Well, my dad and I got tired of the season dates here in WA and decided to head to Idaho and hunt the second half of September which is something we have never been able to do here. I'm hoping WA will change their seasons for the next four years. Anyway, we left on the 14th. My dad is 74 and did not do any exercising this year to get ready for this hunt
so I knew we would not be going very far off any real road or trail. We did take out old 1979 Honda trail 90's because some of the trails are ok for motorcycles. On the evening of the 15th we were getting ready to head out on our first ride and hunt up a trail. Well, my dad's bike decided not to start, it looked like the battery had died (which was no more than a year old). Mine had done the same thing only a month or so before we left. Anyway, I told him I would go and check out how the trail was for riding and just hunt that evening. We would then go into town in the morning and try and find a battery for the bike.
1st encounter:
That evening I road out on that trail for about a mile, I think walking would have been more enjoyable! This trail was not for a 1979 trail 90, it was for a full on dirt bike. I think my feet spent more time on the ground than on the riding pegs. I found a timbered area to park the bike and started heading out into the area I wanted to take my data to hunt, easy walking and flat. Well, I walked about a half mile off that trail towards the other side of the valley. I found a place to sit and do some calling and see if I could get any response. I started using the advertising sequence from Paul's new DVD. After about 20 minutes I heard a bugle from down the valley and not long after that a bull bugled much closer but was up the hill. It sounded like he was headed my way so I slowed down my calling a little bit and just tried to keep in contact. I could tell he was interested but still had an agenda as he passed by me heading to my right. He was still coming down the hill but just moving right. I left my position and started tracking his bugles to the right, I stopped at one point and hit a few cow calls to let him think there was a cow involved now and she was closer to him. He answered that cow calls pretty quick and I could tell him was getting a little more worked up. I knocked an array and started moving in his direction slowly. I could know see where he was but could hear him, then all of a sudden I could see him come down the hill and splash across a creek. Well, there was a very nice spot for him to splash around in the creek and get all worked up. It was beautiful to see this nice bug 6x6 with nice tines, ivory tip and long black mane thrashing around in the creek and strutting his stuff. I slowly moved into a position waiting for him to come up out of the creek. Then it happened, as I watched his beautiful rack come up out of the creek bottom I started my draw.... just as I get to full draw....my arrow falls off the string
as I stand there a full draw with my arrow hanging down knock first he stands there and looks at me like, what is that over there. He then turns his head back to the hill side and runs back across the creek and up the hill where he give me a nervous bark. All I could do was stand there and say, are you kidding me. The biggest bull I have ever seen at 40yards, was in the freezer on the first evening and my arrow falls off the string??? OMG! I could not believe what had just happened. But I have to say, that encounter was what I went to Idaho for and it made my trip.
This trip turned into the "Are you kidding me" trip. I never did see that bull again. But, on another occasion just after light, I found a nice little transition spot from the small pines into a stand of timber that was hidden and I could see a nice trail going between the two sides. Right as I step on the trail, I see some movement in the little trees and a cow is standing there, she see me at the same time and as soon as I start to move at all she takes off and takes the rest of her friends with here, "Are you kidding me"! The next encounter was for me dad, we were walking along a road and I bugled and got a return from a bull. I tried setting me dad up to see if we could call the bull towards us. It started raining, hailing and just over all dumping on us. I bulled under some trees to get out of the shower and my dad did the same where he was. I continued calling for a while. I then see my dad coming down towards me. He has a smile on his face and I'm like....SO?
He said a cow surprised him and he played cat and mouse with her for a bit but could just not get out enough to get a shot. If not for the rain he would have been out in front of the tree where he could have seen her better and probably had gotten a shot..."Are you kidding me"! We did get a lot of responses to my calling but most of them were just to far away for my dad to get to. I had found where a bull was hanging out every day but no matter how I tried to get to him, the wind would carry my cent to him. He has the perfect hiding place and I did not know the area well enough. I did set up once and tried the advertising sequence again on him. I did it for about an hour or more, then I just shut up and waited. After about 20 minutes I finally see an antler through all the timber heading right towards where I thought he would come out if he came...right as he was about to come through the last bit of treed, I felt the breeze change and hit the back of my neck, as soon as that happened I saw him turn and disappear right back into his safe hole...."Are you kidding me"!
I had one other encounter with a bull I did not see but his hoof prints were 5''x almost 7". He was a growler that we had heard one morning from camp. I decided to climb the mountain and try and find him. As I climbed the mountain after him he was bugling his head off at two other bulls that were reciprocating and keeping their distance. I stayed to the side of this bull so the thermals would not give me away. We both kept climbing until I could not hear him anymore. I had to stop and think that he may have reached his beading area. I moved to my left about 100 yards and found a spot to set myself up. I hit him with a couple of cow sounds and he immediately responded with his growly bugle. He was not very exited and seemed to want me to come to him so I decided to get whiny with my calls as if to say, if you want me, come and get me (you know, like any girl paying hard to get). After a couple come and get me big boy calls I could tell he was coming to me. I slowed down the calling and then stopped completely as he got closer so he would have to come looking for me. I could tell he was having to get around obsticles on his way to me by how his bugles were moving around on his way to me. I just say there waiting wondering just how bug this bull was going to be when he stepped into the shooting lane I expected him to come into. All of a sudden, he bugles and he sounds like he going right by me down about 60 yards or so...hmmm...is this guy so old he can't tell where these cow sounds are coming from? Normally they come right to the spot like they have a GPS in their head! This is where I panic and make my big mistake. I cow call again to say, hey stupid, I'm over here!!! Well, that' when he decided that some stupid hunter was trying to full him and he shut right up...arg! Now I don't know what to do, I can't get him to respond and I can't hear him at all. I then decide to make it look like a new bull showed up and it going to take this cow. Well, I got him to grown at me once while he took his cows away and I never got a chance to see him again...."Are you kidding me"!
Well, that was my last change and encounter. I will be dreaming about how this hunt could have turned out and hope to some day go back and try it again. I had a great time even though the folks there said this was the hottest September they could remember. We had 80 degree days most of the time which is almost like hunting here in WA.
So those were my "Are you kidding me" moments for 2014 in Idaho. I hope the rest of you had as much fun as I did.
Good hunting!
Fullabull
