ashersdad
Well-known member
I Knew had enough points to draw a 4th season deer tag in Colorado so I also put me and the 2 boys in for elk figuring it would be good to have elk tags in our pockets as well. Because of the distance, I did a ton of e-scouting and also got a lot of help from members on Hunt Talk that have hunted the area. Thank you to everyone that offered help and assistance. This site really shines when it comes to members helping each other out.
At the last minute my wife decided she wanted to go. Even though it meant giving up 2 scouting days to accommodate her schedule, taking the trailer instead of tent camping, and staying at a KOA, I knew we’d have a better time with her along. For one, we would definitely eat a helluva lot better and she helps keep me grounded with the boys reminding me it’s about the experience and not always the outcome.
Well the weather pretty much did us in on this hunt. Nothing but sunshine and not a hint of snow which meant the elk weren’t migrating to our unit. We could actually see a huge herd of several hundred elk about 3 miles away in the next unit over and everyday we’d watch as guys would drive their trucks through the fields and push the elk back up on the property. One night we even watched them shooting in the air to scare them back.
Online school has actually turned into a good thing for us. The boys were able to “attend” class every day and not get behind on their studies.
The deer rut was in full swing and we were seeing more deer than I’ve ever seen in Oregon. We never did see any big bucks but we saw several decent ones. Finally we were able to find a decent one on public and decided he would do just fine.
As far as elk, it didn’t take us long to decide we didn’t want anything to do with the large crowds we were seeing. On opening day we saw 27 vehicles surrounding one small piece of blm that had a couple cow elk running through it. Not wanting my boys to be a part of that sh*tshow, we moved on and eventually found a small patch of blm that we could get to with about a mile hike.
We hunted that spot pretty much everyday and finally on the last day we caught 6 cows in the sage at 300 yards. We only had about 10 seconds to act and even though I and my 16 yr old could have easily killed one, I really wanted my 14 yr old to get a shot first. Unfortunately he was about 2 seconds too slow for a good shot before they were gone. It was a good learning lesson for him and I wasn’t too disappointed.
We had a great time as a family together and made some great memories. I figure I only have a few more years with these two at home so we’re taking full advantage. We leave for the Kansas deer hunt tomorrow morning.
At the last minute my wife decided she wanted to go. Even though it meant giving up 2 scouting days to accommodate her schedule, taking the trailer instead of tent camping, and staying at a KOA, I knew we’d have a better time with her along. For one, we would definitely eat a helluva lot better and she helps keep me grounded with the boys reminding me it’s about the experience and not always the outcome.
Well the weather pretty much did us in on this hunt. Nothing but sunshine and not a hint of snow which meant the elk weren’t migrating to our unit. We could actually see a huge herd of several hundred elk about 3 miles away in the next unit over and everyday we’d watch as guys would drive their trucks through the fields and push the elk back up on the property. One night we even watched them shooting in the air to scare them back.
Online school has actually turned into a good thing for us. The boys were able to “attend” class every day and not get behind on their studies.
The deer rut was in full swing and we were seeing more deer than I’ve ever seen in Oregon. We never did see any big bucks but we saw several decent ones. Finally we were able to find a decent one on public and decided he would do just fine.
As far as elk, it didn’t take us long to decide we didn’t want anything to do with the large crowds we were seeing. On opening day we saw 27 vehicles surrounding one small piece of blm that had a couple cow elk running through it. Not wanting my boys to be a part of that sh*tshow, we moved on and eventually found a small patch of blm that we could get to with about a mile hike.
We hunted that spot pretty much everyday and finally on the last day we caught 6 cows in the sage at 300 yards. We only had about 10 seconds to act and even though I and my 16 yr old could have easily killed one, I really wanted my 14 yr old to get a shot first. Unfortunately he was about 2 seconds too slow for a good shot before they were gone. It was a good learning lesson for him and I wasn’t too disappointed.
We had a great time as a family together and made some great memories. I figure I only have a few more years with these two at home so we’re taking full advantage. We leave for the Kansas deer hunt tomorrow morning.
