2023/2024 update !!! Norris Road Elk Hunt

[Big Fin]

The permanent swarms of elk living there now and not 10-20 miles south is a new thing (10-15) years. Elk habits have changed. Hunter habits haven’t. This is 1996. Same place. Big weather pushed bulls off Turners and Dehanns and a couple guys got trigger happy. Others showed up with tags…

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I remember that season and that picture. If you dropped by Jerry's joint, there were pictures everywhere. Lots of folks took off their hunter orange for that pic . Since wolves had just been reintroduced, "Turner" was the popular excuse for why any elk tag didn't get filled in Gallatin County. Given these were "Turner's elk," the shoot out shown in this picture was celebrated as a Robin Hood-esque act of civic duty.

For the rest of season there was a steady procession of rigs driving by that spot at about 15 mph, all day, every day. Kind of like one can expect this week.

 

[Little Big Man MT Chris]

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Oh I got this !!!

 

[TheTone]

. Lots of folks took off their hunter orange for that pic .

Seems like they still do. I just saw a friend of mines pics with a big bull they got. No orange in the pictures posing with it, none back at the truck after packing and even none in a picture of them glassing the bull prior to the shot. I’m sure they just took it off for each picture

 

[BRI]

Man I'm late to the party. Had to be around 1983 when I was 14 , my dad would always put me and my brother in for the late season Gardiner tag. One day we were driving down there. There were about 30 elk on the side of the road at Corwin Springs getting ready to cross. By first light, there were well over 20 vehicles lined up waiting. Well they wouldn't cross but someone took it upon themselves to hike around them to give them a little nudge. They crossed the road and it was mayhem, people jumping out of rigs and running up to get in position for a shot. The amount of total shots in a short 2 minute time frame is etched in my mind. A few had made it up the hill but it was gross and ugly. People arguing over "their" elk.

I thank my father for both not participating and making me watch at the same time.

 

[JT88]

Man I'm late to the party. Had to be around 1983 when I was 14 , my dad would always put me and my brother in for the late season Gardiner tag. One day we were driving down there. There were about 30 elk on the side of the road at Corwin Springs getting ready to cross. By first light, there were well over 20 vehicles lined up waiting. Well they wouldn't cross but someone took it upon themselves to hike around them to give them a little nudge. They crossed the road and it was mayhem, people jumping out of rigs and running up to get in position for a shot. The amount of total shots in a short 2 minute time frame is etched in my mind. A few had made it up the hill but it was gross and ugly. People arguing over "their" elk.

I thank my father for both not participating and making me watch at the same time.

You don't need a rifle for that one, just a tag and a knife. Plenty of carcasses to go around

 

[RobertD]

Given these were "Turner's elk," the shoot out shown in this picture was celebrated as a Robin Hood-esque act of civic duty.

Really interesting. I was almost starting to get that impression on my own. I've seen similar situations in my own area's hunting culture that evoke that same Robin Hood feeling in some people.

I almost want to say myself that what that photo seems to communicate is somehow a lot more acceptable to me than what the video seems to communicate. The video (edited, chose wrong word first time) feels like something much darker than Robin Hood-esque. It feels more like the ending of Faulkner's "The Bear", a display of desperation and greed.

 

[Little Big Man MT Chris]

Man I'm late to the party. Had to be around 1983 when I was 14 , my dad would always put me and my brother in for the late season Gardiner tag. One day we were driving down there. There were about 30 elk on the side of the road at Corwin Springs getting ready to cross. By first light, there were well over 20 vehicles lined up waiting. Well they wouldn't cross but someone took it upon themselves to hike around them to give them a little nudge. They crossed the road and it was mayhem, people jumping out of rigs and running up to get in position for a shot. The amount of total shots in a short 2 minute time frame is etched in my mind. A few had made it up the hill but it was gross and ugly. People arguing over "their" elk.

I thank my father for both not participating and making me watch at the same time.

I don’t think I would wanna watch that

 

[Doublecluck]

You guys aren’t even touching the good spots yet, hell we’ve taken 6 bulls out of the state land next to Logan landfill.

 

[Little Big Man MT Chris]

You guys aren’t even touching the good spots yet, hell we’ve taken 6 bulls out of the state land next to Logan landfill.

With all this great intel , I’ll just be able to make a road hunt loop !

 

[Derek44]

Worthy of it's own thread. Every time I've driven by this year, and in recent years, there's orange clad dude sitting in trucks and laying in wait for a swarm to step into one of the small pieces of state that touches the road. When it happens, engines rev, a race ensues, trucks are abandoned idling, doors open, as guys bail out to light them up.

Or, guys on the neighboring properties shoot them up and run them through like what happened on this day. Filmed by a good fiend who was on the way home from taking his son hunting elsewhere.

Thoughts?

Keep it civil gents. This could be somebody's life-long dream of taking an elk on the mountain with family and friends, and filling their freezers. I'd hate for there to be hurt feelings about this process.

Really?!?!?! Giving up the honey holes. Darnit. There’ll probably already be 15 rigs there when I get there this morning

 

[JCS]

Man I'm late to the party. Had to be around 1983 when I was 14 , my dad would always put me and my brother in for the late season Gardiner tag. One day we were driving down there. There were about 30 elk on the side of the road at Corwin Springs getting ready to cross. By first light, there were well over 20 vehicles lined up waiting. Well they wouldn't cross but someone took it upon themselves to hike around them to give them a little nudge. They crossed the road and it was mayhem, people jumping out of rigs and running up to get in position for a shot. The amount of total shots in a short 2 minute time frame is etched in my mind. A few had made it up the hill but it was gross and ugly. People arguing over "their" elk.

I thank my father for both not participating and making me watch at the same time.

Man I'm late to the party. Had to be around 1983 when I was 14 , my dad would always put me and my brother in for the late season Gardiner tag. One day we were driving down there. There were about 30 elk on the side of the road at Corwin Springs getting ready to cross. By first light, there were well over 20 vehicles lined up waiting. Well they wouldn't cross but someone took it upon themselves to hike around them to give them a little nudge. They crossed the road and it was mayhem, people jumping out of rigs and running up to get in position for a shot. The amount of total shots in a short 2 minute time frame is etched in my mind. A few had made it up the hill but it was gross and ugly. People arguing over "their" elk.

I thank my father for both

Man I'm late to the party. Had to be around 1983 when I was 14 , my dad would always put me and my brother in for the late season Gardiner tag. One day we were driving down there. There were about 30 elk on the side of the road at Corwin Springs getting ready to cross. By first light, there were well over 20 vehicles lined up waiting. Well they wouldn't cross but someone took it upon themselves to hike around them to give them a little nudge. They crossed the road and it was mayhem, people jumping out of rigs and running up to get in position for a shot. The amount of total shots in a short 2 minute time frame is etched in my mind. A few had made it up the hill but it was gross and ugly. People arguing over "their" elk.

I thank my father for both not participating and making me watch at the same time.

Yep, you didn't even need to bring a gun, just a knife.

I'm sure there are several on here that remember that hunting spot

 

[Doublecluck]

With all this great intel , I’ll just be able to make a road hunt loop !

Don’t overlook that airport mention, bring a smoke pole or slug gun. Also the Ennis dump, bring Kevlar way better than Logan.

Ps there is a decent 6x7 310’sh bull hanging in a herd to the south, keeps flirting with the state section, might be dead by now. Hard to say, look liked he had a pretty decent cow forcefield when I seen him.

 

[JT88]

Hard to say, look liked he had a pretty decent cow forcefield when I seen him.

Semi automatic w/ drum mag to thin out the cows so you can get lead into the bull

 

[JT88]

Smoke a pack herd a day, new Montana bumper sticker

 

[Flylo]

The permanent swarms of elk living there now and not 10-20 miles south is a new thing (10-15) years. Elk habits have changed. Hunter habits haven’t. This is 1996. Same place. Big weather pushed bulls off Turners and Dehanns and a couple guys got trigger happy. Others showed up with tags…

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Is that a young Zinger on the far right?

 

[Doublecluck]

Semi automatic w/ drum mag to thin out the cows so you can get lead into the bull

Bring a car full of friends and your good, just watch out fir undesirables (spikes)

 

[Flylo]

Man I'm late to the party. Had to be around 1983 when I was 14 , my dad would always put me and my brother in for the late season Gardiner tag. One day we were driving down there. There were about 30 elk on the side of the road at Corwin Springs getting ready to cross. By first light, there were well over 20 vehicles lined up waiting. Well they wouldn't cross but someone took it upon themselves to hike around them to give them a little nudge. They crossed the road and it was mayhem, people jumping out of rigs and running up to get in position for a shot. The amount of total shots in a short 2 minute time frame is etched in my mind. A few had made it up the hill but it was gross and ugly. People arguing over "their" elk.

I thank my father for both not participating and making me watch at the same time.

Well about a week ago some putski shot a cow at the Gardiner dump. I show up usually once a year ( only because my best friend lives in Gardiner) and every year I turn tail quickly and am embarrassed I showed up.

 

[Little Big Man MT Chris]

Well about a week ago some putski shot a cow at the Gardiner dump. I show up usually once a year ( only because my best friend lives in Gardiner) and every year I turn tail quickly and am embarrassed I showed up.

If you were really embarrassed, you wouldn’t have admitted that you go there on a public forum !

 

[hank4elk]

Yep, NM is a mess..................LOL

 

[Deleted member 16014]

I've shot bigger bulls than this lady, but only about two...might take me a few days and a couple cold smokes to get over.
Seriously though, this is why (despite enjoying seeing people's trophy rooms) the relationship to the mountains, the experience, the hard work, learning about the animals, etc. is as much or more a part of a trophy as the physical thing.