Success....kinda

[dk17hmr]

I took Friday off of work, need a day off anyways, and headed to the mountains in hopes of filling my elk tag. After hiking for a couple hours I finally spotted a small herd of elk bedded down, I was several hundred yards away, so I dropped over the ridge to stay out of sight. I was easing my way closer so I could watch to see what they would do, the herd was on the next ridge over and with out a pack horse there was no way I was going to shoot. Anyways I was working my way down the ridge when I happen to look down and see a spike bull bedded below me in the timber about 150 yards out. At first I wasnt sure if it was a spike or a cow so I sat down and got my binos out. I watched the little guy for about 15 minutes when a cow stood up, I hadnt seen, about 30 yards further down the hill.

Now I would have shot the spike BUT bull season had ended a few weeks ago. I was after a cow or calf, and this cow was on the right side of the hill. I didnt have a clear shot because of the thick timber but flipped my scope covers up and got my Remington 700 ready. The cow slowly cleared the timber and moved through the opening to quickly for me to take a shot. A bit disappointed I sat at the ready and waited, than a small calf went through the opening, and another cow....game on. The cow paused long enough that I sent a 165gr Accubond from my 30-06 through the back of her ribs, back you say?, she was quatering away hard enough that the bullet entered the back of the ribs punch through and made a wonderful mess of the lungs and top of the heart, the bullet didnt exit rib cage and I didnt dig it out for some reason.

I am a firm believer in shooting until the animal is down. The second I touched the trigger and sent the round the timber exploded with elk running ever direction, I didnt know which one I had shot. To my suprise the big cow was still standing in the opening. As I leveled on her again I could see her legs were giving out and she tipped over without ever kicking, she was done no need for a second shot.
http://i48.photobucket.com/albums/f208/dk17hmr/IMG_0605.jpg
I made a 163 yard down hill shot through the timber and was very pleased with all the meat we were going to have this winter.....until it came time to pack it out.

Rule 1 shoot an elk close to the road
Rule 2 shoot an elk when you have help
Rule 3 if you dont follow rule 1 & 2 work out before season

It took me just about 2 days to get it out of the timber on a pack frame. Sucessful hunt but I am sore and bruised....but look at all the meat!

[kbstenberg]

Congrats on the good shot.
It was allways one of my dreams to get an Elk. At this point thats all it will be.
Kevin

[Old Goat Keeper]

Congrats Doug! Don't know if I'd a had patience to sit them elk out. For darn sure an old guy like me would have to have a boy wonder or 2 to help out after the gun cracked. I envy you (in a good way) all those good elk dinners coming this winter.

Tom

[outdoorfan]

Congrats on the good shot.
It was allways one of my dreams to get an Elk. At this point thats all it will be.
Kevin

Yep, that about says it for me too.

[outdoorfan]

Congrats on the elk...and ALL that meat! Too bad it wasn't with a boolit, though. :lol:

[Blammer]

Good shooting!

got any pics of the packed out meat?

[MT Gianni]

Nice going. It looks like enough snow to use a sled but that downed quakie makes me wonder if your conditions allow it. By the time the burger is ground you will forget the pack out.

[dk17hmr]

I didnt get any pics of the packframes loaded down with meat wish I would have but I didnt. The sled would have worked great, except, this was a burn area and there were logs and trees down all over the place.

Once I had a good path picked out through the tangled mess it wasnt bad. I would do it all over again in a heart beat. The hunt couldnt have gone any better. Unless the guys I was hunting with had some meat on the ground also.

[elk hunter]

Doug,

Good shooting.

The fun ends and the work begins when an elk hits the ground. Never shot a moose, but I imagine it's much worse than elk for packing out.

Anymore I make it a point to avoid bad ground and only hunt/shoot elk where I can drive to them. A friend keeps an old Nisan 4x4 pickup with a ramp and an electric winch in the bed. He hauls my elk out. Sure saves my back. Haven't packed one out in years and my back thanks me.

[DanWalker]

NICE JOB DOUG!
You're making it look far too easy.
Filled all your tags the first year you could hunt. I've been here 8 1/2 years now and STILL have never shot an elk or a good Muley buck.
Congrats bud, YOU EARNED IT!

[Dennis Eugene]

Congrats Doug, good job on haveing the patience to wait for your shot. As for you old guys dreaming of killing an elk, the last one I helped pack out was shot by an old guy, long gone now, who at the time of shooting his spike bull with his grand son at his side was 89 years young. I don't even know his real name but always knew him as Pa Bunker, he put two rounds in to the bull at over a hunnert yards off a good rest just off the side of a logging road. He was an old pioneer of the very NW corner of Washington State getting there long befor the road. So it's never to late and If I live half the life he did I'll die happy. Dennis

[waksupi]

I'm sure this gives you a whole new perspective, on when and where to shoot an elk. And it will be re-enforced every year that you hunt! I notice I cannot see an elk nearly as far away from the truck as I did in my younger years, and those downhill are virtually invisible!

[home in oz]

Great Hunt! Good Story!

[82nd airborne]

Awsome Doug! Now you should take me! I will kill an elk one day. Sounds like an awsome hunt!

[xr650]

Nice Doug.
You had more snow than I did.
Sure am glad you're used to the elevation. Think how fun that would have been last year.
I saw a herd of 9 Sunday morning. Didn't think I could make that 2000 yard shot with my 45-70. Looked for them all day. Never could locate them again.
I couldn't even catch sight of the feral dog I tracked for a while.:wink:

[Beerd]

nice one Doug!
I never had to pack one out on my back but once had to drag a cow out in two pieces. I like to think I'm smarter than that now, hunt uphill - drag down.
..

[MtGun44]

Nicely done! Where were you hunting? I have hiked pretty much all of the west side
of the Wind Rivers and some of the east, but there are lots of other mountains in Wyoming.

Until you have actually dissassembled, packed and hauled an elk you can't quite
appreciate the amount of work you created with the shot.

Great meat.

Bill

[dk17hmr]

We hunt over on the west side of the state. North of Kemmerer.

[reloader28]

Pretty good job for a "southern" boy.

I aint hunted elk in 4 or 5 years and I dont really know why other than my kids are hunting now and I didnt want to spend that extra money. Gotta love the elk hunting tho, its a blast. We normally have elk running all over within a couple miles the house here.

I was lucky enough to go on a bow moose hunt with a friend this year. That was fun. If you think an elk is big, wait till you try a moose!

[MtGun44]

I've tried for mule deer in that area, saw some really nice racks the day before the
season opened. None there after. A bunch of knuckleheads standing by their trucks
in group of 5 or 6 whacking away at a doe running at 500+ yds on a mountainside, the
same one that I was on . . . . . . is my most vivid memory.

Not too impressed with some of the "hunters" I ran into.

Saw a REALLY nice bull moose - but no tag, and LOTS of does, but no tags. And a
nice lynx up close and personal. But there are OFFICIALLY no lynx in that country, so I
must have imagined it.

Again, nice elk, they are really fantastic eating.

Bill

[runfiverun]

if i get an elk down i am usually by myself also.
learned long ago to take out back straps and tenderloins.
cut back bone at rear quarters and drag those with skin on by using a rope through the tendons wrapped around my waist.
and carry out the front shoulders, boned out of course.
any game and money guy can tell the sex from the evidence that way.
you'll like that elk meat. congrat's

[dk17hmr]

We just finished cutting it all up the other day, we just have burger to grind and we will be done. Season opens back up for cow/calf limited quota tags in a week I think, my boss has the tag so hopefully I get a call to help him pack meat.

The future wife and I have been eating steaks and burger from this elk, the mule deer, and the antelope I shot this year just about every day now. She cant get enough of the elk and deer meat, she hasnt warmed up to antelope yet unless I cook it on the grill....something about stinking up the house when we cook it in a pan.

[clodhopper]

Enjoy that cow Doug, Any elk I ever shot with horns on it was kinda rubbery chewing.

[DanWalker]

We just finished cutting it all up the other day, we just have burger to grind and we will be done. Season opens back up for cow/calf limited quota tags in a week I think, my boss has the tag so hopefully I get a call to help him pack meat.

The future wife and I have been eating steaks and burger from this elk, the mule deer, and the antelope I shot this year just about every day now. She cant get enough of the elk and deer meat, she hasnt warmed up to antelope yet unless I cook it on the grill....something about stinking up the house when we cook it in a pan.
Go get some MCcormicks Montreal steak seasoning, and use the marinade recipe on the back of the container. I like to marinade steaks overnight, then just sear them in a hot skillet. Then toss them into the oven at 425 for 5-7 minutes or until done. makes for some GOOD eating antelope.