Home Forums Hunting & Shooting Elk Hunting How to start the New Year off right

New Years Day, 2017 ... 5 AM ... somewhere in Southern Colorado. Roll out of bed at 9,000 feet, remind the Wife that she thought this was a good idea yesterday, start the coffee maker and hit the remote on the frozen block of ice in the driveway that vaguely resembles a truck. Grab a couple of breakfast burritos, a thermos of coffee and at 5:45 AM navigate the six miles of gravel and icy chipseal to the highway. Thirty minutes later we leave the pavement for good and bounce down a few more miles of ranch roads ... parking behind some sheltering pinons just as the sky is getting light. 15 degrees and calm. Not bad, last time we did this winter hunt (three years ago) it was 30 degrees colder.






Glass the low country to the south expecting to see some early rising elk a mile away. Oops ... should have been sneaking down there in the dark ... because a lone cow walks out 600 yards distant. Make a stalk anyway ... which turns out to be just armed hiking. Back to the drawing board.







Move up a few miles and spend the middle of the day walking out ridges on higher ground.







Surprise a few there at 400 yards ... but they never slow down. Once again, no joy,so after lunch we move up in elevation.







Lots of fresh sign up here ... but nobody wants to make friends just yet.


So, we endeavor to persevere throughout the afternoon ... and as the sun is setting ... we find a big girl who wants to go for a ride home in the GMC.







Every time I shoot something on a mountain at sundown I swear never to do it again ... but by 8 PM we are bloody and tired and headed home with a passenger.

Never thought about football even once during the entire day. Perfect!

Congrats on a great hunt, thanks for the write up.



P

Great photos. Nice elk..

Also makes me realize why I don't like winter elk hunting.. Thing I will just throw my tag in the fire when I get home and save myself a lot of cold work..

Congrats, enjoy!

Wanna trade New Years days? <G>

Good job.

Very nice!

Nice, great hunt.

Kim:

Congratulations. Looks like a great day in the outdoors. Wonderful views. Did you see the sunset Sunday evening? Amazing. Probably the most beautiful that I have ever seen. No camera.....

How's Marcie doing?

Was that another hunt on the RFW place that you like so much?

KC

Great. Pics

Beats a day in front of a puter or TV.

Good eatin down the road too!

Congrats on the elk!

On January 7, went elk hunting with my youngest son, who had a plains tag for cow elk. It was his second try, after no success earlier in the season.
Late in the afternoon, we saw a large herd of elk grazing in grassland in a large bowl. Wind was blowing right to left at 15-20 miles per hour, temp was 17 degrees. Elk herd was still over a half mile away, and legal shooting light was approaching, so we beat feet to a small pine covered ridge and got into position. I ranged the closest elk, which were 270 yards away. The elk were nervous and milling around, and slowly moving away from us.
My son finally got his shot opportunity, and downed a large cow at a bit over 300 yards, using his 7mm Rem. mag. that I had put together for him, using handloads of 150 gr. Nosler Accubond LR bullets.
After field dressing the elk, hiking back to the truck, driving to the elk, hoisting it into the truck, etc., it was well after dark, but it was a happy, tired feeling.
Next day, we drove to my house, where we hung the elk, skinned it and cleaned it up before my son took it to his processor.
Anymore, I get as much enjoyment and satisfaction helping someone else on their hunt as doing it myself.

Love that kind of elk hunting.

Congrats!

Casey

I wish one would wander onto the ranch before the end of the month.....

attaboy! looks like a good year.

Great pics and story.

Agree completely about shooting elk at sundown.

Late season cows are about my favorite hunt anymore...though I can see the point that Wyocoyotedude and others make...it's cold and can be a lot of work, especially when dark is approaching. Luckily, there's often a road within a mile or two when the elk are in the winter grounds.

Sometimes you get lucky this time of year. Tuesday night I got a call from my buddy that the herd was on his property so next morning I was there. 400 elk weren't sure where they wanted to be. The herd split and didn't go where it was supposed to but a neighbor let me take a shot on his property.

I still have meat in the freezer from last year so I took a shot at a calf. I backed the truck right up to this little guy. Colodog helped me gut him and skin him and he was at the processor by 9:00 am. I like the easy way!

Nothing like late season cows! Nice pics!

Here is mine from western Wyoming. I actually only got out of the truck and hunted for about 1 1/2 hours and 1.2 miles.

I shot her on a steep slope at 320 yards with a 7 mag/160 Partitions.

Where was she at 'hooper?

I took mine in unit 98, SW of Pinedale.

Right now there's easily 1000 elk off the side of the highway between Cockville (I mean Cokeville) and Sage Junction in unit 104.