great times with family & friends, and a long month of elk hunting the high country

[huntnmuleys]

this one might get kinda long guys, but I took a few good pics along the way.  I live for September.  hunting elk in the high country is what I was put on this planet to do....

 

[huntnmuleys]

the first week and a half of September was spent in our "big" camp.  only one guy drew an elk tag this year, and hes in his mid 70s with a shoulder handicap.  while I wont get into too many details of his hunt, know that we helped the old boy get it done!  and, in the meantime I spent a little time chasing muleys and running a bear bait.  no bears came in, but I did learn a great muley spot.
 

 

helping chase elk was fun too....
 
 

[huntnmuleys]

now ill get to what I really want to chat about, my/our elk hunt. you see, none of us had drawn tags this year so myself, my dad, my brother Levi, and friends Randy (wyoferret) and Phil headed to a mountain range with ample general areas here in Wyoming.
 

our first morning out, I hunted with dad.  we didn't get into any elk, but tripped over a dandy bull moose...
 

[Sockrsblur]

[huntnmuleys]

honestly, the hunting was a tad slow.  it seemed like there were elk around, but locating them was hard.  lots of sign though..
 

I wasn't the only predator out and about.  I had a tag for this too but no sightings.

 

[huntnmuleys]

in all of this we got a three day hard rain, and hunting was impossible.  and while the wood stove in the tent kept us warm, it did not keep everything dry.  only so many places to hang clothes in a wall tent!

talk about a crazy crew though..

 

elk hunting makes a guy turn old quick!

 

and after the rain, we got a little snow.  a full spectrum of weather.

 
 

[huntnmuleys]

the strange part to me was all of the bugling happened in the evening.  from 6 til dark, a guy had a chance of hearing or seeing something.  morning were a bust, although my brother and I almost pulled it off one morning.  guess we finally made enough noise that a bull felt compelled to talk. however, he got away unseen. one evening I got on a nice 5 point feeding out in a park with other bulls bugling in most directions.  a couple cow calls had him coming, but that dang swirling wind saved his bacon just a few seconds before I could shoot.

the nights, when not raining, were gorgeous.
 

[huntnmuleys]

losing that many days to rain makes a trip go faster than a guy hopes.  in no time, it was my last morning.  I was trying a new spot and as usual hearing nothing.  at one point I threw out a bugle and yet again got no response.  after waiting a few, I took about 5 steps and herd an elk sorta bust on the other side of a small thicket.  I cow called immediately and it stopped, and I tried coming around the thicket  to get a shot but instead walked directly into the oncoming herd bull.
he was a good one.
and he had a good look at me.  no pics of him, but he was a heavy, dark racked old bull.  a true dandy.  I watched him ease away, and heard the 3 cows he had with him shuffling around me.  now, on a general tag in bow season any elk is legal, and I was more than willing to take a cow.  that shot never came either.  beautiful spot though...

 

I wonder what story this old arrow could tell?  the things you find in the high country...

 

[huntnmuleys]

and in no time the trip was done.  its crazy how fast an elk camp makes time go. lose a day or two to weather and its just gone.  we all saw some elk, and even got quite close.  Levi botched a shot on what would have been his first traditional elk.  Randy got close to several.  for my part, I nearly shot that 5 point, the big guy the last day, and a raghorn in the trees another time.  great trip with great people. here are a few more.  gotta gather that firewood!

dad waiting to carry some pieces.

 

levi running the saw..

 

randy and phil doing what they do best (any of you that have hunted with randy know this to be accurate)!!!!
 

[huntnmuleys]

here are some of an old dozer we found near an old road.  check this baby out!!

 
 
 

[huntnmuleys]

weird isn't it?  a guy waits all year for this, and suddenly youre on the way home from elk camp.  the drive home was long, as long as they ever are with an unfilled tag in your pocket.  I just wasn't ready to be done chasing elk yet.  so, I came home for a couple days, ran errands and did laundry, and planned a solo backpack trip into the wilderness.  nothing wrong with a last ditch effort.  I had ample vacation left, so lets go get it done!!!!


once again, the high country beckons.

 

[huntnmuleys]

just driving to the trailhead is exciting, let alone getting out and getting with it.

 


now, somewhere in the middle of all of this, something in my pack came out of adjustment.  I have no idea why, but my usual comfy backpack was a nightmare. hiking the few miles into the wilderness was brutal on my shoulders.  I stopped and tweaked things a time or two, and it helped. however something still isn't up to snuff.  back to the ol drawing board there.  

stretching the neck to try to get the feeling back in my shoulders.
 

[SAM E. STEPHENS]

Love that elk hunting....

,,,Sam,,,

[huntnmuleys]

me too, Sam.  sorry for the delay here, I cant put this fork down.  elk backstrap is just too good.

[huntnmuleys]

anyhow, I finally got to this one ridge ive been to before.  its quite a bit lower than the alpine areas, but is a great place to spot from, with some out of the wind/weather places to pitch a tent. water is close by as well. I started glassing, and the whole range is eye candy.

 


and, there were elk. 5 or 6 of em above timberline.  one good bull.  really good.  even from the distance, I could see mass, long, dark beams, just a high country monarch.  here are a couple pics of the herd. you really cant tell him from adam, my little pocket camera at 56 digital zoom just isn't the best.

hes in the center of this pic, right by the two "little" trees by the two small tree groups mid pic.
 


there are three elk in the pic.  hes the one mid pic, horning a bush. tough to tell I know but trust me, hes a dandy.
 

[huntnmuleys]

I even heard him (I think) bugle once.  it was wayyyy faint but was obviously a bugle.

one last look...
 


and I saw nothing more that night, though admittedly I just watched this guy until dark.  now I had a dilemma.  he's there for the taking.  sort of. he's WAY up there.  can I get him out before he spoils, if i'm able to get him? I pondered this in the tent trying to sleep, and after looking at a map I found a way I believe I could get him out, though it would be a two day project.  I decided in the morning, I would hunt up the ridge I was on and check the next basin for more accessible elk, and if nothing looked good, I would make a play on this bull.  a delightful dilemma to ponder....

[huntnmuleys]

I mean, really, how can a person NOT enjoy thinking about these things looking at evenings like this?

 

anyhow, after a meal I hit the rack...

 

but I didn't sleep the whole night.  somewhere around 3 am I was awakened.  I had heard a faint bugle.  not from this bull, but from something below me on the ridge.  it was obviously far off, but a bugle it was.  and, at 330ish, he bugled again.  this time it was within 150 yards of my tent id estimate. a very mature sounding bugle as well, might be time to go follow in the dark.  I was really going to try this, but he never bugled again.  I waited and listened for quite awhile but nothing. so, I dozed back off but was up before shooting light for oatmeal and coffee.  I don't know what happened to that bull, but I never heard him again.  I was however just fixing to leave the tent when another bull bugled. sounded like a couple hundred yards up the ridge.  he didn't sound all that big, but its getting late in the season, and im in a general area.  hell id shoot a cow.  a beautiful day was breaking before me.

 


my room at the Hilton...
 

[huntnmuleys]

so leaving the tent, I got just up the rise from it and cow called softly. I could tell he was not quite as close as id previously thought, or he was moving away.  either way, I had to go, now!  I moved up a couple hundred yards and cow called.  and waited. and waited.  it seemed like forever but was actually just a couple minutes when he came back with a  short, quiet bugle.  you know the type, the "im here but don't let any big bull know im here" sort of answer.  again I moved quick and cut off more distance.  got to a place by a single tree and huge rock sort along the edge of the opening.  I really figured any bull would try to circle downwind, and when he did i'd have a great shot off of the small rise I was on.  two semi quiet cow calls were answered shortly with some breaking branches, and finally a glimpse of legs and antler coming my way.

one problem, he wasn't circling.  he was coming straight in.  I hadn't set up for that.

but here he came, and instead of stopping in a shooting lane he paraded right to me at about 8 yards.  a fine raghorn. but, I was totally exposed at the angle he was at.  I was trying to let him get sort of past me to shoot, yet not let him get around to my wind but was running out of time.  nothing to do but try a shot, yet when I tried drawing of course he saw it and blew up.
dammit.

having taken my call out of my mouth for some reason previously, I did my best impression of a cow elk with my voice and he stopped just a step or two past 25 yards.  I picked a spot, hit anchor, and let fly....

and saw and heard a hit!

but I was concerned.  I couldn't tell if he'd turned to go as I shot, or when the arrow hit.  my brief glimpse told me the entrance was spot on, but if he was turning away then this wasn't a good thing.  I could hear him tearing off through the trees, and it sounded like a crash about 50 or 60 yards into the trees.  then silence.  but I wasn't sure (something about my thundering heart beat messing with my hearing I think). I opted to give him 45 minutes before I started looking for blood.  and when I did, I found this...

 

[huntnmuleys]

this looked good, as he was running hard at this point, but honestly after this blood was way tough to come by.  weird. I found a bit more.

 

his tracks were much easier to follow however.

 

and about 50 yards up the trail, I found a bit better sign...

 

[huntnmuleys]

im thinking I shot the smallest 6x5 ever recorded!  and, I couldn't be happier.

 

 

for my first solo backpack/wilderness bull, and first longbow bull, he scores about 400 in my book.  a couple buddies generously opted to help me get him out yesterday, and my elk season is done.  im exhausted.  this one was way tough.  I have no idea how many miles ive logged in the last month, but it is a substantial amount.  but im eating elk this winter.

long live September!