Looking for some advice on how to handle a newbie coming on my upcoming elk hunting hunt. After going 1 for 4 on elk hunts in Wyoming and 1 for 1 on deer hunts in Wyoming there is a mental and physical grind when hunting. My brother and I have hunted together for at least 36yrs and we know each other, and how to work through the grind. The new guy is 2 yrs into hunting and has no clue what our west hunting is like.
Hunt elk hunting grind for newbie
- Thread starter williaada
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cgasner1
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Hunt how you hunt either he likes it and keeps up or doesn’t it’s your season not his you should worry about
Caseknife
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Yep, totally agree. Hunt like you normally do and show him the ropes, if he doesn't catch on or doesn't want to do it your way then he is on his own.
BackofBeyond
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Don’t be afraid to have the “you know this is going to suck, right?” conversation before hand, and set expectations to embrace the suck.
44hunter45
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1 for 4 on elk tells the story. The suck is a big part of it. Otherwise book a high fence hunt somewhere.
Zootownelk
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I assume this is another adult and not a child? Set the expectations before the hunt, so there is no confusion about what a typical day is like when you hunt.
I expect us to see more animals than on the other hunts we hunted units where the public land is severally limited.
We did have the conversation last week Monday, but being from the Midwest and going west to hunt is completely different. Had no clue of the grind unit we did it twice.
Westelker
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I went through this last year with three guys from the East, they hunted south central Colorado. My advice is to have a lot of discussions on what your expectations are. Explain camp responsibilities, everyone has certain chores. Discuss your hunting strategy for the morning, mid-day, afternoon and evening everyone should agree on everything. Agree on Plan A, Plan B and perhaps Plan C. Someone should be in charge of major decisions. Everyone should agree and remember conditions always change so remain flexible. Be aware of everyone's physical condition and capabilities. Make sure everyone understands the effort it takes to deal with a downed elk and has the proper equipment and physical capacity to pack out.
Worst part is when a noob shoots an easy one the first day. Especially when that happens in consecutive years.
My brother has grown accustom to that. This year he asked me "which day should I come down to shoot an elk?"
Last year I had a non resident friend come hunt with me. I gave him the speech. Over the counter, general unit. More than likely he will go home empty handed but either way its going to be a grind. Well he proceeded to shoot a dandy 5 point the first day he elk hunted in his life. But the 1.5 mile pack out all down hill with the elk on a sled was "BRUTAL". Thinks its easy now.
Westelker
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Better yet leave him home, it's hard enough hunting with experienced hunting partners or you could make him the camp cook.
sclancy27
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Haha, sounds like my youngest brother. He has hunted 4 days in the last 3 years elk hunting...and killed 3 elk, with older brother as guide of course. I need to ween him off my ability so he knows what it means to "grind it out". Although, he doesn't complain when we pack anything out, so that is a plus.Worst part is when a noob shoots an easy one the first day. Especially when that happens in consecutive years.
My brother has grown accustom to that. This year he asked me "which day should I come down to shoot an elk?"
Last year I had a non resident friend come hunt with me. I gave him the speech. Over the counter, general unit. More than likely he will go home empty handed but either way its going to be a grind. Well he proceeded to shoot a dandy 5 point the first day he elk hunted in his life. But the 1.5 mile pack out all down hill with the elk on a sled was "BRUTAL". Thinks its easy now.
LuketheDog
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Make him drive separate, or at least make him understand that there is no 'leaving' because it's too hard or he's tired. A friend of mine took a friend of his brother's, the new guy shot an elk in a hell hole the first day and they spent 24+ hours hauling it 1500' vertical back up to the road. Then the dude decided he just wanted to go home instead of helping kill and pack another bull, because he was tired and missed his wife. Left my guy out there solo in some steep country after 2 nights.
brocksw
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bring bacon cheeseburgers
Nick87
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Don't bring him.
Maybe your hunt already happened, but just in case. Is the new guy physically fit for an elk hunt? That'd be the most important thing to consider, seems like. I'm a new guy. First time elk hunting was in 2021. I'd be thrilled if someone experienced was willing to take me hunting, but for now, I'm basically self/internet/book taught. The advantage that I had going into it was that I'd killed dozens of whitetails before that, butchered cattle, hogs, goats and sheep and backpacked long distances extensively, including lots of off trail time. So, for me, the individual, physically tough components of elk hunting weren't new. The mental component, just figuring out the elk, has been the tough part.
Mallardsx2
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Leave the person at home. Go enjoy your hunt.
Nick87
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Yup. I've learned this the hard way too many times. I'm done with it.
Just for my own education, (as a new guy), what happened that made you come to that decision? What should new people avoid so as not to piss off those with experience?
kwyeewyk
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Bad attitude, give up easily, grumpy if you're not in animals, want to leave early, lazy, don't contribute to hunt planning/expenses, bad ethics, unsafe behavior.
Nick87
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Brother in law-had to do no homework or planning just buy a tag and show up and killed a decent buck. Bitched the whole time that the trip was really expensive. And got short arms whenever we'd get food along the way. One time the bill came and it was like $40 his response "all I got is 20's" like wtf. Done.
Cousin same deal just show up with your gun and enjoy. Never even shot his gun before the trip. When it was his turn up he fumbled with the bipod amd said 175 yard shot was too far and choked bad. Never again.
My advice keep quiet, work hard, try to be prepared as possible and maybe pick up the tab at dinner or do something to show your appreciation for the invite. I'm sure you'll be fine. Don't be afraid to ask questions prior to the trip so they know you appreciate it. My .02
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