A hunter can use the cow elk decoy to finalize the illusion by moving as close to the vocal herd as possible, presumably undetected and into the wind, and then set the decoy up on the edge of a small opening. The idea is to create a scenario where a cow elk is lost or separated from the herd. If hunting solo, an archer can utilizing a modified “button hook” method that has been made popular by elk hunters who call and hunt in pairs. Perhaps sitting silently, being patient, and waiting on the elk to make the mistake is your best bet, or maybe a gentle “lost cow” call will bring the bull into bow range.Īs the season rolls on and the urge to breed seems to surpass a bull elk’s vigilance to stay hidden, an elk hunter can then transition into a more aggressive strategy. This is where you have to read the situation. Once you are in close to the elk, the chess match begins and you have to just hunt. Using an elk decoy in this early season ambush type, spot and stalk, sparse calling mish-mash of techniques can truly allow you to close the distance to within bow range, assuming that you are primarily paying attention to the thermals and the wind direction. I use the cow decoy to move through open country as I seek to close in on elk that are transitioning from feeding and moving into their bedding areas. I like both of these decoys because they are compact and easily strapped to my pack for transport, and yet they expand to a large enough size that I can literally hide behind them and use them for cover.Įarly season elk hunting can often times be hot and dry with little elk vocalization and elk movement can be limited, depending on the weather where you are hunting. The first is that it allows me to think out of the box. These decoys work for me for a few reasons. One tool I utilize from early season to later in the rut is a cow elk decoy from Montana Decoy, specifically the RMEF Cow elk or the Eichler Elk. Although I have had a few amazing textbook set ups and interactions, where a bull came in on a string and I was able to get drawn back and make a lethal shot, most of the time the success has come from creativity and the ability to put myself in an ambush position to intercept the elk on their natural path regardless of whether its early or later in the season. I would like to tell you that that scenario is the norm when bowhunting elk with a bow, but for me its not. For an elk hunter there is nothing better, and many a night is spent dreaming of that perfect set up where a huge unsuspecting 6 X 6 bull gets pulled to a mere 10 yards of the shooter by his buddy strategically set up calling behind him at 60 yards. Elk season out west always seems to conjure images of reddish gold aspen leaves in September and bulls screaming out their love sick calls in the high county of the Rocky Mountains.
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