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Dead elk overnight?

10K views 34 replies 25 participants last post by  rkswyo 
#1 ·
No secret it has been hot this year. My fear is if I shoot an elk in the evening and lose light and have to find him in the morning. How warm can it be at night to make me worry if the meat is still good? Know what I mean? Is this something to worry about?
 
#2 ·
Don't worry about it, it isn't that big a deal. If it happens find the animal at first light and butcher as fast as you can to get the meat cooled out. Remove all bones as the meat will cool quicker. I have blood trailed more than a few elk at night. The big trick is to stay calm and keep your wits about you. Mark your blood trail well with surveyor tape not just your GPS as this will give you a visual on the ground of where the elk is headed. I have never had a well hit elk go far.
 
#3 ·
With the night time temps in the 40's or lower I would worry more about bears and coyotes eating him, but if the next day he is laying in the sun you will have a very short time to save it, also if you hit any of the stomach that may taint much of the meat if it lays there overnight. Just de-bone right away, hang in the shade and get it off of the mountain asap.
 
#5 ·
Just make darn sure you get a good hit so it won't go far. That means no risky shots late in the evening. It's better to come back and shoot it in the morning.
Personally, I would worry about an un-recovered elk laying overnight. If it doesn't spoil it may be ravaged by predators.
 
#8 ·
Same here. I couldn't believe that coyotes could eat than much meat in only ten hours. It is also amazing how well their hide insulates them from the cold - particularly the neck. I left one overnight back in the early 90's that was shot in sub zero temps at dusk. The next morning it as 26 below zero at dawn. Not only was the elk not frozen solid, but the meat in the neck was still luke warm.
 
#10 ·
If I can help it Ill never do it again I couldnt find a cow in november she had fell in a bush in a ravine and we searched till the light went dead found her the next morning as soon as the light came up. It was well below zero and still lost a ton of meat they are so well insulated they can spoil quick, It can happen but I will do everytyhing i can to find them I wont pull a hunting show " we'll come back in the morning" thats just a cop out so they get good pics in the daytime for the show if you ask me....RANT OVER SORRY!!!
 
#12 ·
If you have to let sit overnight due to a bad/marginal hit if the elk is dead at dark but you don't find i would bet you'd loose at least 3/4 of the side the animal is lying on! As mentioned above elk are well insulated. even with cooler temps the out side of the meat on the upside may cool but as much heat as they have internally there is no where for it to go! You will loose some meat to sour!
 
#13 ·
When I shot my bul two years ago, we found him at 2230, and was back on him at 0600. It was in the mid 40's that night, and the side he was lying on that weat already started to turn sour. I know I should have at least quartered him and hung him up. NEVER AGAIN, let me repeat NEVER AGAIN, will I leave an elk in the field without at least quartering him, and getting the hide off. Looking back I should of just got him off the hill, and made a long night of it. Don't risk loosing the meat, as long as you know he is dead. Quarter him, get the hide off, game bag it up, and hang from a tree until the next morning.
 
#14 ·
It depends on so many things, although it does present a much higher risk of meat spoilage vs. if you were to get it out overnight. I had a 4th rifle season cow get ripe on the ground side (facing down side) in 3 ft. of snow and temps in the 20's that I had to leave overnight a few years ago. If you have a good blood trail, tracking in the dark is not that hard to do if you take your time (assuming you have a good blood trail that is). I'd much rather do that than risk the meat.
 
#15 ·
I'm really glad a thread like this is out there guys need to know these aren't little whitetails like on tv and I still don't see how they can get away without losing meat. This is something that has bothered me for years since I lost some of my cow and just don't want to ever have it happen again these critters are worth too much not to give it everything we have to get them taken care of.
 
#16 ·
So there are two scenarios going on in this thread.
Scenario 1: Shot bull/cow right before dark.
If it is a good shot. Let it sit for 1/2hr to 45min then track and find it. Do not want to pack in the night? Well you better debone it, get it in bags and hang it in a tree AWAY from the carcass. Come back in the a.m and pack it out.
Marginal hit and you want to let it sit overnight, expect to lose some meat, plain and simple. I would rather let it sit for a couple hours and track it down. Most elk will stove up and you can then, if need be, get another arrow into it when you find it.
Crappy situation no matter how you look at scenario 1.

Scenario 2: Good shot right at dark and you wait and go get your trophy.
DO NOT GUT and leave the animal for the night. You will lose meat to spoil or predators as mentioned. Debone the thing and get it in bags and in a tree away from the carcass, like 100yds away. Stop gutting these things people, waist of valuable time. Some people will leave it for the a.m. If terrain permits, I will pack all night to get it out if that is what it takes. Now in N.Idaho, you do not want to tromp through our brush infested woods at night, unless you can get to an old logging road to pack that thing out.
 
#18 ·
The only two times I went elk hunting the ones we shot in the evening we found, gutted and pretty much skinned them but left them laying on their hides. We then just left them till morning. We made sure that we layed a couple pairs of sweaty shirts, gloves, coat etc on or near them so that any predator that would come in would smell us and not eat the elk. I do that all the time even with deer. I have had the gut pile demolished but not once had an elk or deer touched from predators if I lay down enough sweaty / stinky items around the carcass.
 
#21 ·
just dont make a risky shot on a elk in the later evening hours. sure that being said things do happen and sometimes we cant help when the big boy walks out.

acouple years back the party i hunt with shot a cow elk in the evening and found it the next morning. it was 0 degrees that night and 22 the next morning when found. they ended up loosing a lot of the meat due to spoilage. it was a later season hunt so the elk started getting their winter coats back but still they have a thick hide and hold in a lot of heat no matter what time of the year. if you can get to the elk that night definitely do it and quarter it out like previously mentioned.
 
#23 ·
basically what these guys said.

If you leave it over night, with the hide still on, I would say there is a 95% chance loosing some meat. Not getting the hide off is just the first step. You need to move it out of woods, and them get it somewhere cold fast. Elk hide is an amazing insulator.
 
#24 ·
I'd be afraid to let one sit overnight because it would likely get eaten by bears, coyotes or wolves (depending on location). If you can't avoid it, then you'd have no choice, but if there's any way possible, go ahead and take care of that meat and your trophy!
 
#27 ·
There is no reason, I repeat no reason to lose any meat with a bull shot in the evening. It's the best time there is. Elk hunting is about sufferage get used to it. It's nothing to shoot a bull, quarter by yourself at night, pack the first load out and not get back to camp until 1-2 AM forcing down something to eat, and being back on the trail the next AM in the dark to continue.

If you're not prepared to take care of an elk in the dark, by yourself, you need to question hunting in the evening. Elk do not do well left overnight, or simply gutted and left till the next morning. I would much rather shoot an elk right before dark than in the morning-mid-morning any day of the week. Hanging them up at night is the best way to cool those quarters down without worry about blow flys. An elk shot in the AM is so much more work and effort due to heat, and flys.
 
#28 ·
As above post #27.
I wrote a bunch more but deleted...the tone sounded like I was angry....just getting prepaired for all the "I made a bad shot and couldn't find my buck/bull" threads that are about to hit the forum.
Good question.You'll do fine!
 
#29 ·
My buddy hit his elk a little far back the other day... we let it sit over night and found it at day break the next morning and the meat didnt smell and wasnt discolored or anything... we were around 10,000 feet... not sure if that mattered at night but i was shivering when i got out of the tent... i dont think we ruined any meat but ill let you know tonight when im eating it :)
 
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