My friend Shayne is the one with the tag and I will be operating the video camera. Weather looks good and we couldn't be more excited. As a flatlander I know there are lots of guys that always talk about going elk hunting but never do. I hope my post encourages those individuals as this type of hunt is one of the most challenging and rewarding hunts a person can do.
I will try to post updates but service can be spotty. Thanks for following along! Let the adventure begin.
Arrived at 3am this morning and just went straight to bed. Woke up around 8 and made a big breakfast. Got organized and filled our packs. We have enough food for 3 nights of living out of a backpack.
Yes
We didn't sleep at all last night. With about a half hour before dark we were on our hike back to the tent camp when we spotted a satellite bull. We snuck into about 80 yards and let out a few soft cow calls. He bugles back and wandered over. Presented a 45 yard broadside shot. When the arrow released he dipped and jumped to his left which made the arrow hit his shoulder quartering away. We tried to get another arrow in him but watched him walk into the woods. You could see bleeding as he walked away but very little and couldn't find any on the sage.
With zero blood and poor arrow penetration we didn't feel good at all about the hit. We decided to let him bleed out overnight so we didn't push him further and risk not finding him at all. Before people starting bashing our decision let me tell you it wasn't easy. It would be a terrible feeling to push an animal like that and not find it.
The next morning we headed right out to were we were at the night before. Found him a little less than 100 yards away still with no blood on him. In hindsight we now wish we would have gone after him that night since it looked like we grazed a lung after all (tough animals). We hustled to get the hide off and get it quarter. The neck had a slight green tint but everything else seemed okay. We will see what the butcher says.
Overall it has been a wild hunt. Couldn't sleep most nights with bugling all around us. Our tent ended up being In the center of the action. We saw 2 herd bulls yesterday which was awesome with one screaming out on the flats. With it being our second elk hunt ever we started to feel more comfortable and knew what to look for a little better. Still a lot to learn, like how to call in those herd bulls!! Need to study up again on my elknut literature.
Thanks for following a long! We will post more pics when we get home but in the meantime we are headed to WY with 2 antelope tags in our pocket!
Update on the meat?
Yeah the neck had turned a slight green so we left the neck meat. I feel the rest is fine. I was surprised when we found it the next morning that no critters had gotten after it. I think we lucked out on the meat.
We began our 2,000 mile journey from ND. Shayne left Hebron, ND and picked me up at the Billings airport. We continued on across Montana and arrived to camp at 3:30am of Day One. We slept in til about 8am and then made a big breakfast and filled our packs.
After getting setup we immediately went to where we saw the elk last year. They were definitely going to be in the same spot, right? As we were on our way to our lookout we spotted an elk. We got positioned and let out a few cow calls. A spike came walking in with a bent antler sticking straight out like a unicorn. We were excited to see elk but the remainder of the evening was quiet besides a few distant bugles.
As we got ready for bed we herd cow calls get closer and closer. Not much we could do as it was past shooting light but right as we stuck our head out of the tent a few cows and a nice 5x5 came strolling past on their way to feed. They were less than 100 yards from the tent! That night the hills started to come alive with bugles. Our tent was the center of it all too.
It stopped and Shayne shot. The bull took off and almost ran over our tent! After watching the footage you could see the bull dip as the arrow released and avoid the 55 yard shot. Shayne found his busted broad head and arrow and we went to bed. It was another long night of listening to the elk bugle and dreaming about tomorrow.
The falls color were amazing during the whole trip.
After arriving back to base camp that evening spirits were down as we began to see less elk. We make a big hot meal and went to bed hoping for better luck tomorrow.
This is our view from the base camp that evening as a small storm rolled through.
Before we even sat down we spotted a (what we would consider) HUGE bull 400 yards downhill from us. The bull had just sat down in the shade below an evergreen and we felt that was perfect for a stalk. He had his back facing us and we were upwind of him. We made it about 100 yards down the hill and he stood and locked eyes on us. With dry leaves and a rocky surface we weren't exactly that quiet. After twenty minutes of waiting he moved into the trees out of sight and we continued down. We worked our way to 80 yards from where he had been spotted originally. We called for 20 minute using a call scenario from elk nut but it did not work on this bull as he probably knew something was up. After 45 mins we retreated as we had heard another bull bugling down the way.
After further investigation we pinpointed this bull down on the flats with 5 cows and screaming his lungs out at 800 yards from us. It was awesome to watch but were were in no position to make a stalk on him as there was an hour of light left.
We began walking back to the tent when we spotted a satellite bull!! It was feeding in an area with evergreens and sage brush. We worked our way up to 80 yards and positioned ourselves. Just a few cow calls and we had his attention! He bugled back and walked right for us. At 45 yards he appeared from behind a tree and turned broadside. Let out a cow call and he stopped. Shayne pulled the trigger and hit him, but was it a good shot? The elk had jumped to it's left so it was quartering away more severely when the arrow hit. We could see the arrow barely penetrated and it looked as though it may have struck the shoulder. The bull trotted off and we were left confused.
Shayne tried to get a second shot off but resisted as he didn't want to continue pushing the bull. We knew the general direction it went and followed slowly. We sat and listened as the hills came alive. We tried to find a speck of blood but found nothing. We heard a rustle in the trees but minutes later a spike came within 20 yards. We were not sure what to do.
With a poor hit and zero blood we decided we had no option but to halt the search until morning. It was a long night as we ate quick and tried to sleep.
We went to where we had been sitting the night prior and had tied a piece of flagging tape to a branch. We worked our way up the hill and found the bull less than 100 yards from where we were sitting the night before! We were pretty upset knowing that we could have possibly found it the night before but very happy we had found it. We took a couple quick pictures and then hurried to get it processed. With temperatures in the mid 40's overnight we wanted to get it opened up right away. The neck had a green tint so we left it but everything else was salvaged.
As the cameraman it was fun to get to hunt for an hour haha. A 14" goat but lacked cutters. Very happy though as this is one of the most fun hunts anyone can do.
I think next year we are going to have to try spot and stalk with the bow!
Thanks for following along.
Way to get it done ND boys!
BTW You made the RIGHT call waiting. Unless you see him fall over dead you will just make things worse by pushing an animal.
I know it sucks to wait.
Best of Luck, Jeff
