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Elk 2 / TF 0

Thunderflight

Thunderflight

Dignitary Member
17,770
167
Shermans Dale, PA
I'm in Denver waiting for my next flight back to CLE.

Don got a 300+ bull on the third day of the hunt and I missed one as big if not larger yesterday morning. I'll admit it; elk fever got me.

The hunt was tough. The bulls weren't bugling (at least were we were) and areas that had a ton of elk sign were almost void of elk. I saw probably 20+ cow elk, four black bears, a couple yotes, and 15-20 turkeys. I only saw one Bull and that was the one I missed the last day.

We lived in a spike camp most of the time and I'll bet my average mileage per day of walking was just over six miles. One day i did 10 miles and was wore out. I've lost 1.5 inches off my waist too so its gonna be interesting to see how much I weigh when I return home.

The trip was great and I'd do it again in a second. There are a few things I'd change and do differently, but that's all part of learning how to hunt anew animal
 
"J"

"J"

Git Off My Lawn
Supporting Member
59,455
288
North Carolina
Wow, glad you at least got a shot @ one... Those hunts out there will get you in shpe if you're out of it in any way..... Have a safe trip home and I'll be looking forward too the debrief..... :smiley_coolpeace:
 
brock ratcliff

brock ratcliff

Dignitary Member
Supporting Member
25,252
261
Sounds like a pretty fair elk hunt to me! Glad all went well except the shooting part. It's a hard adjustment to make - going from shooting 60lb button bucks to killing a 700lb bull. I think you probably made the most basic mistake in seeing such a big kill zone, thought you couldn't miss or something. :) Have a safe trip home!
 
Thunderflight

Thunderflight

Dignitary Member
17,770
167
Shermans Dale, PA
I still don't know how I missed, but I did for sure. When I shot the cross hairs were on his chest. I only had a few seconds to shoot though, shot off hand with no sling for support, and didn't have any shooting sticks. I did jerk the shot though. We looked for several hours, but didn't find any sign of a hit in the 1/4 mile we followed his tracks. After a week of hard hunting, not seeing a bull, and when I finally did see one he was a BIGGEN for sure, the excitement was just to much! :smiley_crocodile:

I hate to say this, but I'm kinda glad I didn't get one. I don't have the money to ship the horns back and the extra meat processing plus baggage fees would have been to much. Don and I split the meat from his bull so the TF's will be eating fresh elk anyway.

I'm going to apply again soon, but I think next time I'm going to drive.
 
finelyshedded

finelyshedded

You know what!!!
Supporting Member
32,913
274
SW Ohio
Glad you at least got a shot off at a nice elk Chuck. Sorry it didn't work out even though you admit not minding that you didn't get him. That had to be a rush though. Can't wait to read how your whole hunt played out.

Have a safe trip home.
 
jagermeister

jagermeister

Dignitary Member
Supporting Member
18,300
237
Ohio
Glad you had an eventful and safe trip, Chuch. I could've have gone better... sure. But that's what'll likely keep you going back for more!
 
brock ratcliff

brock ratcliff

Dignitary Member
Supporting Member
25,252
261
Thunderflight said:
I still don't know how I missed, but I did for sure. When I shot the cross hairs were on his chest. I only had a few seconds to shoot though, shot off hand with no sling for support, and didn't have any shooting sticks. I did jerk the shot though. We looked for several hours, but didn't find any sign of a hit in the 1/4 mile we followed his tracks. After a week of hard hunting, not seeing a bull, and when I finally did see one he was a BIGGEN for sure, the excitement was just to much! :smiley_crocodile:

I hate to say this, but I'm kinda glad I didn't get one. I don't have the money to ship the horns back and the extra meat processing plus baggage fees would have been to much. Don and I split the meat from his bull so the TF's will be eating fresh elk anyway.

I'm going to apply again soon, but I think next time I'm going to drive.
Click to expand...

Yes, drive! It taks about 24-25 hours to get to the area I hunt in NM, and every minute of it past MO is a blast. I think it adds a lot to the trip. I've made that trip four times, and I'm looking forward to doing it again sometime. I used to drive to Denver 3 times every two weeks and I never did get tired of that trip!
 
hickslawns

hickslawns

Dignitary Member
Supporting Member
40,435
288
Ohio
Sounds like a good hunt. Even if you can get there and back cheap, eat cheap, and sleep cheap, I would imagine the meat costs of shipping and an elk mount would add up quickly. Glad you had a safe trip.
 
Thunderflight

Thunderflight

Dignitary Member
17,770
167
Shermans Dale, PA
I'm back in PA. I seriously thought about driving down to the site hunting trip, but since my wife had been gone for two weeks before I left for Ohio I needed to get home (she was home for her mom's surgery).

A few things I forgot to mentioned about the trip.

1. Rookie mistakes: Five years of not doing any significant hunting really showed. Day one, I lost my ram rod to my ML. We had a two mile hike to get to where we would be hunting so I slung it over my shoulder with the muzzle pointed down (it wasn't primed yet). When we got to our first glassing spot I almost cried when I saw the ram rod wasn't there. Luckly the gun was loaded so we pressed on, but the burden of knowing I had one and only one shot was HEAVY. 10 minutes later my iphone alarm goes off. If there was an elk with in a mile they knew we were there now. Later on the first day my alarm on my Garmin rino went off two! BTW I was in an elk bedding area when it did!!!! I ended up getting a new ram rod in Quemado. It was by God's pure grace that they had one, but they did and it only cost me $11.

2. Food: I took a case of MRE's with me. this worked GREAT! MRE's as a whole are bulky, but when you break them down they are quite packable. Most of the time I was far enough away from camp that I'd just eat them in the field and bring the trash back.

3. Being in shape: I'm in pretty good shape, but the altitude, dry air, and terrain made this hunt more physically demanding than I would have thought. There were only a few steep climbs to get up to the Mesa's untop of the ridges. The elivation gain was only 300-600 feet, BUT when you are starting at 7500 feet it's tough. By the end of the week I had aclimated and was doing much better. On top of the Mesa wasn't always easy walking. Most of the time you were climbing over large rocks and in dark I was often tripping over them.

4. Navigation at night. Next time I do this I'm taking some clear safety glasses with me. I tried to break a dead branch that was in my way and it exploded in my face. The end result was a bruised right eye that actually when blurry when it first happened. I also took a branch in my left ear that left a HUGE gash in it.

5. Equipment: My equipment worked GREAT, but the problem was I forgot to get AAA, AA, and 9V batteries. Also, IRT clothing. Over the past few years I've been stocking up on Sitka Gear clothing that I've bought from camofire.com's discount website. Folks, Sitka is the SHIT!!!! I wore my predator six pocket pants once and wore the sitka pants the rest of the time. This stuff is designed for the active hunter. The pants stretch and are cut so climbing and walking is extrememly comfortable. Also the material is darn near wind proof, but keeps you cool/warm at the same time. I should do a gear review on this and my predator high plains jacket too.
 
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