Countdown is getting real!
Elk
Contributors to this thread:
Less than 6 weeks to go!!!
Putting the weight to the legs in the gym and trying to build muscle fast. Not shooting my bow enough, but I did get out for TAC which was great practice.
Had beers with one of the good ones from bowsite and that really fired me up for the season.
Is everyone else ready?!!
Eight weeks to my new mex elk hunt. Shooting bow several times a week. On tread mill and weight machine almost every day. Starting to get pumped.
I’m in N Wyoming for a couple days scouting and checking trail cams with Native Oakie.
Ohhhhh yeeeaaahhh....
I leave two weeks from today for sheep hunting. Starting to chomp at the bit. Hunting season is finally here.
My phone hasn’t buzzed Brad!!!
I scouted in Idaho for my buddies archery hunt. First time in the unit and found some bulls and lots of cows. Also found rutting sign from last year.
Was not impressed with my fitness but will make it work! Excited just to be calling this year.
I just got home from a Solo quickie trip on my Utah LE bow Bull unit. Covered/hiked some good ground and checked on 2 remote springs that still are in good shape for all this heat.
I'm hopeful to arrow a Velvet Bull as my opener is great for that opportunity on August 15. If I get a chance at a Velvet Bull, I don't really care about his P&Y score size more so a Velvet Bull.
Man, I'm getting excited,
Robb
39 days and a wake up until I'm headed in. Feeling great, shooting great, have a great plan. Just working out and ticking off the days by shooting and packing, shooting and packing. Very hopeful my buddy tags his first elk this year.
Just in time for the new P&Y velvet category, Robb!
Yes sir, I'm ready in every aspect as possible, now if I can just avoid that flu thing I'll be good to go! (grin) Good luck all!
ElkNut
Pail, don’t even say that! I’ve thought about that. Get sick a week before the opener and have to deal with that bs!
It crosses my mind occasionally. :-)
Ya, but you're young & it could kick it quickly, at my age that crap would linger on for weeks or more. Doing my best to avoid it but crap happens! One way or another I gotta hunt elk!!!!
ElkNut
This one hangs next to the eliptical and treadmill.
Neat picture bender! Good luck to all of you. Looking forward to reading the threads.
Heading into a Colorado wilderness today for a few days with my Golden Retriever, Trapper, 11 1/2 years old and fading fast. Very bony and on special food and pills from the vet. So the nice guy that I am I'm not making him carry his own back pack this time. He's always carried his own food and a bottle of my evening beverage. Never have told him what he was carrying int the other side of his pack. Told my daughter here last night there's a chance only one of us will be coming back to town next week. She quickly reminded me that at 73 it didn't necessarily mean it would be Trapper not making it! Nice kid! You guys know how tough it is to lose a special friend, but I can't think of a better place if it happens as where we're going is one of my favorite places and Trapper has done a number of pack trips in there with me. And oh yah, I am psyched for elk season. Saw a couple cows in a meadow yesterday.
Chuck, I'm guessing your "vet" probably likes to talk about your diet and has you on a pill or two as well? Ha! Enjoy your trip with Trapper, hopefully he has a few left in him!
I am running up to 34 off Coffee Pot Road to grab some sweet broken rib spring water and do a little recon on my spots.....hang a few game cams to soak until mid august and then we will see. Looks like the forecast is for heavy rain.....might be a be sloperly.
I’ll find out in the next week or two if I’ll be doing any archery hunting this year. Might be the first time in my life I’ll be okay not hunting, because that will mean I’m at fire academy down in Denver for four months with arguably the top FD in Colorado.
I fly on August 31 into Elko for a week of elk in Nevada Mtn's.
Looking forward to it.
Gonna be meetin up with Forest in CO in 6 weeks. I cant stop shootin, workin out, thinkin and dreamin..
For sure Brotsky. Packed my pills and Trappers in the same pill box!
Super excited. My wife is pretty sick of Paul Medal’s Elknut app and my calling practice lol.
I’m going to up my fitness another notch in August. I envy you all that get to scout and do some hiking to get in shape. Good luck to all!
Had my first elk encounter of the year yesterday, on the way home from town had 4 cows cross the road in front of me. Then this morning woke up at 5:00 am to a cow and calf talking at the water in the back yard.
Elk time is fun time.
Terry
Glad to see so many of you getting out and getting ready for thee most fun event a person can be involved with. Safe travels to all you elksters for up coming scouting and hunt trips.
Trying to get some projects around the house completed, so there is no interference with scouting in August, or bow-hunting in September/October. Of course I have had a couple of trips looking for elk and mule deer already, and put up a few game cameras. Boy would it suck to get Coronavirus now or in the next two months. Trips to places to Walmart and Costco are definitely few and far between for me - and I live half a mile from both. August and September are what I live in Montana for.
Trying to get some projects around the house completed, so there is no interference with scouting in August, or bow-hunting in September/October. Of course I have had a couple of trips looking for elk and mule deer already, and put up a few game cameras. Boy would it suck to get Coronavirus now or in the next two months. Trips to places to Walmart and Costco are definitely few and far between for me - and I live half a mile from both. August and September are what I live in Montana for.
That's a good point Nick, I hadn't really thought about at first......
It would be kinda neat to get one of the first entry's in the new Velvet class.....
Good luck, Robb
You fatty believe, Robb. :) Git er done. ?
Still trying to figure out how to make the 14 day quarantine work when we land in NM!
Returned last night from Co. Its motivating to hike the high country now so that I know how much more to increase the workouts for the next 45 days. Handled the elevation well enough, but much, much room for improvement!
They say when you enter another state you have to quarantine for 14 days......no problem Colorado 9/18 to 10/2!!! cannot wait.
Stairmaster SUCKS! Elliptical SUCKS! Treadmill SUCKS! Frayed bowstring the other day SUCKS! BUT... I'm hunting NM for first time in about 7 weeks so I'm happier than a two peckered billy goat !!
Got back last weekend from the backpack trip in a secret wilderness in Colorado. Spent four days over 10,000 with a wolf biologist from home that wanted me to show him around as he plans to bowhunt it this year. He flew out and joined up with me and and Trapper which would be Trapper's last adventure with me. Had to put him to sleep Monday. He hiked every mile with us but when we'd stop to tell a lie to the other( well, john lied anyway) Trapper would instantly lay down and sleep. After the hike he went downhill fast which was expected. Buried him next to my last Golden retriever with a carved soapstone for a headstone.
I did ok myself even with a 20 year younger partner. He wore a couple different tri-athlete t shirts which I didn't know about!! Told him if I did I wouldn't have let him come along! Was interesting talking about wolves with him which we both live in the middle of. He's well versed and has given talks in the western states to cattlemen and sportsmen. He spent about 3 months living in a yurt in Mongolia recently trapping and radio collaring wolves for them so can begin a baseline study. He said herding is big there and they have a wolf problem too.
He's quite familiar with the Colorado situation. Sees no reason to introduce wolves as they are already there and will naturally expand. And he said there will be problems for cattle and game.
We had a fun trip. First morning he crawled out of his tent before I got up and saw 10 bulls from our camp. Sold him on the area! Saw a few moose. Interesting thing is one side of this wilderness is heavy tourist hikers and the side I've always hunted seldom sees any. There was no evidence of anyone being in there all summer. My kind of place. As others have stated on here there is above normal activity in the backcountry however. A retired Forest Service friend out there said he's never seen it so busy. I guess in an unselfish way that is a good thing people are out there enjoying it!
I'm lousy about taking pics but I'll add a few. The countdown... yes 'll be back out there in three weeks and fired up!
Young bull moose.
Young bull moose.
Wlof man checking things out.
Wlof man checking things out.
I will be hunting these two buck pronghorns for a week, eastern Colorado, prior to elk season. Only need two days to get ready for elk. Will arrive in spike camp on Aug 30th. Kill my bull on Sept 4th, with the stick. Be home on Sept 6th. Sounds easy does it not?
What the?? 4 pics posted under inshart I posted??
Oh! Thanks! Can never figure out that.
AZ coues (OTC), AZ rifle Antelope, AZ early archery Bull elk, and NM Valle Vidal early Muzzy Bull elk hunt over an 8 week period. The plan is to get all of them with bow & Arrow. We'll see. It's kinda tough getting time off from work but I got some. Good Luck to everyone & happy hunting!
Leaving in the morning with 2 either sex Caribou tags, a Dall Ram tag, and can shoot 5 wolves.
Moose tag opens 9/1 and first two weeks of November hitting Kodiak for big Mountain Goat and 3 Sitka Blacktails.
Sounds like a great couple months MathewsMan, have fun and good luck.