Every year for the last 11, I've bought a Colorado eastern plains elk tag in case I happened to see one on the ranch. I see elk come thru every spring, but never during the Sept 1st to Jan 31st season. That changed today. The boss called me and said there was a bull down on the creekbottom on the north place, but he only had his pistol. I grabbed my daypack and rifle and went over towards where he last seen him. I caught him jumping the fence onto the home place. He was spooked and going pretty good and I missed my first shot. Put the next one into him as he went thru another opening in the trees. Left my stuff and headed back to grab the tractor. Sure is easier retrieving elk on the flats, than it is humping quarters over blowdown on the mountain. Didn't even work up a sweat.....

lol so awesome! What did you shoot him with?
S.

Watch it don, the hardcore fuuckers hate!! 😂

I’ve boned enough to appreciate the easy ones, nice work!👊🏻

Now for knife pics buddy👍

Congrats Don

Thats the way to do it!

6.5 PRC with 147's.

Hell ya buddy 👊🏻

Heck ya man! That’s the way to pack out an elk! Congrats on the bull!

Nice!

Great job. Congrats to you sir.

Sweeet

The elk are clear out in Kiowa already? Sheesh.

Seriously, quartering and boning out the rest of the meat while the bull is on the ground is easy—then a guy can just drive the pickup over and toss everything in.

Love it, and your boner. Congrats.

Do to my partners and I losing all of our encounters with the calendar, we've switched to hunting cows in a wintering area. Over the last 2 years we've got 4 cows between us and were able to get 4 wheelers right to all of them. We don't have a tractor with a loader but at least we were able to winch them into the backs of pickups.

Nice! What sweet dogs (partners)!!

You probably earned an easy one! Congrats

That’s cheating.
I’m appalled.

Good stuff Don!

Congratulations

Well done, Don! That’s pretty much same way we do it at the Grand county place. Hay meadow is a boost too!! Doesn’t hurt back corner of ranch is maybe 2 miles as crow flies from back end of RMNP along the Colorado river!! Be up there next Thursday afternoon for 2nd rifle

From the barn and feedlot 2018. Gonna be different. All them trees in background are gone thanks to the big fire.

Nothing wrong with an easy elk:) Congrats to you!

I’m jealous! Very cool and nice bull!

Todd

There are times when it is better to be lucky than good. Congrats on the easy elk.

Love it when a plan comes together. Nice spur of the moment bull.

Hells ya.........good sheit.

Good on ya Don, there's no rule that say's you have to bust your Balls to kill and retrieve a Bull. Rio7

Congrats. You will probably never top that one.

What Classic rifle you hunting with this year, Bob ?

That's just fantastic. Not only do I approve of it, I applaud it. Congrats.

Excellent!!

Damn you Huntsman... every time I pack a bull out on my back and I see the guys at the bar with whole elk in the back of the truck I think WTF?





Seriously though congrats and we all deserve an easy one now and again...

Nice load of meat you have there, good shooting too!

When they volunteer, you gotta shoot em!

Glad you got an easy one for a change!!

Finally! Glad it finally happened out there buddy. He looks really fine on the Deere!

Congrats. After buying a tag for the last 11 years hoping to get a shot at one on the ranch you were due. Good for you.

Heck ya Don.

Good job huntsman22!

Nice work!

CONGRATULATIONS

You only get one easy elk in a lifetime. Enjoy it!

He's just the right size to make good eating!

That dog'll hunt, Huntsman22!

That'll do!

Nicely done Don!

The dream right there.....living the dream.

Good shooting Don, you look good on the John Deere.

Ain't nuthin' wrong with an easy one every now and then. Meat in the freezer is meat in the freezer...

Exactly what I was thinking. Meat in the freezer, is meat in the freezer.

Thanks for all the comments, guys. It really was easy on me, so much so, that I grabbed another Plains tag yesterday. I figure with 3 whole months left in the season, I might as well as I could very well run acrost another. The neighbor seen 5 other, bigger bulls east of me about 5 miles across the interstate and there is a good chance that they come onto the Bijou here looking for water.

That said, my 'real' elk hunt starts Saturday. And I expect it to be much more 'strenuous'..... Don't know if I'm ready, but figure to see just what I can do this year, after my valve job open heart surgery in March.

Thanks again. Don

After packing out 3 bulls in two weeks (one mine, two other buddy's), I don't know if I have any want to shoot another cow.

Would've paid damn good money for a tractor last night, that's for sure!

Good luck!

Nice Don!! Good luck on your "real" hunt.

Congrats! How far was the shot? I have a 6.5 PRC and I really like it, shoots 139 Scenars real good?

just under 200, maybe 170-180.

I'm gonna suggest a pocket full of tags and a herd clip.

No kidding! If you didn’t hike 12 miles one way, it isn’t elk hunting…

Maybe not 12 miles but at least 10. 😁

Nice, I have a friend in Oregon who hunts the same way. Congratulations the easy ones are few and far between.

One item you never see on any Guide/Outfitter's "Gear List" is:

"Front-end Loader"

Yet, given the opportunity, nobody passes up using same........

Cherish the easy ones as they are few and far between.

Heck yeah Don, an elk of opportunity, is a good elk !

Well done! Cool dogs and knife too. And when it comes to getting elk out of the field - nothing wrong with John Doe, but I'll take John Deere!

That’s great. Congratulations.

Sweet!

Well done, Don! And "Weidmanns Heil" to the bull elk.

At what distance did you get him. Where did you hit him and did you recover the bullet?

Does this mean it's Elk steak for dinner the next time I stop by Amigo? LOL Good to see Finn the Wonder Dog! How's the new pup coming along?

Congratulations. That is a prize for sure.

kwg

Easy Button is always welcome. Really like your helpers too.
Congrats on the bull but really congrats on the heart surgery recovery.

Every now and again, an easy one is good to get.

Congrats on an easy one. All of mine have sucked..

Congrats on the bull Huntsman! That's a cool hunt and even neater seeing moving on the tractor!

I would GLADLY trade my external pack frame for a John Deere!

congrats

That's how you get it done

Every time I get one on my back, I wish for an elk like that.

Enjoy it while it lasts!!!

Nothing like what is considered easy. But some people hike miles into the back country, others work on the ranch to get the benefit of the easy elk.

Fixing a gate that someone broke and left laying in the grass...

Well done

Congrads Don! They say nothing runs like a Deere!

Is that the small forest axe? Good looking knife too, who is the maker if you don’t mind my asking?

Yes. Rick Menefee 'lil dumplin'

Thanks, nice cutters you have there.

A Deere deer is dear.

Sorry.....

Knocking 'em down in the cottonwoods. Cool as the other side of the pillow.

And I thought my horses make pack outs easy.

Nice going!

Congratulations! Beautiful country and heelers!

Excellent!!

A look at the ballisitics tells me your bullet was going pretty good at about 2,900 FPS. I didnt know they had that much oomph. Likely has the .270 Win. beat by a little .

Congrats Don. That sure is the easy way.

Congrats Don!
I agree and employ whatever help I can get!

Congratulations Don

Nice axe!! Elk's not bad either! Deep envy here for folks that can get an elk/moose/bear out with a tractor! Some day ...

Heck yeah! Congrats!

Good shooting, Don. Congratulations.

Last pic before I toss the teeth in a tin, and the tag in the trash...

Way to go, Don!
I learned, long ago, that if I let "Johnnie" do the lifting - my back doesn't hurt!

Works for Tatonka too. I ain't too proud to let Johnie do the liftin'




Congrats on your first elk of the season! Hope you get another.
Rex

If handy enough, I'll find out if "Bob" has the reach.
Robert Cat does some heavy lifting for me, too.

Just to make some of you guys jealous, I've loaded 4 elk with Johnnie's help.

Lifting elk side benefit for Johnnie. Sold a few parts for them.

Easy peasy. Years ago you sent me an pic of packing a load out on the ponies back in your cowboy days.

Congrats Don, been waiting for a lot of years to post this back at you. ;-{>8


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huntsman22
Campfire Ranger

Joined: Aug 2006
Posts: 21,656
Kiowa/Deer Trail, Colorado
Nice bool. gotta like it when they come easy........