Didn't get it done, but became an addict in a day. Hope you enjoy
I became interested in archery hunting almost exclusively because of my desire to chase rutting bull elk in September. I’d never even hunted elk with a rifle at that time, but knew that I had to get in the game.
My always conscientious wife (girlfriend at the time) decided that a shiny (actually it’s camo) new bow would make a great Christmas gift in 2011. I had talked about it a little (or maybe it only seemed like a little to me) and was very surprised when I opened that gift on Christmas morning.
Liking to feel comfortable with things before I jump off the deep end, I opted to put in for a limited entry tag as a rifle hunter in a unit a short distance from home (I live in WY but only the last couple years). I drew the tag (about 70% draw odds) but struck out during the season. Fast forward to application time, and I made the decision to switch units to an area even closer to home (but with a lesser reputation for trophy quality) but that allows tag holders to hunt an early archery season for only the cost of a $15 archery endorsement. My luck held and I again drew my tag. Bugling bulls, here I come!
My work schedule had me home from September 18th to September 25th which seemed perfect to me. I was excited as I expected the bulls should be rather vocal for at least some of this period. The summer passed and my first day to hunt came. I was only able to get out in the afternoon and was a little disappointed to not see or hear a single elk that first day. It was only the first day and I wasn’t discouraged. This unit has 35% success rates, so I knew there were elk to be had. I went home, unsure of my plan for the next day. Little did I know that I would get to experience what archery elk was all about only a matter of hours later….
Morning commitments kept me out of the woods the following morning but by lunchtime, I was up the mountain but about 2 miles from my location from the prior day. I’m not really sure what led me there, but it just seemed right. Off down the trail I went; destination unsure. Working my way north into a basin, I was spotting a decent amount of elk sign and was feeling encouraged. After a short while, I broke out of the timber and into some more mixed country of sage brush hillsides, pine and aspen groves, and some very rocky country way up high. Not quite sure where I wanted to be, I opted to gain some elevation to get a vantage point by side hilling the western side of the valley. I sat down to do some glassing and spotted nothing but cattle. As I was glassing, I thought I heard a faint bugle coming from a long way down the valley opposite of my direction of travel. Off I went!
I began slowly working my way south, following game trails on the eastern hillside of the valley as I entered the timber. Not hearing any more bugles (was the first one all my imagination?), I continued on my path, using the opportunity to explore the area. There sure wasn’t a lack of sign in the area, including droppings and lots of rubs, and the trails were very well used. It looked as though the timber might open up ahead of me so I continued to see what I might find.
Coming out of the timber, the terrain opened up into sage covered hillsides with small pines interspersed. In an instant, I caught an elk head about 130 yards out. I slowly dropped to me knees to get out of her view. Repositioning to get a tree between us, I slowly crawled forward. I had no intent of taking a cow, but didn’t know what else might be in the group so I used great caution as I worked closer.
As I moved, I made out 4 cows/calves feeding, obviously relaxed. I ranged the closest at 93 yards and stopped for a moment to gauge their alertness. I took my eyes away and all of a sudden, heard the thundering hooves and looked up to see the herd running to my right. I now saw that there were 3 spikes in the group and a 5x5 bull pulling up the rear. I just sat there bewildered as I knew my wind was good. The bull stopped and looked back to an area at my 10 o’clock for a moment before dropping down over the hill.
Standing up, I walked forward, scratching my head. A moment later, I see what happened as another hunter is standing there 200 yards away. He came upon the same group of elk from the other direction. We talked for a moment and he admitted that he believed one of the cows spotted him. Oh well, I said. It’s public land! We talked for a few minutes and he said he was going to head elsewhere and told me he saw the herd there the day before also.
We parted ways and I began working my way back the way I had come. Staying high on the hill, I could hear intermittent bugles down in the bottom. They seemed to be moving the same direction as I so I continued, hoping I might get ahead of the herd. All of a sudden, about 70 yards ahead, 2 elk bust. A spike runs downhill, while a lone cow goes above me. I freeze. A minute or two pass and the cow begins calling, presumably trying to make contact with the herd she is now separated from. I continue working north and it seems she is going the other direction. As I walk, it seems the herd is now going back south, back towards where they had busted from. The wind is right for an approach that direction, so I begin to head back.
I break back out of the timber and almost immediately spot the back half of an elk. It appears to be feeding on the edge of the timber and I work into a position for a better view. I sit down among the sagebrush and range this animal at 103 yards. He turns and I see it is a 5x5 bull. He is at one end of a line of pine trees and I am near the other end. I work my way up to line of trees and he feeds to my left out into the open sage. I can hear bugles, ever increasing in frequency. The source is not yet visible but is getting closer. As I work closer and in a better position for a view of the flat, I see that there are many elk there. Four or five spikes, 2 five point bulls and bugles coming from 2 directions that sound like they belong to mature bulls (to this novice elk hunter anyway). I see no less than 3 six point bulls appear in the area within the span of five minutes and my heart is racing. None of the elk are in range and there isn’t much cover and far too many eyes to get much closer, but I’ve found the elk!
It’s still an hour and a half to dark and I really don’t have a plan yet but the elk are relaxed and I’m hoping one might come my way. I’m enjoying the scene in front me. It’s September 19th and I have screaming bulls in front of me, a bow in my hand and a tag in my pocket. This is AWESOME! All of a sudden, a thundering bugles rings out front my 8 o’clock up a steep hill. I jerk my head to look right as a massive, mud covered giant of a bulls breaks through the trees 300 yards away. With him is 3 cows and they are RUNNING straight for the center of the action.
I don’t have much cover from that direction so I try to make myself small as they pass by at about 100 yards. He is running back and forth, screaming every few seconds. The other bulls do the same. It seems that all heck has broken loose and I have a front row seat. He is moving my direction on the other side of a small rise and I peak to the left of the tree and see this massive palmated 7x7 rack less than 30 yards away. Due to terrain, his antlers are all I can see. Even his head is too low to be visible. I had an arrow nocked, just waiting for him to move 5 yards closer, where he might come into view. That didn’t happen and he continued his rounds.
He moved the herd slowly straight away from me, down off the hill screaming all the way. A few stragglers hung around and dispersed out of the area as I backed out in the dark. I told myself right then that whether I filled my tag or not this year, that 2 hours just made my season. I visited the exact spot I had been hiding a few days later and just replaying the scene in my mind caused my breathing to increase. I’m hooked.
I saw the giant the next evening very close to the same spot and the other good bulls were all gone but he now had a harem of roughly 50 cows. I found more elk that week but never did make it happen. I still have rifle season, though.
