Wyoming 2014 bison hunt

[bambklr]

I drew a wild cow bison tag in Wyoming for the 2013/2014 season.  Halo (in this forum) was very helpful with all of his advice and suggestions and I really wish to give a big thank you to him.  My wife and I headed down to Jackson Hole on December 31, 2013.
After arriving in Wyoming, I received notice that my mother was in the hospital and dying. I was able to have a heartfelt last conversation with her with the help of my sister Mary, but realized there was nothing more I could do that would not wait until I got home and decided to continue my hunt after she passed.
After hunting for a couple of days, I understood that I needed horses to be able to travel through the snow and hills on the Elk Refuge.  Wildlife staff and other hunters told me that wild cow bison are far more difficult than the bulls to hunt, and the bulls aren't all that easy.  These bison know where the National Park boundary is and do not cross over to where they may be hunted.  I met a retired Wyoming resident named "Buck" who had been hunting for over a month and had not seen a legal bison.  He finally hired a guide to help him get his cow bison, hunting with us. I decided to spend the money and hire one of two approved guides for the Elk Refuge to help increase my odds.  Begin the first adventure for my wife, Marina.
Marina had never ridden a horse before and really wanted to try.  The temperature was minus three on the first morning and Marina saddled up on "her" horse Mac.  We forded the river on horseback (with a few squeals) into the Elk Refuge and within five minutes, the outfitter spotted a small group of bison breaking for the National Park and safety.  He immediately started running his horse down the river to get the hunters in position to shoot.  Somehow, Marina stayed in the saddle as all of the horses took off racing down the river for what seemed about a mile.  The screaming was intense!
I wish I could say I stayed in the saddle, but Big Mike managed to toss me when going through a ditch.  By the time I got to where the shooting was, there were only calves (which are legal) and I elected to pass.  I didn't see another legal bison for six days.
More later.............

[runningboard]

good luck to you & sorry to hear of your loss, will say a prayer for your family. keep us posted on the Bison hunt & good luck keeping warm & in the saddle!!!!

[Halo]

I love the look of a punched Wyoming Buffalo tag!   

[boneaddict]

Sorry to hear of your Moms passing.   I see happiness in a notched tag though.  Looking forward to the rest of the story.

[JODakota]

Tag

[Halo]

Got me so pumped to see the rest of the story I had to go look at my buffalo hunt pic's to hold me over 

[elkoholic1]

good luck!!   

[bambklr]

In continuation of the Wyoming wild bison hunt story, I wasn't hurt (other than my pride) when I came out of the saddle.  It was rather a slow "uncoming" when my foot came out of the stirrup and I slid down the horse.  However, Big Mike was to big for me to get back in the saddle and the guide's wife had to help push me back up into the saddle. (I'm on a diet now.)
The next morning was minus eighteen degrees. Ridiculously cold and we all agreed to cancel the hunt on horseback.
Marina and I drove around the Elk Refuge taking photos of the wildlife, which was very abundant.  (Photos attached.)
For the next four or five days, we rode horseback every morning through the Elk Refuge looking for the bison, with no luck.  (My knees still hurt from all horseback riding.) The guide was becoming very concerned and I overheard him expressing doubts on success to one of the game wardens.  Typically, the local bison would try to sneak back to the Elk Refuge every three or four days this time of year, but after being shot at or harassed for months, it was becoming doubtful they would leave the safety of the park before the end of the season, three days away.
We then discovered that a herd of sixty or seventy bison from the Moran area was headed toward the Elk Refuge, but they were still four miles away and still in the park.  The question was; where were they headed or where would they be in the morning.
I will finish later, ................

[Halo]

I love it, makes me want to head back right now.

[MLBowhunting]

Looks like blood on the riverbank 

[bambklr]

Sunday morning and a bit of time to myself.
Only hunters are allowed on the Elk Refuge during this time of the year.  So, we were lucky to be able to observe wildlife that the general public is unable to view.  I noticed a white truck following us, closing in fast while we were driving on the Elk Refuge. The truck finally caught us at a dead end and a game warden gave us the "third degree" as to if we were hunters or not.  After checking our license and identification, the game warden informed me that my vehicle (Grand Cherokee) didn't look like the type of vehicle a bison hunter would drive. 
On the morning of the tenth of January, we headed out on horses again and after fording the river, our guide spotted a bull bison.  One woman in our group had a bull tag and she broke off from the group and took him.  The rest of us continued the same route as we had done for the last week.  Suddenly there were sixty to seventy bison coming over the top of the mountain in front of us.  The raw power of these animals was an incredible sight, those next few moments will stay with me. 
Our guide (Ralph) put us in position and took me to the front.  Ralph told me to take the lead bison (always a cow) when they came by.  I somehow found a shovel stuck into the ground and used the handle as a shooting stick.  I overheard a father telling his daughter (not in our group) next to me they were 275 yards away.  As the lead cow moved into a position where I could safely take her, I noticed through my scope that this cow was taking some bullets and decided to pass on her. Within seconds, I was getting panicked as it is impossible for us amateurs to tell the difference between a young bull and a cow when they are running at that distance.  No matter how much one studies on the "bison sex identification" prior to the hunt, will prepare a hunter for this type of event.  I then noticed a second group being lead by what I was sure was a big lead cow. When I squeezed the trigger on my 30/378 Weatherby, the big cow instantly collapsed leaving no doubt she was mine.  All of Ralph's hunters managed to fill their tags and a couple of other boot hunters took their bison during this event.  Ralph told me that ninety percent of the Wyoming cow bison hunters go home empty handed without a guide and now I see why.
Ralph brought in some special horses, dragged the bison over the snow to a "retrieval road" where the bison were hoisted, gutted and placed on one of his trucks.  They were driven to a location where the hunters could take their animal.  I towed a four by eight foot "Harbor Freight" trailer down to Wyoming and my bison was dropped into it by the hoist truck.
I took the bison to a local Jackson Hole butcher where I had the bison skinned, caped, the meat split and basically quartered for $150.00.  The next day, I took the meat from the cooler and the head and cape from the freezer, placed them into a plastic tarp with twenty pounds of dry ice and started driving for home.  The tarp I folded over the meat and made the tarp into a closed bag by rolling the edges of the tarp and stapling the tarp (bag) closed with a paper stapler.  I dropped the meat off in Cle Elum to be butchered and head at the taxidermist in Snohomish.  It took me two days to get home (with flat tires, getting a motel etc) and the meat and head survived in wonderful condition.

[Whitpirate]

Amazing hunt and write up.  Dream hunt for sure..... to have it happen in the midst of the loss of your mother I'm sure blunted it a bit but I'm confident she would have been excited and proud of your success.

[bearpaw]

Sorry to hear of your family's loss.

Congrats on a successful bison hunt! 

[SkookumHntr]

-Great Animal! Your hunt kinda reminds me why i will never get on a horse or mule ever again! "Stay away from the Mules" is my saying!

[elkoholic1]

congrats on a awesome hunt!!!