Let Them Roam - A Bison Yarn

[Bluffgruff]

I've taken weeks to decide to write this up.

The thing I want to achieve by sharing this story is to promote appreciation for this animal, and hopefully spur interest in allowing free-ranging herds to return to more state and federal lands, so more people can share in their physical and spiritual fruits. They are the plains; they are the mountains; and, as I discovered, they are part of the wind, the dirt, and the grass.

After eating bison, I want more. It approaches perfection in a game meat.

After this hunt, I'd be happy to hunt my next bison in some rolling grassland, like where you'd find a pronghorn.

I won't be returning to hunt them here, this is once in a lifetime. The experience is also, truly, once in a lifetime. This is a tale wrapped in rugged terrain, rugged animals, rugged people, and a little bit of weather.

I left home in a blizzard with my family to visit a national park. I want to mix outdoor fun with hunting for my daughters, so that they will pack my bison and elk as I get too worn out to pack them myself. No family pictures, but they enjoy the sights and climbing on rocks, but mostly the hotel pool.

I also return in a blizzard, under much more difficult circumstances,


but with a grin on my face.

 

[Bluffgruff]

My first foray into the unit is filled with excitement. I have plans A to G in my head. There are no secrets in these mountains, just stunning landscapes, colorful sunrises and sunsets, and a few bison.

The morning of day two, I catch the briefest of glimpses of my first free ranging bison that isn't in a national park. He isn't in a pasture, or out on the rolling hills, he's at 10k ft and walking into a grove of ponderosas on the side of a mountain, and he's gone before I can even get my spotter up.

I want a closer look.

 

[Bluffgruff]

I take my time (out of necessity due to the boulder fields called roads here) getting to the nearest road access point to the ridge that will take me above the bison. The views are spectacular, but I'm lacking some urgency that will ultimately contibute to misery.

Halfway up, I find my first likely bison sign, right on the ridge.


In a saddle a bit farther up and along, I find a bunch of tracks and chips. If I hadn't seen a bunch of cattle the evening before, I would never have questioned what flavor of beast left these for me to find. However, as I'm exiting the saddle, I find and pocket a handful of brown, definitely bison, fur left on a scratching post, just in case that's the only bison fur I touch this trip.


Now I'm glassing up the ridge, down the ridge, and all over. I finally locate the owners, and they might as well be on the moon.

A herd of 13 or 14 are at the very top of the mountain. There is one definite cow, and several small bulls, and a few calves. I wish I had done a bunch of things faster earlier in the day, as I started accelerating up the ridge, hoping to get in range before dark. I have a couple hours, but a couple miles and about 1500ft vertical to cover.

At sunset, the bison are just over this false summit on the right.


I've only recently been acquainted with the term "bonking" as it relates to physical performance, but that's what happens on this climb. I can only make the knoll on the left, just out of frame. 20 minutes after sunset, I decide to call it and make peace with my effort. I have 2 more weeks, and I'll get my chances.



I walk 8 miles back to my truck, taking a trail, then a road, all in the dark, out of food, out of water, eating snow. I'm beat as I arrive to the truck. I find a place to park and sleep in the truck because I'm too tired to pitch a tent.

These bison are showing me how tough they are, and I need to adjust my attitude and body accordingly.

 

[Bluffgruff]

I start this new attitude by celebrating new years 2024 in my truck, alone, with some sparkle.

The next day, I'm up to glass. I can see where the bison were, and if they are still there, I'm giving it another go.

But they are not there. Even a few miles away, 70x doesn't lie.

I circle the mountain.

The tracks from the herd lead over the top into the timber on the other side, so that's where I head. I can't find them as I circle around, but I do check off several other spots on some short hikes to glassing rims.



Some bison were taken from these canyons and mesas on this hunt, but not by me. No bison seen today, but numerous other hunters are also out, cruising the roads, looking for their wooly beast.

There are a multitude of fun desert things to look at here where the mountains meet the multicolored sands. Animal tracks, plants, landforms, all catch the eye, and some occasionally break the skin.

 

[Bluffgruff]

I start the next day from the lower side of the unit in the red rocks, and wind my way up through the layers and eons to near the end of the designated road. I talk to a nice guy whose dad has the tag, but ultimately didn't find a cow. I also talked to a guy riding his 4wheeler out of the wilderness who tried to desuade me from going any further. He wasn't wrong about how rough the road was, but his tone dripped with "stay out of 'my' public land spot." I laced up my boots and put down 15 miles to see how far he had ridden. Turns out, he had ridden well into a wilderness area, and feet can't compete with internal combustion on these flat washes. Far up in the canyon, I find quite a bit of bison sign, probably from just before this guy started riding in there illegally. I make my way back to the truck in the dark. On my drive out, I notice one of my headlights is out. My transmission is making some delayed engagements too. And a blizzard is coming. I have enough reasons to make a long ride the next day to resupply, get a new headlight bulb, and see if I can get the transmission looked at. Obstacles are mounting.



At the autoparts store, I find the best looking offroad vehicle I've ever seen.


On my return trip the next afternoon, there's quite a bit more snow, but it's melting fast down low.

I order a pizza at the grocery/fossil/rock store and pizza emporium. While waiting, I talk to the guy who owns the place about fossil hunting. Apparently there is quite a bit of exposed layers from the Mesozoic Era around these parts.

I am excited about this Jurassic-sized bohemoth.


I'm glad there is no limit on scenery or sunsets. They just keep rolling, day after day, most of them are spectacular.

 

[kansasdad]

Such amazing vistas!

Where would a high elevation bison be getting water?

 

[6mm Remington]

Can't wait for more!

 

[Derek44]

In on this one. Amazing pictures and narration. Thanks for posting

 

[Schism]

Wow! I'm enjoying this one! Great photos of spectacular scenery!

 

[Hammsolo]

Awesome thread!

 

[LIK2HNT]

Great adventure so far. Waiting for the next chapter. You have a packer on speed dial to help pack out the meat?

 

[Big Fin]

You're doing justice to the landscape with these images. It is a cool place, for sure. Looking forward to more.

 

[Hilljackoutlaw]

Love it. Awesome pics!!!

 

[TheTone]

Awesome landscape pics so far; excited to see more of this one

 

[BAKPAKR]

Why am I thinking a solo bison hunt might be even more arduous than a two man Alaskan elk hunt?

 

[Forkyfinder]

This is awesome! Jealous yet grateful you are sharing the adventure.

 

[Trap]

great thread so far!

 

[BrentD]

The title almost let me roam past this thread w/o clicking on it. This is already another spectacular bison hunt story. I'm totally impressed. Keep roaming, I'm locked in now.

 

[Wallydeuce]

Following. Keep it coming. I'm guessing Utah?

 

[mxracer317]

I start the next day from the lower side of the unit in the red rocks, and wind my way up through the layers and eons to near the end of the designated road. I talk to a nice guy whose dad has the tag, but ultimately didn't find a cow. I also talked to a guy riding his 4wheeler out of the wilderness who tried to desuade me from going any further. He wasn't wrong about how rough the road was, but his tone dripped with "stay out of 'my' public land spot." I laced up my boots and put down 15 miles to see how far he had ridden. Turns out, he had ridden well into a wilderness area, and feet can't compete with internal combustion on these flat washes. Far up in the canyon, I find quite a bit of bison sign, probably from just before this guy started riding in there illegally. I make my way back to the truck in the dark. On my drive out, I notice one of my headlights is out. My transmission is making some delayed engagements too. And a blizzard is coming. I have enough reasons to make a long ride the next day to resupply, get a new headlight bulb, and see if I can get the transmission looked at. Obstacles are mounting.

View attachment 320884View attachment 320885View attachment 320886View attachment 320887View attachment 320888View attachment 320889View attachment 320890View attachment 320891View attachment 320892

At the autoparts store, I find the best looking offroad vehicle I've ever seen.

View attachment 320893
On my return trip the next afternoon, there's quite a bit more snow, but it's melting fast down low.
View attachment 320894
I order a pizza at the grocery/fossil/rock store and pizza emporium. While waiting, I talk to the guy who owns the place about fossil hunting. Apparently there is quite a bit of exposed layers from the Mesozoic Era around these parts.

I am excited about this Jurassic-sized bohemoth.
View attachment 320895

I'm glad there is no limit on scenery or sunsets. They just keep rolling, day after day, most of them are spectacular.

View attachment 320896View attachment 320897

This is so awesome. I know practically nothing about the Tatonka. Gotta watch “Dances with wolves”again!

Would love to hunt one, one day! Looking forward to more.