Kentucky Elk

[MikeW217]

Hey everyone,

I was lucky enough to draw a non-resident Kentucky either sex archery tag for the 2020 season. I have a few questions I am hoping to gain some perspective on here. First off I have never hunted elk and I live in Illinois and mainly target whitetails and waterfowl. With that being said here are my questions:

is anyone on this platform ever done this hunt? If so is there one unit better than the other? Would you recommend using an outfitter/guide or doing a DIY hunt? I will have a full week and little time to scout And since I have little elk experience I lean towards a guide but wanted to see what others thought. Lastly if anyone has used a guide I would appreciate any references you may have.

thanks!

 

[Scott85]

I applied a bunch of years ago, most of the best hunting is on private land which is hard to get permission.

 

[OverlordBear]

Steve Rinella has an episode on his Kentucky Elk hunt in the Cumberland gap. I would start there and see what you learn. Besides it is a great episode.

 

[OverlordBear]

Unlike Steve I would take the first legal elk that you are happy with. I shot my five by five in Colorado after 6 years of hunting and I still love looking at him.

 

[fachries]

Unlike Steve I would take the first legal elk that you are happy with. I shot my five by five in Colorado after 6 years of hunting and I still love looking at him.

+1

 

[.270Rem]

I did not find the same results you did. And there goes another $30 I will never see again.

Spent some time in that area and recall there are public options. I think the state has several large WMA's that include coal company land. We saw elk regularly in a few spots, but it's some big country (for the East). I would recommend building in as much scouting time you can open on your calendar. And next week get a call into the local biologists to see what they can offer.

Much of the KY elk country is in the middle of their coalfields and the elk are all over the reclaimed mines lands. They practice mountaintop removal mining there and what is left after reclamation is quite different from what you would see on the old topo maps of the region. The terrain isn't terrible, but you could easily tag one in a tough spot for a pack out. Don't know about guides so I would keep searching for that info. If you do go DIY consider talking with guides about packing help. They may have some options there.

Congratulations on your tag and have a fantastic and lucky hunt. I hope I get to post a message like yours in the future. You ought to have a blast and the trip should be a bit shorter than the Rockies. And you may want to be a little choosy as there plenty of good elk in KY.

 

[brownbear932008]

First off congratulations on an awesome tag it should be a blast hunting in the rut. It's my understanding that now the applicants drawn will go into a second draw that will determine your elk unit you actually hunt and your given 5 choices.
I live just across the state line in VA. If you happen to draw a unit within close proximity of me I may be able to run over and check some areas out before the hunt. I should have some downtime until late June and then again in September. The archery hunt has two segments I think, a second one in early December. There is quite a bit of public land but that can vary and your not gonna have a clue until you get your assigned unit. Keep us updated here as to what unit you pull. There are some giant's there but the elk have changed I hear from the initial stocking and the guides really have them nailed down along with access like anywhere else. If your on the strip mines the terrain won't be bad, but if you dive into a hollow things change quick and the country is rough and the rattlesnakes and copperheads are big. LOL Think I'd rather run into grizz.

 

[3855WIN]

I know we all have priorities and commitments, but you are in weekend driving range for a scouting trip. Once you are assigned a unit, I’d get down there and take a look around.
If you have more money than time, guided might be a great option.

 

[MikeW217]

Thanks everyone for the comments! After many phone calls I was able to book an outfitter. Fingers crossed for a good hunt!

 

[Duff Hunter]

Congratulations on the tag! I have applied the last few years as I always figure that some non-resident has to get drawn. Odds are awful, but it is too cheap not to apply. Best of luck this fall!

 

[MikeW217]

Congratulations on the tag! I have applied the last few years as I always figure that some non-resident has to get drawn. Odds are awful, but it is too cheap not to apply. Best of luck this fall!

Yeah I had the same mentality and never thought I would ever draw

 

[hearteater]

Congrats on the tag!

 

[Jwill]

Hey everyone,

I was lucky enough to draw a non-resident Kentucky either sex archery tag for the 2020 season. I have a few questions I am hoping to gain some perspective on here. First off I have never hunted elk and I live in Illinois and mainly target whitetails and waterfowl. With that being said here are my questions:

is anyone on this platform ever done this hunt? If so is there one unit better than the other? Would you recommend using an outfitter/guide or doing a DIY hunt? I will have a full week and little time to scout And since I have little elk experience I lean towards a guide but wanted to see what others thought. Lastly if anyone has used a guide I would appreciate any references you may have.

thanks!

I drew an archery cow tag a few years ago. I know the ES tags are much more limited. That tag sits unpunched on my shelf now. If things are still the same, you'll now go into a secondary draw for a Limited Entry Area. This draw only allows a few folks onto the land that has the majority of the public access. After doing my research, I applied for the LEAs I wanted, but left off some of the higher pressure units, I did not draw my choice there and the tag I got (At-large) was basically good for all areas in the elk zone, but outside of those LEAs with a lot of public access. After that you get another round of choices, there is a first come first served list of private "Voucher" properties that allow access to a few public hunters, in exchange for transferable tags to the land owner. You're only allowed to get one of those. I drew one of these that had about 7000 acres included. My first trip I encountered a herd of about 25 with a giant, heavy 6x6, did not get close enough for a shot on a cow, and they moved off the property I had access to. My second trip I only saw 2 spikes and that was the end... The terrain is remote and steep, the strip mines and clear-cuts are brushy/briery, the mapping is sketchy at best. The land ownership in much of the area is a hodge-podge of many different coal companies, access to locals is relatively open, saw a bunch of other (small game) hunters and atvers. Property boundaries only seemed like a suggestion to the others I saw in the area.

If you pull a good LEA or voucher property a guide probably isn't necessary. If you're not lucky in those rounds, then a guide with private access would likely be a wise move. Definately do a scouting trip if you can. Good luck!

 

[Jwill]

Also, happy to share my research if you give me an email address.

 

[BluegrassBilly]

Hire a guide (Trinity Shepherd is recommended). Unlike a western tag, this is a once-in-a-lifetime tag (most likely), and the land is largely locked up in private hands. You can DYI, but it'll take a lot of leg work, which should start as soon as you get assigned your zone.

The other advice is to not get hung up on a trophy. These are woods elk, and they understand pressure. Follow Randy's advice of "shoot on day 1 that which you would shoot on the last day."

Enjoy the hunt, congratulations, and thank you to all who support our program with your applications!

 

[midwesthunter]

congrats, they were given another donation from me again this year

 

[brownbear932008]

Hire a guide (Trinity Shepherd is recommended). Unlike a western tag, this is a once-in-a-lifetime tag (most likely), and the land is largely locked up in private hands. You can DYI, but it'll take a lot of leg work, which should start as soon as you get assigned your zone.

The other advice is to not get hung up on a trophy. These are woods elk, and they understand pressure. Follow Randy's advice of "shoot on day 1 that which you would shoot on the last day."

Enjoy the hunt, congratulations, and thank you to all who support our program with your applications!

have you heard any talk of the supposedly changes that might be proposed to the draw by chance? Sounds like some type of point system

 

[JohnCushman]

Congrats!!

 

[MikeW217]

Hire a guide (Trinity Shepherd is recommended). Unlike a western tag, this is a once-in-a-lifetime tag (most likely), and the land is largely locked up in private hands. You can DYI, but it'll take a lot of leg work, which should start as soon as you get assigned your zone.

The other advice is to not get hung up on a trophy. These are woods elk, and they understand pressure. Follow Randy's advice of "shoot on day 1 that which you would shoot on the last day."

Enjoy the hunt, congratulations, and thank you to all who support our program with your applications!

I hired a guide already unless I draw a unit they do not offer. I am not a trophy hunter by any means. I will Be blessed to fill the tag on day 1. Thank you and I look forward to seeing that side of your state!

 

[BluegrassBilly]

have you heard any talk of the supposedly changes that might be proposed to the draw by chance? Sounds like some type of point system

I haven't heard the details, but I would hope it will only be a small preference pool, similar to the 10% limit on nonresident tags, or at worse something akin to Wyoming's system. We just don't have the elk population to enable a points system to be feasible. There's a commission meeting this morning that might reveal more.