Tactics for elk hunting after the snow falls

[Highground]

Yeah but having no elk tag in my pocket makes me envious of the bird hunting where you are at!

You wont hear me complaining about bird hunting thats for sure. But Id trade bird for big game in a heartbeat

 

[Ben Long]

Gr8Bwana, nothing personal but I am doubting your parenting. If I had passed on a bull like that, my dad would have tanned my hide.

 

[mtmuley]

Good snow is a rifle-hunting elk hunter's best friend. Cover ground one way or another until you cut a track. Follow it and watch the wind. When the track starts to wander and weave, he's looking for a place to bed down. Keep your rifle in your hands and your thumb on the safety. Look for antler tips above the brush and deadfall. When he stands up, snake a round between the tree trunks into the ribcage.

That's how it is supposed to work, anyway. Sometimes it does.

Solid advice this. mtmuley

 

[Gr8bawana]

Gr8Bwana, nothing personal but I am doubting your parenting. If I had passed on a bull like that, my dad would have tanned my hide.

He figured since it was only Tues. and we had until Sat. to hunt he would find a bigger one. He ended getting one that was almost a twin on Friday about 400-500 yards from where the first one was.

 

[el unit]

Southern Elk- pm to you. 16"-18" of snow yesterday at our place @ 6200'

 

[Southern Elk]

I put some of this advice to work on Saturday. I got a late start because I waited until daylight to leave home because I wasn't sure what the road conditions would be like. I cut some fresh tracks and tracked them 1.4 miles before they headed down into a nasty canyon. I could tell that it was a group of cows and calves by the looks of the tracks. I was surprised that even with nearly a foot of snow on the ground they headed uphill after they left their beds. I'm not sure how much snow it will take to push them down.

 

[Muley_Stalker]

Oh man. That's for youngsters. I'd get a heart attack now.

 

[westtrout]

All good advice. Another tip is to have the survival tools you need to be OK if you need to stay out overnight, e.g., shelter, fire starting kit, extra food. It will aid in your level of comfort and help you focus on the task at hand. When things get wintery I will often build a little warming fire during the middle of the day. It helps to dry things out, cook a little lunch/cup of coffee, and warm your body and spirit...which all help to keep your head in the game. I've never noticed that a little smoke spooked elk and on a few occasions have had shot opportunities within a few hundred yards of where I stopped for a little warming fire.

Also, keep a journal of what you observe, elk movements and locations and conditions. Elk have a tendency to use the same areas and do the same things when conditions are similar, so paying attention to what you see this year can really pay off in following seasons.

 

[Southern Elk]

Some will stay up high even in deep snow. They will feed on blown off ridges and lose their horns at 8500 feet. Others will run for the river bottom first time it snows. Here is a picture of a bull my son shot 2 days ago wading around in 16 inches of snow. It is split lengthways and he is dragging half.

That's definitely more snow than we have here. There's a lot of elk already down in the valley on private. Others are still in the mountains. Makes me wonder if it's hunting pressure more than snowfall that pushed the others down.

 

[Ben Long]

Aha! You've just realized one of the great rules of elk tracking. Don't waste precious energy tracking animals you can't shoot. Of course, a group of cows might have an odd bull in it, but by and large, tracking cows around the country without at cow tag is a lot of lost effort. Also beware of moose tracks, that look like lone bull moose tracks in the powdery snow we have now. Bulls are looking for security right now. There are two places they find it: private ground behind "no hunting" signs and remote country where few people go. Gaiter up and go for it!