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Last week out of my property in central Colorado, my girl:

[Linked Image from i.imgur.com]

... found this in the forest just below that meadow:

[Linked Image from i.imgur.com]

Is it an elk? I assume so, but I'm not entirely certain. So, I was seeking input. Someone told me he thought it was a lope, but I don't think so. For perspective, the antlers are about 2 feet long. I don't know when it died, but it was recent enough that one of the upper and lower leg bones were still connected by the tendon.

My neighbor saw over 150 elk on the front meadow on my property, further below that meadow, back in January when I wasn't there, and there are literally thousands of elk rubs on Aspens in another area just next to that meadow. There are several acres of Aspens where literally every tree has an elk rub on it. I've seen a lot of elk rubs on my property before, but never that many.

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Spike Elk, Rio7

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Pronghorn have a thicker darker base and stem.

Looks like a spike elk to me.
Interesting that the bones aren't more scattered.

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Originally Posted by RIO7


Spike Elk, Rio7

Yup.

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Thanks guys. That's what I figured.

Agree about the bones. There are mountain lions out there. I assume that may be the culprit, but I'm not sure.

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Hard to tell from the picture but, looking the lower jaw bone and nose of the skull, i would rule out Lion,Lions almost always eat the nose off a elk first, can't remember seeing a lion kill that had a nose left. Rio7

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Spike elk. I'd go with a wounded animal that didn't make it through the winter. Either illegally shot/wounded in the fall hunt, wounded in rutting games, or just tripped on some steps getting into Air Force One. A mountain lion would have dragged the pieces in different places. Looks like it's been ravaged by coyotes.

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There's two nice knife handles laying there!

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Originally Posted by RIO7

Hard to tell from the picture but, looking the lower jaw bone and nose of the skull, i would rule out Lion,Lions almost always eat the nose off a elk first, can't remember seeing a lion kill that had a nose left. Rio7


Makes sense. Thanks.

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Originally Posted by Mountain10mm
Spike elk. I'd go with a wounded animal that didn't make it through the winter. Either illegally shot/wounded in the fall hunt, wounded in rutting games, or just tripped on some steps getting into Air Force One. A mountain lion would have dragged the pieces in different places. Looks like it's been ravaged by coyotes.


Thanks for the good laugh.

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Originally Posted by gregintenn
There's two nice knife handles laying there!


Good idea. I'll let my boys (14 & 17) decide. They said they wanted it on one of their walls, but they also are into knife making.

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Spike elk!


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Check the skull to see if the ivories are still there.


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Originally Posted by MAC
Check the skull to see if the ivories are still there.


They are.

[Linked Image from i.imgur.com]

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Originally Posted by MarineHawk

Is it an elk?


Nope - it's a rare Double Unicorn. Only found in Colorado.


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Dude, you be grillin' indoors? People do that in Chicago...in a place called the projects.

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Originally Posted by Mountain10mm
Dude, you be grillin' indoors? People do that in Chicago...in a place called the projects.


Yeah, I'm pretty ghetto.

It's the stove in my fancy remote "Chalet" on my property.

With all five screened windows and the door open, it's a non-issue. Also, I rarely turn a gas grill above 200 deg. Low and slow for me. So, it doesn't put out any significant smoke.

[Linked Image from i.imgur.com]

[Linked Image from i.imgur.com]

[Linked Image from i.imgur.com]

[Linked Image from i.imgur.com]

[Linked Image from i.imgur.com]

[Linked Image from i.imgur.com]

[Linked Image from i.imgur.com]



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The liquor selection and ammo collection makes up for everything. You must be a little farther west than I am. The mountains are closer to you, than at my place.

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Originally Posted by Mountain10mm
The liquor selection and ammo collection makes up for everything. You must be a little farther west than I am. The mountains are closer to you, than at my place.


Thanks. The Pendleton 20-year is pretty sweet. I've added a few bottles since that pic, including a Woodford Double-Barrel and some 15-yr Whistle Pig my brother got me. The Capt' Morgan's is my hunting partner's. I'm not into that, except in the most-extreme emergency. The ammo: that's turkey loads and 9mm. Also got a lot of .375 Wby; 10mm; 40 S&W; etc. ... I keep a segment of my arsenal at my uncle's in the Denver metro so that I can fly out and hunt/shoot without lugging the weapons sometimes.

My fiancé enjoyed her first ever trip to the Rockies last week.

[Linked Image from i.imgur.com]

[Linked Image from i.imgur.com]

[Linked Image from i.imgur.com]

[Linked Image from i.imgur.com]

[Linked Image from i.imgur.com]

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Just sent you a PM. Are you still on Colorado?

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