Dave's 521 Journey

[elkfishing]

I've decided to start my own thread on my 521 Montana Goat tag. I will be posting here as I continue to prep for my hunt. I will update as I go through this summer and into the season. Stay tuned!

So yesterday I was checking drawing results for elk and deer B-tags and the FWP website indicated that I was unsuccessful for goat. With my letter in-hand which stated that I had drawn, I was able to restart my heart at their office and now have my official tag.

Dave

 

[EYJONAS!]

I wonder why it would indicate you weren't successful. I'd probably keel over, looking forward to following along.

 

[duckhunt]

Looking forward to following along.

 

[elkfishing]

Well here is the good and the bad as I prepare for my hunt.

The good. Training is rarely a problem for me. I have been actively training for years. I went elk hunting once in my 20s not in prime shape and I was determined to not do that again. I have been training 52 weeks a year since then. I have said for years that I train so hard because the elk haven't gotten lighter and the mountains haven't gotten flatter. I know how to be ready for this hunt physically even at 54.

My rifle will be ready too. I have been using this older Model 70 Lightweight for around 30 years. It has never been the reason for a miss. I wish I could say the same for the guy behind it. I bought it while working the Sporting Goods counter at the now gone Gibson's in Bozeman while still a student at Montana State. It is one of the most beautiful factory stocks I have ever seen. It has been through an untold numbers of adventures with me. I will be turning to my go to loading for it, this time with a 140 gr. Combined Technology Ballistic Tip in front of 57 gr. of RL19 out of its 280 Rem. chambering. I may consider working up a more temperature stable load as RL19 isn't, but this is a nostalgia hunt for me, so maybe not. I may also do an early hunt with my longbow. This one is only a few years old and it would love to score a billy.

Now for the bad. All that training and my active lifestyle has lead to two knee surgeries on my right knee and arthritis in the left. I had my first and so far only cortisone shot in the left last fall. I am anticipating that I may need to get another in it and I'll have to see about the right. So far, while I am noticing them most days, they are not slowing me and my training. I just did a rather short 2.5-mile hike with 60#s and did a 4-mile with the same on Sunday. It's going to be a balance between training hard to be ready, but not torch my knees. I will wear them out at some point and get them replaced, but I need that to be another year.

Thanks to those that are following alone with me on this journey. Please let me know if you have any questions of me and I will do my best to answer them.

Dave

 

[Gumbo Hunter]

Best of luck to you, and I hope those knees hold out! I drew my first MT goat tag this year, 514, and at 43 I'm glad it was the first of my "Big Three" tags.

 

[elkfishing]

Thanks. Very cool on your tag. I’m happy for you. Let’s make the most out of these!

 

[YoungGun]

Eagerly following along on this one- you're in for an adventure in beautiful and rugged country! Photos always help paint the mental picture- so don't be shy!

 

[elkfishing]

So it's been awhile since I have posted so time for an update.

First the good. I needed to be in Phoenix a couple of weeks ago and I was able to to sit down with the best resource for my district. Thank You Riley! It was a real pleasure to meet with you and I so appreciate your help.

Now the bad. I have been very fortunate to have had very few injuries from my training for pretty much most of my life. That has now changed and it changed very unexpectedly (Which I'm sure is what most would also say. Most of us are not training in a risky way typically.) So what happened? I was in the mist of my workout (third exercise and the third set) when I felt a twinge in my lower back. Nothing terrible. I have not had any notable issues with my back for years. In fact I was doing some very heavy deadlifts a couple of weeks before this. But, for whatever reason, my back experienced this twinge. I have an inversion table which I so love using, so I got on it quickly. The back is now doing well, but I have a pain in my hip that at times is insatiable, and at others not even noticed. I'm working with our medical community to try to get this better, but that too is killing me. I haven't been able to get to my district with this injury as I try to get it healed. Moreover, I need to stay fit. At my age it is far more important to stay in shape and not be in a position to have to get back into shape. This hunt is going to be physically demanding. It is one of the main attractions for me to it. I will look very silly doing it with a cane.

 

[Gerald Martin]

I am not very experienced in working out and fitness but it seems to me that you might be hitting it too hard.
I think I would be concentrating on the cardio aspect of conditioning rather than further aggravation of your joints with heavy packs.
Good luck on your hunt!

 

[JLS]

The hip could very well be a result of you compensating for sore knees. I'd invest some money in a good physical therapist, and add some "smarter" to your train harder regimen. Might be time to hit the pool and the bike.

Good luck with your tag.

 

[elkfishing]

The hip could very well be a result of you compensating for sore knees. I'd invest some money in a good physical therapist, and add some "smarter" to your train harder regimen. Might be time to hit the pool and the bike.

Good luck with your tag.

Good points. I am meeting with a Physical Therapist friend tonight and my daughter is a radiation tech in a local Ortho office and they too are feeding me information.

I haven't done anything training wise that is any different then in past years. I have been transitioning to less impact over the years as my body keeps telling me to go easier. I do try to keep pride at bay and to be wise. It's a hard balance for me.

 

[JLS]

I haven't done anything training wise that is any different then in past years

That might be part of the problem?

 

[westbranch]

Good luck on the hunt! Looking forward to hearing more.

I agree that it could be too much of the same thing when it comes to the hip/low back pain. I mainly do barbell strength training of the big lifts, some bodyweight stuff like air squats and lunges, and a decent amount of mountain hiking. I think that most people, myself included, need to work in more side to side stuff. I am not a professional of any sort, just a guy that runs into the same issues at times and I have mainly self diagnosed and searched for info. But I have also have discussed with some friends that are gym owners/trainers and asked a DPT some questions when I was in for a different issue. This Outside articles covers some good exercises.

The Best Lower-Body Workout for Strength, Balance, and Stability

Resistance bands offer the best bang for your buck, challenging little-used muscle groups that make a big difference

www.outsideonline.com

One thing I found recently with lower back pain was exercises that target the glute mediuss strength. I have found a few of this guys videos helpful, especially when I had a flare up of low back pain and the exercises he shows here helped quite a bit.

 

[Irrelevant]

Good luck on the hunt! Looking forward to hearing more.

I agree that it could be too much of the same thing when it comes to the hip/low back pain. I mainly do barbell strength training of the big lifts, some bodyweight stuff like air squats and lunges, and a decent amount of mountain hiking. I think that most people, myself included, need to work in more side to side stuff. I am not a professional of any sort, just a guy that runs into the same issues at times and I have mainly self diagnosed and searched for info. But I have also have discussed with some friends that are gym owners/trainers and asked a DPT some questions when I was in for a different issue. This Outside articles covers some good exercises.

The Best Lower-Body Workout for Strength, Balance, and Stability

Resistance bands offer the best bang for your buck, challenging little-used muscle groups that make a big difference

www.outsideonline.com

One thing I found recently with lower back pain was exercises that target the glute mediuss strength. I have found a few of this guys videos helpful, especially when I had a flare up of low back pain and the exercises he shows here helped quite a bit.

I've been digging the rubber band workouts lately.

 

[JLS]

Turkish Get Ups are a great functional exercise.

 

[elkfishing]

Turkish Get Ups are a great functional exercise.

Absolutely, one of my favorites!

 

[elkfishing]

Let me start by thanking all that chimed in trying to offer help with my sciatica. It is very much appreciated.

So I am on the mend. I have been maintaining my upper body work, but that is only a little comfort as I need my legs and lungs more than anything for this hunt. I am going for walks again and I have been able to cut way back on the ibuprofen 800s. Just one yesterday and none today so far. I am trying to be careful with exercise to not re-aggravate the sciatica. So far so good. I will add in some body weight leg work today and see how I feel. I am hoping that goes well, which I think will be the case. Assuming that it does, I will SLOWLY up the workouts. I really want to do some burpees and deadlifts. When my body indicates its ready I will get back into those exercises. Until then, back on the elliptical, upper body work, walks without weight, and body weight leg work. Going for volume as I need to keep my lungs strong. And God help me, I need to get scouting. The lack of that is one of the hardest parts of all of this.

 

[elkfishing]

After a tumultuous summer with more setbacks than I care to mention, I’ll be heading in for a weekend hunt with my longtime hunting partner Dave Ekness. While my plans to scout were thwarted repeatedly, I did get one trip in which was gorgeous even though I didn’t see any goats.

Dave and I will be basing at a lake above 9000 tonight, coming out Sunday. I’m feeling better than I have for months and have a great deal of optimism. No matter what, it’s going to be a memorable trip. I’ll post an update Monday or Tuesday.

 

[elkfishing]

What a weekend! Dave Ekness and I had a great time. The short version is no goat yet. The good news is I get to go again. We went in the West Fork of the Stillwater. All told we did about 14.5 miles and 5000 vertical up and down. My body did great. Never was I in a rush but my pack in to our camp was heavy and the trip up the mountain was boulder fields and deadfall for almost all of it. Minimal aches and pains. A true blessing after so many setbacks this summer. Dave lost his fishing pole and I one lens cap on my scope, but I did find a fresh can of bear spray. Hopefully my next installment will include a white hump on my back!.

 

[Mtnhunter1]

Your photo brings back memories of past adventures in that country. Good luck with finding that goat, there are a few up there!