Vanish and FireTiger's 2020 Journal
- Thread starter vanish
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bowhuntmontana
Well-known member
The mountains are a place of healing for me. Hope this hunt is good for your soul.
seeth07
Well-known member
Go get em! You know where they are now seal the deal! Rooting for ya
Art Vandeley
Well-known member
Dang dude that was some great writing, great pictures, and good hunting. Sorry to hear about your loss. I hope you get up there and arrow the dinosaur now!
Super tough thing to go through, the hope of a child's life taken away by death. Feeling the feels with you @vanish
We commemorate the day we got similar news annually. It is a day to take stock, and renew our faith in Providence.
We commemorate the day we got similar news annually. It is a day to take stock, and renew our faith in Providence.
Wednesday - The drive out was fairly uneventful and I actually made it to my unit with a couple hours left in the day. If you remember one morning during round 1, I had hunted a herd I had glassed across a valley the evening before. This was actually on my route in and pretty easy to get to if you knew where to start, so I was able to make a quick hunt of it. There was a guy scouting for early rifle season I chatted with briefly ( he's up there now, best of luck dude! ) and we swapped some intel.
I must have been excited because I was up that steep slope to timberline very quickly --- too quickly. I walked right into a small herd of elk at about 40 yards, 1/4 mile before I expected them. The bull I had hunted last time was not with them though, just the raghorn. Cool to be able to get right into elk like that though!
There are 3 elk in this photo. Good luck spotting them
Ok, I can actually see 2 of them. This was after they busted me and they had moved off to where I was expecting to find them.
Looking back across the valley.
I must have been excited because I was up that steep slope to timberline very quickly --- too quickly. I walked right into a small herd of elk at about 40 yards, 1/4 mile before I expected them. The bull I had hunted last time was not with them though, just the raghorn. Cool to be able to get right into elk like that though!
There are 3 elk in this photo. Good luck spotting them
Ok, I can actually see 2 of them. This was after they busted me and they had moved off to where I was expecting to find them.Looking back across the valley.
Pucky Freak
Well-known member
I see 3 elk in the photo, unless one is just a rock-shaped elk right next to the other 2?
Thursday - First intended hunt day of round 2. I would be hunting the general area where I had left off at the end of round 1. I was a bit nervous how the muzzleloader season have affected these herds as for me they honestly were not that hard to get to and there were at least a half dozen muzzy camps with who knows how many tags set up in the general area. Yeah, it was a steep son of a gun to get there in the morning and there was no trail, but I learned I'd rather do that than hike 3 miles in the dark on a trail. Another advantage I had was having my whole camp contained in the truck, so all I needed was a place I could pull off the road and bam, I'm camping.
Well, morning came and I was off. I had made it all the way past the bedding area without a peep and started to get nervous. What the heck, let's try a locator bugle. I no sooner finish when I get a response and its a CLOSE. I cut the distance and walk smack dab into the small herd lead by the same bull I had missed in the meadow a couple weeks prior. They're just above me and working down the ridge to bed. Considering its early morning, it doesn't get much better with the thermals pulling down the hill.
I get to 64 yards from the bull, but cows have fed out between us and I have no real play. Its too open to call and that's too far for me to shoot. They mill around for awhile and finally go over a hump out of sight, towards the National Park Campground bedding area. I catch back up with them right in it and the bull is at 34 yards but he's covered up in cows. One of them catches me periscoping and starts to pull the herd uphill so I blast a challenge as the bull is clueless. My hope is he will come over to the slight rise to see the challenger, but instead he trots 50 yards directly away from me ( and perpendicular to his cows ), circles down below all of us and bugles. Not great, wind is funneling downhill, but he's out far enough to not smell me. He decides he's not into this and calls his cows down the hill.
The chase begins again and I'm shadowing them down the hill for the next 30 minutes (whoever said elk go uphill to bed??? ...). They take me into some new terrain which is nice as I learn a bit more about how the elk are using this hill. As I am starting to feel I might be in a position to make a move, another bugle rings out above me. Now I am in the middle of two bulls going back and forth when I catch sight of the new bull, and while he's not as big he's still mature, and he's coming downhill towards me, distracted by the herd --- perfect for an ambush.
I cut the distance in the direction he's headed, knock an arrow, and just before he hits my shooting lane he doglegs back above me. I stop him but his vitals are covered, so instead I range - 32 yards. I prep for the shot when he comes out in the next opening. As soon as he starts moving I draw, stopping him again as he becomes exposed. Settling my pin, I notice a small green pine that tops out right below where I am aiming. As I release, I watch my arrow sailing directly toward my point of aim. It clips the top of that tree and slides in right under the bull. He's trots off as I am dumbfounded.
I had figured that my arrow would arc over the tree and drop into the bull. What I did not realize was that in the few moments when the bull was hidden and I drew, the trail he was on actually took him 10 yards further away, so my trajectory for the shot was completely different than I had realized. I am shooting ~550 grain arrows so that jump in yardage makes a difference. Argh!
The herd bull was still bugling below me, so I reoriented and tried to get on him. I ran into dinner, but there were elk to hunt ( gasp! ).
Well, morning came and I was off. I had made it all the way past the bedding area without a peep and started to get nervous. What the heck, let's try a locator bugle. I no sooner finish when I get a response and its a CLOSE. I cut the distance and walk smack dab into the small herd lead by the same bull I had missed in the meadow a couple weeks prior. They're just above me and working down the ridge to bed. Considering its early morning, it doesn't get much better with the thermals pulling down the hill.
I get to 64 yards from the bull, but cows have fed out between us and I have no real play. Its too open to call and that's too far for me to shoot. They mill around for awhile and finally go over a hump out of sight, towards the National Park Campground bedding area. I catch back up with them right in it and the bull is at 34 yards but he's covered up in cows. One of them catches me periscoping and starts to pull the herd uphill so I blast a challenge as the bull is clueless. My hope is he will come over to the slight rise to see the challenger, but instead he trots 50 yards directly away from me ( and perpendicular to his cows ), circles down below all of us and bugles. Not great, wind is funneling downhill, but he's out far enough to not smell me. He decides he's not into this and calls his cows down the hill.
The chase begins again and I'm shadowing them down the hill for the next 30 minutes (whoever said elk go uphill to bed??? ...). They take me into some new terrain which is nice as I learn a bit more about how the elk are using this hill. As I am starting to feel I might be in a position to make a move, another bugle rings out above me. Now I am in the middle of two bulls going back and forth when I catch sight of the new bull, and while he's not as big he's still mature, and he's coming downhill towards me, distracted by the herd --- perfect for an ambush.
I cut the distance in the direction he's headed, knock an arrow, and just before he hits my shooting lane he doglegs back above me. I stop him but his vitals are covered, so instead I range - 32 yards. I prep for the shot when he comes out in the next opening. As soon as he starts moving I draw, stopping him again as he becomes exposed. Settling my pin, I notice a small green pine that tops out right below where I am aiming. As I release, I watch my arrow sailing directly toward my point of aim. It clips the top of that tree and slides in right under the bull. He's trots off as I am dumbfounded.
I had figured that my arrow would arc over the tree and drop into the bull. What I did not realize was that in the few moments when the bull was hidden and I drew, the trail he was on actually took him 10 yards further away, so my trajectory for the shot was completely different than I had realized. I am shooting ~550 grain arrows so that jump in yardage makes a difference. Argh!
The herd bull was still bugling below me, so I reoriented and tried to get on him. I ran into dinner, but there were elk to hunt ( gasp! ).
I followed the bugles a bit farther, but couldn't quite figure out where they were headed. Then, the bull I had missed started bugling again, so I worked my way back on him. After some cat and mouse, he caught me moving and I had blown that one again. I circled the mountain for a bit, trying some locator bugles, but got no responses. I couldn't believe it, but it was after noon!
I decided it was probably time for lunch and a bit of a break, so I found a nice elk bed and got comfortable. I pulled my book out ( I finished two on the first trip! ), took my bino pack off and sat down. With my legs straight out in anticipation of an oncoming nap, I opened the book to the prologue. I may have read the first sentence when I heard something. Looking up, a huge bull was stepping onto the small bench right in front of me. He had come in silently looking for the source of my last bugle. While I wasn't exactly caught with my pants down, my position wasn't exactly ideal. The bull was giving me a perfect 25 yard broadside shot though, so I lifted my bow ( arrow already knocked, one thing I did right! ), drew and shot.
Immediately upon release, I knew I had rushed the shot. I hadn't leveled my bubble. I'm not sure I had really picked a specific spot. Regardless, I never expected to watch my arrow arc up over the bull and TWANG!! The bull's head turned at the impact, and with it my arrow firmly lodged in his off side main beam. I was dumbfounded and dejected. I had heard stories of people hitting antlers before and thought it was the most absurd thing I had ever heard. Now I was in that club.
Disgusted with myself, I packed up my gear and hiked out to the truck to shoot and check my bow. Remember, I had taken a good spill at the end of my last trip, breaking my quiver. While I had shot at home, I wanted to be certain. Back at the truck, my groups were great out to 60 yards so the diagnosis was obviously ...
BULL FEVER
I decided it was probably time for lunch and a bit of a break, so I found a nice elk bed and got comfortable. I pulled my book out ( I finished two on the first trip! ), took my bino pack off and sat down. With my legs straight out in anticipation of an oncoming nap, I opened the book to the prologue. I may have read the first sentence when I heard something. Looking up, a huge bull was stepping onto the small bench right in front of me. He had come in silently looking for the source of my last bugle. While I wasn't exactly caught with my pants down, my position wasn't exactly ideal. The bull was giving me a perfect 25 yard broadside shot though, so I lifted my bow ( arrow already knocked, one thing I did right! ), drew and shot.
Immediately upon release, I knew I had rushed the shot. I hadn't leveled my bubble. I'm not sure I had really picked a specific spot. Regardless, I never expected to watch my arrow arc up over the bull and TWANG!! The bull's head turned at the impact, and with it my arrow firmly lodged in his off side main beam. I was dumbfounded and dejected. I had heard stories of people hitting antlers before and thought it was the most absurd thing I had ever heard. Now I was in that club.
Disgusted with myself, I packed up my gear and hiked out to the truck to shoot and check my bow. Remember, I had taken a good spill at the end of my last trip, breaking my quiver. While I had shot at home, I wanted to be certain. Back at the truck, my groups were great out to 60 yards so the diagnosis was obviously ...
BULL FEVER
I don't remember anything of interest happening that afternoon. I apologize for the lack of photos but I was trying to kill an elk!
Friday
Overnight, I could hear bulls bugle right from my truck camp. They were across the meadow on a different mountain. While I hadn't been over there before, I figured I had pushed the elk pretty hard in my number one spot so it wouldn't be a bad idea to give them a rest. Time for exploration!
The climb was comparable but due to being a more north facing slope there was a lot more deadfall. Near the top of my climb was a set of meadows that I thought might hold some feeding elk, so I was trying to get to them before they moved too far away. A couple hundred feet below them, I started hearing bugles. Trying to get into position on them took me right to the edge of those meadows. While the elk weren't in the meadows, I was now in the middle of four different bugling bulls!
It was as the case always seems to be in the morning; if they're bugling, they're moving. Every time I thought I was closing within 100 yards, the next bugle would be further off. When one started raking a tree, I knew he'd be stationary for a bit. As I was about to make my move, color caught my eye off to my right. Raghorn, and slightly down wind. I decided to just ignore him. Dropping into a ravine, I was able to quickly cut off 100 yards. When I popped up onto the flat above, a solid 6 point was still raking about 70 yards ahead. I went into stealth mode and began closing the distance. At 54 yards I didn't have a shot. The next time I had a clear view of the tree was at 45 yards, but the bull was gone. It is amazing how they can just vanish like that.
I gave it a few minutes but there was no bugling to be had anymore, so I pushed onward around the mountain. It seemed like nice country.
I covered another half mile or so before I started hearing bugles again. The sun was up plenty high now, and that joyous wind would not cooperate. Each time I adjusted it would blow back the other way. Eventually, the bugles moved off and stopped. Back to the drawing board.
I identified a good looking ridge for bedding and worked my way over there. I nailed it, walking right up on a bedded herd. You can see the back half of a cow in this photo, bottom center.
The position of this ridge seemed to have the wind funneling a specific direction, so I was able to hang with them for quite awhile, despite being sub 30 yards. I would catch movement here and there and eventually identified six different elk. Unfortunately, none of them were bulls. The wind finally gave me up to one of them. They didn't bust out, just eased off, which gave me a chance to indeed verify it was just a cow group.
Onward ho! I began to run out of huntable terrain on this part of the mountain. It would require at least a 300ft drop down a really steep portion of the mountain to keep moving forward. It was around noon, so there was lots of time left, but a drop down would require a climb back up later. Several different bugles made the decision a lot easier. Deja Vu kicked in after the exciting drop down the mountain though, as every time it seemed I was closing in on a bugle, the next would be farther off.
When I hit a wallow, I decided to just park it. It didn't seem to be doing me any good trying to get closer to these elk, so maybe I'd let them get closer to me. I seemed to be in a good spot, as there were sporadic bugles every 10 minutes or so for the next four hours. At one point I could hear a bull wallowing; there must have been a second wallow further down the spring.
Around 5pm, the herds must have started to move towards their evening feeding. Naturally, the bugles were working away from my exit. I had another difficult decision, and this time I chose to be conservative. I didn't feel like making a 3+ mile deadfall-crossing cliff-climbing cross country hike in the dark. I knew where these bulls were and I could come in from a different direction in the morning.
Finding a way back up the drop I had made earlier proved to be some type two fun. I thought for sure I would find some elk up top heading to feed, but all was quiet. I circled around higher on the mountain on my way back and popped out at this sweet view. Too bad the sun was right in my face. You can see my truck down just off the road on the left side if you squint.
Getting down from here ended up being fairly harrowing. Using all fours to climb down really sucks when you're carrying a bow. Topo maps can really lie some times! Maybe it did or didn't help, but there was also a bull bugling straight below me. I ended up dropping into an avalanche chute, where I was confused the heck out of this fella. He could hear me coming down through the talus, but never looked up.
I eventually made it down safely with just enough time to get after that bull, but either he had smelled me or he wanted to be feeding further up the meadow as I could never cut the distance close enough to even see him. At least it was very close to the truck!
Friday
Overnight, I could hear bulls bugle right from my truck camp. They were across the meadow on a different mountain. While I hadn't been over there before, I figured I had pushed the elk pretty hard in my number one spot so it wouldn't be a bad idea to give them a rest. Time for exploration!
The climb was comparable but due to being a more north facing slope there was a lot more deadfall. Near the top of my climb was a set of meadows that I thought might hold some feeding elk, so I was trying to get to them before they moved too far away. A couple hundred feet below them, I started hearing bugles. Trying to get into position on them took me right to the edge of those meadows. While the elk weren't in the meadows, I was now in the middle of four different bugling bulls!
It was as the case always seems to be in the morning; if they're bugling, they're moving. Every time I thought I was closing within 100 yards, the next bugle would be further off. When one started raking a tree, I knew he'd be stationary for a bit. As I was about to make my move, color caught my eye off to my right. Raghorn, and slightly down wind. I decided to just ignore him. Dropping into a ravine, I was able to quickly cut off 100 yards. When I popped up onto the flat above, a solid 6 point was still raking about 70 yards ahead. I went into stealth mode and began closing the distance. At 54 yards I didn't have a shot. The next time I had a clear view of the tree was at 45 yards, but the bull was gone. It is amazing how they can just vanish like that.
I gave it a few minutes but there was no bugling to be had anymore, so I pushed onward around the mountain. It seemed like nice country.
I covered another half mile or so before I started hearing bugles again. The sun was up plenty high now, and that joyous wind would not cooperate. Each time I adjusted it would blow back the other way. Eventually, the bugles moved off and stopped. Back to the drawing board.
I identified a good looking ridge for bedding and worked my way over there. I nailed it, walking right up on a bedded herd. You can see the back half of a cow in this photo, bottom center.
The position of this ridge seemed to have the wind funneling a specific direction, so I was able to hang with them for quite awhile, despite being sub 30 yards. I would catch movement here and there and eventually identified six different elk. Unfortunately, none of them were bulls. The wind finally gave me up to one of them. They didn't bust out, just eased off, which gave me a chance to indeed verify it was just a cow group.
Onward ho! I began to run out of huntable terrain on this part of the mountain. It would require at least a 300ft drop down a really steep portion of the mountain to keep moving forward. It was around noon, so there was lots of time left, but a drop down would require a climb back up later. Several different bugles made the decision a lot easier. Deja Vu kicked in after the exciting drop down the mountain though, as every time it seemed I was closing in on a bugle, the next would be farther off.
When I hit a wallow, I decided to just park it. It didn't seem to be doing me any good trying to get closer to these elk, so maybe I'd let them get closer to me. I seemed to be in a good spot, as there were sporadic bugles every 10 minutes or so for the next four hours. At one point I could hear a bull wallowing; there must have been a second wallow further down the spring.
Around 5pm, the herds must have started to move towards their evening feeding. Naturally, the bugles were working away from my exit. I had another difficult decision, and this time I chose to be conservative. I didn't feel like making a 3+ mile deadfall-crossing cliff-climbing cross country hike in the dark. I knew where these bulls were and I could come in from a different direction in the morning.
Finding a way back up the drop I had made earlier proved to be some type two fun. I thought for sure I would find some elk up top heading to feed, but all was quiet. I circled around higher on the mountain on my way back and popped out at this sweet view. Too bad the sun was right in my face. You can see my truck down just off the road on the left side if you squint.
Getting down from here ended up being fairly harrowing. Using all fours to climb down really sucks when you're carrying a bow. Topo maps can really lie some times! Maybe it did or didn't help, but there was also a bull bugling straight below me. I ended up dropping into an avalanche chute, where I was confused the heck out of this fella. He could hear me coming down through the talus, but never looked up.
I eventually made it down safely with just enough time to get after that bull, but either he had smelled me or he wanted to be feeding further up the meadow as I could never cut the distance close enough to even see him. At least it was very close to the truck!
Saturday
As I had left the bulls in the upper end of a huge basin the afternoon before, and knew I could get in there from the back side, I decided to give that a go in the morning. I had been able to glass that end of the basin on my scouting trip and knew there were plenty of elk that lived back there, though I hadn't seen any big bulls. It was probably three miles from where I had been glassing, so it would have been easy to miss something.
I drove the truck to my entrance point the night before and was up a bit earlier that morning as unlike the previous days, I wanted to actually cover some distance in the dark. As I approached the summit of the ridge, a couple hundred feet above treeline and with the sun just beginning to light my surroundings, I thought I heard a cow call. I slipped a bit closer in that direction and sure enough, there was a cow feeding only 50 yards from me.
Very hard to see in the photo but there are a couple cows on the right hand side. There's probably more elk than that, as while watching one turned to a pair, which became three, then seven, etc. However, there were no bulls with these cows.
They happened to be heading to the same group of trees where I had planned on starting my morning hunt, so I carefully paralleled them. As we hit the timber, the first bugles rang out. The wind was a bit tricky. A front had moved in and there was a stiff breeze up this high blowing right up the valley. The bull(s) were below me, and if the wind stopped, the thermals would take over, pulling my scent back down. My original plan had been to circle any elk below me, but there were multiple bulls bugling on each side of me.
I dropped down the edge of a finger of timber and soon spotted cows feeding on the opposing edge, about 70 yards away. There was a bit of a ravine, so I decided I could get into their finger of timber without being spotted. Halfway across the opening, I looked down and back, and a bull was standing in the open a mere 60 yards away, back on the edge of the timber I had just left. This was definitely not the herd bull, but he was so exposed I thought I should go for him.
Well, I don't know what happened, but after easing 20 yards where I could get a shot, he was gone. While scratching my head, a different bull, quite large, crossed the opening towards the herd bull, whom I still could not see. He was only in the timber for a moment before the herd bull sent him scurrying back across the opening in front of me. He ran all the way across the valley. Then the herd bull gathered his cows and pushed down away from me.
I followed his bugle for an hour, almost to where I had stopped the day before, but lost them. After the morning's excitement and close encounter, this seemed like the slowest day. I crossed the valley at one point as several other bulls had bugled on that side, but I never could find any. Around 10am they completely shut up as it began to snow. I alternated waiting and listening with still hunting, but nothing at all happened until 30 minutes before dark. The elk bugling were not near me. I had no move. I did glass an enormous bull opposite me, with his herd pushed into a tiny chute at almost 12,6k! There was just no way I could get there.
Hiking out in the dark, I was entertained by a bugle fest. Jerks.
As I had left the bulls in the upper end of a huge basin the afternoon before, and knew I could get in there from the back side, I decided to give that a go in the morning. I had been able to glass that end of the basin on my scouting trip and knew there were plenty of elk that lived back there, though I hadn't seen any big bulls. It was probably three miles from where I had been glassing, so it would have been easy to miss something.
I drove the truck to my entrance point the night before and was up a bit earlier that morning as unlike the previous days, I wanted to actually cover some distance in the dark. As I approached the summit of the ridge, a couple hundred feet above treeline and with the sun just beginning to light my surroundings, I thought I heard a cow call. I slipped a bit closer in that direction and sure enough, there was a cow feeding only 50 yards from me.
Very hard to see in the photo but there are a couple cows on the right hand side. There's probably more elk than that, as while watching one turned to a pair, which became three, then seven, etc. However, there were no bulls with these cows.
They happened to be heading to the same group of trees where I had planned on starting my morning hunt, so I carefully paralleled them. As we hit the timber, the first bugles rang out. The wind was a bit tricky. A front had moved in and there was a stiff breeze up this high blowing right up the valley. The bull(s) were below me, and if the wind stopped, the thermals would take over, pulling my scent back down. My original plan had been to circle any elk below me, but there were multiple bulls bugling on each side of me.
I dropped down the edge of a finger of timber and soon spotted cows feeding on the opposing edge, about 70 yards away. There was a bit of a ravine, so I decided I could get into their finger of timber without being spotted. Halfway across the opening, I looked down and back, and a bull was standing in the open a mere 60 yards away, back on the edge of the timber I had just left. This was definitely not the herd bull, but he was so exposed I thought I should go for him.
Well, I don't know what happened, but after easing 20 yards where I could get a shot, he was gone. While scratching my head, a different bull, quite large, crossed the opening towards the herd bull, whom I still could not see. He was only in the timber for a moment before the herd bull sent him scurrying back across the opening in front of me. He ran all the way across the valley. Then the herd bull gathered his cows and pushed down away from me.
I followed his bugle for an hour, almost to where I had stopped the day before, but lost them. After the morning's excitement and close encounter, this seemed like the slowest day. I crossed the valley at one point as several other bulls had bugled on that side, but I never could find any. Around 10am they completely shut up as it began to snow. I alternated waiting and listening with still hunting, but nothing at all happened until 30 minutes before dark. The elk bugling were not near me. I had no move. I did glass an enormous bull opposite me, with his herd pushed into a tiny chute at almost 12,6k! There was just no way I could get there.
Hiking out in the dark, I was entertained by a bugle fest. Jerks.
Sunday
It had been a couple of days since I hunted my primary location, so I decided to return to that area. I pushed up high near the place I had the first close encounter a few days before. I could hear some bugles but I couldn't quite tell where they were coming from. Just before I decided to head towards one somewhere uphill, a closer, growly bugle came from a ravine down and away from me. He bugled again slightly closer. Perfect! I am finally set for an intercept course instead of chasing.
I dropped back down to the next bench and cut some distance sidehill. The next bugle was very loud and I knew it was game time. There was a slight rise ahead of me, and peeking my head over I saw two cows trotting directly toward me, so I backed off the hill a bit to get some cover. I gave it a few minutes but nothing happened. I eased up the rise again and found a cow feeding 35 yards in front of me. The bull bugled and I found him at 46 yards with no shot. They were directly sidehill from me with the wind blowing straight downhill, so the situation was good. Another lucky grouse got a pass.
I watched for several minutes as the cow fed around, then turned down hill working her way towards a spring. She came to the spring to drink and was only about 20 yards away at a 45 degree angle front and down. The bull was keeping his eye on her and I knew he eventually would come over, either to get a drink or to keep this cow in line. I was slightly worried the cow would finish drinking and work around the hill below me, but before that could happen, bull turned and started walking over. At 36 yards he stopped to watch. He stood there quartered to me still with no good shot for what seemed like 5 minutes. I had great back cover so they had no idea I was there.
This time, I was prepared. I was reminding myself about the steps to take when I shot and I was totally calm. This was going to be it! As elk hunting often seems to go though, the wind shifted enough to blow into that spring, where the cow caught a whiff. After having the bull so close for so long and never having a shot, the cow lifted her head, became alert, and took the herd up the hill away from me.
I gave it some time but they moved off without making any sounds. It occurred to me that all this time I've been so close to all these elk but the only cow call I had heard was in the alpine that one morning. Hmm.
I moved around and then over the mountain, towards the north facing ridge. I thought I'd heard some bugles headed East, but as I worked toward them it was obvious that was the wrong way. I turned back toward the West and hit a huge slide. It drops off about 1000 feet. If you go back to my Wednesday night post, you'll see it in one of the photos I had taken from across the valley. It turns out this is directly below that water hole I had sat on a couple of times. It will come into play again.
I heard the bugles again and could tell they were on the West side of this slide. Moving over there, I was closing on the bugles. It became obvious they were on the move on the next set of bugles. I followed and followed (about a mile), finally spotting a good six point working away about 100 yards down and away from me. Two other bulls were bugling up and away from me. I decided to go for the satellite, figuring on less eyes, but he gave me the slip. The other two seemed to quiet down at the same time. I tried to circle around in front of the other two, but when I finally heard them again they were well ahead again.
They had taken me to an area I hadn't been before that was full of elk beds, but I only turned up a couple of lone cows.
I stayed in the general area for several hours expecting to hear a bed bugle, but it didn't happen. It was quite a ways back to the truck, as it was on the other side of the mountain from here, so as it turned to evening I began working my way back. I decided to head to a strip of timber on a small ridge between the two meadows where I'd had evening encounters on the first trip. I'd seen some elk use that ridge and figured it would be a good central place to hear bugles, too. I ended up finding a great trail passing through a spring on that ridge, so sat down near where I could tell the elk were drinking from it.
I started hearing distant bugles as time went on, but I wasn't confident in their location. After about 45 minutes, I couldn't stand it anymore. I had to cross the larger meadow to get over nearer them, but if they were heading to that meadow I would be in a good position to intercept. 600 yards later I was getting into position. The wind changed after crossing the meadow though, and it was about as bad as it could get. I had two cows walk by about 15 yards from me, but the bulls sounded like they might be heading away.
Then the Dinosaur bugled. I was excited but also pissed, as the bugle came from right where I had been waiting! Now what to do? The wind was perfect for working him, and it sounded like he might be right in that meadow where I'd had the awesome encounter a couple weeks ago, but I'd have to go 600 yards back across the big meadow. As the "close" bugles sounded even further again, and the Dinosaur continued to bugle every 30 seconds, I made the decision to cross back.
About halfway back, I noticed the Dinosaur didn't seem to be bugling anymore. I continued, hoping they had just made it to where they'd wanted to feed, but as I hit the meadow I knew they weren't there. You got to be kidding me??! He finally bugled again, but it sounded as if they were in the next meadow over. Time to move!
This was feeling like Deja Vu. As I went to cross the next meadow because I could hear him bugling on the next ridge, I bumped a herd of cows. I wasn't too concerned as he wasn't with them. Approaching the next opening, I seemed to be cutting the distance quickly. I started to get excited. He sounded like he was right in front of me, and I could see some cows within 100 yards.
When he bugled again, I was confused. He sounded farther off again, but there was no way he'd crossed to the next section of timber. Finally, I spotted him. I don't know exactly what happened, but I believe the cows I had bumped earlier were indeed his herd. He was working his way up into the alpine to meet up with them. I was screwed. There was no way to close the distance now, as they were 400 yards away across the wide open. The cows I could see near me were a second herd. I watched the Dinosaur caught up with his cows and follow the over the top to who knows where.
A new bugle rang out, closer again. The second herd did have a bull. I didn't have much time or cover, but I decided to see what they would do, as some of the cows were within 80 yards.
It didn't seem like anything was going to work here, but suddenly they did a 90 degree turn and started working above me. I figured why not put in even more energy and climbed up and around. Gaining another 200 feet of elevation, I saw some cows close up again. I had just enough of the hillside to stay out of sight. On my next peek, I could see antlers. I grabbed my rangefinder and my bow and got ready, but as I went to draw, I couldn't see my pins. I had run out of time.
It had been a couple of days since I hunted my primary location, so I decided to return to that area. I pushed up high near the place I had the first close encounter a few days before. I could hear some bugles but I couldn't quite tell where they were coming from. Just before I decided to head towards one somewhere uphill, a closer, growly bugle came from a ravine down and away from me. He bugled again slightly closer. Perfect! I am finally set for an intercept course instead of chasing.
I dropped back down to the next bench and cut some distance sidehill. The next bugle was very loud and I knew it was game time. There was a slight rise ahead of me, and peeking my head over I saw two cows trotting directly toward me, so I backed off the hill a bit to get some cover. I gave it a few minutes but nothing happened. I eased up the rise again and found a cow feeding 35 yards in front of me. The bull bugled and I found him at 46 yards with no shot. They were directly sidehill from me with the wind blowing straight downhill, so the situation was good. Another lucky grouse got a pass.
I watched for several minutes as the cow fed around, then turned down hill working her way towards a spring. She came to the spring to drink and was only about 20 yards away at a 45 degree angle front and down. The bull was keeping his eye on her and I knew he eventually would come over, either to get a drink or to keep this cow in line. I was slightly worried the cow would finish drinking and work around the hill below me, but before that could happen, bull turned and started walking over. At 36 yards he stopped to watch. He stood there quartered to me still with no good shot for what seemed like 5 minutes. I had great back cover so they had no idea I was there.
This time, I was prepared. I was reminding myself about the steps to take when I shot and I was totally calm. This was going to be it! As elk hunting often seems to go though, the wind shifted enough to blow into that spring, where the cow caught a whiff. After having the bull so close for so long and never having a shot, the cow lifted her head, became alert, and took the herd up the hill away from me.
I gave it some time but they moved off without making any sounds. It occurred to me that all this time I've been so close to all these elk but the only cow call I had heard was in the alpine that one morning. Hmm.
I moved around and then over the mountain, towards the north facing ridge. I thought I'd heard some bugles headed East, but as I worked toward them it was obvious that was the wrong way. I turned back toward the West and hit a huge slide. It drops off about 1000 feet. If you go back to my Wednesday night post, you'll see it in one of the photos I had taken from across the valley. It turns out this is directly below that water hole I had sat on a couple of times. It will come into play again.
I heard the bugles again and could tell they were on the West side of this slide. Moving over there, I was closing on the bugles. It became obvious they were on the move on the next set of bugles. I followed and followed (about a mile), finally spotting a good six point working away about 100 yards down and away from me. Two other bulls were bugling up and away from me. I decided to go for the satellite, figuring on less eyes, but he gave me the slip. The other two seemed to quiet down at the same time. I tried to circle around in front of the other two, but when I finally heard them again they were well ahead again.
They had taken me to an area I hadn't been before that was full of elk beds, but I only turned up a couple of lone cows.
I stayed in the general area for several hours expecting to hear a bed bugle, but it didn't happen. It was quite a ways back to the truck, as it was on the other side of the mountain from here, so as it turned to evening I began working my way back. I decided to head to a strip of timber on a small ridge between the two meadows where I'd had evening encounters on the first trip. I'd seen some elk use that ridge and figured it would be a good central place to hear bugles, too. I ended up finding a great trail passing through a spring on that ridge, so sat down near where I could tell the elk were drinking from it.
I started hearing distant bugles as time went on, but I wasn't confident in their location. After about 45 minutes, I couldn't stand it anymore. I had to cross the larger meadow to get over nearer them, but if they were heading to that meadow I would be in a good position to intercept. 600 yards later I was getting into position. The wind changed after crossing the meadow though, and it was about as bad as it could get. I had two cows walk by about 15 yards from me, but the bulls sounded like they might be heading away.
Then the Dinosaur bugled. I was excited but also pissed, as the bugle came from right where I had been waiting! Now what to do? The wind was perfect for working him, and it sounded like he might be right in that meadow where I'd had the awesome encounter a couple weeks ago, but I'd have to go 600 yards back across the big meadow. As the "close" bugles sounded even further again, and the Dinosaur continued to bugle every 30 seconds, I made the decision to cross back.
About halfway back, I noticed the Dinosaur didn't seem to be bugling anymore. I continued, hoping they had just made it to where they'd wanted to feed, but as I hit the meadow I knew they weren't there. You got to be kidding me??! He finally bugled again, but it sounded as if they were in the next meadow over. Time to move!
This was feeling like Deja Vu. As I went to cross the next meadow because I could hear him bugling on the next ridge, I bumped a herd of cows. I wasn't too concerned as he wasn't with them. Approaching the next opening, I seemed to be cutting the distance quickly. I started to get excited. He sounded like he was right in front of me, and I could see some cows within 100 yards.
When he bugled again, I was confused. He sounded farther off again, but there was no way he'd crossed to the next section of timber. Finally, I spotted him. I don't know exactly what happened, but I believe the cows I had bumped earlier were indeed his herd. He was working his way up into the alpine to meet up with them. I was screwed. There was no way to close the distance now, as they were 400 yards away across the wide open. The cows I could see near me were a second herd. I watched the Dinosaur caught up with his cows and follow the over the top to who knows where.
A new bugle rang out, closer again. The second herd did have a bull. I didn't have much time or cover, but I decided to see what they would do, as some of the cows were within 80 yards.
It didn't seem like anything was going to work here, but suddenly they did a 90 degree turn and started working above me. I figured why not put in even more energy and climbed up and around. Gaining another 200 feet of elevation, I saw some cows close up again. I had just enough of the hillside to stay out of sight. On my next peek, I could see antlers. I grabbed my rangefinder and my bow and got ready, but as I went to draw, I couldn't see my pins. I had run out of time.
Monday
It was time to get serious. I had told FireTiger I would try to be home on Tuesday. That meant it was time to make some changes ... I put my small game head in my pack!
FireTiger had been awesome through all of this, and she supported me staying longer, but I felt with all that had happened I should not stay away too long. I had gotten what I needed from my time in the mountains and it had been an epic hunt. I'd love to shoot an elk, especially a nice big bull, but I was feeling satisfied.
I decided to hunt the same area for two reasons. 1.) I knew if I got an elk in this area it wouldn't be a killer packout and 2.) It had yet to let me down. I did make an adjustment in the morning though, as I felt the climb I had been making probably wouldn't hold elk this morning. Instead, I decided to start near the big meadow where I had left several bulls while I chased the Dinosaur the night before. I had a choice to make, East side or West side. I opted for East side for two reasons; the elk I had not hunted the evening before were East and I had walked right through the area to the West the evening before.
Would you believe if I told you that as soon as I had looped to the East, a bull started bugling to the West from the exact same spot the Dinosaur had started the night before?! I couldn't believe it, but what can you do except loop the 600 yards back around? So that's what I did. I was making good time and the herd did not seem to be moving yet. I closed within 100 yards and knocked an arrow when I heard a cow call. A loud cow call. This is not something I've been hearing. I immediately spotted a guy up the ridge from me 60 yards. He appeared to be calling for a second person ahead of me. First people I've seen up here!
I was convinced there was a real bull in front of us, but as they were there first, I backed out and yet again decided to do the 600 yard loop back to the other side. In the middle of my loop, I happened to look back across the meadow and saw cows streaming out into the open. The bull followed 100 yards behind. He didn't look to be hit, and they were headed right where I was headed. Adrenaline kicked in and I booked it around, out of sight of the elk. My trajectory put me literally right where I had missed the bull on day. As long as the herd stayed on course, they would funnel right past me at 30 yards.
I got in position just in time. The cows were 80 yards away and coming directly toward where I wanted them. They held up for the bull. When he joined them, the did a 90 and headed out of the meadow via the trail I had expected to start my day hunting, and towards where I had left the other elk the night before. Nothing to do now but chase, which I did for the next 90 minutes. Across the north slope, deadfall after deadfall, but I never could catch up to them. They kept going down as they went across and eventually it felt like maybe they had left my mountain completely. ( In hindsight I should have kept going, I don't think they were that far! )
For the afternoon, I decided to head over to that waterhole above the slide. It was only 150 yards or so above the slide, and it seemed like the elk would always go over the slide, never through it. As I approached, I heard a bugle. It seemed a few hundred yards off, so while I was interested, I wasn't in a rush. I was more interested in the grouse! There were four of them feeding just above the slide. I managed the first easily, but had to chase the second one a bit. As I walked over to collect my second grouse ( dinner for two! ), I bumped the herd of elk. REALLY?! They had been bedded just above the slide and the bugle was closer than I expected; either he had been facing away from me or it was just a really lazy one from the bed.
I moved to the waterhole with low expectations. I had probably just bumped the elk that would have come to it. I probably should have gone somewhere else but I didn't. I did have a curious visitor, confused as to who was sitting in his log pile.
That afternoon a front started to move in. The wind picked up and I had off and on snow. The last time it snowed, the elk didn't start bugling until just before dark, and this night was no different. I didn't see or hear anything that evening until I got back to my truck, where a bull was bugling across the valley.
Seeing as I had been having a lot of action on the north side of this ridge, and the elk had seemingly stayed down, I decided to relocate camp. It would save me half an hour driving out, put me in some new terrain and potentially put me closer to the herd in the morning.
I pulled up to my new camp spot ( I had scouted this location before ) and got out of my truck to a chorus of bugles. Seems as if I'd made the right choice.
It was time to get serious. I had told FireTiger I would try to be home on Tuesday. That meant it was time to make some changes ... I put my small game head in my pack!
FireTiger had been awesome through all of this, and she supported me staying longer, but I felt with all that had happened I should not stay away too long. I had gotten what I needed from my time in the mountains and it had been an epic hunt. I'd love to shoot an elk, especially a nice big bull, but I was feeling satisfied.
I decided to hunt the same area for two reasons. 1.) I knew if I got an elk in this area it wouldn't be a killer packout and 2.) It had yet to let me down. I did make an adjustment in the morning though, as I felt the climb I had been making probably wouldn't hold elk this morning. Instead, I decided to start near the big meadow where I had left several bulls while I chased the Dinosaur the night before. I had a choice to make, East side or West side. I opted for East side for two reasons; the elk I had not hunted the evening before were East and I had walked right through the area to the West the evening before.
Would you believe if I told you that as soon as I had looped to the East, a bull started bugling to the West from the exact same spot the Dinosaur had started the night before?! I couldn't believe it, but what can you do except loop the 600 yards back around? So that's what I did. I was making good time and the herd did not seem to be moving yet. I closed within 100 yards and knocked an arrow when I heard a cow call. A loud cow call. This is not something I've been hearing. I immediately spotted a guy up the ridge from me 60 yards. He appeared to be calling for a second person ahead of me. First people I've seen up here!
I was convinced there was a real bull in front of us, but as they were there first, I backed out and yet again decided to do the 600 yard loop back to the other side. In the middle of my loop, I happened to look back across the meadow and saw cows streaming out into the open. The bull followed 100 yards behind. He didn't look to be hit, and they were headed right where I was headed. Adrenaline kicked in and I booked it around, out of sight of the elk. My trajectory put me literally right where I had missed the bull on day. As long as the herd stayed on course, they would funnel right past me at 30 yards.
I got in position just in time. The cows were 80 yards away and coming directly toward where I wanted them. They held up for the bull. When he joined them, the did a 90 and headed out of the meadow via the trail I had expected to start my day hunting, and towards where I had left the other elk the night before. Nothing to do now but chase, which I did for the next 90 minutes. Across the north slope, deadfall after deadfall, but I never could catch up to them. They kept going down as they went across and eventually it felt like maybe they had left my mountain completely. ( In hindsight I should have kept going, I don't think they were that far! )
For the afternoon, I decided to head over to that waterhole above the slide. It was only 150 yards or so above the slide, and it seemed like the elk would always go over the slide, never through it. As I approached, I heard a bugle. It seemed a few hundred yards off, so while I was interested, I wasn't in a rush. I was more interested in the grouse! There were four of them feeding just above the slide. I managed the first easily, but had to chase the second one a bit. As I walked over to collect my second grouse ( dinner for two! ), I bumped the herd of elk. REALLY?! They had been bedded just above the slide and the bugle was closer than I expected; either he had been facing away from me or it was just a really lazy one from the bed.
I moved to the waterhole with low expectations. I had probably just bumped the elk that would have come to it. I probably should have gone somewhere else but I didn't. I did have a curious visitor, confused as to who was sitting in his log pile.
That afternoon a front started to move in. The wind picked up and I had off and on snow. The last time it snowed, the elk didn't start bugling until just before dark, and this night was no different. I didn't see or hear anything that evening until I got back to my truck, where a bull was bugling across the valley.
Seeing as I had been having a lot of action on the north side of this ridge, and the elk had seemingly stayed down, I decided to relocate camp. It would save me half an hour driving out, put me in some new terrain and potentially put me closer to the herd in the morning.
I pulled up to my new camp spot ( I had scouted this location before ) and got out of my truck to a chorus of bugles. Seems as if I'd made the right choice.
Tuesday
Last chance! I was up earlier as I didn't know what I would find trying to make the climb in this area. As I started in, a truck drove past mine but seemed to go about a mile farther before stopping. I could see two headlamps but they appeared to be hunting a different drainage.
I made it a decent distance in the dark, to the point where I thought I could be in elk at any time. Things were strangely quiet compared to all the bugling of the night before. I made it all the way to the pond from the photo above without hearing anything. I decided to try some light cow calling and immediately got a response from the bedding area I had been through the other day. Things were very much in my favor to work closer, but just as I thought I would see the bull, the next bugle was higher. He slipped away again! What the heck, it seemed like I really had him going?
A few minutes later I got a squealy bugle back down the hill a ways. It sounded off, but as it was my last day I thought what the heck. Sure enough, it ended up being another hunter. It was actually the pair I had seen heading in. Apparently they were not hunting a different drainage. I tried to talk with them to see where they were headed but they didn't want to talk.
They headed away from where I was, so I worked back up the ridge. I had made it aways where I could hear some bugling, so I sat down to get my bearings. A few minutes later, those two hunters came walking through right below me. I was being squeezed against the ridge, so I said screw it and turned around. My new plan was to work the ridge back toward the slide, as I was about a mile past it.
It didn't take too long before a cow call got a bull's attention. Then there were two bulls, one up and one sidehill. This is good! However, once again the bugles started to fade away. It took me the entire hunt to figure this out; the cows were pulling the bulls away. They did not like hearing cow calls. I am not sure if it was because the cows themselves weren't talking and thus they found it odd some other cow was talking, or if it was a competition thing or something else, but it wasn't the bulls not being interested, rather they didn't want to lose the cows they already had.
The chase ensued, however! It took half an hour for me to catch up, but finally I could see a bull 60 yards ahead. No shot, as usual. I closed to 40 yards, but he stepped behind a pine tree. All I could see was his breath as he bugled. There were now two other bulls bugling back at him. I just needed him to take one more step! After several minutes, that step came, and it was in the wrong direction. He quickly scaled the ridge, and the chase was back on.
I only made it about 100 yards when I started seeing elk again. Cows were all around, and I finally caught sight of my first spike during the hunt. Once again though, the chase had taken long enough that the thermals were becoming unstable, and a cow caught my scent, pulling the herd away again. It was at this point I realized I was standing right at the bottom of the waterhole I had been hunting earlier in the week, and that some of the elk I had been seeing below me were coming up because they needed to get around the big slide.
From the slide, we started working back down the ridge, following almost the same trajectory I had followed them two days prior. The herd started to split into two groups again, and I chose to follow the lower group as I thought it had the satellite and thus less eyes. I eventually caught up, now leaving the cow call untouched and instead occasionally bugling to keep tabs on them. I was on a group with a good six point as well as a raghorn, with a few cows. I had that six in range three times, but never could good drawn before he moved. Finally, I found the raghorn alone, tried to line up on him, pushed just a little too hard and got busted by the rest. The gig was up on this group.
The herd bull was still lighting up. He was actually behind me a bit, but uphill. The wind was not stable, but it was alternating between up and down hill, so I figured if I could get sidehill from him I would have a chance. I climbed to his level and cut the distance. It seemed like he might be moving away, back where we had come from?
And then, after two miles of shadowing this herd, he was right there. 37 yards. He was all alone, and he had me nailed.
Either his last bugle was quieter or he had turned away from me, but he most definitely had not moved away. He stood there staring at me while I ranged him, trying to ignore the massive antlers stretching out on both sides. I don't know that I really had a shot. That's a long ways for a frontal. Regardless, as he chuckled in my face, the wind blew straight to him and he left with it.
It felt a fitting conclusion to the hunt, like the bull saying "I win. This is my mountain." I strolled down (can one really stroll down a north face?) the hill with a smile on my face thinking about the ingredients to add to my tag soup. Grouse, for sure.
On my way back to the truck, I had to cross a stream. Just a few cutthroats in it....
It would be about an eight hour drive, and it was around noon by the time I got ready to leave. As I left, another weather system was coming in. Need to get over the pass before its here, so I picked a good time to skeedaddle.
Last chance! I was up earlier as I didn't know what I would find trying to make the climb in this area. As I started in, a truck drove past mine but seemed to go about a mile farther before stopping. I could see two headlamps but they appeared to be hunting a different drainage.
I made it a decent distance in the dark, to the point where I thought I could be in elk at any time. Things were strangely quiet compared to all the bugling of the night before. I made it all the way to the pond from the photo above without hearing anything. I decided to try some light cow calling and immediately got a response from the bedding area I had been through the other day. Things were very much in my favor to work closer, but just as I thought I would see the bull, the next bugle was higher. He slipped away again! What the heck, it seemed like I really had him going?
A few minutes later I got a squealy bugle back down the hill a ways. It sounded off, but as it was my last day I thought what the heck. Sure enough, it ended up being another hunter. It was actually the pair I had seen heading in. Apparently they were not hunting a different drainage. I tried to talk with them to see where they were headed but they didn't want to talk.
They headed away from where I was, so I worked back up the ridge. I had made it aways where I could hear some bugling, so I sat down to get my bearings. A few minutes later, those two hunters came walking through right below me. I was being squeezed against the ridge, so I said screw it and turned around. My new plan was to work the ridge back toward the slide, as I was about a mile past it.
It didn't take too long before a cow call got a bull's attention. Then there were two bulls, one up and one sidehill. This is good! However, once again the bugles started to fade away. It took me the entire hunt to figure this out; the cows were pulling the bulls away. They did not like hearing cow calls. I am not sure if it was because the cows themselves weren't talking and thus they found it odd some other cow was talking, or if it was a competition thing or something else, but it wasn't the bulls not being interested, rather they didn't want to lose the cows they already had.
The chase ensued, however! It took half an hour for me to catch up, but finally I could see a bull 60 yards ahead. No shot, as usual. I closed to 40 yards, but he stepped behind a pine tree. All I could see was his breath as he bugled. There were now two other bulls bugling back at him. I just needed him to take one more step! After several minutes, that step came, and it was in the wrong direction. He quickly scaled the ridge, and the chase was back on.
I only made it about 100 yards when I started seeing elk again. Cows were all around, and I finally caught sight of my first spike during the hunt. Once again though, the chase had taken long enough that the thermals were becoming unstable, and a cow caught my scent, pulling the herd away again. It was at this point I realized I was standing right at the bottom of the waterhole I had been hunting earlier in the week, and that some of the elk I had been seeing below me were coming up because they needed to get around the big slide.
From the slide, we started working back down the ridge, following almost the same trajectory I had followed them two days prior. The herd started to split into two groups again, and I chose to follow the lower group as I thought it had the satellite and thus less eyes. I eventually caught up, now leaving the cow call untouched and instead occasionally bugling to keep tabs on them. I was on a group with a good six point as well as a raghorn, with a few cows. I had that six in range three times, but never could good drawn before he moved. Finally, I found the raghorn alone, tried to line up on him, pushed just a little too hard and got busted by the rest. The gig was up on this group.
The herd bull was still lighting up. He was actually behind me a bit, but uphill. The wind was not stable, but it was alternating between up and down hill, so I figured if I could get sidehill from him I would have a chance. I climbed to his level and cut the distance. It seemed like he might be moving away, back where we had come from?
And then, after two miles of shadowing this herd, he was right there. 37 yards. He was all alone, and he had me nailed.
Either his last bugle was quieter or he had turned away from me, but he most definitely had not moved away. He stood there staring at me while I ranged him, trying to ignore the massive antlers stretching out on both sides. I don't know that I really had a shot. That's a long ways for a frontal. Regardless, as he chuckled in my face, the wind blew straight to him and he left with it.
It felt a fitting conclusion to the hunt, like the bull saying "I win. This is my mountain." I strolled down (can one really stroll down a north face?) the hill with a smile on my face thinking about the ingredients to add to my tag soup. Grouse, for sure.
On my way back to the truck, I had to cross a stream. Just a few cutthroats in it....
It would be about an eight hour drive, and it was around noon by the time I got ready to leave. As I left, another weather system was coming in. Need to get over the pass before its here, so I picked a good time to skeedaddle.
bowhuntmontana
Well-known member
Squeezed every ounce of adventure out of that one. Awesome experience, and glad you received from the mountain what you came there seeking.
Wow! Great write-up! One where respect of the hunt really shines.
Descriptive content made it easy to follow along. However, my heart might have been thumping loud enough for the bull to hear with an antler spread as you described. Haha!
Thanks for sharing. Always awesome to read your hunts.
Descriptive content made it easy to follow along. However, my heart might have been thumping loud enough for the bull to hear with an antler spread as you described. Haha!
Thanks for sharing. Always awesome to read your hunts.
Thoughts on the elk hunt
I used eight preference points on this hunt, I believe. Technically could have drawn it sooner, but I wasn't ready for it then. Did it meet my expectations?
In many cases, it exceeded them.
The research I had done on the hunt indicated it was more an opportunity hunt than a "trophy" hunt and maybe I just don't know what "trophy" means but I hunted some huge bulls, and I got close almost every day. Granted, I was not hunting where I had found lots of smaller bulls but rather where I had found some large ones, but it seemed like there were several large bulls in this one area. The suppose the big difference I felt (compared to the units that take 20+ points) was how much physical effort I had to put in to get to these bulls, but I didn't have to "go deep" either.
I don't know if it comes through in my writing, but I was chasing bugles, seeing elk or working a bull for six to eight hours most days. I feel like that alone is just awesome. I've done pretty well in OTC units but the encounters I've had there are usually brief and inconsistent, not hours of chasing or being able to find them every day. That was the best part; always being in the game.
I was surprised at the difficulty I had calling these elk. It did not seem like they were very pressured, but it only worked a couple times. My best guess was that there were so many elk around that there really wasn't a need to compete for cows. Most of the satellites I found had their own cows. In fact, there really was only the one evening where I found bulls off by themselves. Maybe I just "missed" the best rut action. I am not sure. It didn't work the first week and it didn't work my last week. I've called in plenty of bulls in OTC units, so I don't thinks it was my calling.
I used eight preference points on this hunt, I believe. Technically could have drawn it sooner, but I wasn't ready for it then. Did it meet my expectations?
In many cases, it exceeded them.
The research I had done on the hunt indicated it was more an opportunity hunt than a "trophy" hunt and maybe I just don't know what "trophy" means but I hunted some huge bulls, and I got close almost every day. Granted, I was not hunting where I had found lots of smaller bulls but rather where I had found some large ones, but it seemed like there were several large bulls in this one area. The suppose the big difference I felt (compared to the units that take 20+ points) was how much physical effort I had to put in to get to these bulls, but I didn't have to "go deep" either.
I don't know if it comes through in my writing, but I was chasing bugles, seeing elk or working a bull for six to eight hours most days. I feel like that alone is just awesome. I've done pretty well in OTC units but the encounters I've had there are usually brief and inconsistent, not hours of chasing or being able to find them every day. That was the best part; always being in the game.
I was surprised at the difficulty I had calling these elk. It did not seem like they were very pressured, but it only worked a couple times. My best guess was that there were so many elk around that there really wasn't a need to compete for cows. Most of the satellites I found had their own cows. In fact, there really was only the one evening where I found bulls off by themselves. Maybe I just "missed" the best rut action. I am not sure. It didn't work the first week and it didn't work my last week. I've called in plenty of bulls in OTC units, so I don't thinks it was my calling.
Khunter
Well-known member
You had a great elk hunt and I thank you for taking us along.
Hunted that unit a couple times and will be there again next September. Cant wait.
Hunted that unit a couple times and will be there again next September. Cant wait.
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