Home Forums Hunting & Shooting Elk Hunting What is it about elk.....

Time was I would get as excited as anyone when I shot an elk. Lot of it was, and is, an excuse to get a different rifle out for a walk. Neither my neighbor/hunting partner nor I can use a whole elk, so we have split one for the last several years. He saw them first this year. If we didn't can the entire thing, would likely not have a reason to shoot one at all. Son shot a nice bull this last fall, even though he is in his 20's was fun to see someone get excited about hunting again vs being a crabby old prick (me). Rest of the story? Even though we could hunt from home, we traveled 100 miles away & set up a camp to try and escape some of the bizarre occurrences sure to take place locally. Came back feeling better (wall tent time will do that) until I discovered the cut fences.

This year my son took his front stuffer and drove his Jeep up the trail behind his house, where he was seeing a lot of Elk sign, there was about 8" of snow on the ground, he walked into a herd of Elk just above the trail,he knelled down behind a tree and watched them walk by at about 60 yrds, he picked out a big dry cow, and put the cross hairs on her shoulder, and he got hit with Buck Fever and started shaking like a dog chitten a peach seed, couldn't see the sites, the Cow just stood there looking at him, he finally got it together and shot the Cow, he said when the smoke cleared the Cow was sliding down the hill, so he ran to her and kept kicking her to keep her moving she stopped in the trail about 10 yards behind the Jeep, he said it was one of the easyist and most fun Elk he ever killed, he had me laughing hard while he told me his story. he gets excited and loves to hunt. Rio7

beretzs, Wish I could show you some more pictures of hunting, but most of my old photos burned in a house fire in 1996, what the fire didn't get the fire dept soaked with water. they were in a book case on the other side of the wall from our cloths dryer that started the fire. makes me sick to think of every thing we lost. Rio7

Damn buddy. Sorry to hear that.

Hope the hunts and outdoors activities are going well for you.

I wonder sometimes if all this crappy behavior by people isn't symptomatic of the general societal decay we see everywhere. People have gotten so selfish....just look at how they drive near any large city.

I can't drive anywhere without have a head shaking moment. I marvel at peoples stupidity and selfishness. Common sense isn't common.

But, why does it make you want to quit hunting? No way to escape the idiocy?

bertezs, Just finished a week hunting with the vets, will fill you you in by P.M. bunch of Quail hunters here now, may be a few day's. Rio7

I never have understood all the hype and nonsense about elk.

In areas of big timbered country and low numbers, they're hard to find for sure. In other places and with decent numbers, not tough at all.

Hunting bigger bulls in tougher on general tags, but in decently managed areas, even bigger bulls are not tough to find.

You don't have to be super human to hunt them, they aren't tough to get close to, they're a very large target, they leave a ton of sign, easy to glass, and they die easily with a half way decent shot.

They are fairly large, but not as big as most guys claim. Packing them can be a bit of work, but anyone in half decent shape with some time can get them out of the woods.

There's lots of them to hunt right now, and they are very good eating...why I usually kill 3-5 per year.

Lots of things I'd rather hunt than elk.

Jfw042: Don't YOU give up Elk Hunting because of other "Hunters" bad behavior. I suggest doing what I started doing decades ago - get into the backcountry via horse or humping on foot.
And by backcountry I mean 5 miles in.
Haven't been "offended" by "slob Elk Hunters" (both resident and non-resident!) since.
Good luck.
Hold into the wind
VarmintGuy

Sounds good. Looking forward to the update Rio!

In Colorado, that 5 miles isn't much different than 2-3 miles now. It is hard to find a drainage without either an outfitters camp or 4-5 DYI er's camps. That is in Wilderness areas. Colorado does not have the big wilderness areas that WY, MT had. If you go in 6-7miles, you will meet, riders, pack strings and even foot hunters coming in from the other side.

I did that 5-7 miles in for years, with a small pack string. Finally gave it up, and in the last years, camped at the trail heads and rode in3 miles or so. I found areas that the foot hunters would not hunt and the big pack strings passed.The secret is get in there first before anyone. Which means a lot of riding in the dark.Then ambush those elk as they head for their hidey holes. In Colorado, you hunt the elk by determining what they do and where they go because if hunter pressure.

Saddlesore Nails it, as usual.

Came back feeling better (wall tent time will do that)
That it will....

I don’t know about that Sharp, granted I’ve never hunted elk but I’ve honestly never had the desire to hunt them either. My dream hunt and favorite deer species is European Roe Bucks.

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Elk hunting to me is the smell of a musty herd in the woods, the sunrise on some of the Lord's finest Creations and the sound of bugles in the dark. The presence of large animals in close proximity during archery season always gets blood flowing. The times in the woods and the team work to get them back add to the illusion of a great hunt. The meal months later that bring back the flood of all this is a bonus........

I've been hunting southern Idaho for 60 years. I've seen a lot of elk and a lot of mule deer but I've probably seen more really big bulls than I have seen really big muley bucks. I think those big bucks are smarter and hide much better than bulls. If a big buck on a ridge 1/2 mile away sees you, he's gone. They blend into the sagebrush so well that he can just vanish while you're watching him.

I totally agree with this. Those big mule deer are pretty awesome too. But I don't think nothing holds a candle to what the sheep hunters go through. A full curl ram would be the pinnacle of hunting in my opinion.

That is a shame. Maybe people in general are getting dumber? I was just at the local range a bit ago testing out a new rifle and there were 2 guys at the range shooting as well. I was done shooting and put my stuff away, then told them that when they need to check their target, we'd call a cold range. They agreed. As we started to head to the targets, one of the younger guys loaded a cartridge in his rifle and laid it on the bench pointing towards the targets. I asked if he would open the bolt and take the ammo out of the chamber, as that is pretty much customary at any range. Open bolt so you can see that it's clear. He didn't look like he was happy that I asked, but I believe some people need to be educated. He was younger and stupid like you are saying. It's sad to see hunters doing stupid and unsafe things like you say.

I completely agree with this^^^ Right before popping my last bull, I was thinking to myself, "IF I see one, it's going down". Making the shot is cake. Finding them, not so much. Especially in a unit with 4% hunters success.

That is true, not everyone is a fan of elk or elk hunting. However, there is a big difference in the pursuit of various species and elk do attract a few more hunters than Roe deer. That picture is a painting by Charles Russell who is a much collected and revered artist from the frontier days in Montana. That picture stirs my blood due to content, Montana history and the artist...

[quote=bsa1917hunter

That is a shame. Maybe people in general are getting dumber? I was just at the local range a bit ago testing out a new rifle and there were 2 guys at the range shooting as well. I was done shooting and put my stuff away, then told them that when they need to check their target, we'd call a cold range. They agreed. As we started to head to the targets, one of the younger guys loaded a cartridge in his rifle and laid it on the bench pointing towards the targets. I asked if he would open the bolt and take the ammo out of the chamber, as that is pretty much customary at any range. Open bolt so you can see that it's clear. He didn't look like he was happy that I asked, but I believe some people need to be educated. He was younger and stupid like you are saying. It's sad to see hunters doing stupid and unsafe things like you say.
[quote=SMalloy805]

At our private range when a cold range is called you do not touch your firearm while people are down range or even forward of the firing points.One warning. 2nd incident you are no longer a member.

That’s a fair assessment as far as American hunters go no doubt, globally I think there would be more Roe hunters.
Elk are beautiful creatures no doubt!