do you consider this an optimum time to try to call in the bull? what variables will decide if you go after them during mid-day vs. wait until evening.
If you almost never hunt mid day when the elk are bedded, is it strictly because you could consider the mid day winds to be more risky and more unpredictable than during the evening? do you consider bumping elk from a bed, more detrimental and longer lasting then bumping them when they are on there feet heading or returning from feeding, and make it much less likely you'll find those elk again and that is why you don't risk it?
I've been pretty conservative in what little elk hunting experience i have when it comes to mid-day, but have had some mid day action, and have heard from some others that mid day might be worth taking more advantage of but was hoping to revisit the conversation again with this past season fresh in everyone's mind.
i didn't hunt this year for elk, just reflecting on some past experience and stories from others this year.
thanks,
Eric
With that said, if you catch stable midday winds, which happens, many times on the front or backside of a storm, you can find some pretty good hunting. If you find a bedded bull or herd setup within 100 yards or so and do some light cow calling or raking. Next, wait, wait, wait. I would say up to two hours. You need to stay very alert. Many times, the bull will eventually get up and come check you out, but he will be completely silent and often try to come from down wind.
Midday can also be a good time to sit wallows.
For me midday is usually spent listening for bugles especially around 12-2. Bulls will get up to feed or stretch and bugle.
Herd bulls bedded with cows are just about impossible to get to. But I keep trying.
Worked out good this Season...I got within earshot of 3 bedded bulls by late morning on the Opener, took a long nap, and the next Morning, my buddy and I were able to intercept them, and take the Monarch.
Best of Luck, Jeff
I prefer to avoid calling until I can get very close...I do not want to give away my position if I can avoid it. If I can't accomplish that because of unpredictable wind, then, the game is off.
I've been burned before moving in, midday, with what I thought was a favorable wind...just to have it completely reverse on me.
I'm willing to burn a day if I think I can develop a solid plan to get up close and personal. Wind is always the deciding factor for me.
Best of Luck, Jeff
I also hunt where others don't and can hunt the same bull for multiple hunts, so I leave the mid-day to others. When guiding rifle hunters in the same area we pretty much sit it out and hope something moves through.
if the wind is likely to switch direction during the mid day, is there any predictability to it, that would make a certain type of approach to near the bedding area less risky. for example it is likely only to switch to one side or the other but still maintain an upward direction, or is it just as likely to switch completely down hill for a bit?
I think for many like me, coming from the east, we often dealing with some hunting competition and limited days, so this tends to increase the urgency and willingness to consider more risky strategies, to a certain degree at least
do you guys have what you consider a safe distance to wait it out away from a known bedding area when it isn't practical to go back to camp?
I don't know where you hunt but I bet you need to pay more attention to the wind. Calm days are the exception. I hunted 20 straight days this elk season and had only two days that I was willing to hunt midday because of the wind. Actually, this year I stayed at the tent and sat out three full days because the wind never settled down. On those days I went out to glass and listen for elk at a distance. It isn't just wasted time at camp, think of it as scouting for the next hunt.
"is there any predictability to it,"
Not even a little bit. It is totally unpredictable. Actually the only thing predictable is that it will change any second.
"do you guys have what you consider a safe distance to wait it out away from a known bedding area when it isn't practical to go back to camp?"
It depends on the terrain and the wind but I generally go back to camp. If you don't want to go back to camp, walk away from the elky area to an area where you aren't finding any sign. I have had days where I know where a bull is bedding and nowhere else to be so I will just find a spot to hangout for the day until the winds calm down. Total guess but I would say I get at least 1/4 mile away from the bull probably more. If you can't get in close enough to hunt, why hangout? Elk do occasionally get up and move throughout the day. If the wind is bad you don't want nearby elk to get bumped when they walk into your scent.
"I think for many like me, coming from the east, we often dealing with some hunting competition and limited days, so this tends to increase the urgency and willingness to consider more risky strategies"
I understand this mentality and I think you hit the nail on the head for most midday hunters, but you really aren't hunting when the wind is bad. You are just taking your bow for a walk while you spook elk. Patience goes a long way with elk hunting. I'll take a good hour in the morning and evening over 8 hours of bad hunting any day. I don't mean to get on a soap box here, and EJG, I'm not trying to get on your case. Actually I commend you for asking about this, but I honestly think success rates in almost every unit or area would be at least several points higher if guys would be more patient and not hunt all day in swirling winds. Most of us hunt public land. There is always competition but that doesn't me we can't also give each other a chance to be successful. Hunting in swirling winds doesn't just ruin your hunt, it ruins everyone's hunt. Elk will leave the area. Deer adjust their habits but they tend to stay pretty much in the same spot. With enough pressure, elk will go miles away to private property or another unit. The wind should be the first and most important factor you consider before heading out to hunt. YOU WILL NEVER BEAT AN ELK'S NOSE.
That can sometimes lead to a relentless wind in one direction. Notice I said "sometimes".
I try to make sure I'm at least uphill and a good distance from a bedded herd by mid-day. Not out of the question to blow elk out a quarter mile away. Having a ridgetop, or other contours in between also helps.
Next time you are out and about...check the wind with your puffer from a static position, every minute or so, around 10 AM or later. Notice the variations.
Looks like we posted at the same time, Andy lol.
Best of Luck, Jeff
"if the wind is likely to switch direction during the mid day, is there any predictability to it, that would make a certain type of approach to near the bedding area less risky."
Not where I hunt. That's why we refer to it as unpredictable. It swirls every which way. One minute it's in your face, the next it's at your back. Doesn't settle back down till almost nightfall.
"I think for many like me, coming from the east, we often dealing with some hunting competition and limited days, so this tends to increase the urgency and willingness to consider more risky strategies, to a certain degree at least"
IMO, that's the exact reason NOT to take unneccessary risks. Someone unfamiliar with the terrain, winds, and the elk that live there, have the odds stacked against them enough as it is. It may take several days for you to even locate elk. If you bust them out of their bedding area by recklessly challenging their nose, you're going to lose every single time. Now instead of hunting elk, you're back to hunting FOR elk, with little time left to do so. As Jaq posted, once you find elk, there's a good chance you can hunt them multiple times...IF you don't blow them out of the country. Be aggressive when the odds are in your favor. When they're not, back out and wait till they ARE in your favor.
This is the very reason I've hunted late afternoon/evenings exclusively out of a treestand for the past 20yrs. I got tired of the wind screwing me time after time after time.
one particular area i hunt is a primarily a long straight main ridge line, where often the elk feed up above treeline. i wonder if perhaps it is slightly more predictable or if i just have a bad memory, or because i haven't been doing a lot of active hunting during the mid day, that is why i haven't noticed as much.
again thanks for all the feedback and just helping re-ephasize some key points. when you don't get to go every year and didn't grow up doing it, it is easy to let bad habits creep up or forget obvious things in the excitement.
