ElkNut1
With that said, I had a premium Wyo elk tag a couple years ago. There was a full moon with cooler weather and I couldn't make rhyme nor reason for when the elk were active. The only factor on that hunt that kept them from rutting during daylight hours was high winds (which it blew a lot 20 to 50+ mph). I have a feeling moon phase may not matter as much at 10,000' or areas that tend to have cooler conditions. If I had accumulated a bunch of pref pts and was hunting desert elk country I would likely pick a year with no moon. At least you would be putting one factor in your favor for a once in a lifetime tag. If it's a tag you can draw regularly or hunting high alpine country where it is cool the moon phase may not matter as much.
With that said, I had a premium Wyo elk tag a couple years ago. There was a full moon with cooler weather and I couldn't make rhyme nor reason for when the elk were active. The only factor on that hunt that kept them from rutting during daylight hours was high winds (which it blew a lot 20 to 50+ mph). I have a feeling moon phase may not matter as much at 10,000' or areas that tend to have cooler conditions. If I had accumulated a bunch of pref pts and was hunting desert elk country I would likely pick a year with no moon. At least you would be putting one factor in your favor for a once in a lifetime tag. If it's a tag you can draw regularly or hunting high alpine country where it is cool the moon phase may not matter as much.
I also had a full moon, but the monsoons were in full effect...Just had to adapt!
I killed a bull this last fall on the 29th of august, man the moon was big. It was a desert type unit,didn't seem to effect the elk at all.
But then again i prefer to hunt desert type units, i can cover much more ground with my optics than i can with my feet.
Many hunters have a difficult time getting into & killing elk without the Full Moon, so enter a Full Moon phase into the equation & they really feel their chances minimize immensely at killing an elk!
It's this way because this is what much of the reasoning is throughout many hunting sites! Of course you & I know elk are still very huntable during this phase but it's tough to convince others who have doubts that they still can be successful at that time & many come from out of state & do not want to take a chance if their odds lessen.
ElkNut1
Some people use it as an excuse. Others consider it just another opportunity. I don't think I need to say which group are those that are consistently successful.
A lot of guys hunt elk at 8,000 to 10,000+ elevation where it obviously is cooler during the day so it likely doesn't matter as much. I've spend days upon days sitting and waiting in the desert for elk to be active in extreme heat and it isn't any fun! Full moon plus heat during the day definitely is a boring combo when hunting desert country. Add a cool breeze and afternoon rainshowers that are often common at higher elevation and there is a BIG difference in activity!
If I draw a tag and have a choice of hunting dates I usually play the weather by ear. If it's a full moon plus super hot/dry I may delay. Makes sense to go when the elk will likely be more active. Some guys say it's almost entirely based on photo-period...which I will agree to disagree on when hunting desert country elk!
As the month progresses to the 12th & on we now focus more on run & gun as bulls are more apt to sound off on their own or in response to our bugles! There's those same chances a vocal bull can be had before the 12th so we will adapt & hunt accordingly. When Full Moon & rut collide, look out bulls, they will hit the dirt! (grin)
ElkNut1
That's good stuff rig there Paul...Thanks!
