Contributors to this thread:
I looked through and can't find where anyone has started a meat pole for this season.
Let me start this one with a good friend from OR who scored on opening OR weekend with a really nice bull. I'm posting it because I know he likely never would. (that and it looks better when somebody else does it =D) Cell phone pic but he is pretty wide, 47" if I recall.
Joel McLaughlin is already having a heck of a year taking a real nice axis buck a couple months ago as well. And he's on his way as we speak to ID with elk tags in his hot lil' hands so I might very well wind up posting another for him.
Congrats Joel, that's a dandy OR bull.
way to go out there somewhere in Wy there's a elk with my name on it !!!!
Great bull for a great start. Hopefully more BS meatheads add to the meat pole
Nice Oregon bull. Hopefully in couple I'll have an elk to post.
Hopefully in a little over a week in can post my first. :)
I sure wish I had a photo of one of my hunting partners 14 year old son. He shot a spike not long after the Utah opener. He also took a nice bear this spring. So for a 14 year old, he's off to a great start. His dad is down hunting big bulls on the Fishlake Unit and he called me this evening, and said he has some nice photos of Kolton's bull and I promise to post one once Jeff gets home.
Kolton is a great kid. He is such a hard worker for such a young boy. I have a ton of respect for him. He helped me all summer long on the Bowsite Antelope hunt and those guys who take antelope on that hunt owe this young lad a thank you. It makes me so happy to see a young boy like that, who is so anxious to learn and so willing to work hard, see the fruits of his laborer pay off. Way to go Kolton!
Congrats to all of you who take elk this year and I hope all of you have a great bowhunt. BB
UT bull killed in the Beaver unit. 407!
Wow, those are a hard act to follow! Congrats to those two hunters!
Best of Luck, Jeff (Bowsite Sponsor)
Sweet, great start to the season!
You no good SOBs! I don't leave until the 21st. This is not going to help my work production over the next couple of weeks
Congrats to the successful hunters!
Bake
Got this from Mark aka Blacktailhunter Last night, 45 yd heart shot, went 40 yds.
Elk in velvet...awesome! Congrats to Mark
Awesome stuff guys!!!! I can't wait to add my trophy cow to the pole.....i hope...... :^D
Some dang nice bone (and fuzz!) on the ground already. So far, between the bugle report and the meat pole, this is looking like a good year.
Here is a nice Tule my buddy took a few days ago.
Sorry for the double post but its worth looking at twice.
Work production is worthless tonight. 2 hours left then off till the 15th of Sept. Come Sunday I will be in the Gila of NM Chasing them bulls
Coues, you are a lucky man!
3 days into Utahs season-meat in the freezer....was hunting down on San Juan Elk ridge, my buddies daughter drew a big bull tag, called in over 30 elk the first five days-couldnt let this one pass.....I didnt get this way eatin salad...:)....Good luck to everyone chasing elk with a bow CO-NM next #26 with Mathews Chill-Gold Tip Velocitys-GrimReaper 100gr razortips.....MmmmMmmmGOOD...
The ole CLOSER bugle tube rocked it........
Great job guys! Congrats!
Wow that Utah Bull is one dreams are made of and the velvet spike...... the best meat on earth.......
Congrats To all velvet is cool for sure!!
I called in this public land, OTC bull for my buddy Mikey this morning.
Watching this bull silhouetted on a ridge, bugling and chasing cows with the sunrise behind him is an image I won't soon forget.
Very nice Jesse! Tell Mikey I'm jealous and Congratulations!
CK what state where yall in and what broad head did he use? Great job!
Oregon elk taken this week. 52 lb Mathews HeliM, RazorTrick broadheads, 50 yard shot, double lung. This completes my quest for the three elk sub-species.
Grats on the elk and getting all 3 elk subspecies Keef
elkhunter71 we were in CO and he was shooting a muzzy three blade.
great job guys, awesome stuff. thanks for sharing.
Good for you Keef! Great start guys!
awesome pics and congradulations on your trophies.... 11 days till my hunt..Have an Az. cow tag but still super excited to go chase bugles and cows,,,,, Im an ELKAHOLIC...need my bugle fix....Keep the pics coming
Congratulations to all. Looking forward to many more trophy photos.
To those guys who don't kill a giant elk still post as some of us enjoy all stories. It seems when the first couple animals are giants some get shy about posting.
I like the giants too!
Great bulls guys!
Got lucky with my “B” list cow tag, best part I had my little guys there to help blood trail, skin, quarter and pack! They weren't much help with the packing.. :)
DirtyD thats awesome you had your boys with you.
DirtyD thats awesome you had your boys with you.
Collectively 34 hours in 4 days on stand. Finally this big guy ran in for a shot at 26 feet. Just before he came in I had a herd of cows and a spike bull come in within 30 yards but the timber was so think I didn't get any shot opportunities. I drew back on one of the cows first but she never walked clear of the tree, then I drew back on the spike bull but again he stayed tucked away, then 15 minutes later this big guy runs in. Double lung shot, ran 80 yards and piled up, 12 hours from shot till the final load of meat made it to the truck.
Here is a 2nd pic. Forgot to mention this was Oregon, public land, diy
I am pumped guys after seeing these pictures. Just finished packing and will be heading for the elk woods tomorrow to the end of the season if needed.
Congrats to all and good luck to those that will be heading out soon.
My best, Paul
Congratulations to all the successful elk hunter, especially to all those hunting public land. Great job guys !
Don't let them young bucks outdo you Mr. Paul...I got money on you
Darn nice bull there String!
Congrats to all the successful hunters so far.
I'm heading out for 2 weeks on Sunday.
Went up this long week and saw two 6x6s but couldn't close the deal.
My buddy Ian took this bull opening day here in Alberta
Sweet bulls guys! Gonna be hard to work this week...
Alberta bull - Sept. 2nd. My best to date. Couldn't be happier!
OH's and ahhhs and a little bit of drooling. My wife thinks I must be looking at some other type of web site. Congratulations guys.
Great Kills guys, D breaking the little ones in right!!!
I say don't pass up on the second day of the season what you would shoot on the last day....so I didn't. Bull shot in Colorado September 1. So far 2 for 2 this season! Looks like its going to be a successful year!
Good luck gents! And keep the pics a rolling!
Chris Nowak CO-Host Pure Hunting
Congratulations to all of you, great pictures. I leave tomorrow for Idaho and you guys sure have me fired up. John
Here is my buddy Dyrk with his Nevada Bull he's the same guy that killed the Tule. in Ca last week
Oh my.... what a year. Just to draw those tags in one year is something. To put two bulls like that down in just a few weeks...
Congrats! Heck of a job!
Filled out my B list tag. Solo hunt OTC 12,120 elevation.
Filled out my B list tag. Solo hunt OTC 12,120 elevation.
Great job guys!!! sounds like a lot of cool stories!
Idaho public land general season. He came running in while I was pursuing another bull.
Some day maybe a third grader will teach me to properly post pics! Sorry, fellows.
No problem, I'm on a laptop.... =D
Love the pics guys, please understand we're not about only monsters being posted, we like pics of dead elk and better yet, big chocolate eating grins on faces.
It's been said before, but in all honesty.... any elk with sharp sticks is a trophy.
And we want to see it!
OTC CO bull killed on the 4th. Proud to put this 4 pt in my freezer
Oregon coast, DIY public access timberland, antler would have been great, but cow eats pretty good!
Glad some are getting their elk. Good seeing all animals - big and small, bull or cow. Though it is tough to look at since we aren't leaving until the 19th . . . Taking my brother for his first elk hunt. Sure hope I can get an elk in front of him!
Good luck and be safe . . .
Michael
Hope Ron Niziolek posts up a pic of his bull. Sounds like there's a pretty good grizz story to go with it.
Newsflash from unit 2 Colo!!! Two giants have hit the dirt...Congrats to Louie and Tom! Hope to see pics on here soon.
No tag soup this year. Some good on the pole! Good luck to all and congrats to those who've connected.
Congrats to all the successful hunters so far. I'm leaving tomorrow for two weeks. They should be playing hard!
This my first Elk, taken with a Tradtech Titan Recurve @ 28 yards. I used a gold tip kinetic arrow and a magnus stinger broadhead, total arrow weight 416 grains.
Forgot to add this Elk was taken in Utah, I have been trying for seven years to get one with a recurve. I am still excited about it, several days later. The fun part was packing it out.
Thanks, Les. Keep them coming!
Oregon Desert Bull. Only elk seen on the trip!!
Nice reward using the recurve Conner Parry! Bob.
Another SBD! I called, he came and my friend Harold Killed him. What a month of Sept so far
Just got back from the first week of elk season. I tagged this bull on the 4th. Called him in and shot him at 9 yards. He ran 50 yards and piled up. It was the neatest elk hunting experience I have ever had.
Happy Hunting.
First elk on day four of my first elk hunt, 43 yard shot piled up 75 yards later, diy otc Colorado public land
1st elk in 5 years. I didn't care what I encountered, I needed to fill the freezer. 40 yard shot and he ran 40 yards and piled up.
Awesome bird dog!! Great job...huge accomplishment.
Any trouble with that blood trail Striker? Lol
Took my first bull Saturday morning solo hunting in a high basin. Brutal pack out, but worth it!!
Second to last day of my hunt. Best part was my son got to watch it all. Full freezer for the winter.
My first DIY OTC bull from Idaho. Had to hike in further than I anticipated but got it done.
I did not draw a hunt this year and was not the hunter, I was the caller! However this was my first successful archery elk hunt, as well as my friends first archery elk let alone his first elk ever!
Hunt took place in New Mexico, we only had Friday 6 Sept -Sunday 8 Sept to hunt. We arrived Thursday night and set up the tent and made camp and attempted to sleep.
Between the anxiety of the hunt and an endless night of Elk Bugling and chuckling we slept nil.
Friday morning was off with a bang. we had 3 elk moving in to our call! Unfortunately it was disrupted by free range cattle charging through the area. That night was just as exciting with elk coming in to the bugle. we had 4 bulls in sight, but could not close the gap before the end of daylight. We backed out quietly and made a plan for the next morning.
Saturday was just as exciting as Friday with very similar results except some people shooting guns off, motorcycles racing down the trails, and a crazy mountain thunderstorm with hail. once the storm subsided I bugled and got a distant response. the bull's entered the area, but again the day turned to night.
Sunday was our last day and we had to be on the road by noon (damn work engagements). I set the alarm clock for 5 AM but woke at 430 itching to go. We woke and made coffee drank only half my cup decided to bugle once and heard nothing. looked at my friend and said you ready?
He replied that he's ready if I am. We hit the trail hiked almost a quarter mile and bugled with an instant reply! we hustled towards the bugle and paused to bugle and mew a couple times before crossing a fence and moving into a position to intercept. My friend settled into a shooting position and I positioned 30-40 yards behind and continued to bugle (the bull seemed to respond only to bugles with positive results). within a couple minutes the bull bugled and entered into the clearing. He came to a stop and as I bugled My friend drew his bow and and fired. beautiful shot and the impact of the broad-head created a huge baseball sized hole. the bull bolted and expired not even 100 yards away.
Even if we left with out a kill I would consider this the most successful hunt I had ever had. between the excitement and the learning experience had I was satisfied. However to see the look on my friends face as he saw his bull down was such a reward!
Awesome story Catmcory!
Jim
Thanks Jim it was an incredible experience! I am still flying high!
I bet! I took my first bull this year, what an experience.
Jim
Great calling Catmcory; real teamwork...a trophy for both of you
A small addition to my story. The bull was down at 0652 am we hiked back to camp to get our frame packs and the coffee I was drinking before we left was still warm. We packed the elk out and broke camp and hit the road by 12!
Awesome to be able to get it done with such a short amount of time. Congrats to both of you!
What unit in NM CATmcory?
I filled my Washington elk tag. Called a big cow into 20 yards and got a complete pass through a slick trick broadhead. She went maybe 40 yards and crashed. I'm gonna use the same arrow and BH when I head to Idaho on saturday to kill me a bull :) Notice that the shot was in front of the crease...it got both lungs and cut the arteries at the top of the heart. She was down within 5 seconds.
Entrance side. This is my first animal with a slick trick (RIP Gary) and the first complete pass through. The blood trail was a little hard to follow, but I that was mostly due to the chest high brush she was running through. I heard her go down within 5 seconds and then due the chest gurgle. It's a beautiful sound :)
SW Colorado Public land no guides no outfitter.
14 year old son's first elk. 11:30 opening morning @ 20 yards.
Congrats to all.
Hobbes, that is awesome!!!! Tell the young man he did well.
Rick M
last weekend was only time I had to hunt this area as I will head to Panhandle end of this week to hunt. This "eater" came in and now I have some meat in the cooler. 45 yards and quartered away when stuck. Couldn't be happier! Will now go hunt for his big brother!!!
Some really nice elk and BETTER stories here!! It is especially cool to read about the first elk for people. Keep up the good work guys!
hobbes, That's good stuff man! Congratulations to your boy and you!
Hobbes, thats a great first elk!! The smile says it all.
cajunarcher is on his way home now from Colorado and is having technical difficulties with his phone. Here is his bull. 355"
Wow, I am new to this site, and the posts are incredible! To the son of Hobbs...Way to go,this will be a memory that you will never forget! To all others congratulations on your hunts. Weather you bag an animal or not just being apart of the hunt and respecting the game we follow is the success!
Hobbs congrats to your son,that is super awesome. Ice Man what unit did he kill that bad boy in? Congrats everyone
Guess my pic didn't go through Try again.
Not a monster by any means,but will fill the freezer nicely!
Congrats to all so far and good luck to all those still out. You are making missing this season MISERABLE.
Iceman/cajunarcher-holy smokes! What a hog.
Not a monster by any means,but will fill the freezer nicely!
CO public land DIY, WTF, DNA
Only had 7 seconds to decide whether to shoot, hadn't seen him before, and made the choice. 356+ gross. 53" beams, just under 50" wide. Damn hard, steep, hot hunt and was very happy to end it with this great bull.
My hunting partner, Tom Kelley, with his awesome 375 bull from the same BLM wilderness area. Both shot with 53# recurves he built, died within 150 yards of each other.
Good season so far!
Hobbes' son's elk is the best trophy on this thread.
Muy congrats and best wishes for a long and productive hunting career!
since yall Colorado boys are tagged out want to point me to where some elk are got two weeks before I deploy wanna fill my tag
Lou,
Those are some great bulls. Congrats!!
Congrats Lou & Tom. I heard thru the vine about those 2 bulls & have been going nuts with the wait. 20 years wait for those tags & bulls of that calibre would certainly be worth it. Anxious to hear the story of your hunt...
Wow great bulls Lou...hard works pays off!!!
Firewillie, I killed that bull in unit 40 . I got lucky and drew the tag with 6 points . Great hunt bulls bugling in every direction pretty much everyday I was there.
Firewillie, I killed that bull in unit 40 . I got lucky and drew the tag with 6 points . Great hunt bulls bugling in every direction pretty much everyday I was there.
Lou,
Great bull! Was that the "new" spot?
Rick M
Jaq, those are awesome! please tell the story of this hunt. you do a fine job of telling the "tale" and I'd love to read it.
Hobbes!! Tell your boy congrats!! I'm sure your extremely proud of him.
Wow, congrats everyone. Great start to the season.
Congrats to Hobbe's son. That's awesome!
It looks like the some of the big bulls are starting to drop.
Guys, I'm writing a story of the hunt so can't share too much detail. Let's just say it was hot, dusty, steep, physically challenging, frustrating, with virtually no bugling except for a few little bulls after dark.
We killed the two biggest bulls we saw. All of our preseason scouting/camming was a total waste of time and gas, as everything changed after the bulls rubbed their velvet. Might have found bigger bulls, especially after the rut kicks-off, but we were happy to get out of there in one piece and back home. It was not a "fun" hunt, in the sense of bugling/calling. But it was satisfying to figure out and kill two great bulls.
Congratulations Lou on a great bull! Looking forward to the story.
Great bulls Jacquomo -
Been wondering about the hunt. Fantastic to see a great payoff when you cash in the points.
My NV bull from last weekend. A tough but rewarding DIY hunt.
Holy crap, Coues HNTR, that looks like fun to walk through! lol
congrats on the bull
Grats Lou!
I look forward to reading the story!
Lots of spectacular critters on this thread. I leave for NM in 21 hours, and it is tough sitting here, alone with my sticky keyboard.
Lou, those are a pair of unbelievable bulls - particularly with the sticks.
Fish Lake unit of Unit, killed on the morning of Sept. 6th DIY. 8 yard shot with an RER recurve. My bull of a lifetime!
Great Bulls guys!
What a trophy Joe!
Anyone take a bull on September 10th?? Would love to see a bull killed on my birthday :D
Last hour of last day of my CO first-week OTC DIY hunt in White River NF. Persistence pays! I couldn't be happier! Congrats to all!
Very impressive, gents. Keep them rolling and good luck to all.
Dang! I wanna go elk hunting again!
Dang! I wanna go elk hunting again!
San Juan unit, Utah, 7x5, 417, guided by Travis Black of BTO.
Colorado OTC September 11th. My buddy's first elk hunt and bull. 306" gross 6x6. Made a great quartering away shot piled up about 60 yds away. We had a great week and were in elk and good bulls all week, lots of memories made.
Great bulls and some nice cows everyone! Congrats!
Whats the deal never2sharp? You draw a great tag and can't even hold out for a big one. What a hawg! Do you have any side shots?
Aaron-Awesome bull! That's a big bull especially OTC.
What a "pig" of a bull. His antlers do is body no justice. Taken on Sept 12th.
My first elk hunt. OTC unit. Was in a wall tent with a friend all week and thankful for it with all the rain.
Hunted one evening and then the next morning stalking through the woods I saw a cow cross behind pine trees and I was downwind. I headed the direction she was heading and then I heard a glunk and chuckle. I got in a little closer and then did cow calls and after the bull responded I let out a challenge bugle (just as Corey described and taught on the Elk Hunting University DVD). This bull was the second one to come into me close at 7 yards. He faced me directly and was drooling. I decided to try the frontal shot and he let me draw my long bow back so I settled and released and hit him well just left of center. He went about 120 yards uphill and left a massive blood trail.
Would have liked to have seen the herd bull but I was going to shoot the first elk I had a chance at. His tips are all broken off which is too bad but he must have been a scrapper from the way he came to the challenge bugle. He would have been a young 7x5 as he had a sticker on on brow as well.
Bow was a bamboo backed and belly laminate, made by my friend James Parker, 57# @ 28" and I used 200 grain grizzly heads with 39 grain inserts on beman 400 classics so I was shooting a pretty high mass up front.
I appreciate all the help I've had from the elk threads here and some pm with folks like Lou and others. It was a great experience. We had a party of 3 and another in my party shot his bull 1 mile the other side from camp at 8:30 am. Mine was at 8:40 am. Third guy had just a cow tag and could have shot a 5 x 5 on the way in the next day to get my last quarter. We saw him about 50 yards ahead of us and I dropped back and cow called him to 20 yards broadside.
Trojan I think that might be the new world record spike
OR Rosie Sept 9th came in silent.
Whip,good name,and a great bull.
Gaur nice bull and nice bow!
Nice bulls guys!
Here is my 2013 MT Bull. Bugled into 10 yards, frontal shot, made it 50. Long ass pack and totally worth it!
Here is the bull that I took in Alberta on Sept 15 2013. It was a 50 yard shot, complete pass through and he made it about 60 yards before going down.
Got lucky and finally found a bull that wanted to play. Dirk called him in to 30 yards and despite a less than ideal hit, he only made it 200 yards.
Idaho, OTC, public land, DIY hunt.
Many thanks, Corey Jacobsen Elk101.com - Extreme Elk Magazine
My first elk. 26 yards shot in North East Nevada, should go Pope and Young.
Jim
Had this guy within 25yds of my treestand for 20 minutes before he FINALLY gave me a shot. Not my biggest by any stretch, but considering I thought I would miss this season, probably my most gratifying.
Nice job, Rob. It ain't the size of the antlers, it's the size of the challenge and the reward.
Congrats. Let's have breakfast and celebrate!
Congrats Rob another great bull!!
Nicely done Rob and Corey!
Thanks, guys. I truly appreciate it. It's been a very trying year to say the least, but sharing success with great people makes it even sweeter.
Lou, sounds great! My treat this time. Congrats to you as well on another stud!
Rob, get a big 'un in Idaho. Looking forward to the pics!
Congrats to all those that have tasted success, and best of luck to those still looking to seal the deal!
My dad and Dan Harrison with my dads second elk bow kill. Killed Sept 1st.
No opportunities for me, but my two partners took elk. Jerry a cow at 30 yds. and Chris a 5x6 bull at 40 yds. (his 1st)
No opportunities for me, but my two partners took elk. Jerry a cow at 30 yds. and Chris a 5x6 bull at 40 yds. (his 1st)
No opportunities for me, but my two partners took elk. Jerry a cow at 30 yds. and Chris a 5x6 bull at 40 yds. (his 1st)
Valles Caldera NM bull. Dream hunt, it was day #3 of a five day hunt. had 15+ bulls under 30 yards before sticking this guy at 35 yards. he was at ten feet but busted me and ran away until i stopped him with a cow call. he died in just under 80yrds.
:-oooooooo big ol bull bm... Never get tired of that pic!
This Montana bull came in silent to cow calls on 9/16. 20 yard shot.
Another OR Rosie down, stalked to within 40 yards, a little bugling brought him to 20.
Another OR Roosevelt:) Slipped in behind him and his herd and he gave me a 57 yd quartering away shot. Man...I love this time of year!
Gila 16A bull taken on the morning of the 15th.
Friday the 13th bull in Wyoming. My first branch-antlered bull with a bow.
Great looking bunch of Elk. Congrats to everyone and especially for those first timers, its a great feeling. Hope you all left some for next year hopefully.
My first archery kill. She came on a rope to within 5 yards. I drew, she whirled and hit her kind of far back, but she was quartering pretty hard, broadhead lodged in right shoulder, hitting both lungs. She didn't make it 50 yards.
Gosh, FireKades, that seems a little drastic. What did she do to deserve that kind of treatment??
:-)
I get to join the fray....
OTC PUBLIC LAND COLORADO
All by myself this afternoon
Great job, Brad! Beautiful bull for that area. Congrats, can't wait to celebrate our bulls and hear the story!
FireKades, now THAT was funny!
Here is our success with the new CLOSER bugle tube from New Mexico....
Here is my bull two days earlier....only 1 day left to hunt this guy came right in...both of these bulls are on video...its been an awesome year so far using this call.....
Congrats to all! Got this guy on the 13th solo OTC
Here is team FOXPRO in WYO....the CLOSER did it again....
Not bad 6x6's for those two and it was first elk with bows for both guys....cool...
Congrats to everyone!!!! Awesome job! Love all the stick n strings!
9/14, Broke in my new Elite Answer !
Wyoming DIY in the pouring ass rain, we saw rain coming and went to a blind under a pine that my buddy made a couple years ago, eating ham sandwich and m&m's we heard a slight squeal down hill, we watched 2 cows and a calf walk by @ 50 yards and put up 1/2 my lunch as mike told me here comes a big one, he stepped onto the trail @ 50 and mike cow called him and used BIG DAN'S front quarter shot My first bow bull!
Brian's Wyoming 5X5, more proof of Big Dan's quartering towards shot
Funny how they never die on flat ground, eh?
Solo DIY Az unit 27 hunt, 7x8 bull. Shadowed him in the dark for about an hour but had a hard time staying with him in that stuff without turning on my headlamp. Had him on the opposite ridge at daylight, 300 yds- too open to move. He was moving his cows out so I set up my decoy and some pleading cow calls sucked the one spike to me and he pulled every other elk with him- HeHe
Pic doesnt do the bull justice but it shows the spot well. Got a pretty sore back from this beast too. Its been awhile since I hunted Az and I forgot how much bigger in body size these bulls are than in other areas- lots of fun getting this bull up out of that canyon.
Oregon Rosie 7x7 public land
There are more giant bulls on the this years meat pole than many of the past years! Nice work gents!
Wyoming, Sept 19th. Had my youngest son sitting right next to me when I bugled him in.
Dwright that is a great bull you have there Thnaks Shane
Arizona Sept 17th. I actually missed a tremendous bull the day before. I shot this bull while he was locked up in a all out battle with a slightly bigger bull. When I sunk my VPA into him at 34 yards , he and the bull he was fighting with charged right in our direction and we had to run for cover.Recovered him in only 60 yards. Awesome hunt with bulls in shooting range every day. I am very happy with my first elk.
The smallest I have ever shot, and am thankful for it.
Congrats on some great elk guys. Here is my Colorado DIY, public land bull. Shot him on the morning of the 22nd after we worked him for an hour, and flanked him up the drainage a mile. 25 yard shot, 12 yard recovery, and we got it on video. Another great hunt for MTC and I. Hopefully Mike will post a picture of his monster soon.
Here's my bull that Les was referring to. The morning of Sept. 21, Colorado public land DIY. 19 yard shot. 360" gross...
Mike and Les get it done AGAIN. Congrats to all so far!
Nice bulls shot this yr can't wait for my first hunt!!
Outdoors dude what happened with your shot?
firekades what is that on your fletchless arrow?
My 2013 Solo backpack bull. OTC on public land. Good times, but tired from the packout...
Az bull taken last Friday morning and great hunting partner, Thanks MikeTN
""firekades what is that on your fletchless arrow?""
Bullnbow - That fletchless arrow has what is called a "FOB" on it. They were / are popular over on AT. You have to use them with a fall-away rest. There are fins inside of the ring that make the arrow spin, just like regular fletching does.
Little 6x6, however my first 6x6. 20 yd shot he went 10 yds and stopped for 5 seconds, ran another 5 yds and fell over. Rear quartering shot that slipped in from the back under the left tenderloin through the left lung and severed stuff above the heart. I was aiming for the heart and was a little high. I did not hit the gut at all, 2 inches higher and i would have hit bone. Shot him at 5 pm and it was snowing for the last load down the hill. LOL, 200 vertical feet to my car and 450 feet distance definitely the shortest pack out yet. Just glad the shot was good.
My buddy's NM flooded disaster zone bull.
Great work! Doesn't look like the elk cared it was wet!
Great work! Doesn't look like the elk cared it was wet!
congrats, guys!
Mike and Les, you guys are a deadly duo!
I took this bull the second morning of AZ archery season.
A couple of CO bulls. The story is a doozy if I ever get time to put it down. The hunting was good. I saw lots of bulls but had a hard time getting a good opportunity. The one on the left died in a 14" deep creek and the one in the right 3/4 mile into an old burn.
Awesome job, Les and Mike, and congrats to all.
More really great non-AZ bulls taken this year so far than I can remember. Especially from CO, which doesn't have good bulls anymore.. ;-)
Cheesehead Mike...360 gross? Really?
Must be the angle, he looks more like 310 or so.
Either way, nice bull!
Mike's looks really similar to mine up above, and it taped 356 and change.
JakeBrake,
I said 360 from the second we found it, and I was pretty darn close. There isn't a bull in the world that has 4ths and 5ths, and that mass that goes 310.
Here are a couple more angles for you JakeBrake
Those angles show the whole story...I stand corrected.
Nice bull!
Great bull, Mike....love the looooong 5s and main beams. I have a 366, and it doesn't have quite that mass.
No such thing as "small" bull elk, guys.
Sconsie boys getting it done! Nice elk, Mike, Les, and all others.
No such thing as "small" bull elk, guys.
writer, that's good. Even a spike is "big" when you shoulder that last load of meat.
9/17 Wyoming grizz country
The shot (42 yard heart shot) was 50% longer than the recovery (28 yards).
My first archery elk. Killed on 9/16/13. 62 yard shot. 120 yard recovery. Shooting a Mathews Reezen 70#. Maxima Blue Streak arrows with 100 grain Muzzy phanton MX's. Colorado public land DIY
My hunting partner Scotty. Bull killed on 9/17/13. 60 yard shot, 20 yard recovery. Bull green scored at 310" gross. Colorado public land DIY.
Other hunting partner, Branden. Killed on 9/19 25 yard shot. 500 yard recovery. Colorado public land DIY. 3 Bulls killed in 3 days of hunting. Awesome!
Grats again to the trifecta!
PMcGee, fantastic first elk man, grats on that and GJ!
Colorado public land elk taken September 23rd. Used the Elk Mountain Slip System Timber Elk and some great calling by my dad to lure this guy in. A most memorable hunt!
I'm guessing all that rain must have washed those monster CO bulls out. Normally I hear they crawl into a hole and pull the covers up over em during the season.....
Crete$
You sure he only went 310...sure seems bigger than that even with not a huge back end.
Some great bulls this year...and lots of firsts!
Its a really good picture. Short main beams and short 5's. Doesn't have crazy mass either, but a great bull. And its his first elk
My first bull with a bow... all DIY. Thanks to my dad and brother for their help.
Drue Collins, Washington State, Unit 16B Gila Wilderness, Sept.5
376 if you could double the good side.
Another huge freak 6x9, Jake Howard and his friend Brian, TX, Sept. 7, Gila Wilderness 16B
This is my partners Oregon NF bull. Sorry I couldn't make the hunt this year but he had friends to help pack him out.
Outstanding, HUNT! Is the goat hunt still on?
Some great bulls, guys, wow! Congrats to all.
Stoney- some crazy looking bulls! Awesome
Client bull. Hunting on his own, first elk. Bitterroots. Interestingly... he's from Montana.
Another client. First elk hunt ever. From Minnesota and partner is from Pa. This one fully guided but he killed it on pack out day 20 minutes from the truck. It ain't over til it's over!
Congrats Hunt!
MP, you rocking the dreadlocks? Lol
Heartiest congratulations to all those who've been successful so far this season.
One thing I find interesting from my British perspective, is that certain bull Elk look like bull Elk, but certain bull Elk look more like Red Deer stags (more in their faces than their antlers)...the two are related, and I wonder what the genetics are?
First Ever Elk. Colorado, OTC, Public land, DIY, Solo at the time of 8 yard shot, had some help with the pack out. Thanks to everyone on here that has been giving advise for the past 6 years.
Some serious elk on here...congrats to all. Hey, you really picked a good 'un for your first 'un, Swamper. Had to be an amazing rush.
Congrats to everyone who tagged out this year. There are a lot of unbelievable elk on here this year. I'd like you all to know you made missing out on this season MISERABLE!!!!! ;)
Swamp Buck-Consider yourself ruined. That is a BIG otc bull. He's going to be hard to top.
Grats to all the first timers!
Swamp Buck, that's a hell of a bull and a hell of an accomplishment. Grats on that!
Gotta love seeing the NM bulls, always some big ones.
Colorado OTC Public Land. 9/25. 50 yards. Small 6x6 but couldn't pass it up with only 2 days left to hunt.
bullnbow- not talking about that, it was a 6hr track job to put a follow-up in the poor guy.
Dang there are some Beasts on here- congrats all!
I'm getting some serious antler envy here. You guys have killed some fabulous bulls this year.
Filled my WA cow tag, but couldn't get it done in ID. Gonna have to tune up the long range bow for the late rifle and have another go round.
Sorry for the poor quality pic, night pic with Iphone. Got him just before sundown at 12 yards. Heart shot only went 38 yards before dropping.
DIY SOLO NM hunt, put him down on the evening of Sept.17
Bugled at him, he moved up the ridge with his cows. I shut up and waited, ended up with a 10yd shot. Not bad for the unit.
bullnbow- not talking about that, it was a 6hr track job to put a follow-up in the poor guy.
Dang there are some Beasts on here- congrats all!
Wyoming 7x6.........355", shot at 9 feet. 50 yard recover y from the moving frontal moving shot courtesy of a Slick Trick Magnum
Thanks to all that have shared their hunts. All are really great trophies and awesome memories. I killed a nice 6X6 on the second morning of the AZ archery season. I have attempted to post, but keep getting an error message and then I loose the picture and message. I will try again.
This is my 6X6 that I took on the second morning of the AZ archery season.
My bull's rack back at camp.
This is a hunt that I have been looking forward to for several years. My wife and I made a camping trip out to AZ last year. My goal for the trip was to acquire my hunter education point. Early on in my point building, I committed myself to do a guided hunt to optimize my opportunities. I have been on several DIY bowhunts and have taken a couple of elk before this hunt. I knew that I would never draw this tag again, so I did my research and found an outfitter that I believed would help me fulfill my "dream hunt". I plan to make an outfitter report on him.
On opening morning, we heard several bulls, saw some young bulls, and saw a giant but were not able to get on him. That afternoon, in a thunder storm that turned into a hail storm, I was able to get close to two large bulls but never had a shot opportunity.
The second morning we came into the same area as the first but from a different direction. Before first light, we heard several bulls bugling to the southeast. We were able to get in close on the nearest bull. We had him at 40 yards with no shot. He was a 6x6 and really not a bull I would have wanted to shoot so early in the hunt. After he moved on, we went in the direction of another bugling bull. We were kneeling, deciding on our next move. My guide spotted an elk some 60 yards that just appeared to materialize out of no where. My guide glassed him but could not make a positive ID because of the cover. When the bull moved forward, I knew that he was good enough for me. I made a 42 yard shot as the bull quartered away. I hit him on the right side about 1/3 of the way up and behind his last rib. The arrow exited behind his left shoulder. I am very reluctant about man hugs, but I sure thought that one was fine with my guide. Thanks Donnie. I'm glad you where there when my dream happened. We had blood all the way from impact to where he hit the ground.
I had a great time in camp making new friends and enjoying the complete experience.
Congrats to all, any kill with a bow is a trophy in my book. Was going for first meat to cross my path this year., Got lucky and hit a branch and missed at a young cow,that same evening had this bull walk within 15 yds of me and my Godson. His first time elk hunting with a bow and he got a close up of some awesome bugling and helping his uncle packing out the meat. LOL.
Wow, still lots of huge bulls hitting this thread.
Delmag, that's a huge bull.
"He's got a giant head! It's a planetary configuration!"
Congrats to all, This was a az tag as well with Burnt Timber Outfitters, They did everything right, the best part was it took 8 days and I got to learn a bunch.
IdyllwildArcher......
It was a GIANT bodied old monarch. I am 6'1" and 230 pounds with no trick photography for reference!
Deacon Dave....
Great Bull, I was in camp with you and saw your bull up close and personal. Congratulations to you again. You were gone before I killed on day 11. 393" giant. I will post some pics as soon as I can figure out how to do it.
Congrats to all!!! Great bulls!!
Nick.. lmfao! Nope not me... close though. My younger brother. May not look it but a true elk hunting machine.
Mule Power - Dang!!! I sooo wanted you to be rocking the 'locks!
Holy crap! Everyone that's been talking about all the nice bulls this year... x 1000. Congrats to all. I shot a decent bull, but can't be too proud of it since I wasn't able to salvage much of the meat.
First elk. WY 9/24/13. Solo except for pack out.
Mr. Whitetail. Tracy, I remember visiting with you in camp. Congratulations on your monster. Duwane called a couple of days ago and told me about your bull. I look forward to seeing pictures and hearing the story. David
After all the discussion's on bow site this year about the head on shot I hoped I was given the opportunity and I was. 5 yards. I could not figure out how to embed the link of the 3 minute video I took after the shot so here it is. Go to you tube and type in:
"2013 elk blood trail"
125 gr slick trick.
Nice vid icemann. Wow what a blood trail lol
Well here is my 2013 bull. Scored him last night at 338 and 3/8s gross b/c. Called into 3 yards by my wife and shot him at 6 yards.
OTC unit with easy access and lots of ATVs.
Congrats to all! Some really great bulls and stories.
Here is My first elk from a couple weeks ago:
Doubled up with my buddy 1 hour and 50 yards apart.
150 yard stalk 52 yard kneeling shot Double lung complete pass through Helix 125 gr broadhead - lodged in a downed tree after the shot Bull flipped over and died within 20 yards
Both kills are on camera.
Rudy
After 5 years and 6 elk hunting trips I'm proud to finally be able to contribute to the elk meat pole.
Shot on Sept 14, OTC Colorado DIY Public Land.
I was working a huge 360-370 class bull for three straight days but just couldn't get a good shot. The third day I had him coming straight in when a couple of local hunters moved in from upwind and busted the heard with the large bull at 50 yards and closing on me. I moved to a new area and heard bugles all night from my bivy sack. I got on the closest bull right at daylight and attempted to get ahead of him heading to his bedding area. I failed to beat him but snuck in to 50 yards and let out a lip bawl scream with hard grunts and he came crashing in stopping for an 18 yard broadside shot. The shot was high and forward but still double lung (barely). We tracked him for 8.5 hrs through pouring rain looking for fresh tracks and bent pine needles. We finally found him that evening .84 miles from the shot and still alive. I heard him expire within 10 minutes of locating him in the thick tall oak brush.
Examination of the vitals revealed a cut through the top of both lungs as high and forward as you can get with the arrow hitting the offside shoulder blade and stopping.
By far the most difficult successful tracking job in my years of hunting. Not a huge bull, but 245 lbs of trimmed meat in the freezer and the thrill of finally getting on the board.
Drew a tag in New Mexico this year....3rd season in a unit I've never been in before. Was lucky enough to kill the best bull I saw....on the last evening of the hunt. Went on this trip by myself, tough one, but I feel very fortunate to bring this guy home.
09/22/2013, Wyoming, Limited Quota, Solo backpack hunt, 15 days. 30 yard shot, 125 yard recovery.
Got close enough to him and his cows to piss him off with a bugle, right at last light.
My 2013 NM Gila Bull. Called him in opening morning of 3rd season for a perfect 20 yard broadside shot. Plan B spot payed off after finding the road to plan A was washed out. Solo hunt made for a long day of hauling meat!
Wow, still a lot of huge bulls and first bulls hitting the thread. Grats guys!
Grats to all the first timers!
last minute bull. Shot him with about 10 mins of light left on the last day. I was pleased with the performance of my new arrow/BH combo. Easton FMJ with 125 SlickTrick Mag. 560 grain set up. 22 yard shot to the infamous "V" that BB hails. Complete pass thru and 40 yards beyond. Elk was dead in 10 seconds. Ran 100 yards then...night night.
Sorry Icemann but I cant seem to find the youtube clip of your ST blood trail; have you the address/link please?
First elk WY, DIY, solo got him on 9/19 still on cloud 9!!
Great last-minute bull, Norseman! Looks like his brows fell off? :-)
JEG, congrats on an excellent first elk. Nice shot, too.
Barty
you tube
Type in: 2013 elk blood trail
"Great last-minute bull, Norseman! Looks like his brows fell off? :-) "
another excuse to shoot him. bad genes.
congrats JEG! Awesome bull! I love those rough horns. welcome to the club. ElKOHOLICs we are!
Wow, there certainly seem to be an awful lot of seriously nice bulls being taken this year (and as noted earlier, in states other than Arizona). Considering the amount of rain that Arizona received this summer, I expected to see a lot more big bulls.
Here's my last minute bull from one of the easier to draw Arizona units. As appears to be the case for many that hunted the state this year, I just didn't see the quality of bulls I have seen in the past. Many also seemed to finish weak on the tops, like this 6 x 6, but I was very happy to call him in late in the game to fill the freezer.
Colorado DIY Afternoon hunt Oct 20th. Second bull ever and glad to be joining the board after many years of close calls! Awesome pack out with friends under the full moon!
Montana 6X6 taken 9/20 at 36 yards! My best bull to date and dang proud of him!!
Don't worry, they are not all big bulls. Here are a couple youngins'
Idaho Sept 23rd 3X4 and my first time elk hunt on public land at 64 years young. 40 yard shot and a complete pass through with XX75 with Muzzy MX3 broadheads. He only went 50 yards and went down within 20 yards of my location.
WY public DIY sept 24 bugled this bull in down in seconds after the shot not a lot of elk but one that worked
I'd like to say there was about 500 lbs of elk attached to this skull when I acquired it, but I actually just found it while hunting last weekend. Probably somebody shot it and lost it last year, that's my theory anyway. I sure wish I could have seen him when he was alive.
On second thought, I probably should have put that pic in the Tag Soup Pole thread.
Got it done again in Wyoming hunting with Chamley outfitting!!! Great hunt with elk everywhere!!!
Happy Hunting!!!!
Bruce
10-01-13, MT, Public Land, DIY, 1st Elk….. 3rd hunt for them
Colorado OTC bull. I thought about putting him on the whitetail meatpole to make him look bigger, but he will eat good!
Here is my friend's bull from the same hunt in Co. 370'' gross
At first I thought I was the only poor sucker who had to hunt in the snow. Idaho bull still working on Mt. tag. 6 Days left......
Finished up with a nice eater in Montana. Boy there are some nice bulls hanging on this meat pole.
Feels good to fill both tags. Lots of work but worth every minute this year. Lots of great hunts.
Had to clean this one out on a fresh Griz track in the dark. OH BOY fun on top of fun.
Killed both elk by myself on PUBLIC land.
I apologize to all you elk hunters for disturbing your thread but here is my Hungarian red stag which I named "Magyar wapiti" shot with such placement that mighty BB would be proud of:
Dont apologise at all Kurare...that is a fantastic animal...what is the story behind such a trophy?
I'm nearer to hunting red stags in Hungary than hunting bull elk in the US ;-)
Kenneth (a British Bowhunter and Proud of It)
Kurare, that's a fantastic animal! Grats!
You guys are Elk machines. Wow! Great thread.
I've been absent from the site for too long. I had the September of a lifetime. This bull was September 4th in Wyoming. Special thanks to my buddies for packing him out. Had my back operated on in early October and am already looking forward to next year.
I shot this bull in Montana on the 20th. A great group of guys from Montana helped pack him out.
Some great bulls in this thread can't wait until September!
Wow. Lots of nice bulls. Here's mine from last fall. Mt public land.
My 12 yr olds 1st day of bowhunting taken at 2 yards. Mt- gallatin forest.
Cracking bulls IGG...am I right in reading the second bull was shot by your 12 yo at six FEET?! Young fella's got cool nerves for sure
Awesome Year for you and your Son, IGG !
Great job by your Son on that close range encounter!
dang if this don't get you fired up for elk season!
