Becoming a Successful Elk Caller

Becoming a Successful Elk Caller

Sometimes, it simply is not enough to find a good spot and wait or even use a game camera. Elk are spooky creatures that will leave an area at the slightest provocation, even if it is only to find a preferred food source somewhere else. At times like that, you may need to start elk calling, so here’s how to do that successfully.

First, know your quarry and it’s habits, sounds and seasons. Knowing whether or not the elk are mating or rutting or just lounging around is key to success on the hunt. So, on that note, there are four distinct basic types of elk calls. The squeal, the mew, the grunt and the all out rut bugle. You need to know which one to use and when to use it effectively to draw the bull or cow you seek to take down, so here are a few elk tips for using elk calls.

Mew type elk calls are good for calling cows that may be looking to join a herd. A mew can signify either contact, distress or can be a young calf in search of it’s mother. They are also effective in calling bulls searching for herds or dominant bulls during the aggressive rutting/mating season.

Squeal type elk calls, especially a fighting squeal, are known to draw just about any elk nearer. Just as much as elk are skittish and nomadic, they are also curious and will investigate. The use of a fighting squeal elk call has been used to win competitions in the sport, so it does work.

Then there are the bugle and grunt elk calls that are very effective to draw bulls in for that ever so important bow shot. Only bulls make grunts and bugles, so you may find yourself looking at a dominant male or challenging male using these elk calls. These are extremely effective during the rutting and mating seasons, when all of the deer family like elk, white tail and moose are aggressive and will run to a fight. Dominant bulls are also territorial at this time, so these are good elk calls to use then.

Unfortunately, it is not possible for humans to make these calls naturally. So we invest a few bucks in an elk call that can be carried in the pocket or backpack and used when the opportunity presents itself. Many of the calls available will perform most of, if not all, of the calls you need to be successful on your hunt. You just need know what the calls actually sound like, so read on, great white hunter.

To learn the accurate sound of elk calls, there are videos and audio tapes available. These serve a dual purpose to both show you how the proper elk call is supposed to sound and how to use the call you bought so it sounds like that. Working the lips, tongue and proper breath control are all factors in successful elk calling.

By using these elk tips to call your quarry, you will have a freezer full of venison in no time.