Vanish and FireTiger's Journal - Season 6
- Thread starter vanish
- Start date
duckhunt
Well-known member
That is awsome. Cant wait for more updates.
Saturday morning, we got set up on the Eastern edge of an aspen covered ridge. The idea was to slowly hunt into the prevailing wind. We saw plenty of mule deer, but weren't finding any elk sign. About 9am, we hit the draw where FireTiger got her elk last year, and we found some fresher sign in this area. There's a nice spot to sit, so I suggested we hang out for half an hour, have a snack, etc.
After half an hour, we decided to push further along the ridge. We hadn't gone 200 yards in the old-growth aspens when 2 cows and a calf popped over a slight rise immediately in front of us. Talk about being caught with our pants down, as they were already within 30 yards. My father and I were about 20 yards apart, with the elk on a collision course with my dad. Of course, upon pulling an arrow from the quiver, the elk caught movement, but they didn't know what they had seen. Instead of being between us, they had headed up the ridge on the left side of my dad and stopped.
I was out of the equation, but I saw my dad draw back. And I waited, and waited...
After half an hour, we decided to push further along the ridge. We hadn't gone 200 yards in the old-growth aspens when 2 cows and a calf popped over a slight rise immediately in front of us. Talk about being caught with our pants down, as they were already within 30 yards. My father and I were about 20 yards apart, with the elk on a collision course with my dad. Of course, upon pulling an arrow from the quiver, the elk caught movement, but they didn't know what they had seen. Instead of being between us, they had headed up the ridge on the left side of my dad and stopped.
I was out of the equation, but I saw my dad draw back. And I waited, and waited...
Finally there was a release, and I briefly saw one of the elk run back in the direction it came from and disappear over the hill. After some motioning on what happened, we regrouped. I had my dad mark exactly where he shot from, and describe the exact location of the elk. I asked him which pin he used, 30 yard. Ok ... rangefinder and ... 18 yards to the tree next to where the elk had been. Note to self: put rangefinder on Dad's xmas list.
The elk had spun behind a pine and disappeared over the rise so quickly, neither of us had been able to get a good luck to see a hit. We spent the next hour to find his arrow and confirm a miss.
As we continued westward, we were finding more elk sign. I spotted a cow elk slowly slip over a hump in front of us about 200 yards. As we worked in that direction, a pratical highway revealed itself. Lo and behold, a large cow elk was walking right down it. She was almost past us before dad spotted her. He asked me to try to call her our way, but she didn't want any of that. We did a little more exploration of the area, then headed back for some lunch and to catch a couple of winks.
The elk had spun behind a pine and disappeared over the rise so quickly, neither of us had been able to get a good luck to see a hit. We spent the next hour to find his arrow and confirm a miss.
As we continued westward, we were finding more elk sign. I spotted a cow elk slowly slip over a hump in front of us about 200 yards. As we worked in that direction, a pratical highway revealed itself. Lo and behold, a large cow elk was walking right down it. She was almost past us before dad spotted her. He asked me to try to call her our way, but she didn't want any of that. We did a little more exploration of the area, then headed back for some lunch and to catch a couple of winks.
Elkhunter24
Well-known member
Congrats to your dad. I am ready to leave now but have to wait for October to get out to CO!! save a few for us
noharleyyet
Well-known member
Good story telling....subscribed
matt meyer
New member
Great Story. Congrats to your dad on the cow elk
Saturday evening was pretty much a bust. We immediately walked into that bull moose, and a nice buck was hanging out with him, too. We ended up seeing that buck 4 times over the weekend. We had many mule deer does around, and I played with one with my cow elk decoy. She hung around for at least an hour.
I've had trouble with elk in the evening. Sure, I stumble into one now and then, but I've never really been able to formulate a solid plan for hunting them in the evenings. This is especially true at this location, where feed seems to be in every direction.
I've had trouble with elk in the evening. Sure, I stumble into one now and then, but I've never really been able to formulate a solid plan for hunting them in the evenings. This is especially true at this location, where feed seems to be in every direction.
Thanks to the words of encouragement from everybody!
Debating whether I want to take off Friday and head back out there or not. I originally had planned to try one of my backcountry locations, but its hard to argue with being in the elk. Complicating matters, I have a 7am flight for work on Tuesday morning, so I can't really risk hunting Monday night.
Debating whether I want to take off Friday and head back out there or not. I originally had planned to try one of my backcountry locations, but its hard to argue with being in the elk. Complicating matters, I have a 7am flight for work on Tuesday morning, so I can't really risk hunting Monday night.
On Sunday morning, we decided to execute pretty the same plan as the day before. When we got to the area where we ran into elk the day before, my dad's whitetail instincts kicked in, and he said he'd like to sit there for awhile. We were set up about 35 yards apart and I also set up a butt decoy between and behind us. A few doe mulies moved through.
After half an hour or so, I decided to try some cold calling. Pretend to be a small herd. I catch movement 30 yards downhill from me on the fringe. How does an elk get that close without me seeing it ... it happens that way constantly! As it continues, I can tell its a calf. I really didn't expect an elk to come from this direction, and have a tree in the way, so the calf makes it all the way to 10 yards before stopping to assess the missing elk herd. It stands around for 30 seconds before finally blowing out of there.
...
After half an hour or so, I decided to try some cold calling. Pretend to be a small herd. I catch movement 30 yards downhill from me on the fringe. How does an elk get that close without me seeing it ... it happens that way constantly! As it continues, I can tell its a calf. I really didn't expect an elk to come from this direction, and have a tree in the way, so the calf makes it all the way to 10 yards before stopping to assess the missing elk herd. It stands around for 30 seconds before finally blowing out of there.
...
I give it another half an hour, then decide to scout out a nearby clearing. Sure enough, that calf is standing on a trail on the edge of the clearing, but it spots me at the same time as I spot it and hauls butt out of there. I glass the surrounding country, but just some muley does. After regrouping with my Dad, he says he likes where he is sitting and I tell him I am going to still hunt the next ridge to the north.
I backtrack a bit to get the wind in the best position and push over to the next ridge. Immediately, I can hear cow calls. Hmmm, hunters, or elk? Some of them sound pretty sweet, but I can hear what sounds like a hoochie in there, as well. I got fooled once last year, when I swore it was a couple of hunters just squeezing the crud out of their hoochies and it turned out to be 3 calves with their moms.
I figured it couldn't hurt to call to them. It seemed like they shut up immediately after my second set of calls, so, right or wrong, I wrote them off as hunters. Still, I couldn't help but feel like calling. I moved west along the ridge and set up again. Almost immediately, a cow elk started moving in on me. Naturally, it came it an angle I hadn't anticipated. Instead of coming from the thicker cover to the west and down, it came in from the other side of the ridgeline. I still had a shot once she cleared a blowdown at 24 yards.
It was not to be, however, because as soon as she hit that blowdown she pulled a gentle 180 and left just as quickly as she had come. She never stopped, never changed pace. Well, at least there's elk around!
...
I backtrack a bit to get the wind in the best position and push over to the next ridge. Immediately, I can hear cow calls. Hmmm, hunters, or elk? Some of them sound pretty sweet, but I can hear what sounds like a hoochie in there, as well. I got fooled once last year, when I swore it was a couple of hunters just squeezing the crud out of their hoochies and it turned out to be 3 calves with their moms.
I figured it couldn't hurt to call to them. It seemed like they shut up immediately after my second set of calls, so, right or wrong, I wrote them off as hunters. Still, I couldn't help but feel like calling. I moved west along the ridge and set up again. Almost immediately, a cow elk started moving in on me. Naturally, it came it an angle I hadn't anticipated. Instead of coming from the thicker cover to the west and down, it came in from the other side of the ridgeline. I still had a shot once she cleared a blowdown at 24 yards.
It was not to be, however, because as soon as she hit that blowdown she pulled a gentle 180 and left just as quickly as she had come. She never stopped, never changed pace. Well, at least there's elk around!
...
bigdonniebrasco
Active member
YES......yes you do!
Of course I want to, but I also have to consider the other tags we have this year, and the limited time off I can take!
Unfortunately, I just got off the phone with my boss, and both he and our other senior engineer have the day off, so that leaves me to hold down the fort. Makes the decision a non-decision.
Tkaldahl2000
New member
The only thing worse than having to go to work every day is not eating. 
duckhunt
Well-known member
Stick with it there's still time.
duckhunt
Well-known member
Thats alot of good eating right there.
Oh, I plan to be out there every weekend of the season. Its not looking likely I'll get to take any time off for it, but that just means more time for the other species! I have Mule Deer, Pronghorn and Whitetail tags later in the year.
Now, back to the recap!
-=====-
I crept further along the ridge, when I came to an area that felt like a great place for a bedded elk. Thick downed timber and some tall pines. All of a sudden there was a crashing coming from the direction I was headed. Placing myself in front of a large aspen, I stopped to observe the commotion when a large set of main beams showed through the blow downs. Whoa boy! There's two of them! They were out about 60 yards in an impenetrable jungle, moving roughly my way and across the ridge below me.
I could see, if I was able to stop one of them, a shooting lane just to my right. I would need to readjust my position. Cow call at the ready, I side stepped right. Hitting a root and feeling a bit off balance, I could feel a tree, and put my hand out to steady myself. The damned thing fell over! About an 8 inch diameter tree, and it just crashed down. Any hope of slowing those bulls down pretty much went out the window, but I tried a couple cow calls in vain anyway.
I later learned that those bulls had covered a lot of territory without slowing down, as one of the guys I know hunting the area glassed them ~1/2 mile from me. One was your average ~5x5, but the other was a huge beamed bull without many points. I couldn't tell exactly what he had, but he was still in velvet and the other was not.
Well, at least I know there are some bulls in the area, but what's my next move?
...
Now, back to the recap!
-=====-
I crept further along the ridge, when I came to an area that felt like a great place for a bedded elk. Thick downed timber and some tall pines. All of a sudden there was a crashing coming from the direction I was headed. Placing myself in front of a large aspen, I stopped to observe the commotion when a large set of main beams showed through the blow downs. Whoa boy! There's two of them! They were out about 60 yards in an impenetrable jungle, moving roughly my way and across the ridge below me.
I could see, if I was able to stop one of them, a shooting lane just to my right. I would need to readjust my position. Cow call at the ready, I side stepped right. Hitting a root and feeling a bit off balance, I could feel a tree, and put my hand out to steady myself. The damned thing fell over! About an 8 inch diameter tree, and it just crashed down. Any hope of slowing those bulls down pretty much went out the window, but I tried a couple cow calls in vain anyway.
I later learned that those bulls had covered a lot of territory without slowing down, as one of the guys I know hunting the area glassed them ~1/2 mile from me. One was your average ~5x5, but the other was a huge beamed bull without many points. I couldn't tell exactly what he had, but he was still in velvet and the other was not.
Well, at least I know there are some bulls in the area, but what's my next move?
...
matt meyer
New member
Good Luck and hang in there
