2021 kamikazee elk

TRS_Montana

Well-known member
Joined
Nov 19, 2014
Messages
759
Location
Helena
Finally drew my first decent elk tag after 10 years in Montana. Equal chances of filling my tag, divorce, and a long road of physical rehab come December.


I’ve decided I’m not going to post what district it is for a couple reasons.

1. I don’t want to hear what everyone’s opinion on how great or terrible the hunting is because I know I’ll internalize it and it will likely have an effect on my experience

2. It seems that the people that hunt this district have invested a fair amount of time and effort into honing their strategy. It also seems that it gets crowded with folks that are hoping to have a chance at lobbing some shots into one of the iconic winter herds that they see on the YouTube. I’ll admit that’s a cynical perspective, but nonetheless I’d rather not add to that population.

Not that I’m unwilling to share info or help someone who would draw this tag, just don’t want to post it in the general section. I’m also going to post pictures without worrying too much about the landscape in the background. If you recognize where I’m at, you probably aren’t a new applicant and likely know more about the elk in the district than I do. If you really want to know where I’m at, shoot me a pm.

And before I get going, huge thanks to @JLS and @MTGomer for the help so far.

Alright. On to my prep
I figured the first thing I need to do is head down to the car dealership and get myself a real elk hunting rig. Something with some serious off-road capabilities, enough room that I can pack it full of meat and still sleep comfortably on at least a queen mattress, and that will make people know that I am a true backcountry badass. It’s a tough market, but I finally found exactly what I was looking for.
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If I lay the seats down, I should be able to fit a whole elk in here and still have room for my kids in the cargo well in the back.

Now that my transportation is secured, I’ve gotten to spend a little time stomping around in my unit. Hard to do this landscape justice.

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I was able to find a handful of elk. These were roughly 10 miles from the trailhead. I’ve never shot a big bull. I would be ecstatic with either of the two biggest in this bunch

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After these couple of scouting trips, I promptly talked to my wife and convinced her that we need to sell our camper and get back into tent camping. She’s all in. So I put an order in for a seek outside redcliff and u-turn stove. Hopefully I’ll be living out of that thing this November.

I’ll try to keep this thread updated as often as possible. Hoping to get out for at least one or two more scouting trips.
 
how will you be able to get around in that minivan on the actual hunt?
 
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how will you be able to get around in that minivan on the actual hunt?
I'm thinking a 16" lift kit and some serious mudders. I'll have to see if I can bolt a caldwell shooting sled to the roof near the sun roof. Sure would be handy to just stand up and be rock solid.
Any other mods for the minivan that I'm not thinking of?
 
Don't forget the big brush guard for the front end in case you have a woof run out in front of you! I've heard those type of vehicles are MURDER on a woof. Don't want to scuff the paint.
Good idea. I'm definitely going to be mowing a few of those down with this hog. That was actually one of the reasons I just couldn't walk away from this beaut.

Maybe I should put a winch on it, too. That way I don't have to drag the elk to the road.
 
Watermag's right. You'll be able to drive right up to them (providing they're standing next to pavement) and while they're looking for your manbun and spandex, you can blast them with your 6.5.
Easy.
 
A minivan is the ultimate ingognito cruiser. When I was a teenager my friends and I preferred to take my mothers minivan anytime we were doing something stupid. We NEVER got pulled over in that thing. It was also devoid of any girls... but the pros outweighed the cons. Best of luck on your hunt.
 
The elk wont run from the road when they see you in that thing. They will just think its some tourist soccer mom hauling the kids around to take some picture. Its the perfect plan!
Great point. I'll keep this in mind when shopping for window stickers.
 
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