Kentucky Elk Hunting Hunt

Bull elk weigh about 700 pounds cows about 500.  Elk were originally restocked in 1995 in Kentucky Elk are hunted in Kentucky in 13 counties of western Kentucky.   Border counties allow hunting for elk in the deer season and are counties the elk have escaped into.  Our largest elk herd is in Land Between the lakes but a few elk can be seen in the Salato Center in Frankfort in a penned elk area.  There is also an elk tour bus that goes through the elk stocking area in the eastern counties.  Elk Tours are sometimes available at the Jenny Wiley Park.  Elk hunting is in the following WMA areas Beech Creek,  Redbird, Boone, Shillalah, Cranks Creek, Blanton, Buckhorn, Addington, Pine Mountain, Carr Creek, Fishtrap, Dewey and Paintsville.  Elk are best seen in Robinson Forest and Blanton Forest but elk roam throughout the Daniel Boone Forest as well.  The largest elk concentrations are in Clay, Knox, Knott, Leslie, Perry, and Breathitt counties but they are also in Bell, Harlan, Magoffin, Johnson, Martin, Pike, Floyd and Letcher.

Very few people put into the Kentucky elk lottery.  In 2005 we had 6,000 elk in Kentucky with one bull elk to one cow elk.   The goal is to have about 500 elk hunting tags each year when the herd reaches it's maximum size of about 8,000.  In 2005 we only have 100 tags.   If 3000 cows have 1500 calves we will have about 8000 in 2006 and 500 tags.  You pay about 5000 to travel and hunt elk out west.  The only other cost is a hunting license.  This is the cheapest elk hunt you can go on.  In 2004 a 14 year old girl and a grandmother took the largest bull elk which were in the 320 class.  Elk Hunting areas are Begley and Starfire where elk are stocked on about 200,000 acres with 2,600,000 acres available in the 14 county Kentucky area.  Kentucky Elk Hunting is warm compared to western elk hunting and the hills are mild compared to the western mountains.  Many elk drift onto West Virginia property where they are not hunted or Virginia where elk are freely hunted.   In 2001 the first elk hunt was done and there were only 12 hunters drawn.  Hunters may take along two assisants (guides or callers to help etc.)

Elk Hunting  Whitetail Deer Mule Deer