Idaho hunt

[huntnnw]

Wife and I are back from Idaho for 2 days to take a break, wash clothes and shower after 6 days. We have 2 elk tags , plus 2 wolf and I had a deer tag that I picked up in September on a return sale after sitting at idfg at 5 am to hope to get the 1 tag that was available. Reason for this was a buck I have watched the previous years I learned was alive after a August 19 trail cam check.

Wife and I left with pack goats on Oct 8 to head to basecamp that I setup the week prior. Oct 9 we packed into our spike camp and got everything settled and headed out to glass that evening before opener for the buck I was after. We glassed about a hour and only turned up a 3x4 and small 4.. about 15 min later I glass over in a area we never see much cause it’s just timber with tiny openings. There in the sunlight is a huge body deer, but can’t see head. He finally steps out and yup that’s him! Stoked for the next am we make our way out to glass for elk and listen for bugles on way out. We made it 400 yards and a 310” ish 6x6 walks out screaming ! Needless to say I barely slept that night 

 Opening morning comes and we are going to hike into where elk are and wife is going to sneak over look for them and I will go over ridge to look for muley. Well I made it 400 yards from wife and bull is screaming below! I race back to her we cut across hill side and bull is above us in a very open aspen draw .. we sneak in setup and I call.. bull moved down instead of up and now is in a huge timber bottom and he stopped bugling. We decide to just leave him be and come back that evening and wait for him to move to feed, so we venture over to glass for muley. We glassed 7 hours and weather was deteriorating by the hour and by 3:30 pm it was poring and completely socked in with fog. We baled to camp and started stove to begin drying gear .

[huntnnw]

Buck on Oct 9

[huntnnw]

Second day of season it rained all night into morning and visibility was under 100 yards, but rain ended. We started a campfire and hung out hoping fog would lift. At 2 pm we decided to hike over to our elk spot and just see if it was clearing . It lifts as we hit the open hillside so we continue over. We get settled to glass around 3:30 pm and a bull bugles below us in timber! This is promising! Bugles every 15 min for about hour or so then more fog and then it begins to pore around 5 pm and we are going to just head out as there looked to be no hope. Around 5:20 it starts clearing. I glass this little burn and here comes a 310” 6x6 I move up above to setup rifle and range him. He’s 590. Wife says there’s more elk , but now a small fog cloud has moved right over elk and the only fog for miles  I look at the other elk and almost have a heart attack it’s the giant 6 I had on cam. He moved up broadside and rakes a tree I click safety off and 2 burnt trees cover his shoulder area! The fog gets thicker and he moves and mingles in with other elk and finally can’t see at all! I had some choice words on the mountain 

[huntnnw]

Back to camp that night I was frustrated and hopeful for the 3rd morning. We are going to go back to that area at light . We approach the hillside and I see a lone bull elk feeding . It’s the 310 6x6.. I run across hill to get closer and set up to shoot. The herd is no where to be seen, so I’m going to take him. Got a nice flat rest , rifle level for the 650 yard shot. Boom elk just stands there and then runs off and bugles at me    no clue what happened. We decide to move over to glass for the muley now and return that evening for elk if we don’t see buck. I didn’t have much hope of seeing buck as it was 8 am and missed that early morning window. We make our way over heat up some peak breakfasts and start glassing. It was going to be warm and sunny , I figured a slow day of nothing. I was wrong!

[huntnnw]

We start picking up deer immediately, but no big buck. Everything seemed to of bedded by 10 am and was warm. I was glassing through the timber about 1500 yards away I see a nice 6pt bull trotting down a ridge through timber. Well this bull spooked out some deer and we start seeing quite a few deer moving out in open. I put up spotter and there is a small buck chasing does and I notice a deer lagging behind its the buck I’m after ! He needs to move 400 yards west to get into a position I could possibly stalk in for a shot. I lose sight of him in trees and never saw him again for a hour. Thinking he bedded in there and no way to shoot there. We watch bull as he gets closer, but no way to stalk bull for a shot and he disappears.

[huntnnw]

It’s about 10:30 and sunny and my wife says there’s a buck in the draw.. I said I already saw them it’s the little buck chasing 2 does. She’s says this buck don’t look little  I look over and holy cow it’s him I can’t believe he’s out just walking around in wide open and now he’s in a area I can shoot if he beds. At 11am he walks up to some spruce patch and disappears. He bedded ! I look at maps and figure out range, he’s going to be 335 yards about from a bench if I can get to it. Well getting to this bench was a nightmare trying to cross a creek. 2 hours later we found away across after I almost through in the towel . At 2:30 we get to bench and  I set up rifle on spruce patch. Just as I’m messing with rifle 4 small bucks emerge from patch and begin sparring right where I think buck is. I range they are 431 yards. I’m messing with rifle and my wife is likes he’s up!! And walking to bucks! What ?! I get on rifle and watch him walk broadside and he stops. Boom ! Drops . I was stoked ! A lot went into this and started 5 years ago and several tags ate trying to kill a big mature mountain buck in this area. I have probably 100-150 hours behind the glass and 100 plus miles in there , 20 nights in spike camps or more.

[huntnnw]

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[Boss .300 winmag]

Nicely done.👍

Now get that big bull.

[fowl smacker]

Awesome buck man, way to persevere!

[Buckhunter24]

Awesome buck!

[wadu1]

Well done 

[redi]

Nice buck