Going on a 10-day hunt starting this Thurs night, but this past weekend I went on a little solo outing from last Thurs eve - Sat afternoon. My aunt and uncle live near the unit we're hunting this year but alas, after 20 years they are moving out of the high country so Sat/Sun I said goodbye to the small mountain town (got married there in fact) that was my introduction to Colorado and spent some time with two wonderful people I have appreciated having in such a special place out here.
Anyway onto my hunting adventure and looking for some analysis on working a bull.
Anyway onto my hunting adventure and looking for some analysis on working a bull.
- Thursday night I got to the TH around ~1030 and slept decently in the truck.
- Friday morning (445) I chugged some cold brew and started walking uphill. The shit was thick. Willow wrestling: 103453, Ammo: 0
- Around 7am I got to a high point and threw a bugle. ~15 seconds later high up and right I heard a loud rock slide, like an animal scrambling out somewhere.
- I kept going up, but at the base of the cliffs I didn't find the animal but had a hunch it was a bull on the move. (poop, tracks, etc the whole way up).
- The bulk of the rest of the day I wanted to find a way to get up high - this mission was part hunting part scouting. Found a sneaky 'green' run up the side of the mountain and got to the N side at 10,600 - surprised to find NOTHING! Dry, no sign. Low had lots of sign (1-2 days old, poop, tracks). So, I high tailed it back down the hill.
- Around 530pm I scared 2 elk while moving downhill. I didn't get a visual but 100% know these were elk on the run. They were feeding below the steep rocky slopes in a mix of aspen and scree. Weirdly, they divided. (One traversed skiers left, one went straight downhill). I followed the one that went downhill (traverse boi ran through some thick shit and #wind).
- I started picking up fresh tracks and low down I encountered one of the elk. At first I thought it was a cow, but I was pretty far (in trees, boulder field between us, elk was moving into another patch of trees). In the willow wrestling I had lost my bugle tub so I started cow calling at the elk. The elk gave me a low bark back. At first I thought this was a cow, but given the events of the following morning I think it was a bull. Low chuff-y barks and cow calls continued for about 5-10 minutes. Wind was not in my favor (gusting across) so I quickly moved down hill.
- At this point I was 110% trashed and it was about 15 minutes to end of shooting light, so I decided to camp near the stream and go after the elk in the morning.
- Around 3am something was high up and lookers right moving along the bottom of the cliff knocking rocks down.
- The next morning I woke up (after a night of realizing my sleeping pad had a hole in it - hooray for the solo quick trip shakedown) and at first light started moving up towards the elk. At some point during the bushwhack I heard a bull bugling from waaaaay down (steep drop about 1500’ into a stream). I let out my loudest cow calls, bugles came back. I kept moving and eventually found the fresh bull’s trail winding down the slope (presumably the same thing that had made the noise around 3am).
- I’ll wrap it up because this is getting long but basically the bull got farther and farther away and eventually I had to turn around because I was meeting my aunt and uncle on the trail.
- Anyway, learned a lot about the zone we’re hunting this weekend/next week into the rut. I hope the weather cools! The only other time I had an interaction with a bull like this (‘bark’ ‘call’ ‘bark’ ‘call’) was with a spike a few years ago. Without a bugle tube my options were limited but any thoughts on how to play this guy? Move in underneath? Be more of a ‘horny cow’? Give up, he just isn’t into you?
