Your favorite method - Archery Elk?

[brooks]

Brooks that looks like some awesome elk country! I love hunting terrain that consists of nice open parks, thick timber patches , High elevation, and aspen stands interspersed. Perfect!!

Yea that was a perfect spot for sure. There was a true herd bull in that timber we were glassing in the pic he was a 7x7 and stuck to a cow like glue. He was bugeling every 5 or 10 seconds and right on her butt. He had 3 nice satelite bulls following his every step but keeping back about 30 - 40 yards from him and the cow. We got close to him but the cow took him over that ridge and they were gone. I had about a 25 yard shot on one of the satalite bulls but didn't take it because I thought we might get on the herd bull again. What a show!

[Jon Boy]

I don't just go running though the timber hoping to run into elk. Its a little more complex than that. Hunting in close with the elk "IS" an effective method, and my favorite.

I believe it was old hunter that mentioned it in another thread, the art of still hunting has been lost. Guys have no idea how to go about it effectively. Its a whole different thing tracking down a heard of elk in such thick timber that you can smell them before you see them. I was lucky enough to grow up hunting in the jungles of western washington where this is one of the only methods. It is my favorite as well, glassing can be effective, but not nearly as exciting.

[cnalder]

I exclusively bowhunt but have taken several elk with a rifle. Its just not the same. I'm for getting intimate with where you hunt by learning the ins and outs of an area. This probably most resembles still hunting. Find out where they like to feed, water, bed, and their main travel routes and you don't have to rely on spotting or hearing them. Way to many people bugle and move on if they don't hear an answer. In my experience elk are very active at night and with any moon will do most their calling then except during the peak.

[rsess32]

I personally do a ton of hiking in the off season to get to know the area i will be hunting, (scouting). Get to know where the elk are hanging out, and then during the actual season i do a lot of glassing from those vantage points that i found during the summer to locate those big bulls. But i do also from time to time venture into the deep pines and do the spot and stalk style of hunting. but in my experiences i have been more successful with sitting at a vantage point and glassing.

[rsess32]

I personally do a ton of glassing during the season but it all starts way before the season opens with getting in there and learning the area, locating the elk and finding where they hang out, learn a bit about their movements, (scouting). Then during the season i do a lot of glassing from those vantage points i located during the summer. I do get into the deep timber on occasion to try and get in on them which is always fun and exciting but i have personally been more successful with the glassing method. But without a doubt you have to do some pre season scouting if you want to be successful. Here are a few pics from my last elk hunt from this past archery season in Utah. These are all the product of lots and lots of scouting trips during the summer before the hunt started.