Elk... When have you had the most success?

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hunter7mmRM

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Have booked time off to do some bow hunting for elk. Since we will be in said area over the long weekend I figured it would be a good enough time to try for some elk. When have you had most success hunting elk? Is September 5-9 too early for some good action? What are your experiences?
 
I have a relative in BC that has had great success. Sept on a dark moon. He has found that following the moon cycles coincide with peak rutting. Full moon they turn off. Dark moon they bugle and respond well to calls. Some folks may disagree but they have dropped enough big bulls to pay attention.
 
Early success at high elevations using calls.

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hunter7mmRM said:
Have booked time off to do some bow hunting for elk. Since we will be in said area over the long weekend I figured it would be a good enough time to try for some elk. When have you had most success hunting elk? Is September 5-9 too early for some good action? What are your experiences?
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With the hot temperatures which BC is having, and if it continues, the elk rut will be delayed or will not be intense. Personally I would hunt between September 12 to 20.
 
track said:
With the hot temperatures which BC is having, and if it continues, the elk rut will be delayed or will not be intense. Personally I would hunt between September 12 to 20.
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I never place much faith in temperature or weather affecting the rut.

Mother Nature has a good clock. Calves need to be born at certain time in order for them to be healthy/
strong enough to survive their first winter.

Some of the best Moose or Elk calling I have had were on extremely Sunny and Hot days.

The key is the animals are usually active very early in morning or in last hour of legal light...

But I do agree mid-Sept is prime time for Elk.
 
It all depends on when that first frost hits. It seems that their activity significantly increases after the frost hits the pumpkin for the first time of the year.
 
It's changes in daylight duration that initiates the rut which is the same every year -

"The most active elk rut peak lasts 5 to 10 days and happens primarily because of a precise ratio that occurs each fall between daylight and dark. That ratio of light and dark causes hormones..."

"...there are variables that will affect what we see and hear, but the rut will go on with or without our hearing and seeing it..."

A good article. The author prefers early season from experience.

http://www.elk-hunting-tips.net/elk-rut.html
 
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When have I had success?
Well, in th field of course....
Going out opening week for Elk let alone any game animal opening day without prior scouting may or may not work out.
Track soup with left over tags makes for a thin supper.
Good Hunting,
Rob
 
Slamfire said:
It's changes in daylight duration that initiates the rut which is the same every year -

"The most active elk rut peak lasts 5 to 10 days and happens primarily because of a precise ratio that occurs each fall between daylight and dark. That ratio of light and dark causes hormones..."

"...there are variables that will affect what we see and hear, but the rut will go on with or without our hearing and seeing it..."

A good article. The author prefers early season from experience.

http://www.elk-hunting-tips.net/elk-rut.html
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This, the light cycles dictate the rut. Period. No frost, fires, heat or haitian witch doctor will change that. Plants are no different.

Edit:was not referring to moon cycles when I mentioned light cycles
 
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Moon phases don't trigger the rut, but do affect the rut.

Many hunters and wildlife biologists know that during the full moon phase, elk tend to be much more active at night because they can see better to feed, and they can also spot predators more easily.

During a low moon phase elk are usually less active at night. Light is dim, and the elk tend to bed down more and watch for predators.

Low moon phases affect elk breeding too, bulls tend to bugle and rut less during the low moon phase,
but when the moon is full, elk will rut all night long.

Moon phases also affect daytime elk activity. Their normal patterns of feeding in early morning and late evening can be disrupted because they have so much more time to feed at night during the full moon cycle, that they are usually already bedded down at first morning light, then they tend to be up and move around earlier in the evening because they've been bedded for so long.

During the low moon phase elk tend to be more active and feed longer into the morning hours because they would have spent much less time feeding during the darker night hours.

And in the evening, the elk tend to leave their beds a bit earlier to get enough feeding in before the dark of the night sets in.
 
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A wildlife biologist I talked to once, said the amount of light entering the cow elk’s pupil is what triggers the rut.
But not all cows come into heat at the same time, older cows usually start first, younger cows a bit later.

Cows are triggered to come into estrus (and cause the peak rut period) within 5-10 days of the Autumn equinox,
which is when the day and night are of equal duration.
This year (2017) the fall equinox will be Sept. 22 here in the northern hemisphere.

Many other factors can and will affect the elk rut - weather, hunting pressure, and the presence of wolves.

One major factor that effects elk and deer movement is heat - early in the season when it can still be hot outside, depending on elevation,
most animals won't be too far from water, and they won't be moving around much.

If you can catch an elk or a deer heading to the river in the evening before dark, or moving off the river just after dawn, you might be in luck.
But that type of success can depend on how much rain fell that year, lots of rain might mean animals won't have to travel far to drink.

Hot Indian Summer days (especially these last few years with climate change) along with a full moon can negatively affect conventional "dawn and dusk" elk hunting.

Where I work, at one of the mines up in Elkford, every September I hear the bulls bugle a good week or so earlier than where I live here around Cranbrook, which is about 1200 feet lower in elevation, but only about a 2 hrs drive south.

Another big factor is the wolf, in areas where, and during times when wolves are in overpopulation, bull elk seem to bugle less, as they know it will alert the wolves to their location.

The last couple of seasons, as soon as it gets dark, I hear the wolves howl, but hardly an Elk bugle.
 
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To answer the OP's original question though, if early September is the only time you can get your holidays, it might be best to head to a higher elevation, where it's cooler and Elk will be more active.

Glass the slides, and use the spot and stalk method.

I have friends here in the Kootenays who bag their Elk in early Sept. using the above method.
They don't even bother waiting for the rut.

But at the end of the day, all of the knowledge in the world only helps, a lot of it has a lot to do do with being in the right place at the right time, spending as much time as possible in the bush, and pure luck.

and as an old timer once told me, the best two times to hunt are: right before you get there, and just after you leave.
 
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350 Mag said:
I never place much faith in temperature or weather affecting the rut.

Mother Nature has a good clock. Calves need to be born at certain time in order for them to be healthy/
strong enough to survive their first winter.

Some of the best Moose or Elk calling I have had were on extremely Sunny and Hot days.

The key is the animals are usually active very early in morning or in last hour of legal light...

But I do agree mid-Sept is prime time for Elk.
Click to expand...

Agree
 
Well guys/gals, update: work plans changed for my hunting partner so we are rescheduling for the week of sept 18. Hoping for some good/better rut activity! Will be hunting with an older weatherby vanguard in 300wby, using 165gr swift sciroccoII bullets. I don't know what I was thinking when I bought them but I got a decent grouping load made up. I have some 190gr AB long range bullets loaded up ready for testing for those of you that care!
 
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