But much learned, as always, and I wouldn't trade the experience for anything. Damn, I wish I was still out there!
elkmtngear's Link
It was fun though. My buddy killed his first CO bull, and we were into bulls nearly every day. One old deep growling bull gave us fits. We worked him at least 4 times. I even got as close as 20 yards at one point, but never had a shot.
He was a smart old bull, bedding up in a 30x100 yard thicket surrounded by slide rock. Impossible to approach undetected. He will haunt my dreams for a while, that's for sure :)
I learned a lot, and can't wait until next year
Bake
Sometimes the wind doesn't allow that sort of thing, I know, and hind sight is 20/20... we would have had several bulls for my dad if we'd have just done _____ (insert what we should have done to get the shot).
Sure did. Last morning, after we worked him from two different angles, 400 yards apart, but within 100 yards of his position, the evening before. (That bastard stayed in his bed until 2 hours after dark, bugling methodically)
That last morning, we got there well before light. Hid there and froze until 2 1/2 hours after sunup. Finally gave up on him.
Moved over the ridge a little to a bottleneck between rockslide and dropoff into oakbrush, and gave locater bugle. He answered from just up on this little knob not more than 150 yards away. Then he continued to answer as my buddy locater bugled, and I tried to sneak, but as he answered, he walked away steadily and finally quit bugling
If we had just posted in that bottleneck and not locater bugled, I believe he would have walked right through, on his way to his fantastic bed 400 yards away.
SOB!!!! He's a smart old man
Bake
>>>>--------->
Salt in the would was the flight from Denver to Chicago when the gun on my right and the girl on my left had both taken cow elk.
I hate elk hunting.
The deer was the most disappointing. Spent more time scouting and getting in shape than ever before. Went in super optimistic and got absolutely crushed by those high country bucks. Year 6 with a bow and man am I sucking!
Keep thinking my day will come, but I seem to have lost any killer instinct I once had.
But, they did get into the elk, with one ALMOST but no shot, one hit and lost and one non-fatal wound.
For the one guy, this was his 3rd trip with 2 bulls already under his belt and he said that this year was the best elk hunting yet even though he didn't kill one.
So now that I think of it I would do it all again tomorrow even if I knew it would turn out the same, it took less than 48hrs at work to wish I was back chasing them. So with Blue Mountains I raise a toast to the rest of you and commend your efforts. Never give up and better luck next year, "there are only so many Septembers in one's life".
RG
I just returned from MT and tag was not even close to getting notched. Saw no more than 10 elk over 12 days. Weather was horrible. Rain and snow. With the snow, I was able to hunt for elk. But there were no tracks. I had to drop lower to hunt out of truck or spend my time in survival mode.
Here is a glimpse as I packed out of spike camp at 8200' on Sept 27th. (12" of snow on the ground). Pretty, but looks are deceiving.
When I left on Oct 3, I had 6" of snow on the truck with storm total predicting 12-14" on top of what was already on the ground.
diversity will spice the tag soup pot!
I had a rough hunt due to the excessive rain... but this is a great deal. Now I've already got my tag fund for 2014!
Thanks Colorado!
I just picked up my truck in Butte on Friday. I was wondering how you were faring with the winter wonderland.
PM coming your way soon.
TBH
There is a post on the Colorado Forum Meat Pole of a guy that took 25 seasons to get his first elk, that has to be a record!
I guess I'm not sure that I'm really eating tag soup because I did kill a buck with my new Bowtech Assassin . . . but I wasn't after a buck, I wanted to get my first bull on the ground. I'd been watching this buck and 9 others all summer long, always in the same area. These were mule deer that were as easy to pattern as your typical river-bottom Whitetail. I kept telling myself that if either of the three 4-points walked by within range that I'd have to kill one of them. 15 minutes into opening day and one of them did just that.
Anyways, I'm considering this a tag soup year for me as I put all of my effort into killing a bull again this year. The first two weekends were relatively uneventful as I only saw elk from a long ways off. The 3rd weekend I finally got some bulls to pipe up. I started working a bull one morning and after about 45 minutes I had finally played all of my cards right and he'd committed to coming in for closer review. He hung up at 70, I remained patient (silent) and finally he closed in to 50 into a shooting lane . . . Almost! Stopped just shy of a shot opportunity and finally caught my wind. Retreated back about 50 yards into the thick stuff before I stopped him with some cow mews. I backed out and repositioned further down the hill to get the thermals in my favor. Started reworking him again and after another 30-40 minutes, I had royally pi$$ed him off. He had been working over a 2.5" pine tree with vigorous frustration until I grabbed a stick and did some raking of my own, he threw back his head and moaned a vicious bugle, put his head down and full-on charged me, breaking that tree off at the base. He came to 30 yards and was obstructed for a shot for about 5 minutes while he put on quite a show. Every bull sound I have ever heard of in about 5 minutes plus more raking and for the first time ever, I heard glunking. I slowly picked up a twig and snapped it in two with my thumb as he looked like he was getting frustrated with the situation. He continued in to 15 yards and walking from left to right broad side. Too many branches, so I was pivoting on my knees as he walked. 3 more steps . . . then my left knee slipped about 2" on the dry pine needles. At full draw, he locked onto me. I held for what seemed like about a minute before I started shaking so badly that he caught more movement and busted out. I stopped him again with excited cow calls. I knew I needed immediate action to reassure the big boy that he was still dealing with an elk so I turned around and started stomping up the hill and popping nervous grunts as I backed out. Worked like a charm, he started bugling at me to come back and was following me. I literally ran down the mountain about 400 yards until I found a better spot to set up (more shooting lanes). He was charging along behind me. I finally found an old logging road that offered a good lane and let out a few cow calls and a spike squeal bugle. It was about a 25 minute standoff with him as he bugled about every minute or so but wouldn't come down the hill. I knew he had my location pegged so I didn't want to call. Finally I couldn't take it so I did a little more raking and in he came. At 50 yards, he put both front legs on the abandoned logging road. He looked both ways like he was crossing he street, didn't see the cow he was after . . . and left.
So frustrating, a couple more steps in any of those situations and he would have been a dead elk.
He was HUGE, a tremendous elk. A typical 6, except for Idaho, he actually had really good thirds. Awesome eye guards, good swords and even a really nice split at the whale tail.
3 times in one morning . . . how many guys get to call the same monarch into bow range like that in one day. It was a privilege. I'm going to see if I can get my Wife onto him for a shot with her rifle . . . did I just say that . . . ?
Other than my son wondering what it's like to actually see an elk on the ground, I don't care if I eat tag soup for the rest of my life as long as I get to keep hunting elk in Sept.
In fact, I'd be pretty happy if I were in the mountains right now NOT filling a tag.........
I had an arrow on the string a few times. Once on a spike but just couldn't close the distance, two separate days on the same 6 X 6 and the last day on a nice bull, but didn't see how many points, too busy looking for the open lane which he stopped just a foot short of.
I would not call this season a bust at all, though. I finally heard a bull "glunking", the first time ever in 45 years of hunting elk. Played cat and mouse with the 6 X 6 on two separate days, which was pretty cool. The highlight of the season, however, was playing "Outdoor Channel" moose hunter. I found a bull moose tending a cow and did all those things they do on TV to get him closer or to close the distance. Yep, making that moose grunt works REALLY well. Also, if you stand up, put your bow on your head, rock back and forth grunting as you move toward the bull works well, in fact TOO well. Not once but twice I got charged by the bull, luckily the first was just a single step "bluff" and the second time was a full on charge with my hunting partner yelling and stopping the bull about 10 feet away from me. Oh, yeah, and we didn't learn from those two times. My partner got charged by the same bull later in the day. He was just standing there taking pictures when the bull came at a full charge. The video is quite interesting! The only thing that kept my partner from becoming moose antler shish kabob was a well placed tree and a quick left turn. That bull brushed his fanny as he ran past! I don't think that I am going to mess with a rutting bull moose ever again and I know my partner isn't!
Royboy, you're only fooling yourself buddy! You're going to help others regardless of your intent....you're just that good of a guy!
I proudly ate tag soup. I had a great tag, and lots of great opportunities. I helped my Dad bring his bull back to camp. That was better than having him help me with mine.
When the kids are young there's nothing better than helping a kid with a successful harvest. Similarly, when your parents get old there is nothing better than being present to share the experience of Dad or Mom's success. My Dad is a phenom. He is the poster child for health. Even so, knowing that my Dad is 60+ years old, every opportunity I have to spend time afield with him his a true success. He'll probably be bowhunting for 20 more years, but even that isn't enough for me. The thought of heading afield without him isn't fathomable. Because he scored, I scored. I'll mix some of his elk meat in with my favorite soup recipe....it will be truly gourmet!
Royboy, you're only fooling yourself buddy! You're going to help others regardless of your intent....you're just that good of a guy!
I proudly ate tag soup. I had a great tag, and lots of great opportunities. I helped my Dad bring his bull back to camp. That was better than having him help me with mine.
When the kids are young there's nothing better than helping a kid with a successful harvest. Similarly, when your parents get old there is nothing better than being present to share the experience of Dad or Mom's success. My Dad is a phenom. He is the poster child for health. Even so, knowing that my Dad is 60+ years old, every opportunity I have to spend time afield with him his a true success. He'll probably be bowhunting for 20 more years, but even that isn't enough for me. The thought of heading afield without him isn't fathomable. Because he scored, I scored. I'll mix some of his elk meat in with my favorite soup recipe....it will be truly gourmet!
Is it September yet I am already looking forward to next year.
