TwistedSage
Well-known member
This was my first elk hunt. A hell of a hunt it was. Hunted a wilderness area that was a stand alone volcanic mountain, no named trails. Camped at the bottom of the mountain stand around 7500 ft elevation and hunted from there every morning.
There was however a road that pretty much wrapped around the base of the mountain a that had a caravan of road hunters glassing low canyons every morning. Only other people we saw on the mountain was a pair of hunters that made it up the mountain about 600 yards to glass the flats and a couple of horse packers that were there twice throughout the 5 day season.
Day before opener I was able to glass a bull at last light in a mid mountain meadow. Right at daylight probably a bit before as we were gearing up to hike out of camp heard 5 shots ring out from the road. Damnit. We continued with the march up the mountain tried to gather as much Intel as we could on the way up. So much damn elk scat and beds on that mountain down low but it was mostly old. Made it to about 9000 feet on the first day and saw a small group of cows a couple hundred yards below us. Lead cow locked eyes with my buddy and they were out. At least there were elk. Second day tries to hunt around the same elevation we saw the cows but could not turn anything up besides a lone track heading up with a few fresh scat piles. This was our bull. Wanted to get down before darkness as you really could only zig zag game trails.
Third day we had to run to town and get some duct tape as the zipper failed on the tent it was a long night. Took it easy and hunted down low and tried to glass a few canyons somewhat close to camp.
Fourth day we went to the top to find that bull. As we started around the first bend we saw the horse packers a quarter mile ahead and about to start gaining some elevation. We continued on up to the first clearing where we met the horse packers and were greeted with... what do you guys walk up mountains every day. We talked and took a break with the packers who were shocked at how fast we made it. Learned they were the ones who shot that opening morning. Glassed from the road blasted jumped the bull then went to get horses. They never did recover that bull. I did see a few differe t small blood trails over the hunt down low and high. I saw blood above 10000 ft he got shot at the bottom of the mountain who knows how many time than ran 25000 feet to the top and made his way around.
We talked about were we were headed to avoid each other. We were both going to the top and kind just joked ok well see you there. All of the fresh sign was at the top.
Checked 2 meadows before heading to the third that we have had our eyes on the while time. It was perfect the meadow was maybe 30 yards wide 100 yards long going east to west. Steady east wind in our face we approached from the west edge I and the top and my buddy the shooter at the bottom. I saw a bull walking the far edge north to south and signaled get down hes coming. Before the bull appeared the horse packer rode in to the meadow at the northwest edges where I first spotted the bull and the bull dropped out of the meadow straight into the next drainage. Checked our last meadow the went back down.
Last day we were going straight to the tip and try to find that bull. No cigar. The last two days of the hunt were both over 7 miles and over 2500 ft elevation climbing and descending.
A couple second from possibly having a shot and I think if we had another day we could have made it happen. I think we finally had it figured out.
We did however harvest some pine nuts
I am hooked, I want back on that mountain. On the way home I looked and every slope thinking about elk. I think we would have been better served success wise just going to a mountain with higher density but after the second day it was almost a personal deal with that mountain. Plus we pretty much had the place to ourselves.
There was however a road that pretty much wrapped around the base of the mountain a that had a caravan of road hunters glassing low canyons every morning. Only other people we saw on the mountain was a pair of hunters that made it up the mountain about 600 yards to glass the flats and a couple of horse packers that were there twice throughout the 5 day season.
Day before opener I was able to glass a bull at last light in a mid mountain meadow. Right at daylight probably a bit before as we were gearing up to hike out of camp heard 5 shots ring out from the road. Damnit. We continued with the march up the mountain tried to gather as much Intel as we could on the way up. So much damn elk scat and beds on that mountain down low but it was mostly old. Made it to about 9000 feet on the first day and saw a small group of cows a couple hundred yards below us. Lead cow locked eyes with my buddy and they were out. At least there were elk. Second day tries to hunt around the same elevation we saw the cows but could not turn anything up besides a lone track heading up with a few fresh scat piles. This was our bull. Wanted to get down before darkness as you really could only zig zag game trails.
Third day we had to run to town and get some duct tape as the zipper failed on the tent it was a long night. Took it easy and hunted down low and tried to glass a few canyons somewhat close to camp.
Fourth day we went to the top to find that bull. As we started around the first bend we saw the horse packers a quarter mile ahead and about to start gaining some elevation. We continued on up to the first clearing where we met the horse packers and were greeted with... what do you guys walk up mountains every day. We talked and took a break with the packers who were shocked at how fast we made it. Learned they were the ones who shot that opening morning. Glassed from the road blasted jumped the bull then went to get horses. They never did recover that bull. I did see a few differe t small blood trails over the hunt down low and high. I saw blood above 10000 ft he got shot at the bottom of the mountain who knows how many time than ran 25000 feet to the top and made his way around.
We talked about were we were headed to avoid each other. We were both going to the top and kind just joked ok well see you there. All of the fresh sign was at the top.
Checked 2 meadows before heading to the third that we have had our eyes on the while time. It was perfect the meadow was maybe 30 yards wide 100 yards long going east to west. Steady east wind in our face we approached from the west edge I and the top and my buddy the shooter at the bottom. I saw a bull walking the far edge north to south and signaled get down hes coming. Before the bull appeared the horse packer rode in to the meadow at the northwest edges where I first spotted the bull and the bull dropped out of the meadow straight into the next drainage. Checked our last meadow the went back down.
Last day we were going straight to the tip and try to find that bull. No cigar. The last two days of the hunt were both over 7 miles and over 2500 ft elevation climbing and descending.
A couple second from possibly having a shot and I think if we had another day we could have made it happen. I think we finally had it figured out.
We did however harvest some pine nuts
I am hooked, I want back on that mountain. On the way home I looked and every slope thinking about elk. I think we would have been better served success wise just going to a mountain with higher density but after the second day it was almost a personal deal with that mountain. Plus we pretty much had the place to ourselves.
