Long hunt -maybe

[diamond hitch]

I haven't done one of these before so please bear with me. It might get kinda long. One time in the 80s, we were scouting a new chunk of land and had my 75 year old father along. As we broke over the top of a long slope, Dad's horse all of a sudden layed down and he got off- kinda. He lost his balance and started sliding down the hill. Within seconds so did his horse. As we watched in horror, they slid down the hill together. Dad stopped and then the horse stopped just short of him. When he got the horse to the top of hill he stopped for a second and then said 'when ever I go out with you - its an adventure! Hence folks, here we go.

Yesterday was an interesting start. With a steady snow bordering on blizzard, we started off on a day of recon. A foot of snow is tough sleddin on foot. About two miles in, we could see where the walkers and turned around and started back for the truck.

At about three miles, we could see where 5-6 head of elk hit the road early in the storm. We just couldn't tell if the path was up or down. With the heavy downfall we opted to continue our path.

We checked out a trail I had cut out but sure enough it had blown in with the last week's of heavy winds so back to square one. Maybe someday.

We got back on the road and countinued west. Last year we cut a lot of big cat tracks but this year was bare. We made it in 7 miles to my old camp and worked our way out on the crosscut trail I cut in Sept.. Some of that was on a south slope that had blowed in in July. As we approached the thickest tunnel like section, I noticed a cow elk right next to the trail. We piled off and struggled to get clear of our gear in what resembled a log tunnel. As my partners gun came up the horse shook and the elks head came up and took off through the downfall. At the distance maybe a spear would have been more in order. Anyway we cleared the trees for a better look and about that time that goofy cow decided to voice her displeasure and started barking at us from a fir patch at about 100 yds. She finally walked off and we moved back on the trail. And set up a sneak /flush. We had to get past the armpit high downfall. My partner pulled off his riding clothes and worked his way through the trees as the wind would allow. i took the horses back on the trail to the top of the ridge. And tied them up. After I got out of my chaps and riding clothes I worked my way down the ridge to where they usually travel through. Again lots of blowdown from that south wind.

We guessed the cow went down the ridge cause we never caught up with her. We worked our way back up to the horses and worked our way back to the road. At that point we geared up and jumped on- briefly. The mare I am riding is young and kind of bitchy and she took offense to the intrusion and dropped me off in a snow drift. When we got her caught the second time it stuck and the ride out was filled with some testy moments and subsequent lessons.

The trip out ( about 7 miles) was brisk but we had proper clothing. The temp was about 15 but some pockets felt colder- especially with the wind. First time I really desired a covid mask. With the mustach frozen to my beard and snot cycles rattling, we got back to the truck only to have to chain up to leave. Some days are tougher than others.

Today is a restup day as we watch the thermometer at -4. Tomorrow will be a better day for a couple old guys.

More to come.

 

[ida homer]

Good luck. Need pictures!

 

[diamond hitch]

Snotsicles?

 

[ida homer]

Snotsicles?

I’m good. The hunt.

 

[vanish]

What are you hunting?

 

[diamond hitch]

Elk and deer

 

[diamond hitch]

Sunday was a bust with temps running between -4 and 6. Rather than being frozen to the saddle we opted to hide next to the stove and watch old movies.

On monday we went south and checked the basins. The four mile ride in was uneventful. We tied up, peeled our riding gear and changed into walking clothes. The only mistake we made was wearing air bobs as opposed to corks. Between the rocks and the logs the 6-8 inches of snow made travel on 45 degree slopes memorable. Caulked pacs tomorrow will make travel safer.

We worked our way through 4 grassy basins and three rocky ridges. In 2 miles we found beef tracks, a tree stand, and what was undistinguisable between a young moose and a bull elk. There was too much snow to determine the owner. It was heading west so we have to lose elevation and work north along the migration path.

There were reports of 100 head of elk near the freeway but I am not inclined to chase butterflies so the chase continues.

 

[diamond hitch]

We dropped down onto the winter range about 15 miles and started back from the bottom to see if we had lost them to the cold for the year or just some elevation.

The trip in was up a drainage and then over a pass to near where we were on saturday. As we started in we intercepted a number of bull elk groups of 2-3. Tracks were probably sunday or monday. The snow has shrunk from a ft deep to about 4 inches. They seem to be edgy and moving. No idea what is the cause. We got to the head of the pass (about 5 miles) and started to pick up sign. From what we could see in the snow there are about 5-6 bunches of elk scattered over 3-4 sections. The terrain is rocky and steep with heavy downfall and dog hair thickets. Single bulls and a few lone cows are wandering through the small parks feeding likely at night.

The snow is melting and by friday may be gone. Corks were still the best boots in the heavy downfall and rock outcrops. The horses have settled in and are doing well giving us 10 to 12 miles per day.

Tomorrow we will not have another corporate call like this morning and will hunt the next drainage from the west. That way we can follow the elk on foot or tie up the ponies and work over the pass from the west into where we were today.

Life at this point is a number of recon days followed by planned hunts dependind on the wind and weather. If I don't bore you to death it will eventually get better.

 

[diamond hitch]

Good intentions are usually punished. My partner came down with something this morning and I have spent most of the day waiting for him to get out of the hosp. emergency room. They've tested him for everything short of fertility and antler growth and so far he is healthy. The shaking just won't stop. I'm guessing a hot shower and back to bed will likely be the cure. Horse allergy? Who knows.

So far the only entertainment were there were two goofy ladies that declared war on each other here in the parking lot with screaming, hollering and throwing things. No guns but I locked the doors anyway. Hopefully tomorrow will be more productive.

 

[diamond hitch]

Got out this morning and went to where we planned to go yesterday. Good intensions are always punished. Lots of crunchy ice and 4inches of icey snow. Saddled up the horses and got them loaded. The plot thickened as we stepped out of the truck. The ditch on the side of the road had fresh mtn lion tracks in it. Always fun when you are riding their favorite food.

We rode in a couple three miles on the mine road. As we got off on the spur we were back into blowdown. We sawed and hacked our way up the road to where we usually leave the ponies. Our trails across the basin were heavily blown in. Egress is thought provoking with 300-500 crotch high horizontal trees. Some over, some under and some just walking the logs. More fun when I was younger. Traversed 1.5 miles with one near the top and 1 about a third of the way down swinging from tree to tree in the doghair.
There had been a few through on sun/mon but nothing stayed. We cut tracks of two little bulls. They cut across the basin and headed back to where we started on saturday.
I have a week of 54 temps ahead. Maybe the slush will go away and we can start over.

 

[MNElkNut]

Love it! Keep at it and I hope your partner is doing well. You were not clear on the antler growth test results, are his antlers normal?

 

[diamond hitch]

The antlers were fine but he keeps rubbing trees. There was a question about his testosterone level . The doc said he could give him a shot and he could be 25 again. His wife nixed that and said once was enough.

We left from the house today. We found elk tracks from last sat at my target range. Once again looking in all the wrong places.

We worked are way to the top of the ridge and north. At 2 miles we cut day old kitty tracks. About 5 inches across. Overprinting those were fresher wolf tracks. That answers the question why the elk were moving so much.

We cut a few single elk tracks and a couple man tracks in the next 5-6 miles. When we hit the saddle at the head of the drainage we verred ofF on the trail I cut out last summer. If you cut it, they will come. We picked up a bull and 6-8 cows and calves. And followed my trail to the big park at the end. They fed across the park continuing to gain elevation to above 8000. By then we went back rescue the horses. We left them when the trail was blocked by downfall. The wind had continued to increase until gusts were in the 50-60 mph range. It was difficult to get back across the park as the wind beat us unmercifully. We stopped half way down the trail for a break. The trees were moving so much thatthe ground around them was rising up and down inches. As we approached where we had left the ponies, trees were falling in the forest around us. We got to the ponies and hustled our way to the road. As we rode back the 7 miles we continued to hear trees falling in the forest. We made it back safely to the barn. A little beat up but safe.

 

[diamond hitch]

We moved over a drainage to the north. We followed an old road behind the gate about 3miles. We tied up the ponies in a draw and stripped down for a climb. We gained about 1500 ft in 1.5 miles avoiding as much downfall as possible. We picked up 2 elk going up and followed them to nearly the top of the ridge. We could see where they had bailed out yesterday in the wind storm. As we got to the saddle we picked up the tracks we were following. They were running to where we were yesterday.As we approached the west side the downed trees were stacked up10-12 ft deep like a microburst. Many firs up to a couple ft in diameter. Roots pulled out of the ground. Many of the smaller trees were broke off 3-4 ft above the ground.

We worked down the ridge on the west side where there were some cliffy parks and grassy hillsides. We cut elk beds but they had worked into the heavy lodgepole thickets and the crunchy snow was not conducive to sneaking up on them. It took 3 hours to get back to the horses and cut the road out to get back to the truck. Good exercise, fresh air and nice views but another meatless day. My partner is going back tomorrow and I will hunt alone for a week until he returns. Recon!

 

[diamond hitch]

Wish I had good news but this is going to be a tough season. This was a good day for a nap but limited for hunting. I moved to a neighboring district where I have had good luck in the past. In a 15 mile ride there was a lot of bare, white crust. On the west side three elk bailed out with wind two days ago. On the east side three cows headed for the winter range. I sawed 6 trees out with an arbor saw. The end of my western trail was blown in too bad to attempt without a big saw.

Tomorrow will be focused on the next drainage in the migration path.

 

[diamond hitch]

Got drug out of the field to finish a report and straighten out a phone billing concern. Back at it tomorrow.

 

[diamond hitch]

I moved 25 miles east and reconned the mid to late winter range. The cows are there But I don't have a cow tag for that district. We completed a 13 mile loop, had to hand saw 20 trees to get through the downfall from last friday. We found over 40 head in 6 groups but no bulls. I'm guessing the bulls are 500 ft higher and farther up the ridge. With rain on thursday there is a chance that the snowstorm on friday or saturday might make the edge I need.

The neighbor called tonight and said he had cut tracks west of the ranch of a good herd while he was trapping. I might give it a snoop tomorrow.

 

[diamond hitch]

I tried the land west of the place up against the district boundary. The neighbor was correct - there were elk tracks there and fresh. The trip in was interesting. About two and a half miles of glaze ice. Horses on ice skates tend to leave the participants puckered. All of them.Especially on the hills.

As I approached the district boundary, I picked up tracks of six cows/calves and a young bull. They weren't very shy considering they were in the middle of an active firewood cutting block. They were working their way to the top of a knob covered with blowdown only they were jumping the logs while I had to work through them where the horse could get over them. The snow was spotty as best and crunchy. As I worked around a huge pile of jackstrawed trees, I heard a crash and looked over the pile just in time to see the cows go through a gap. The bull lingered just long enough to see he was a raghorn.

I followed them through the regen and through two drainages and back to a road with glaze ice. At that point two chainsaws started up where I started and I went to town and bought an electric trail saw. Tomorrow I will take the wife hunting where there aren't any roads. Life will get better when we get out of this suntan weather.

 

[diamond hitch]

The wife and I went to the far reaches of the winter range and for the first time since 17 there was elk sign . Looks like they spent the last 3 months there. I cut tracks of 15 head in a patch of snow near the bottom. However at 65 degrees that was the only snow. Where they went in the great grass desert was a bit confusing. We covered about 6 miles and cut tracks in at least half of it. Hard to find a target now but certainly a place to return to after the next snow storm.

 

[Mica Man]

Keep at it and keep sharing your adventure.

 

[diamond hitch]

This one will make you ponder life. When I hunt this block I have usually tracked them for 10-12 miles. It is series of steep finger ridges and some massive parks. It's too steep for ponies so this is a strip down and hoof it.

There appeared to be a lot of foot traffic at the bottom so when I rode in I had to work hard to hide my horse in the second growth. As I crossed into the deeply incised drainage I noted a large number of elk had boiled off one of the ridges and was heading to my destination. The ridge I was working up was very steep requiring a 1200ft climb in 3/4 of a mile. As I approached the last 200ft, I heard an elk jump out of its bed and head down the draw. I was puzzled since I had been sitting and the breeze was blowing to me. I continued up the hill and then thought I heard some breaking branches so I sat down and waited. Suddenly I heard some talking followed by pounding on a nail very near to me. I waited and a couple of gents popped out of a nasty little thicket. Upon inquiry I found they were a USFS survey crew. How I could be so lucky I will never know.

Knowing they came from where I was going I modified my climb and ended up cliffed out and had to climb higher to find a way out. I found a way down by traveling a log down by clinging to it and digging my corks into it. I worked my way down through the volcanics till I picked up an elk trail in the trees. There was lots of sign and a favorable breeze so I worked my way down the ridge to the feeding grounds. When I hit the top I found where the elk I found this morning had picked a trail and headed up the gulch to where they came from a week ago. The chase continues!