SCOTT BOULANGER - CONFESSIONS OF AN ELK-HUNTING OUTFITTER

Getting the Hunters to Hunt

Editor's Note: Thirty-eight-year-old Scott Boulanger, an outfitter from Darby, Montana, a guide and instructor at Circle KBL, has a very busy hunting schedule, including guiding for elk, deer, bear and mountain lion. Success on a Boulanger hunt depends on the weather, the physical condition of the hunter, the hunter's willingness to hunt and a little good luck. This week Boulanger shares with us anecdotes from his vast experience as an elk outfitter.

Question: So, how do you get the hunters to hunt elk?
Answer: I just beat them up mentally. I tell them, You guys have got to get out there and hunt. Daylight is burning, the horses are saddled, the trucks are running, and the guides are sitting in the trucks. We got to get in the mountains." Some will still give up and say it's too tough. A lot of people, when asked what elevation they live at will ask you if you mean high tide or low tide because they live on the ocean. The terrain and the elevation gets to them. We had a guy from Seattle here last hunting season. He lives at 8 feet, so when you get him up to 7,500 to 8,000 feet, it takes its toll. We have a lot of hunters from the South who hunt tree stands, but they aren't accustomed to hiking up a mountain. They ask the best way to hunt elk, and if it has just snowed, the game will start moving. I tell them if they find a fresh track to follow it.

I know guys who are successful every year, but they are loggers and work in the mountains. They are conditioned to the elevation, and they don't think anything of it. They don't carry a whole bunch of junk with them either. They'll have a knife, gun and wool shirt. They don't even bother with coats because they know the whole time they are just going to be walking, so it makes no sense to carry coats. They don't worry about where the truck is because they are going to hunt until they kill an elk. Afterwards they will figure out the easiest way to get off of the mountain. They are successful because they are determined to kill that bull.

For more information on hunting elk, contact Scott Boulanger with Circle KBL Outfitters at P.O. Box 733, Darby, Montana, 59829; (406) 821-0017; email: elkhunter@circlekbl.com or visit the Web site at www.circlekbl.com.

TOMORROW: PREPARE TO HUNT ELK