Elk 101

[Jazz]

Trying to get the elk call thing down. Never done bugles before, am familiar with cow calls.. 

Never hunted bulls in the rut before! Wife has the archery tag, I'm trying to learn best practices to get close to bulls. I've watched a ton of elk101 on YouTube, and am digging some of the things they do. It'll be Sept, and probably hot, and there's some great water spots in the unit, but I know I'll be hearing bugles all over- having knowledge of calling them in / getting close to them  if I go that route will help.

Anyone have any good books/video suggestions?

[bigorange]

Steve Chappell videos are great. 

[Coueser]

I think you are smart to start with water sources.  Depends on the year, but when it is dry they can be you best bet for archery.  

I second above on Steve Chappell.  I think the sounds he makes on his youtube videos are the most authentic I've heard.  If you can get down a good locator bugle and a smooth cow call with either diaphragm or my preference is an external reed cow elk call (personal favorites are the primos hyperlip or phelps ez estrus) then you should be in great shape

[CatfishKev]

I heard in Duwane Adams camp they use a bull call to locate and thats it. Then just move in and try and get eyes on them. Callings risky these days imo. Too many people trying but not knowing how to do it properly i think. 

[thegunsmith2506]

When my wife had a tag in 2016 the hunt was early in Sept. I listened to every podcast I could find with Corey Jacobson. It worked very well for us. I used a flextone bugle so I could remove the tube and use it with a diaphragm call.

[Jazz]

2 hours ago, CatfishKev said:

I heard in Duwane Adams camp they use a bull call to locate and thats it. Then just move in and try and get eyes on them. Callings risky these days imo. Too many people trying but not knowing how to do it properly i think. 

And I wanna do it properly 😃 But I see the logic. 

[Jazz]

46 minutes ago, thegunsmith2506 said:

When my wife had a tag in 2016 the hunt was early in Sept. I listened to every podcast I could find with Corey Jacobson. It worked very well for us. I used a flextone bugle so I could remove the tube and use it with a diaphragm call.

I'll look into that!

[AzDiamondHeat]

Depending on the unit, you may find laying off the bugle all together to be more beneficial. Hunters chase bugles, not cow calls. Calling in other hunters is entertaining but really not productive(unless it is not my tag then I very much enjoy it lol).  Bulls can and will respond to loud cow calls from very far away. You can find very good success using cow calls to locate instead of bugles. 

 

And look into the elk101 series. Very good inifo

 

 

 

 

[maximus]

Chappell has the trophy wife and matriarch, both are great calls and he has videos on you tube how to use them.

 

[Newbie2012]

25 minutes ago, maximus said:

Chappell has the trophy wife and matriarch, both are great calls and he has videos on you tube how to use them.

 

I have both. They are great sounding calls. 

[Calamado_Guey]

1 hour ago, AzDiamondHeat said:

Depending on the unit, you may find laying off the bugle all together to be more beneficial. Hunters chase bugles, not cow calls. Calling in other hunters is entertaining but really not productive(unless it is not my tag then I very much enjoy it lol).  Bulls can and will respond to loud cow calls from very far away. You can find very good success using cow calls to locate instead of bugles. 

 

 

 

 

 

This is good advice….. you can bet (depending on the unit and tag numbers) that plenty of guys will be trying to randomly bugle and cow call for a response. I think the animals get conditioned to this very quickly. Archery hunts I’ve had and other hunts I’ve been invited to, we always did better going in early and quietly. Try and locate them feeding and get in front of them when they move to their beds. Also, as mentioned, sit  still on water if it’s feasible. There’s a time and place for calling, but often times it becomes the best way to watch a herd race away from you. Obviously there are exceptions to it all and being prepared to make good and timely calls can be productive. Best of luck to you and the wife. Makes great memories! 

[twigsnapper]

Chris Roe has really good information on calling elk.  Worth the time and $ to watch his videos. 

https://www.roehuntingresources.com/Sign-up

[trphyhntr]

Locate with the bugle only if completely necessary. Then put it away   

[Jazz]

2 hours ago, twigsnapper said:

Chris Roe has really good information on calling elk.  Worth the time and $ to watch his videos. 

https://www.roehuntingresources.com/Sign-up

I'll check it out!

[HuntHarder]

I like to get a feel for the actual hunt I am on.  Some hunts, the animals are very call shy, so calling is minimal at best.  Other hunts, they come screaming in, in a hurry.  Some bulls respond better to cow calls, other's come to bugles.  Some bulls like branch's breaking, bugling.  Calf calling is one of my favorite calls to pull a cow away from the harem.  If you can pull a cow, chances are, that bull will not let her get too far away before he comes to gather her back up.  

I would say on average, bugle to locate, move in and figure out how many cows he has and develop a plan from there.  If you start calling, be ready to have satellite bulls come in completely silent.  My favorite hunt to go on for sure.