Know-How: Five Elk-Calling Don’ts

by
posted on August 19, 2017
** When you buy products through the links on our site, we may earn a commission that supports NRA's mission to protect, preserve and defend the Second Amendment. **
elk_calling_donts.jpg

At first light I was sitting on a Montana mountainside listening. Somewhere in the drainages below an elk had bugled. I spotted tan shapes passing between stands of aspen. Just as my game plan was forming I heard another hunter bugle from the horse trail a half-mile back. I winced and held my breath. Though the bull below me could certainly hear the call, it didn’t respond. I was smiling then. That bull had heard people call from that trail before, which is why I didn’t bugle from there. Sometimes calling elk is about knowing what not to do.

1. Don’t Call From Where Everyone Does
It is typically better to call from a spot where a bull is likely to be and where hunters haven’t already called from. View your calling locations as setup spots—a bull could answer close.

2. Don’t Forget Thermals
On a cooling slope, air falls. On a warming slope, air rises. Generally when the sun hits a slope in the morning, thermals shift from downhill to uphill. The prevailing wind and the terrain complicate this basic principle. On a warming slope in late morning, a nearby shady drainage might still have air moving downhill. Wind swirls in bottoms. Reading these currents is critical.

3. Don’t Call Too Much
You are not out there to call; you are out there to convince a bull elk you are either competition or a companion. This means you need to call realistically, as in how an elk would behave.

4. Don’t Hunt Without a Cow Call
Bugling isn’t everything. Primos’ Hoochie Mama Cow Elk Call made cow calling easy—some say too easy, as pressured elk have likely heard that call many times. Still, a cow call, or several, needs to be in your pocket. Know when to use it.

5. Don’t Forget a Decoy
It’s hard not to recommend Montana Decoy Co.’s elk decoys. They are light and fold up into your pack. They are bull convincers, and they offer concealment.

Latest

Ledegrasssland
Ledegrasssland

Grassland Conservation Funds Available in Ohio

The Ohio Department of Natural Resources (ODNR) Division of Wildlife has $9 million in funding available for landowners who want to create grassland habitat that can support native wildlife, like northern bobwhite quail and other grassland-nesting birds.

New for 2025: Texas Hunter Products Trophy Quail Feeder

Texas Hunter Products has launched its the Trophy Quail Feeder, engineered to meet the diverse needs of landowners, hunters, and conservationists nationwide.

Hardware Review: Leupold VX-6HD Gen 2

This year Leupold introduced the VX-6HD Gen 2 series of scopes. Read our Hardware review of it here.

First Look: MDT Timbr Core Rifle Stock and Core Bottom Metal

MDT has announced that the Timbr Core Rifle Stock and Core Bottom Metal are now available.

#SundayGunday: Burris Signature HD 15x56mm Binocular

This week on #SundayGunday, we’re taking a break from things that go bang and setting our sights on a key piece of gear for spotting your quarry, the Burris Signature HD 15x56mm Binocular.

First U.S. Citizen Contracts New World Screwworm

On Aug. 24 HHS confirmed a Maryland resident—who recently traveled to El Salvador—is the first documented human case of New World Screwworm (NWS) in the United States. Presence of the parasitic larvae (maggots) was confirmed on Aug. 4 after studies conducted by the CDC and the Maryland Department of Health.

Interests



Get the best of American Hunter delivered to your inbox.