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Wednesday, September 23rd, 2026

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Patrick Durkin: Long hours in a treestand pays off on Idaho elk hunt

Patrick Durkin arrowed this bull elk from a treestand while bowhunting in southeastern Idaho. (Photo by Patrick Durkin)

What do you say to convince yourself to stick with a treestand where you haven’t seen an elk after 11 hunts totaling 50 hours the past 5½ days?
Based on 55 years of bowhunting experience, I knew only this: The drought can end with one turn of your head. True, no hunting method offers guarantees, but few people use treestands to hunt elk, including me until 2017. Most bowhunters prefer calling, chasing, and stalking elk.

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