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Main Boards => PowWow => Topic started by: AZStickman on December 31, 2006, 09:37:00 AM
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When we were in Dallas over Christmas we made a stop over to Cabelas..... I was in hog heaven there....They had bar none the best Elk and Mule Deer displays I've ever seen......My wife took this picture and as I was looking at it I could see each Elk in a position I've actually encountered on my many Elk hunts and I started wondering how many good shot shots you guys would see here..... You've got an either sex Elk tag in the Rockies how many Elk are you going to loose an arrow at given the shot angles shown???
(http://i45.photobucket.com/albums/f91/tpetko/Cabelas%20Dallas/cabelasdallas.jpg)
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Only a possible two shots that I'd consider. the cow in front and the bedded bull.
LeRoy
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no shot for me for two reasons. 1. no good angle 2. I would be shaking to bad to control the shot.
Bill
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none for me either dagburnit..just like real elk hunting!LOL
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Angles are all bad.
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As stated the cow in front needs to move her leg foward a bit...She's looking right at me though...Maybe she will turn away a little before she heads for that mountain top... ;) ...
>>-----> mike <-----<<
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at that range, I agree with Golden Hawk. I could kill the bedded bull or the cow. Wouldn't shoot either any farther away
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Well I tend to shoot LONG heavy ash arrows :knothead: , but the angles are all wrong for a shot.
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I dunno John, pretty substantial brush in front of the bedded bulls vitals :saywhat:
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just the front cow with my blackwidow.
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I don't think I'd have a shot I'd feel comfortable taking. Thank God! With that scenario in front of me, I'd be shaking way to badly to think about shooting!
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I'd have to say just the cow.
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None of them - the Cow is the best shot, but is looking at you and the angle in marginal - the bedded bull isn't clear and the others seem pretty alert that you are there
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I would shoot both the cow and bedded bull. The cow at that close with a heavy arrow and sharp head and my 63# Kwyk Styk would blow right thru her, even a bit back of a shot is gonna kill her as an Elks vitals are pretty big. The bull and that brush looks pretty thin and whispy and ya could easily get one into his vitals. I will say the problem with posts like this are ya really cannot say until you have the real thing in front of you. If ya been hunting hard for weeks and have had no opportunity these shots take on a new meaning. Shawn
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I'd sneak out of there. Four bulls one cow... :scared: ... It's going to look like Beirut pretty soon.
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If ya been hunting hard for weeks and have had no opportunity these shots take on a new meaning.
[/b]
I'd have to disagree Shawn.....To me a bad shot angle on day one is no different than the same angle on day 21... I've been hunting Elk for 36 years now and though I've taken quite a few Cows I've yet to get my first Bull due to shot angles like those in the pics......So in my case a bad shot angle on season one is still a bad shot angle on season 37 coming up...... I only see one shot here the cow.... She is only slightly quartering too us and if you've seen the way an Elks legbone runs there's plenty of room to slip an arrow in there at this range....
Here's where I'd place my shot:
(http://i45.photobucket.com/albums/f91/tpetko/Cabelas%20Dallas/cabelasdallas2.jpg)
Years ago before I saw where the leg bone actually ran I passed this shot up more than once..... Since then I have succesfully harvested Elk with this shot....Here's where the leg bone is running:
(http://i45.photobucket.com/albums/f91/tpetko/Cabelas%20Dallas/cabelasdallas3.jpg)
On the bedded Bull there are a couple of twigs in there that I think would definitely deflect an arrow but more important if you look how that leg is folded up and back.... There's a lot of bone in the area you'd be wanting to hit.....These are my choices based on my experiences over the years in the Elk woods and are right for me with the equipment I choose to hunt with........I've been called overly selective over the years but I can live with that easier than losing one of these majestic critters to a bad shot..... There are so many things that can jump out to bite us at the moment of truth in the Elk woods I've just always tried to hedge things in my favor as much as possible.... Terry
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Good stuff!
Maybe it is just me...but how come no one considers the other factors in game recovery?
"Open type" country, bald knobs, sparse aspen groves, country where you have a good chance of watching the animal for a good distance after you shoot weights heavily in my book.
Moist soil that shows tracks helps too. If you have snow in your favor you have a huge advantage.
Do you have just a couple of animals to deal with or a couple of dozen...the confusion of tracks can make or break you.
Also, if it is early in the day then you have lots of time to unwind the puzzle. Shots that I may take in the morning I may not even consider close to dark.
I imagine most of us with experience factor these and other considerations into our shoot/no shoot decisions.
To me, the animals body position is important but there are many other things that will tip me one way or another.
Bob
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I would try and sneak an arrow through the big bull in the far right when he moves that right leg forward. I shot several doe deer that way and caught the right lung and the liver, also, you have to realize that elks vitals are a lot bigger than whitetails so I would feel comfortable with letting go of an arrow. If I'm lucky he might even turn left slightly when he moves that right front leg and you could lodge it into his far shoulder. Just my .02. What would happen if you just took a few steps to the left or the right? I bet that would change a bunch of your guy's answers... lol sorry I'm bored!
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AZ...Could you come over to my neck of the woods and stick green dots on the deer in my area?... :D ...That's such a great idea!... ;) ...
Happy New Year To All!!!...mike...
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AZ agreed, but to some the pressure of the hunt changes their thinking. I would still kill both of them(I think)as I have never hunted elk, but know my shooting at that range and what my bows are capable of. That is why these threads are tough, just like deal or no deal. It is easy to say(for most)that ya would pass up the deal when you are sitting at home but when you are there, the money takes on a new meaning!! Respectfully, Shawn
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I hear ya Shawn..... I've been fortunate enough to hunt Elk out my back door most of my hunting life and within a few hours drive the rest....My DIY hunts don't put the money thing into the equation much but I can appreciate where you are coming from...... My wife is sending me on a guided Elk hunt in Colorado this Sept and it is a major chunk of change for us and a once in a lifetime deal for me..... I'm already feeling pressures I never have on previous hunts mainly with equipment choices..... The better half really wanted to get me one of those latest and greatest Mathews bows for the hunt but I think she finally realized it wouldn't be the same for me.... I'm going to hunt em the way I've enjoyed it for all these years and if I come home empty it will still be the experience of a lifetime for me...... I've got a lot of seasons under my belt for me to realize the core of the hunting experience for me lies in the experience not the kill but the kill is icing on the cake and doing it the right way makes it that much sweeter..... Terry
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I'm with Shawn here...I'd put a Snuffer through the cow or the bull.
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(http://i75.photobucket.com/albums/i310/jelloats/cabelasdallas.jpg)
shot is placed here on the cow...I'd lean out and stick the bull here
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looks like the cow is walking, so I'd probably wait until her leg stretched foreward...on the bull I'd either wait or try to lean out or slowly ease a few feet to the right...however, if I had to choose a shot right then and there, either would be in trouble.
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I'd a already been busted and they'd be long gone.
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The cow is a gimmee, even with the leg back. The last picture with a red dot on the bedded bull is right where an elk has some of the heaviest bones in it's body, and they are compressed into a small area. You could probably kill the bulls on the left and right before the bedded one at these shot angles.
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ya, the bull is a little questionable...I'd have to be there to know for sure
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If I were already at full draw I suppose I could get a good arrow into that cow. But you don't get many chances in life with 4 bulls that size that close, so there is no way I would let it go. I would hold on and hope like heck that one of them would turn broadside for me before they all bust out of there!
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Bedded critters do not leave a lot of room for a shot, no matter the angle. Bones are moved around and elk have BIG bones.
ChuckC
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Originally posted by TBone07:
I would try and sneak an arrow through the big bull in the far right when he moves that right leg forward. I shot several doe deer that way and caught the right lung and the liver, also, you have to realize that elks vitals are a lot bigger than whitetails so I would feel comfortable with letting go of an arrow. If I'm lucky he might even turn left slightly when he moves that right front leg and you could lodge it into his far shoulder.
This is exactly what I was thinking...
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Cow and bedded bull. If I lean my body back 3 inches and shoot 1 of the 2 bright colored leaf's He is toast. I hope I have that shot on a bull like that someday!
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Sorry arrow4Christ. That dot is in the exact wrong spot.
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About the bull on the right. If he stays in that spot with his legs as they are. I could kill him, but I am not sure if I would find him. Therefore I pass. The other 2 are very close and I have shot through leaves many times at that distance with no ill effect.
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For me---none! The ones you can get a clear shot of the vitals of, are either facing towards more than I like or their near-front leg should be allowed to take one more step to open the vital up a little. I'm a major stickler for my shot placement anyway...
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No shots for me, close, but not quite.
I would hold off and hope to get a perfect shot on one of them.
Robert
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Well I tell ya perfect shots don't happen very often and if you know elk anatomy, the cow is as close as you dare ask for. Shoot right where the guys above show the spot and it's dead in seconds.
The bedded bull is tempting but I would wait for him to stand first.
I've played this game so many times at the same display you can't imagine. Spent a lot of time eyeing the moose around the corner too.
LOL
Mike
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"I dunno John, pretty substantial brush in front of the bedded bulls vitals "
Micky, nobody said you couldn't kneel or lean. I believe we'd be eatin' Elk.
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I'd shoot the cow. The bull needs to grow another year or two. ;)
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You guys are making too big a deal out of it. Just kick the cow out of the way, take a couple steps forward and pin the bedded bull to the ground. Then nock another arrow a say, "Who's next?" :p
This all coming from a guy that got chased across a meadow by a 6x6 bull on a rant. :rolleyes:
Actually I would probably hope the cow walked away then draw on the bedded bull and step towards him. I'd keep my eyes on the vitals and as he came to his feet I'd launch the arrow(I once took a 6pt WT @ 10' this same way). All the while praying they don't decide to stomp me flat. Of course I might just drop dead of stress too. Horses with horns make me nervous.