Skinner's Elk Season!

[eastsidebugle]

way to go matt and amanda

[Skinner]

Here it is. 

[Skinner]

DAY 7:

Was COLD!  The windows were iced over and the puddles were too.  We parked the corner before the big canyon from the night before and snuck to the same spot I called from.  It was just getting daylight so I let out a locator bugle.  Bull bugles from the same spot as last night.  Second bull bugles across canyon, third bugles in the bottom, oh ya and fourth down in the bottom not too far from the third.  I look down towards the third and fourth bugle and see an elk in a meadow.  BULL, HUGE BULL!  I can see horns with the naked eye, pull up the binos and he is a dandy 6x6.  Bull bugles in front of us again so we decide to work him.  It is extremely thick.  Like 15 yard shots are gonna be the farthest.  I cow call him and try to circle downwind.  He comes in then goes back to his cows.  I close the distance to 30 yds but he just wont come any closer and it is so noisy he's got me pinned.  We end up playing cat and mouse until a cow busts us.  Game over.

It is 11 am so we head back to the truck to get some water.  It is 70 degrees by this time and we sit in the air conditioning until we are freezing then go try and make a run at the big guy.  By the way the first bull becomes known as Leery.  The big guy is lunker so we give him a try.  He is content with his cows and only lets out a bugle from his bed only a couple times an hour.  The wind is wrong so we leave him in hopes other bulls are talking.  It was crazy the rest of the day.  Bulls were tearing it up everywhere.  It was like I never left amanda's hunt on the eastside.  We were within 30-40 yds of screaming bulls all day but we needed to be 15-20.  Frustrating!!

[Skinner]

DAY 8:

Cody was supposed to head back to winthrop today to round up cows before deer season but he squeezed one more day out of his dad.  Guess he didn't want to miss out on all the action like the day before.  Bet he was glad he stayed because it was just as eventful as the day before.

I bugled at daylight again and had one answer down towards Lunker.  We beat feet down there and call again.  He answers again but further up the draw than I remember.  We look into a clear cut and he pops out heading up hill.  A road cuts above him so we start running for it.  He hits the road before us and starts walking away.  I cow called and he turned right around and starts walking right towards us but still a 1/4 mile away around the corner.  We hurry up to the corner and are going to set up when a bus full of bough pickers comes flying up the road behind us and around the corner.  We hurry around the corner to see the dandy 5x5 making his way back down the clearcut just out of muzzleloader range.  $#!&!!!!  That's Leroy.  He was the satellite to Lunker come to find out. 

That afternoon I found a jackfir patch that was loaded with elk.  We decided to walk out a grassy road 1.5 hrs before dark.  We had seen a lot of elk moving through there just before sundown so we thought we might catch them moving up the hill to feed.  Guess we should have left an hour earlier cause we got on 4 bugling bulls that had already crossed the road and wouldn't come back because their cows were moving away.  I planned on being there at daylight to try and catch them moving back down.

[JoeVon]

That night found us overlooking a major drainage full of nobles and blue huckleberry bushes.  I decided to let out a bugle to locate some for the morning hunt.  20 yards below us a bull answered back.  It scared the $#!* out of me.  We worked that bull until we couldn't see anymore but he had too many cows he didn't want to leave and it was just TOO THICK.  That would be the thorn in my side for the next 3 days.

  How did you find such an area?

[Skinner]

DAY 9:

My hunting partner not going to be with me today so I wrangled up JoeVon and cousin Ben to skip hunting the Ryderwood and go with me.  Don't think it took much convincing after I told them my stories.  I woke up and made everyone sandwiches and coffee like all the other mornings.  I was exhausted.  11 days of getting up at 4am and going to bed at 11pm were wearing on me to say the least.  I got a phone call first from JoeVon.  He asked if another buddy of ours could go.  I said I didn't care, besides Ron is an excellent elk caller and I was hoping he could get one of those bulls to make a mistake.  The second call was from Longear saying "Today is the day.  I can just feel it."

We made it to the jackfir patch before daylight and called our way out to where I had heard the first bugle.  NOTHING!  Were we too late?  We walked further and still nothing.  Then we heard a faint bugle.  Went around the corner and there it was again but closer so we stopped and listened.  Closer and closer.  $#!%  we hurried and set up and I made a move on the bull while they called behind me.  The bull was pushing his cows about 60 yds above the grassy rd parallel to it.  I finally got to where I couldn't go any farther without busting them, but it wasn't close enough.  I scrambled back to the road and started walking back towards the truck trying to cut them off.  At one time he was 10 yds from me and the rd but I still had no shot.  I didn't even know how big he was.  I finally got to an 80 yd shooting lane.  He was dead to rights all he had to do was walk into the opening.  NOPE, he walked straight up the hill never to be seen again.  We tracked them a while and found why they like it so much.  In the jackfirs were meadows and wallows galore.  Guess I know where I'll hunt next time.  

No more bulls answered so we worked our way back to the trucks and moved back to the big canyon to Leery, Lunker, and Leroy.  I told Ron where they were and he bugled.  It was getting to be close to 11 so I thought he might not get an answer.  Man was I wrong.  Two bulls from the bottom bugled.  Had to be Leroy and Lunker so we made a move quick cause they would prolly bed down soon.  We closed the distance and Ron let out a bugle.  Nothing so we went around the corner.  I hear something so we stop.  ELK!!  RUNNING THROUGH THE NOBLES AND STOPS QUARTERING AWAY AT 80 YDS.  RON YELLS BULL BUT I DON'T KNOW HOW BIG ALL I CAN SEE IS HORNS.  This was the actual first opportunity and only the third bull I had actually physically seen these last three days.  ITS THAT THICK.  I pulled the trigger on him and he ran away like noting happened!  WHAT!!

[Skinner]

From an awesome cousin/packer/caller of mine!   

[JoeVon]

 ...Thats what cousins are for!

[BoomWhop]

Nice job guys.  Great season and story.

[fishm@n]

Nice bulls! I want to know who is your insider with the Fish and Game.. 3 Toutle tags?

[SilkWWU]

We have 5 Toutle tags

[Skinner]

story to be continued:

[Crunchy]

Man dont leave us hangin like that. 

[MichaelJ]

Cruel bro.... just cruel!

Michael

[funkster]

Sounds like you guys are having a great year,special permits are a great way to get a freezer full! I really like the day by day play. Keep up the good work!