Just got a call from the mountain...pic added

[buglebuster]

Congrats, that is a beautiful bull

[h2ofowlr]

Real nice bull.  Congrats on the harvest.

[pips4bucks]

   Awesome bull!  Good luck getting one close to that next year!

[wsucowboy]

Congrats on a heck of a bull!

[jager]

I get out to camp on October 18th to set up for my special permit elk hunt. That would leave me five consecutive days to scout for elk..and then there's the possibility to knock down a nice buck. He'd have to be nice thought since I have a multiseason tag in my pocket as well.
I meet woodchuck and his son that evening at my camp after their deer hunt that day….he willingly gave up some more areas to check out…I did keep asking though…I'm sure he was saying, "enough already".
The next three  days were pretty uneventful as I hiked, glassed and found out the true joys of crawling over hundreds of yards deadfalls.
One of those days I spotted five cows and bedded 330-ish bull one morning that had one of his brow tines broken completely off. I watched him rise from his bed as he fed toward the bottom of the valley, not until stopping to thrash his antlers in a muddy spot on the side of the mountain. All while the crows were making quite a racket across the canyon. Pretty cool I must say!  One day I had made a hike into what I would call, something close to hell….or heaven considering the sign in there. All of a sudden I heard a hunter bugling, and then more and more and more. what the…..?
After about fifteen bugles I realize this is not a hunter but an elk coming right towards me. He stops a couple hundred yards away but keeps bugling. I thought maybe he had bedded down, but there was no way I was going after him since I didn't bring a bugle…who knew…. it was late October and the season was still days away.

[jager]

Back while glassing the hillside the next morning where I spotted the 330 bull I noticed the crows were sill there. After no elk being spotted I decided to make the trek over to where they were….maybe there was something dead, or maybe just a gutpile.
About 45 minutes into the walk I noticed there were no birds…I must be in the spot or really close I thought. I'm creeping along and I simultaneously hear and see something at about forty yards and low to the ground…
It's a bear head looking right at me, or I guess trying to see me. His head goes sideways and goes down…What? Oh… he's laying on the kill or whatever food is there!
I can't tell how big he is so I slowly move up another ten yards to thirty yards. I continue to watch…I didn't want to shoot boo boo and I probably wouldn't shoot unless he was bigger than my last bears. I could never get a good enough look to  determine his size.
Any little noise I would make he would lift his head and turn it trying to catch a scent of me.  I watched for quite a while at one point even making a kissing noise so he would, maybe get up…not happening. This bear is full and sleepy. I watched him for probably an hour while he slept or dozed. I even managed to get a pic of him through my scope while he slept.
All this while I'm thinking do I even have a knife with me? This isn't the pack I was going to wear elk hunting, and I really didn't think I was going to shoot a deer…I mean come on!
After rolling onto his side for a while, he heard a truck. and decided it was time to go, as he got up slightly facing me, quartering to my left I could see the girth on him, his bow legs and the cool cream colored blaze on his chest. Oh yea he's big enough!  He turns to my right and starts down the hill five steps his head is behind a tree now.. six steps I have no more shot opportunity.
Boom. He runs a few more steps, one somersault and he's down.
I walk over to where he was laying and spot the three point muley buck piled up against the tree. He had been chewed on a bit and nearly completely covered. Crazy!
As I walk up to the bear, he is indeed larger than any other bear that I have shot. In fact he's dang big! I can hardly move him. Then the reality sets in Knife? Check!  Ummmm how am I going to get this thing out of here?  Cell phone! Hey woodchuck this is jager…"I just shot a bear"  "Where ya at" he says.
My son and I will be there in about 45 minutes and we have packframes…..Yes! 
After a few hours of wrestling, skinning, and packing the bear we make it back to the road. I was amazed by their willingness to help out a total stranger like that! I mean, that basically killed the rest of there day to deer hunt. Very cool and very appreciated! We hung the meat and hide at his camp…ya know, I didn't have a meat pole. Wasn't planning on killing anything!

[jager]

Day one of the elk season came and went. No elk. In fact only one bull in the last six days. Hmm. This is going to be harder than I thought. I didn't think it was a gimme hunt..but I'd seen lots of bulls in the summer.
Days two and three still no elk. Wow! I was hoping to at least locate an elk to try and put a stalk on it before the general opener. By now I'm starting to freak out a little. Am I going to eat this tag. I thought either my odds would go up cause the elk would be moving due to the pressure or… I wouldn't see any elk because of the pressure! I knew I was where the elk were just not at the right time.
Day four had me glassing an area that was very near an area that I hunted the day before that looked very promising. As I was straining to see something, anything I turn to see a guy walking up to me. "Ross"? I said. We had spoke on the phone only but I recognized him from his photos on here. He gave me a ton of info on that general area and we checked some spots out. We also ran into 257 Wby Mag, whose buddy had the tag and shot a really nice bull.
That evening I did end up seeing a spike and a 2x2 that I watched feed out of a valley and to the top of a ridge only to bed at dark on an old road at the top.
As I walk out in the dark I run into a guy on the road who is trying to get cell service. He says, Yea we just heard a bugle right below our camp, blew the cow call and had some cows come in. Really?
I'm bummed
I get back to my truck and rosscrazyelk is waiting there. He said these guys that I met last year left a note for me at my camp . They said they saw a big bull across the unit that morning. Lets call.
Back to his camp we go. Make the call and talk to the guys. I head out to their camp which is about 90 minutes away. On they way out I spot a really nice bull in the road where the guy with the phone was! Of course I'm going somewhere else!
Onward to meet these guys...
Super nice guys…Mike and Bill.
The tell me they were scouting for the opener spotted this bull in the morning….never saw him that evening.
I decide why not. I haven't been doing that great. It seems like a reliable sighting, what have I got to loose? Back to camp at eleven up at 4:15.
During the drive that morning I decide I 'll hunt this area in the morning then back where I hunted the previous two days.
As it starts to get light i find my way to the hill they described for me. Now if I were a bull where would I be? I basically picked up the binos and pointed them directly at the bull. That's got to be him!
He's bedded. I got up a little closer and set up the spotting scope.
His head is behind some trees and I cant make out the front of his rack. Those trees are also going to help me get closer.
I pass a small herd of muleys that has a couple of small bucks in it.  If they spook this may be it. They didn't care.
Set up again. 7:30 694 yards. I think I can make it to 300 yards. And I'll be able to judge him better. I get a couple hundred yards closer and check him out through the spotter. I decide to make a stalk. I haven't decided if I'll shoot yet. About 9:15 I head down a rise only to pop out and not see the bull. He's up and feeding, heading uphill quartering to my right. I've got no rest the hill is so steep. I cross my left leg and lean way back. crank up the scope to 14x. Range him at 323 yards. He is in no hurry. I calm myself. I must say eerily calm…or at least that's what I'm convincing myself.
As i watch him I decide.. I AM going to shoot. He's going to take a few more steps and clear the trees…here he comes, stops…boom!
He didn't move. I rack the bolt and look away for about two seconds..he's gone!
I grab the binos and there he is…down not moving. I don't even think he took a step.
It takes me a good 40 minutes to get to him….I spot antlers…and they are not shrinking!
Holy cow! He's big! Really big! Bigger than I thought.
What an awesome animal. I spent several minutes looking him over. The size of this thing was amazing, not just the antlers. I was (am) ecstatic, relieved, and thankful...
After a few self timed photos…and several texts and calls It was all I could do to bone out one side of this beast. Thank god rosscrazyelk showed up with woody to help out with a couple of not so very light loads! You guys rock!

Deciding to go on this adventure alone...(well it was either that or don't go)
I called on some huge favors from guys that really don't know me!
The guys I met face to face..Woodchuck, rosscrazyelk. You guys were a huge,huge help!
Everyone that I contacted on the forum and pestered for info. Thank you!
I guess I just want to thank everyone that was willing to offer up info or lend a hand.
The crew at woodchuck's and rosscrazyelk's camp…you guys are great

I will leave all celebration and camp stories out in order to protect the innocent….or crazy!

[denali]

Great story and pictures,  congratulations on a superb hunt.

[Woodchuck]

Great write up my friend, congrats again.

[SniperDanWA]

He is a great looking bull.  It was as if I was there.  Thanks and congratulations too.

[TommyH]

Very nice bull! thats going to be hard to beat, good story, glad you found some good people to help ya out!

[longashes]

Excellent report and pictures! Congrats on a great hunt and thanks for sharing.

[yelp]

That was a great hunt Jager.  Congrats.  You did a lot of scouting and hard work.  You put in the effort and got a great bull and bear.  congrats.  Love the pics.

[bucklucky]

Wow, amazing hunt man. Congrats, thanks for the story!

[jager]

Thanks again!
Put the tape to him last night...358 5/8
Not that it matters....Great hunt!