My wife said to me as I was packing up for my annual elk hunt. I knew she was only kidding, but her message was serious. Ironically, I had pulled the last two packages of elk meat out of our freezer to be used to make chili in camp during the hunt. Ever since I introduced my wife to elk venison she almost refuses to eat store bought meat and this was her subtle way of telling me it was time to bring some more home, point taken. It was also her way of telling me to enjoy myself and not worry about her or the kids. I told her I'd check in every night I could but let her know once I packed in I'd have no reception and not to wory if she didn't hear from me for 4 or 5 days. Yeah right :rolleyes:
It was 9:00 pm by the time we rolled into our old familiar camping spot in the beautiful San Juan mountains of Southern Colorado. As we stepped out of the truck, the cool mountain air was a pleasant change from the heat and humidity we had left at home. We were too beat from the 17 hr drive to fully set up camp so we quickly set up the wall tent, assembled our cots and piled everything else in the tent. We'd set up a proper camp after tomorrow mornings hunt. For now it was time to hit the sack.
(http://i.imgur.com/pw5J1Fl.jpg)
Gotta go for now, the kids are up and I need to spend some time with them. More to come.
Cool pic Good Luck
No pressure there. LOL
Looking forward to reading the story.
Mike
:campfire:
:coffee:
Nice pic
Looking forward to your story. Always wanted to hunt the San Juans!
I'm up in the North Park area this year. Good luck!
AJ
Nice picture! Good luck and have fun! :thumbsup:
Bernie Bjorklund
NC Iowa/SW Wisconsin
Kids come first, but don't forget about us when you're done!
Ahhh, I was wondering how you did. I hope the package came before you left.
Sorry guys. I don't intend to drag this out. In fact my goal is to have it all done by 8:00 tomorrow morning because I know after that I'll be paying for taking 10 days off work.
Steve O...I did get the package before I left. Thanks :thumbsup:
It felt like I had barely closed my eyes when the alarm went off at 4:00 but I was quick out of bed, it was finaly hunting season for me!
I lit the Coleman stove and boiled some water for instant coffee and oatmeal. We ate quickly and shoved a few snacks in our packs for later in the morning and jumped in the truck for a short drive to the area we planned to hunt.
My plan was to do shorter day hunts with my brother in spots that have been productive in the past for the first two days so I could get my "mountain legs" (and lungs). Then on the third day I'd pack in for 4 days to an area I've had good luck in. If that didn't pan out I'd come out, restock, and pack in for 4 more days to a new spot I'd mapped out. My backpack was already loaded up and ready to go.
(http://i.imgur.com/FXKwbFS.jpg)
As my brother and I pulled up to the parking spot on the first morning the truck's thermometer read 31 degrees and the skies were crystal clear. Perfect! We shouldered our packs, grabbed our bows started hiking. The area we planned to hunt was about 3 miles in but the good news was it was all up hill. :)
After about 2-1/2 miles of steady climbing I stopped for a blow. Suddenly, through my rapid breathing I heard the faint wistle of a bugle. I grinned and whispered to my brother, "hear that", "hear what" he said. Suddenly another bull bugled closer. He returned the grin "I heard that one" The bulls were up a drainage to our left and sounded to be about 500 yards up the drainage and several hundred yards above us.
I looked at my watch and we still had at least 45 minutes until shooting light. I told my brother all we could do was move in to about 250 yds then stay with them until it was light enough to make a move. We moved up the drainage several hundred yards and climbed up high enough to get away from the noise of the rushing water in the creek below.
I counted 3 different bulls bugling in the group total. We could quickly tell they were travelling away from us, up the drainage and up the mountain. We kept moving trying to stay within a couple of hundred yards of them and below them so the downward thermals would keep our sent away from them. If you've ever tried to keep up with an elk travelling up hill I don't have to tell you that it feels like you're fighting a loosing battle. I knew if we could just keep them in ear shot, eventually the cows would stop to feed or just hang out and we could move in.
Finally, about 10 minutes before daylight and maybe 1/2 a mile up the drainage they sounded like they finally stoped moving, or at least slowed down. We moved in and waited for the sun.
:campfire:
:campfire: :archer:
waiting patiently!! :campfire:
You're off to a good start, now keep it coming! :readit:
This is awesome!
THANKS
Once it was light enough to shoot, I moved to within about 100 yards while my brother hung back about 75 yards behind me. I called a bull in for him on the last day of our hunt in Idaho last year so I was up to the plate this time. Once I was in position I made a couple soft calls and two bulls immediately bugled back. We went back and forth for a few minutes but I could tell they weren't coming down to me. The area I was set up in was open Aspens and the bulls knew they should be able to see any cow that was down there. I shut up and let them drift up the hill.
As soon as I heard one of them bugle far enough away to allow me to move I began climbing. After about 150 yards I could see a bench above me and the vegetation started to thicken. There were small Spruce mixed in with the Aspens and the ground cover was much thicker with shrubs and new growth Aspen. I picked out a Spruce growing on the lip of the bench and using it for cover I quickly moved up to the bench while my brother stayed 75 - 100 yards behind me. I eased around the Spruce and picked out a large Aspen to stand beside to block my form. To my left was extremely thick young Aspen and ground cover and to my right about 40 yards the dark timber began.
This is an elk's view looking back down the bench. The Spruce in the middle is the one I use for cover and I set up in front of the large Aspen in front of it.
(http://i.imgur.com/oIlUZZB.jpg)
I stood there for a minute and let my heart rate calm back down from the climb, or maybe it was the excitement, probaly a little of both! I knew the bull wouldn't go down to my brothers calling in the open Aspens so I signaled to him that I'd take over the calling. I cupped my hand to my mouth to send the call to my right and slightly down hill from and let out a soft, nasally mew. A bull screamed back almost before I had finished the call, and he was close. He was just above me, over the edge of the bench and to my left. I made one more call and shut up. It was the last week of archery season and I knew these bulls had been called to for 3 weeks. I didn't want to over do it, and they knew where I was now. The next move was theirs. A couple of minutes went by with no bugles. This meant one of two things: either he was drifting off or coming in silently.
Just then I saw a small 2" diameter Aspen tree swaying about 40 yards above me and to the left, but the wind wasn't blowing. I scanned to find the movement and suddenly there he was like a ghost standing 35 yards in front of me. It always amazes me how silent an animal their size can be when they want to, then at times they can sound like a heard of elephants coming through the woods.
This is fantastic!
More!!!!
I couldn't believe this was happening so quickly. I mean this was the first day, the first 30 minutes. This was supposed to be a day for acclimation and setting up camp. But hey, here I was and I wasn't about to look a gift horse in the mouth.
As the bull stepped into a clearing I was finally able to see his antlers. I didn't spend much time looking at them but I could tell he wasn't the herd bull but a satellite bull coming in to steal a cow. Still, he appeard to be a nice 5pt and I had no intensions of passing on him. This was not a premium tag or limited entry area, this was a heavily hunted, over the counter area and I knew from past experience it typically took 7-10 days of hard hunting to produce one good oportunity at a bull within stick bow range. If that opportunity came on the first day or the last day I needed to take advantage of it if I didn't want to be eating tag soup, and if I wanted to go home!
The bull stood for a moment looking around then he began moving my way coming from left to right. He stopped about 30 yards out shielded by brush. After about a 10 second pause he continued on looking for the cow to my right and below me. I knew a shot was imminent. I scanned ahead of him and found an opening between two Aspens at about 25 yards. I tightened my grip on the string and began telling myself, "shoulder up, solid bow arm, pick a spot, keep pulling.....shoulder up, solid bow arm, pick a spot, keep".....THUUNNGG. The arrow zipped through him so fast I didn't even see where it hit, but heard the unmistakable sound of the impact. The bull jumped ahead about 10 yards and stopped looking back at me, he had no idea what just happened. I already had another arrow on the string but I didn't dare move as he was burning a hole through me. He was now standing at about 35 yards and shrubs between he and I blocked his entire body. All I could see was his head and neck. I knew the trajectory of my arrow would clear the shrubs. Judging by the position of his neck he appeared to be quartering away. As soon as he turned his head away from me I came to full draw, picked an imaginary spot on the shrubs where I thought his vitals were and the shot was off. The flight looked perfect clearing the shrubs and again I heard the hollow sound of impact. The bull bolted for about 75 yards then all was silent.
The bull was between the closest Aspen tree in the middle of the photo and the one to the right of it on the first shot and was behind the shrubs on the far right side of the photo on the second shot
(http://i.imgur.com/0TpkSvw.jpg)
:campfire: :coffee:
As soon as the bull left, I immediately knew I had made a huge mistake on my first shot. Everything had happened so fast and I was so focused on the shot I had forgotten to stop the bull and shot him walking. If I had shot at the spot where I was looking my shot would have been much too far back on a walking elk at 25 yards. I instantly got that nagging feeling in my stomach.
I motioned my bother up to me and replayed what had just happened to him. I told him I was almost certain my first shot was too far back and was uncertain exactly where my second shot hit. I moved up to where the bull had been at my first shot and found my arrow buried in an Aspen log. The feathers were covered in blood but the front 8 inches of the shaft confirmed my fears. I followed his tracks to the location of the second shot and found my second arrow buried in the dirt.
(http://i.imgur.com/6y0l8HP.jpg)
It was covered in blood and I immediately saw blood on the ground but because we knew my first shot was too far back and didn't know about the second we decided to give him 3 hours before taking up the trail.
I'm loving this hunt! Great telling of the story.
Cool story! Thanks for sharing!
The seconds seemed like minutes and the minutes like hours as I tried to occupy myself with anything I could to pass the time as we waited out my bull. Finally after 3 hours had passed we slowly began following the trail. The blood was heavy at first and easy to follow as the bull side hilled. After about 50-75 yards we found two large pools of blood about the size of a basketball then the bull turned up hill. I knew this was bad news and the blood trail immediately became harder to follow. We followed the trail up the hill for another 100 yards and the blood suddenly stopped. The nagging in my stomach turned to nausea and disgust.
The bull was moving up hill in the Aspens but was right on the edge of the dark timber and was only about 150 yards from the top of the mountain. I was almost certain the bull would go into the dark timber so my brother began searching there while I continued to look for blood. My search was fruitless, it was if somone had closed a valve and the blood was completely shut off. After a couple hours I finally realized there was no more blood to find and I began helping my brother search the dark timber and blow downs. After several hours of combing we hadn't located so much as a hair. Finally my brother said what I had known all along but refused to believe. "Aaron, without blood our chances of finding the bull in this country are like finding a needle in a hay stack". Disgusted in myself, we headed down the mountain and back to the truck. The 2-1/2 mile walk back seemed to take forever as I beat myself up the whole way.
And then...
And then what?
DarkTimber, Awesome storytelling, can't wait to hear the rest. Hope it turns out well for you!
As we pulled back into camp my brother asked "What's your plans for this afternoon" but he already knew the answer. "I'm going to finish setting up camp then I'm going back to find my bull" I said. "Ok, I'll go with you and help". I knew he'd be right there looking with me until I called it quits. Good hunting partners are like that and I'd been fortunate enough to be born with one of the best a guy could ask for. I knew two people searching would be better than one, but the truth is I just wanted to be alone. So I told him to go hunting, I didn't want to waste any more of his time. He reluctantly agreed as he helped me finish setting up camp.
(http://i.imgur.com/e6LvtCW.jpg)
(http://i.imgur.com/ytyTdsj.jpg)
(http://i.imgur.com/XdVW4TC.jpg)
Thank you for the story. You write well. I'm excited to read the rest.
As soon as camp was set up I drove back to where I'd shot my bull and started the aready familiar hike in. As I climbed it seemed much tougher this time since I had alread put in 6 or 7 miles and this was the first day. As I finally aproached the spot I'd shot the bull my legs felt like Jello.
I sat down to rest for a minute where the shot had occured, then with a clear head I began following the blood trail again. Except this time I didn't have to look at the groud to look for blood, I already knew where it was. Instead, I was paying attention to the direction of travel and trying to let the trail tell me where the bull wanted to go instead of me telling myself where I thought he should go. As I followed the trail it was clear he was moving up the hill and to the left into the thick overgrown Aspens, not to the right into the dark timber like I'd suspected earlier. I stopped at the last blood and then intead of turning into the dark timber I turned toward the Aspens. About 20 yard from the last blood I found a track that appeared to be from my bull, then further on a couple more, but still no blood.
By now I could see the bull was heading back the direction he had come from that morning. The problem was it was near the top of the mountain allowing so much sun to hit the hill side that the Aspens and brush were so thick you could barely see 5 yards. I'd literally have to almost step on the bull to find him. Still, I had a new sense of hope and enthusiasim. It was time to start sifting hay!
It was now about 5:00 in the afternoon and the thermals were coming up. I knew I'd smell the bull long before I saw him in this thick country so I decided to start at the top of the mountain and work my way down until I covered the entire mountain side. I made it to the top and hadn't gone 100 yards when the smell of bull elk stopped me in my tracks. Almost at the exact same moment the bull stood out of his bed 20 yards away. He was slightly quartering toward me and an 8 inch Aspen was running right behind his shoulder. I knew I couldn't get both lungs with his body angle but if I hugged the shoulder I could get one lung and the liver and knew that would put him down quickly. I also knew he was about to bolt and if that happend I'd never find him again. There was no pre shot routine this time, in fact I don't even remember nocking an arrow. All I remember is leaning out to clear the Aspen tree and seeing a dried up bloody spot on his side to confirm it was my bull. The next thing I remember was the nock disappearing right where I was looking and seeing the arrow hanging by the fletching as he turned to run.
He crashed down the hill about 75 yards then all was silent again. I sat down, emotionally spent. I was almost certain of the outcome this time but decided to give him an hour just to be safe. The blood trail was not difficult to follow this time and as I approached the last spot I could hear him I looked up and saw him laying against an Aspen. It was finally over!
There was no whooping or hollering, no back slapping or fist pumping. I gently laid my bow on him, brushed his hide and thanked the Lord for giving him to me. I didn't feel like I deserved him.
(http://i.imgur.com/DtfIweE.jpg)
There is no doubt that you DID deserve that bull! Congratulations & thanks for the great story.
It was now about 6:30 and I only had about an hour and a half until dark and I had a lot of work in front of me. I pulled out my camera and mini tripod to capture the memories and to share with my hunting buddies on Trad Gang and quickly took some pictures.
(http://i.imgur.com/b2QvOIU.jpg)
As soon as the pictures were taken and my tag was finally on him, I began preparring him to feed my family. Within an hour and a half I had all the meat off and in game bags. I used some small Aspen limbs to make a rack to keep the bags off the ground and allow it to cool. It was supposed to be in the low to mid 30's that night and I knew the meat would be in great shape the next morning. I stacked 3 of the bags on the rack and strapped the 4th containing a hind quarter to my pack. I shouldered the pack just as it was getting dark, the weight felt good! I turned on my headlamp and started down the mountain. The good news was it was all down hill. The bad news was the first half mile was damn near straight down and thick. When I finally reached trail at the bottom I felt like I was home free although I still had over 2 miles of trail to go.
As I strolled down the long, muddy trail my mind drifted off to someplace else, suddenly a willow bush caught my boot sending me face first into the mud, landing on my bow. The 80+ pounds on my back pushed me down into the mud and I struggled to get back to my feet. I finally got back vertical and looked over my bow. Other than being muddy it was no worse for the wear. I continued on paying more attention as I went.
When I finally reached the truck it was a couple hours after dark. I let the tail gate down then backed up to it setting my pack on it and letting it take the weight off my shoulders, I unstrapped the waste belt and unshouldered the pack. I laid back in the bed of the truck covered in blood, mud, and sweat, looked up at the stars and smiled from ear to ear. What a day!
Great perseverance. That's the way we SHOULD do it. Congrats on a fine trophy, fairly won!
That's a great story and very nicely told! Thanks for posting it.
The next morning my bother and I were back before daylight to finish getting the meat out. We decided one heavy load would be better than having to come back in twice so we split the meat in the third bag between us (he took more as usual)and we finished what we had started 24 hours earlier. As we were packing down the mountain the herd bull fired a bugle from the other side. I tipped my hat and continued on.
Packing out a HEAVY load!
(http://i.imgur.com/zUQkz2j.jpg)
(http://i.imgur.com/vcXBsyG.jpg)
My brother with the last load and the antlers.
(http://i.imgur.com/n9FmqgV.jpg)
And a couple more random pics
(http://i.imgur.com/ww4IeNT.jpg)
(http://i.imgur.com/4Q1lKL7.jpg)
(http://i.imgur.com/1NHrTsw.jpg)
(http://i.imgur.com/rzwJewv.jpg)
For those interested, I was using a 62" Tall Tines recurve pulling 58 lbs at my 29" draw and was shooting Easton Axis 340 arrows and Abowyer Wapiti broadheads. Total arrow weight was 595 grains.
Thanks for tagging along!
great !
congrats man !
That was a fabulous story and a great hunt. Thanks so much for sharing your adventure with us. Really nice bull and a great job not giving up. I think bowhunters are so good at not giving up that they recover more game than gun hunters. :clapper: :clapper:
Great hunt. Thanks for sharing.
Awesome hunt and story. Congrats.
Excellent story very well told!!
Great photos too.
Congrats on a very fine bull!
Way to make that right with woodsmanship and love to see that TallTines doing its job :thumbsup:
Nothing better than a happy wife with a freezer full of elk meat!!!
I like that, good job on all the hunt and the story.
Mike
Fantastic story! Congrats on the beautiful bull! :clapper:
I'm curious where the first two ended up?
Wow. Read every word. Great story. Loved it.
Congrats man!
Great Hunt and Well told Story. Congratulations !!! I have not been able to tell my story yet. Second year with a lost bull. Liver hit in New Mexico and then a storm blew in. Looked for 2 days and no luck.
Congratulations again !!!
Randy Chamberlin
Congratulations! I applaud your determination. If you had not gone back and used your senses, you would have never found the bull. That's what makes a good hunter. Be determined and hunt smart.
Well told story of a real hunt. Thanks for sharing. Aaron, your story reminds me of my last bull. I am sure you remember him from up Wildcat. Thanks for sharing.
Chris
Amazing story, thanks for sharing it and congrats on a great, memorable hunt.
Heck of a story. Congrats on the elk
Amazing story, thanks for sharing it and congrats on a great, memorable hunt.
Congratulations! Loved the story. :thumbsup: :thumbsup:
Wow! Thanks for that, what a great write up and photos. A perfect story to go with my morning coffee, congrats on your bull... :thumbsup:
QuoteOriginally posted by Biathlonman:
I'm curious where the first two ended up?
Brad...Thanks for asking. I forgot to add that part last night. Just as I had suspected, my first shot was almost center of the body, about 10-12" too far back, in short a paunch hit. My second shot was about an inch and a half in front of the first shot which would have been almost perfect if the bull had been quartering away like I though at the shot, but the exit wound showed he was almost perfectly broadside.
Great story. Congratulations on your elk.
Great story great hunt you very much deserved that elk.I killed my only elk in the San Jaun's many years ago (not with a bow)but brought back memories thanks.Kip
What an emotional roller coaster... congrats. Thank you for sharing.
Outstanding hunt and effort !!!
Very well done..
Well told story and the outcome was the result of hard work and determination-congrats on all your effort.
Awesome hunt and great follow up effort!
Wow - congrats on an awesome hunt and a great bull!
Congrats! Great story telling!
Thanks for sharing your hunt with us! Congrat's on a job well done......It proves that persistance pays!
Did your brother hunt after you got your bull? With 2 of you hunting, do you pack it in when either gets his bull?
Congrats on a very nice bull!! Great story, too.
Nice job! :thumbsup: :thumbsup:
Persistence pays off! Nice job!
QuoteOriginally posted by Bivyhunter:
Persistence pays off! Nice job!
X2! :thumbsup:
One of the best reads I have had in a long time. Great job on a nice bull! Thank you for taking the time to share this story with us.
Congrats on the bull Great job on pursuing it to a successful outcome. Thanks for sharing.
Thanks for sharing your story. Great story telling. I really enjoyed this. You do deserve your bull.
This is absolutely the best story that I have read this year! You have a great way with words and you tied the story with the pictures together beautifully.
I especially like your tenacity for finding your elk and the respect shown for the animal as you approached it.
p.s. You have a nice looking camp also!
Great job!!! :clapper:
Bernie Bjorklund
NC Iowa/SW Wisconsin
Congratulations on a great hunt and recovery! Way to go!
Awesome job, thanks for sharing.
Gilbert
Amazing...well done and well told sir...you deserved that bull. Maybe that's why the Lord chose to gift him to you....
Great storytelling and photos, congratulations from one Arkansan to another!
Great hunt and great story telling. Congrats on a fine bull!
congratulations, that's awesome!! :clapper:
Great story and wonderful pics!!! You inspire the rest of us not to give up!
Thanks and congrats!
Rodd
Fantastic story and bull congrats Brother.
Now that is a great hunting story. Lots of ups and downs but ending on the upswing!
Very good story, congrats on the bull! That camp looks awesome!
Great hunt and a great story! Your perseverance paid off but I have to applaud your woodsmanship more than anything - reading the trail, knowing the air currents and how to use your own senses brought you success. However unpredictable your outcome might have been, you certainly stacked the odds in your favor well! Good job!
We all know that not everything in hunting goes according to plan. What seperates the good hunters from the average are the skills and persistence you demonstrated so well. A fine example for all of us to follow, and a very well deserved bull!
Congratulations! Your writing is as good as your woodsmanship :thumbsup:
Way to go! Great story and congrats on your persistence and successful outcome. :thumbsup: :thumbsup:
Awesome story telling and pictures! Congratulations sir! :thumbsup: :thumbsup:
A lesser hunter with less thoughtful persistence might very well have returned home without an elk and only a sad story to tell...thanks for sharing your success with us
DDave
Yep... I have been a part of several hunts that included the wounded bull blues. Miserable.
Likewise I thought I had lost a bull three seasons ago only to find it 8 hours after the shot. Your description of the emotions is spot on.
Congrats on the Good hunt.
Well done. Way to stick with it!
Congrats
QuoteOriginally posted by SELFBOW19953:
Did your brother hunt after you got your bull? With 2 of you hunting, do you pack it in when either gets his bull?
Congrats on a very nice bull!! Great story, too.
After we got my bull packed out the hunt was really just beginning. I got to be my brother's guide for the week. He doesn't shoot a stick bow (I'm trying to change that) so this isn't the place to tell stories of his hunt. I will say that I finally got to see that herd bull at very close range and he was a BIG boy. We had a great week hunting together!
Thanks for all the nice comments guys. I really appreciate it!
Congratulations on a GREAT bull. Awesome story, really love your writing
Good work, all the way around.
Thanks for sharing.
Great story and a well deserved bull!
Way to stick with it.
Your character and tenacity was well demonstrated in your hunt and in your writing :thumbsup: :thumbsup: :clapper: :clapper: :clapper:
WELL DONE!!!
:clapper: Awesome!
:thumbsup: :clapper: Nice job all the way around.
Congrats on a fine Bull... Thanks for sharing your story.
Very nice story and end result. Congratulations and thanks for sharing. Nothing trumps a good elk hunt!
Awesome adventure and awesome story telling! Congrats!
Congrats, way to stick with it.
Great job, man! Good strategy to take a break and come back after it with a clear mind.
Very nice story and end result. Congratulations and thanks for sharing. Nothing trumps a good elk hunt!
Good story and hunt.
Thanks for sharing.
Outstanding hunt and story,congrats on a nice bull and thanks for taking us along. :thumbsup: :thumbsup:
Super job, beauty of an elk, congrats!
Heck of a story!
Great great story telling! Felt like I was there....and you demonstrated skill and perseverance on a level that all of us should aspire to. Top shelf all around.
Congrats, great story! enjoyed every second!
" I knew I'd smell the bull long before I saw him in this thick country so I decided to start at the top of the mountain and work my way down until I covered the entire mountain side. "
If I'm ever fortunate enough to hunt the mountains, be sure I'll have this tip in the back of my mind. Well done!
WOW!! What a great story with a great ending!! Kudos to you for sticking with it :thumbsup: Congrats on a well deserved, very nice bull!!
Steve
Great hunt! You played the hand and opportunity you were dealt perfectly. Thanks for sharing it, and well told!
Thanks you great story!
Wow. What a trip. I think it's almost always better to go solo on a track job when your unsure of the hit. Two guys might have bumped him again. I would have thought he would've been down with two shots in the paunch after 8-9 hrs. Tough critter.
Congrats on the success of the relentless pursuit. Thanks for a great example of will power and a job well done!
:thumbsup: :thumbsup:
Man, that's an awesome journey you had there :thumbsup:
Great bull, and Great story. Congrats on a job well done.
Tom
Great job and great storytelling! Thanks for sharing. Work kept me away this year, so stories like yours helped make this season a little easier to take.
Come on Sept 2014!
:clapper: Incredible! Thanks for sharing.
:clapper:
wow what a story! great ending to it, enjoy the well deserved, good eats.
You the man.
Enjoyed all of it, would make a great traditional-bowhunting-mag article.
Awesome story! Thank you for taking us along.
- Jeremy :coffee:
:clapper: :clapper: :clapper:
Great story. Way to stick with it.
The mountains are a special place for this Missouri boy, so I am eternally grateful for every elk hunt story posted on this website. I especially want to thank you for the way you crafted this story so skillfully with words and pictures. Thanks for letting us live your adventure. Congratulations!
That was an awesome story and well told. Congratulations!! And way to hang in there.
Great, great story and bull and very well told. I sure learned a lot about elk reading it too. Congrats.