QuoteOriginally posted by BMOELLER:
YOU guys missed at three to four yards on a grouse??? Come on!!!

              I know...I know  

Come on Tom tell us about the Bull Hole

Day 7

There were two things that Chris and Gary talked the most about one was how thick the brush is in this area and the other topic was the Bull Hole. It is the land of no return. Nobody goes into the Bull Hole. There are no trails and you can't get to the bottom. The terrain is impossible to negotiate. Don't even think about venturing into that unforgiving wilderness! Hmmmm...okay...sign me up!

As far as we knew nobody had dropped in to the Bull Hole all season so it is virgin territory! We start out on horseback way before sunup and we are back to having Jake as our guide. We praised him up and down. "Thanks for coming out here Jake we are sooo glad to have you back" is what we told him.

I forget how long the ride was but we arrive on a saddle overlooking the Bull Hole just before dawn. We tie up our horses and begin our journey into the land of no return.





We are excited to say the lease! We begin by side-hilling our way into the area.



Jake is cow calling and bugling as we go. Every time he bugles we become as quite a church mice listening for a reply. Almost right out of the gate we hear a distant bugle! Hot dog!

We crossed drainage after drainage making our way around the Bull Hole. Up the mountain down the mountain, climbing over and under dead fall scaling rocks of all shapes and sizes trying to get deep into the Bull Hole.



Then about two hours in we hear noise in the brush! I scrabble up the mountain completely out of breath moving on pure adrenalin. Chris drops down the mountain and Jake drops back away from us. I Think I am in a good spot. There is some brush 15 yards down to my left and then the foliage opens up. The wind is perfect. Here he comes I can hear him moving through the brush slowly. I hear him move to the edge of the thick brush and I wait for him to appear on my side. I wait and wait and wait but he never appears. Then I hear him turn trot back up the mountain but he stays close by. I find out later the Chris was at full draw waiting for him to move his front leg so he could shoot. A big pat on the back should go out to Chris for not having a total brain meltdown and chancing a bad shot. His decision made us all look good!

We continued to work the bulls (two that we are sure of and possibly a third) in the area for almost two hours. We repositioned ourselves a couple of times but we were unable to get to the right spot at the right time. On one of the setups I watched a spike walk broadside to me at 40 to 45 yards. He stopped directly in front of me with his head behind a tree but there was 40 yards of brush between us. The cool part is the spike was fitted with a radio tracking collar. That would have been a neat trophy to get. These bulls never did spook when they left and at times when we thought they were long gone but then they would bark at us from a new location. I found it fascinating that such a large animal could move silently through such thick brush. After we were sure the bulls were gone, we continued our trek along the mountain side.

Eventually we wound up in bull bed central! There was a heavily used cow trail below this area and elk bed after elk bed above it. This was a really cool site! I took a picture of Chris from one of the beds, where he is pointing to the location where we started that morning.



The view from this bull's bed was awesome! He probably laid up there watching us make our way in to his sanctuary. Ha ha.

Around 12:00 we decided to take a half hour break or so we thought. Jake, Chris and I climbed up on a towering rock overlooking the giant valley.



Jake bugled from the rock and seconds later we are shimming down the rock and into the timber. A bull bugled to the right and we head for him. I have point, Chris is up high and to my right, Jake is behind us working the middle ground. To my left is a drop off as I look down the mountain with the wind in my face I think this is the perfect setup! If he is coming up he will either skirt the edge of the drop off to my left or come right between Chris and me. Jake continues calling breaking sticks and stomp on the ground. This guy has been working his butt off for us! We get a few more bugles out of the bull and a couple of grunts but nothing ever comes from all of the excitement.



After awhile we return to the rock bluff and spend a half hour eating lunch taking in the view and trying to figure out how to get to the other side of the Bull Hole.

Our descent to the bottom was hair raising at times. There were no gradual routes that we could take it was almost straight down. At one point a rock 24" x 12" x 12" broke loose and started tumbling down the mountain brushing by Jakes pant leg. The thought "coming in here was a dumb idea" did cross my mind at that point. We follow Jake AKA "Bill the Kid" AKA "The Goat" as he bounds his way down the mountain. I on the other hand was trying to keep the three point contact rule in play the whole way down and it wasn't beneath me (sorta speak) to use my butt at times to assist in my descent. One mishap and an out of control violent cart wheeling tumble down the mountain was a real possibility.







After an hour we made it to the bottom where a nice cool creek awaited us. Chris soaked his burning feet, Jake dipped his hat to cool his head and we all gulped up the cool fresh water.
Twenty minutes later we were ascending the other side.





The path we chose was a soft soil, fern covered chute that went straight up the mountain. We stayed on the well worn elk trail that skirted the timbers edge. As we made our way up we continued to hunt the timber on both sides of the chute but at the same time we were keeping an eye on the suns position in the sky. Last thing we want is to climb our way out of here in the dark.

We made our way to another rock face. Some of the surface is loose and some is solid. Jake doesn't give it a second thought as he zips across its surface. I with one hand free have second thoughts but I go ahead and play monkey see monkey do. Three quarters of the way across my phobia gets the better of me and I head straight up the mountain where I see ground that looks flat lander friendly

 

 

 

 

 

 

We work our way off the rock face and onto a ridge. Ahhhh flat ground! What a relief! But not for long. We continue to side-hill our way around the bowl and at this point we are 3/4th the way around and we have two hours of light left. We continue to hunt the mountain side as we move. At one point we spy a black bear sow and her three cubs trailing behind her. They are several hundred yards up the mountain but it was still great to see them.

 

A few minutes later we hear movement in the brush below us. We all snap to and get into our hunting positions. Chris and I are on the same level on the mountain separated by about 15 or 20 yards and Jake works the brush behind us. We hunt this spot for a few minutes but nothing pans out. The thermals were starting to fall leaving us with a poor setup. Down in the meadow at the bottom of the bowl Chris spots a young bull moose feeding. We take a few minutes to spy on him with binoculars and then head for the horses.

Forty five minutes later we make it to our horses. We are all worn slick! The sun has set behind the mountains and we begin our ride away from the Bull Hole in the faint light of the ending day and we lived to tell the tale of the Bull Hole!

 

The ride back to camp was mix of emotions for me. I was and still am proud of how hard we hunted and amazed at the amount of ground we covered. My body was exhausted but my mind was still reliving all of the day's and the week's events. I sat slumped on my horse with my arms and legs hanging like wet noodles but I had a smile on my face thinking to myself what a great week I have had!

We get back to camp and tell the tale of our day. To be honest I can't remember much of the comments that were made to us but I do remember someone saying, "You went to the bottom of the Bull Hole?" We ate dinner and I could feel my eye's starting to shut while I was at the table. So I thought it would be best to call it a night.

As I was making my way to the tent's exit I was hearing talk of one last short hunt in the morning. My response was "Oh I don't know."

Awesome story. Great pictures.  The hunting is hard but you never want to leave.       Is Gary gonna tell how his hunt went?  Would love to hear it even if he didn't get one.

Tom, You never cease to amaze me with the quality of your photography. Great story and journal,You've out done yourself! Now finish it up!  Ben

One of the interesting stories within our hunting experience was our guide Jake Arnold.

The most common horror story about guides that I've heard is that of a young guide that is completely ignorant about hunting and calling.  

Jake might have been young and inexperienced with traditional equipment but he still did a fantastic job.  He puts the rest of the guides I've been associated with to shame.  Heck, the other guide we had on this trip (Phil) didn't even seem interested in hunting.  If the elk didn't run in after a short simple bugle then it wasn't going to happen so he just stopped trying.  He would have been a great sight seeing guide but he made for a terrible elk hunting guide.

Jake used about every call that I heard on the "Elk Nut" CD's.  He always had a purpose. He handled himself with a maturity that was far beyond his eighteen years of age.


I think I'm done with guided hunts basically because of the cost involved but I definately learned a bunch about elk hunting from chasing Jake around the mountains for a week. He did a fine job and has a bright future ahead of him.

Certainly fits the example of "don't judge a book by its cover".

Chris

Chris,  You and Tom did a great job taking all of our friends in Trad Gang on the hunt.  The pictures were outstanding and really showed what we had to hunt in.  This is my third trip to the mountains with Rich Armiger and everytime it is tougher than I remember.  
From the Switchbacks amd Windy Bill to 4th of July Creek and the dreaded "Bull Hole",  it has always given me the Time of My Life .  If you don't feel alive in the mountains,  I feel sorry for you.  So many people say   "You didn't even get one"  I feel so sorry for them.  They really don't get it.  
We had six guys in camp that were there to live, hunt, and have a great experience and that is what we had.   Rich and Patti made sure we were well taken care of.  I can't say enough about the accomadations in the middle of Nowhere.

What a trip    I really enjoyed the pics and the play by play. Felt like I was in your back pocket.

bhfp

Back to the hunt.  My good friend, Tim Taylor,  and I had similar things happen to us .  We were close several times and , as usual,  the Elk won the battle.  Isn't it amazing how they know what to do to gain the high ground, catch the thermals, look through the shadows,  and just simply leave when it isn't quite right.  Maybe that is why it's a hunt.  Don't we all love the chase !!  That's why we do this.

Tim, Rich and I bivvied out one night.  Cut bear grass to make a bed and then slept under a tarp about 150 yards from a huge wallow in the middle of Elk Country.  I woke up several times that night to look up at the most incredible sky I believe I have ever seen.  It was worth the 5 hour ride.

I'm sure glad that Chris and Tom found that big salt lick.  if you missed the picture, go back to look at it.  It is simply amazing.  You could put several trucks in it.  Two years ago I was hunting with Pete and Rich and we rode through there going to 4th of July Creek.  Rich pulled his horse to a slow stop in the dark and just sat there.  I was wondering what we were doing but, You know the deal in the Elk woods --- Be Quiet !   I'm looking around and see a form in the dark.  It is an Elk!   No, No, several Elk.  We simply rode away right through them.  About 30 minutes later Rich stopped and got off of his horse.  I said :That was cool"  Rich said that he hadn't been there in 10 years.  Those Elk didn't have a clue what we were.  How Cool Is That ??

That gives you an idea of how wild this area is.  Rich has 250 square miles leased and only hunts a few groups a year.  Quality is all I can say.

I need to comment on Jake, the young guide.  I went with Chris and Tom the last morning because I hadn't hunted Elk with Chris for several years.  None of us know about tomorrow and I wanted to hunt with him.  Anyway, Jake -- This kid is rare.  He is very good.  I just hung behind him and watched.  He is very , very good.

I need to finish up.  As Chris said, I lost my Dad a fews weeks ago.  He didn't ever get to do this with me but he loved the stories.  The mountains we hunt, the rabbits we try to find, the whitetails that wind us and , yes, the "Grouse that you missed at 3-4 yards"  These are the memories that we must not take for granted - ever.  This land that we have under our feet is the greatest land on earth.  Walk on it, hunt it, teach your kids to enjoy it.  In the end, you will have your family, a few dear friends, and your memories of hunting the land that you love.  I have many, many memories.

Day 8

I Poke my head out of the sleeping bag and see the light is on and Chris is out of his bed. Hmmm... I have images of him up all night dressed in his hunting clothes clutching his bow and rocking on the edge of his cot waiting for the wake up call. Come to think of it I don't remember seeing him go to bed. Chris were you up all night?

After a couple of minutes lying there I say to myself "Oh what the hell get up!" I crawl out of bed, suit up and dump some coffee down my pipe and... Ahhh... I felt pretty good. Okay boys lets do it to it was my attitude.

Our guide, once again and it was only fitting, was Jake. What a great kid! Have I said that yet? Our destination was Switchback Hill. This was the place that we had our first and second hunt and seemed like a great place to have our last.

After breakfast we are on the trail before sunrise. Joining us on this hunt is Gary, Chris's father in-law. Gary was not interested in hunting on this last outing he was more interested in watching us work during our hunt. I thought that was really cool! This man has more experience traditional bow hunting then I have put into years of life on this planet and I hope to share more camps with him!

We arrive at the Switchback Hill trail around 7:00. Prefect timing... every time we have been on this hill in the morning we have worked a bull. Jake has already started his cow calling and a few bugles. We ride along while he cow calls and stop when he bugles so we can strain our ears listening for any bugling replies. Then down in the drainage we hear a bugle!

I haven't told anybody but my plan is to throw in all my cards and take this hunt straight to the bull! I am off my horse and have him tied up in seconds and Chris is hot on my trail! Without even talking about it he and I are on the same wavelength. Get off the ridge and on top of that bull as fast as we can. Jakes job was to keep up with us. Ha ha what a fun last hunt! As we start to drop into the drainage eagle eye Gary spots movement in the trees the left. Cows if I remember correctly. I need Chris and Gary to refresh me on this part.

The elk that Gary and Chris saw break away down the hill and we begin our advance. Jake is warning us to go slow the elk might be right below the shelf that we are about to crest. I listen to his warning and we proceed cautiously but not giving up our aggressive push.

Chris and I fan out and I have point. The wind is a crosswind angling slightly downward. The goal is to get in front of the bull and intercept him at the bottom or get him when he gets irritated with the new bull (us) in his territory and comes charging up the hill between the two of us. We worked this bull for an hour. We dropped further and further down the mountain and the bull kept getting farther and farther from us. After an hour we broke off the hunt and made our way back up to the horses. I high five my hunting buddy and we congratulate each other on a fantastic last hunt. Hearing that bull chuckle at us on the last day of our last hunt was fun way to end our hunt. Of course bagging him would have been the icing on the cake but we were happy to have one last adrenalin rush before we called it quits.

We continue our ride up to the high meadow on Switchback Hill to marvel at the views from her peak. It had been a while since Gary had seen the view from there. I could tell he was as happy as a guy could be looking around at the country that surrounded us. Gary made the comment, and I may not get it exactly correct, "being up hear sure makes you proud to be an American doesn't it?" It sure does Gary! I replied to him "that sometimes we forget but the land that we were looking at is a National Forest and that land belongs to all of us."

 

We spend about and hour on the peak taking photographs and Chris shot an arrow off the peak and into the valley that lay far below us. The ride back to camp was quiet I was reflecting on all of the weeks events and thinking about the great time I had with a great bunch of guys.

 

The ride back to the trucks was a 3.5 hour horseback ride. Tim Taylor lead us out. On our way down we encountered the dreaded bees twice. This time we didn't have a scout looking for them and we weren't armed to defend ourselves.

The first encounter gave Gary a ride that had a pucker factor of 10+ I'm sure. His horse started kicking and bucking while he was on a skinny strip on mountain trail with no place to go. Some how he rode out of it and kept his seat. Chris was on foot behind Gary's horse and thankfully missed being kicked or stomped by Gary's horse and his. Chris made the smart move and bailed off the down side of the trail and let the horses do whatever they needed to do to get out of there. I was up next... and I waited for the trail ahead to clear out and I ran my horse through the swarm. The second swarm that we came cross seemed to zero in on David. He got stuck in a massive swarm and his horse had a hard time finding its way out of them. Once they were clear from the bees we all took turns running our horse through the swarm. I sure wouldn't want to be guiding a mule train through them!

We made it to the trailhead safely packed up our gear in the trucks and head back to civilization in Missoula.

Thanks again guys for inviting me on such a fantastic trip. It was an experience I will never forget! I also need to take a moment and thank my wonderful wife. She has supported my passion for shooting traditional equipment and she has encouraged me to keep going to shoots and go hunting whenever I get a chance. Thank you Lindy you are the best and right woman for me!

Okay Chris lets go get that bobcat! I bet we can get Brian interested in that hunt.

Ben and Kevin lookout February will be here before we know it and Texas won't be the same after we leave!

The End

Outstanding story guys! A trip I'm sure you will remember for a long time. Thanks so much for taking us along.          

Awesome!!!!Thanks for the ride.


Mike

   

     Like I said great story guys.  You bet I'll be interested in that bobcat.  We just need to be on the lookout for some good places to call.

Glad you guys had a great time.  Sounds awsome.

Great trip Tom, Thanks for sharing. bretto

hey guys this Is jake it was a great tall of what happened out there, i had a blast hunting with you guys!