I knew I shoulda chimed-in sooner, as my tale would become ever more lame as others posted.
Such as it was...
The outfitter took pity on me eating tag soup in 2006, so he went out himself with me in 2007 in the East Kutenays. We called-in 4 bulls through the day, one to within 10'. I couldn't discern a 6th point on either side, so I sat motionless 'til he wandered off. At last, last, LAST light, I dropped a 6x5, & we commenced to dressing him. The process took about 75' of elevation, as he kept sliding downhill. In the meantime, the bushes rocked several times, causing us to drop everything & grab rifles. I'd been warned repeatedly about grizzly concentrations in the North Fork of the Flathead, so my butt puckered a good bit each time.
Well after dark we had elk parts 'n pieces perched in the brush, & took stock of where (and when) we were. We figured it would be best to stay put, rather than wander the mountain in the darkness. Still, it got chilly, & firewood was scarce in that area. We decided to head toward where we thought the road should be, & see what happened. As I stumbled along deleriously, I laughed at the folly of our having taken a lengthy meat bath, only to wander for hours in the dark through grizzly country. It seemed like a good idea at the time.
We hit the road around 4 am, found the truck by 5, & got to camp by 6. By 7 the horses were loaded, & we went back to load-out the meat. I think it ended up being a 30 hour hunt, but we still had all of our limbs, & my very first elk back in camp.
It's one of the few times I've ever been too tired to sleep, & too hungry to eat. And it was glorious.
FC
