I'm sorry I wasn't clear. I never said you were 45. I said I wasn't 45 so I couldn't claim to even have close to your level of hunting experience. That clarified I'd like to make a few points:
From the sounds of your experence and your place of residence I would assume you hunt from tree stands.
You assume wrong sir. I don't like tree stands (purely because I have the tendency to fall asleep in them). I still hunt - stalk for a bit, stand still and observe, stalk more, stand still and observe. Repeat till I find my quarry and take it. The last time I shot a deer from a stand was when I was 18. I am now 35. So while I may not be in the west I do hunt afoot.
Elk run in herds so a wounded animal would not be able to be followed by a dog, which is illegal here. Elk seldom leave much blood especialyl from a jaw shot.
I've never hunted elk but deer run in herds too. A wounded animal does have a different scent than a healthy one and a good dog can pick up on that even if there is no visible blood trail. Hunting deer with a dog is illegal here too but tracking an animal that you have shot and wounded with the aid of a dog is NOT illegal so long as you're not carrying your primary hunting weapon. Your DNR's rules on that read similar to WI DNR's rules on use of a dog. I'd place a call to your DNR for verification but I'd wager its about the same.
Tacking them till you find them is a great idea, however many make it to private land. It is illegal to trespass while following a wounded animal.
That is also true here however sending someone from your party or going yourself to ask the landowner's permission isn't too much trouble is it? Most land owners will not begrudge you their permission to go onto their land in search of wounded game... especially deer sized or larger. If they say no at least you can say you've done all you could but to just give up because they crossed property lines isn't doing all you could.
When you encounter an animal you are often out of breath, distances vary from muzzle to hundreds of yards. High winds, heavy snow or rain, bad footing, shooting offhand or from makeshift rests, dont lead to accurate shooting.
I agree with you on this. I've hunted in all of these conditions. That's why I practice often shooting offhand, on makeshift rests and off shooting sticks. I practice shooting in mud, snow, pouring rain and high wind conditions. Basically regardless of weather conditions I'm out there practicing 2-3 times a week. Shooting offhand I can trust that even after having stalked through heavy brush and woods up hills and through swamps I can make a shot to the vitals on deer size game with my rifle out to 300yds. Most of my shots don't occur at that distance since in the swamps and woods that I hunt I primarily shoot between 40 to 75 yds. I have taken game out to 400 yds though so its not impossible. There are deer that I've head shot though and they've either dropped where they were hit or ran at most 25 yds and died. Typically those deer were does that I had tags for. I neck shoot bucks to save meat. I've not had a neck shot deer move more than 20-25 yds before dying either.
I fire @3000 rounds a year in practice
I send on average 1000 rounds a week down range in practice. Some weeks more depending on what I'm doing that week. Granted its not all with rifles, about 1/4 of that is handguns, another 1/4 of that is shotguns (trap and skeet) but nonetheless I do practice. I can only hope other hunters practice too.
Why aim at something the size of a small fist when such a large target is available.
I agree with you on this too if you don't know for sure you can make the shot. I've made the shot, multiple times, and know I could make it again. That comes from knowing your weapon and knowing your skills and limitations. Would I take a head shot out beyond 100 yds? Definitely not. Within 100yds though I know I can take a head shot on a deer consistently shooting offhand with my LR-308. If I'm shooting off a set of sticks I can extend that range to about 150yds. Oh and something I like to practice - I do quickly 100 jumping jacks before I start shooting. When my heart rate and breathing start to return to normal I do more jumping jacks. I look like an idiot on the range but it helps you learn how to shoot when you're tired, excited or just out of breath. I don't do this all the time at the range but I usually put at least 90 rounds down range doing this between mags.
Anyway again - head shots are not inhumane. Leaving a wounded animal to die slowly however is.