Thermals

I just started hunting elk this season, and have been trying to study thermals as best I can. One thing that I haven't been able to find is how much room to give an elk. Let's say that you spot an elk bedded on the other side of the drainage and the thermals are going up. If the shot's too far and you want to get uphill of it on the same side, how far away should you go to get across the bottom and uphill of it?

On another note, for those that try to cut tracks in fresh snow and follow a bull up the hill, how do you keep from getting winded mid-day?

No set answer for distance because temperatures,humidity, strength of thermals and other factors influence how far an elk can wind you, but I have been winded from several hundred yards.

Gerald Martin said:

No set answer for distance because temperatures,humidity, strength of thermals and other factors influence how far an elk can wind you, but I have been winded from several hundred yards.

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I 2nd that motion.

What I would say is to do the best you can to get out early in the year (May) calving/birthing season (Anytime of year actually). Spend as much time around and looking for elk. Study them, try and get close, purposely go with the wind, against the wind. The more you spend time around Elk the more you will get a feel for their sensitivity to predators, their alertness during certain times of year and during certain situations (single elk vs multiple), cow & calf. Whatever you can do to be around them will give you a huge education.

I have been in situations where I have sat and watched elk completely non visible/undetectable for 20-40min. Totally hidden from sight 200 yards away in the tree line and the wind changed for 10 sec. (swirl at my back). Instant alert with cows barking in my direction! Amazing! Never laid eyes on me but they knew something was in the tree line 200 yards away.

I have also stood on a stump directly off an elk trail (scent blocker utilized but no Camo. Scouting season) and had elk (11) walk within 3ft of me and never smelled or detected me.

[QUOTEhad elk (11) walk within 3ft of me and never smelled or detected me.[/QUOTE]

Within 3 feet of you? My BS meter is pegged. mtmuley

No one needs to argue about whether something happened or not on a forum like this. I would just say that I hope you have an experience like this someday. Its was pretty awesome! Even have it on video but Im not going to even entertain your bait. :W:

Ive had wind in the directuon of elk and not been busted about 50 yards out. I couldnt say thats a common thinh as I play the wind as a rule. Ive also had them bust from 200 yds with the wind right at them. The first was in timber, the second in an open meadow.

I'm a fairly simple guy and relatively slow to basic concepts at time, but I finally learned that shaded stream areas have the most predictable thermal patterns as a general rule. Cold air is heavier than warming air and the lowest place is going to have a down draft far longer than open hillsides warmed by the sun. I've been able to utitilize that to my advantage to stay in the game on a morning hunt. The down draft will last a couple hours longer in the mornings and start immediately in the afternoon as the canyon becomes shaded.

I would rather walk hundreds of yards out of my way to keep an elk from spooking than walk miles to try and find other elk after I wasn't careful enough. You can fool their ears. You can fool their eyes. The game is over when they smell you. Every time. Without exception. Period. ( Unless of course someone comes on and tell you about that one time when there was an exception.)

+1 for Gerald Martin's answer. It's not a fixed distance, but if you have a finger ridge between you and the elk and can get down in the bottom of a parallel drainage, you'll be golden.

ntodwild said:

No one needs to argue about whether something happened or not on a forum like this. I would just say that I hope you have an experience like this someday. Its was pretty awesome! Even have it on video but Im not going to even entertain your bait. :W:

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ntodwild, this is the best response. I have seen plenty of youtube videos of elk almost bumping into guys while hunting. I believe Bugle magazine ran a feature about this as well; if I remember correctly one of the stories was about a guy that had an elk try to eat the apple out of his coat pocket or something like that.

COEngineer said:

ntodwild, this is the best response. I have seen plenty of youtube videos of elk almost bumping into guys while hunting. I believe Bugle magazine ran a feature about this as well; if I remember correctly one of the stories was about a guy that had an elk try to eat the apple out of his coat pocket or something like that.

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My brother-n-law has an video where a cow bumps the phone out of his hand with her nose... pics like this are a dime a dozen via ye old google...

COEngineer said:

ntodwild, this is the best response. I have seen plenty of youtube videos of elk almost bumping into guys while hunting. I believe Bugle magazine ran a feature about this as well; if I remember correctly one of the stories was about a guy that had an elk try to eat the apple out of his coat pocket or something like that.

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These forums are about education. At least it is for me. Having the diversity of many who have centuries of knowledge combined is extremely helpful. Handing down that knowledge to up and coming hunters keeps our sport evolving in a healthy way. I have decades of hunting experience and still learn something on a regular basis through this forum and others. Simply put, these forums shouldn't be a place for public discourse or airing disputes. it doesn't help or educate anyone. Up until the time I had that experience I would have never thought it possible myself. Since then I have had some amazing experiences along the same lines, both hunting and scouting including photographing a new born (2-4 days old) elk calf at my feet. Another experience I would have never thought possible. In the end I chalk it up to the amount of time I currently spend in the field. As an early retiree I find myself in the field approximately 70+ days a year. As of two years ago I Never had that amount of time. It's a constant evolution.

There is no such thing as an EXPERT hunter/outdoorsman. As hunters we could only hope to be defined as ACCOMPLISHED.