Last year I was posted up on a clearcut waiting for a mature blacktail when I heard some clown hunter crashing thru the woods tooting on his cow call. So a returned the call to let him know where I was posted. Five minutes later a cow snuck up behind the bush I was using as back cover and looked at me from five feet. By the time I got an arrow knocked and turned around she was long gone.

Being in only my third year of archery elk hunting the main lesson I've learned is that they are a very vocal herd animal. The more I've used and gotten better at elk calls the more I've seen.

I'll be carrying three mouth reeds, a cow call and a bugal.

As for tactics with blackpowder open and thus a much larger crowd in the woods I'll be concentrating on escape routes.

Good Luck!