The 2018 hunting season has wrapped up at the Busch house and we are thankful to have a freezer full of wild game. Like most years, there were some surprises, some disappointments and more than a few “lessons learned”.
The season kicked off in mid-September with my father and brother having a pocket full of antelope tags for central WY. I was designated head guide with orders to identify targets and take care of the “guttin’ and gillin’”. My dad was a Marine in Vietnam and Marines do not forget how to shoot straight! In a day and a half, my dad and brother put two antelope bucks and four does on the ground. They were thrilled with all of the animals in the cooler and we finished early enough for me to scout a limited draw unit for mulies I plan on drawing in 2019. A great start to the year!
Next, I had a CO antelope rifle tag in GMU 87 and only one day to hunt. My daughter, Willow the Wonder Dog and I headed out to find a speed goat. Unfortunately, the weather forecast didn’t cooperate and we had rain and drizzle all day. I mention what unit this was because it is supposed to be a pretty decent tag. I was surprised to see a ridiculous number of hunters and very few antelope. With the circumstances and time constraints, I was thankful to find this buck and a few does bedded on a huge flat in the afternoon. I popped up the “Moo Cow” decoy and meandered in for a shot.
A couple of weeks later, my wife had a 2nd season buck tag in southern CO. Her schedule only allowed her to hunt opening weekend. On Saturday, we hiked into a lot of beautiful country, but didn’t see many deer. We did however see plenty of deer in the hotel parking lot that evening as we were unloading the truck! Sunday morning she decided it was a better idea to sleep in than go hunting. It was her tag, her hunt, and I was not about to try to convince her otherwise. She is smarter than I am and full of good ideas.
I left Sunday afternoon to drive north, set up the wall tent and make camp in western CO where I had a 2nd season mule deer tag, a 3rd season elk tag and my wife had a 2nd season cow elk tag for the following weekend. Again, I dealt with rain for three straight days while trying to turn up a big mulie. Driving back to camp the last morning I had to hunt deer, there was a mulie buck and doe standing in a clear-cut not far from the tent. The buck looked both tender and delicious. I drove past them, snuck through the Junipers and filled my tag. Hunters who pull great bucks out of this unit (as T-Bone has done repeatedly) have my respect. It was humbling!!
I had to run back home for a quick work commitment and my wife and I drove back two days later to get her a cow elk. I had located a group of cows while deer hunting and was confident we would get her a shot. As we were hiking up the mountain in the dark, a dog was ahead of us (right where the elk were supposed to be feeding) barking and raising all kinds of hell. Suffice it to say, the elk weren’t there and all we could find is bulls for the next two days. Bad news for her, but great news for me as I had a bull tag there starting in six days.
I was joined on my 3rd season elk hunt by a friend (Rob) and his daughter (Jaden) who had bull and cow tags respectively, as well as a fellow Hunttalker (Trigger50 or Tim) who I had met from the site and also had a bull tag.
We arrived the day before opener and located two different groups of bulls. Opening morning found us hiking into a sage flat where I had put two nice bulls to bed the night before. They were still there at daybreak and just as we were putting on packs to go after them, a road hunter in a UTV drove right through the sage flat blowing out the bulls (and oblivious they were there). Greg was not happy walking out!
The next morning we are walking in the dark again to a group of five bulls we had located in a basin near camp. Just as we are easing up to the lip of the basin at daybreak, yet another road hunter busts down what could charitably be described as a very crappy donkey trail IN HIS TRUCK. He was polite enough to stop and inform us there were no elk in the basin we were about to look into. I thought to myself, “Why do you think that might be”, bit my tongue and walked away. I hesitated to respond as his son was in the passenger’s seat and he would not have enjoyed any conversation we may have had. I don’t apologize for loathing lazy ass road hunters. Greg was REALLY not happy walking out!!
I decided to pack up, drive to the north end of the unit and check some spots there. Rob, Jaden and Tim all agreed this was a good idea. After a two-hour drive, we all picked a spot and headed out for an evening hunt. I climbed got into some VERY steep country and saw VERY little. When I was hiking back to the main trail, I thought I heard cow calls. I was surprised to see 70+ elk spilling out of a north-facing slope into the oak brush below me when I turned the corner. My next thought was “Are there any bulls”? This was immediately answered by two clear bugles (in November no less). I didn’t hesitate to close the distance, look over the herd, found five bulls, and put a 6x6 down with two shots.
I was very late getting back to the trucks and surprised when no one else was there? After eating and cleaning up for an hour, Rob pulled up covered in sweat. He and Jaden had also killed a good bull that evening. While we were sharing our stories, Tim pulled up with a big smile on his face and a bigger rack in the back of his vehicle! We had all killed 6x6 bulls that evening. Amazing!! We packed a lot of elk out of some ugly spots the next day and half. The day after I left Jaden also took a nice cow elk.
I did have to get some work done between hunting trips. In the evenings, after visiting some campuses on the Colorado/Kansas border, I hit some Walk-in Areas for pheasants. Every area held birds and I found out my shot gunning skills had become a bit rusty since moving from ND. I still managed to knock a few down though.
Just before Thanksgiving, my wife and I headed back to WY with four mulie doe tags. This was supposed to be a relaxing hunt to put meat in the freezer. It was, other than a 24-hour blizzard. Regardless, we found no shortage of cooperative deer. The weather broke on Sunday morning and the deer were out in force. With three of our four tags filled, we decided to let the deer enjoy the sunshine and headed home.
My son was fortunate to have been drawn for a late season AZ rifle elk tag. He flew back from college and I picked him up at the airport with the truck packed and ready to go for the eleven-hour drive ahead of us. Jake failed to mention he was fighting a nasty cold, was coughing and didn’t sound good. Being 19 and bulletproof, he assured me it wasn’t going to be a problem. I wasn’t convinced, having hunted while sick in the past. Jake has never gotten an elk before, was excited about the opportunity and the drive went by quickly. We had a day to scout before the hunt and found a LOT of elk, including 16 bulls in three different groups. As we went to sleep in the tipi, it started to snow…a bunch!
Opening morning there was a foot of snow on the ground, with more coming down and gusty winds. We had about a ¾-mile hike into an area where we had seen a big group of bulls the day before. At sunrise, they were nowhere to be found. Instead, we found a herd of 60+ elk with some spikes. After looking them over, we headed back to the ATV. Jake had been toughing out his cold, but went downhill quickly. He was coughing, shivering and miserable. We went back to the tipi and he crawled into the sleeping bag and slept for eight hours while I kept a fire going. When Jake got up, he wasn’t feeling much better so we went into town for a warm meal and meds.
The next morning Jake still sounded terrible, but was up for a short walk into an area that I thought might hold some bulls. Ten minutes of walking through the soft, powder snow and we glassed a small bull feeding in the Ponderosas ahead of us. Though we had seen much better bulls, Jake thought this one looked great. Two hits at 275 yards and Jake had his first bull. We were both thrilled!
The last hunt of the year was awesome, frustrating, and a truly rare experience. It deserves its own thread, which will follow in a few minutes. Until then, here is a teaser pic:
I am thankful God blessed me with another year of good health, great family/friends, public lands and the ability to do what I love…none of which are guaranteed to be here next year!
The season kicked off in mid-September with my father and brother having a pocket full of antelope tags for central WY. I was designated head guide with orders to identify targets and take care of the “guttin’ and gillin’”. My dad was a Marine in Vietnam and Marines do not forget how to shoot straight! In a day and a half, my dad and brother put two antelope bucks and four does on the ground. They were thrilled with all of the animals in the cooler and we finished early enough for me to scout a limited draw unit for mulies I plan on drawing in 2019. A great start to the year!
Next, I had a CO antelope rifle tag in GMU 87 and only one day to hunt. My daughter, Willow the Wonder Dog and I headed out to find a speed goat. Unfortunately, the weather forecast didn’t cooperate and we had rain and drizzle all day. I mention what unit this was because it is supposed to be a pretty decent tag. I was surprised to see a ridiculous number of hunters and very few antelope. With the circumstances and time constraints, I was thankful to find this buck and a few does bedded on a huge flat in the afternoon. I popped up the “Moo Cow” decoy and meandered in for a shot.
A couple of weeks later, my wife had a 2nd season buck tag in southern CO. Her schedule only allowed her to hunt opening weekend. On Saturday, we hiked into a lot of beautiful country, but didn’t see many deer. We did however see plenty of deer in the hotel parking lot that evening as we were unloading the truck! Sunday morning she decided it was a better idea to sleep in than go hunting. It was her tag, her hunt, and I was not about to try to convince her otherwise. She is smarter than I am and full of good ideas.
I left Sunday afternoon to drive north, set up the wall tent and make camp in western CO where I had a 2nd season mule deer tag, a 3rd season elk tag and my wife had a 2nd season cow elk tag for the following weekend. Again, I dealt with rain for three straight days while trying to turn up a big mulie. Driving back to camp the last morning I had to hunt deer, there was a mulie buck and doe standing in a clear-cut not far from the tent. The buck looked both tender and delicious. I drove past them, snuck through the Junipers and filled my tag. Hunters who pull great bucks out of this unit (as T-Bone has done repeatedly) have my respect. It was humbling!!
I had to run back home for a quick work commitment and my wife and I drove back two days later to get her a cow elk. I had located a group of cows while deer hunting and was confident we would get her a shot. As we were hiking up the mountain in the dark, a dog was ahead of us (right where the elk were supposed to be feeding) barking and raising all kinds of hell. Suffice it to say, the elk weren’t there and all we could find is bulls for the next two days. Bad news for her, but great news for me as I had a bull tag there starting in six days.
I was joined on my 3rd season elk hunt by a friend (Rob) and his daughter (Jaden) who had bull and cow tags respectively, as well as a fellow Hunttalker (Trigger50 or Tim) who I had met from the site and also had a bull tag.
We arrived the day before opener and located two different groups of bulls. Opening morning found us hiking into a sage flat where I had put two nice bulls to bed the night before. They were still there at daybreak and just as we were putting on packs to go after them, a road hunter in a UTV drove right through the sage flat blowing out the bulls (and oblivious they were there). Greg was not happy walking out!
The next morning we are walking in the dark again to a group of five bulls we had located in a basin near camp. Just as we are easing up to the lip of the basin at daybreak, yet another road hunter busts down what could charitably be described as a very crappy donkey trail IN HIS TRUCK. He was polite enough to stop and inform us there were no elk in the basin we were about to look into. I thought to myself, “Why do you think that might be”, bit my tongue and walked away. I hesitated to respond as his son was in the passenger’s seat and he would not have enjoyed any conversation we may have had. I don’t apologize for loathing lazy ass road hunters. Greg was REALLY not happy walking out!!
I decided to pack up, drive to the north end of the unit and check some spots there. Rob, Jaden and Tim all agreed this was a good idea. After a two-hour drive, we all picked a spot and headed out for an evening hunt. I climbed got into some VERY steep country and saw VERY little. When I was hiking back to the main trail, I thought I heard cow calls. I was surprised to see 70+ elk spilling out of a north-facing slope into the oak brush below me when I turned the corner. My next thought was “Are there any bulls”? This was immediately answered by two clear bugles (in November no less). I didn’t hesitate to close the distance, look over the herd, found five bulls, and put a 6x6 down with two shots.
I was very late getting back to the trucks and surprised when no one else was there? After eating and cleaning up for an hour, Rob pulled up covered in sweat. He and Jaden had also killed a good bull that evening. While we were sharing our stories, Tim pulled up with a big smile on his face and a bigger rack in the back of his vehicle! We had all killed 6x6 bulls that evening. Amazing!! We packed a lot of elk out of some ugly spots the next day and half. The day after I left Jaden also took a nice cow elk.
I did have to get some work done between hunting trips. In the evenings, after visiting some campuses on the Colorado/Kansas border, I hit some Walk-in Areas for pheasants. Every area held birds and I found out my shot gunning skills had become a bit rusty since moving from ND. I still managed to knock a few down though.
Just before Thanksgiving, my wife and I headed back to WY with four mulie doe tags. This was supposed to be a relaxing hunt to put meat in the freezer. It was, other than a 24-hour blizzard. Regardless, we found no shortage of cooperative deer. The weather broke on Sunday morning and the deer were out in force. With three of our four tags filled, we decided to let the deer enjoy the sunshine and headed home.
My son was fortunate to have been drawn for a late season AZ rifle elk tag. He flew back from college and I picked him up at the airport with the truck packed and ready to go for the eleven-hour drive ahead of us. Jake failed to mention he was fighting a nasty cold, was coughing and didn’t sound good. Being 19 and bulletproof, he assured me it wasn’t going to be a problem. I wasn’t convinced, having hunted while sick in the past. Jake has never gotten an elk before, was excited about the opportunity and the drive went by quickly. We had a day to scout before the hunt and found a LOT of elk, including 16 bulls in three different groups. As we went to sleep in the tipi, it started to snow…a bunch!
Opening morning there was a foot of snow on the ground, with more coming down and gusty winds. We had about a ¾-mile hike into an area where we had seen a big group of bulls the day before. At sunrise, they were nowhere to be found. Instead, we found a herd of 60+ elk with some spikes. After looking them over, we headed back to the ATV. Jake had been toughing out his cold, but went downhill quickly. He was coughing, shivering and miserable. We went back to the tipi and he crawled into the sleeping bag and slept for eight hours while I kept a fire going. When Jake got up, he wasn’t feeling much better so we went into town for a warm meal and meds.
The next morning Jake still sounded terrible, but was up for a short walk into an area that I thought might hold some bulls. Ten minutes of walking through the soft, powder snow and we glassed a small bull feeding in the Ponderosas ahead of us. Though we had seen much better bulls, Jake thought this one looked great. Two hits at 275 yards and Jake had his first bull. We were both thrilled!
The last hunt of the year was awesome, frustrating, and a truly rare experience. It deserves its own thread, which will follow in a few minutes. Until then, here is a teaser pic:
I am thankful God blessed me with another year of good health, great family/friends, public lands and the ability to do what I love…none of which are guaranteed to be here next year!
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