my first elk hunt, suggestions, tips and stories please?

[bccalls2011]

Your going to be overwhelmed at first, its just endless miles and miles of timber. Dont get complacent and have a gps it will save your rear.
Hunt high, past couple of years here have been extremely hot for colorado and those elk like it high 10-12000 feet and dark timber. But anyways welcome to a whole new addiction, me being originally from illinois I never thought anything got more addicting than whitetail in november but I was way wrong when I started elk hunting.

Good luck and breath slowly, your going to need a lot of oxygen at this altitude.

[Trumpkin the Dwarf]

My advice on calling is:
1. learn to use a diaphragm cow call really well(everyone around you should want to kill you from the incessant practice)

2. There are several good resources on calling elk. One of them who is highly recommended is a guy who goes by Elknut on the internet. His website and elk calling playbook are pretty popular.

3. My personal advice though, when it comes to calling elk is really darn simple. DON'T TALK MORE THAN THE ELK DO.

4. Find elk with your eyes if at all possible before calling. The percentage of positive experiences with calling goes up exponentially when the wind is in your favor and you are under 100 yards from the elk.

As others have said, get in shape.

Final advice? Savor the 30 minutes before legal shooting light. Be in position and just listen to the mountains waking up.

P.S. take lots of pictures!

P.P.S. my advice on calling is based on my own experiences with public land elk hunting...elk in my area of the country tend to be very skittish most days and lots of calling yields poor results unless I happen to hit the one magical day when every creature around wants to praise the LORD at the same time.

[longrifle]

I have been to C.O. 3 times after them, my only concern for you is only being able to hunt 5 days. The last time I went we hunted for 12 days and even that seemed like it was not enough time.I vowed if I went after them again it would be a minimum of 14 days of hunting. Being from N.Y. it takes me 2 solid days of driving just to get there,just my 2 cents worth, good luck .

[adkmountainken]

5 days just for hunting, already have 4 days set aside for travel.

[Kentucky Jeff]

Have a plan to get an animal out.  You are packing everything in?   My advice is to find a guide with some pack horses that you can contact and hire to haul your animal out.  Trust me on this.  

You shoot a big bull and it will be 200# or more of boned meat!  Forget the horns and hide!

Altitude is a beotch.   You will already be physically challenged by the steep terrain.  The altitude will make you PAY!  

Good binoculars...

If you've never hunted out west before be prepared to do a LOT of moving, a lot of glassing, and a little hunting.   Finding the animals and getting within a grid square of them will be the biggest challenge.   Elk can move 30 miles in a day if the weather is pushing them.

This ain't your average whitetail hunt...

[Orion]

My advice is to double the hunting time.  Five days isn't really very much, and elk aren't as common as deer.  By the time you find them, it may be time to pack out.  It will be an adventure, regardless, but the more time you can spend hunting, the better your odds.  Good luck.

[overbo]

Another tip,
If you have ANY allergies?Find a local honey grower in the area you'll be hunting.Get their honey and enjoy it till you leave to hunt.

[TURKEYFOOTGIRL]

I would make sure you always carry food, water, fire, game bags, extra clothes, rain gear , a good knife, a frame pack , binocs ,,rope wherever you go.  Try not to carry too much weight in your daily hunts but enough to butcher an animal immediately and carry the first load back with you.  
   Learning to call is handy but not necessary for a good hunt.  Some of the best elk hunters out there never blow a call.  Depending on where you hunt calls can really hurt you, especially if you aren't very good.  
  Raking trees, splashing in the mud, and breaking branches are often very effective calls to mix in.
  Best advice is to enjoy the whole experience and keep on the move until you find ultra fresh sign.  You will SMELL when you find a good spot.
  Good luck and if you can stretch the hunt out if possible.  Even in the best country 5 days and a stick bow will go quick!

[centaur]

As stated by Del Gue in Jeremiah Johnson, "The Rocky Mountains is the marrow of the world". Let's hope you get into elk, but even if you don't, the country is worth the trip. I moved to the Rockies in the 70s, and it was the smartest move I ever made. With the exception of Alaska, there is no place better on earth.
Lots of good advice above; just enjoy the experience and your hunt will be a success whether or not you score on an elk.

[Bjorn]

I'd say calling is way overrated. Get a copy of "Man Made of Elk" by David Peterson, maybe find a couple of other books as well. Get in shape, confident with your gear, and bring good binocs. And see if you can talk to locals or folks who have hunted the unit you will be hunting.

[durp]

learn to call but keep it in your pocket till its needed and then use it very sparingly...use your ears and eyes more and move slow once fresh sign is found...

elk have become alot more like whitetails than most people think...once you find them hunt them much the same way...

ENJOY !!!

[snag]

The biggest mistake people make is bugling their brains out expecting a bull to come running in. That will alert any elk and they will run from you. Some cow calling is fine. Just don't overdo it. Elk have become educated to calling unless you are somewhere that they don't get hammered.
If you find a wallow that is being used take a fir bough and slap the water with it several times making it sound like a bull has come into it. Then get ready. Sometimes the bull that is using it will be nearby and hear this. He may coming in wanting to see who is using "his wallow".
Also, elk will come in to someone taking a nap and snoring to see what it is.....    
When getting into an area with fresh sign move slowly and learn to listen. Elk moving from feeding areas to bedding areas make a lot of noise.

[eflanders]

Regarding calling:  Bugle to locate and that is it.  If a bull starts coming to a bugle, use raking and ground pounding to coax them in closer.  Cow & calf calls work very good to bring them in closer too.  If you think you are calling too much, you are.

Boots: Get the very best you can afford and walk many miles in them before you go west.  The same holds true for good socks.  I prefer uninsulated boots for elk hunting.

Conditioning:  Running is good only if you run the hills.  This is what you will do when you are chasing bulls.  Running up and down the mountainside.  Biking is excellent too.  The hardest thing I think for most folks is the constant climbing over fallen timbers and rocks combined with the steep terrain.  Your knees and ankles get worked extremely hard.

Shooting: Aim at a very small spot.  These guys are big and their size is deceiving.  Too many folks forget to aim at a small spot and then follow-through until you see the arrow buried.  The distances are also very deceiving so practice using a rangefinder once you get out there.  Also remember that many shots could be taken at extreme angles (up or down).  Remember to practice these shots as well.      

Batteries, GPS, map & compass:  Always get fresh batteries and SPARES just before the hunt.  Carry the spares with you at all times.  A GPS is great but DO NOT rely on it.  Tree cover and other issues may prevent it from working.  Carry two compasses at all times.  You are likely to lose one, break it or whatever and could be without.  Also when you are lost, it is a good practice to check your bearings with a second compass to confirm headings.  If you do not know how to use a map and compass beforehand, you will have problems!

Trespassing: Border lines are clearly marked on current maps.  Know them as the borders are not likely marked in the field.  I know of instances where landowners will shoot first and ask questions later.  If you are caught trespassing, be prepared to shell out lots of money!  Every landowner I have ever met out there charges excessively for trespassing.  If a wounded animal crosses a private border, call the landowner and the game warden BEFORE you proceed after it.  

The Experience:  The absolutely most memorable events for me hunting elk have been when a shot was never even taken.  1). Once I called a calf right up to me within 5 feet! She stayed there for a couple of minutes trying to figure out why I sounded like mom but looked different.  2). Three of us went up the mountain to retrieve a bull that was shot late in the day before.  Once we got near the marks, there were two bulls up there, a satellite and the Monarch.  The monarch was in front of us for almost 20 minutes and none of us could shoot.  3). It was my turn to call on a bull that was in our area.  I called this guy to within 20 yards of my partner with cow calls and raking.  That bull was broadside to my partner for almost 5 minutes and he never took a shot.  He was frozen from bull fever at full-draw.  It was a Pope & Young bull that we nick-named raspy due to his bugle.

I have yet to shoot an arrow at an elk in numerous seasons of archery elk hunting.  I have been positively and forever changed just by the experience!

[John Scifres]

If you are an experienced backpacker, you should be fine with that part.  If you are not, get that way over the coming months.  

Test all of your gear including your diet.  

Have redundant systems where they are needed like meds, orienteering, and water purification.  Try to have everything else be multi-use.  

Learn how to pack and live light so you can move around as needed.  Tarp shelters are my choice.

5 days isn't long for an elk hunt unless it is guided.  First step is to find the elk and it is big country and they move fast and far.  You can't hunt them until you find them.

Get good binoculars.  Get good boots.  Get a good GPS.  Print a custom map of your hunting area from any of the online topo sites.  Get the waterproof kind.

Read Dwight Schuh's "Bugling for Elk".

Stay 2 days at 5000-8000' elevation before heading higher than 8000'.

Use Google Earth for scouting.  Marks high probability areas on your topo.  North facing, high bowls are awesome.

[eflanders]

A few other things:  

1). Use your sense of smell.  The odor of elk will be very noticeable when they are around.
 
2). Elk can move almost totally silent when they want to and if you don't hear them, that doesn't mean that they are not around.  On the other end of the spectrum, elk can also make a lot of sounds when they want to.  Learn the sounds that they make and what the various sounds mean.  There is some good recordings of various elk sounds on the web.

3). What John says about scouting is so very true.  You need to concentrate on locating them first.  Don't waste your time hunting in areas where the elk aren't.  They move when they want and where they want and don't usually frequent the same area for more than a few days at the most depending upon the weather, water, food, their hormones and pressure from the bulls and/or hunters.

[Cedar&Flint]

I'll give you some advice from an old man who wishes every day that he could go on one last elk hunt.Treasure every moment that you're in those mountains. You'll be making some of the fondest memories that life has to offer. Remember that you have chosen to do something that is very difficult to accomplish so don't be too disappointed if you don't get a bull. It took me five years but each hunt was well worth the time, effort, and money spent.

Plan your hunt around the rut and not the opening of the season.Five days is pretty short. If you can go longer, I would.

Carry a camera always. I didn't have one when I got my elk and really regret it.

Buy high quality meat bags. Take a lot of black pepper to repel flies from the meat and salt for the cape.

If you get one, gut it, peel it, and quarter it as quickly as possible. Keep it hanging it in the shade with good air circulation. Elk spoils from the bone out so the quicker you get this done the better.

Good luck wish I was going with you!

[John146]

Don't think anyone touched on this.
Decoy: Get yourself a Montana Decoy of a cow elk. Especially if you are hunting by yourself. I tied a piece of parachute cord to front and back of mine and would just hang it on a tree branch in front and off to one side of me when I was by myself. It would move slightly in the wind and looked real natural. Had a monster 7x6 come in and stopped 35 yards away and just started eating. I know the decoy put him at ease.
If someone is calling for you they need one as well. I called in a big 6x6 for a buddy of mine while holding a Montana Decoy in front of me. When he got to the opposite end of the meadow, I moved that decoy a little, he saw that decoy and he came unglued! Bugled, pissed all over himself and if my buddy would not have shot I am not sure what he would have done. It was the most exciting occurance I have ever had in elk country.
Calling: Get a hyper cow call in case they are in the rut. It works well in the rut. Had a bull in Wyoming come 500 yards and thats no exaggeration.
In the 3 years I went we hit the rut once. I wish I would have had the decoy the other years. I think it would have helped me alot because the elk would not come to a call but I got close on a few occasions by just stalking in front of where they were going. Obviously you have to be around elk for a decoy to work.
I echo what the others have said about the country and the affect it has on you. Its high, no oxygen, etc. BUT it is the most beautiful land I have ever laid eyes on. Let it take your breath away. God was having a great day when he made the places where elk live!!

[DarkTimber]

Soak it all in...5 days will go way too fast and soon you'll be longing to go back.

Oh...and with only 5 days to hunt...shoot the first leagal elk you get a crack at.  You can be picky next time when you have more time to hunt.

[Al Kidner]

Get a bear tag !!

I could have shot two bears when in CO but with no tag makes for regret.

ak.

[Wapiti Chaser]

Do not over call ! Get as far off the beaten path as possible then go in further. Start saving for your next trip as it get in your blood. Don't believe the taxidermist in Colorado when he says the freight bill on your mount " won't be that much " !