Deer vs. Elk

Optima · Jul 11, 2009

Just curious what you guys think the easier or funner species is to hunt w/ a bow. I'm not talking big Bucks vs. big Bulls, but just deer vs elk.

I've hunted deer my whole life and have gotten several with rifle and muzzleloader, but have not been able to seal the deal with a bow yet and I am thinking about trying elk. I always seen to get into elk while hunting deer, but have not bought a tag for them yet.

elk_horn · Jul 12, 2009

LAST EDITED ON Jul-12-09 AT 08:42AM (MST)[p]Buy a tag and go hunt elk you will get hooked!

ArrowheadWy · Jul 12, 2009

I like deer hunting best

mathewsman · Jul 12, 2009

As far as the animal itself, I think deer are tougher. They just seem to be more cautious and "jumpy" than elk. They are always nervous. However, I think where elk live is what makes them so challenging to hunt. They live in some NASTY country and what takes you and I hours to hike, they cover in a matter of minutes. They are built to cover country-very humbling! If I could only pick 1 species, it would be deer, but chasing elk is pretty darn fun too. Then there's the issue of after the kill. I can't stand to eat deer meat, but elk on the other hand is excellent to eat. I'd take an elk steak over beef any day.

fatrooster · Jul 12, 2009

My favorite is the one that I have a tag for at the moment. I love either. fatrooster.

hoytman · Jul 13, 2009

elk by far! for the same reason i love goose hunting so much, when you can call in a animal, wether you kill or not, you've fooled mother nature and that is an awsome feeling!

Optima · Jul 14, 2009

Thanks for the input! I think I just better buy a tag, practice some "talk" and try it out!

Muleymemories · Jul 14, 2009

gotta be deer, nothing like trying to sneek in on a big muley buck!!

swbuckmaster · Jul 14, 2009

I buy both deer and elk tags and hunt them at the same time.

deer seem to walk in front of my arrows and elk seem to avoid them.

Archery is a year round commitment!!

Verticalslope · Jul 22, 2009

Elk in the rut with a bow trumps the deer hunt. Big ol'e stinky bulls running in while screaming just seems to get the blood pumping.

southslope82 · Jul 22, 2009

I love both just the same I think that the deer is a little easier for me just because in order to hunt elk I have got to travel a minimum of 20 miles roughly as for the deer I can walk from my house basically but I love hunting the deer in the velvet its always nice weather in the evenings and just a ton of fun.

Huntindad · Jul 23, 2009

I wish I had your problem. I've hunted deer in PA for 12 years with a bow pretty successfully. They are tough. Quick reflexes, ultra jumpy, and they really know there environment. Put in a ground blind, cut a shooting lane, walk over a trail, any changes and they will bust you.
I've also had the fortune to hunt elk out west 5 times. I won't say the are easier. They are big animals and live in big country. If you find them and spook them, they run. They run FAR! I consider them both equal. I would love the oppurtunity to hunt them both every year. This is a no brainer! Get an elk tag, get a bow and hunt elk. Good luck!

scopenstalk · Jul 24, 2009

i think elk is more fun with a bow just because they are less spooky than deer you can stalk in on them fairly easy if you got the wind right! Mule Deer IMO is one of the hardest species to hunt with a bow but that makes it that much better when you get one!

Scrillznac · Jul 25, 2009

In Utah it would be Muleys since the DWR dicks us bowhunters with the season dates for elk. Where else can you not hunt elk with a bow for at least a couple weeks of the rut? So Utah it's gotta be muleys with a bow for me.

houndsmen28 · Jul 25, 2009

i would rather kill a elk

hollysdad · Jul 28, 2009

I have killed alot of muleys with a bow and I always get super stoked every time I harvest one, but even though I've only harvest a handful of elk, I'd have to choose elk as my preferred hunt.