Man, It honestly hard to give pointers/advice when it comes to elk hunting. Other than the obvious things such as; get in shape, do your research, shoot your bow as much possible in as difficult situations as possible, good boots, good optics etc, etc.. Honestly elk hunting is something you have to gain receptive experience at to become good/successful at, unless you are granted with some serious beginners luck. Especially archery hunting. Reading books, articles, and listening to guys like us blow smoke on internet forums can't truly prepare you for archery elk hunting. Its something you have to truly experience first hand in order to gain an understanding of. The best advice I can give is prepare yourself mentally. Expect it to be tough. Expect to get frustrated. Expect to be physically challenged. Expect it to not go the way you planned and to be let down, because it never honestly does. But also expect to be successful. In the end it is your mental toughness that gets you out of that sleeping bag every morning. Makes you climb that mountain in the dark. Makes you sit on that ridge and glass for hours on ends. And allows you to keep pushing on when others give up and head home. Like others said before me; stay positive, never give up, don't make the entire trip about killing and enjoy the hunt and the process of the hunt, successful or not. Archery elk hunting is like no other hunt on this earth as far as Im concerned. Its a breed of its own. I wish you all the best of luck this September and welcome to the brotherhood.
Coloradoboy