Hunting Strategies
Elk Hunting
Strategies and Tactics
To have an advantage when hunting elk you must first become
acquainted with the elk’s backyard.
Elk scouting starts with knowing the general layout
of your hunting unit and the associated legal boundaries. By
using topographical maps, you can make educated guesses on
where elk are most likely to be.
First, elk like feeding in big grassy meadows, stay
away from meadows by main roads or that have a lot of
exposure to other hunters.
Elk prefers meadows that are remote and surrounded by
heavy timber, with adequate water sources and good forage.
In the previous page "Locating
Elk" we discuss in detail the items to look for to
determine if elk are in the area. As a quick overview,
its important to pattern elk movement. To do this try and
locate
as many feeding and bedding areas as possible.
Also, look for available watering locations.
Elk need water on a regular basis and will generally
drink water right before dark and again around first light
before traveling back to their bedding grounds.
Scouting watering holes provides insight to the
number of elk in the area and the number of bulls.
A typical elk track will measure 3-1/2 to 5 inches.
To identify a bull elk track, look for a larger track
that distinctly shows the dewclaws behind the tracks.
Watering holes also provide areas in which bull elk
will wallow in the mud. When inspecting an elk wallow, look
for antler scraps in the mud.
This can help give you an idea of the size of antlers
on the Bull.
Once you find a water source with a lot of elk
activity around it, try and determine the direction the elk
entered the tank from. This
is knows as a "Travel Corridor".
This can be accomplished by looking for elk tracks
and
elk
rubs. These travel corridors will often include elk rubs
at various intervals along the path between the bedding
grounds, feeding grounds and watering areas.
Another sign to look for is fresh elk droppings.
Elk droppings will help determine the movement
patterns of the herd between feeding grounds and bedding
grounds.
Now that we’ve talked about locating prime elk habitat and
how to patterns the elk movement, you need to determine the
hunting strategy to use in your hunt unit.
If you were successful in locating elk and have a
good understanding of the elk’s movement, then a “Glass and
Stalk” technique can be used to harvest an elk.
To start, you must begin your day with glassing the
areas around the feeding grounds.
The idea is to locate the elk in the meadows before
they move off into the dense forest.
The best opportunity to do this is to locate the elk
at first light.
You need to have multiple glassing vantage points picked out
before the opening day of your hunting season.
Try to find vantage points with some elevation.
This will aid in glassing more habitat.
Be careful not to spook the elk out of their feeding
grounds prior to first light.
Elk have excellent night vision and will leave the
area if disturbed.
Use a flashlight when in the thick timber but wait
until the early dawn light to move to your vantage points
without the use of the flashlight.
When you reach your vantage point, make yourself comfortable
if you are going to glass a lot of elk habitat.
If your vantage point only allows you to look over a
few meadows, glass a short time then move on to another
vantage point.
Utilize your own senses when trying to find elk.
You can often hear elk or even smell elk before you
see them.
Once you spot the herd you have two options.
Remember, time is critical at this point.
If the elk are close enough, your first option is to
quickly slip through the timber and move in for a shot.
If the elk have already started into the timber and
are moving to bedding grounds, your second option is to
either relocate yourself ahead of the herd for another
opportunity, or wait and plan an ambush for later that
afternoon. By
having an idea of their bedding grounds and movement
patterns, you can have a good idea of where the elk are
heading and move ahead of the herd for a second shot
opportunity. If
you decide to relocate yourself ahead of the herd remember
that elk travel at a relatively fast pace. To pull back and
move ahead of the elk herd takes a lot of fast moving.
If
you decide to pull back and wait until the afternoon,
position yourself at the edge of a clearing where you can
find cover.
Always check the wind direction and position yourself on the
downwind side.
Stay well away from the route you expect the elk to take
unless you are hunting with a bow or muzzleloader.
"Hunting waterholes", either from a tree-stand or ground blind
is another strategy to use in which to hunt elk.
Elk water daily; therefore, if your hunt unit is
predominately dry, sitting a waterhole can often times offer
a hunter a clean shot at an elk when it comes in to drink.
This strategy is often used by archery hunters.
As an option, some hunters choose to hunt the
perimeter of the waterhole, concentrating on hunting the
elk’s travel path to and from the waterhole. This can be a
very successful strategy especially if you do your homework
and have patterned the elk’s movement.
As a helpful tool for hunting or scouting waterholes,
www.huntunits.com
offers a
Hunting elk in the rut is extremely exciting due to how
vocal the elk are during this period.
Archery hunts, early bull rifle hunts and some
muzzleloader hunts offer hunters the opportunity to hunt elk
while in the rut.
The primary advantage of hunting elk in the rut is
the ability to locate elk.
By mastering how to bugle elk, a single call may get
a response from a bull watching over his harem of cows.
Just because you are hunting elk during the rut doesn’t mean
calling will be successful.
You have to remember that a bugle of an elk is a
challenge to another bull.
Often times, if a bull hears a bugle, the bull will push
his cows away from the call.
Unless the elk are in the prime of the rut, I prefer
to “still hunt” an area of prime elk habitat.
Still-hunting is a technique of walking very slowly,
stopping often to look and listen for any elk movement.
While still-hunting, I will bugle approximately every
15 minutes with a non-aggressive tone in hopes to hear a
response. If I
do hear a response, I will then move to where the elk bugle
came from in hopes of locating the herd.
Another hunting strategy to use in locating elk is to locate
the herd prior to early morning dawn.
If you know where the elk generally feed, move into
the area during morning darkness and listen for the elk to
bugle. Often
times the elk will start their trek to their bedding grounds
prior to or during dawns first light.
At this time you can “shadow” the elk.
Move parallel to the herd, stay downwind, and hunt
the herd as they travel to their bedding grounds.
Depending on which state you are going to hunt and the
regulations you are hunting under, please do not camp to
close to a dedicated water source. Please note that in
Remember, Hunt Right - Hunt Hard!
