MODULE 17 - HUNTING COW ELK

CHAPTER 2: HOW TO HUNT COW ELK

FIND THE FEED!

There are a few tactics I feel can be beneficial when it comes to hunting antlerless elk, but before I talk about those tactics, I want to talk about what I feel is the most important aspect of hunting cow elk. And that, is locating them.

If you’ve reviewed Modules 6 and 15, you’ll find great information that will help you connect some of the dots on where you’ll be most likely to find cow elk during the different seasons. Here are some of the key take-aways from those Modules:

• After the rut, cows, calves, and smaller bulls will often gather back into larger herds and spend much of their time feeding in preparation for the upcoming winter months.
• As post-rut turns into late-season, and in areas where heavy winter snows cover the landscape, elk are forced to migrate to lower elevations where they can access feed.
• Cow elk will often spend the summer months in the areas where they gave birth to their calves, and it is often in these areas where the bulls will head to once the rut kicks in.
• The 4 basic needs of an elk are food, water, security, and breeding, and the priority of those needs can change from season to season.

In Module 15, Randy Newberg breaks down the needs of “bull elk” during the 5 seasons, and the priority for those needs changes from season to season. From food, to water, to breeding, and then to security. However, for cow elk, the priority is always on feed, with a little emphasis on security.

To find cow elk, you have to find the feed. During the rut, a bull elk is thinking only of breeding, with a little bit of concern for water. Food and security are not high priorities for a rut-crazed bull. A cow elk, on the other hand, is still focused on feed and staying safe. A post-rut bull elk will often hunker down in a sanctuary where he has access to a small amount of feed and a water source without having to move hardly at all. Cow elk, however, are usually grouped up in larger herds during this time, and are focused on finding a more robust feed source that will provide for more mouths and prepare them for winter. As post-rut turns to late season, cow elk are in full-time feeding mode, and can often be found in larger groups where there is ample feed.

Hopefully by now, you see the pattern. Find the feed during each season, and you will likely find the cow elk.

FINDING FEED IN THE 3 SEASONS

PRE-RUT AND PEAK RUT

As mentioned previously, cow elk will typically spend the summer months and into the rut in the areas where they have their calves. These areas provide an abundance of feed with sufficient security. I say “sufficient” security, because cow elk are often fairly visible during the summer months, and feed is their primary need. Lush, green meadows, open hillsides with grass, etc., can be great places to easily spot herds of cow elk in July and August, and they will usually remain in these same areas into September when the rut starts kicking in.

Unlike the bulls, the cows aren’t nearly as “pre-occupied” with the desire to breed during the rut. They are still in their normal daily pattern of feeding in the morning, retreating to bedding areas during the day, and then returning to feeding areas in the evenings. If you are able to scout and find cow elk during the summer months, there is a good chance they will be in the same area leading up to and during the rut.

POST-RUT

After the rut, security becomes a little more of a concern for cow elk. They don’t go into full sanctuary mode like the mature bulls do, but they do become a little more elusive. However, food is still their primary need, so finding feed sources that also provide a little more security than the areas where they spent the past 4 months will be important. And unlike the bulls during this timeframe, the cows are still herded up, which makes them a little easier to find simply due to their numbers.

LATE-SEASON

Hunting cow elk during the post-rut and late-season is pretty straight forward, and the tactics for finding and hunting antlerless elk during these seasons isn’t rocket-science. However, when it comes to finding and hunting cow elk during the rut, my advice might surprise you: Hunt them just like you would hunt a bull elk.

HUNTING COW ELK DURING THE RUT

If I had an antlerless elk tag during the month of September, I would hunt them just like I would hunt a bull elk. Seriously. Nothing different other than the intended target. I would cover ground using a location bugle to get a response from a bull elk. Then I would close the distance and utilize 1 of 2 main tactics that I use for hunting bull elk: set up and call or shadow the herd.

CALL THE BULL IN

During the rut, the cows are going to be with the bulls. Or, more accurately, the bulls are going to be with the cows. If a bull responds to your location bugle, there is a good chance he is with cows. I can’t tell you how many times I’ve gotten a response from a bull elk, moved in, set up and started calling to the bull, and had cows come through my shooting lanes before the bull.

If you’ve watched any of the episodes from the 1^st two seasons of Destination Elk, there are multiple examples of this.

Here is an episode that shows a good example (the encounter with the cow happens at the 19:50 mark):

In this calling situation – as well as countless others – I could have filled an antlerless tag. When a bull responds and comes in to your calls, he will often be with cows, and you will often have opportunities to fill your antlerless tag as the bull – and sometimes the entire herd – comes to your calls . Plus, you get to experience the same thrill of hunting the rut as you would if you were hunting bull elk!

BE A SHADOW

The other method that can be very effective for hunting antlerless elk during the rut is shadowing the herd. Again, more details can be found in Module 9: Calling Elk (Hybrid Calling Tactic), but in a nutshell, you are listening for bugles from bull elk or using location bugles to get a response from a bull elk. Then, you close the distance quietly and instead of setting up and calling, you remain quiet and slowly “shadow” along behind the herd, waiting for an opportunity to set up or shoot.

I can’t tell you how many times we’ve employed this tactic while hunting bull elk, and walked right up on cow elk who were feeding along or trailing behind the herd. This is spot-and-stalk hunting with the added benefit of a bugling bull to help you keep tabs on the herd. Having a caller 100-200 yards behind can be a huge benefit, as they can keep the bull talking, which can help you keep close tabs on the herd and hopefully prevent you from walking right up on the herd and busting them out.

Again, from our past seasons of Destination Elk, there have been several examples of this.

Here are a couple episodes that illustrate how shadowing the herd can provide opportunities for a shot at an antlerless elk:

(@11:05, we are shadowing a herd bull, and we end up between the bull and one of his cows. She comes down the hill just 25 yards from us, and stops broadside).

(@34:28, we are shadowing a bull, and end up walking up on one of his cows. Had we been hunting cows, and paying a little more attention, we would have had a 25 yards shot on the cow).

Again, if I was hunting antlerless elk during the rut, my tactics wouldn’t change from how I hunt bull elk. Additionally, there are a couple of additional tactics that can be incredibly effective.

LOST CALF CALLS

If you get into a herd of elk during the rut, you can actually target the cows in the herd by setting up and using a “lost calf” call. When a calf gets separated from the herd, they will often call out in distress, and the natural, instinctual response from a cow is to come to the calf.

I demonstrate how to make this call at the 7:27 mark in the last video (Understanding the Sounds Elk Make) in Chapter 2 of Module 5.

STATIC SETUPS

Another effective way to target cow elk during the rut (or during the pre-rut), especially if you have scouted or previously found them, is to set up a treestand or blind in an area they are likely to frequent. A water source or a well-traveled game trail can be a great location to set up and wait, and trail cameras set up in these areas will often help narrow down the times the elk are actually passing by or coming through.

Another effective location for setting up a treestand or ground blind is over bait, if it is legal in the state you are hunting. Elk are attracted to salt during the summer months, and establishing a “salt lick” during the summer will typically hold the elk in that area and keep them coming to that salt source daily. Again, baiting is not legal in many states, so be absolutely certain of the laws pertaining to the use of bait for big game hunting before you use this tactic.

POST-RUT

After the rut, when the bulls have left the herd and headed for their sanctuaries, the cows are typically still in the same herds they were grouped up in during the rut. Most of the cows have been bred, and are now growing a small calf elk on the inside, which means they need good nourishment to help feed themselves and their growing calves throughout the winter months.

LATE-SEASON

Many states also provide antlerless elk hunting opportunities into November and December, and in my experience, this can be the best time to find cow elk. They cows are herded up in even bigger herds, as their feed sources are narrowed down, and they are hyper-focused on feeding. The herds will often stay out in open feeding areas for several hours in the morning, only to retreat to bed down a short distance away and then return to the same area to feed that afternoon. Glassing can be very effective during this season, and again, the ability to find and read sign is critical. If you find fresh tracks from a large herd, you won’t usually have to follow those tracks for very long before you catch up to the herd, and the herds will often be more visible for longer periods of time.

Another factor to consider during the late-season is the fact that many elk will migrate to their wintering areas in November and December. Migration routes and migration areas are far more understood and documented by biologists, and if you are planning to hunt during this timeframe, a call to the local biologist could prove to be very valuable in determining where elk are usually found during these late-season timeframes.

SUMMARY

When it comes to hunting cow elk, don’t over-think or over-complicate it. Elk are simple-minded animals, and cow elk especially are primarily focused on feed, with a little bit of concern for security during certain times of the year. They are far from easy to hunt, but there are more antlerless elk by quantity and the seasons are generally conducive to finding them a little easier than bull elk.

Randy Newberg and I recorded an episode of the Elk Talk Podcast on hunting cow elk, and there is more information included in that episode as well. You can listen to Episode 32 of the Elk Talk Podcast wherever you listen to podcasts, or right here:

Antlerless elk are a trophy in every way, regardless of the season or the weapon you use to hunt them. The adventure, the experience – and especially the high-quality protein – are nothing lesser than a bull elk hunt. Plus, the experience gained from a successful cow elk hunt will be incredibly valuable, and contribute to your success if you decide to hunt bull elk in the future!

In the Next Module, I'll walk you through everything you need to know to set up your bow for Archery Elk Hunting. Click 'Next Module' below...