Tell us about your elk failures

[Elk247]

Failed at closing the deal on this guy three days in a row. Always one step behind or a few steps to far ahead. Failures definitely out way success when your bowhunting elk. Too many to mention here.

 

[TheTone]

2007- I’m driving down a Forest service road mid-day, after hunting whitetail that morning. Come around a corner and there’s a herd of elk on the hill, with one spike in it. This is a fresh burn, and I bail out and get set up in an opening where the elk are going to pass through. Cow, cow, cow, spike, try to pull the trigger and the safety is on.

2008- I hiked 3 miles in before light to watch a large canyon for the morning. At first light, I rattled in a couple young whitetail bucks. Shortly after rattling in the bucks, I noticed two bull elk feeding up into my canyon from lower down the drainage. A 5x5, and a 6x6. They’re feeding very slowly up the ridge, but right into the canyon I’m sitting. After waiting for what seemed like an hour, they finally clear some burned timber and I have a clear shot at 220 yards. I shoot 6” above the 6x6’s back and watch the bulls run out of my life forever.

2010- I’m archery hunting in the breaks. First morning of the hunt I follow a young 6x6 across a couple canyons, and he leads me to a very, very large 6x6 with a dozen cows. I sneak within maybe 60-80 yards of the herd in a timbered draw with the sun at my back, and let out a bugle. The large bull gathers his cows and comes ripping in to my draw. He stops across the draw and lets out a monster of a bugle right in my face. I send my arrow straight over his back. He rips another bugle, I send my second arrow into the very, very top of his hide above his backstraps. I see him three days later chasing cows, with my arrow still in him, looking like it was balanced on his back.

2011- I’m archery hunting deer in September in the river bottoms just West of Missoula. I’m in a ground blind in a thick cottonwood/willow stand when I see a cow sneaking through the willows. I pull out my camera to tape her walk by, when I notice a 340-350” 7x7 on her tail. I drop my camera and get my bow up in time to watch him walk out of the lane at 30 yards.

2012- I’m in a cottonwood treestand hunting whitetail in a SW Montana river bottom on the opener of rifle season. We knew there were elk in the area, and late morning a herd got pushed through. They’re real close, and there’s a bull in the rear. I rotate in stand to reposition myself, which causes my wallet to fall out of my pocket, stopping the lead cow in her tracks. The herd bails, and I graze the bull with a rushed shot as they’re exiting, and never see him again.

2014- I have a breaks elk tag I waited a very long time for. Opening day of rifle season I hike 4 miles back in to the same canyon I missed the giant bull in 2010. There’s a young 6x6 feeding on a ridge, and I watch him until he beds. I sneak into 50 yards of the bull, dry fire on him, and walk away. He was the only bull I had in range in 14 days of hunting that rifle season.

2016- I drew a very good elk tag in Wyoming. This elk tag also happens to be during the mule deer rut in a pretty good unit. I’m driving down a two track when I see an impressive buck chase a doe into a draw. I grab my camera and sneak over to the edge of the draw, maybe 20-30 yards from the truck. When I peak over, I see the buck with the doe, and I also see 3 mature bulls, the biggest being a 340” 6x6. I’m sky-lined, and they take off. After retrieving my rifle, I spend the rest of the day trying to catch back up to them.

These are just the obvious ones, there’s countless other less significant encounters.

I no longer hunt elk.

Ouch. That was a painful read. I won’t complain about a couple of mine that barely register compared to that

 

[mtmuley]

I've never had an elk failure in my life. I have had however, a couple elk that failed me. mtmuley

 

[----]

Ouch. That was a painful read. I won’t complain about a couple of mine that barely register compared to that

My elk hunting career in gif form-

 

[Art Vandeley]

Holy crap where do I begin. Crap is where I begin.

Two that stick out.

2014: I am sneaking through the timber mid day. I figure I am not close to anything and I had to make a cow pie. I lean my rifle against a tree and take some gear off and proceed to pop a squat. That's when the 6x6 bull jumps up and runs away from me at about 50 yards.

2018. It's early morning after a brutal uphill hike to the ridge line. It's about an hour after sunrise and I had to make a cow pie. I lay my bow down and hike up the hill about 20 yards to pop a squat. I hear twigs breaking... I see a 6x6 bull walking down the trail 35 yards from me. My bow is between me and the bull.

I've also had my fair share of rushed and missed shots. I've also been extremely lucky a few times... but.. after the 2018 fiasco..

I no longer hunt elk.

 

[HFW]

Randy11 - painful --- reads like my learning curve on hunting turkeys.

My very first time hunting elk --- advice I got was spend the pre-season spotting, opening day get in before dark and ambush them leaving where they are feeding. Area I was drawn for was ES and foot power access only (walk, bike or horses). Found feeding areas with sign so bike in early and while parking the bike to walk in further there is mewing noise all around me. In the dark I have biked into the middle of the herd. Busted ---- so nothing that morning. Very disappointed but left the area so as not to scent it up or push anything away and come back the next day.

Next morning I was much more aware going in stopped further out and stalked into my stand location in the dark very slowly -- end result was a 5x5 as soon as the long hand on my watch hit legal.

 

[Kaitum]

Had a cow tag for Breaks unit 700 one year. Day two of the hunt I had a good feeling about this isolated mesa raised way above the surrounding area. Hiking out the sliver of a ridge at first light that led to the mesa, that inner voice in my head kept saying "stop watching your feet, look ahead, and get your gun off your shoulder." I didn't listen. Ten steps later I look up to see a cow staring straight at me at 20 yards. She let me get the gun half off my shoulder before bolting. Spent the next three days looking at a lot of 5 and 6 point bulls in range, never saw another cow. I don't walk with my head down nearly as often anymore.

 

[nrpate05]

Haha where to begin!...heres one that comes to mind...
In 2018, I glassed up a big bull about 800 yards away feeding in a little canyon pocket (classic sanctuary). It was a great location because the only way to get to him was make a cross canyon shot that would've been 500+ yards or go straight to his lair and shoot him in that little pocket. Im not making that cross canyon shot especially in the 30 mph wind. The bull seemed content where he was so I figured I'd get in tight. Of course, I rush in and get to about 30 yards from where I thought he was and hear an elk running for his life from a different direction than where I thought he'd be. Looking back, I didn't glass him long enough. He was milling around but I should've waited to see if he bedded or worked into the timber. I should've known an elk that lived that long in an OTC unit in CO wouldn't be in an opening for very long in the middle of the day. I also should have slowed down well before I was that close and been more alert. I wanted to kill that elk so bad! Needless to say, I never saw him again.

 

[LukeDuke]

Ugh...I’m still pissed at myself for this shot this past season. I had plenty of time as he came wandering in to the cow call across 300 yds of open terrain. I had time to calm my nerves(haha). He was getting close and I simply rushed my shot for fear of him winding me.

The good news is that he was out getting his butt chased off by the herd bull the next day. Maybe we can meet again in Sept.

 

[Red Fox]

This year was the first time I was able to bow hunt elk. A couple mornings we would see a few bulls up close to the top in a bowl but it was around 1800' up in about a mile if that. So on day three we said lets try it, after making our way above them and dropping into the bowl once the wind had switched. After calling for about 30min we move down a little more and called again. A couple of them went back to the caller and started to have a snack. I stayed put and did the same, 20min later here come this bull just walking up the hill heading in. I tried to get their attention but couldn't so I stood up ranged were he should come through. When I seen his nose I pulled back, just then they seen me draw and stuck their heads out to see what I was drawing on. The bull stopped with just his front of his chest showing, just couldn't get moved over enough to clear the tree in front of him. After what seamed like forever he turned and walked away.

 

[BackofBeyond]

Good god, how much time do you have?

The worst one from this year was during opening weekend of archery season. Hiked in 5 miles before sun-up, climbed a ridge steeper than the back of God's head, and ripped a bugle and some cow calls from the top. Got a distant response but the wind was wrong, so I decided to be patient and sat down to do some glassing. Ended up glassing the inside of my eyelids because I can never sleep the night before opening day (and I'm sure I'm not the only one.) My lovely nap was interrupted by a cow barking at me, by the time I got to my feet all I saw was a couple of butts busting through the timber. One of those butts looked to be pushing a sizeable rack ahead of it, and I had to listen to those antler rattling off every tree between me and next canyon over.

A guy from Utah shot that bull the next weekend, in the next canyon over. 7x7. My eyeball tape measure had him north of 340".

But it was a great nap.

 

[IEATELK]

Im successful on every hunt. Usually notch my tag when they come in the mail. I like to pick the 10th because its my favorite number. I feel bad for all you losers.

 

[406dn]

The one that will forever stick in my mind occurred many years ago. At one time in Montana, if you drew a cow tag for a unit, you could not shoot a bull in the same unit. Well, I had a cow tag. It was a time where I was looking to kill my first elk of any kind. So, since I normally got into a few cows at least when hunting, I liked my odds.

The hunt began with me cutting elk tracks in fresh snow. After following them up, I got a shot at a cow across a large clear cut. While I thought the shot was steady, when I made my way across in knee deep snow, there was no sign of a hit, even thou I followed them a good ways.

So I started back towards my rig. Maybe half way back I cut tracks that weren't there earlier. So I decided to see what might come of it. After a short distance, a big nice 6x6 bull rose out of his bed, maybe thirty yards from me. He stood broadside, aware but not fully aware something was up. I raised my rifle, when the realization washed over me that I could not legally shoot him. He stood for several more seconds, laid his antlers back across his back, and got out of there.

 

[hank4elk]

Jeez, I've had a few,maybe. But I have a bad memory too now. Lucky me. LOL

 

[midwesthunter]

Not applying for a elk tag more often

 

[88man]

Wow a dumb moment in elk hunting for me was about 19 or 20 years ago on a late season wyoming cow hunt with friends. After a long hike in below zero temps with ridiculous wind myself and a friend found ourselves on top of a windblown mountain ridge above a few miles of ribbon cliff. There was basically one spot for the elk to come thru and get on top of the big flat mesa on the top of the mountain. Anyway a very large herd of elk of a few hundred started popping thru the break about 300 to 400 yards away. As soon as they cleared the opening they ran away single file and the train had be be 3/4 mile long or greater. Without a tree or bush or elevation change we dropped and sat down and I prepared my friend for a shot as he was a new hunter. I just assumed sooner or later one cow out of the hundreds would stop and look at us or at least stop and look around however, not one did and they all ran as they cleared the break. We never got a shot! It had to take over 5 minutes but seemed much longer for all those elk to come thru that break. Looking back and as soon as the event was over we realized we could have just walked up to the break regardless of spooking the elk on top and most likely got a 50 yard or less shot at the elk or the ones before they cleared the break right below the ridgeline as the mountain was darn near vertical around the break and the little opening in the cliff. It was still a day I will never forget.

 

[klwinter921]

2007- I’m driving down a Forest service road mid-day, after hunting whitetail that morning. Come around a corner and there’s a herd of elk on the hill, with one spike in it. This is a fresh burn, and I bail out and get set up in an opening where the elk are going to pass through. Cow, cow, cow, spike, try to pull the trigger and the safety is on.

2008- I hiked 3 miles in before light to watch a large canyon for the morning. At first light, I rattled in a couple young whitetail bucks. Shortly after rattling in the bucks, I noticed two bull elk feeding up into my canyon from lower down the drainage. A 5x5, and a 6x6. They’re feeding very slowly up the ridge, but right into the canyon I’m sitting. After waiting for what seemed like an hour, they finally clear some burned timber and I have a clear shot at 220 yards. I shoot 6” above the 6x6’s back and watch the bulls run out of my life forever.

2010- I’m archery hunting in the breaks. First morning of the hunt I follow a young 6x6 across a couple canyons, and he leads me to a very, very large 6x6 with a dozen cows. I sneak within maybe 60-80 yards of the herd in a timbered draw with the sun at my back, and let out a bugle. The large bull gathers his cows and comes ripping in to my draw. He stops across the draw and lets out a monster of a bugle right in my face. I send my arrow straight over his back. He rips another bugle, I send my second arrow into the very, very top of his hide above his backstraps. I see him three days later chasing cows, with my arrow still in him, looking like it was balanced on his back.

2011- I’m archery hunting deer in September in the river bottoms just West of Missoula. I’m in a ground blind in a thick cottonwood/willow stand when I see a cow sneaking through the willows. I pull out my camera to tape her walk by, when I notice a 340-350” 7x7 on her tail. I drop my camera and get my bow up in time to watch him walk out of the lane at 30 yards.

2012- I’m in a cottonwood treestand hunting whitetail in a SW Montana river bottom on the opener of rifle season. We knew there were elk in the area, and late morning a herd got pushed through. They’re real close, and there’s a bull in the rear. I rotate in stand to reposition myself, which causes my wallet to fall out of my pocket, stopping the lead cow in her tracks. The herd bails, and I graze the bull with a rushed shot as they’re exiting, and never see him again.

2014- I have a breaks elk tag I waited a very long time for. Opening day of rifle season I hike 4 miles back in to the same canyon I missed the giant bull in 2010. There’s a young 6x6 feeding on a ridge, and I watch him until he beds. I sneak into 50 yards of the bull, dry fire on him, and walk away. He was the only bull I had in range in 14 days of hunting that rifle season.

2016- I drew a very good elk tag in Wyoming. This elk tag also happens to be during the mule deer rut in a pretty good unit. I’m driving down a two track when I see an impressive buck chase a doe into a draw. I grab my camera and sneak over to the edge of the draw, maybe 20-30 yards from the truck. When I peak over, I see the buck with the doe, and I also see 3 mature bulls, the biggest being a 340” 6x6. I’m sky-lined, and they take off. After retrieving my rifle, I spend the rest of the day trying to catch back up to them.

These are just the obvious ones, there’s countless other less significant encounters.

I no longer hunt elk.

ugh...did you copy this from my hunting journal?!

 

[JTHOMP]

In January of 2018 I said I was going to go West next fall for the first time ever, and would be pursuing elk. It's January of 2020 and I'm the proud owner of WY elk and pronghorn points, but still haven't been West.

 

[AvidIndoorsman]

Year 1: Didn't get up early enough
Year 2-Present: Every failed elk hunt I've been on with either myself or others as the shooter has been a result of either not being able to make a shot with a rifle on a broadside elk at under 200 yards, or having a bull tag and only seeing cows or a cow tag and only seeing bulls.

 

[rjthehunter]

Holy crap where do I begin. Crap is where I begin.

Two that stick out.

2014: I am sneaking through the timber mid day. I figure I am not close to anything and I had to make a cow pie. I lean my rifle against a tree and take some gear off and proceed to pop a squat. That's when the 6x6 bull jumps up and runs away from me at about 50 yards.

2018. It's early morning after a brutal uphill hike to the ridge line. It's about an hour after sunrise and I had to make a cow pie. I lay my bow down and hike up the hill about 20 yards to pop a squat. I hear twigs breaking... I see a 6x6 bull walking down the trail 35 yards from me. My bow is between me and the bull.

I've also had my fair share of rushed and missed shots. I've also been extremely lucky a few times... but.. after the 2018 fiasco..

I no longer hunt elk.

Man don't quit... You finally figured out your pattern. When you have to pop a squat, bring your rifle/bow with. Be ready every time! Next time it happens, you're gonna be sitting there mid dump with your rifle in your hands and another hunter is going to walk by!