onX Maps
The Bypass Bull
Elk
Contributors to this thread:
Bowfreak 28-Sep-20
Bowfreak 28-Sep-20
Bowfreak 28-Sep-20
Bowfreak 28-Sep-20
Bowfreak 28-Sep-20
Bowfreak 28-Sep-20
Jeff Holchin 28-Sep-20
sticksender 28-Sep-20
midwest 28-Sep-20
EmbryOklahoma 28-Sep-20
Ron Niziolek 28-Sep-20
cnelk 28-Sep-20
Bowfreak 28-Sep-20
fastflight 28-Sep-20
Bowfreak 28-Sep-20
pav 29-Sep-20
BULELK1 29-Sep-20
ki-ke 29-Sep-20
Bowfreak 29-Sep-20
Bowfreak 29-Sep-20
Bowfreak 29-Sep-20
APauls 29-Sep-20
Bowfreak 29-Sep-20
huntdoc 29-Sep-20
Bowfreak 29-Sep-20
BadlandsRoger 29-Sep-20
Bowfreak 29-Sep-20
Bowfreak 29-Sep-20
Bowfreak 29-Sep-20
Bowfreak 29-Sep-20
craigmcalvey 29-Sep-20
Shiras42 29-Sep-20
Bowfreak 29-Sep-20
Old School 29-Sep-20
Grubby 29-Sep-20
JB 29-Sep-20
Paul@thefort 29-Sep-20
Jeff Holchin 29-Sep-20
midwest 29-Sep-20
Stoneman 29-Sep-20
JL 29-Sep-20
Inshart 29-Sep-20
Tilzbow 29-Sep-20
bowhunter24 30-Sep-20
pav 30-Sep-20
Supernaut 30-Sep-20
EmbryOklahoma 30-Sep-20
Charlie Rehor 30-Sep-20
Bowfreak 30-Sep-20
Bowfreak 30-Sep-20
sticksender 30-Sep-20
Bwana 30-Sep-20
Paul@thefort 30-Sep-20
Scar Finga 30-Sep-20
EmbryOklahoma 30-Sep-20
hdaman 30-Sep-20
drycreek 30-Sep-20
LINK 30-Sep-20
elkmtngear 30-Sep-20
SBH 30-Sep-20
standswittaknife 30-Sep-20
12yards 30-Sep-20
sdkhunter 30-Sep-20
midwest 30-Sep-20
Kodiak 30-Sep-20
T Mac 30-Sep-20
Ucsdryder 30-Sep-20
smurph 30-Sep-20
KSBOW 30-Sep-20
Buckeye 30-Sep-20
Vonfoust 30-Sep-20
APauls 30-Sep-20
patience2spare 30-Sep-20
Bowfreak 30-Sep-20
Vonfoust 30-Sep-20
bowcrazyJRHCO 30-Sep-20
Beav 30-Sep-20
zabwelch 30-Sep-20
Shiras42 30-Sep-20
LINK 30-Sep-20
maxracx 30-Sep-20
cnelk 30-Sep-20
Bowfreak 30-Sep-20
Fields 30-Sep-20
Shiras42 01-Oct-20
ElkNut1 01-Oct-20
JohnMC 01-Oct-20
Bowfreak 02-Oct-20
midwest 02-Oct-20
Jaquomo 02-Oct-20
grossklw 02-Oct-20
t-roy 02-Oct-20
Ron Niziolek 02-Oct-20
shooter 02-Oct-20
cmbbulldog 03-Oct-20
c3 04-Oct-20
c3 04-Oct-20
Empty Freezer 04-Oct-20
goelk 05-Oct-20
WV Mountaineer 05-Oct-20
Willieboat 05-Oct-20
wooddamon1 05-Oct-20
hunt'n addict 05-Oct-20
elmer@laptop 06-Oct-20
Bowfreak 06-Oct-20
Hunts_with_stick 06-Oct-20
stringgunner 06-Oct-20
Chief 419 07-Oct-20
Barty1970 12-Oct-20
Bowfreak 05-Mar-21
Old School 05-Mar-21
Paul@thefort 05-Mar-21
booner 05-Mar-21
midwest 05-Mar-21
Panther Bone 05-Mar-21
Charlie Rehor 05-Mar-21
fastflight 05-Mar-21
Bou'bound 05-Mar-21
Brotsky 05-Mar-21
12yards 05-Mar-21
Shiras42 05-Mar-21
Rgiesey 05-Mar-21
Bowfreak 06-Mar-21
t-roy 06-Mar-21
PeteO 06-Mar-21
deerhunter72 13-Sep-21
jordanathome 13-Sep-21
Bowfinatic 13-Sep-21
orionsbrother 25-Jan-22
Bowfreak 25-Jan-22
Treeline 25-Jan-22
Bowboy 25-Jan-22
Bowfreak 25-Jan-22
orionsbrother 25-Jan-22
Rob 25-Jan-22
Bowfreak 27-Nov-23
Jaquomo 27-Nov-23
deerhunter72 27-Nov-23
Bowfreak 27-Nov-23
Old School 27-Nov-23
pav 27-Nov-23
Treeline 27-Nov-23
Bowboy 27-Nov-23
Bowfreak 27-Nov-23
t-roy 27-Nov-23
kakiatkids 27-Nov-23
midwest 28-Nov-23
HUNT MAN 28-Nov-23
Ron Niziolek 28-Nov-23
Ambush 28-Nov-23
Bowfreak 28-Nov-23
From: Bowfreak
28-Sep-20
I honestly thought about writing a magazine article about this hunt, but I realized that I would prefer to share it here with you guys. It will always be available here through a Google search so that is really cool too. I hope you enjoy this little journey. It is going to be long but I will try to keep it interesting. It will take me a few days to get it all posted so bear with me.

From: Bowfreak
28-Sep-20

Bowfreak's embedded Photo
Trail passing through the meadow pinch point
Bowfreak's embedded Photo
Trail passing through the meadow pinch point
Bowfreak's embedded Photo
Plenty of elk are using the meadow
Bowfreak's embedded Photo
Plenty of elk are using the meadow
Bowfreak's embedded Photo
A few of the bulls I had on trail camera
Bowfreak's embedded Photo
A few of the bulls I had on trail camera
Bowfreak's embedded Photo
A nice view of the meadow
Bowfreak's embedded Photo
A nice view of the meadow

As I approached the pinch point of the meadow the green rays from my headlamp bobbed up and down while I did my best to quietly negotiate the blowdowns. Up, down, over, around, and across; with each step I would systematically pick my way through the maze of strewn timber. I am intent on the best, easiest route possible, but I seem to always pick the worst. As I poorly balanced myself while walking the length of a stove pipe sized log, I hear a bugle ring out. I was heading toward an hourglass shaped meadow littered with fresh elk sign lying only 100 yards away. This meadow was too large to shoot across in most areas, but it necked down to about 30 yards wide at its most narrow point. Being a whitetail hunter and trying to take advantage of the skills I know best; I had spent the previous evening in my climber overlooking a well-worn trail traversing through the bottleneck of this prime piece of elk habitat. As I descended the tree in the dark after an evening hunt, a bull bugled numerous times in the dark timber northeast of the meadow.

The willingness of this bull to announce himself the previous evening is what lead me back to the meadow on this cold September morning. My planned track for the morning was to head northeast of the meadow in the direction of the bugling bull. I never made it that far as this bull was bugling much closer. His location appeared to be less than 200 yards away and near the southernmost portion of the meadow. I thought back to my previous unsuccessful elk hunts and all the work I had put into this one. Finally, this hunt was happening! Yet, it was supposed to be “happening” during the previous fall of 2019. Due to an unexpected and abrupt life changing event, not only was my 2019 bowhunting season in doubt, going forward my life was in doubt.

From: Bowfreak
28-Sep-20

Bowfreak's Link
As many of you know, I went through some challenging times last year. Part of what I went through is covered here at this link, but the readers digest version is I found out I was going to need open heart surgery. The surgery went off without a hitch, but I had a serious issue with violent coughing afterward. The coughing was so bad that I broke the wires in my chest that held my sternum together. Since they broke so early in the process my sternum did not heal properly. Ultimately this was all finally corrected after my second surgery where a titanium plate was placed in my chest to secure everything and allow my sternum to fuse.

From: Bowfreak
28-Sep-20

Bowfreak's embedded Photo
Celebratory Curly Wurly bar. It is the current day Marathon bar.
Bowfreak's embedded Photo
Celebratory Curly Wurly bar. It is the current day Marathon bar.
Bowfreak's embedded Photo
Wound from radial artery harvest
Bowfreak's embedded Photo
Wound from radial artery harvest
Pictures post surgery. I'm glad that was well over a year ago.

From: Bowfreak
28-Sep-20

Bowfreak's embedded Photo
Bowfreak's embedded Photo
This was immediately after my second surgery where they installed the titanium plate. I'm still traumatized at the level of shaving I had to go through.

From: Bowfreak
28-Sep-20

Bowfreak's embedded Photo
20 yards from my stand. I can still do it! :)
Bowfreak's embedded Photo
20 yards from my stand. I can still do it! :)
Bowfreak's embedded Photo
Bowfreak's embedded Photo

After the surgery to install the titanium plate in my chest things started looking up and on November 6, 2019 my cardiac surgeon released me to draw my bow again. I had already let everyone know at work that if I get released, I am bowhunting. It is the whitetail rut and I should not be anywhere but in the woods. I immediately left the doctor and went straight home and grabbed my bow.

I no longer shoot heavy poundage and the 60lbs I now shoot could always be drawn effortlessly in the past. Considering I had done nothing with my arms in nearly 6 months I was not really surprised at the struggle that ensued when drawing for the first time. It was difficult but not ridiculous and after a handful of shots I was quickly confident that I could effectively kill deer if I limited my effective range. Just 2 days later I was able to arrow an 8 point buck in KY. I have killed much larger bucks, but I had not killed one that was more meaningful.

From: Jeff Holchin
28-Sep-20
Oh boy oh boy, another elk hunt thread ??

From: sticksender
28-Sep-20
I'm tuned in to this one.

From: midwest
28-Sep-20
I knew who this was by before opening the thread! Giddyup!

28-Sep-20
All in... bring it on Mark!

From: Ron Niziolek
28-Sep-20
Looking forward to this Mark.

From: cnelk
28-Sep-20
Oh yeah

From: Bowfreak
28-Sep-20
That KY buck marked the beginning of what I would consider my recovery. However, it wasn’t the end of my deer season. In an abbreviated season I was able to shoot a few more deer with my bow. One large doe in KY and a plump little buck in Mississippi. The Mississippi trip was a planned freezer filler as it looked at the time as if I wouldn't be hunting until December or even the new year. Regardless of size, I really enjoyed hunting rutting whitetails in January and I got to spend a few days hunting with a good friend and meeting another person I have talked to online for quite a while. Rutting bucks in January was a first for me.

From: fastflight
28-Sep-20
Congrats on the whitetail buck. I am sur wit meant a lot. Cant wait to read the elk recap

From: Bowfreak
28-Sep-20
By November I had already completed the bulk of my doctor recommended cardiac rehabilitation program. Upon completion of the program I started back with my fitness regimen at the gym. I pledged to get back into the shape that is required to chase elk in the mountains. Having an elk tag effectively in my pocket was all that I needed to focus my dedication. The Wyoming elk draw was still months away, yet I was certain I would be elk hunting in Wyoming come September of 2020. This was due to the options you are afforded by Wyoming Game and Fish whenever by medical necessity you must return your tag. I had drawn an elk tag in 2019 and due to my health issues, I was unable to hunt. Wyoming gives you the option of having your preference points restored and tag purchase refunded or elect to have your tag reissued to hunt the following year. Your physician will need to fill out the required paperwork and you will need to submit the forms and a small processing fee back to Wyoming Game and Fish. If you follow their protocol you will receive your tag in a timely fashion prior to your hunt. It would be impossible for me to speak more highly of this program and I am so grateful for its existence.

This form has a few more pages to it, but you get the idea as to what it looks like and what the requirement is should you need to ever go this route.

From: pav
29-Sep-20
Mark, you do realize...you can't type fast enough to keep this crowd content! LOL! Looking forward to more!

From: BULELK1
29-Sep-20
Very interesting read!

Keep it coming,

Robb

From: ki-ke
29-Sep-20
Mark! Keep it coming! Great to hear you had a great hunt! Happy you're mended!!

From: Bowfreak
29-Sep-20

I wanted to post pics to Bowsite but everything is being oriented incorrectly. So I embedded them. I know it screws up the formatting for some of the mobile users but it's the best I can do. OK....let's get going again.

I started falling into a pretty good routine. I was hitting the gym 5 days a week and continued to increase the intensity and duration of my workouts. By early spring I added in a weekly weighted pack hike. One thing good about where I live is that we have plenty of hills to hike. I can’t mimic the elevation of the west, but I can mimic the climbing, With time, I was able to do the things physically that I was doing prior to surgery. By early summer I was confident that my heart was not going to be holding me back. The only thing that could possibly hold me back physically was a lack of effort from me and that was not going to happen. Fitness was far from my only focus for preparation. There were continued hours of meticulous tuning, testing equipment, and long range bow shooting sessions. While bowhunting in my mind is an up close and personal sport, practicing at distances way farther than your effective range proves to be a beneficial training tool. At least it works very well for me. I also poured myself into an elk education. The daily Bowsite education, the hours upon hours of podcasts, YouTube videos, calling practice, networking with consistent elk killers and scouring over maps on Google Earth and GAIA GPS in my mind were all ingredients important to success.

My hikes started at 3 miles with 25 lbs. I have a handful of trails I hike where I can get 3-4.5 miles. Through July and August I moved up to 50lbs in the pack. Good cardio workouts from an eliptical or bike are great, but nothing prepares me for hiking better than hiking.

Thankfully...I have a gym at work that I was able to use when Covid had everything shut down.

From: Bowfreak
29-Sep-20

I started going over my gear list, packing and repacking. Making sure everything is in place and nothing was overlooked. Before you know it, I was playing a realistic game of Tetris loading my truck as I worked to situate every piece of gear required for my 2020 elk hunt. I pointed the truck west driving toward my destination. I soon fell into the similar task oriented nearly thoughtless mode of a rutting whitetail buck zombie trolling through the woods in hope of an estrus doe only my prize at this point was arriving at my destination that was at least 1,500 miles away. As surreal as it seems, the drive went quick and soon I am settling in to camp and ready for an evening hunt.

I'm definitely in Wyoming now.

This will be home for a few nights....or will it?

From: Bowfreak
29-Sep-20

I killed a little time in camp waiting for a friend, Troy, who lives in the general area. He was going to hunt with me this evening and then I would be on my own for a few days and then we planned to hook up again for more hunting. I planned to head to civilization in a few days to fill out the forms for the resident guide license. If I don't kill an elk in the areas I can legally hunt as a non-resident, we will pack in to the wilderness. I also have another friend who has a tag valid for this area. He and I plan to pack into a different area of this unit the following week. I have plenty of time to hunt and it is my hope that with all of the options I have, I'll make it happen.

Once Troy arrived we loaded our packs and headed to a predetermined location. Our plan was to hang around the meadow mentioned in the first post. We had quite a few bulls on camera and ANY of them would work for me. We made our way to the location. It wasn't a long hike, maybe 35 minutes and as we were approaching the meadow a bull gave a half hearted bugle. He was close. Like 100 yards close. He heard us walking and I assume he is thinking we are elk. I needed to move forward to set up and my friend was going to drift back to call. As soon as we split up, I look up and here is a nice 6 point bull staring at me. He was about 60 yards away standing in the meadow. He didn't really spook, just eased off. We had lots of elk in the area and when the directional winds started playing havoc late that evening, we backed out. I had a lot of time and there was no reason to spook elk out of the country only hours into my hunt.

Here are a few other pics from my cameras. I had mailed these cameras to Troy. He actually passed them off to another friend who I would be hunting with later in the week. He is the one who set them for me.

From: APauls
29-Sep-20
OOOooooh baby. Liking it already. Looks like you dropped 10 years from your deer photo to your gym photo!

From: Bowfreak
29-Sep-20
I dropped about 15 lbs too. :)

There were a couple of other bulls hitting this little wallow in the meadow. A guy I would love to get a crack at and another bull that I get better acquainted with soon. I called him Fuzzy.

Here is a picture of Fuzzy

This guy really has my attention

On to the next hunt. It was Labor Day and I planned to hunt in the same general area as I did the evening before. A nasty storm was blowing in, but it was still a pretty nice morning. I hiked to the same general area and then set up and called just shy of the meadow. I mostly cow called and did some raking. I called for about 20-25 minutes to no avail.

I decided to head toward the meadow. I quietly moved to get a visual on the meadow. I don't see anything right away but after a few minutes I caught movement across the meadow. I now can see the legs of an elk. Almost as quickly as it appeared it was gone. I tip toed around for a better vantage but don't see anything. I wait about 5 minutes and then decide to cow call. Within a few minutes I see Fuzzy walking out to my direction. He was interested, but not super interested. He was definitely more interested in the grass that was growing in this meadow. At one time I had him at 72 yards broadside. That was just too far so I passed. However, if Fuzzy would have been a little closer, he would have got a ride back to KY with me.

I finished the morning with a few other calling sequences and then headed to download my pictures from my trail cams. I was treading lightly in this area as I knew that there were plenty of elk here and I didn't want them to split because of me tromping around all over creation.

I got back to camp around 12 and had lunch.

From: huntdoc
29-Sep-20
Another thread to keep me from being productive at work... Thank you for sharing, appreciate people taking time to post their hunts.

From: Bowfreak
29-Sep-20
While checking cams that morning I picked out a few trees for my climber. I am not above shooting an elk from a treestand and my plan was to go hunt one of those trees. The wind was picking up quite a bit but I should be able to hunt one of the locations on this wind. I plan to hunt on the west side of the meadow in the bottleneck. I needed to trim some branches as I climbed so I wanted to get in early and take my time and be as quiet as possible. I made my way up the tree trimming branches and got settled in for the evening hunt. I barely got situated when I look up and see a 6 point bull walk out into the meadow and stare right at the tree I was in. He stared for 10 seconds, lost interest and walked on across the meadow. I know he heard me breaking branches and decided to come check me out. The evening ended early as I had real concern that the tree I was hunting was going to snap. The winds were becoming crazy. I got down and headed for camp. By the time I got to camp it was getting bad. So bad I thought my tent would be shredded. I pulled stakes and quickly crammed my gear in the truck. It looked like I'd be sleeping in the truck tonight.

29-Sep-20
I hate when I pick up on these stories in progress....It's much easier to start and finish once it's all here.

Great story so far....thanks for your effort.

From: Bowfreak
29-Sep-20
I actually slept pretty good that night in the truck. I am surprised because when I got up I realized that the storm had done tons of wind damage. Trees were down everywhere. The wind was still hammering, 40-50 mph at least, so I decided to use this morning as a time to head to town to handle the resident guide requirements. The night before I am certain there were at least 70-80 mph gusts. I am not sure I had ever seen more wind. Soon I realized I was going to be lucky to get anywhere as there were trees down everywhere on this forest road.

Luckily I ran into a local with a chainsaw. He and I and 4 other guys started cutting our way out. Within a few hours we heard a chainsaw on the other side. We met the forest service cutting their way in. Between both of us we had cut and dragged 30-40 trees out of the road.

I finally made it to town and we ate lunch and took care of the resident guide license/permit. I was hoping that I was going to make it back to camp for the evening hunt. The plan was to go back to my treestand and try to catch an elk walking by my stand. Soon I am climbing the tree. It is cold and windy. I am hoping I can stick this out as I've rarely been this cold hunting whitetails in the winter. I do happen to stick it out until dark. I started the process of packing everything up and readying my stand to descend the tree. As I start climbing down the tree a bull begins to bugle to NE of my location.

From: Bowfreak
29-Sep-20

This is it! It is really happening. There is a bull bugling and I’m getting ready to make a play. It is time to reel in my wandering mind by pinpointing the location of the vocal bull. I am quite adept at this practice with turkeys when they gobble but this Kentucky boy is a little out of his element in the vast landscapes of the west. So, the unfamiliar country and inexperience with elk made me a little unsure as to where the bull was located. I stopped to let out a few soft cow calls. My lips felt numb and my throat was dry. I almost had “call panic” in that I was afraid the notes I would soon produce would not sound like an elk. I excitedly let out 2 soft cow calls and my initial fears were quickly put to rest when the bull nearly covered my calls with a full bugle. I made a quick move 25 yards in his direction as to situate myself so that there was a thick section of pines in between the bull and me.

It was my hope that the bull would go around the thick pines to look for me since the pines were choked with blowdowns and the route around them was the easier path. If the bull followed the theoretical script, I would hopefully be able to catch glimpses of his approach and use the cover of the tangled mess to my advantage for obscuring the drawing of my bow. Settling in for my calling sequence, I started scanning with my rangefinder taking yardage readings from different landmarks. I was waiting for the bull to bugle again. It was my hope to bugle over top of him when he sounded off. He gave me the opportunity I was looking for when he let out a 3 note bugle followed by a series of chuckles. I was ready and as he started chuckling, I offered up a bugle. Not too aggressive but in my opinion, it was perceived as a less than polite response. Over the next 10-15 minutes I continued to escalate the action and vocally poke my finger into his chest. It was obvious that playing this game was working as now when the bull called, he was screaming with loud aggressive bugles.

This is what the area looked like where I stopped to call

I would bugle and then set my tube here while I worked this bull

From: Bowfreak
29-Sep-20

I continued cutting him off with my own bugles and turning up the heat on him. I catch a bit of movement and hear him breaking some branches about 80 yards away though the thick pines. I was ready with my bow in position to draw but from time to time I would leave my handheld release dangling on the loop as I busied myself ranging trees and testing the wind with my indicator. It became obvious that this bull was irate when he let out a nasty bugle, lip bawling and followed with a series of excited chuckles. He was intolerant to this intruding bull’s presence. I had always heard bowhunters talk about how loud a bull can bugle and it was at this point when I finally understood what they were talking about. I honestly think that I could feel the force of his bugle hit my face and I do not think that humans can’t even produce enough air to call that loud. It was at this point when I slowly shifted my bugle tube to point behind me and mustered up the most aggressive and disrespectful bugle I could possibly make.

What happened next would have been obvious to more experienced elk hunters, but to me it did not register as to what was going on. For the first time since I started interacting with this bull there was silence. I did not know what to think. Maybe the thermal and directional crosswind see saw match had given me away or possibly he saw me or maybe….My thought process was abruptly stopped by the hulking presence of a mature bull that had stopped broadside in front of me. His head and antlers were plainly visible but only a small portion of his body was visible as the rest was covered by 2 trees. I slowly moved for my range finder. I was able to get a reading on his body that was covered or bracketed by two trees. “48.5 yards,” I said to myself.

I started lowering the rangefinder and dialing my sight to 50 yards while the bull simultaneously started chuckling. His flank was moving up and down in an exaggerated fashion and I could see his breath rising from his mouth in choppy bursts as he chuckled. As he finished his chuckle he started to move into the open. After only 2 steps I was able to freeze him with a cow call. By this point I was at full draw focusing on a spot tight to his front shoulder and centered up and down. The top pin of my double pin scope was calmly (shockingly it was) hovering tightly around this spot as I started my shot process. The shot broke as cleanly as possible and hearing the audible thud as my arrow impacted his body only supported the fact that I felt I had just made a perfect shot. The bull went crashing to the east heading straight toward the meadow. In just a few seconds there was a loud crash followed by silence. I stood in the same position for what had to be at least 2 minutes. I did not cheer, smile, shake my fist or do anything celebratory. I literally stood there in disbelief. I was stunned that this just happened!

This was about 25 minutes after the shot. I have no idea why I snapped this selfie, but this was about the time when my mind started really racing and I started to shiver from the cold and the adrenaline dump

The bull was standing facing left. His body was bracketed by the 2 gray trees toward the back of the photo and slightly right of center. He moved left into the opening and I stopped him right between the 2 gray trees and the tree just to the left of center and forward in the picture.

From: Bowfreak
29-Sep-20

I felt certain that my bull was down, but since the morning sun was just now making itself known I had all the time in the world to wait and with the temperature hovering around 20 degrees I decided to give him time. I sat down trying to process my thoughts and immediately fumbled around for my phone. I was able to get a text out to Troy. It was simply, “I shot a bull” with a string of coordinates for my exact location. I knew he could be there in a couple of hours. I was not going to screw this up and if my bull is dead now, he would be dead when help arrived.

It took 3 hours for Troy to make it to me. I did not move in 3 hours. I didn’t even go look for my arrow. I stayed put. After Troy arrived, we walked directly to the spot of the shot and soon I noticed blood sprayed all over the blowdowns only 10 yards away from the point of impact.

This is what I saw 10-15 yards from the location of the shot. This was the first time I had a sigh of relief.

After following a heavy bloodtrail, we were standing over my first bull in a matter of minutes. My arrow had struck him exactly where I was aiming and was responsible for putting the bull down in seconds. It was hard to imagine that after all that I had been through in the last 15 months that I was able to make this dream come true. Not only did I achieve my goal of killing an elk DIY but I killed an elk that was much bigger than I could have possibly imagined. I had almost felt slighted last year at this time when I was at home recovering from surgery dreaming about the mountains, but now I felt like everything happened exactly the way it was supposed to and that due to my struggle to get to this point, success was so much sweeter scars and all.

This was how we found him

From: craigmcalvey
29-Sep-20
awesome

From: Shiras42
29-Sep-20
Mark, that is awesome! Can you post any of the pictures the "normal" way? My company firewall blocks your photo source. Thanks!

From: Bowfreak
29-Sep-20
Shiras,

If I can ever figure out a way to post them correctly the normal way I will go back and redo all of these. For the life of me, I can't get pictures to post in the proper orientation.

From: Old School
29-Sep-20
Thanks for taking us along Mark. Happy for you - your personal recovery and then an elk hunt that dreams are made of.

-Mitch

From: Grubby
29-Sep-20
Congratulations, you deserved a big reward! Thanks for sharing

From: JB
29-Sep-20
Congratulations! Awesome story about perseverance and dedication!! I've never hunted elk, but your shot placement looks perfect. Good for you!!!

From: Paul@thefort
29-Sep-20
Well Mark you RECOVERED from your medical issue and then you RECOVERED a bull elk of your life- time. RECOVERED X2. Nicely done x2. my best, Paul

From: Jeff Holchin
29-Sep-20
Wow, congrats!

From: midwest
29-Sep-20
Congrats again, buddy! Great to hear the full story! I can post a couple pics you sent me with the correct orientation if you'd like.

From: Stoneman
29-Sep-20
Well done x2. First on recovering the medical ordeal and second on taking a great bull! Congratulations

From: JL
29-Sep-20
A big congrats. How did the video turn out?

From: Inshart
29-Sep-20
Outstanding --- well done! Looks like a clear case of "double lung surgery" on that guy.

From: Tilzbow
29-Sep-20
Awesome come back which was only possible because of your incredible courage! Nice bull, too.

From: bowhunter24
30-Sep-20
Way to go Mark and thanks for posting!

From: pav
30-Sep-20
Fantastic recap! What a roller coaster ride...start to finish! Pure determination! Congrats!!! Very happy for you Mark.

From: Supernaut
30-Sep-20
Great recap and photos, thanks for sharing them and very inspirational! Great stuff all the way around!

30-Sep-20
Great story, Mark!

30-Sep-20
Welcome to the elk addiction.... Congrats

From: Bowfreak
30-Sep-20
Thanks everyone. I am truly blessed.

I'll get this finished up today. Here goes.....

I took time to marvel at my bull and then we started snapping hero photos. I did not get carried away taking pictures because I was only concerned with having some good pictures. I didn’t need tons of pictures so once I knew we had a handful of what I would consider good pictures, we started the real work of breaking him down. I was absolutely pumped to have access to all this awesome meat. Even with such a great rack, I am still foaming at the mouth over all the excellent table fare before me.

My equipment performed flawlessly. I made a decision that is possibly as taboo as marrying your sister in that I used a mechanical broadhead. I used a Rage Trypan on this bull and at 50 yards I had complete penetration. My arrow was hung up in the bull for a second (he sheared it off while running and both portions of the arrow were laying 20 yards from where I shot him) but I had a full sized entrance and exit hole. I do have a 30.5” draw but at 60 lbs I was still extremely impressed with the performance.

From: Bowfreak
30-Sep-20

After a few hours we were loading our packs with the first load of meat. I only took out a front as I had a ton of crap in my pack already. Like stupid flatlander meets boy scout meets doomsday prepper ton of crap. Troy took out a hind and the straps. We hauled him out in 3 loads each with my heavy load being the last. I had planned to do a Euro, but this bull was much larger than I ever imagined I would kill. I do not think that I will ever kill one larger, so I felt compelled to haul out the head, cape, and antlers for a shoulder mount. We weighed my pack on a bow scale and it was 92 lbs. I know many of you have hauled out and will continue to haul out much heavier weight than that, but this is all I wanted.

Thanks for following along.

From: sticksender
30-Sep-20
Thanks for sharing your story and congrats on that fantastic & hard-earned bull. You've also revealed your talent as a writer ;-)

From: Bwana
30-Sep-20
Incredible journey, adventure, and bull...congratulations on accomplishing your dream.

As for the photo orientation, when I take photos with my iPhone even though they are oriented properly when I open them on my computer screen, I have to rotate them 4x so they end right back where you started and then save them again. Not sure why but it works for me.

From: Paul@thefort
30-Sep-20
Sweeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeet accomplishment! Put a smile on my face for sure.

My best, Paul

From: Scar Finga
30-Sep-20
Great Bull!

Congratulations!

30-Sep-20
I got to post again... those last pics are awesome! Your story telling is vivid and full of life too. Congratulations, Mark, you earned it!

From: hdaman
30-Sep-20
Great story! Very well written and truly inspirational! Congratulations!

From: drycreek
30-Sep-20
A magnificent animal, a great shot, and an even better story to go with it. Congrats on your recovery from a major surgery and the perfect therapy for the same.

We all appreciate your sharing your journey here on Bowsite !

From: LINK
30-Sep-20
Good story. Congrats

From: elkmtngear
30-Sep-20
Great story Mark, and you made a great shot on that bull !

From: SBH
30-Sep-20
awesome bull! great story, Thanks!

30-Sep-20
great hunt and well deserved.

From: 12yards
30-Sep-20
Dang! What a great hunt! Congrats to you and for your victory over your surgery! Great shot too man!

From: sdkhunter
30-Sep-20
Great story, congratulations!

From: midwest
30-Sep-20
That right there is what everyone should experience at least once in their elk hunting career. Outstanding story and pics. I just loved it!

From: Kodiak
30-Sep-20
That's a dandy bull, wow!

Better yet, the hunt itself was as good as it gets it sounds like. What a great accomplishment.

From: T Mac
30-Sep-20
Wow, fantastic in all facets, congrats!

From: Ucsdryder
30-Sep-20
Awesome! Great story and bull!

From: smurph
30-Sep-20
awesome story, thanks

From: KSBOW
30-Sep-20
Awesome bull

From: Buckeye
30-Sep-20
thoroughly enjoyed your story! great job all the way around!

From: Vonfoust
30-Sep-20
Congratulations! Thanks for taking the time to write this up.

From: APauls
30-Sep-20
Tremendous story. Loved every second of it and congrats on your success!!

30-Sep-20
Mark, Thank you for taking us along! I am super impressed with your preparation for the hunt and your diligence with post-surgery rehab. Great job! Congrats on an awesome bull! Pete

From: Bowfreak
30-Sep-20
I appreciate all the kind words. Many of you have posted about my determination, diligence, perseverance, etc. I will just say that very few people will ever understand, but most people on this site do. I don't want to just survive, I want to live. One of my fears is that one day I will still be alive and unable to draw a bow or unable to see my pins. I'm nowhere near ready to hang it up. I honestly feel extremely lacking compared to most guys on this site. I don't compare myself, I just know I'm never going to hang with many of you. I don't think I am as tough, as good of a hunter, as good of a shot or all of that stuff. Seeing guys on here that just flat out kill it every year is such a motivator.

Having that tag in my pocket was like agreeing to a marathon with a buddy knowing that you won't let your buddy down. I didn't know if I would kill a bull, but I was determined to be back in the mountains chasing them. Just being able to hike with no chest pain or any other symptom felt better than I can even explain.

I have learned since I started elk hunting that I need a goal and nothing gives you a more plain crystal clear goal than holding a tag. The trick for me is to how to keep it up when you don't have a tag.

From: Vonfoust
30-Sep-20
"The trick for me is to how to keep it up when you don't have a tag."

I have that problem and I don't have any of the issues you have had.

30-Sep-20
I appreciated the details of your story and the your "why" behind it. The story is definitely "magazine" quality. Well done - both the hunt and the story.

30-Sep-20
Congrats! Great story, perfect shot, awesome bull. Glad all of it worked out for you!

From: Beav
30-Sep-20
What a great story and so glad you made it happen. Congrats on the bull and enjoy the meat!!

From: zabwelch
30-Sep-20
Awesome bull, and a great story to boot! Congrats!

From: Shiras42
30-Sep-20
Come on! Just one picture, even if it is upside down! You're killing me smalls! :)

From: LINK
30-Sep-20

LINK's embedded Photo
Bow freaks trail came pic
LINK's embedded Photo
Bow freaks trail came pic
Shiras just because I feel bad for you guys that can’t see pics. Boom Zaramay

From: maxracx
30-Sep-20
What a great adventure!! Congrats on your recovery and on your bull. Thank you for sharing.

From: cnelk
30-Sep-20
Great job and congrats again Mark. It was a great day when the pics arrived on on my phone.

From: Bowfreak
30-Sep-20

Bowfreak's embedded Photo
Bowfreak's embedded Photo
Let's try this Shiras.

From: Fields
30-Sep-20
Awesome job. Great story... Congrats!!

From: Shiras42
01-Oct-20
Wow, Mark! Great story! Great bull! Happy you are recovered and back out in the field. He has a very unique antler configuration. Thanks for the PM and posting up the pic. :)

From: ElkNut1
01-Oct-20
Great story, great bull, great shot! Now you're a certified ElkNut! (grin)

ElkNut/Paul

From: JohnMC
01-Oct-20
Loved the story. Congrats on a great bull and recovery!

From: Bowfreak
02-Oct-20

Bowfreak's embedded Photo
Bowfreak's embedded Photo
For those that have asked, this picture shows the rack well I believe. You probably can't tell that I'm still pumped. :)

From: midwest
02-Oct-20
Won't be wiping that smile off your face for awhile!

For those that don't know Mark personally, he is a man of strong Christian faith and strong family values. Not the kind that waves it in your face but lives by example. That's why I'm so happy to see his success after all the struggles he's been through the last couple years. Proud of you, Mark!

From: Jaquomo
02-Oct-20
So happy for you, Mark! After all you went through and persevered to recover, you earned this bull in more ways than one. Congrats, my friend!

From: grossklw
02-Oct-20
Great story, great shot, great bull. Hell of a good tale and a big rack to head east with. Also you can still submit for a magazine article, Jaquomo showed me that when I was throwing around the idea. Makes for a good conversation starter when you're sitting at home and open up that magazine and re-live those memories.

From: t-roy
02-Oct-20
Great story on so many levels, Mark! Congrats on several fronts. First and foremost, for getting healthy! Beautiful bull!

From: Ron Niziolek
02-Oct-20
That was a great story and write up Mark. I'm glad you decided to share it on here. Congrats on a fantastic bull. Job well done!!

From: shooter
02-Oct-20
Great story, thank you for taking the time to write it up for us all! Very well done!

From: cmbbulldog
03-Oct-20
Amazing bull, great story. Thanks for sharing.

From: c3
04-Oct-20
Awesome fortitude Mark !!!

Great bull and story !!!

Cheers, Pete

From: c3
04-Oct-20
double post by accident, but might be apropos :) Cheers, Pete

04-Oct-20
Great story and congrats on your recovery and just bein a tough sumbeatch. Coming back from what you did and haulin out 95 lbs of elk meat.. Bravo my friend.. You are truly and inspiration.

From: goelk
05-Oct-20
congratulation Mark thanks for sharing

05-Oct-20
Congrats. Great bull too.

05-Oct-20
Thanks for sharing. An excellent read and trophy indeed. Getting your health in order is a very difficult challenge--I'm very glad to hear you did so well after your tribulation--keep up the healthy habits. Congrats on your multiple successes.

From: Willieboat
05-Oct-20
Bad Ass !!!

From: wooddamon1
05-Oct-20
Awesome!

05-Oct-20
Congrats on a great bull. Thanks for sharing, and giving me motivation for my elk tag next fall.

From: elmer@laptop
06-Oct-20
That's an awesome job and a great first bull!

From: Bowfreak
06-Oct-20
Thanks everyone. I am blessed and am just thankful that I have had the opportunity to chase elk a few times. Just being in that country is therapeutic.

06-Oct-20
Awesome

From: stringgunner
06-Oct-20
Wow. Nice bull and great story.

From: Chief 419
07-Oct-20
Congrats Mark! Glad to hear you’ve made a full recovery. Killing a bull like that DIY is one heck of an accomplishment. Great story telling. Thanks for taking the time to post it.

From: Barty1970
12-Oct-20
Heartiest congratulations on your bull Mark and thank you for sharing your hunt with us. You have truly travelled 'per ardua, ad astra'...'through adversity, to the stars'. Good luck and good hunting!

From: Bowfreak
05-Mar-21

Bowfreak's embedded Photo
Bowfreak's embedded Photo
I just wanted to update this post. I have bowhunted 30+ years and been lucky enough to shoot a few animals that qualify for the P&Y record book. I have never even considered entering one. This elk was so meaningful to me that I decided to have it officially scored. The numbers on the score sheet are just numbers to me but this bull is my greatest trophy and its not because of the antler size. It is about everything that led up to this hunt. Anyway...here is the official score sheet if anyone is interested.

From: Old School
05-Mar-21
Thanks for the update Mark. Great bull regardless of score, but that is a dandy for sure! Good read the second time through as well.

From: Paul@thefort
05-Mar-21
Just shows what a person is made of. My second read. Nicely done.

From: booner
05-Mar-21
Hell yeah ! Great perseverance and strong will ! Congrats, enjoyed the story.

From: midwest
05-Mar-21
Yeah, buddy!

05-Mar-21
Good for you, Bowfreak! Keep trucking...

05-Mar-21
Nice, enjoy your accomplishment.

From: fastflight
05-Mar-21
Thanks for the update. That elk surely meant a lot more than the score with what you went through. Congrats again.

From: Bou'bound
05-Mar-21
So well done. Great job

From: Brotsky
05-Mar-21
This is awesome Mark! I missed this the first time around as I was also in Wyoming elk hunting during the same time period. Congratulations buddy! What a bull!

From: 12yards
05-Mar-21
WooHoo! Nice!

From: Shiras42
05-Mar-21
Very nice! Better read the second time even!

From: Rgiesey
05-Mar-21
Glad this story was pulled back up. Great job! I know some pretty good hunters that post on here. Seems to me that you share some of the same traits that make them successful.

From: Bowfreak
06-Mar-21
Thanks everyone. I'm so thankful that I was able to make that memory.

From: t-roy
06-Mar-21
Congrats again, Mark! Definitely worth a second read on the story as well!

From: PeteO
06-Mar-21
I originally read it and it was worth a second read. What many of us dream of.

From: deerhunter72
13-Sep-21
I’m sorry that I missed this thread the first go round and I want to bring this one back to the top. This is a great story of determination, patience, faith, and hard work all topped off with a great bull! Congratulations Mark

From: jordanathome
13-Sep-21
Super awesome, I am thrilled for u!

13-Sep-21
Thanks for bringing it back up Great read an great bull!

25-Jan-22
TTT-

From: Bowfreak
25-Jan-22
I am surprised to see this bumped. It is a great memory and I woke up this morning thinking about how I am going to get an elk tag somewhere next year.

From: Treeline
25-Jan-22
Awesome story and bull! Do you have a picture of the mount?

From: Bowboy
25-Jan-22
Great story and pictures. Super nice bull.

I must’ve been hunting and missed this post.

From: Bowfreak
25-Jan-22
Hopefully before I die Treeline. My brother is my taxidermist and as you can probably tell, he doesn't get in a hurry doing anything. :)

25-Jan-22
Mark - You shouldn’t be surprised that this got bumped. It’s a great story! Congrats. Here’s to hoping your brother starts hurrying.

From: Rob
25-Jan-22
I somehow missed this post as well. Congrats on a great bull and hanging in there when the going got rough. Hope you have many more years of great adventures.

From: Bowfreak
27-Nov-23

Bowfreak's embedded Photo
Bowfreak's embedded Photo
Bowfreak's embedded Photo
Bowfreak's embedded Photo
Bowfreak's embedded Photo
Bowfreak's embedded Photo
I finally got the mount back. I think it turned out great. It only took 3 years to get it finished. :)

From: Jaquomo
27-Nov-23
Good looking mount, Mark!

From: deerhunter72
27-Nov-23
Looks great! I guess "only" 3 years isn't too bad;) Thanks for the follow up!

From: Bowfreak
27-Nov-23
I got tied up at work and didn't get a chance to elaborate, but the habitat is incomplete. I will add more deadfall at a minimum and/or rearrange.

From: Old School
27-Nov-23
Looks real nice Mark. Congrats again. I’m sure it’s presence will bring you many flashbacks to that hunt.

From: pav
27-Nov-23
Looks great Mark! Congrats!!!

From: Treeline
27-Nov-23
Thanks, Mark! That looks so awesome! Your brother did a hell of a job on that mount! Congratulations again on a fabulous bull!

From: Bowboy
27-Nov-23
Looks awesome Mark! Now you need to add another one:)

From: Bowfreak
27-Nov-23

Bowfreak's embedded Photo
Bowfreak's embedded Photo
I forgot to add....I made the pedestal base out of materials I had leftover from building a house. I roughed the pine lumber up with a wire wheel on a drill/grinder. I then stained with an oak color and added contrast with a walnut stain sporadically. Then stained over that with a natural looking grey to get an old barn wood like finish. I then added a coat of satin clear polyurethane. I made the habitat "ground" out of 2 part expanding foam. Poured it in and then roughly shaped with a sawzall after it cured. Then I poured a bondo filler and fiberglass resin mixture tinted brown over the foam. The consistency was like a melting milkshake. The creek rock is then sprinkled over the mixture. I then took sand and sprinkled it all over the base to cover any spots of the bondo/resin mixture missed by the the rock. After curing I ran over it with a shop vac to remove any loose rock or sand that didn't adhere to the bondo/resin mixture.

I have also added a picture of the scalloped back. I used spray adhesive and staples to attach faux leather. I then ordered some faux leather braid as a trim on the perimeter. Turned out pretty good. You can see a few wrinkles on the left side of the back. I was unable to keep the wrinkles out due to the odd shape of the back of the form. They look much more pronounced in this picture than in person. Overall it really looks good and I am happy with my first effort at something like this. My brother mounted the elk and I did all the rest.

From: t-roy
27-Nov-23
Looks great, Mark! Adding some of the habitat and backing adds some additional meaning to it for you, as well.

From: kakiatkids
27-Nov-23
I had open heart (valve replacement) 12 years ago. Your scar looks pretty good and the drain holes really good. I am glad you are doing well. As for me I will eventually have to have it done again :-0

From: midwest
28-Nov-23
Looks awesome buddy!

From: HUNT MAN
28-Nov-23
Turned out amazing !!!

From: Ron Niziolek
28-Nov-23
Looks great, Mark!

From: Ambush
28-Nov-23
Mark, what a great story to read again! And not just a story, but a journey!

That’s awesome that now you have the mount to help you relive the whole thing every time you look at it, which I’m sure is often. Congratulations on the whole story and adventure, start to finish.

I shot my first elk this year at 70 years old and it to was way bigger than I had expected or even hoped for. I have a good idea how you were feeling when you finally walked up to it. And what a feeling!!

From: Bowfreak
28-Nov-23
Rod,

I bet you do have a good idea what I was feeling. I remember seeing your bull on the meatpole thread. It was a great bull for anyone, but like mine....a super bull for your first.

Congrats buddy and thanks for the kind words!!!

Mark

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