Opening day archery elk

[Brez]

After missing out on a couple of good bulls last year, due to sleeping in, I told myself that I would really put in an effort this year.
Mid August, I started scouting for sign and trail cam locations. Frankly, it was pretty disappointing - no wallows or mud holes being used, even though it was really hot. Not even much traffic on the trails that I'd found in the past. I decided to go for a hike and expand my area.
After finding a decent game trail and following it for a short time, I started seeing the first fresh rubs of the season.

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The farther that I went along this trail, the more rubs I saw, until I came across a small spring that was being used heavily.

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I set up a camera and picked a good tree stand location.

At the end of August, just before the Sept 1 archery elk opener, my son and daughter-in-law checked some of our cameras and this guy showed up on one about a kilometer away from my "new secret spot". Things were looking up.

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[Brez]

3:00 am on Sept 1, my son headed for the stand near the camera that the bull had shown up on and I headed to my stand. I checked my watch when I was settled in - 5:25 and too dark to see my sights (I still use one of those old FineLine sights). I relaxed and confirmed my distances with my rangefinder.
I even closed my eyes for a couple of minutes until I thought "they can come in real quiet at times".
"CLUNK!!" Antlers on a tree! I was WIDE awake! It was 5:40.
"CRUNCH, SNAP, THUMP,....THUMP". Here he comes! I strained to see around a tree and up one of the trails and "OH, MY GOD! It's a bull....and a good one! OK, OK, don't look at the antlers." ( it is open for any bull).
He strolled down the trail to the spring and stopped and stooped to drink, putting his head behind a bush and large tree. He was just slightly quartering to me at 20 meters and I decided not take that shot, hoping for a better one and hoping that I would not regret it. I could hear him slurping up the water and just sat in awe. I could not help counting tines - 6X6. "DO NOT LOOK AT THE ANTLERS!"
He got his fill of water and turned and came straight towards my stand, stopping at 8 meters, head down feeding on the succulent grasses growing in the moist earth. Being 10 meters up the tree, I was looking straight down on his back, between his antlers and by now my heart rate was starting to get back to normal. I seriously doubt that I would have been able to draw my bow, much less make a good shot when the bull first appeared. I thought that he looked quite wide and seemed nice and fat. I noticed the swell of his gut and the hollow in front of his hind quarters. I took in everything about him - the color of his hairs, the shape and color of his head.
I listened to him tear up and chew the grasses and he made a faint mew sound that surprised me.
After a few minutes he turned to his left (my right) and moved along the trail I came in on.
As if on cue, at ten meters, slightly quartering away, he lowered his head to feed some more, putting his head below some brush.
I took a deep breath, leaned over and drew my bow. "TINK!' @#$%!! the arrow touched my sight. He did not notice! Put my 20 sight low on his ribs and relaxed my fingers. "TWANG, SHTUP, CRASH, CRUNCH, THUMP, THUMP, CRASH,....." The hit looked good and he crashed off up and to my right. I listened to him making a hell of a racket for what seemed like 20 to 30 seconds and then all went quiet. From the sound, he'd gone up and across the hillside, and then turned and hooked down. I figured 100 to 125 meters max.
I checked my watch - 5:50 am. WOW!
I carefully descended the tree, organized and gathered only what I would need to find him and went and checked where he'd stood. I found the arrow immediately. It was stuck in a log and covered in blood - no surprise.
I started after him but could find no blood. After circling where I thought he might have crossed, and no elk, no blood, I returned to the beginning and repeated. Still no elk or blood! I replayed the whole thing in my mind and was positive that I'd made a good shot.
Picking up again, I moved more slowly and sure enough I found a couple of small splashes of blood. Once on the correct trail, his tracks were obvious and I followed him for about 250 meters and then lost his track again.
Cutting across the hillside a few meters, I did come across an elk backbone from a large animal just down the hill a bit. After going 50 meters or so across, I dropped down the hill 15 meters or so and doubled back paralleling my route. Frustrated, I stopped for a breather after passing the bleached bones again and looked up to see.........

http://i1203.photobucket.com/albums/bb395/Brez2/2013-09-01074240.jpg (http://s1203.photobucket.com/user/Brez2/media/2013-09-01074240.jpg.html)

I blinked my eyes to make sure that it was real. It was. I stumbled across and over the windfall to make sure he wasn't going to move. He'd died in full run.

http://i1203.photobucket.com/albums/bb395/Brez2/DSCF4287.jpg (http://s1203.photobucket.com/user/Brez2/media/DSCF4287.jpg.html)

I cleared the area for photos but my camera batteries died after just a couple of shots.

http://i1203.photobucket.com/albums/bb395/Brez2/DSCF4288.jpg (http://s1203.photobucket.com/user/Brez2/media/DSCF4288.jpg.html)

Deciding to get as much done as possible on my own before calling Nick for help and hoping for a double header, I chainsawed a pack-out trail to the nearest road. Once done it was time to go looking for my son. With no repies to my calls on the radio, I had to search for his truck and found it just as he was exiting the bush. When done "high-fiving" and "knuckling", I remarked that I did not see a packboard in his truck. Apparently he'd conveniently forgot it, along with his camera, at home but being the kind of dad who remembers most of the important things, I told him that I'd brought two packboards and he was not getting off easily.
Well, at least he had his cell phone.......and THOSE batteries died almost immediately.

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After battling hoards of wasps and hornets (I was stung three times), we packed this great animal out and celebrated at the vehicles with a beer and Cuban cigar.
Leaving all the hide, legs, guts, backbone,......(all the inedible parts) we had packed out close to 400 lbs.

We had it cleaned and hanging in a meat cooler by dinner that night.
I am still pinching myself that it's really true.

[WKCotts]

Awesome! Scouting hard definitely pays off! Any big plans for the rack??

[J_T]

Excellent telling of your story. Very happy for you. I can read about rifle kills and yada yada yada, but in tight and close with the archery gear, heart rate doing double time, trying not to count antlers, smelling them, listening to them at close range, it's a different experience. The fear and hope of finding, but never really knowing until you see him. Congratulations.

[Big Lew]

That is a fantastic bull, congratulations. I've not personally hunted from a treestand, but can imagine what a rush it must be to have such a huge animal come in so close. It would be very hard to get control of your excitement in order not to mess up your shot, good for you, and great story.

[dogger]

Wow. That's how to get it done. Nice to see some archery success on here. Great bull . Great story.:-D

[Spy]

Great story & awesome bull big congrats on a successful bow hunt. Im with JT its a whole different can of worms using a bow & being successfull. keeping it together & making a good shot with a bow at such close range is not easy. Well done. :-)

[deer nut]

Great bull and story. Thanks for posting! Up at 3AM= HARDCORE!

[IronNoggin]

Awesome Hunt! Excellent Story and a hell of a fine Bull with the bow!
Doesn't get any better!!

CONGRATULATIONS!! :mrgreen:

Cheers!
Nog

[d6dan]

Way to go Brez!. That's an awesome Elk and done with a bow!. Great write up and pics..Thanks for sharing your hunt.:-D

[Stone Sheep Steve]

Awesome story and elk!! My heart was puimping just reading it!

Huge congrats!!!

SSS

[Bear Chaser]

Great story. Congratulations.

[westcoastal]

Great elk, thanks for the pics and story. Congrats.

[Tenacious Billy]

Awesome read! Congrats on a hard-earned, fantastic bull.

[Onesock]

Yup, that's bow huntin. Great elk.

[uraarchr]

Way to go!and with a bow too.

[Blainer]

Great accomplishment!
Beautiful Bull!

[beeker]

Beauty of a story and beauty of a bull!

thanks for sharing.

[Brez]

Thanks a lot, everyone. It was a thrill. I've euro-bleached the skull and am waiting the 60 day drying period to enter it in Pope and Young.
I've fixed my goof-up of doubling up on the one photo and put the correct one in.

[kennyj]

Awesome archery elk! Great story and photos.
kenny

[kennyj]

Awesome archery Bull!! Great story and photos.
kenny

[Rattler]

Great story and pictures. The wasps were horrible this year and I can't imagine putting an animal down in early September. Congrats on a dandy bow kill.

thanks for sharing.

[ydouask]

Heck of a good hunt and story, congratulations Brez.

[boxhitch]

Great hunt, thanks for sharing
"don't look at the antlers !!" luv it
10 m. high stand ?

[Awishanew]

My heart rate doubled just reading your story. Awesome.

[Brez]

Great hunt, thanks for sharing
"don't look at the antlers !!" luv it
10 m. high stand ?
Yeah, but the tree starts off low down the hill. I was a little higher than level with the elk when it was drinking and maybe less than 20 feet above it when I shot. felt like I could have jumped on it.

[Above the Treeline]

Great Bull! Fantastic write up and pics. Congrats and thanks!

[avadad]

What a great story! Congratulations on a fine bull done the hard way!

[KB90]

Beauty Bull!!!!!

[mark]

Thats a beauty bull, congrads!

[Brambles]

nice work., what took you so long to post up? Congrats on a great archery elk....

[Stéphane]

By far favourite hunting story this year. I felt like I was there. . . not looking at the antlers with my heart rate up to the roof.

I agree with the post about riffle stories to be less engaging. . although some were still pretty good. But yours tops them all. Congratulation on that awesome hunt!