re: I’m gonna do a day by day of 2024 Elk/Mule deer hunt starting tmrw *final update pg3!*

Day 5 - Wednesday

I awoke feeling great, the cold was gone and I was rejuvenated having what I hoped would be a vast NF area all to myself.

I got to the barricade about 5:50, and hiked up the initial switchback, which was 450 feet of elevation over a half mile. Not awful, especially since it was road. I got up top at shooting light and took a right to a rocky knob so I could glass and get a feel for what I was looking at.

I didn’t even have to sit down before all across the ridges close to two miles out to my NW were bands of Elk scattered and lit up by the morning sunshine. That obviously, greatly excited me, I had found them, and even better, they were right amongst the road.

I skidaddled down the knob and hit the road to make my way over there. I greatly underestimated how far they were at the time and took a left up behind some rocky knobs off the road to hide myself from their sight. The snow was very crunchy and I exerted a lot of energy for nothing. I got up top on a knob and peaked around the rocks to see they were still about a mile out. Being cautious isn’t a bad thing, but I lost a lot of energy doing that, and they were still a long ways off.

I spotted 6 bulls, couldn’t make out size differential, but the smaller ones were obvious. There were cows out and about as well.

I realized how short I started my stalk and hit the road again, just making sure not to be in the wide open. Since it was a burn area there wasn’t exactly great cover.

I kept cutting the distance and glassing, keeping eyes on them. At about 8 am it was like the recess bell rang, and they all collectively fed over the ridge into the burned woods. At that point I figured I could pick up the pace since they were out of sight.

At about half a mile away, I noticed 3 does running a small bull off the ridge. He was headed the opposite way from the rest of them, towards me and to my left. He had an odd rack, almost looked like an Axis deer. I had never seen deer run off an elk before but they did. He had headed into where the road winded down into a gulley. I slowed up as I didn’t want to blow him out and mess up the rest of them.

I ended up not seeing him as I crossed through there. He must’ve headed up into the woods before I reached the area.

At about 2 miles I reached the southeastern slope of the ridge they had been feeding on. They had gone over the northwest side, but I noticed the road took a turn right where they would’ve fed into. Once I reached the top, it was game time. They were supposed to be east of the road that I was on as it cut NE, maybe a few hundred yards away.

I didn’t like my lack of cover on the road, but with the snow being so crunchy I stayed on it. The wind was going right to left across my face so it was good, I expected them to be on my right.

I was taking two small steps then pausing for a minute or more to scan in front of me. I did this for a hundred yards or so. The road started to head down into the woods where I expected them to be. I took my next two steps and saw a rack so I froze. The bull stands up and looks around. “Holy shite it’s a 6 point”. I take a knee. He’s about 40 yards down the road from me. I’ve got my rifle up, he stands there for a few seconds. I’m saying “Lord, please have him walk to the left over the road” I wouldn’t have a shot if he went right. There were too many trees that direction, I would’ve had to stand up and shoot off hand.

Well, he did exactly what I wanted. He started walking to my left over the road, I’m frozen, he’s looking at me. Decides he can’t figure what I am and continues over the road. I put it right behind his shoulder and fire.

All hell breaks loose, 10 other Elk that were bedded down all get up and start scrambling. He bolts off to my left down the hill but I can see blood already cause he’s so close. Within 3-4 seconds I hear a great crashing down in the baby pines off the road.

“Holy crap did that just happen?” Knees are wobbly, adrenaline rushes over, I’m shaking uncontrollably. I inch up closer to try and get a look, Elk are still booking it out of there all around me.

I get to to a little rise where I can inch down into the baby pines and see a rack down. I got him! Holy cow! I can’t believe it. 40 yards and my first 6 point, he’s down and not breathing anymore. I randomly have service so I quickly shoot off some texts to my wife, dad, and friends then go down to look at him.

Words can’t describe. He’s not a giant, but he’s a bull id shoot every day of the week and be proud every time. This hunt was such a challenge just finding animals, and then it happened in a span of 10 seconds. I had a bull down, and not just a bull but a 6 point!







I got to cutting him up and boy, did I underestimate that challenge. Hind quarters were so heavy, I tried paracording them to trees to give me some angles but with the trees being slick and burned it didn’t really work. It took maybe 45-50 minutes a quarter then got all the backstraps and trimmings and loins. I had shot him at 930 am and finished up about 130





It was a struggle to find a staging area for game bags given everything was burned, I stashed where I could on top of broken stumps



I took my first load out 2.5 miles to the truck with a little bit of hide as well. Took me an hour and a half. My buddy had rounded up two more of friends and they were making their way out. I was so grateful. I sent him my location and just sat in the truck waiting. Ate and hydrated, did some stretches as I was starting to cramp.

They arrived about 6:45 and we headed in, determined to get him all out in one load that night.

I took the head, about 120 lbs or so including the cape. They had about 80 lbs each of meat and quarters. We chatted and laughed the whole way back, took a lot of breaks, but it went by fast. Thank God for good friends. I would’ve been packing out through tomorrow by myself potentially.

We got him all out by midnight. What a trek, but so worth it.

Never give up boys! It only takes one, you never know when your luck can change. I was so down through 4 days of hunting, but committing myself to hiking into an area I thought would be a hidden oasis turned out to be the trick.



I dropped him off at the taxidermist this morning and getting the meat processed. I’ll remember this one for the rest of my life, especially my buddies coming up and that hike out in the dark. Very hard, but all time memories.

Thanks everyone for following, I’m sorry I got behind on posting. I’ve got tomorrow remaining on deer, but I’m so sore I’m not going out in the morning. I’ll go out tomorrow afternoon for a Hail Mary but not holding much hope given I’ve only seen forkys all week.

I’ve still got a whitetail tag in Wyoming that runs through November 30, so I’ll hit that a couple of days the rest of the month and see what happens.

For those asking what unit, if this was OTC I’d probably keep it close to the chest. But it took me 6 pts as a resident, probably takes 10 as a nonresident. And I wouldn’t waste my nonresident deer points on it given what I saw this week for bucks.

It was unit redacted. When scouting in September I had ran into a baw from North Dakota who spent 17 points for muzzleloader and an outfitter, 7k, never got a shot at a bull and hadn’t even seen a big one. So there’s risk for sure. But it works for me since I can stay at home every night.

Explain to me what this point system entails like I'm 4

Noice!

I’ve been following this thread almost as close to the anticipation of a 6 yr old on Christmas Eve.


So happy you were able to prevail after illness, snow, and everything else.

Congratulations dude. You so deserve this amazing trophy.

quote:

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It was unit [redacted], you get the

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quote:

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took me 6 pts as a resident, probably takes 10 as a nonresident.

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Me and my pointz having coonass buddies next year be like

You can come camp / tote meat with us! We'll feed ya good good

Hell yeah bud. Congrats on the kill. Appreciate the recaps.

I will give you SE baws a hot tip, and I know many of yall have come out West for Elk before….its really not that big of a budget buster. It’s not, I mean Colorado alone has 23 million acres of public land. We fight for it every year, we shot down the mountain lion ban just now.

Come on out, whether it’s Colorado, Wyoming, Montana or the harder to draw states likes Arizona, New Mexico or Nevada. Most, if not all states, allow for just buying a preference point for a small fee. Build some points, do some online map research, and just come do it for 5-7 days. It’s hard hunting, but it’s not some overseas type logistics. Drive out and do it.

You’ll remember it the rest of your life whether you kill or not. I’m lucky, I know I am, I live out here. So I can do it every year.

If you’re nervous about the whole logistics and public land thing, start out with a pronghorn hunt. It’s a blast.

Next year for me, due to planning planning ahead years ago, I’ve got enough points for Montana and Wyoming Pronghorn, Colorado and Utah mule deer. The year after that I should draw South Dakota black hills Whitetail. I put in for Elk every year in NM where there are true giants, it’s lottery type odds but you never know when you may draw, you get your money back if you don’t draw. I’ve got AZ Coues and Elk on the horizon too in the next two to three years,

There’s a myriad of opportunities, and we need you guys and your money (lmao) to keep our lands public and out of the libs hands. Just do it, if not now, when? Not every hunt out here is a 45 degree angle up to 10000 feet, I shot this bull at 7500 feet and had a relatively easy pack out, it was hard, but relative to where you could shoot them, easy. Don’t let your age or health hold you back.

Come on out baws!

OTC non resident elk tags are over.