elk Info?

Chopperhead

Chopperhead

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well I had an elk roast given to me and we had it for supper tonight :dancingbanana:. Best tasting game meat Ive had so far. it was VERY good.

anyway this got me thinkin that I need to go Elk hunting now lol.

So I was wondering if anyone could provide any good links to websites about hunting technices, behaviour, signs etc etc.

Also for the BC guys, what areas are the best for elk?? There's supposed to be a bunch around here in PG but Ive never seen one and have only heard of a couple being taken.

Got alot to learn so I wanna start now and get the calls down and figure out everything by the time the season rolls in.

Thanks
 
Hey,
I go elk hunting in Colorado, and I usually go in the first week of Dec. because I find this is the best time to hun elk. by this time they should all be migrated off the mountians. This way there are more numbers because up so to speek... s they are starting to form heards....spot and stock...all i really gotta say. and be ready for long shots bud...
Besta luck!:D

If im wrong about n e of my info...just let me know... im willing to learn to:redface:
 
What kinda terrain do you usually spot them hanging around?? Like down by rivers, in thick bush, rocky areas etc etc

and long shots are pretty common then?? Im planning on using my flintlock ML so real long shots arnt gonna be an option. I may have to buy a good long range gun then if this is a common thing.
 
The main difference between hunting elk and deer, is that deer are spread all over they range and elk are in herds. East Kootneys are good, north facing slopes in the early part of the year due to more moisture = better feed. Elk are grazers while deer are browsers. Don't be shy about asking a farmer if you can hunt his alfalfa fields. Figuring out their route between feeding and bedding areas isn't all that hard when you keep in mind that they travel in herds, leaving a lot of tracks. (and the farmer already knows where they enter his field) Happy hunting
 
In Sask the Elk farmers are pretty much giving the animals away, but charge for cutting and wrapping. Definitely cheaper than hunting here.
 
If you don't mind spending some money and want to do a pretty nice hunting trip then I think that Big Nine offers a pretty good deal for you B.C. residents. I think I heard $1500.00 (But don't quote me) you have a place to stay use of horses and get to cull one of the lesser animals. I've been told it is a very good value. I'm not sure if that let's you take a cow or not. To me a cow elk is better eating than a bull.
 
yeah you can use ur ML... I know a buncha ppl that do. And I forgot to mention, they can take alota led. so shoot till there down.. Where Ive found them they are sometime down in coolies and thick oak, but you can alose just find them in the middle of an open field..But I hunt Colorado, which my be different from where your hunting.
But anyhow id go ahead and use ur ML, I would use it. Just gotta know where your comfortable shooting it..
Hapy Hunting
 
I'm not from BC, but my guess is there some pretty good elk hunting around PG. Call the local F&G Association and/or F&W office for more info. If you don't mind a drive, north of Ft.St. John along the Alaska HWY is good areas. I worked few summer months on the realignment of the Alaska HWY over the years and seen plenty of elk. The Sikany Chief River/Falls area and Buckinghorse River area is good for elk.
 
I got a buddy in Ft.Nelson. He says the elk are like gophers up there.
Don't be shy about using your ML. There are tons of elk shot each year with bows. Just be patient on your stalk, and know when to use your calls. You dont have to be good at calling, just know when, and how often to use which call.
 
So can you hunt them say out of a tree stand or some other static location?? or do you have to go in and stalk them??

Also I know whitch calls are the best and I'll buy those but How often and how much at a time is aproproate??? is there a website that can explain this??

Thanks
 
Spot and stalk is a good method, up on benches in the mountain foothills, or in Alberta on the yellowhead, their in the woods, can get close.
The most fun would be during the calling season , early fall, then in november its watch the trails, fields....:)
 
Half the battle of hunting elk is just finding them. Even if you know they are around, they are hard to find. And when you do find them, they are fast and hard to keep track of.
You could hunt them from a treestand, but you would have to pattern their movement very closely so you know where to put up a stand. The tough part about this is that elk move lots. They will generally stick to one area, but will change bedding and feeding areas.
Personally, I prefer to spot and stalk. Glass them first and get as close as you can. Watch out for the cows though. They are posted around the herd like guards.
Bugle to locate the bull (or bulls). Once he hears you, anything could happen.
He may gather up his cows and start leading the herd away from the intruding bull. If this happens, cow call like there is no tomorrow. He may think he left one behind and come to get her. Very rarely can you overuse a cow call. I carry 3 different ones with me to sound like different cows.

He may bugle back, possibly inviting you to a challenge. This is when I switch to a different reed to sound like a smaller bull. I don't want to scare him off by thinking I am a giant bull who can take his cows. I want him to come in and scare me off. Keep using your cow call. He will want to steal the cows from this smaller bull.

If they spook, try to bugle him back again. Even bulls that have just been shot sometimes come back within range with some effective calling.
Don't chase them though. You know where they are, and you will get another chance later on.
Don't worry about getting to sound exactly like the bull in the videos. I have heard elk bugle that sounds like a dying cat. As long as you are in the ball park. The one thing you do need to do is to be invisible. Camo and scent protection.
And that is elk hunting in a nutshell.
 
Out of tree stand very tough unless set up over a wallow or a game trail used regularly into an alfalpha field. Mainly you are on the ground, moving with the elk once you locate the herd and are trying to get close or downwind. With too much pressure sometimes, the elk will leave the country so to speak, and make their rounds and come back a few days later. Being mobile on the ground is the best bet! The high is hunting in the rut, hearing a bull bugle, just gets my blood boiling talking about it.

A hunting buddy and I set up along this field in the late season because we knew the elk were coming up out of the valley for the easy feed-a standing 2nd cut alfalpha field with bails too. My buddy got his first bull ever in the afternoon, just before legal light.
3yciyw4.jpg


We went back the next morning and the herd of elk were back again- out all nite , closer to where I was set-up originally the day before. The big bull left into the valley before legal light, and only the cows and a few spikers stayed behind.

Good luck in your quest for an elk. Best thing is get out there and hunt, listen, and learn from experiences.
 
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NICE bull.

So from what you just said i Assume that hunting fields of one form or another is the way to go then. Is "Bush hunting" doable or should i stick to fields??

also tell me alittle bit about the beautiful Bull. How far and with what did you shoot it with???



Kyle.
 
Calling bull elk during the rut is very effective. However, in areas with lots of elk hunters, one often calls in other elk hunters :)

Stalking elk in the woods is very challenging and lots of fun. On my last elk hunt, I was within 30 yards of several LEH cow elks, when the "click" from the safety release spooked these elks fo fast that I did not have enough time to reach and pull the trigger.

On my next LEH elk hunt, I will use one of my other rifles that have very quit safey release.

In my elk hunting experiences in B.C., I found that that the fly in hunting i Norhern B.C., like the "Big Nine" Guide and Outfitting territory as well as between Cranbrook and Invermere, offers the best elk hunts, especially if you get permission to hunt private land.
 
Where we hunt the elk, it changes upon the time of fall. During the rut, we are in the bush, near or at the top of the valley, calling (bugling and cow calls). We found the elk staying in the timber- good native grasses and other feed. We hunt the borders or just in a couple hundred yards from the farm fields. The elk in the evening seem to come out of the valley late, and by the time they hit the fields its past legal light.

By the time the frost turns the native grasses bitter, and the snow and cold weather hits, the elk go to the easy smorgish board- alfalpha fields and bails. Thats when I hunt the fields and just set up either on the brush edge or in the field behind a bail, and wait for them. I found this time of year to just get set up and be quiet, waiting for them -afternoon hunt. The morning hunts will have the elk in the field already, so a sneek along the brush edge, or try to pattern where they go if the elk leave the field across others to get to their bedding grounds. I only call if I need to relocate positions if they see me, or if I need them to stop or turn broadside for the shot, or come to investigate the cow/calf call.

My hunting buddy got his cow elk in December. We had a herd of about 200 come by us, and we were set up in a strip of trees for about 1.5hrs before the elk crossed from one field to the one we were set up in as they headed to the creek drainage and bedding area in the morning. We were out and set up about an 1hr before legal light. Seeing the herd was quite the site. His shot was under 100m. Perfect heart/lung, and the cow dropped in the spot she stood.

2r3jods.jpg


Winter camo sure helps. The day before we stalked right thru the middle of the field to get close and we were @ 300 yrds, when the last cow walked into the timber. My buddy was a bit disheartened, but I told him that we should be back here the next morning but move our ambush point, and the rest is history.
 
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