Elk
While there are three sub species of elk in North America recognized by the Boone and Crockett club, Pope and Young only recognizes two. Actually, Boone and Crockett only recently started recognizing California's Tule elk as a separate category.
Almost all elk hunting is done in the mountainous regions of the Western States and Canadian Provinces, because elk were pretty much driven off the prairie ranges years ago. Probably the most common way to hunt these magnificent animals is by calling the bulls during the fall rut, although they can be hunted successfully from stands in some cases. In more arid regions, especially in the early season, stands are placed over water holes or wallows in an attempt to get close shooting at elk, or on trails leading to these areas for the same reason. In some areas elk move daily onto Alfalfa fields morning and evening, giving hunters another possible ambush location.
Some of the best elk hunting is close to cultivated fields where they come to feed, but some great trophies are taken every season by those adventurous hunters willing to pack way back into the hills to hunt them. As in most hunting, the best trophies are where you find them!
Yellowstone or American Elk
By far the most commonly found elk is the Yellowstone or American elk. With a range from Alberta and British Columbia in the north to Arizona and New Mexico in the south, there are a lot of places to hunt these animals. Found mostly in the Rocky Mountain region, most people equate elk hunting to a true wilderness experience.
There are a lot of places that offer elk hunts and the prices run from a few hundred dollars to many thousands. Some hunts are fully guided during the peak of the rut, in limited hunting areas on controlled private ground, and some are just do-it-yourself deals on National forest ground. As you might imagine, the trophy potential varies as widely as does the costs involved.
Roosevelt Elk
The Roosevelt elk are found in a much more selective region, comprised primarily of the western coastal rain forest of northern California, Oregon, and Washington. There are also small pockets of animals in coastal British Columbia and on a few Alaskan islands that are classified as Roosevelt elk. Due to the dense vegetation of the rain forests, these elk are somewhat harder to find/hunt than their more eastern cousins. The majority of people bow hunting Roosevelt elk are those living in the northwestern area that these animals call home. The only notable exception would be those serious trophy bow hunters looking to take as many different species as possible, and needing a Roosevelt to meet that objective.
The only noticeable difference between the two sub species is the tendency for mature Roosevelt elk to grow extra top points similar to a red deer. These distinctive "royal" points, when present, set the Roosevelt apart from the Yellowstone in a collection.