elk experience in 4-06/4-20

[Husq]

Well I certainly had an interesting couple of days chasing the elk around a mountain side. Perhaps you guys might tell me what you would have done instead?

I wake up sat morning and I've slept in, its 5 am and I should have been hiking by now. Oh well nothing to do about it. I end up parking at the start of my hike and I know the elk are up this mountain side I just don't know how high. The forest is tinder dry but thankfully the elk are so active in this area they've established great, sneaky and wide trails. Meanwhile the squirrels are busy dropping pine cones down trees and keep freaking me out that there's some elk nearby, pesky buggers.

After about two hours of walking 10 paces and pausing for 30 secs to look around I bump into the lead cow of a bulls harem. I know she caught a glimpse of me but I think she didn't know what to think, they didn't go into alarm mode. I sat for about 5 minutes trying to decide what to do since this was my first real experience hunting elk. I decided to send out a cow in estrous call and see if that would pull the bull down.

After that things started going down hill, the cows trotted away up hill and the bull started to bugle essentially calling his herd back to him. So I decided to let out a bugle of my own, which he immediately replied to and we exchanged tit for tat a few times but he never came down. He ended up moving off with his herd and I didn't bother chasing for fear of really making him move off to the next drainage.

I guess my questions are: Would you have bugled right off the bat being that close to that bulls herd essentially forcing him to accept the challenge? Or what other things could a person have done?

What do think the chances are of that bull bringing his harem back to their well established bedding area? Which I found and I think i'm going to sit at....

Thanks in advance.

[Bobfl]

It happens. You should not have buggled. The elk may have looked your way but if the wind was on your side she would have stood there for 5 -10 min trying to figure you out. The cow call made her suspicious and frieghtened causing her to bolt. If you did not bugle the bull would have followed at the back of the pack. you may have got a shot. never bugle at close range to a bull. They always bolt unless they know a satalight bull is in area. you did not know that so patience is always best to wait, If he ran after the heard and you never got a shot you can then be the satalight bull which may have brought him back

[Husq]

what do you think the chances of them returning to their established bedding grounds are?

I didn't spook em to bad.....

[KodiakHntr]

Slim to none, for a week or two at least.

If the lead cow was suspicious, then most likely the rest of the herd was watching her, waiting to see what to do.

Should of waited her out until she relaxed.

One thing thats worked for me in the past, is to push hard bugling as they are climbing up the mountain. Occasionally you can push a bull hard enough that he kicks his cows up over the hill, and comes back to fight you off.
However, I can't remember ever doing that on elk that have busted me, only elk that wouldn't come down off the mountain to me with cow calls.