rides bike to work
12-08-2013, 03:59 PM
Well my elk adventure started well over three years ago. My fathers family lived in a small community called bluit in the kootneys.they never had power and very much lived off the land mostly fish deer mushrooms and other staples from the garden and forest.hunting was seeded very deeply with my father as a necessity not just a past time.
My grandmother after many years was sick of the tough living and convinced grandfather to move the family to the big city of Nelson.
Unfortunatly my grandfather passed away before I was born but my father and uncle continued with there passion to hunt. One animal stood out to me as every time we visited the kootneys and we would see one of the majestic beast I could see the pride well up in my father this was the Rocky Mountain elk.
I didn't follow nature into to hunting tradition but after my wild younger years I made my own decision to take up the family tradition. One goal I set for myself right from the start was to harvest mature bull elk.
My father had taken a couple cow elk through limited entry hunts when I was young but with most of his hunting partners focus on mule deer in the cariboo the kootneys had been put on the side burner but always in the back of his mind so when I sudjested we make a goal of getting a bull elk he signed on right away.
So for the past three years me and my father headed out looking for a large stag. The first year was quite a bit of exploring looking for mountains that had elk wich we found that most do. We heard a few bugles but some of the country was so thick and steep it was very difficult to hunt.
In 2012 we found a mountain that worked well for us good access lots of elk sign and on our last two days we had elk bugling from forty yards just couldn't see them.
Over the next year we made our plan and every visit to my parent me and dad flew around our hunting area on google earth discussing places to camp hike and sit.
In August we had a family reunion in the kootneys and I decided to fit a run up to the mountain we had picked to set up a trail cam to get us some recon on the area.
Then sept came :) :) :)
I had plans for opening weekend but my dad was going for a visit to my uncles near where we would be hunting. With scorching weather they decided to go for a drive up our mountain and poke around a little well the first afternoon they spot a group of cows with a large bull then that evening in another location near by they spot another bull . The weather was hot and it was a far hike and with both my dad and uncle over sixty they decided to hold off till the pack horse (me) was with them.
So with this news my trip couldn't come soon enough.
Day one : drive up to kootneys after work spent night at uncles. While looking at our guns my uncle notices my scope is loose. Tighten it up.
Day two: first thing site in gun and head to our mountain and set up camp. 2:30 we head up to where dad saw the bulls. We start hiking into a great area with tones of sign and some well used beds 4;30 we bump some elk can't see em but only elk crash through bush like that. We decide to back out and get to a vantage point to look over the area for last light. As we approach the look out we hear a bugle from above. Then another and another. So I start doing some cow calls with the odd weak bull call in between. Then we hear crashing. Something is coming down to us !!!! I continue to lightly cow call and the cracking of branches is getting closer and closer but it's getting darker and darker. The bugling is still coming from high above but some thing is coming.Then there's some crunching in thick bush 30 yards beside us but we can't see it. Then a loud elk bark. Well now it's dark and time to go so we say see you in the morning.
Day 3: 3:30 am we are awoken by a strange noise . It's a cow elk doing a horny song right out side our tent.it went on for about twenty minutes and me and dad just laid there taking it in learning what we could from the intervals of strange whines and mews from this lonely cow. It was hard to sleep after this with Visions of rutting elk in our heads. The alarm went off and shortly after and we were up to the area we had left the elk the night before as we got out of the truck we heard and great bugle with a series of chuckles. So I start cow calling as we make our way up the trail to the look out where we werethe night before. As we move up we come to a good spot to glass a cut far above us in the direction of the bugling. My dad spots a group of cows about 900 yards above us practically straight up the wind is not bad but we decide to move off to one side with better wind and make our way up through the bush. It a tough climb and its getting bright and warm. But there is still a bull bugling above every so often. After a good while we figure we should be able to poke out within 300 yards of where we saw the elk and as we poke out there's two endangered kootney mulies staring right at us from 50 yards on a rise right where we want to be to see the elk so we back into the bush to get above and get an new vantage of where the elk where. Well by the time we get through so steep thick bush and spot where the elk were they are gone and we are sweaty and hungry. There is still a bull bugling above in the thick stuff but its 10:00 and going after him will just spook them out so we eat some snacks do lots of glassing have a nap do some more glassing. On our way down I formulate a plan to hide amongst a couple logs in the middle of a the slash where the elk where the night before and the morning
We go back to camp and cut wood eat lunch and talk about the evenings plan. My dad was going to meet up with my uncle and explore Another spot nearby where they had saw a bull in sept then come up near the area where I would be set up.
That evening I'm hiking into my spot and set up by 3:00 I have a little mat to lay on and a book to keep me company. Laying between the logs I sit up a little to have a look around every once in a while and let out a couple quite mews mimicking the lonely cow I heard the night before. After a what feels like for ever I'm bored and thinking this is not going to happen tonight. At the same time I get a feeling that there's something behind me. I slowly turn around and pick the Binos up and sure enough there's an elk coming out of the bush about 300 yards above me. He walks out with a lot of attitude strolling down like he owns the joint. He stops every few meters to smell the air and let out a few chuckles or a light bugle. He's moving toward me quickly he's at about two hundred yards now and I can count 6 on both sides my heart is racing and I know I can make this shot no problem. But he's coming straight on and not offering the broadside I want. For a second his interest starts leading him in another direction so I let out a light mew and it gets him back on track. Now he's at a hundred yards but still head on with his head down on the move. Then he disappears into a dip in between us. If everything stays on track he is going to come into view 20 yards from me. I double check, safety off, winds in my face , good rest , then it happens. Here he comes 20 yards in front of me coming over the rise head back standing tall and proud I was in awe to see this great beast so close so large. He's still straight on but it's time I put the cross hairs on the middle of his neck chest and squeeze. His legs buckled and my mind was blown. I reloaded and kept the cross hairs on him but he didn't move. I radioed my dad saying I just shot a six point. My voice was shaking and everything else was to. I didn't have my camera with me well I did but I was so excited I couldn't find it in my pack so I waited for my dad and uncle to make there way up to me. I met them half way and we had lots of hugs and hi fives when we got to the bull. We took some pics and gutted it. It was getting dark and had a good hike down ahead of us it would be cold that night so we new the meat would be fine we propped it open and put some logs underneath for air flow And made our way down.
Day 4: up at first light with a chainsaw to open up a grown over quad trail to get to the animal it was a lot of work and with two seniors we took out time .
I definatly want to thank Hbc for connecting us hunters ive met some great guys and the lessons learned through others experience is invaluable . Special thanks to hunter 1947 your dedication and knowledge coupled with your willingness to help others is inspirational.
Unfortunatly our field pics turned out crappy and the one that's not bad i promised my dad and uncle to keep off the net.
But here is what I got I'm sure a meat bull in many others eyes but the bull of a lifetime for me .
http://i43.tinypic.com/1z1zr5x.jpg
My grandmother after many years was sick of the tough living and convinced grandfather to move the family to the big city of Nelson.
Unfortunatly my grandfather passed away before I was born but my father and uncle continued with there passion to hunt. One animal stood out to me as every time we visited the kootneys and we would see one of the majestic beast I could see the pride well up in my father this was the Rocky Mountain elk.
I didn't follow nature into to hunting tradition but after my wild younger years I made my own decision to take up the family tradition. One goal I set for myself right from the start was to harvest mature bull elk.
My father had taken a couple cow elk through limited entry hunts when I was young but with most of his hunting partners focus on mule deer in the cariboo the kootneys had been put on the side burner but always in the back of his mind so when I sudjested we make a goal of getting a bull elk he signed on right away.
So for the past three years me and my father headed out looking for a large stag. The first year was quite a bit of exploring looking for mountains that had elk wich we found that most do. We heard a few bugles but some of the country was so thick and steep it was very difficult to hunt.
In 2012 we found a mountain that worked well for us good access lots of elk sign and on our last two days we had elk bugling from forty yards just couldn't see them.
Over the next year we made our plan and every visit to my parent me and dad flew around our hunting area on google earth discussing places to camp hike and sit.
In August we had a family reunion in the kootneys and I decided to fit a run up to the mountain we had picked to set up a trail cam to get us some recon on the area.
Then sept came :) :) :)
I had plans for opening weekend but my dad was going for a visit to my uncles near where we would be hunting. With scorching weather they decided to go for a drive up our mountain and poke around a little well the first afternoon they spot a group of cows with a large bull then that evening in another location near by they spot another bull . The weather was hot and it was a far hike and with both my dad and uncle over sixty they decided to hold off till the pack horse (me) was with them.
So with this news my trip couldn't come soon enough.
Day one : drive up to kootneys after work spent night at uncles. While looking at our guns my uncle notices my scope is loose. Tighten it up.
Day two: first thing site in gun and head to our mountain and set up camp. 2:30 we head up to where dad saw the bulls. We start hiking into a great area with tones of sign and some well used beds 4;30 we bump some elk can't see em but only elk crash through bush like that. We decide to back out and get to a vantage point to look over the area for last light. As we approach the look out we hear a bugle from above. Then another and another. So I start doing some cow calls with the odd weak bull call in between. Then we hear crashing. Something is coming down to us !!!! I continue to lightly cow call and the cracking of branches is getting closer and closer but it's getting darker and darker. The bugling is still coming from high above but some thing is coming.Then there's some crunching in thick bush 30 yards beside us but we can't see it. Then a loud elk bark. Well now it's dark and time to go so we say see you in the morning.
Day 3: 3:30 am we are awoken by a strange noise . It's a cow elk doing a horny song right out side our tent.it went on for about twenty minutes and me and dad just laid there taking it in learning what we could from the intervals of strange whines and mews from this lonely cow. It was hard to sleep after this with Visions of rutting elk in our heads. The alarm went off and shortly after and we were up to the area we had left the elk the night before as we got out of the truck we heard and great bugle with a series of chuckles. So I start cow calling as we make our way up the trail to the look out where we werethe night before. As we move up we come to a good spot to glass a cut far above us in the direction of the bugling. My dad spots a group of cows about 900 yards above us practically straight up the wind is not bad but we decide to move off to one side with better wind and make our way up through the bush. It a tough climb and its getting bright and warm. But there is still a bull bugling above every so often. After a good while we figure we should be able to poke out within 300 yards of where we saw the elk and as we poke out there's two endangered kootney mulies staring right at us from 50 yards on a rise right where we want to be to see the elk so we back into the bush to get above and get an new vantage of where the elk where. Well by the time we get through so steep thick bush and spot where the elk were they are gone and we are sweaty and hungry. There is still a bull bugling above in the thick stuff but its 10:00 and going after him will just spook them out so we eat some snacks do lots of glassing have a nap do some more glassing. On our way down I formulate a plan to hide amongst a couple logs in the middle of a the slash where the elk where the night before and the morning
We go back to camp and cut wood eat lunch and talk about the evenings plan. My dad was going to meet up with my uncle and explore Another spot nearby where they had saw a bull in sept then come up near the area where I would be set up.
That evening I'm hiking into my spot and set up by 3:00 I have a little mat to lay on and a book to keep me company. Laying between the logs I sit up a little to have a look around every once in a while and let out a couple quite mews mimicking the lonely cow I heard the night before. After a what feels like for ever I'm bored and thinking this is not going to happen tonight. At the same time I get a feeling that there's something behind me. I slowly turn around and pick the Binos up and sure enough there's an elk coming out of the bush about 300 yards above me. He walks out with a lot of attitude strolling down like he owns the joint. He stops every few meters to smell the air and let out a few chuckles or a light bugle. He's moving toward me quickly he's at about two hundred yards now and I can count 6 on both sides my heart is racing and I know I can make this shot no problem. But he's coming straight on and not offering the broadside I want. For a second his interest starts leading him in another direction so I let out a light mew and it gets him back on track. Now he's at a hundred yards but still head on with his head down on the move. Then he disappears into a dip in between us. If everything stays on track he is going to come into view 20 yards from me. I double check, safety off, winds in my face , good rest , then it happens. Here he comes 20 yards in front of me coming over the rise head back standing tall and proud I was in awe to see this great beast so close so large. He's still straight on but it's time I put the cross hairs on the middle of his neck chest and squeeze. His legs buckled and my mind was blown. I reloaded and kept the cross hairs on him but he didn't move. I radioed my dad saying I just shot a six point. My voice was shaking and everything else was to. I didn't have my camera with me well I did but I was so excited I couldn't find it in my pack so I waited for my dad and uncle to make there way up to me. I met them half way and we had lots of hugs and hi fives when we got to the bull. We took some pics and gutted it. It was getting dark and had a good hike down ahead of us it would be cold that night so we new the meat would be fine we propped it open and put some logs underneath for air flow And made our way down.
Day 4: up at first light with a chainsaw to open up a grown over quad trail to get to the animal it was a lot of work and with two seniors we took out time .
I definatly want to thank Hbc for connecting us hunters ive met some great guys and the lessons learned through others experience is invaluable . Special thanks to hunter 1947 your dedication and knowledge coupled with your willingness to help others is inspirational.
Unfortunatly our field pics turned out crappy and the one that's not bad i promised my dad and uncle to keep off the net.
But here is what I got I'm sure a meat bull in many others eyes but the bull of a lifetime for me .
http://i43.tinypic.com/1z1zr5x.jpg