I posted this pic on my sheep thread, but forgot that I posted here about it as well. Scro turned out alright. Not as soft as I had hoped, but I didn't really shave the skill down at all.
Even though I answered already, 99% of the trout I keep go back into the water. My daughter's did talk me in to keeping one last summer on a back packing trip and we cooked it up in the fire. Of course I wasn't prepared to do so, so we skewered it on a willow branch and roasted it over the fire...
Never been in your situation, but cow elk hunting is a blast, especially in cool country. That does sound like a heck of a lot of money just for a cow though.