Underrated Elk Hunting Opportunities For You To Seize

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No matter the season, my mind often wanders to the dog days of September when rut-crazed, bugling bulls serenade the landscape with a constant chorus of rocky mountain music. During this brief, magical time frame, hunters cash in their accrued vacation and flood the elk woods in hopes of capitalizing on the chaos and notching a tag on one of the West’s most prized possessions. Mature bulls certainly throw caution to the wind during the rut and are more susceptible to hunters. But, for the discerning elk hunter, the opportunity to hunt is merely kickstarted by the rut and continues through the end of the year in many states. With that said, a successful elk hunter must adapt their tactics with the changing of the seasons.

Due to some incredible conservation movements, elk numbers and the opportunities to hunt them, have never been greater. This includes regions of the country that vary drastically from the high mountain meadows, timber and aspen groves that are synonymous with elk hunting. While on a late-season elk hunt in the Land of Enchantment, I was once again reminded of the resilience and ability that elk possess to adapt to a wide variety of ecosystems.

Glassing across the vast, high desert landscape of central New Mexico felt oddly familiar despite this being my first time in the region. The amber-hued rolling plains were littered with scattered cedars and dotted with herds of pronghorn and the occasional mule deer. However, my intended target for this hunt was a mature, post-rut bull elk.

Unsure of what to expect and full of opening morning jitters, Shaundi Campbell, Senior Marketing Manager at Browning and Gary Gallegos, our guide and owner of Circle Dot Outfitters, and I rumbled down the county road in a billow of dust towards our predetermined glassing knob. The terrain was drastically different from what I considered to be traditional elk country, but as the sun rose, the illuminating rays lit up several groups of elk scattered across the plains. Over the next several days, many laughs were shared, memories were made, and valuable tips and tactics were put in motion to capitalize on a beautiful, late-season New Mexico bull.

Late-Season Elk Biology

One of the first things that prospective late-season elk hunters must become intimately familiar with is the biology and habits of post-rut bulls. During the rut, bulls run themselves ragged, often depleting one to two hundred pounds of their fat reserves. With winter looming following the rut, mature bulls will separate from the cows and consume as many calories as possible to replenish their depleted bodies. During this time, bulls become lazy, occupying a relatively small home range in an attempt to conserve energy and rebuild their body mass before winter sets in. This can make bulls more difficult to locate, but once found, these two factors can play in the hunter’s favor.

There is an exception to every rule, but typically during this time, the bulls you see with the cows are immature bulls. Do not get hung up on an area that has plenty of cows as the mature bulls have done their best to put some distance between them and other large groups of elk. It is also common during this period for bulls to congregate in bachelor groups. When you glass up a solitary bull, diligently pick apart the immediate surroundings and be sure that there is not another, bigger bull nearby.

Isolation

The last thing that bulls want during this time is to be disturbed, isolating themselves into some notoriously rough country. Focus your time and attention on remote areas that provide recovering bulls plenty of cover and nutrient-dense food. It is also not uncommon for mature bulls to begin their transition to their winter range post-rut whether the snow has arrived or not. Once the snow does come, focus your efforts on south-facing slopes and wind-swept ridges that expose feed. For whatever reason or reasons, bulls seem to be drawn to secluded, rugged canyons filled with dense pockets of mahoganies or cedars to seek shelter from the elements as well as unwanted hunting pressure.

Throughout the duration of our hunt, we looked over hundreds of cows and young bulls, intermixed throughout the valley floor with herds of pronghorn and mule deer. While not having to deal with adverse amounts of snow or pressure in this particular area, the majority of the post-rut bulls we found were still tucked away in the dense cedar-covered hills and rocky canyons adjacent to the rolling plains. Bulls do not usually have to go far to escape pressure, but even in these hidey-holes, they have a hard time escaping a well-trained eye behind a good pair of binoculars.

Glassing Game

Without the audible bugle of a mature bull to give away his whereabouts, hunting late-season bulls usually requires countless hours behind the glass to pinpoint their location. Identify effective vantage points and patiently pick apart every nook and cranny of the topography in front of you. When glassing for elk, do not be afraid to look at extreme distances. The yellow hide of a bull provides a stark contrast from its surroundings and is easily visible, even when viewed from miles away. Glassing with large magnification binoculars, such as Leupold’s BX-5 Santiam HD 15X56’s mounted to a tripod is also extremely effective during late-season hunts. You may not be able to tell exactly what a bull has for headgear from a mile or two away, but you should be able to tell if a closer look is warranted.

It is also important to remember that temps during late-season hunts can be bone-chilling cold. The importance of an adequate layering system is key to a hunter’s ability to effectively glass the country in front of them. When extreme cold temps are likely to be experienced, pack a down jacket and pant into your pack. They weigh almost nothing and will be a welcomed blanket of heat when glassing for extended periods. A lightweight glassing pad is also a nice addition to keep the snow from soaking through your pants as well as provide a layer of insulation between you and the frozen ground. The longer you can sit, the more time you will spend behind your glass and subsequently, the more animals you will see.

Gary, Shaundi, and myself had been glassing for a half hour or so when I caught a glimpse of a bull nearly two miles away on our third morning of hunting. The spotting scope confirmed that there were actually several bulls and that one in particular appeared more mature, both in body and antler size, than his counterparts. The group of bulls were tucked away in a distant canyon, choked with cedars. This would make the approach fairly simple but finding a shooting lane could be problematic. Regardless, we loaded up our packs and began to cut the distance between us and the bachelor group.

Shot Execution

Peering around the edge of a large cedar, we studied the group of five bulls feeding across the canyon from us, unaware of our presence. Now 440 yards away, we got our first good look at the mature bull we had originally spotted earlier that morning. His body size and rack were noticeably larger than the other bulls. Leaning on Gary’s expertise of the area, I asked, “What do ya think?” “I think you should kill him,” Gary replied. That was all the persuasion I needed. 440 yards was a fair poke, but there was no way we were going to get any closer given the topography and vegetation. Plus, I was packing Browning’s X-Bolt McMillan Long Range, chambered in 6.8 Western that I knew was more than capable of delivering a pinpoint blow at this distance.

Fortunately, I was able to sprawl out prone and create a near dead-rest with the Spartan Precision Javelin Pro Bipod steadying the front of the rifle and my pack tucked underneath the buttstock for rear support. Several minutes passed before the bull finally stepped into a clear shooting lane, mere yards away from stepping over the ridgeline and out of our lives. I let out a long exhale and squeezed the trigger. The minimal recoil of the 6.8 Western allowed me to watch the bullet impact the center of the shoulder which was immediately followed by the audible “whack” of the 162-grain Winchester Copper Impact finding its mark. The bull dove for the ridgeline but didn’t make it five yards, expiring in a matter of seconds.

This exact scenario is a common occurrence on many late-season elk hunts. The terrain bulls inhabit during this time is typically steep and thick, necessitating the ability to execute a precise shot at extended distances. Practice extensively with your rifle of choice and become intimately familiar with its capabilities as well as your own. Never take a shot that you do not have the utmost confidence in knowing exactly where your bullet will impact. We owe it to the elk and ourselves to always do our best to deliver a swift, lethal blow regardless of the distance we choose to pull the trigger from. If you can get closer, do it.

Late season opportunities

Late-season elk hunting opportunities are far more numerous than they are during the rut. Especially with a rifle. I will not pinpoint areas that you should focus on for finding these late-season hunts but know that there are both over-the-counter and limited-draw tags in nearly every state in the West for hunting late-season bulls. Spend a few hours researching and asking the right questions and you will be able to hone in on many of these opportunities.

If a late-season bull tag is unavailable and you are looking to add a couple hundred pounds of some of the finest eating meat in the world to your freezer, do not hesitate to seek out an antlerless elk tag. Antlerless tags are plentiful during the months of November and December.

Truthfully, there has never been a better time to be an elk hunter than right now. The demand for them has never been greater, making hunting pressure an obstacle that must be overcome. But, there is an incredible number of elk scattered throughout the West with numerous areas far exceeding their carrying capacity. The rut may be King in terms of when to hunt elk but do not miss out on some of the incredible elk hunting that exists across the West by neglecting the underrated late-season opportunities.

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