Lyfter1013
Well-known member
- Joined
- Mar 11, 2020
- Messages
- 605
Just thought I’d share my disaster of my elk hunt this year. It honestly just got comical with how much went wrong, mostly truck issues. With that said my truck has been very reliable since I bought it other than the times I did something stupid to break it so no reason to think there was an issue. Everything is kinda running together at this point but here’s a recap as best as I can remember after the heavy drinking after each failure 
Left on Wednesday the 9th and the plan was to drive straight through to Montana and arrive late Wednesday night, well after 15 hours on the road and still 4 hours away (supposed to be a 14hr drive straight through) due to bad road conditions/weather we decided to get a hotel for the night and wait for weather to pass. We arrive Thursday around noon and get settled in and check in. Went out for a drive Thursday night just to Check Things out.
Friday rolls around and I go to Start the truck and truck won’t start, I had filled up with 50/50 diesel blend because it
Was getting down in the negatives overnight, but after the truck wouldn’t start I figured my fuel gelled up. So we
Walked down to the auto store and bought diesel 911 for the tank and fuel filter. After adding that truck still wouldn’t start, after investigating found the primer pump on the fuel filter housing was leaking and losing prime. Called Around and no one in town had a new housing to replace, but Orielly said they could have one next day. So I decide to wait for Saturday well at 4:59 when everyone is closing I get a call that there stock was off at the other store and they couldn’t get one until the following Wednesday.
Found a parts store in town that had a rebuild kit but was too late to walk
There so had to Wait for Saturday. I know from others these rebuild kits often don’t last but I had to try.
Saturday rebuilt the housing/primer pump in the driveway of the Airbnb I was staying at, owners were very nice and understanding and told me I could work on truck there which was very nice.
Hunted Saturday evening but made it out later than I wanted but still made it out.
Sunday hunted the morning with no luck and decided to move to a different location, got back to truck and once again truck won’t start!. Was able to hand prime and got it started, got back to
The highway and turned off truck again to see if it was a one off. Well it wasn’t wouldn’t start again but was able to hand prime. Drove back to town and found online oreilly had a new housing in Bozeman.
Monday we drive from Dillon to Bozeman to get the new housing and have it installed not wanting to work on the truck in front of the Airbnb again. That was an all day event finding a shop to get us in.
Tuesday was able to hunt without issue seen a few elk but were either too far away or just outside the BMA I was hunting
Wednesday rolls around and we finally get into elk, saw several herds but every time I would try to make a move someone in a side by side or Truck would bump the elk. Go to move locations and my girlfriend gets out to open/close a gate we had driven through and she says somethings hanging underneath the truck. Get out and find one of my shock mounts snapped off the rear end and is about an inch off the ground! Drive back to town to get this removed. So it doesn’t damage the shock.
Thursday hunted and seen a herd that we got closer too then got out and walked with another guy I had met the day before really good guy btw. But the elk changed direction and we only seen them from about half mile away and couldn’t get around the hill to cut them Off in time.
Friday was when it really went down hill. While driving out to where I was hunting my transmission keeps shifting into Neutral and I’d let off the gas and it would go back to drive. So I turn Back And head to town not wanting to be stranded. On the way back truck would only shift from 1st to 2nd gear. Found a shop that would hook
Up Scanner and check codes. Found it was faulting for Transmission Control Module. Of course non in stock anywhere close by.
Ended up finding a place to do a longterm
Rental car in town. Loaded as much as we could in the rental and drove back to California leaving my truck in Montana until
It can be fixed and I have a couple days to drive back up for it.
Needless to say this was the most disappointing hunting trip I’ve ever had. With that said if anyone is looking for a 2003 Chevy Duramax let me Know!!
Left on Wednesday the 9th and the plan was to drive straight through to Montana and arrive late Wednesday night, well after 15 hours on the road and still 4 hours away (supposed to be a 14hr drive straight through) due to bad road conditions/weather we decided to get a hotel for the night and wait for weather to pass. We arrive Thursday around noon and get settled in and check in. Went out for a drive Thursday night just to Check Things out.
Friday rolls around and I go to Start the truck and truck won’t start, I had filled up with 50/50 diesel blend because it
Was getting down in the negatives overnight, but after the truck wouldn’t start I figured my fuel gelled up. So we
Walked down to the auto store and bought diesel 911 for the tank and fuel filter. After adding that truck still wouldn’t start, after investigating found the primer pump on the fuel filter housing was leaking and losing prime. Called Around and no one in town had a new housing to replace, but Orielly said they could have one next day. So I decide to wait for Saturday well at 4:59 when everyone is closing I get a call that there stock was off at the other store and they couldn’t get one until the following Wednesday
. Found a parts store in town that had a rebuild kit but was too late to walk
There so had to Wait for Saturday. I know from others these rebuild kits often don’t last but I had to try.
Saturday rebuilt the housing/primer pump in the driveway of the Airbnb I was staying at, owners were very nice and understanding and told me I could work on truck there which was very nice.
Hunted Saturday evening but made it out later than I wanted but still made it out.
Sunday hunted the morning with no luck and decided to move to a different location, got back to truck and once again truck won’t start!
. Was able to hand prime and got it started, got back toThe highway and turned off truck again to see if it was a one off. Well it wasn’t wouldn’t start again but was able to hand prime. Drove back to town and found online oreilly had a new housing in Bozeman.
Monday we drive from Dillon to Bozeman to get the new housing and have it installed not wanting to work on the truck in front of the Airbnb again. That was an all day event finding a shop to get us in.
Tuesday was able to hunt without issue seen a few elk but were either too far away or just outside the BMA I was hunting
Wednesday rolls around and we finally get into elk, saw several herds but every time I would try to make a move someone in a side by side or Truck would bump the elk. Go to move locations and my girlfriend gets out to open/close a gate we had driven through and she says somethings hanging underneath the truck. Get out and find one of my shock mounts snapped off the rear end and is about an inch off the ground!
Drive back to town to get this removed. So it doesn’t damage the shock.Thursday hunted and seen a herd that we got closer too then got out and walked with another guy I had met the day before really good guy btw. But the elk changed direction and we only seen them from about half mile away and couldn’t get around the hill to cut them Off in time.
Friday was when it really went down hill. While driving out to where I was hunting my transmission keeps shifting into Neutral and I’d let off the gas and it would go back to drive. So I turn Back And head to town not wanting to be stranded. On the way back truck would only shift from 1st to 2nd gear.
Found a shop that would hookUp Scanner and check codes. Found it was faulting for Transmission Control Module. Of course non in stock anywhere close by.
Ended up finding a place to do a longterm
Rental car in town. Loaded as much as we could in the rental and drove back to California leaving my truck in Montana until
It can be fixed and I have a couple days to drive back up for it.
Needless to say this was the most disappointing hunting trip I’ve ever had. With that said if anyone is looking for a 2003 Chevy Duramax let me Know!!
