The craze for the 2013 Elk season began in June, Nevada had released the results for the big game random draw. My friend Steven (Stevey23 on hunt talk, doesn't post much but has been reading posts and hanging out here a lot lately) had drawn a late rifle bull elk tag for 072-074 with just 2 points. The work began immediately after finding out about the lucky draw.
Posting on here as well as AT and MM to get as much info as I could about the zone hoping to get a chance at a great Nevada Bull for my buddies first Elk let alone bull. I spoke with quite a few people about the area and thank you to those that helped here on Hunt Talk.
We had an Antelope hunt as well as two mule deer tags in Nevada before the elk hunt. We did fill 2 of the 3 tags which I will post about in a separate thread.
In September while getting ready for the hunt we realized we had a trailer that would be to small to carry everything we needed and had to get another trailer. (really put a kink on when we left for out hunt). My dad (Bill) at the last minute found out that he would be able to make it on the hunt. This was great for us as he has more experience hunting elk (guiding in Wyoming the last couple years and about 40 years of experience) than my Steven and I combined.
The night that we were to pack for the hunt my Steven found out that the trailer that we were to borrow was broken down about 6 hours away. Being great buddies his friend once they got the water pump fixed in their truck drove all night to get the trailer to us in the morning. Once we got the trailer we found out that the adapter for the trailer lights didn't fit the one on the truck. We had to wait for the local auto parts place to open up and go get a new trailer adapter. After these first few hiccups we were only 4 hours behind schedule. Upon arriving in Elko,NV we realized that two of the trailer tires had some large bubbles on them and some inner threads showing so we had to go to Les Schwab and get them replaced. After getting the trailer fixed all the gas cans filled shopping at wally world and the rest of the supplies done we were now 7 hours behind schedule. Leaving Elko in the dark.
Within 15 miles of the place we wanted to camp on dirt roads we got the truck and trailer stuck in a snow drift. So far all we knew was that this trip was not starting off very well. We used the Can Am side by side to pull the truck and trailer out. That was a sight on top of this bald ridge with snowshoe hairs running all over. Once back on the way to camp we found that the aspen patch that we planned on camping in was no longer there and had burned since the last Google earth photos were done. So we parked in the road and slept in the truck for the night since it was about 2am.
After about 4 1/2 hours of sleep we got out and started hitting the roads looking for a camp spot. We needed to get camp done and that was more important that hunting that morning due to the impending storm on Tuesday or Wednesday.
We finally located a good camp area and had to travel back 13 miles to get the truck and trailer supplies etc to where we were to camp and set up everything. We finally got finished setting up camp around an hour after dark but not until after we realized a part of the stove had gone missing and we had to make an adapter out of the water tank for the stove in order to hook up to stove pipe to vent out the smoke. Crazy, crazy, for the trip so far is all we could say.
We had went out to an area we wanted to hunt earlier in the day and had met a couple of guys packing out their 5x4 bull they had shot earlier that day. Speaking with them for about 10 minuted we found out that there was a good number of elk in the area and a decent amount of bulls, however, the largest bull had been taken early in the season by another hunter. With how tough they had said the hunting had been with the amount of hunters in the area we decided to get up early and set out into the wilderness area before sunrise.
The next morning we were at the trail head in the dark and could hear other atv's coming up the road to the wilderness area, so off we went on the double to glassing point about 1.5 miles away. Splitting up at the glassing point it did not take all of about 1 minute Bill to spot 4 bulls moving through a saddle about 2 miles away.
So off we went down the ridge and across a saddle with multiple elk carcasses from other earlier successful hunts. Coming within 100 yds of the opening to the saddle the elk were moving through we found a small rag horn 5x5 bull. He had spotted us coming down to the saddle due to the frozen snow on the ground and the inability to move quietly.
After he moved off to the south knowing the bulls would take off once the 5x5 caught up with the others, Bill and Steven ran out to the edge of the saddle in order to get a chance at the other bulls in the area. As they started moving off Bill spotted a nice 6x6 bull leading the group out of the saddle. They stopped at about 340 yds away and Steven took his shot hitting the bull hard. The elk moved out of the saddle to another bowl about 200 yds away. The big bull laid down out in the opening as he was having a hard time traveling up hill. Bull and Steven snuck through the trees and into the bowl the elk was laying in to make a finishing shot on the bull.
Now all the work had really begun.
After using the gutless method to get all the work done with prepping the meat and getting it all taken care of on ice (snow) we made two trips to get the whole elk out.
The second trip out was a bit easier since it was cooler and and the sun was mostly down.
After packing up camp the next morning we were ready to head back home. Short eventfull hunt. On the way home, we got another flat tire on the trailer. Lost the camp stove off the trailer and some other items and had to go back to recover them. Making an 8 hour trip home take almost all day. Leaving camp at 9am and getting home around 8pm.
This was Steven's first elk hunt and he was successful in harvesting his first bull elk as well. It was a good fun hunt with lots of ups and downs. Thank you again to all that helped on Hunt Talk, AT and MM.
Posting on here as well as AT and MM to get as much info as I could about the zone hoping to get a chance at a great Nevada Bull for my buddies first Elk let alone bull. I spoke with quite a few people about the area and thank you to those that helped here on Hunt Talk.
We had an Antelope hunt as well as two mule deer tags in Nevada before the elk hunt. We did fill 2 of the 3 tags which I will post about in a separate thread.
In September while getting ready for the hunt we realized we had a trailer that would be to small to carry everything we needed and had to get another trailer. (really put a kink on when we left for out hunt). My dad (Bill) at the last minute found out that he would be able to make it on the hunt. This was great for us as he has more experience hunting elk (guiding in Wyoming the last couple years and about 40 years of experience) than my Steven and I combined.
The night that we were to pack for the hunt my Steven found out that the trailer that we were to borrow was broken down about 6 hours away. Being great buddies his friend once they got the water pump fixed in their truck drove all night to get the trailer to us in the morning. Once we got the trailer we found out that the adapter for the trailer lights didn't fit the one on the truck. We had to wait for the local auto parts place to open up and go get a new trailer adapter. After these first few hiccups we were only 4 hours behind schedule. Upon arriving in Elko,NV we realized that two of the trailer tires had some large bubbles on them and some inner threads showing so we had to go to Les Schwab and get them replaced. After getting the trailer fixed all the gas cans filled shopping at wally world and the rest of the supplies done we were now 7 hours behind schedule. Leaving Elko in the dark.
Within 15 miles of the place we wanted to camp on dirt roads we got the truck and trailer stuck in a snow drift. So far all we knew was that this trip was not starting off very well. We used the Can Am side by side to pull the truck and trailer out. That was a sight on top of this bald ridge with snowshoe hairs running all over. Once back on the way to camp we found that the aspen patch that we planned on camping in was no longer there and had burned since the last Google earth photos were done. So we parked in the road and slept in the truck for the night since it was about 2am.
After about 4 1/2 hours of sleep we got out and started hitting the roads looking for a camp spot. We needed to get camp done and that was more important that hunting that morning due to the impending storm on Tuesday or Wednesday.
We finally located a good camp area and had to travel back 13 miles to get the truck and trailer supplies etc to where we were to camp and set up everything. We finally got finished setting up camp around an hour after dark but not until after we realized a part of the stove had gone missing and we had to make an adapter out of the water tank for the stove in order to hook up to stove pipe to vent out the smoke. Crazy, crazy, for the trip so far is all we could say.
We had went out to an area we wanted to hunt earlier in the day and had met a couple of guys packing out their 5x4 bull they had shot earlier that day. Speaking with them for about 10 minuted we found out that there was a good number of elk in the area and a decent amount of bulls, however, the largest bull had been taken early in the season by another hunter. With how tough they had said the hunting had been with the amount of hunters in the area we decided to get up early and set out into the wilderness area before sunrise.
The next morning we were at the trail head in the dark and could hear other atv's coming up the road to the wilderness area, so off we went on the double to glassing point about 1.5 miles away. Splitting up at the glassing point it did not take all of about 1 minute Bill to spot 4 bulls moving through a saddle about 2 miles away.
So off we went down the ridge and across a saddle with multiple elk carcasses from other earlier successful hunts. Coming within 100 yds of the opening to the saddle the elk were moving through we found a small rag horn 5x5 bull. He had spotted us coming down to the saddle due to the frozen snow on the ground and the inability to move quietly.
After he moved off to the south knowing the bulls would take off once the 5x5 caught up with the others, Bill and Steven ran out to the edge of the saddle in order to get a chance at the other bulls in the area. As they started moving off Bill spotted a nice 6x6 bull leading the group out of the saddle. They stopped at about 340 yds away and Steven took his shot hitting the bull hard. The elk moved out of the saddle to another bowl about 200 yds away. The big bull laid down out in the opening as he was having a hard time traveling up hill. Bull and Steven snuck through the trees and into the bowl the elk was laying in to make a finishing shot on the bull.
Now all the work had really begun.
After using the gutless method to get all the work done with prepping the meat and getting it all taken care of on ice (snow) we made two trips to get the whole elk out.
The second trip out was a bit easier since it was cooler and and the sun was mostly down.
After packing up camp the next morning we were ready to head back home. Short eventfull hunt. On the way home, we got another flat tire on the trailer. Lost the camp stove off the trailer and some other items and had to go back to recover them. Making an 8 hour trip home take almost all day. Leaving camp at 9am and getting home around 8pm.
This was Steven's first elk hunt and he was successful in harvesting his first bull elk as well. It was a good fun hunt with lots of ups and downs. Thank you again to all that helped on Hunt Talk, AT and MM.
