I was told by a friend that he thought that Eastman's had a book that had breakdowns State by State showing draw stats, hunter numbers, tags available, etc. for help with deciding where to go for public land do it yourself elk hunting....does anyone know if there may be any truth to that? I want to start researching this and have not even settled on a State yet. This will be for archery elk and yes I know I have a LOT of work to do but if there was actually a publication that had this info in it....what a head start that would be.
Archery Elk, Public Land, Do It Yourself Info help
- Thread starter Greenbay
- Start date
i dont know about a book but every year they cover the western states in their magazine, breaking diff units down, showing odds and stats. are you planning on an elk hunt this fall? idaho and colo will be you go to spots for otc tags. im not sure but i think oregon has otc tags as well, dont mark my words on that though. welcome to the forum, you will enjoy it here. ps... welcome to the elk woods! you will never forget it.
Musket Man
Veteran member
I think you are refering to the MRS section in Eastmans magazines. You have to subscribe to get it, its not included if you buy the magazine off a magazine rack. There is ALOT of good info in it to get you started! The MRS info you are looking for is over for this year but if you subscribe now you can look at all the past MRS sections online. Mike Eastmans book elk hunting the west has alot of good info too. Good luck!
Alabama
Veteran member
I would also be happy with a 280-300 bull for my first as well. Or my 7th! I've never been elk hunting but the success rates are far lower than for deer. I think a 200-250 inch bull for a first timer is doable and something to be proud of.
mnhunter
Active Member
This year will be my 4th elk tag (WY cow/calf), and I have yet to hang a tag on one of those sneaky devils. From my perspective, it is going to be the greatest accomplishment in my 21 years of bowhunting to shoot a cow elk with my bow. The first three tags i had were CO OTC archery bull tags. The first year I didn't even see an elk on public land. Lots of sign, bugles, and crashing noises, but I never saw one. By the third year I was actually getting bulls into bow range, they just weren't giving me clean shots.
I am not sure how you view your elk hunting future, but if you want to kill a bull with a bow, plan on investing in multiple tags over a series of years, to learn the area and how to hunt the elk. The other option is to pay for a guide on private land. IMO, CO OTC is about the best way to learn to hunt elk. You can hunt them every year, on the same ground, and eventually you will get them figured out. You can read a lot about elk hunting tactics, but until you get out there and chase them, it is hard to appreciate the challenge.
I am not sure how you view your elk hunting future, but if you want to kill a bull with a bow, plan on investing in multiple tags over a series of years, to learn the area and how to hunt the elk. The other option is to pay for a guide on private land. IMO, CO OTC is about the best way to learn to hunt elk. You can hunt them every year, on the same ground, and eventually you will get them figured out. You can read a lot about elk hunting tactics, but until you get out there and chase them, it is hard to appreciate the challenge.
dying to kill
Active Member
You dern tootin, im a whitetail hunter and a animal with 200in of horn on his head that walks by me and is legal wont be walkin much longer, I see people passin 300in elk on tv and it blows my mind , im screamin at the tv let me take him!! I suppose its about like me passin a 140in whitetail tho after you kill enough of em you want a bigger one, I just cant see that at this point in my hunting life tho.
25contender
Veteran member
- Mar 20, 2013
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Many of those Elk are on Private ranches or locked up public land. My best advice for those starting out that want to hunt accessible public land is to pick a good unit or two and learn it. Keep hunting it till you know what the Elk are doing from year to year. It wont take long to kill a decent bull if you stick with a decent area. It took me a few years to get a P/Y but a few others were taken before that. It takes a lot of hard work and conviction on a DIY public land hunt.
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Going back and reading my last post I kind of had to chuckle a bit.....I need to downsize a bit. Is a 240 - 260 really that much of a reach after a few trips under my belt? After I read my post of 280 - 300 it even sounded a bit arrogant to me and I posted it!!! I do not expect to nail them down on my 1st or even 2nd trip but like it was said here, nail down an area and after a few trips hopefully I can learn enough about the elk where ever it is I decide to go after em. Sounds like I might want to start with a new magazine subscription.
mnhunter
Active Member
I think the key is that you go into your first elk hunt with the right mindset, so you aren't disappointed when you come back with nothing but blisters
DryFlyGuy
Active Member
These posts make me want to open up my camp. Bowhunting elk in the rut is why God made September IMO. I can't do it this year, but maybe I can take one of you hunting with me down the road.
Topgun 30-06
Banned
Greenbay---DryFlyGuy really hit the nail on the head with his comment about hunting bulls with archery tackle in September when they're making noise! There is nothing like it and you know where the bulls are working, rather than playing somewhat of a guessing game after the rut. I don't feel like a 280"-300" bull is asking too much if you're in an area with a decent elk population. We see bulls like that all the time in the Wyoming unit we hunt every year, but unfortunately it is now taking close to max preference points for a nonresident to draw a bull tag while it's about a 75% chance or better for a resident to draw it. We kill a good bull every time someone gets a tag and we'd be 10 for 10 over the last 10 years or so since I started keeping track if one guy hadn't passed on a bunch of bulls under 320" looking for a big one back in about 2005 or 2006. The reason we have that great success is because we've hunted that BLM area for 20 years or more, so definitely believe the guys when they tell you knowing the country is the biggest part of killing elk on a consistent basis!
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I agree on Colorado being a good place to start out with elk hunting. It is really nice to go back year after year and know the country where you are hunting. It does still remind me of whitetail hunting, in that if you go where other people aren't as willing to go, you will find bigger animals.
dying to kill
Active Member
that's some really good advice mnhunter, I have heard it said many times " Every year there are hunters who leave the mountains with the trophy of a life time and every year there are hunters who leave the mountains with nothing but the memories of a lifetime" I just make sure that I fall into one of these, instead of the I didn't kill crap my hunt sucked I wanna complain about everything group ..I think the key is that you go into your first elk hunt with the right mindset, so you aren't disappointed when you come back with nothing but blisters
trkytrack2
Active Member
OTC Colorado is the best bet. You can hunt the same area every year and that really pays off in learning where the elk are and what they are doing and what they are going to do when pressured. Learning feeding, bedding and watering areas are imperative to finding elk. Lots of important info in Eastmans Bowhunting Magazine. Best money an elk hunter will ever spend.
Manualman
Active Member
As you research think of predators. I hunted a unit in Idaho for several years just to find the hunting harder and harder every year. Even as I was getting to know the area better and nailing down the Elk behavior I could not keep ahead of the wolf population. Each season brought less encounters with the Elk. those encounters should have increased as our skills improved and knowledge of the area increased. We bailed on the unit this year and are starting fresh. Kind of a bummer because we really had the area down. I suggest a person start out in a unit that does not have wolves because I believe its gonna get worse and DFG won't be able to get a handle on them for a long time. Just one man's opinion.
shootbrownelk
Veteran member
Right you are, any elk with a bow is a trophy. There isn't a "Big Six" point bull for everyone who wants one. Learning an area well, bedding areas and escape routes takes time and money. Took me better than 10 years to get everything sorted out. It was time well spent, now I usually fill 2 tags a year. It sure was fun though, even on years when I didn't connect. Good luck to you!
25contender
Veteran member
- Mar 20, 2013
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I have a little different take on OTC tags. All of my better bulls have come out of General tag areas. I have hunted a few LD areas but I am always drawn back to the unlimited areas. I have always felt that the areas I know the best I will do better in. I agree there are a lot of factors but even with those factors included in the mix every year for the past twenty I have been offered multiple opportunities to take a elk. Now if you ask have I always taken the shot to fill a tag the answer would be no but I could have. I personally like the unlimited areas. I have found that in most of these areas hunters try to hunt close to where they can drive. Myself I have always packed it in between 3-7 miles depending on where my scouting takes me. I don't think you are taking a chance by hunting a unlimited area if you do your home work and put the time in. I have never hunted elk with a rifle and have always hunted archery season. I just feel this can be the time of year that would be the most productive for the way I hunt and the time of year I can take a few weeks to take care of business. There are way to many resources out there these days for one to be successful. Twenty years ago this wasn't so. Like this site lots of good info that twenty years ago one wouldn't have dreamed of.
I agree with 25contender, the unlimited areas are great during archery season. As long as there is a way to get away from motorized vehicles, there will be some bulls that most of us would want to kill. If the terrain is rough enough, you don't even have to hike in as far. I am by no means an expert, but in the archery season I have found that if you hunt hard enough in good areas, you will get an opportunity. Not to mention it is just fun to be out there at that time of year and in such beautiful country.