Bow Hunting

MONTANA HIGH COUNTRY OUTFITTERS

WORLD CLASS BOW ELK HUNTING

In Montana, Bow Hunting Season starts the first Saturday in September. We have a six week season. The early part of the season is best for whitetail hunting, and works well for ambush hunting on elk wallows. Elk calling is occasionally good in the first week of September but generally tends to be slow. Elk calling starts to get good about the second week of September and stays good until early October. The peak of the Elk rut is approximately September 15-22. For the best calling we recommend the 3 weeks that encompass pre-rut, peak-rut, & post-rut. On our bow elk hunts we use calling and ambush tactics. The elk usually stop bugling in the late morning or early afternoon. We call as long as they will respond. When they won’t call, we use an ambush method that usually involves sitting on an Elk wallow.
Bow Hunting

Bow and Arrow Selection

Select a bow that is quiet and one that you shoot comfortably and accurately. In elk hunting, penetration is right behind arrow placement in importance. Go for kinetic energy over speed. Simplicity and durability can be helpful in our rugged hunting situations. The less you have go wrong, the less will go wrong. Bow hunters must show certification of an archery safety course or proof of holding an archery license in another state or province in order to obtain a Montana Archery stamp. Montana has a guaranteed license if you book with an outfitter.
bow elk hunting Bow License Deadline March 15th

Elk are large animals and they present more penetration problems than most game animals. You should shoot as many pounds as you can pull on a cold morning. (65 lbs is very adequate). Arrows should be at least 425 grains including the broadhead. Most of our shots are close range so kinetic energy is more important than velocity. Use a broadhead with a history of tested penetration and toughness.

Bow Hunting Elk Kill

For those who are going to use much calling or spot and stalk during our hunt, we recommend good physical conditioning. We can effectively hunt elk, black bear, and whitetail with clients who are not in great shape if we stick with tree stands, ground blinds, and some limited calling.
Most of our shots are fairly close. We strive for shots under 30 yards. We promote fair chase and strong ethics in hunting. We do not promote taking frontal or heavily quartering shots. We are not advocates of shooting long distance. Occasionally we wound an animal that is not recovered. We do not have a set policy of one and done. We handle each case individually. If you stayed within good ethics, we will look until there is no hope, and then move on.
The area we hunt, in Lincoln and Sanders County, is known for putting big bulls into the top of the Pope and Young record books. We are experienced archery hunters and specialize in archery elk. At Montana High Country Outfitters we charge the same amount for a six day hunt regardless of the number of species you bow hunt. You can hunt elk, deer, and black bear on the same hunt. The deer tag is only for one deer, but clients have the choice of whitetail or mule deer.

The price of a combination Elk/Deer Bow hunt with Montana High Country Outfitters is $3000 for a 2:1 hunt. The 2007 combination Elk/Deer license is $1195. To reserve a hunt send a deposit of $800 per person to Montana High Country Outfitters, PO Box 1608, Noxon, Montana 59853. Include your name, contact information, and desired hunt dates.

Feel free to contact us at anytime with questions (406) 847-2279.

EMAIL: info@montanahighcountry.com