Ready to throw in the towel on elk hunting

[JakeLand]

Lets face it. This isn’t a easy state. If you find elk than you got to find a spike, in some units a true spike elk unless you got a special permit.

There's a reason you don't see the big shot famous guys hunting WA State as NR's.  There are far fewer elk, the regs suck, and the people population is triple that of other western states with more elk. This is by far the hardest state to hunt elk in if you ask me.

Gary

All true. And tomorrow am I leave to kick turds once again. Just can’t get enough turd kicking from a wall tent.

get ‘em ghost !!! Good luck and happy hunting

[scoutdog346]

Something that took me many years to discover is that sign can be old but look fresh if u don't know the difference. The day I learned alot is the day I watched a group of about 4 or 5 elk then after they hung out in that spot for about an hour they left then I walked over there to look at the sign they left...and only then I saw what fresh sign looked like.  I had been hunting for 10 years and I thought I knew how to tell but until that day I realized i had no idea.  So now if the situation allows for it menning I have the time and it won't mess up the hunt or situation whenever I see a deer or elk cross the road or path Im walking or whatever I will go look at the actual tracts and or poop just to put into my brain what fresh tracks actual look like. Looking back I used to think some sign I saw was fresh but really was like 2 or 3 days old.  One other thing u can do is when u see fresh sign and u know ur going to be back there the next day take a mental note or take a picturewith ur phonethen go back and see how much it changed.  I bet 95% of hunters that think poop was placed there that day the poop will look exactly the same the next day.  If u don't believe me test it.  One thing I've noticed about fresh elk poop is that theses small semi transparent white flies will be on it for the 1st 4 or 5 hours then they will not touch it after that. Actually there will be a few on old stuff but if it was that day and its only a few hours old there will be a bunch like 20-50 small white semi transparent flys.  I think they eat the clear coating around the poop and then the coating will evaporates after a few hours that's the only for sure thing I've seen about fresh elk poop.  What I'm saying here is alot of people think elk sign is fresh when its not and im to provide a way to learn how to read sign.   Sorry about the poor writing I know its hard to read what I wrote

[Rutnbuxnbulls]

I give up on elk hunting too.....until late archery! 

It is a tough sport.  Only 10% or less are successful in basically any western state on elk.  I relegate elk hunting to steelheading.  Fish of 1000 casts; ungulate of 1000 hours.  I think we all have our reasons for repeatedly getting our collective behinds kicked out there by other hunters, roads, rules, regs, predators, weather, silent elk, etc.  And we keep coming back.  What is over the next ridge or in the next draw?  Could be a shooter!

I ate early archery tag on a cow only hunt in the Turnbull NWR, thinking I'd be in elk every day.  Think again! It was quiet, cows weren't plentiful, bulls were bugling and fun to talk to, but I couldn't shoot one although I SO wanted to.  So that was like a blueball tease girlfriend. 

Anyway, keep getting out there.  Have fun being in the woods, beats being at work or on the couch.  You get fresh air, quiet, and sometimes, you see the target species while out there.  Then it's game on!  Good luck

[snake]

110 for 10

[Lumpy Taters]

Been hunting all my life.  Grew up chasing elk. I have only figured it out in the last few years.   I go where other hunters won't go.  But I go there all year long.  Trail cameras help. It also helps to pick one area and learn everything you can about it.  Topi maps, satellite photos and good old fashioned boots on the ground.  The current state of the population is atrocious. I set my seasonal expectations on my actual sightings and not someone else's information. Public land is awful and the private timber companies offer a little better environment these days. 

[ljsommer]

I give up on elk hunting too.....until late archery! 

It is a tough sport.  Only 10% or less are successful in basically any western state on elk.  I relegate elk hunting to steelheading.  Fish of 1000 casts; ungulate of 1000 hours.  I think we all have our reasons for repeatedly getting our collective behinds kicked out there by other hunters, roads, rules, regs, predators, weather, silent elk, etc.  And we keep coming back.  What is over the next ridge or in the next draw?  Could be a shooter!

I ate early archery tag on a cow only hunt in the Turnbull NWR, thinking I'd be in elk every day.  Think again! It was quiet, cows weren't plentiful, bulls were bugling and fun to talk to, but I couldn't shoot one although I SO wanted to.  So that was like a blueball tease girlfriend. 

Anyway, keep getting out there.  Have fun being in the woods, beats being at work or on the couch.  You get fresh air, quiet, and sometimes, you see the target species while out there.  Then it's game on!  Good luck

What's late archery like?

[elkchaser54]

As a person with 10 seasons of unfilled elk tags under my belt let me tell you, you're not alone. But *censored* it I'm going to keep going after it. Notching those tags doesn't add up to seasons of being with my loved ones. Elk are so hard but I'm so happy doing it. .  . Don't quit . Ever

[scoutdog346]

Go hunt gmu 506 pay a few hundred dollars for a gate key or foot access amd u will see elk ever day.  If u want to just see elk and call them in for fun go to GMU 346 UP fifes ridge road (not fifes ridge) fifs ridge logging roads get there an hour b4 the sun comes up amd u will call a bull in.   Allmost anyone can call in a elk in that area around sep 24th to Oct 2nd.

[Rutnbuxnbulls]

I give up on elk hunting too.....until late archery! 

It is a tough sport.  Only 10% or less are successful in basically any western state on elk.  I relegate elk hunting to steelheading.  Fish of 1000 casts; ungulate of 1000 hours.  I think we all have our reasons for repeatedly getting our collective behinds kicked out there by other hunters, roads, rules, regs, predators, weather, silent elk, etc.  And we keep coming back.  What is over the next ridge or in the next draw?  Could be a shooter!

I ate early archery tag on a cow only hunt in the Turnbull NWR, thinking I'd be in elk every day.  Think again! It was quiet, cows weren't plentiful, bulls were bugling and fun to talk to, but I couldn't shoot one although I SO wanted to.  So that was like a blueball tease girlfriend. 

Anyway, keep getting out there.  Have fun being in the woods, beats being at work or on the couch.  You get fresh air, quiet, and sometimes, you see the target species while out there.  Then it's game on!  Good luck

What's late archery like?

Didn’t see this till today. Late archery elk hunting can be productive. A buddy of mine has killed a couple good bulls the last two years in a row. I’ve gotten into elk a few times just haven’t sealed the deal. The animals will be in bigger groups typically and calling is kinda useless, more of a snow tracking/spot and stalk type thing.