Days in The Wild

Days in The Wild operates guided elk hunts across Arizona's best units, with four distinct seasonal offerings. Each hunt type brings different terrain, weather, and animal behavior—and a completely different approach.

Early Archery Hunts (September) Run the second Friday through two weeks. Expect warm days, cool mornings and evenings, occasional rain. Hunts combine bugling during peak rut hours, still hunting, ground blinds, tree stands, and glassing. Weather layers are critical—merino base layers, mid-weight core tops, mountain pants, and packable rain jacket.

First Rifle Hunt (September-October) Starts right after archery season ends. Nearly identical tactics to early archery but colder, with possible snow at higher elevations. Still-hunting and glassing dominate as rut behavior is in full swing.

Late Archery Hunt (November) Typically mid-November when rut is over. Bulls have bachelor'd up and behave like big deer. Hunts focus heavily on glassing with binoculars and tripods. Operates from trailer camps or motels. Cold, windy conditions require a layering system you can shed quickly during stalks.

Late Rifle Hunt (November-December) High-opportunity hunt with many tags and heavy field pressure. Weather mirrors late archery but often worse. Glassing and moving between vantage points is the primary tactic.

Beyond guided hunts, Days in The Wild offers the Days In The Wild Podcast with elk hunting strategies and guest experts. John Stallone also publishes detailed guides including Secrets of Hunting Western Game, covering animal location, patterning, glassing, stalking, scouting, and harvesting techniques across western big game species.

Additional offerings include raffle opportunities (Javelina, Coyote), HOWL Certification for wildlife protection, and comprehensive photography documentation of your hunt.