Hey everyone,
I asked for advice on this board, and did a lot of studying before our first Elk hunt this last weekend. Thanks to everyone who chimed in with helpful info on making sure this was a great experience for my son Scott, who is 11 and was on his first hunt for Elk. He had a cow tag in unit 50.
We scouted once in July to get the lay of the land. Then back 2 days before the hunt to get an updated view of things...(hunting pressure, weather, etc.) The elk were still there, and we expanded our areas to add another good option that we saw herd of 25 use the day before the hunt. He was so stoked on the scouting. I let him drive the 4-wheeler all over, glass, make decisions, etc.. about where we'd go.
The day before hunt, we went out one more time to get his confidence (and mine) up about shooting the .270 from a bipod. He was good on the bench...but not the same! He put 6/6 in a 8" circle at 100 yards. That worked for me, and he was sky high.
We set up in the dark against some timber, above some pretty good draws. The hope was to be where the elk would go once they left the alfalfa in the valley. 9am, and we here a few shots in the distance. 9:20, and we hear shots a couple of ridges below us. Then Scott says, "Daddy, here they come!" 400 yards away, here comes a single file line of elk...moving with a purpose. They turned at 300 and went into a draw. I couldn't see them. I look to my left, and they had come around the back of us. I grabbed his gun, swung it over me, and told him to find a cow and make it happen. He shot once, (125 yards) and I saw the animal turn completely around and start going the opposite way. That seemed like a good sign. He fired again, and then the animal disappeared. We waited as long as we could handle, and went to see if he was successful. The feeling of seeing that first bit of blood is amazing! Just then, and elk jump out of the bushes...30 feet from us. I was holding the gun, and thought my son's elk was running away... but the blood trail went a different way.. we found his animal 20 yards from the spot.. and scott finished her off. Bad pic, b/c he shot her in the face. :-( He ended up hitting her 3 inches back from the vitals, and then in the neck. Not bad for an animal moving..i thought.
First time skinning and quartering for both of us. And only a 300 yard pack down to the road. I was, and AM overwhelmed by the whole adventure. I've never had a hunt go better...weather, people, space, etc. It was picture perfect.
I never imagined having 100 animals come through our area. It was like a movie. One funny moment was when the big bulls in the back of the herd stopped within 50 feet of our 4-wheeler.. and looked around for 30 seconds before deciding NOT to follow the rest of the herd. That's why they get big! I am hooked, and i'm sure he is too. I woke up every hour, 3 days before the hunt... thinking about what-if scenarios... There were so many firsts for us.
Here's a couple pics.. Thanks again for all of you that offered advice!
Cleaning Rifle the night before:
The kill...
Scouting...
Back Strap!
Father/Son fun
Jeff
I asked for advice on this board, and did a lot of studying before our first Elk hunt this last weekend. Thanks to everyone who chimed in with helpful info on making sure this was a great experience for my son Scott, who is 11 and was on his first hunt for Elk. He had a cow tag in unit 50.
We scouted once in July to get the lay of the land. Then back 2 days before the hunt to get an updated view of things...(hunting pressure, weather, etc.) The elk were still there, and we expanded our areas to add another good option that we saw herd of 25 use the day before the hunt. He was so stoked on the scouting. I let him drive the 4-wheeler all over, glass, make decisions, etc.. about where we'd go.
The day before hunt, we went out one more time to get his confidence (and mine) up about shooting the .270 from a bipod. He was good on the bench...but not the same! He put 6/6 in a 8" circle at 100 yards. That worked for me, and he was sky high.
We set up in the dark against some timber, above some pretty good draws. The hope was to be where the elk would go once they left the alfalfa in the valley. 9am, and we here a few shots in the distance. 9:20, and we hear shots a couple of ridges below us. Then Scott says, "Daddy, here they come!" 400 yards away, here comes a single file line of elk...moving with a purpose. They turned at 300 and went into a draw. I couldn't see them. I look to my left, and they had come around the back of us. I grabbed his gun, swung it over me, and told him to find a cow and make it happen. He shot once, (125 yards) and I saw the animal turn completely around and start going the opposite way. That seemed like a good sign. He fired again, and then the animal disappeared. We waited as long as we could handle, and went to see if he was successful. The feeling of seeing that first bit of blood is amazing! Just then, and elk jump out of the bushes...30 feet from us. I was holding the gun, and thought my son's elk was running away... but the blood trail went a different way.. we found his animal 20 yards from the spot.. and scott finished her off. Bad pic, b/c he shot her in the face. :-( He ended up hitting her 3 inches back from the vitals, and then in the neck. Not bad for an animal moving..i thought.
First time skinning and quartering for both of us. And only a 300 yard pack down to the road. I was, and AM overwhelmed by the whole adventure. I've never had a hunt go better...weather, people, space, etc. It was picture perfect.
I never imagined having 100 animals come through our area. It was like a movie. One funny moment was when the big bulls in the back of the herd stopped within 50 feet of our 4-wheeler.. and looked around for 30 seconds before deciding NOT to follow the rest of the herd. That's why they get big! I am hooked, and i'm sure he is too. I woke up every hour, 3 days before the hunt... thinking about what-if scenarios... There were so many firsts for us.
Here's a couple pics.. Thanks again for all of you that offered advice!
Cleaning Rifle the night before:
The kill...
Scouting...
Back Strap!
Father/Son fun
Jeff
