Elk Rut Late?

A00873975 · Oct 2, 2011

Just got back from scouting for deer, this has been the 3rd weekend in a row around the Malad area. Usually the elk are bugling, but not this year. I don't have an elk tag for Southern Idaho, but I am beginning to think that the rifle boys are going to do very very GOOD if the elk rut is late.

I don't think that I have missed the rut earlier, I have spent the last three weekends hiking in good country.

So do you think the elk rut is late due to the hot weather, some other cause such as predators, or have I just missed it???

ID_hunter27 · Oct 2, 2011

I've heard from alot of people that the rut is hitting late. My uncle in Colorado says the rut really hasn't began as of a two weeks ago. Haven't talked to him since most think its the long long wet weather we had this year which makes sense. I think its gonna kinda force me to buy a tag but watch winter will be full on set by mid October

BPKHunter · Oct 3, 2011

My son has a cow tag for 39. I was up yesterday am scouting(glassing), and saw three bulls. Two were clearly herd bulls, with one at least a 330. Neither of the big boys where near cows and the big guy even had a decent 5pt hanging with him. Two weeks ago a saw a decent small 6pt with about 20 cows. Seemed to be early rut.

So my question is, do you think the 39 rut has come and gone? I am not a bow hunter so my experience is limited with elk in the rut, but I was hoping to use elk bugles to help find the herd for my son's cow hunt.

A00873975 · Oct 3, 2011

BPK

I am beginning to think the same thing, that the "peak rut" has already come and gone.

I do not archery hunt either, but during scouting in the past it has always been a great time to listen to the bugling at dusk. Not this year, definitely a strange year to say the least.

MichaelJ · Oct 3, 2011

I wonder if the late spring and all the late moisture had the elk in different areas this year. The weekend of the 17th we had cool crisp weather in unit 7 and heard only 6 bugles all weekend. Saturday night we found some elk finally and were able to get a bull really fired up and he came into me hot at 15 yrds but never saw him through the thick brush.

Was the weirdest season in 6 yrs of hunting that area. We are usually chasing anywhere from 6-15 bugling bulls a day with the type of weather we had. Not so this year....

Mike

BPKHunter · Oct 3, 2011

My friend was deer hunting in 44 this weekend(lucky), and he saw a number of bulls and they were all bugling.

Weird in deed this year.

Idahoron · Oct 3, 2011

I think the rut was normal. There is always a REAL hot time for rutting activity by the bulls after the peak. All the bulls are pimping around trying to find the last cow in heat. I was out this last weekend and called several bulls as a friend of mine was cow hunting. I had a 320 class bull about step on us on Friday as we hid in the brush and called him in as the gun was still smoking after the shot on one of the cows. It was a fun weekend. Ron

timberline · Oct 9, 2011

was up hunting in 29 all last week and the bulls were bugling off and on most of the week. first time in the unit actually hunting so i dont know if this is late or not. seems kinda late by the behavior of the bulls. just my 2 cents.

fly4fish · Oct 9, 2011

I think the rut happens the same time every year. Some years they are just more active during the day than others, mostly due to the weather, maybe moon phase, but I do not know if I am true believer in that yet.

I would imagine most of the big bulls should not be to concerned with breeding at this point. They already did their deeds and have no need for that many girls that wont put out.

7mmgilbert · Oct 9, 2011

I think the rut was a couple of weeks late, the bulls in unit 59 were bugling all day long the entire last week of Sept. but were hard to pull away from the cows they had already gathered.