Stubborn Satellite

[JohnFitzgerald]

Late in the season, early morning, and you are hunting a satellite. He responds to cow calls every time but just wont come any closer than 100 yards. Every time you move to towards him he stays just out of reach. The thermals are perfect and you\'ve only used cow sounds, no bugles. It\'s your scenario, so either your alone or you have a shooter.

1) Why is he calling at you but not interested in coming in?
2) What would you do to get him within bow range?

 

[cnelk]

1] He has a cow or two

2] Quit calling, nock an arrow and stomp your way right to him. Dont be afraid to make some noise.
He will anchor right there and wait for you. This would be a perfect time to have Jeff\'s slip system or another \'flash\' technique
Be ready to shoot

 

[Deertick]

Agree ... he\'s got a reason for not coming to a cow ... and the only reason that could be would be he has a cow or cows of his own.

Jaquomo ... would you say this is a spot for your elk hat?

 

[JohnFitzgerald]

I like the stomping in idea.

In addition to Brad\'s and Tick\'s comments, I\'ve seen satellites hang up that are alone. Who else has seen this and why they would hold up? I want to hear from others on what they think. I will not state my tactics on this thread. :silent:

 

[razorback]

Forgive me for being igorant, but how do you know he\'s a satellite? If I knew he wasn\'t a real dominant bull, I might bugle at him with a weak bugle and try to sound like I\'m taking my cows away from him go silent and then slip toward him.

 

[Russel Reed]

Forgive me for being igorant, but how do you know he\'s a satellite? If I knew he wasn\'t a real dominant bull, I might bugle at him with a weak bugle and try to sound like I\'m taking my cows away from him go silent and then slip toward him.

That\'s a great answer Razor! The bull isn\'t coming any closer for one of two reasons. (1) He is shy because he knows there is a cow but he can\'t see her. He knows exactly where the sound is coming from. Try to run in on him and you are busted. (2) He is trying to get the cow (you) to come to him. If you don\'t, you have to give him a reason why you can\'t. Thus, Razor\'s idea of a bugle has some merit. But make it small and whimpy sounding. You want to give the bull the idea that another bull is keeping you from coming. Maybe even cast your sounds around to make him think you are moving away. This could draw him closer.

 

[elkmtngear]

This would be a perfect time to have Jeff\'s slip system or another \'flash\' technique
Be ready to shoot

Yeah I\'m running right at him with my SLIP decoy out front, screaming like the hottest honey in the woods.

IMHO, he is hung up because he wants visual confirmation. I\'m giving it to him and then some!

 

[Olympushunt]

This would be a perfect time to have Jeff\'s slip system or another \'flash\' technique
Be ready to shoot

Yeah I\'m running right at him with my SLIP decoy out front, screaming like the hottest honey in the woods.

IMHO, he is hung up because he wants visual confirmation. I\'m giving it to him and then some!

+1 I think this is exactly the right plan. I\'m definitely not thinking he has a cow or two because if he did he likely would not be hanging around and playing with you. He probably would know he has the better end of mother nature and would collect his cow or two and get the hail out of Dodge. I\'m betting he wants to come in but has been tipped off by something and is torn. He might have an idea something isn\'t right but his desire to get some action is his Achilles heel. That slip system would become his undoing. I\'ve have friends claim they even have had the wind blowing right to a satellite bull and the thing KNEW something bad was going down but it saw that dang decoy and WOULD NOT heed the warnings. Love sick and broken.

 

[Swede]

I read some good ideas here. I agree, if you have a portable decoy, then use it. If you don\'t then you would bugle, as stated above, if alone. If I had a shooter out front, I would behave like a cow walking off, and try to get the bull to come close enough for the shooter.

 

[JohnFitzgerald]

What does everything think about pressured elk vs. unpressured elk? Could that play a role in how cautious the bull is being?

 

[elkmtngear]

What does everything think about pressured elk vs. unpressured elk? Could that play a role in how cautious the bull is being?

If a bull has busted a hunter before that was calling (become \"educated\")...it is my guess that he will need some extra convincing.

 

[flystrait]

What does everything think about pressured elk vs. unpressured elk? Could that play a role in how cautious the bull is being?

That does not matter, I would call the cow to me and he will be following. Unless he hooks her hard which has happened a few times. Then I would move on and find a mature bull.

 

[Two Bear]

What does everything think about pressured elk vs. unpressured elk? Could that play a role in how cautious the bull is being?

Possibly, or the last time he scoped out a cow he got a thrashing from a bull he didn\'t know was there. If he suspects you might not be real, he isn\'t calling at all. One tactic I have used is a random uninterested zig zag pattern. Making a direct beeline at a prey animal is in general a predatory move, so some light calling, zig zagging, eating some grass, really don\'t care if you come in calling sequence may allow you to get close enough to take him over the top. You might also hook wind, a very elky move that would certainly make sense.

My guess would be a small bull or a bull with some cows. If it is just a small skittish bull that is worried about another bull in the vicinity then you have two options, convince him there is not another bull, or convince him that there is another bull but he is no threat.

 

[Glacier Country]

You guys might giggle at this but , I have a buddy I call \"Squirt Gun\" because if a squirt gun is all he had to hunt with I am convinced he would still kill whatever he is hunting with just a Squirt Gun.
I know Squirt Gun takes a Montana decoy that he poked some holes in and tied some para cord. In this satellite situation he puts the decoy around his neck like Flavor Flav puts a clock around his neck , and goes right to them. No BS. He makes me laugh but it seems to work for him.
He may be one of the best elk hunters you have never heard of!!!

Troy
Glacier Country Hunting Calls

 

[Olympushunt]

I totally agree with the decoy being the ticket when you have a stubborn satellite bull that is responding to cow calls but won\'t quite come in. Is he afraid of the herd bull he has got his butt whipped by? Is he apprehensive not seeing the cow and is afraid it isn\'t an elk talking to him? I had an interesting occurrence back in 1993. I was sitting in a stand over a waterhole and it was mid morning. I was very much a rookie elk hunter then. It was only my 3rd season elk hunting. I was minding my own business when I looked up the hillside and see a decent bull walking down the hill towards me. He was coming right for the water. I was concerned about the thermals going up hill. I could see he was about a 4-5pt bull and was alone. I decided maybe it was smart to let out a little cow call telling him all is good down here, come on in and get a drink. That way if he did get a wiff of something he didn\'t like he would more at ease hearing a cow call. I had one of those sceery (sp?) calls and let out a sweet \"eee---ahhh\" and this boy locked it up like he hit a wall. Whoa......there. He was up the hill about 150 yards and he looks down hill towards me for all of two seconds and decides...maybe I am not all that thirsty after all. DAAAAAAAAAAAANG IT! He walks off slowly side hilling and meanders off with no sense of urgency. I was bummed. That would have been my first elk. Instead...I had to wait until 1994 for my first. STUPID! Anyhow...this bull ended up dying later that day from some very very advanced calling techniques employed by Swede. Turd killed my bull! It\'s ok...I think I payed Swede back in 1995 killing a bull he botched it on. I can tell you that story later if ya\'ll like. Who said airing dirty laundry isn\'t nice. lol. Anyhow. I told Swede about it at lunch as I came out of that stand mid day after all was quiet for a few hours. I told him I bet that bull never went anywhere and if he is still thirsty he might come back. My hind end was sore as I had not developed the calluses from sitting an obscene number of hours I have now. I told him take a turn in that stand of pain (it was a home made jobby with NO padding) for the afternoon and maybe just maybe that bull\'s thirst would return. I decided to ground blind a spring that was a few hundred yards down the draw from that waterhole. Swede\'s crafty calling technique included a large dose of \"shutthehailup\" and sit. Oh about 5pm or so I was picking my nose and I hear a massive crash/splash/tump/bang/thrash!!! I jumped up scared out of my camo pants. SWEDE FELL OUT OF THE DANG TREE!!!! Oh crap! I run as fast as I can expecting to find him piled up at the base of the tree when out of the corner of my eye I see this bull hauling arss like he had been shot out of a cannon. I don\'t see dad laying on the ground.....I look up in the tree and he is looking back at me with a \"What on God\'s green earth are you DOING! Trying to scare off this bull!\" I said...\"What happened?!!!!\" He whispers, \"I shot him, what do you THINK happened...would you please be quiet!\" Sheesh....just trying to help. That bull didn\'t run 200 yards before piling up. He probably would have gone less had I not terrorized him after being stung. lol. Oooops. So....my question behind all of this is...if you have a skittish bull to even a cow call...is there any way to coax him in. Would a decoy have worked since he may very well have not wanted to have anything to do with the cow....or more like her boyfriend that kicked his but the day before? Both Swede and I guessed this was the case...a herd bull with his cows were in the area and run him off before.
Granted this was 1993 and calling wasn\'t as popular as it is now and I bet I saw less than 3 bowhunters that entire season. I don\'t think this bull was shy of \"calls\".

 

[JohnFitzgerald]

I totally agree with the decoy being the ticket when you have a stubborn satellite bull that is responding to cow calls but won\'t quite come in. Is he afraid of the herd bull he has got his butt whipped by? Is he apprehensive not seeing the cow and is afraid it isn\'t an elk talking to him? I had an interesting occurrence back in 1993. I was sitting in a stand over a waterhole and it was mid morning. I was very much a rookie elk hunter then. It was only my 3rd season elk hunting. I was minding my own business when I looked up the hillside and see a decent bull walking down the hill towards me. He was coming right for the water. I was concerned about the thermals going up hill. I could see he was about a 4-5pt bull and was alone. I decided maybe it was smart to let out a little cow call telling him all is good down here, come on in and get a drink. That way if he did get a wiff of something he didn\'t like he would more at ease hearing a cow call. I had one of those sceery (sp?) calls and let out a sweet \"eee---ahhh\" and this boy locked it up like he hit a wall. Whoa......there. He was up the hill about 150 yards and he looks down hill towards me for all of two seconds and decides...maybe I am not all that thirsty after all. DAAAAAAAAAAAANG IT! He walks off slowly side hilling and meanders off with no sense of urgency. I was bummed. That would have been my first elk. Instead...I had to wait until 1994 for my first. STUPID! Anyhow...this bull ended up dying later that day from some very very advanced calling techniques employed by Swede. Turd killed my bull! It\'s ok...I think I payed Swede back in 1995 killing a bull he botched it on. I can tell you that story later if ya\'ll like. Who said airing dirty laundry isn\'t nice. lol. Anyhow. I told Swede about it at lunch as I came out of that stand mid day after all was quiet for a few hours. I told him I bet that bull never went anywhere and if he is still thirsty he might come back. My hind end was sore as I had not developed the calluses from sitting an obscene number of hours I have now. I told him take a turn in that stand of pain (it was a home made jobby with NO padding) for the afternoon and maybe just maybe that bull\'s thirst would return. I decided to ground blind a spring that was a few hundred yards down the draw from that waterhole. Swede\'s crafty calling technique included a large dose of \"shutthehailup\" and sit. Oh about 5pm or so I was picking my nose and I hear a massive crash/splash/tump/bang/thrash!!! I jumped up scared out of my camo pants. SWEDE FELL OUT OF THE DANG TREE!!!! Oh crap! I run as fast as I can expecting to find him piled up at the base of the tree when out of the corner of my eye I see this bull hauling arss like he had been shot out of a cannon. I don\'t see dad laying on the ground.....I look up in the tree and he is looking back at me with a \"What on God\'s green earth are you DOING! Trying to scare off this bull!\" I said...\"What happened?!!!!\" He whispers, \"I shot him, what do you THINK happened...would you please be quiet!\" Sheesh....just trying to help. That bull didn\'t run 200 yards before piling up. He probably would have gone less had I not terrorized him after being stung. lol. Oooops. So....my question behind all of this is...if you have a skittish bull to even a cow call...is there any way to coax him in. Would a decoy have worked since he may very well have not wanted to have anything to do with the cow....or more like her boyfriend that kicked his but the day before? Both Swede and I guessed this was the case...a herd bull with his cows were in the area and run him off before.
Granted this was 1993 and calling wasn\'t as popular as it is now and I bet I saw less than 3 bowhunters that entire season. I don\'t think this bull was shy of \"calls\".

For the 93 bull, you could see him and he could see exactly where the sound came from.

 

[Olympushunt]

I thought about that a lot. I have been pegged before in my stand numerous times. It is very unusual for them to look up (hence one of the great advantages of a tree stand) and see you. But the sheer number of stand hours it is bound to happen. Most of the time it\'s when they are on a hill and have a direct line of sight to you. In those situations it is a good idea to have branches or heavy camo to conceal you. Every time I have been busted in a stand the elk bolted and were gone for good. At least for that day anyhow. I am pretty sure that bull had no idea of a human being in a tree there....just by the way he looked down hill toward the water and his body language. It was pretty heavy timber too and was not \"clear\" between us. Sure I could be wrong. He just acted like \"whoa...those dang elk are down there I better just go mind my Ps and Qs.\" I definitely could have read that situation wrong though. I do know it was a major mistake to do what I did though. He was coming right for the water...I didn\'t need to do anything. So JF...in that situation do you think a decoy would have made a difference if he saw a \"cow\" down by the water? I\'m guessing it could not have made it worse...... I would LOVE to have that situation again multiple times to experiment with how different a reaction he would have made to things.

 

[Swede]

I have made a lot of mistakes and certainly the path to getting things right is littered with blunders. Both Oly and I have learned a lot through or experiences, both good and bad since 93.
The best option would have been to keep quiet. The bull was coming to water. They often stop and look for awhile before coming in. I have had them wait 10-15 minutes, and it seem like an eternity, especially when it is getting close to dark. The bull Oly wrote about came in on September 6th. Yes I have made the same mistake he did. The reason I did not make that mistake, that day, was because the bull came straight in with no delay in the evening.
I remember the 95 bull Oly refers to. I would be interested in his take on what happened. It was definitely a fine bull that he took near the end of the season. I recognized it immediately, as soon as I saw the antlers in the back of the truck.
Cnelk calls some from his stand. Only in rare situations will I do that. I do not think Brad would have tried a call when he could see the bull looking down the hill to the water hole. I was not there at the time, but I think the bull was less than 30 yards away when Oly cow called.

 

[Swede]

I know I have not given Oly an opportunity to tell the story about my blunder on the 95 elk. I will let him tell in more detail what happened. Oly\'s 95 bull was skittish. Very skittish!
It was early in the season. I was using aluminum arrows, but I doubt that made the difference. I also had a TM Hunter rest. I had nothing to insolate the prongs. They were naked metal and when I drew on the bull, he bolted. I tried to shoot him when he was less than 10 yards in front of me, but I did not lead him and the arrow stuck in a log two feet in behind as he ran past me. He was instantly in full boogie when he heard the slight sound of the arrow being drawn. Lesson learned! I had heard of the problem, but thought it over rated. I did not think it was over rated any longer after that experience. Now my equipment is quiet.
I promise, I will let Oly tell what he remembers, and what happed when he got the bull about three weeks later.

 

[Olympushunt]

I know I have not given Oly an opportunity to tell the story about my blunder on the 95 elk. I will let him tell in more detail what happened. Oly\'s 95 bull was skittish. Very skittish!
It was early in the season. I was using aluminum arrows, but I doubt that made the difference. I also had a TM Hunter rest. I had nothing to insolate the prongs. They were naked metal and when I drew on the bull, he bolted. I tried to shoot him when he was less than 10 yards in front of me, but I did not lead him and the arrow stuck in a log two feet in behind as he ran past me. He was instantly in full boogie when he heard the slight sound of the arrow being drawn. Lesson learned! I had heard of the problem, but thought it over rated. I did not think it was over rated any longer after that experience. Now my equipment is quiet.
I promise, I will let Oly tell what he remembers, and what happed when he got the bull about three weeks later.

That\'s basically it in a nut shell. Mid Summer, 1995, I was in the shop after a round of practice and I wasn\'t happy with how much noise an aluminum shaft drawn across steel launchers was making. I had heard that shrink tubing helped cut that noise down to nothing. I decided to give it a try. Dad walks in and asks me what I am doing taking a match to my bow. I told him I was putting shrink tubing on and he says something like \"Suit yourself but the last several branch bulls I killed didn\'t seem to mind any.\" I could feel the eye roll even though I wasn\'t looking. I do plenty of goofy things and I\'m sure he thought this was one of them. I\'m paranoid about scent and sound. I know dad was on a roll of killing branch bulls and why fix something that isn\'t broke? I am a firm believer that just like people there are deer and elk that are inordinately spooky. I have two little girls and one is fearless to a fault, jumping and bouncing around with reckless abandon and the other is way more timid. She is skittish and very cautious. Nothing has happened to either one to create that either. It is just their character. So Swede told you what happened when he drew on this bull....he freaked out and bolted. When he comes back to camp and tells me....I say \"Wanna have some shrink tubing?\" with a grin. Salt in wounds.... Anyhow, about 3 weeks later, I am sitting in that same spot. Here he comes! What a spooky critter holy smokes. I thought any second he was going to hear my pounding heart. He came in to the spring to get a drink and I believe wallow as it had been getting tore up. When he put his head down to get a drink I start my draw. He jerks his head up like a dart! I was stuck in mid draw! Oh great......what do I do now?! The noise it made was NOTHING! Sheeesh! I figured, well....it is going to be the same noise and motion finishing my draw as letting down so I went for it. I pulled back to full draw......and he pauses for a few seconds head up and on high alert as I settle in. Then he surprised me. He put his head back down to finish his drink. His very last mistake he ever made.
I don\'t suppose you can imagine what Swede put on his bow after I come home with that bull. :mrgreen: