Wayne Carlton: The Cowboy Who Taught Us How to Talk to Elk

Step into the autumn woods of the Rocky Mountains today, and the soundtrack of September is unmistakable: the piercing, emotional bugle of a bull elk answered by the subtle, enticing mews of a cow. For the modern hunter, reaching into a pack for a diaphragm call is second nature. But there was a time—not that long ago—when communicating with elk this way was considered crazy.

That all changed because of one man, a signature cowboy hat, and a wild idea.

Wayne Carlton, a true pioneer of the modern hunting industry, completely reshaped how we pursue big game. Through his groundbreaking diaphragm calls and legendary instructional videos—many of which are preserved today in the Wayne Carlton Classics on Stoney Wolf Outdoors—he didn't just build a business; he birthed a multi-million dollar wildlife-calling industry and changed outdoor media forever.

From Florida Turkey Woods to the Rockies

Before he became an elk hunting icon, Wayne Carlton was a master turkey hunter in his native Florida. He grew up using diaphragm mouth calls to fool stubborn gobblers. When he moved out west to Colorado in 1976, he brought those southern turkey calling techniques with him.

At the time, western elk hunting was almost strictly a game of spot, stalk, and ambush. If hunters called at all, they used clunky, rigid bugle tubes that produced monotone, unpredictable sounds.

While experimenting with his Florida turkey mouth calls in the Colorado woods, Carlton noticed a small band of elk run straight toward his turkey yelps. A lightbulb went off. He realized that if he could modify the diaphragm call to mimic the vocalizations of elk, he could talk to them on a completely different level.

Using a turkey diaphragm call and a simple piece of vacuum hose, Carlton mastered the art of the elk bugle and the estrous cow mew. In 1982, he officially went to market with the first-ever commercial diaphragm elk call, forever changing the vernacular of the mountain lifestyle.

Infusing Emotion Into the Hunt

What truly separated Wayne Carlton from anyone who came before him wasn’t just the latex and tape of his calls—it was his philosophy. Carlton taught hunters that animals don’t communicate in a flat, mechanical monotone.

"Many hunters don't know how to call elk. They can blow cow calls and bugle, but they don't know how to talk to elk. Elk put emotion and feeling into their calling... You have to push more air through the call and put enough emotion into it to shock the bull."— Wayne Carlton

He pioneered tactics like "aggressive elk calling," proving that imitating the high-pitched, excited sounds of fighting cows could drive rutting bulls absolutely wild. He proved these same aggressive calling principles worked wonders on black bears, coyotes, and moose.

The Power of Video: Educating the Masses

An innovator in the workshop, Carlton was also a natural-born entertainer built for the camera. With his booming voice, sharp humor, and unmistakable southern charm, his seminars drew crowds from hundreds of miles away. But he knew he could reach even more people through the television screen.

Wayne teamed up with outdoor videographers to document his hunts, capturing raw, unscripted footage of massive bulls screaming into camera range from mere steps away. These weren't just highlight reels; they were masterclasses in woodsmanship.

Through iconic titles now featured on Stoney Wolf Outdoors, a generation of hunters learned the ropes:

• Aggressive Elk Calling: Where hunters saw firsthand how and why "The Fight'n Cow Call" could lure a 300-inch bull to within 15 yards of a bowhunter.

  
  

• The Primetime Bulls Series: Captivating multi-part features exploring the magic of September in the Rockies, from early-season wallows to the peak of the rut.

  
  

• Call'n Bear: A legendary showcase proving that predators could be aggressively called directly to the ground at point-blank range.

  
  

These videos laid the blueprint for modern outdoor television, shifting the focus from the harvest itself to the chess match of the call.

A Lasting Legacy

Wayne Carlton passed away in February 2025 at the age of 81 after a courageous 20-year battle with Parkinson’s disease. While the outdoor community deeply feels his absence, his footprint on the industry is permanent.

Every time a hunter drops a diaphragm call onto their palate, adjusts a reed, or coaxes a screaming bull down an aspen hillside, they are participating in a tradition that Wayne Carlton built from scratch. He took the mystery out of the mountains and gave every everyday hunter a voice to speak to the wild.

He was a legend, a teacher, and above all, a friend to the hunter.

Want to relive the golden era of hunting history? Sit back and learn from the master himself by streaming the archived Wayne Carlton Classics on Stoney Wolf Outdoors today by clicking here.