Muley_Stalker
Well-known member
No, I haven't been around cattle. I know what elk smell like.
Elk Stank Question
- Thread starter pablodiablo
- Start date
Muley_Stalker
Well-known member
Using your nose to find elk
How you can use your nose to find more elk this hunting season
Dougfirtree
Well-known member
And the fact that you seemed to hear one animal run away is another clue that it was a bull.
If you smelled them and heard them, you were close enough to shoot them.
Part of still hunting, and this is the hardest for me, is seeing the dang things. It's VERY hard to focus and keep looking for an ear, leg etc, The smell would put me on alert, but it may be to late. That's why I like snow tracking, at least I know there's one at the end of the track. Helps stay focused.
Part of still hunting, and this is the hardest for me, is seeing the dang things. It's VERY hard to focus and keep looking for an ear, leg etc, The smell would put me on alert, but it may be to late. That's why I like snow tracking, at least I know there's one at the end of the track. Helps stay focused.
bullbugle307
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- Jul 19, 2018
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I'd bet 100 bucks the wind swirled and he did get smelled for a fraction of a second.
Muley_Stalker
Well-known member
Yes, it can happen. I keep a piece of thread hanging off the muzzle of the rifle to check the wind. It's always out in front of me when hunting. If it's swirling I back out and go to another area.
kwyeewyk
Well-known member
I killed a muley buck after I caught a whiff of him one year, first I thought it came from one side of the ridge but couldn't find him, tried the other side and less than 100 yards he jumped up and looked at me and I dropped him.
utah400elk
Well-known member
For what it’s worth...I have chronicled my adventures of teaching my son (now 13) to elk hunt on hunttalk. Last year he took his first elk...cow with a rifle on the Utah youth hunt. He should have an archery elk tag this year in WY. That said, one of the first thing I taught him was that when you smell elk, you stop immediately. He thought it was amazing that last year about 60%-70% of the time we smelled elk, if we stopped and seriously glassed we usually saw elk. Usually just an ear, eye, leg... By the end of the hunt he was very sensitive to elk smells.
In the rut, I think the bulls will be a little more pungent but I could not say I can smell the difference. I usually believe if you smell elk very strong then they are within 100 yards. There are a lot of variables but that the general rule I hunt by.
In the rut, I think the bulls will be a little more pungent but I could not say I can smell the difference. I usually believe if you smell elk very strong then they are within 100 yards. There are a lot of variables but that the general rule I hunt by.
Hunting Wife
Well-known member
The farthest I’ve personally found elk by smell is about 1/4 mile once...got a whiff on the wind, walked into the wind until I came to a cliff, peeked over and there they were.
A few times, in a good directional wind I’ve smelled them and been able to work into the wind to find them. But more often it’s just a whiff and it may or may not be live elk. There are times they’ve used areas that still smell elky even though the sign looks at least a few days old. But if you can still smell them, they are usually somewhere in the neighborhood in my experience.
I also think bulls smell sharper, kind of more “vinegary”, if that makes any sense.
A few times, in a good directional wind I’ve smelled them and been able to work into the wind to find them. But more often it’s just a whiff and it may or may not be live elk. There are times they’ve used areas that still smell elky even though the sign looks at least a few days old. But if you can still smell them, they are usually somewhere in the neighborhood in my experience.
I also think bulls smell sharper, kind of more “vinegary”, if that makes any sense.
Hem
Well-known member
I'm with Muley. Elk don't smell like cattle.
Bulls smell like bulls...heavenly.
Bulls smell like bulls...heavenly.
SAJ-99
Well-known member
Some of you guys have 6.5-Creed-equivalent olfactory lobes. Once you start separating out the stench of various ungulates by sex and distance, you can consider yourself legit.
Some of us have hunted elk for damn near 40 years. That's kinda legit. mtmuley
SAJ-99
Well-known member
You get props from me.
No props needed. You just kinda figure things out. Still learning.... mtmuley
Muley_Stalker
Well-known member
Only 40 years?
Yeah. And elk don't smell like cattle. mtmuley
Muley_Stalker
Well-known member
They do to a lot of people. I'm a mountain man. Not a cowboy.
If you wanted to describe the smell of elk to someone who never smelled elk before. How would you describe it so they'd know what you mean? Saying it smells like cattle is as close as you can get.
Maybe if I had both smells together i'd see the difference between cattle and elk. As it is i'm not an expert on cattle smells like you are. I do know elk when I smell them.
You should get off your high horse.
If you wanted to describe the smell of elk to someone who never smelled elk before. How would you describe it so they'd know what you mean? Saying it smells like cattle is as close as you can get.
Maybe if I had both smells together i'd see the difference between cattle and elk. As it is i'm not an expert on cattle smells like you are. I do know elk when I smell them.
You should get off your high horse.
Have a nice day. mtmuley
