A Montana resident of diverse skills and interests, Anthony Byrd holds a bachelor of science in elementary education from the University of Montana Western and most recently worked as a team lead for Target in Helena. In his free time, Anthony Byrd likes to hunt elk.
Considerably more difficult to stalk and shoot than other wild game, elk present a number of distinct challenges for the average hunter. Accomplished hunter and RealTree contributor Darron McDougal estimates that elk hunters have an overall success rate of only 10 percent.
A big contributor to this low success rate is just how difficult elk are to find in the wild. For this reason, may elk hunters typically either enlist the help of local outfitters or conduct in-depth map work before they attempt an outing. Even with these preparations, it often takes days of backpacking through the wilderness to spot a single elk.
It is also quite hard to get close enough to take one of these extremely large animals down. To aid in this process, hunters should learn exactly how and when to use an elk call bugle, which can close the final gap by making an elk come to them.
