Hunting Washington Forum
Big Game Hunting => Elk Hunting => Topic started by: TeacherMan on October 15, 2023, 08:32:53 PM
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I think I’m starting to think elk are true timber ghosts. All the animals I’m seeing are in clearcut or reprod that you can only see into when you’re up above it, at eye level it’s as thick as blackberry bushes 😂
With this said it’s 30 min before light to and an hour after, then same in the evenings.
SO MY QUESTION, how do you hunt them the other 8-9 hours until the evening hunt kicks back in. Do you try and sneak into bedding areas jumping them in the timber and be quick on your shot? Or just go fishing 😂
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We generally will not hunt them in their bedding areas. We hunt them in the transition to food and water. If you know where they are bedding (big timber ot thick cover) and you know where they like to feed (clearcuts), hunt them in between those areas. Elk will almost always walk with their nose in the wind…..keep this in mind when setting up.
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This year more than in the past, we left elk alone in the timber because they were regularly coming into the clear cut in daylight hours. But other times I will often hunt the timber in areas that elk may bed, but here in Western WA the elk also feed in the timber and creek bottoms and are generally more active, they don't just "bed" there, they do all kinds of stuff there. Also, most West side elk, when you jump them they run over the ridge/out of sight maybe a few hundred yards. If you give them time to settle down then you can track them and sneak in again. This is totally different than elk in Idaho that I have hunted, those elk when jumped will run for 5 miles (at least is seems like 5 miles). All that to say, there are lots of ways to hunt elk and it depends on your terrain, weather, elk, and lots of factors of how you can do it. But I would try all sorts of things and see what works, then you learn for next time.
