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Author Topic: Wyoming Elk Hunt - Updated  (Read 4806 times)

Offline Twispriver

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Re: Wyoming Elk Hunt
« Reply #15 on: October 22, 2017, 11:09:27 AM »
Day 1
Myron and I parked the truck in the dark at a gate on a ranch road several miles from where we turned off the pavement. The terrain was rolling plains with draws and pockets of pine and cottonwood. We began walking up out of the bottom as daylight broke, the temperature was right about freezing with promise of warming through the day. It would be the coolest temperatures of our hunt.
As we approached the top of the hill Myron immediately spotted a lone bull skylined on the open prairie maybe 1500 yards away. A dandy for sure but no way to approach him. We avoided the skyline and worked our way toward a pine ridgetop that stretched north spotting a couple more smaller bulls along a fence line a couple of ridges away. These two bulls were approachable but after glassing them we discovered it was a four-point and small five point so we continued on our way. We reached the edge of the timber and were working our way toward where a fence intersected it when Myron stopped and kneeled down as a spike popped out of the timber about 300 yards ahead of us. The spike was joined by two other spikes and as we were trying to be invisible they fed slowly around a little wrinkle in the terrain that allowed us to creep forward to the corner of the fence. The fence corner provided us with some cover so we could glass the elk through a screen of small trees and soon the spikes were joined by two bigger bulls, a small thin horned 6x6 and a much larger 6x6. Myron had me chamber a round in case they fed out and toward us but he wanted a better look at the bigger bull before he was going to give me a green light. Through the trees he judged the elk to be about 315 - 325 and he said that was a little small for the first hour of the first day.
The elk had us pinned down at the corner of the fence - We had the wind but they had elevation and a good field of view and we had no choice but to hunker down, watch and wait. At about 8:15, we'd been watching the elk for about 30 minutes, Myron's phone buzzed. It was a text from Mike and it was one word. Done.
After about 15 minutes the elk fed back into the timber and Myron called Mike to see what was up. He and Jackson were making a stalk on a big herd when a nice bull and six cows popped up on a ridge in front of them. A little dash to get in position and Jackson made a good 240 yard shot to claim his first elk.

Offline Twispriver

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Re: Wyoming Elk Hunt
« Reply #16 on: October 22, 2017, 11:22:22 AM »
The previous evening we had discussed what we wanted to do if one of us got an elk down and we decided that we would converge on the elk and get the work done before continuing the hunt. Myron and I had a couple of miles to walk to get to the kill site but Mike and Myron decided to instead head for a storage building where we would meet and take a Polaris Ranger and trailer back to retrieve the bull since it was shot on an open ridge and could be brought out whole. Mike and Jackson cleaned the elk while Myron and I started walking their way. We arrived at the storage building at the same time and after some hugs and handshakes we were on our way. When I first saw Jackson's bull I was immediately impressed with the mass and bulk of the antlers. Heavy is the best way to describe it and the pictures, while impressive, don't do it justice.

Offline Twispriver

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Re: Wyoming Elk Hunt - Updated
« Reply #17 on: October 22, 2017, 12:07:11 PM »
Once we got the elk out and loaded in a truck it was decided that Myron and Jackson would take the elk, get it skinned and to the processor and I would hunt the rest of the day with Mike.
Back on the hunt a just little after noon we headed out looking for the big herd that Mike and Jackson had been heading for originally. The herd had moved and bedded and our job was to find them and plan a stalk or intercept for the evening and that meant covering some ground. I had worked all summer and fall to improve my condition and I'm glad I did. I have an active lifestyle and I walk a lot on my farm but I climbed hills and put in a couple of miles twice a day because I didn't want to fall behind or not be able to go where I needed to.
I kept up. That afternoon we walked over ridges, down into draws, side hilled, crawled through creek bottoms and navigated through eight foot tall thorn bushes that Mike called buck brush (I had another word for it) and I was able to do it all. No cramps, sore calves or tired legs.
About 4:00 we were just about to where we hoped the big group had bedded when Mike stopped, kneeled and motioned me down. Right ahead of us, in our intended path were two mule deer bucks and they were both dandies. Here I am with two wide, tall, heavy, good forks, eye guards, big body deer at 150 yards broadside and no deer tag. Here's a tip for you if you ever do this hunt - buy the deer tag.
The deer bedded right where they were feeding and with prime-time approaching we had to back track and go around those bucks so we didn't bump them right through where we thought the elk we were looking for were bedded. During our walk that afternoon we had backtracked around antelope, small bulls and a huge lone buffalo bull so by that time it was just part of the game.
We made a big circle and got to where we wanted to go. Busted out about a half a dozen cows but no big herd. We were on the northern end of the ranch by now and it was apparent that the big herd had moved on to the neighboring property. As the day neared its end we glassed a half dozen good bulls on the neighboring ranch and just before dark the big herd crested a ridge about a mile away heading toward us but they wouldn't be in bounds before dark. Maybe tomorrow.

Offline Twispriver

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Re: Wyoming Elk Hunt - Updated
« Reply #18 on: October 22, 2017, 12:44:14 PM »
Day 2
I would be going out with Mike for the rest of the week and Jackson was going to tag along. We started off the day in the same area that Myron and I hunted on day 1. We worked our way up out of the bottom and immediately we could tell that the wind was sketchy, there was no consistency at all. We crept out on the downhill side of an open ridge and glassed over toward the pines. There stood the bull we wanted at the edge of the fence line feeding. He had it all. Good curving fronts, long thirds, heavy bladed fourths and great forks on top. It would be the best bull I saw all week. At 480 yards it was too far for me to shoot comfortably with the 30-06 so we ducked down and decided to try to find a crease in the ridge to close the distance. We moved just a little way and Mike said we were backing out until the wind was more predictable and would try to find the elk again later in the day. I was a little puzzled that we didn't make more of an effort and even more puzzled when we headed straight for the truck at 7:30 in the morning to drive to a hill top and glass for the rest of the morning instead of hiking to find more elk. By 10:00 the wind had become steady out of the west and the temperature began to rise. By noon it was heading toward 70 degrees and the wind was still steady at 10 mph. At 12:30 we drove over to where we were in the morning, hiked out a little way to near where we saw the elk that morning and sat under a little pine tree until 5:00. Mike doesn't communicate his plans very well but he did tell us that he was sure that bull was bedded within 300 yards of us and would feed out into the open and we could make our play. He didn't. Toward dark we worked our way out on the prairie and saw four five or six point bulls from about 800 yards but that would be it for the day. At dinner that night Myron told us that he had seen the big herd across the ranch from our position and we would try to find them in the morning.
« Last Edit: October 23, 2017, 06:46:29 PM by Twispriver »

Offline Hockeyman87

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Re: Wyoming Elk Hunt - Updated
« Reply #19 on: October 22, 2017, 01:32:07 PM »
good job that is nice

Offline Twispriver

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Re: Wyoming Elk Hunt - Updated
« Reply #20 on: October 22, 2017, 01:50:05 PM »
Day 3
We would work back toward the north end of the ranch where we had hunted the afternoon of Day 1. On our drive to the ranch I talked to Mike about our hunt the previous day and asked why we hadn't made a more aggressive attempt on the bull the morning before and why, if we had to back off of that one, we didn't take a more active course in trying to find other elk. Mike didn't say so in specific words but I got the message that if there was any chance at all that you were going to be seen or smelled and risk bumping elk off the ranch we weren't going to hunt them. They have a new group of bull hunters every week for four weeks and don't want the elk educated or run off the property. Until the wind had stabilized the odds were against us and our best play was to wait it out.
We started the morning by spotting a small band of elk with a few small bulls and some cows out in front of a big knob they call "roundtop". We worked our way toward them by using ridgelines to hide behind and the wind was in our favor and holding steady. We had a few miles to cover and were going to try to get up on top of that knob and get a good visual of where the elk were and how we could hunt them. By 10:00 we were on top and could see 360 degrees by moving just a short distance in any direction. To the northwest there were between 200 -250 elk bunched in the corner of the fence on the neighboring ranch property. To the south there was a group of seven smaller bulls bedded on the open prairie and to the southwest there was a 6x2 club horned bull, two spikes and five cows milling. We had approached from the east and we had a steady 15-20 mph wind out of the west.
We moved to watch the big bunch of elk as they jumped the fence and moved onto the ranch property. to the west of us there was a smaller knob and some of the elk climbed the hill to bed, some went around the point and out of view and some bedded right out in the open. The elk had water to the south of us and to the north of us and depending on which route they chose we had an easy move to get a shot between 150 ad 300 yards which is within my comfort zone. They were bedded between 700 and 800 yards away and all we had to do was wait and watch. I counted 40 branch antlered bulls that were 5-point or better as they were jumping the fence and moving in the open but it was hard to judge anything other than big or small. The best bull I could see bedded was a massive 5-point that was long and heavy. while glassing I also noticed that a good share of the bigger bulls had broken antlers.
I'm wrapped a little to tight to be good at sitting and I forgot to bring my book that day so I kept sneaking over to where I could see the club horned bull and he still had romance on his mind and was fun to watch bugling, chasing off the spikes and herding the cows in a circle on the same acre of ground.
At about 1:00 a few of the elk in the big group began to stand and mill around, soon more and more were standing and we thought they were going to make their move. Soon all of the elk were on their feet and were moving toward the north and out of bounds and we thought WTH; then we saw it. A lone buffalo bull walked right through the herd bumping them off the ranch. The elk walked about 300 yards and bedded out in the open but they didn't bust. That damn buffalo walked right down the draw below us where we hoped the elk would go and went to water. It was early in the day and we still had a chance the elk would come back our way.
At 5:00 the elk were back on their feet and to our dismay they walked right back to the fence they jumped earlier in the day and made their way back onto the neighboring ranch. We had an hour and a half of light left and so we made our way off the hill and began our hike south to try to find an elk on huntable ground but it wasn't meant to be.
That night John and Brady didn't make it back for dinner and when they still weren't back at bedtime we knew they must have got one in a spot that required quartering the elk. John got back to the bunkhouse too tired to show his happiness in the 6x6 he had killed six hours earlier. A picture of our vantage point and John's elk.
« Last Edit: October 29, 2017, 11:02:02 AM by Twispriver »

Offline Twispriver

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Re: Wyoming Elk Hunt - Updated
« Reply #21 on: October 22, 2017, 03:20:08 PM »
Day 4
We would be hunting a different ranch today to let the area we had been hunting rest and the temperature was expected to rise to 75 degrees by the afternoon so we dressed light. Big Mistake. While they told us we were changing locations what they didn't say was that we were gaining 2,500 feet in elevation and it was 26 degrees with a stiff, cold west wind blowing when we arrived at our first glassing spot. I gave my light jacket to Jackson and Mike had an extra in his truck so after digging gloves out of our packs we were on our way. This was different country and bigger. The Ranch is 18,000 acres with rock ridges, small patches of timber and a long way between features in the terrain. At our first stop Mike spotted a bull crossing an open valley heading toward a ridgetop about a mile and a half away. Through the spotting scope Mike determined that he was a 6x6, decent but nothing special and that we should keep looking. We stayed in the cover of the rock formations on the ridgetop and continued moving and glassing for the next few hours. We busted a cow and a calf that were tucked in right below us and saw a four-point and a five-point crossing an open ridge about 1,000 yards away. During a rest break we had a sandwich and I reminded Mike that I had to get meat to the cutter today or tomorrow at the latest if we were going to have it done before we left for home on Saturday. We might have to collectively lower our expectations to make that happen. We decided to keep looking and if we couldn't turn up anything in the next couple of hours we would try to relocate the bull we saw early in the morning.
We returned to the truck and drove to a ridge a mile or so away and hiked along the rim being careful not to expose ourselves on the skyline. after a couple of hours we saw the four-point, five point and cow and calf pair again who were now traveling together but were unable to turn up anything else.
We returned to the truck and drove to a glassing spot about a mile away from the backside of the ridge we saw the 6x6 climbing earlier. We parked and it took about a minute to find him - he was up and feeding. Where he was located was on the end of a bowl shaped ridge, down 50 yards from the top with the cover of the rocks and pines above him and open ridge below.
Mike calculated that we could approach from the end of the bowl, with the wind in our favor and climb the ridge from the back side but we had to get moving.
We moved the truck around the back side about two ridges away and drove to within about 3/4 of a mile from where we thought we needed to be. We quickly climbed into our packs and hustled to close the distance. Mike is not a long strider but when he's on the scent of something he can really cover the ground and I was having trouble keeping up. We had to cross about 40 yards of open ground to get to the back side of the bowl and for once there wasn't an antelope, deer or buffalo in our way to spoil our plans.
When we reached the bottom of the rock formation that formed the rim of the bowl Mike climbed up to try to locate the bull. After about a minute he turned and gave us the thumbs up. and waved me forward. The elk had bedded uphill about 50 yards from when we last saw him and he was hard quartering away with no good shot at his vitals. The range was 278 yards. We would need him to stand. We waved Jackson up to join us and got a nest made for my rifle on the end of the rock formation. I was steady but uncomfortable and hoping I didn't have to wait too long. I had practiced with the bipod but the rest on top of a pack and jacket was rock solid - I adjusted the power and focus on my scope, chambered a round and took nice long breaths. I had a clear sight picture and was as ready as I could be. Jackson was laying down watching about ten yards away from the other end of the rock formation and Mike was over my shoulder.
After about ten minutes the bull began scratching his back with his antlers, looking around and moving his legs under him. All at once he hunched his back put his head back and stood all in one motion. I flipped off the safety, said "he's up" and squeezed the trigger. I lost sight of the elk as I worked the bolt, Mike told me he went left and down but I couldn't find him again behind the pines. Jackson also lost sight of him after the shot but said he saw the impact and that the hit was solid. Mike slapped me on the back and said "you just killed a bull elk" and it was then that I realized that when he said the elk went left and down he meant "Down".
I cleared the chamber and made sure that the gun was safe and we collected our things and began the 300 yard walk to find the elk. We covered the distance pretty quickly as the emotion of the hunt and the last few minutes sunk in and I needed to catch my breath. We started the climb up the ridge and I headed to where the elk was bedded, Jackson and Mike were about 10 yards to my left and as we got closer and closer to where he was I began to get concerned when we didn't see him. When I was directly below the trees he was bedded next to I looked over at Jackson just as he spotted him - when I saw the look on his face I knew he was looking at my elk.
As he lay
« Last Edit: October 23, 2017, 10:20:00 PM by Twispriver »

Offline Twispriver

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Re: Wyoming Elk Hunt - Updated
« Reply #22 on: October 22, 2017, 03:36:43 PM »
The elk was laying not ten yards from where I shot him, he went forward about ten feet and fell, rolling down about 10 feet more. When we cleaned him we discovered that I had destroyed the top half of his heart with my shot. He has a few battle scars, his fourth, fifth and sixth are all broke on his right side and the sixth is broke on his  left side but I'm very happy with him. We took a few pictures and Mike hiked back to the truck thinking he could drive right over the ridge and down into that bowl right under him to bring him out whole - I had my doubts but I was wrong again. Mostly because we had Jackson with us we were able to clean that elk and load him whole.
Mike called the meat processor and he was full until he cleared some hooks in the morning so we would take him back to Mike's farm, hoist him on the tractor and skin him ourselves which is what I prefer anyway. I retrieved my 165 grain Sierra Game King from the hide on the far side and was very impressed with the bullet performance and how much it stayed intact. I have a few more things that I want to add but its time for chores so a few more pictures and maybe I'll get back later.
« Last Edit: October 23, 2017, 06:59:30 PM by Twispriver »

Offline Widgeondeke

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Re: Wyoming Elk Hunt - Updated
« Reply #23 on: October 23, 2017, 09:17:08 AM »
Great write up  :tup:

Looks like a great time was had.  Congrats

Offline DOUBLELUNG

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Re: Wyoming Elk Hunt - Updated
« Reply #24 on: October 23, 2017, 09:27:17 AM »
Congrats on a great hunt.  Wakkuri's had a stellar reputation when I lived in Casper, never met them but mutual friends spoke highly of them. 
As long as we have the habitat, we can argue forever about who gets to kill what and when.  No habitat = no game.

Offline Duckhunter14

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Re: Wyoming Elk Hunt - Updated
« Reply #25 on: October 23, 2017, 09:33:27 AM »
Sounds like a great hunt! And awesome write up! Thank you for sharing. Glad you had such a great experience. Wyoming is an awesome place to hunt.  :tup:
The testing of your faith produces perseverance

Elk don't know how many feet a horse has!

Offline 87Ford

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Re: Wyoming Elk Hunt - Updated
« Reply #26 on: October 23, 2017, 09:38:25 AM »
What an awesome adventure with your son, Rick.  Congratulations on your success.  I think if Brian ever makes it to Montana, he won't come back either. :chuckle:

Offline Tschaefer72

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Re: Wyoming Elk Hunt - Updated
« Reply #27 on: October 23, 2017, 10:01:23 AM »
congrats on the great hunt and success for you and your son. Enjoyed hearing the story of how it all played out!

Offline Craig

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Re: Wyoming Elk Hunt - Updated
« Reply #28 on: October 23, 2017, 04:40:11 PM »
Congrats. Nice Bull. Looks like he was a fighter. Sounds like there's no shortage of bulls on the ranch. That's probably why they are busted up. Glad you guys a ga good hunt. Hope to cash my WY elk points in soon.

Offline Twispriver

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Re: Wyoming Elk Hunt - Updated
« Reply #29 on: October 23, 2017, 08:15:04 PM »
There is so much more i could add but I'll keep it short with just a few more things.
I believe we made the right choice in booking with Elk Mountain Outfitters. The number of Elk we saw and the bull to cow ratio was unbelievable to me. Myron, Mike and Brady worked their tails off every day for us and they are top notch people. It was important to me to book with someone that owned their own land because I want to support them keeping the property whole and if selling a few hunts a year helps them keep the developers at bay I'm all for that. The ranch property that I hunted for three days and Jackson killed his bull on is featured on page 38 of the current issue of Bugle Magazine detailing how Myron granted a conservation easement on the property preserving it for future generations. I would recommend them without reservation. As I wrote earlier, the accommodations and food provide a level of comfort that I'm not used to while hunting elk. If you're ever going to hunt with these guys bring your appetite.
This was my first guided hunt and I wasn't prepared at first for being handled like I was a novice. The bull I killed was my 14th elk but I understand now that they have no way of knowing your skill level or capabilities and have to assume you are a beginner until proven otherwise but it took me a while to adjust. Most of what I know (or think I know) about the strategy and tactics of elk hunting in Washington doesn't translate really well to the open country we were hunting.
Hunting elk on the plains of Wyoming with a rifle is not like hunting the 340 with a bow or Muzzleloader. I was undergunned with the 30-06 and I should have chosen a gun with a bit more reach. The shots that Jackson and I took are about as close as you are going to get. Jackson uses a .300 WSM and could have reached out had he needed to but with the wind I didn't want to shoot over 300 yards.
I was surprised to learn that a lot of the out of state hunters are there for the heads and horns only. John, the other hunter in camp with us paid the processor and left his elk and antelope meat for him to donate. Apparently that is commonplace but is totally foreign to me. I may have killed a bigger elk if I hunted longer without concerning myself with bringing home meat but I can't imagine myself ever doing that. Jackson's elk weighed 385 pounds and mine weighed 381. We filled three 160 quart marine coolers to the brim with off-the-bone processed meat for the trip home.
The elk hunting was fantastic and the people were great but taking a road trip and spending a week with my son was the highlight for me. Can't wait for our next adventure.
« Last Edit: October 29, 2017, 11:11:01 AM by Twispriver »

 


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