My WY Bull

[12341234]

and then...

[Whaler_Dave]

This is good shit, Stripa!

[Stripa Swipa]

Unfortunately, this bull and his harem decided to move in the opposite direction. Once this group was at a safe distance, we got high again to see if we could locate more elk. Yahoo and his kazoo are still going strong and we discover that most of the elk are now way out on the flats which is probably private ground. Not good. We glass the elk and the surrounding topography through the glass for a while. We study the GPS screen to try to determine if there's enough public ground to even justify the hike way way out there to the herd which is now basically in pasture land. We see a small group close to a hillside which looks like it may be public ground. So, with no better options at this point, off we go.

An hour or so later, we make our way up to a group that has a large herd bull, a few shooter satellite bulls and many a cow and raghorn. There is really no way to make a move on them but we feel like we need to stay as a close as possible, just in case. Here's a photo from our spy session on this group. This satellite bull bedded about 200 yards away and we caught him bugling on camera.

[Stripa Swipa]

30 minutes into our spy session, we feel the wind hit the back of our neck. Our little bugling buddy blows out of his bed and the next thing we know, 100 or so elk are moving away from us further out onto public ground, bunched up tight like nervous animals do and legally out of reach. We lick our wounds and start to head back towards our traditional canyon, wondering if between our blunder and the local yocal's presence, there will be any elk left to hunt. Here's a pic of me after sounding a location bugle, trying to see if we can get a response in our canyon before we go barging back in blindfolded.

[duckduckdog]

predator camo = rank

[Stripa Swipa]

An aside...Though I didn't realize it at the time, (I didn't carry my cell phone out of camp), at this very time of day my wife sent me text message from my daughter saying she felt today would be the day. She also asked if I had the good luck charm.

[duckduckdog]

An aside...Though I didn't realize it at the time, (I didn't carry my cell phone out of camp), at this very time of day my wife sent me text message from my daughter saying she felt today would be the day. She also asked if I had the good luck charm.

wheew - hope that means we're getting close - I've got some work I'm supposed to be doing right now...

[Simple Man]

Uh oh, I can feel it now......

[BigBrother]

An aside...Though I didn't realize it at the time, (I didn't carry my cell phone out of camp), at this very time of day my wife sent me text message from my daughter saying she felt today would be the day. She also asked if I had the good luck charm.

This would be called foreshadowing...

[JABIII]

2 questions.

1. Why is it that every other hunter encountered on public land is a yahoo/rubberhead/motherscratcher?

2. How does getting high help you locate more elk?

[2thDoc]

blood is gonna be spilled and the yahoo on the kazoo will help in some way, right?

[Whaler_Dave]

:jabisafunnyman:

[Stripa Swipa]

We didn't get any responses to my calling and the reality of our situation started to affect our spirits. The elk were moving to private ground and it wasn't even the weekend yet. What would this mean for the next several days? We were whooped from the extra long hike so we decided to climb into our rimrock perch and rest a while. As we climbed we noticed a herd bunched up in the burnt timber on the opposite side of the canyon probably a 1000 yards away. While they were bunched up tight and all on their feet, atleast they were still in our canyon. Hope creeps back in just a bit. But just a moment later, my buddy plops down in the rimrock, only to have a bull and three cows explode from their beds right under us. They take off running across the middle of the canyon. The already nervous elk take the cue, then start to stampede as well and dissapear over the ridge and head to the sanctuary.

[duckduckdog]

so - did you have you lucky charm or not?

[boondoggle]

Don't distract Mr ADHD or he'll draw this out even more.

[Stripa Swipa]

At this point we pretty much feel screwed. All the small herds have joined together to form one massive herd way out on the prairie, as if they know exactly what to do. My contact told me about a private basin to the west of us that the elk gathered in when pressured and this is exactly what was unfolding. We took our boots off to let our aching feet dry out a bit, ate some granola bars and pretty much just started to pout. Then, to pour salt into our wounds, a darn plane starts low flying around the elk as if to intentionally mess with the herd. As if on cue, they start trotting towards the private basin. We're hosed.

[MC]

Look...if you are going to do this good of a job telling the story, we are going to demand a daily update next year like the Bowsite.

I haven't been on the edge of my seat like this since Pat killed his elk.

Good stuff!

[BigBrother]

If you go to sleep before you finish the story, I am going to write something obscene with rye grass seed on your front lawn.

[duckduckdog]

I know this much - you never kill anything where you have to tote it out down hill - he's gonna have to go down in that basin. Murphy says so....

[Stripa Swipa]

So now we have two crappy options. Sit in camp and lick our wounds or sit in this empty canyon and lick'em. I waited seven years for the tag....we choose to sit in empty canyon.

Then, out of nowhere about an hour later, some lost bull that apparently didn't graduate from the save your elk hide class with his peers, wanders over the ridge out on the horizon. He eases down the hillside in our direction and dissapears into a draw at the bottom of the hill.....and off we go. There is really no safe way to approach the draw because if he pops out of it, we will be busted out in the wide open. So, we decide to set up close to the wallow area that had significant activity on the first day and call. It was pretty hot that afternoon so we thought water might play a factor in his afternoon plans. We got settled in against some small scrub downwind of the wallow area and I bugled once and hit the cow calls for a bit. No response. After about ten minutes, doubt is back and I start just trying to get comfortable to wait out the lonely hours left of daylight. All of the sudden, I'm awoken by my buddy who is blurting here he comes, get your bow ready. I look up and he's fifty yards trotting right at me! I'm all tangled up in this little burnt up bush, trying to get on my knees, trying to move my bow around to make sure I've got limb clearance if I get a shot, all the while trying not to get busted. He's coming straight at my tree so I'm thinking a smart elk is going to take the downwind side which is my right. I can't swing to my right and shoot. Hell, he'll have my wind before I can shoot anyway. What? He's going to my left. He's broadside and walking fast at 20 yards. I pick a spot, shoot, and the arra sails right over his back. The elk takes a few quick steps and then resumes his normal cadence and direction. I put my face in my hands in pure disbelief. I've just flubbed a chip shot. All of this wait and preparation and that is what I do with it. Can't even look back to face my buddy who is a mere 10 feet behind me. I'm crushed.