back and call , you slip in while the bull bugles to your caller. while he is bulging move quick .
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I tried everything in my bag of tricks to hunt bedded elk this year. I wasn't targeting Bulls specifically but was hunting his cows so the logic can be applied. I tried a stealthy , silent as possible stalk into a known bedding area... Blew them out. I tried crashing and snapping and my best elk sounding approach....blew them out. I tried to cow call my way into the area....blew them out. At all times I had the wind right. Very frustrating, I know this probably doesn't help much but, if I were to do it again I would wait them out and be setup on their route out of the bedding area.
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Yes cow call I've walked up on a bedded down herd. When they just and ran I bulged and a cow came to a stop and my partner arrowed it.
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Sorry forgot to mention that I am rifle hunting, so i dont need to be close I basically can shoot one if i can see it. About how often do you cow call? every 50ft or five minutes?
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If you get on fresh sign go in silent, slow and keep the wind in your face....I tracked one down last Friday and the wind swirled :bash:
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the wind here is pretty easy to predict, large canyons to the flow is steady depending on time of day. The only reason im going in after elk in these situations is because that is the only place i can find any at all in the unit i hunt its almost like they live like goats in the rocky bluffy stuff probably the only way they can fend off the wolves or feel that they can stand a chance.
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when those things are in the rut there is no rhyme or reason to what they do...last weekend we were up in that PL south unit. we were driving around and came upon a point that i wanted to get out and stretch my legs. we got out and my son grabbed his bugle and i told him that he might as well throw that thing in a fire cuz every time he tried to blow it it sounded like crap...he let loose with it anyway and was immediately responded by an elk down in the draw. the wind was terrible and we hiked down the road about 3/4 of a mile to try and get around them and left my wife in the truck. we got below them and started sneaking in the timber and calling. at one point the bull came to about 150 yards from us but we never saw him--alll the while we could hear the cow's chirping...he finally had enough of our b.s. and gathered his cows up and ran them straight out of the top of the cut less than 100 yards from where the wife was in the truck---she saw them lined out going over the top into the reprod below...just keep trying is my advice
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I'm gonna bet that sneaking in on elk works about 1% of the time , they are just so keen . and theres always the one you dont see. a lone bull maybe. I still say make elk sounds and get in quick if the bull bugles move while he is sounding off. I have a theory " Doing nothing results in nothing "
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Went hunting yesterday, was busting through brush cow calling every 5 minutes probably and after only about 20 minutes i had a bull bugle at me from 75 yards, i had been checking the wind the whole time frequently and it was constantly changing. He bugled short growly bugles a few times with raking brush and the went dead silent and i snuck over there he was on the edge of a big wet brush patch and had rubs on trees all over, some of them were 6-8 inches in diameter. Im sure he caught wind of me right away and snuck out of there( i didnt here any running in the brush). I think i hit it at the time of day where the downslope downvalley winds were transitioning to upslope up valley and they were all over the place. going to try and figure out a better plan different time of day and go back. The area has bulls but they are all alone and live in brush that you can only see 20ft in, its terrible to walk through it is just a constant struggle.
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I'm gonna bet that sneaking in on elk works about 1% of the time , they are just so keen . and theres always the one you dont see. a lone bull maybe. I still say make elk sounds and get in quick if the bull bugles move while he is sounding off. I have a theory " Doing nothing results in nothing "
Or even, "doing nothing results in a wind shift and he's busted anyway." :chuckle: story of my life right there
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I'm gonna bet that sneaking in on elk works about 1% of the time , they are just so keen . and theres always the one you dont see. a lone bull maybe. I still say make elk sounds and get in quick if the bull bugles move while he is sounding off. I have a theory " Doing nothing results in nothing "
Or even, "doing nothing results in a wind shift and he's busted anyway." :chuckle: story of my life right there
If I'm out of plays to try and noises to make I will just crash toward them and cow call or bugle. Last week I walked to within 15 yards of a bull in the thick stuff. There was no hope of being quiet. When I got there it was so dang thick I couldn't even try and draw my bow. Went in early and blew him out in the open the next morning. :chuckle:
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so when a bull bust from getting your scent will he usually return to where he was living?
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typically no . u less he is really used to people. hot cows will keep him there,too.
