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Pink camo, #dadbodhunter, and a whole lotta stupid!

PAUSE….

I’m going to come back to the elk hunt. To much to cover and I currently have service and am hunting.

After staying in Jackson Sunday night I drove here on monday. I packed everything up on the cart for the 8.5 mile treck to camp with no water on public. 5 days turns into a lot of water. I think I brought just over 7 gallons plus food and camp for a cow elk hunt and antelope buck hunt.

The hike in is mellow but still sucked. The smoke is horrible but made for some interesting photos.
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I got up in think this morning to get to the overlook before legal light. As I started crawling up a bull ripped a bugle right behind me and turned to see an amazing bull about a hundred yards away walking up the ridge. He was on private but I was pinned as the light brightened quickly. I watched him for a minute as he figured out I was there. He went into the gulch and came out with a half dozen cows. Heading for a corner of public I knew well. I took off through a fairly large ravine and came up the other side to see they had traveled further down the private. I gave it everything I had but couldn’t make it in time. They went up and over the top of the ridge and worked of into the next basin.

I slowed down and started to glass some spots as I hiked and everything I saw was on private. 5 nice bulls and a number of cows. Then right below me at about 250 yards another bull came out. I got ready for cows but he was solo.
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I quickly realized I was three miles further from my truck than camp and my legs are still recovering from last week. Started to think I should turn this into just a backcountry antelope adventure and save my body for the other hunts this year. I still have two elk tags and a deer hunt to go after this.

Texted a few friends and the validated my feelings of going after those two big backcountry antelope. IMG_4225.jpeg
So here is me heading back to camp. Now I get to hunt all day long! Rather than hunting about 40 minutes a day while the elk are on public.
 
I don’t have much to write, that escalated quickly. I hiked back about 5 miles with camp, food, and water for the week to where i saw the two big goats on my hike in.
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I found the only wind block in the area, had some food, and dumped weight down to a hunting pack.
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As I was eating I noticed two young bucks and watched them for a while until they worked over a ridge to the west.
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I was hiking that direction when all of a sudden a mature buck jumped up at 200 yards out of the sage. I pulled up my binos because I was looking for a certain buck with a straight ish left horn above the cutter. I couldn’t believe it, it was him.

He took off across the flat and went over a ridge 800 yards away. I knew the chances of him holding up when he got over the ridge were good so I took off when he went out of view.

I crawled up the ridge and saw him broadside at 200 yards. I set up the rifle, racked a round and pulled the trigger. “Click” He was now alert and started working away and stopped to look back at 280. I racked a new one and drilled him. He dropped where he stood.
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Looks like the primer on the first round was seated a little off.

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I shot him at 5:45 and was loaded and headed out shortly after 730. I hiked the four miles out with the meat, camp, and everything else I had. I was loaded in the truck and headed for a hotel room about 30 minutes away.

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The body was definitely starting shut down after all that. I got some food but was freezing so tuned the heat on and took a long hot shower to get the body warmed up and relaxed. It was after midnight before I finally fell asleep.

Front desk got phone numbers switched so I got two nice wake up calls at 6am… So much for sleeping in. Got breakfast and now I’m headed back to Denver to meet up with stats and rocketman to get filled in on the last day and a half of the elk hunt.
 
Congrats, was it really warm that you were rushed to head out that evening rather than camp it and enjoy a morning stroll out? Or do two loads since you had a full camp?
 
Congrats, was it really warm that you were rushed to head out that evening rather than camp it and enjoy a morning stroll out? Or do two loads since you had a full camp?
It was in 80s during the day. I didn’t have camp set up yet. And it was only a few miles out. I was ready for a hot shower and ice on my knees.
 
It was in 80s during the day. I didn’t have camp set up yet. And it was only a few miles out. I was ready for a hot shower and ice on my knees.
Where does "ice on my knees" fall into the "I'm getting old" stage? Just curious because I haven't quite got there but its feeling close.
 
Where does "ice on my knees" fall into the "I'm getting old" stage? Just curious because I haven't quite got there but its feeling close.
It will make more sense after the general tag write up. Let’s just say that putting stats and pinky together in the mountains may not be a healthy combination for the body.
 
Where does "ice on my knees" fall into the "I'm getting old" stage? Just curious because I haven't quite got there but its feeling close.
After watching the Farve-Rice info-mercial on copper compression knee sleeves years ago, I bought one, went for a jog ... and now have three pairs!
Then three years ago at 76, backpacked the Thorofare seven days eighty miles. Last summer over Headquarters Pass forty miles through the Bob Marshall.
Always wear them working, hiking, hunting and they do make a significant difference. Try 'em; you'll like 'em.

And, yes, ibruprofen is my friend too.
 
PEAX Trekking Poles

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