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Elk hunting seems to get tougher every year. It seems every vehicle I see has a 4 wheeler, or side by side on it. Some of the side by sides, are bigger than the vehicle towing them..I guess it is the way of the world. Like I told the game and fish people at a check station, I am glad I am on this end of my hunting career.
I will probably go as long as I am able, but I don't see alot of elk years ahead, but I have had some dandies.

I just wrapped up a successful elk hunt and danged if those grades aren’t getting steeper and longer. It seems like it’s takes me twice as long to do anything. I don’t think I’m at the end of my elk hunting , but I can see it from here!

It is darn tough to make that decision WAM. I had to this year. What is even worse is to sit home and want to be up on the mountain, knowing you will never be able to do it again.

Ouch…

I am truly sorry saddlesore…I know how much you must have enjoyed it.

I find inspiration from his thread. I turn 60 in May and just got back from a successful CO cow hunt. She was only shade less than 2 miles from the trailhead and its not getting any easier. My first load was all my day hunt stuff, 2 jackets, and a rifle. I thought I would be a good idea to add a hind quarter to that mix. The last 1.25 miles was on the trail and a downhill hike. All told it wasn't horrible and made a second trip before dark for a front quarter.

I did spend the first couple days 3-5 miles from the truck up some steep slopes. I came to the realization that it would be very difficult for me to get an elk out of there on my back by myself. I feel old coming to that realization.

As to guys "hunting" off trucks/4 wheelrs, have grown to really dislike the things. I pick areas they aren't allowed but damned if I still don't see them behind closed gates. If I can get enough info, I turn everyone of them in. Get your fat ass off the 4 wheeler.

I had a neighbor who was a phenomenal elk hunter.

One of the most successful archer I ever met.

If he found motorized vehicles where they didn’t belong.

They were disabled/ vandalized if you will.

The fire he would get in his eyes……when talked about it….I bet who ever owned them vehicles were glad they weren’t present when it occurred.

I'm 69 and was really looking forward to this year's elk hunt. Went up last Friday and couldn't get into the unit due to the amount and type of snow on the roads. Even where we could follow the two tracks in a very few places, you couldn't get off the road to set up camp without getting stuck. We spent over 2 hours digging out and getting unstuck on a road trying to get in in the morning and spent the rest of the day trying to find a camp spot with no luck. First time this has ever happened to us and I've hunted in snow almost every year for 40 years now.... so we were back home Saturday morning early after giving up as the weather was forecast to get worse over the next few days.

All this to say I intend to keep elk hunting as long as I can but realistically I see that being about 4-5 more years if all goes well... losing even one year now really bums me out at this stage... especially as hard as it is to draw tags these days.

After I turned 60 (I'm 74 now), I figured that I needed some kind of pack animals if I intended to keep elk hunting for much longer. I can hike 5 miles but not with a load heavier than a day pack and rifle. I ended up with some of these guys. They've made a world of difference and kept me going well beyond where I'd probably have had to hang it up. I'll bet they added 10 years to my hunting time.
For someone wanting to get into low cost pack animals, I suggest reading up on goats. Llamas are great but they've become very hard to find and they're expensive.

This photo is packing out a buddy's deer a few years ago. It was 3 miles back.

That's pretty awesome Rock Chuck!

yes super cool pics thanks

Goats are very tasty table fare also.

But you better get handy at fencing them in.

What does a Llama sell 4 these days?

I got several older friends that talk how handy their lightweight kind of wheel barrow deals.

I saw one in action this year…..he got my cow out before my mule showed up.

But it was really near a hayfield with a good road.

I have told quite a few younger hunters this, but it doesn't seem to soak in

When you are 35-40 years old, count the number of elk hunts you can do before you are too old.

30-35 is a reasonable number, if you can go every year, like I did. They go by pretty fast. Hunts all blend together and before long you are looking at 3-4 left. It is pretty sobering. If you are 60 or so, it's darn scary if you are really addicted to elk hunting.

Guys on here that think they are7 ft tall and bullet proof do not think it will happen to them and us old boomers don't know what we are talking about., but those steep mountains will win in the end.

I stretched mine out another 7-8 years when I bought two smaller mules ( the taller ones where too tall to throw a saddle on and way to tall to throw an elk quarter on). I counted my saved punched elk tags a few years ago and there were over 50 of them. I thought I could make it 60,but not any more.

There are very few good llamas on Craigslist. The cheapest I saw was $1500 and they went up to $5000. One guy in MT has 2 males that would be good. 2 llamas with all the pack gear for $8500.
That's absurd.

Do you prefer males over females.?

Why?

Mine are all geldings. Females work fine, too, but just can't carry quite as much weight. Intact males can get entertaining. They love to fight and they have some very sharp fighting teeth that need to be removed. They'll cut each other up. On that photo I posted, look at the ears on the black in the back. You can just barely see a notch in the ear on the left. He got it ripped to pieces in a fight. They'll try to castrate each other with those teeth, too. I have a video of 2 young males fighting but I don't know how to post it here. I've never been able to get it work with Imgur.

Females don't have heat periods. If they're not pregnant, they'll breed any time. Open females and intact males in a pack string are something I'd rather avoid. A gelding that was castrated when older might try to breed, too.

I once floated a champion llamas teeth!

Captain Startrek!

LOL. All I know about llamas is what I saw when a loose one came out of the timber and I was able to look back as my mule, with me aboard, left the country.

Different mule now.There are three down the road a ways a few miles. This mule will stop and look at them as long as he is on the far side of the road, but it doesn't take long for him to look.

I turned 77 this year and I'm still chasing them.
Cashed in my points on a CA bull elk tag and filled with a 5X5 Roosevelt in Sept.
Headed out to Utah at the end of the week with a cow tag in my pocket and its supposed to snow before I get there.
Have a late season CA archery deer tag that will keep me in the woods in Dec.
And next year I'll try to burn my points in NV and Utah.

For me its not so much about punching the tag but not giving up and getting out in the wilderness.

^^^^^^^

WOW!

Sounds like fun!,!

BTW do you have gaited horses.

BK,
Late to this thread. Glad you had a good hunt, sorry for geriatric incursions though.

I have been fortunate. Drew my first BH archery tag in 94 on my first try. 2nd one came in 2015 with 11 pp. Will put in for archery cow as soon as I am able.

First rifle tag was 2006, and just put in for a cow tag this year. Only expect to get leftover cow tags anymore.
Have drawn CSP late season archery once, and cow tag once. Currently have 28 years pp for both early season any elk.

Have 16 years pp for prairie and seriously thinking about putting in for a cow tag.

I am done chasing antlers, cows eat waaay better.