New Archery Elk Hunter And This Is What I Learned

T

tomapleleafss

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Location
Southeast SK
Morning everyone. Wanted to post some of my experiences to my first archery elk hunting this year.

Solo hunting. Located near Hudson Bay Sk, so Boreal Forest environment. Bulls only. Spiked camped at an old logged out area that still had truck access. I was out for 5 days. I did some e-scouting, pre-season scouting, talked to a few locals and was able to put up 3 cameras. Hunted the bush only. No blinds or treestands. I mainly stuck to the forest near ag land, thinking elk would bed down and be coming out to feed. There was also a creek/river near by.

My main strategy going into this was to listen through the night the best I could and see if I could hear anything calling. If nothing move camp during the day and try again. I had 3 camp sites pre-planned. I ended up never moving because I could hear calling except on the last night. Then follow the bugling till I could get in that 100-200 yards away and setup to call in. I was also on the lookout for spots to sit in the evening. I sat at 3 different spots, one being in my truck on the edge of the field to see if anything was coming out. Most of thinking comes from internet. There is definitely a bias there as they all tend to focus on mountain elk. While I think the calling skills and strategies are good, there are a few things they don't really prepare you for. Also, learned a fair bit about backpacking (the truck access made that very easy). Overall that part went fairly smooth.

What I learned:
  • Oh boy, where to even start. I am sure I could write pages. Bulls bugle sounds carrying a long long distance. I got within 100 yards of one bull and he was about 2.5 kms away (line of sight). I thought at first he was on the move but after the second day of following I don't think so. It took me over 2 hours of walking to get to him.
  • The bush up there is insane.
    • About 40% of the time you cannot see 5' in front of you. 40% of the time you can see about 20 yards. If you don't hear an elk you are just wasting your time and energy. This is what got me on the elk I got within 100 yards of. I didn't realize I was quite that close and he bulged. I ditched my pack, got my bow ready, but then quickly realized it would be impossible to see, let alone shoot anything in this spot. As I tried to move around to find an open area, I lost track of the wind and he bailed.
    • Carrying your bow in your hand is impossible. Luckily I had purchased a pack that I was able to strap it to the back. A tip, put a strap over you arrows. I lost one.
    • Use some sort of mapping software to drop waypoints to save setup/open areas.
    • Google maps can be beneficial but depends on the age of the layer. I was right on the border between a 2025 and a 2021 map and the differences were astounding. Next time I am going to integrate Google Earth Pro somehow.
    • It is impossible to sneak up on anything out there. I don't think this is much of issue with elk. Elk are noisey. I got within a 100 yards of one and about 200 yards of another sounding like a bull in a china shop.
  • The mosquitos are unbelievable. You need some sort of bug control strategy. I didn't want to bug spray for the smell. I used layers of clothing. I wore rain pants because of the dew anyway (a must). I wore two layers of thinner long sleeve shirts, plus a bug net This helped but they would still bite me where the shirts were tight. It wasn't horrible while walking in the bush, but out in the open, or sitting was a whole other story. While sitting I wore my rain jacket. It got hot, so you debate between the bugs or sweating, a lot.
  • A good backpack is a must. Only option is to carry out an elk. Unfortunately I never got a chance to do this but the pack felt like nothing on my back. I know my limits which is also why I didn't want to stray to far from where I could get my truck. I was able to bring food, water (which I drank a ton), kill kit, etc. Lots of good used ones if you don't want to spend big money on one.
  • Same with boots. I have had some good boots in the past so I know there value. These ones were 10" high which I was a little skeptical of at first, till I crossed the river. If you have any sort of water features get taller boots.
I hope to hear from others and their experiences on ways I can improve my skills and hopefully success rate. Maybe this might help out a few people that I thinking of getting into archery elk.
 
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I don’t archery hunt but I’ve hunted close to that area my entire life. I haven’t made it there as much as I’d like in the last few years but still own property and will continue to hunt there as time permits.

Anyway I think you’re definitely on the right track. You have a lot of the key equipment right. I’ve packed out more elk than my back cares to remember lol. In my early years of elk hunting several were packed out with a vintage 1970’s frame pack with no padded hip belt and almost no padding on the shoulder straps. The bruising and sore muscles for days after were a good reminder and a source of pride for the accomplishment of getting an elk and getting it out on your own but these days I can live without that part of the experience lol. A good pack is essential as are a good pair of properly fitted boots. The tread design is also key as the soil up there can be very slippery when wet.

One suggestion for the morning dew is to wear a good pair of gaiters that you can then remove when it dries up. I find a lot of rain pants are just too noisy and make you wet from the inside out sweating too much. There are also some excellent “hybrid” pants like the Kuiu Kutana Hybrid that have water proof panels in the lower leg and seat but still breath really well and are reasonably quiet. I’m rifle hunting up there but with the density of the hazel brush and such, shots are more often than not taken at well inside archery ranges so sometimes being quiet is important.

Learn the area well. You’ll find trails and areas that will consistently have elk moving through or staying in year after year. Boots to the ground is the best way to learn the area.

Yea, elk are noisy! You can be aggressive sometimes and get close to them. Depending on the situation, I will move fast and hard towards a bull with no regard to the amount of noise I’m making. Calling while moving towards them seems to fool them into thinking you’re another bull or cow heading their way, sometimes with exhilarating results lol.
 
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Don't be scared of bug spray, If they can smell the bug spray they can smell you!
I think you are on the right track, try to hunt ther well used trails also. Solo calling is tough very tough, but doable. They will pinpoint you in a second 9/10 and circle around to get wind in there favor.
Try calling and get 80 yards downwind quick.
I use thermacell, they work awesome.

Wind is key 🔑 factor!
 
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