Home Forums Hunting & Shooting Elk Hunting never hunted elk,need lil advice

Not trying to be discouraging. However, it's important to be prepared. You need to be able to get it out if you go into a less-than-optimum place to get one out.

Some years ago, I shot a medium bull way up on a hillside. At the bottom was a good trail and it was about a mile out to the road on that. I boned it and hauled it in pieces to the bottom where I would start ferrying it out. When I got down with the last load, a guy was standing there with 2 horses and he asked if he could 'borrow' my elk. The horses were colts that had never packed and he wanted them to get some experience. I pondered it hard for 1.5 seconds and said 'ok'. It was a nice open creek bottom and a good place for a rodeo should one occur. It didn't happen, though. The horses just stood while we loaded them up and they led nicely right down to my truck. Bummer.

You did stop and buy a lottery ticket on the way home that day didn't you?

You meet some nice people hunting in the mountains. I had a guy who had seen me shoot a buck that rolled part way down a very steep hill give me a hand to get him on the flatter trail. We started talking and he helped drag it over a mile to the road. I got lucky that the bucks antlers caught on a rock to stop him and to get the help.

Yup. I've had similar things happen. You can't plan on or count on them, but they do happen occasionally.

In that case, I got my elk packed out and the guy got the assurance that his horses would perform in possibly a much nastier situation. Every pack horse has to have a 1st time and the best training can still result in a blow up. We both won.

OP, not trying to discourage but, if you know and prepare for the worst possible situation, maybe you will be pleasantly suprised if your hunt and pack out is easier than anticipated. Good luck!

They were bulls. Still the dumbest thing we ever did. Walking out with parts of one bull on your back, fully aware of the stupidity of shooting that bull, and.... oh, another bull? What the hell. Bang. Flop

You tend to forget about the pain before next season.

Well, you all got it done and nobody came close to dying. Sounds like a pretty good hunt to me. Epic pack out too, that's something you'll always remember.

Smokepole,did you ever get to hunt my secret hotspot in 61? My son that lives in Aurora got a nice 6x6 there 2 seasons ago on opening morning of 2nd combined season. My knees are keeping me in Texas. I do have 11 points for Pronghorn, just don't know where to go. I may try 61 for a cow in muzzle loader season. They have blocked too many good trails. My son can drop me off and I won't have to walk from there.

These elk packing stories remind me of a deer packing episode by a co-worker. He and his buddy both had high school age brothers. The 4 of them were deer hunting when the young guys found a trail with tracks going down into a real hell hole of a canyon. They went down and one got a big deer. It took all 4 of them most of a day to get it out of there.
The young guys had seen other deer in there so the next day they went back down and the other one got a big deer. The older guys were furious. They told the kids that if they were stupid enough to go down there a 2d time, they were stupid enough to pack it out themselves. They went hunting and let the kids enjoy their own stupidity.

This applies to elk, too. Don't hunt where you're not willing to pack it out.

Jimbob, I did get down there pre-season and it looked good. I had plans to go there, but never did because there were just too many bulls in the first spot I hunted.

Thanks for your help, and good luck this season!

Hey man, good to hear from you. Was that the place that the bear came to the call? Down the road if I remember correctly.

No, the bear came to the call up in the northern part of the unit, north of the road. The place I ended up hunting was the place where a bear got to my bull before I did, and started to chow down. Luckily, all he got was the nuts. That did make for a dicey pack out though, worrying the whole time if I was gonna get checked and have to explain why evidence of sex was not naturally attached.

I could hear it happening:

Officer: "you didn't leave evidence of sex attached."

Me: "A bear ate it."

Officer: "I see."

Me: "No you don't, I just told you, a bear ate it."

Officer: "You're under arrest."

amusing thread..

How long ago did you hunt 61 smokepole? dont recall the report about it. Its been a few years but I hunted deer across the road in 62, seen the biggest bear i've ever seen, during that hunt. Wish i had bought a tag.

Anyone know if REALITY CHECK got an elk this season, or in what State he was hunting???

L.W.

It was 3-4 years ago, archery. I didn't get a big bull but I was happy with a 5-pointer, it was my first big game animal with a bow.



I was wishing I'd had a bear tag too, got within bow range of two on that trip. One was the biggest I've seen, and he ate the nuts off the bull.

I think I remember now. Bow hunting them is a good time..Sorry about the nuts.

Thanks. But I was gonna throw 'em away anyway. Huntsman's the only one I know who eats 'em.

and uses the sack on his gear shifter..

BS, he hangs it from the rear-view.