The Season of Stupid (& elk)

[Dsnow9]

We cranked the wood stove and made a plan to go glass a different area in the morning. CheesePizza wanted to glass the same area and I decided to go glass some piñon / juniper low country canyons.

I told CheesePizza my plan and he looked at me and said…

“I don’t care if there are elk down there, I don’t want anything to do with that!”

That was what I needed to hear, if I couldn’t convince him to go, no one else would go down there either. There would surely be elk. I went to bed excited about our plan.

I also really liked that we were both hunting our own hunts and sticking to our guns. Not going along with the other person but spreading out and covering more ground. Our glassing spots would take us to the same parking are in the morning but roughly half a mile apart.

 

[Dsnow9]

Thursday morning, and what an awesome Thanksgiving day sunrise. I didn’t like my original glassing spot because I couldn’t see far enough down into the canyon. I was about to move when cheese pizza let me know he found elk but we’re not playable in the am. Told him to watch till they bedded and then we would go after them in the pm. About 15 minutes into legal shooting light I moved down to a loan tree two rolls down.

This was the spot.

I tucked up in the tree and got out my tripod to start glassing.

I wasn’t there long minutes when I spotted two cows and a spike.



In the ten minutes between the last two texts I spotted two legal bulls on the the next drainage below the cows.

I sent one text and bailed off the edge.

“No friends on powder days”

 

[Dsnow9]

We interrupt this hunt for an awesome sunrise on a camp retrieval mission for an injured friend.

 

[Dsnow9]

I bailed off the ridge, 1200 vertical feet in .82 of a mile.

This is gonna suck.

The cows and spike fed over the ridge and out of site so I covered the ground as fast as possible and got to the ridge they were on and slowed down.

I crouched down and made my way through the piñon and juniper. Out of the corner of my eye I saw one of the cows. I didn’t look up till I got to the next bush. I ranged the cow at 250 yards.

I made a commitment to not shoot a cow till Friday so I went against my better judgment and checked my wind. Not blowing towards the cows. I spotted the bulls working the opposite hillside at 550 yards.

I could see a good bench below me that I thought I could cut off another 200 yards and stay out of site from the cows.

CheesePizza was on his way down behind me to try and shoot one of the cows.

I found a good bush after what get like an hour long stock, mostly in plain site of the bulls. Moving as they went behind the trees and freezing when they would pop out. One very nice, big, symmetrical 5x5 and a bull that had some broken tines and funkyness going on.

I sat down in this spot and broke off some branches with some pocket knife aid to reduce the noise. I set my pack down and butt on the nice pine bows. I had both feed braced and the pack was solid.

350 yards.

If I tried to close the distance any more I risked blowing them out and not having a shot.

After the shooting gallery of a deer season I wasn’t messing around. I used my trecking poles to stabilize the butt of the rifle and my shoulder. Checked the scope and verified my drop chart 3 times. And then I took a picture as the smaller bull was quartering away. The bigger bull hadn’t shown in about ten minutes. I have filled a lot of cow tags on either sex tags, it had actually been 10 years since I shot my last bull.

I was rock solid and waiting. The bull turned broadside in the small clearing and started feeding.

Boom……..Thwack!

The round connected perfectly, and he ran about 25 yards and stopped out of view. Then the bigger bull erupted from the trees and ran straight uphill. The smaller bull did not follow.

 

[Dsnow9]

I waited about ten minutes after the shot hoping that CheesePizza was going to drop a cow above me. Then I saw the small group of elk bail into the canyon and up the other side. The wind must have shifted or he got busted.

I hiked up and told him I could take care of the bull and to go get those cows he bedded in the morning. Then I experienced a wild change in scenery on my “350 yard” hike. Too bad I can’t fly. Because that short flight took me almost 30 minutes. Haha

The photos to follow are what occurred the next 20 minutes.

 

[RyGuy]

Very nice! Looks like a nasty canyon.
Did you pose him like that?

 

[perma]

I waited about ten minutes after the shot hoping that CheesePizza was going to drop a cow above me. Then I saw the small group of elk bail into the canyon and up the other side. The wind must have shifted or he got busted.

I hiked up and told him I could take care of the bull and to go get those cows he bedded in the morning. Then I experienced a wild change in scenery on my “350 yard” hike. Too bad I can’t fly. Because that short flight took me almost 30 minutes. Haha

The photos to follow are what occurred the next 20 minutes.

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He’s got a lot of sheen on his legs. Congrats on the bull.

 

[Dsnow9]

Very nice! Looks like a nasty canyon.
Did you pose him like that?

Died like that.

“As they lay”

 

[elkfanatic]

Congrats!!

 

[Dsnow9]

I cut him all up and can’t speak highly enough of my new knife. I have tried many knives over the years and all were missing something. My buddy who owns a wild game processor gave me a knife before deer season. And now after a deer and an elk I no longer want or need any other knife.

I made a calf strap because I don’t wear a belt under my pack and combined it with a sheath I had sitting around for a filet knife.

I loved it! Always accessible and didn’t have to worry about losing the knife or setting it down and not being able to find it right away.

I think I may try to get into leather work as a little side hobby when I need to decompress before bed after a long day of adrenaline filled work.

I was so clean until I hung the game bags in a near by tree.

 

[Dsnow9]

I cut him all up and can’t speak highly enough of my new knife. I have tried many knives over the years and all were missing something. My buddy who owns a wild game processor gave me a knife before deer season. And now after a deer and an elk I no longer want or need any other knife.

I made a calf strap because I don’t wear a belt under my pack and combined it with a sheath I had sitting around for a filet knife.

I loved it! Always accessible and didn’t have to worry about losing the knife or setting it down and not being able to find it right away.

I think I may try to get into leather work as a little side hobby when I need to decompress before bed after a long day of adrenaline filled work.
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I was so clean until I hung the game bags in a near by tree.

 

[CRJR45]

Congrats ! I have thoroughly enjoyed following you guys on this adventure .

 

[Dsnow9]

This is the only photo I have from the pack out.


This was the hike back to the truck. Luckily I spotted another road in the next basin over that cut the vertical and mileage down a bit for trip 2 and three. Will finish up details about the last two trips after the girls go to bed. It’s family time now.

 

[winmag]

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Nice. That’s the knife I use for boning meat on big animals or at home processing. I like the sheath!

 

[Caseknife]

I cut him all up and can’t speak highly enough of my new knife. I have tried many knives over the years and all were missing something. My buddy who owns a wild game processor gave me a knife before deer season. And now after a deer and an elk I no longer want or need any other knife.

I made a calf strap because I don’t wear a belt under my pack and combined it with a sheath I had sitting around for a filet knife.

I loved it! Always accessible and didn’t have to worry about losing the knife or setting it down and not being able to find it right away.

I think I may try to get into leather work as a little side hobby when I need to decompress before bed after a long day of adrenaline filled work.
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I was so clean until I hung the game bags in a near by tree.

I'd be afraid of losing my knife going through the thick grabby stuff.

 

[Oak]

I'd be afraid of losing my knife going through the thick grabby stuff.

I wondered as well, but assumed he just strapped it on for the cutting.

 

[Caseknife]

I wondered as well, but assumed he just strapped it on for the cutting.

My luck, I would slip down a steep pitch, knock the knife out of the sheath and jab it into my leg.

 

[Caseknife]

I cut him all up and can’t speak highly enough of my new knife. I have tried many knives over the years and all were missing something. My buddy who owns a wild game processor gave me a knife before deer season. And now after a deer and an elk I no longer want or need any other knife.

I made a calf strap because I don’t wear a belt under my pack and combined it with a sheath I had sitting around for a filet knife.

I loved it! Always accessible and didn’t have to worry about losing the knife or setting it down and not being able to find it right away.

I think I may try to get into leather work as a little side hobby when I need to decompress before bed after a long day of adrenaline filled work.
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I was so clean until I hung the game bags in a near by tree.

You did a neat, clean job on a potentially dirty hillside, way to go.

 

[golfer]

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Those are great knives.

 

[Dsnow9]

You did a neat, clean job on a potentially dirty hillside, way to go.

Thank you. The SO ultralight tarp is my go to. Always stays in my pack for an emergency shelter but is a game changer cutting up the animal. I also use it when deboning and that is when it really shines.