2015 Jackson, WY Elk Hunt (Pic Heavy)

Went on this trip earlier this year (end of September). TigerPaw123's thread seemed to be enjoyed by many so i decided to finally put some pics up of my trip.
Backstory: Went Snowboarding in Jackson last Christmas. Did a private snowmobile tour with Heart Six Ranch, which i found out later is owned by a guy in Baton Rouge) so i got to know the head guide. Young guy my age (29 at the time). just a really good guy. he told me about their elk hunt way back in continental divide. i had never big game hunted but it sparked my interest. i made the decision at lunch that day to get the special tag (which all but guarantees you draw) and started researching guns. Settled on Gunwerks out of Sheridan Wyoming. Ordered the gun at the beginning of February... long range package, calibrated rangefinder, and all the other goodies. Picked up the gun at the end of July. Spent 3 days at their range with them. to say the gun is phenomenal is an understatement. Started at 600 yds sighting the gun in and finished with 3 out of 3 hits on the 980 yd plate. the hunt couldn't come fast enough.

all pics are with iphone so quality might not be that good



their camp is 38 miles back in the wilderness. All wilderness land hunts require a guide if you are a non-resident. we would travel the whole 1st day by horseback with pack mules with all of our gear

Public Land Unit 60











food storage



sleeping quarters




left at 4:00am the next morning. we had a 2 1/2 hr ride by horseback to get to the top to do some glassing.i never thought a horse could tackle steep terrain like they did. it was an awesome (sometimes pant shitting) experience getting up there





then we saw him... took another 30 min to travel around to try and get a shot on him. i took the pic below right after i shot. don't know how it came out that good as i was shaking like i was having a seizure. words can't describe the feeling. i tried not to look at the horns in my scope. shot at 9:15 first morning

430 yds...



dropped him like a bad habit





then the work began




took 5 hrs for the mules to get there from camp




didn't get back to camp til midnight. i was dead but still couldn't sleep a wink. here is the meat hanging the next morning



coming out heavy




truly the trip of a lifetime and it was the best/worst deicision ive made. Im addicted. ive got two hunts lined up for 2016. moose/black bear hunt in newfoundland in October. baceite ibex and and balearian boc in spain in december. ill post pics of both trips. hope you all enjoy