Elk Calls And Calling

Tip : Elk calling has reached epidemic proportions. It is the most dramatic way to hunt elk. It has all the appeal of turkey calling with the added adrenaline rush of calling a massively-antlered, brush-ripping trophy bull right up to you.

The bugle is the loudest and most dramatic elk call. The high-pitched, keening whistle of a mature bull has real ear appeal, whether it is made by you or, even better, by a big bull in the black timber, answering you.

However, bugling can be overdone and often is. Many hunters bugle all the time and the bulls get both tired and wary of it. Also, it can drive sub-dominant bulls away and cause harem bosses to take their cows and leave.

Cow calling is far more subtle and subdued. The mews and chirps made by cow elk (bulls make these same sounds but less frequently) are "confidence calls" that assure all is well. Most elk, including bulls, will investigate cow calls. even after the bugling season is over.