Back from Alaska

[talltines]

My adventure began on Aug 18 when I left the St. Louis airport and met up with my hunting partner Dave in Minneapolis. From there we were bound for Fairbanks and beyond. A couple days later the supercubs finally touched down on a distant ridgetop 120 miles from civilization. As the planes drifted away we finished staking down the tipi which good 'ol SteveO was nice enough to lend us. Once camp was made water was the next order of business. Of course, it was quite a walk to any decent seep on the side of the mountain. We finally found some water and watched caribou make their way to us in the fading light. A quick meal of Mountain House was enjoyed and it was time for lights out.

The first few days were spent learning the countryside and trying to figure out if the caribou had any specific travel routes that we may be able to set up on. Unfortunately, the terrain was extremely open and getting anywhere near bow range was proving to be very difficult. By the third day, we were beginning to doubt that any chance of a close shot opprotunity would present itself. Early in the evening around camp we spotted a small group of caribou pass below our tent moving to the west. I decided to try and move in on them but again fell short of being able get within range due to the lack of cover. As I was walking back to camp, I looked to my left into the valley the bou had just come from. That was the second group of bou that had come through that valley that day. There was really no discernable trail that they were using to set up on. I decided that I might as well take a closer look and see if there was some place that I might be able to set up in in case another group moved through. I ended up finding a nice rocky area that had a little bit of countour that gave me a place to hide.


 

[cody94]

THIS ONE WILL BE GOOD

[centaur]

      Let's hear more!

[Mike Vines]

Patiently waiting.

[talltines]

I had only been sitting for a few minutes when I looked up and saw a group of caribou crest a ridge nearly a mile away. Nearly all of them were nice bulls with what looked to be the largest one in the back. It's amazing how fast caribou can cover ground as it seemed like only moments later and they were in the valley below me. The hillside I was on was very wide. It seemed as if they could go anywhere but with each step they grew closer and seemed to be a string right to my location. I tried to position my body so that I could shoot to both my right or left if needed. I was beginning to feel really good about my odds, but strongly questioned whether I had enough cover to fool a couple dozen eyes as they neared. I crouched down and hugged the hillside the best I could. My bow tip rested on the ground just slightly canted with an arrow nocked and tension on the string. I could hear the clicking and breathing as the bulls neared and began passing by. They were somewhere around 35 yards and moving steadily by. No shot opportunities were presented but I watched the back of the group where the large bull remained. For some reason though, he chose a different path. One that was closer than all the other bou. He was the last to pass by and just as he neared my hiding place he stopped. His eyes looked intently at me. He remained still for only a few seconds and then looked forward again to rejoin his group of bulls making their way up hill.


 

[Steve O]

Oh, what could it be?  Some TALL Tines for Mr. TallTines?

Never any doubt in my mind...

[talltines]

I remember the bull taking two steps when I hit my anchor and the let string go. At the shot he turned and ran down the hill while the other bulls went up. The bull disappeared from view as he crested the next ridge. I met up with Dave and we decided to slowly sneak over and look into the small valley where he went. It only took a couple seconds to spot him bedded in the bottom. I knew at the shot I had hit farther back than I wanted. The arrow had entered about 8 inches behind the leg and 1/3 of the way up. It exited slightly forward of the entry due to the slight quartering away angle.

We were watching from about 200 yards away when the wind suddenly changed and the bull got up. He made his way uphill away from us on the next ridge. He bedded immediately. The light was fading fast and it was time to make a decision. Trying to move in on him might work, but if it didn't and he was still alive I could have easily ran him for miles. A few more minutes passed and I glassed him again. This time all I could see was his antlers. His head was laying on it's side and all I could see was the inside of his right antler, angled towards us. I decided we should get back to camp and make the recovery in the morning.

No, I didn't sleep that night.....

[Steve O]

Hey, that tipi should be worth a steak or two...


 

[eagleone]

[talltines]

The next morning we were out early. Really early. We hiked up high to look down where the caribou had bedded. We had saw 4 grizz in the valley below where the bou was in the previvous days. A sow with 2 cubs and a lone boar. When we glassed down where the bou had bedded, he was gone. We searched and searched for about 3 hours, even gridding the draws in the valley bottom that were choked with brush. I didn't like it, but felt like I had to look in there just in case. Fortunately there was no bear sign nor any bou at the bottom. By this point I was wearing down. I knew the shot was very lethal and nothing was adding up. I told Dave I was going to hike up to where I thought the bull should have died and look down in case he had backtracked. I had only moved about 50 yards up the hill when I spotted antlers sticking up, at the same angle they were the night before. I yelled to Dave that I had found him. He hadn't moved an inch from the night before. We then realized that when we were looking from above we couldn't see him because of all the dips and packets in the hillside. He was laying in a low spot and couldn't be seen from above. After the handshakes and pics, we dug our heels in for the work. By 3 pm I was washing my hands and knives. The meat was hung from rocks and shaded with a tarp. The head was caped out and left to cool in the shade and the antlers were admired over a warm cup of tea. I can't thank Dave enough for all his help. I certainly hope that I can return the favor one day.


 


 


 

[JohnnyWayne]

OH man we posted at the same time, pure awesome    

   

[varmint101]

Sweet!  Great caribou and pictures!

[Ryman Cat]

Now we are on the edge just waiting to hear whats next.I bet the Bou in the morning recovered.Great story man lets hear more.

[Mike Vines]

Originally posted by Steve O:
Hey, that tipi should be worth a steak or two...


     

I like your style Steve.

[KentuckyTJ]

Beautiful bull Brian congrats.

[Ryman Cat]

Beauty Oh to be young again enjoy it now while ya still can it comes fast as the years pass.Great pictures for a life time.

[Steve O]

Uh, I have another question.  I shot that bow in bear camp in May and it didn't have any checkering on it.  I like the looks of that!

Great animal BW.  Good hard work pays off.      

[Ragin Bull]

Congrats on a fine bull            
And you build a beautiful bow Brian

[GRINCH]

Congrats on the shot and recovery.  

[Benny Nganabbarru]

Awesome! Congratulations!