Archery elk season starting this Saturday in CO

[chevynut]

Our archery deer/elk season always starts on the last Saturday in August and goes for 30 days. Some years it's way too early, and I wish they'd change it to start September 1, regardless of what day of the week it is. I don't know why they need to accommodate everyone out there at once, but that's what they do.

I'm going up for the weekend and plan to hunt some lower (~8500 foot) areas where I think elk may be. I was there in July and went scouting a couple of weeks ago and saw a lot of elk sign down low. We hiked 8 miles that day and got just below timberline. It was rough, but the elk are there. In a week I'm going back with my son and his friend, and we're planning to hunt 9 days. We plan to pack in a little over 2 miles up to about 10000 feet if we have to go that high to reach them.

I've decided not to go to Kansas this year for whitetails, since the landowner whose place we hunt on opened it up for "walk-in hunting" a few years ago. I don't need to travel 7 hours and pay $500 to hunt what is now essentially "public" hunting. Last year some asshole stole a pull-up rope out of my stand between my morning and evening hunts. We've been going there for 10-12 years now, but I may just go to Nebraska instead. I didn't draw anything in any other state I applied in.

Anyone else have hunting plans this fall? It's coming FAST!

[smooth 56]

Good luck chevy hope you shoot a good one. Our season start's sep 28 for bow till nov. 8. Don't have any out of state hunt's planed But have been seeing some nice buck's in middle TN where our other farm is.Going this weekend to get our winter food plot's started.Really looking forward to getting in the wood's this year.

[NickP]

No cap poppin or bow strings for me this year. I haven't scored anything in so long I don't know if I recall where the trigger is. I put 50 rounds through my concealed carry pistol on requalification last month but that's it.

[ilike55s]

Good luck to you on your Elk hunt, Chevynut!! Actually that is about right as far as the rut goes, isn't it? What I've read is the rut is triggered by the change from the longest day to the shorter days, and not by the temperature change as a lot of people think. I cannot remember what they call that "change" tho
I drew a permit for a cow hunt for first week in December. I had applied for a muzzle loader Bull on 2nd week in September but did not draw and got put in 2nd choice drawings for one of the cow hunts. I'm a dang meat hunter anyway, so that will work out for me. MMmmmmm love that Elk jerky,,,!!!!!
Man,,,I just love those big old bulls arguing all night long around our place up in the hills.

[JT56]

Nick did you see that after Sept 1, 2013. You don't have to take a re-fresher course or re-qualify for your CHL? Everything online. I dont mind the re-qualify...really think that should be apart, but oh well.

[NickP]

Nick did you see that after Sept 1, 2013. You don't have to take a re-fresher course or re-qualify for your CHL? Everything online. I dont mind the re-qualify...really think that should be apart, but oh well.

Hadn't seen that

[chevynut]

I drew a permit for a cow hunt for first week in December. I had applied for a muzzle loader Bull on 2nd week in September but did not draw and got put in 2nd choice drawings for one of the cow hunts. I'm a dang meat hunter anyway, so that will work out for me. MMmmmmm love that Elk jerky,,,!!!!!
Man,,,I just love those big old bulls arguing all night long around our place up in the hills.

ilike55s, where are you hunting? Do you live in Colorado?

I think they should take the muzzleloader hunt completely OUT of September. In the first place, it's too damned easy to shoot a bull in rut with a rifle...and a muzzleloader isn't that much of a handicap compared to a bow. Secondly, having bowhunters in camo in the field at the same time with muzzleloader hunters with blaze orange is just fricking dumbass stupid. The CDOW must have their collective heads up their asses to structure the seasons that way.

A few years ago a muzzleloader shot a bowhunter and killed him....they were hunting partners. You'd think that would have woke up the dipshits in the CDOW to change things. The interesting thing is they always report hunting accidents, but didn't say a word about this one. It happened near Steamboat Springs. If I was a family member of the dead bowhunter I'd be suing the shit out of the CDOW for setting this tragedy up with their asinine policies.

[ilike55s]

Chevynut, I live in Redondo Beach Ca. but hunt in the SW section of Colorado or in northern NM if we draw. Kali-fornia sucks as far as having the numbers of big game and with all the fires, who knows???
We have 5 boys and they all love to hunt and have been hunting since they were old enough to carry their own firearm.. My oldest boy is the only one that likes to bowhunt for Deer and while he has never bagged one,,,he has videoed some monsters! We never can seem to find these wall hangers during the rifle hunts but they come out of their hiding places for the rut in January. I myself use a BAR in 7Mm magnum for the rifle hunts and a CVA smoke pole in 50 cal if I draw there.
You are exactly right about the muzzle loaders of now-a-days. My third oldest Son has a Knight 50 and uses some "special" spire point bullets with some "very special" powder ,,,,and we sight his gun in at,,,,,,,,,,,250 yards! Un-freaking believeable,!!!! but it do have a noticeable kick.
To tell you the truth, I do not really like any of the hunts scheduled to coincide with the rutting periods as too many of the trophy animals are harvested during their most important reproduction times. I would rather have the hunts start after the ruts, but I know the majority of hunters would never agree with that.
GOOD LUCK with your bow hunt. What part of Colorado do you hunt? My wife's B-I-L lives in Aurora and will be hunting somewhere "west " of Denver he said,,?? Shit-ass would not tell me exactly where!

[chevynut]

I have hunted all over Colorado, and hunt elk in NM, MT when I draw. I apply for about 30 licenses in 7 states every year, mostly Sheep, goat, and moose. I have been applying for moose in CO for about 17 years now and have never drawn, so I started applying in MT and UT several years ago too. I have hunted the Missouri River Breaks in MT for elk and have seen lots of sheep there. They have some of the biggest rams in the lower 48 there. I have been hunting whitetail deer in KS for the past 10-15 years, but didn't apply this year due to losing several private places we've been hunting. Damned leasing is taking over everywhere.

I pretty much quit rifle hunting in '91 when I started bowhunting..it's a lot more fun, and I see a lot more animals. It's nice not having to compete with 150,000 other hunters in the field. But it's a lot harder to fill a tag too. Here's some of my best bowhunting success pics. :)

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[ilike55s]

WOW,,,you been a lucky dude, Dude. I have drawn 3 bull muzzle loader permits in New Mexico but never bagged a Bull. I have drawn a cow Elk permit 3 times and bagged two, but as I said, I 'm a meat hunter.
That is one giant hog,,,,where did you get that huge SOB? what 'd it weigh,,,450 or so,,? I went on a White tail hunt down around Victoria, Texas and we saw lots of hogs but NOTHING near that big. All them folks down there tell me they are dang good eating,,,??

[NickP]

RESULTS?

[chevynut]

Well it was a fun weekend, but came home empty. We went to an area that I had scouted a few weeks ago but hadn't hunted in almost 10 years. We took ATVs in 7 miles and set up camp. Didn't see another hunter all the way in. After setting up camp we took a walk, and found another camp 1/4 mile from us. :(

On opening morning we got into elk below camp and one "barked" at us from downwind. We never saw them but there was a bull bugling in the herd. That night we saw nothing. The next morning we walked back on the trail another mile and dropped into the timber. I found a place that I thought looked "elky" so we sat down and started calling. About 5 minutes later I heard a crash to my left, downwind of me. An elk had sneaked in downwind and got my scent. A few minutes later it walked back the other way at about 30 yards, but I only saw its rump. We continued to call and I saw an elk coming from my left, probably the same one. It was a 4x4 bull, and walked 40-45 yards in front of me left to right. I had no shot due to all the trees and he kept walking, but he walked to where my hunting partner was sitting to my right about 50 yards away. He walked over and stopped, then went crashing away, along with at least one other elk below him that I didn't see. After a little more calling the bull came back and snuck in behind us, and took off again. When my partner came over I asked what happened, and why he didn't shoot. He said he only had a COW LICENSE! The bull was broadside to him at 15 yards!

That evening produced nothing. I went out one last time on Monday morning and took my bow for a walk above camp. I went almost to timberline and saw a little old sign, but no elk. When I got back we packed up camp and rode out.

Not sure what I'm going to do next week. I need a "plan B" in case this place doesn't work out.

[NickP]

At least it was "fun".

[JT56]

Buddy just got back from Colorado. No luck either. Hey I just picked up my home grown beef from the market. Processing was .40/lb. Cheaper than processing deer? Maybe due to the size difference?

[chevynut]

JT56, you mean your buddy only spent 3 days bowhunting elk? Wow, not many bowhunters get one in a week or more of hunting...only 11-12% success rate. You need a lot of time with archery gear, and a lot of "opportunities". A lot of things can go wrong, even when they're right in front of you. Our elk licenses are around $550 so I am surprised anyone would come here for only 3 days.

[JT56]

He left Texas Wednesday and is on his way back today. He goes to Alaska a couple times a year too. I like the caribou meat!

[ilike55s]

I never hesitate to go back to a proven place the next day. I've seen it too many times where another hunter leaves out and a couple of hours later, we see game that they never knew were there. The place that the boys have, backs up to National Forest so we pretty much have two big canyons bout 3 1/2 miles long to work out.
I've really been wanting to go up to listen to the Bulls screaming, but my wife had a stroke a month ago and is having some issues bout us getting too far from civilization. She has put up with all my recklessness for all these years, so I owe her some comfort, she tells me she will be OK for my Cow hunt in Dec. tho
Where did you bag that huge hog?

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ilike55s, I shot the hog in OK. It's not quite as big as it looks, it's a 200 pound boar. It must be the camera angle. I shot a couple of 80-pounders in TX last year and they were good eating.

I've been to Alaska 6 times, and I've bowhunted in CO, NM, MT, OK, TX, ID, WY, KS, NE, and even in NY once for turkeys on a business trip :).

[ilike55s]

Sounds like your hunting budget is way bigger than most car budgets,,,I don't have to shell out near as much now as the 5 boys all have good jobs and spend their own money on hunting,,,,,

[JT56]

I had my first taste of Grizzly Bear this year! Doug grilled it and it was really good. My favorite is caribou and elk. I have heard those hogs dont taste good once they get big?

[chevynut]

I shot a nice caribou in Alaska and it was REALLY good meat. 100 pounds of it only cost me about $2500...LOL! :) I also shot a bighorn sheep in Colorado that was excellent eating. The mountain goat wasn't so great, and the big hog wasn't near as tasty as the little ones I got last year. I once shot about a 45-pounder with my bow and we grilled the whole thing. That was excellent!

I have people (including my GF) that say they don't like antelope meat. I've shot several and served them to my friends, and they love it. My GF doesn't understand why mine taste so good. She's from WY and has eaten many antelope in the past and didn't really like them until she tasted mine. Maybe it's because I don't shoot them running. :) I also love whitetail deer and elk. Good stuff.

[Troy]

I was raised on Mule and White Tail, Elk, and Antelope Loved them all. Had Mt Goat, Sheep, Black Bear, a few times. Liked the Goat and Sheep but the bear was too grissley and chewy. My step father had a ranch in N.E. Montana and he raised Elk for sale at restaurants. I miss the meat but haven't hunted for 30 years.

[ilike55s]

Ha, Ha, Ha, Ha, you talking bout bear reminds me of a time years ago, my Uncle Jessie had shot a black bear and he brought it over and gave to my Dad. Huh,,?? What is this,,,? We cut it up and I remember the meat was really dark, but heck, that was the first meat we had seen in a couple-a. My Mother cooked some that night and we all piled into the big plate of bear meat like there was no tomorrow. I remember like it was yesterday,,,I chewed,,,and chewed, and chewed some more and the longer I chewed on the piece of meat,,,the bigger that SOB got where I could hardly close my mouth!!!!! Finally spit it out and noticed all the rest of family doin the same thing. We improvised by cutting really small pieces, and just do a quick chew and swallow for that chunk got any bigger,,,! Never had a hankerin to hunt bear after that. Cause like I said, I'm a meat hunter and I plan to eat everything I shoot.
My 2nd oldest Son that lives in Florida, hunts the hogs there and says they are good eating but they are only bout 40-60 lbs. He has a friend that has a big ranch in southern Georgia and goes up there a lot also.

[chevynut]

A friend of mine and I went to Idaho and shot a couple of bears....mine is in the pic above. We had sausage made out of both of them, and everyone I gave some to loved it. I had some deer sausage too, and I took both to work...people liked the bear sausage better than the deer sausage. I don't know if I would want to eat a bear steak, but I've never tried it.

[JT56]

I guess its what the bear has been eating to how it taste.

[chevynut]

True JT. In Alaska, you are required to recover the hide and meat of a bear you kill in the spring, but not the fall. In the fall, you have to only recover the hide. Spring bears eat berries, grass, and stuff like that. In the fall they eat salmon, sometimes rotten. Apparently they taste like crap in the fall.

[JT56]

I would say the grizzly bear meat I had a sweet flavor. Kinda hard to explain, but was good. Yeah I bet the dead salmon would make it taste like crap! I am looking forward to some steaks this weekend from the steers I just processed!

[NickP]

I would say the grizzly bear meat I had a sweet flavor. Kinda hard to explain, but was good. Yeah I bet the dead salmon would make it taste like crap! I am looking forward to some steaks this weekend from the steers I just processed!

Steak, did someone say steak? What time do I need to be there?

[ilike55s]

Hey Chevynut, did you go back out this past weekend? Lookin for a good story.

[chevynut]

We've been getting soaked this week. I've never seen it rain so much up here, and it's expected to continue through the weekend.

The first evening I had a bear at 100 yards that was moving towards me. Unfortunately I don't have a bear license. The bear took off when 3 elk came to my cow calling. There was a cow and a calf and a 5x5 bull. I had the cow at around 40 yards and the bull at about that range but it got dark before they got in position for a shot. Right at dark another 5 elk including another bull came down but we had to get back to camp.

We backpacked in so we only had small tents and backpacking gear.

We have been into elk every time out. Sunday evening we jumped a bull out of his bed only 15 yards in front of us. That night we checked into a motel to try to dry out.

Yesterday we found a new camp site and we went out to hunt after setting up camp. We set up to call and 5 minutes later a bull came in. He was 20 yards from my son, broadside, presenting a perfect archery shot. Then he walked over to me and stood at 13 yards for a while before walking back up the mountain. He was a spike and we can't shoot spikes here. How frustrating.

We hiked back to camp in the dark with it raining. It rained most of the night and was still raining this morning,so we decided not to go out. All of our stuff was still wet. We're trying to dry things now but it keeps raining on and off and it's overcast.