Fool me 3 times?

[Marble]

If I was having a hard time finding cows, I would find a place that I could glass multiple areas in the morning and evening and find a group that comes out to feed.

IME, those herds of cows will be out the first and last two hours of the day feeding. If they are not messed with, they will go into the close timber or bedding area, stay there all day and return to continue feeding in that same area until pressured or they eat the majority of the food.

Locate them, plan and then execute. I am rarely successful killing elk without first having a good idea they are already there.

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[Newtosavage]

If I was having a hard time finding cows, I would find a place that I could glass multiple areas in the morning and evening and find a group that comes out to feed.

IME, those herds of cows will be out the first and last two hours of the day feeding. If they are not messed with, they will go into the close timber or bedding area, stay there all day and return to continue feeding in that same area until pressured or they eat the majority of the food.

Locate them, plan and then execute. I am rarely successful killing elk without first having a good idea they are already there.

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Good advice, and almost exactly my approach as well. Whenever I spent more than 2 days without seeing elk, I'd spend the next morning or evening at a high point, glassing as much country as I could see. Both times this past hunt, that led me to new areas where - as you said - I saw cows feeding early and late. However, by the time I got into position (where I had seen them last) it appeared they had moved on. Maybe I'm just that shitty of an elk hunter. It's totally possible. But I've been hunting all my life and had plenty of success with other species. These darn cow elk - on public land - are just killing me right now.

 

[JakeSCH]

Can you find a pinch point where they go from public to private? If you know where at on private, they are bound to make mistakes.

 

[Next Ridge]

Meh, been hunting for 40+ years, and have prolly killed more animals than most folks here if you consider the hundreds and hundreds of feral pigs I've shot in my life. I have a LOT of experience putting crosshairs on critters. I mean a lot. I've also had decades of firearms training, and qualified expert marksman every year of my LE career. It's gonna take a lot more than a 4x4 bull at 225 yards to cause me to blow a "shoot or don't shoot" situation.

The reason the crosshairs were there was in case a cow poked her head out next to him in the narrow gap where he was standing. Had that happened, it would have only taken about 2 seconds to make that shot, as opposed to having to raise my rifle and find the critter.

That said, I understand where your concern comes from because every year I run into guys with rifles that I sure don't think should be pointing them at anything living.

I’ve seen a few comments in threads about how someone has “killed lots of animals”... not sure I see the point. If someone has killed 100 whitetail, 50 coyotes and 100 feral pigs...think they’re automatically ready to go on a Dall Sheep hunt? I haven’t read too many accident reports where someone said “it’s not surprising this accident happened I am super inexperienced”. Watch the widespread video of the DEA agent shooting himself in the foot...

 

[AaronMColeman]

Can you find a pinch point where they go from public to private? If you know where at on private, they are bound to make mistakes.

Thanks! Just gave me an idea for the upcoming cow season.

 

[Rky Mtn Farmer]

I shouldn't have read this thread, I leave in two day for a cow elk hunt.

 

[Newtosavage]

I’ve seen a few comments in threads about how someone has “killed lots of animals”... not sure I see the point. If someone has killed 100 whitetail, 50 coyotes and 100 feral pigs...think they’re automatically ready to go on a Dall Sheep hunt? I haven’t read too many accident reports where someone said “it’s not surprising this accident happened I am super inexperienced”. Watch the widespread video of the DEA agent shooting himself in the foot...

please go troll somewhere else.

 

[Newtosavage]

Can you find a pinch point where they go from public to private? If you know where at on private, they are bound to make mistakes.

I thought of that. I had one spot in mind that I discovered was covered with hunters on opening day (the dark timber behind this herd), and after that, the 15" of snow made it virtually inaccessible for me. But that was my thought too - that I just needed one to make a mistake. During the scouting days before season started, I was watching groups of cow elk hanging out within 1/4 mile of the public land. But I never saw any of them venture onto the public.

 

[Newtosavage]

I shouldn't have read this thread, I leave in two day for a cow elk hunt.

Hey man, surely you have better luck than I do. When it comes to elk, the only luck I have is bad luck.

 

[4rcgoat]

Hey man, surely you have better luck than I do. When it comes to elk, the only luck I have is bad luck.

Believe me when i say this,if you keep hammering away you will break that rock eventually. It always amazes me how quickly an elk hunt can turn around, you go from lowest of lows to highest of highs in the blink of an eye. Im willing to bet next year will be a different story for you.......its just a matter of time before it happens for you. Best of luck.

 

[Newtosavage]

Believe me when i say this,if you keep hammering away you will break that rock eventually. It always amazes me how quickly an elk hunt can turn around, you go from lowest of lows to highest of highs in the blink of an eye. Im willing to bet next year will be a different story for you.......its just a matter of time before it happens for you. Best of luck.

Thanks. That's kinda how it was for me with whitetails way back in the day. Spent most of the 80's and early 90's trying to figure out what the hell I was doing, then once I started killing 'em, it's been steady ever since.

I'm encouraged by how many elk I see on my trips. But I was joking with my wife that I must have looked like a Pac-Man game from 30K feet, with me going one way in the woods, and the herd of elk going around me, again and again and again. LOL

 

[TheGDog]

Oh man... I feel your pain. My deal is getting a regular OTC tag, for bucks... get there and have Mama does with their young ones walking past me at like 18yds. First in the morning, then back again other direction maybe 2pm.

Or... see a hillside with a bunch of deer feeding, but all of 'em are does... and you're over here like "C'mon man.. you're telling me Nobody is after the "P"?.... Seriously?

 

[Southforkguy]

Yup buy a bull tag and deer tag and a bear tag. That way nothing gets away! Lol

 

[Phaseolus]

“A” and “B” tags in Colorado, hunt both sexes!

 

[nphunter]

If your hunting in 15” of snow for cows your in the wrong spot. Most cows will be long gone by the time the snow gets that deep and all that’s left on higher (typically public) ground.

Focus on winter range after about mid Oct. Typically when you find public ground that is also winter range it will be steep river break country. Winter range on public pretty much means ground that could not be cultivated and turned into farmland.

I think a book on elk behavior would be worth a read, sanctuary areas post rut don’t really apply to cows. Typically after the rut the end up in huge herds in low country. If it were me and it worked out I would find a early season cow hunt, elk are easy to find earlier in the year and it is way easier to cover ground and camp when it’s warm and there isn’t over a foot of snow.

Time in the woods is huge and learning elk behavior and habitat. I honestly cannot imagine going out and not being able to find an elk. We have also lived and hunted the same area for over 25 years. Glassing is great but IMO you will find more elk covering ground, use your nose to find high use areas and look for sign. Elk are pretty easy to track in the snow and if you stumble upon a fresh bedding area you will instantly know by the strong elk smell. Hunt with your nose in the wind and go slow. If you get a big whiff of elk slow down and be ready, typically your either close to an elk or a bedding areas.
Snow helps because if you follow a track far enough there will be an elk at the end of it. Even if they are old tracks you can see how they are using the landscape. Make sure you can read a track and which direction they are going and know the difference in a fresh or old one. A lot of times once the snow gets deep the tracks all go the same direction and if that’s the case you need to go that way too

I personally avoid hunting near private, a lot of times that’s easier to hunt so more people hunt it and it can be very frustrating. If you are going to hunt near private make sure it isn’t timbered or the elk most likely will stay on it. A good method of hunting near private with ag below is to walk the fence and find where they are crossing and them walk those trails out. Elk will bed in the wide open too so be ready to shoot one. They really don’t need cover or even go to cover when it’s cold outside.

Good luck and hopefully you can find success, it sounds to me like your hunting to high on the mountain or too close to private. Bulls normally hang higher than cows and there the last to go into the private when migrating out and even if they do they typically pull back out in the dark and hang out higher than the cows.

 

[TheGDog]

Yup buy a bull tag and deer tag and a bear tag. That way nothing gets away! Lol

I do that with deer and bear. Just because one day had two face-to-face encounters w/ Bear down i AngelesNF. But what pisses me off about it is I'll buy that tag right.... and then after deer season ends... I'll plan a trip to go in there to where I had those encounters. And it's a heckuva long hike-in. And I'll even check CA DOT's system which is SUPPOSED to alert you to road closures. Anyhoo... several times now... we get into November or December.... I'll plan to go in there just to see if I can make Bear happen.. and these @$$holes go and close the road right there at Mt Wilson Rd!!! It's so infuriating! And it's like... they go and close it for the smallest amount of weather! I have a big fundamental problem with this. As I'm sitting here paying you for the opportunity/?privilege? to go in there.... and then you @#ks go and close it out so you can get all this easy money!

Also... Mt Wilson Rd... they have all these firearms prohibited signs... and I get that they don't want some idiot shooting and not paying attention and potentially damaging their multi-million dollar transmission antennas. I get that, I really do. But... since that whole area is clearly within the section on the map that shows as firearms are Ok to use. I feel there needs to be comprimise here. Such as "You need to be XXX amount of distance down the hillside before you can shoot. THAT... I'd be totally Ok with. And it makes sense as you don't have to go very far down the mountain at all and then there's no way possible for you to hit their precious equipment. I have a big problem with this lazy man's way of handling this problem. Much like I have a big problem with this lazy man's way they (state governance) are handling CoVID issues. For example.. in the beginning... even before the wild fire BS... they're all like "ALL Forests Are Closed!" ARe you bleeping kidding me!? Laziest isht ever. And they did it solely because they know there are a buncha people that like to do very social forms of hiking (which ain't us!).