2012 BULLS POST THEM HERE pics added 9-14

[TommyH]

Well my 2012 elk season started like many with high hopes. My hunting buddie and I camped at a spot that had treated us well in the past. Woke up at 4am, tried to quickly choke down a premade breakfast burrito(nope). After cleaning myself and my boots of chewed burrito, we started the morning just getting up to an area we though elk might be. No cows chirping, no bugles, no elk. On to spot 2 where I harvested my bull last year, get there and it got logged heavily. Few elk tracks but not as many as people tracks. Day 2 we hike into a area we spotted a 5x last year, take a steep shortcut threw the timber and take a breather at the upper road and throw out some cow calls. Thought we heard something in the cut below us from right where we had just came from.?.  We heard a grunt and knew it was a bull, seen some legs threw the trees at about 50 yards and he was coming to us. My buddie checked the wind as I was trying to  get my lidcam on. His scared look told me what I was worried about, the wind was blowing right down the hill at him. He winded us and started to walk away. Heart broken I snuck over to get a look at his head gear and was in shock that it was a nice 6x. We hunted that area for 2 days with not even another sound. Day 5 I went solo and hiked farther into a good area than I had ever been, 5-6 miles in steep country, one lone bull track and a nearly dry spot where he went pee. Dam.  Feet hurting and legs tired!! Day 6 I take 2 of my younger brothers out that had never heard a bugle. Almost took them to a spot I seen 4 cows cross in front of me in the dark on my way to the day 5 spot. Turned around and went to another spot. Walked in still dark. Got up in there and started going over hand signals and everything that I thought might help us communicate if we get into something. Didn’t call at all until I heard a bugle. Let out one bugle and got a response!! Excitedly got to moving in his direction. My youngest brother had his recurve and my other brother was just out there to experience it with us, and was going  back to AK. That night. We moved up the ridge as quiet as possible and got within 100 yards. Very thick forest kept us from seeing anything more than 20 yards. He seemed less interested in my cow calls than the bugles, So the screaming match begins!!!!!!!!! Every time he would bugle I would cut him off and bugle back to him, followed by another bugle by him!!!!!!!! This went on for about 3 hours!!!!!!!!!!!!!!! 2 spikes came in to about 10 yards just on the other side of some regen. I kept checking the wind and it was perfect! All I could smell was the bull that had been in the wallow all morning! The spikes finally backed out and let me move up another 20 yards. More bugleing back and forth….then some more….Lots of chuckling. My brother was scraping the heck out of some trees behind me. Then I see a cow coming in to check me out, he moves in trying to keep his cow from another bull. She went on the outside of a big fir and he made the mistake of coming on the inside of the tree at 20 yards. As soon as he gave me the shot I let the arrow go. I thought it was a good hit, he turned and started to run but I let out another bugle and he stopped 10 yards after I shot him. All silent now, 10 minutes and he is still standing behind some trees out of sight. My brothers move up and I tell them I hit him. I then hear them moving side hill with the ridge. Then he starts to bugle!! I am feeling sick knowing that he is not hit good enough if he is still bugling. I bugle and hear him bugle moving down the ridge. Some blood but not enough to feel good about. He did it a few times letting me know where he was at! I got up close and almost get another shot but to many trees. They  moved down the ridge a ways and hear him getting farther away! I am now sick! We sit and split a snickers for lunch and give him some more time, Sent my brother to the right after a spike we heard. After he returns about 45minuts later we start down the ridge after the herd. Havent seen blood in 200 yards!  We make it 100 yards and my brother trips and falls down with some cursing, all hell breaks loose and we see elk moving and horns moving to the left. I bugled once right at him, With all the noise I wasn’t sure which was the bull. One look at my brothers eyes and I knew he could see him. I took 2 steps back and seen his front feet moving into a shooting lane about 1 foot wide. Drew back and as he took one more step I let arrow #2 go. SMACK!!! I knew that one found its mark!!! We heard him clumsily run 30 yards and pile up, followed by that groan I had been waiting to hear! He was done, my second shot was a great shot that broke threw the back edge of his front shoulder and sliced some heart. Got on the phone and got ice and coolers on the way. After a lot of high fives and some pics the real work began. Quartered and deboned, bags overloaded It was a long hike out with bags way to heavy. Had to leave our bows, gear and the bulls head there for another trip out. Started the second trip up and got my father to come up with us. Well I guess I was in hunt mode for a few hours cause it was a lot farther than I thought, and way farther that my dad was ready for. 2 hours into the hike and its pitch black out, ½ way there! We have one head lamp, one green and red blood tracker light, and the light on my lidcam. If our batteries die then we are done. We shut off all the lights and you couldn’t see anything. Dad and younger brother say lets forget about it tonight and go in the morning, Determined to get all our stuff out I wanted to keep going. I started to think about it after a few stumbles and falls from all of us, I would feel horrible if something happened to anyone of us. I said lets get back to the truck. Long hike out with the bad lights we had. We all made it back safe so that was what was important. Got back up in the morning and got all our stuff out. My brother made it the whole way up in flip flops(We were supposta stop and get his boots). It was a great hunt and a great memory that we will all share forever! The next morning My other hunting buddie calls me and tells me he got the 6 point we called in a few days prior. Back to hiking and packing!! Next day back to work. I am so ready to sleep in and relax! Good luck to all who still got a tag in their wallet!!!!

[engelwood]

Man, nice work and good looking  bull!!!!

Hopefully I can be as lucky as you here in a few days....

[Maybee-R]

Very nice! Congrats.

[TommyH]

He was a 4x4 He  had single brow tines on both sides.

[engelwood]

One of the nicest 4x4's I've ever seen. 

[wsucowboy]

One of the nicest 4x4's I've ever seen. 

[Elkslayer]

Nice bull TJ, sounds like you worked hard for him!

[BOWHUNTER45]

Congrats to ALL you elk whackers out there ...some fine animals taken this season 

[TommyH]

I forgot to mention I was shooting slick tricks, the first shot deflected off a tiny branch and hit back and high, lethal i think but would have taken to long. Needed to get one more in him.

[SemperFidelis97]

Great looking bull wonderful write-up.

[vfilbert]

nice bull bro

[TommyH]

I had my lidcam on and was hoping to get some good footage. but when i got close,i also put on a blaclava so my hat size was set to small.  When i was drawing back on one of the two spikes that came in i bumped my hat and lidcam and it fell right over my eyes just as i got to full draw! I tried to position it higher but it just kept falling down to low!! So you cant even see a elk in my footage but you can hear him bugle at me 20-30 times. And you can see me bugle and get ready time and time again. The rope  burned my neck from pullling my bugle down so many times, bugleing, and then ripping it out of the way for a possible shot.

[SniperDanWA]

nice bull.

[X-Force]

 

[Gunfire]

Nice bull.  Congrats.

[xXLojackXx]

Way to get him on the ground! THATS A RECORD BOOK 4X4! I wonder if hes an old bull. All you forgot to mention in your write up was your GPS coordinates 

[TommyH]

Thats funny you say that, my buddie got a 6x6 the day after, my son says mine is thicker(thanks son, he is 5) but my wife says my head is longer and the head looks bigger than his bull? I havent seen them side by side yet but thats tomorrow, pics to follow!

[TommyH]

Pic of a buddies elk he got. We had called this bull in togather 4 days before he caught back up to him. He had a crazy hunt all by himself. He had drawn his bow a few times, once had the sun directly in his eyes, once had his face mask cover his peep, once had his string peep turned and couldnt shoot, had to let down all times with the bull way to close to try that!!!! He said he had to pee so bad he couldnt wait and went with the bull at 30 yards! Finally got the shot and made it count! He was shooting shuttle T's and had a 20ish yard shot. Bull didnt go more than 100 yards.

   The night before that same bull chased him out of the area. He followed his footstep noises all the way out, he said he finally had to throw a stick at the bull to try to get him off his a$$. Almost turned his light on but didnt want to spook him out of the area! His version of the story was way better. Some jumping from slash pile to slash pile trying to tip toe out of there!

[TommyH]

another pic of the bull I got.

[TommyH]

here is the to bulls togather

[FSTaxidermy]

Congrats nice bulls  what a great hunt