Shot a spike but someone took it

[huntergreg]

Well Friday around 7pm I shot a spike elk. I went over to where he was standing and there was blood all over the ground. We gave it until dark to make sure it was down. We got the flashlights out and started tracking. there was a good blood trail. we followed blood for about 100 yards and it came to a dead stop. there was 2 of us and we searched all over and couldn't find a drop of blood. we started following some new elk tracks and they kept going forever so we headed back to the last spot we found blood. It was almost 12am and we figured he was down somewhere close to the last blood spot. We decided to leave him till morning and come back when it was daylight and find the elk. We got back up there about 7:30-7:45 and started to track him again and saw that where the last puddle of blood was he turned back on the blood trail. He walked about 30 yards over the blood trail and took off another direction. To our surprise we were next to the main road heading up in the woods and found a pile of guts from where my elk had gone. he died 40 yards off the side of the main dirt road. On an open side hill. we didn't know we were that close to a road.  and someone saw him laying dead sometime just after daylight and gutted him and took him. I wasn't happy but at least someone got an elk. We were in a new area and dint know it very good. It was a pain not knowing the night before that he had turned around and walked back over the blood trail. Saw 9 elk later on that day. But nothing in range.

[ratherhunt]

Wow !!!!!!!!!!

[PolarBear]

That sucks but at least it didn't go to the coyotes.

[carpsniperg2]

pretty crazy.

[huntergreg]

Only elk I saw up in Gold creek. 

[wsucowboy]

That sucks but at least somebody will get some use out of the meat other than coyotes.

[huntlakewood]

That sucks

[bearhunter99]

That sucks in a way, but on the other hand, at least someone salvaged the meat.  To their credit, they probably had no idea someone might still be looking for it.  If it had been me I probably would have done the same thing, rather than taking the chance that someone would find it before it spoiled.

[C-Money]

Sorry man! Guess you folks were a bit tired after staying up so late looking. To bad you were not up there at first light!

[bobcat]

A good portion of the meat would have been spoiled after laying out there all night, I would think. Maybe it's a good thing somebody else got it.   

[C-Money]

Maybe the meat would spoil, but it has been flat cold over night above 3000ft! Heck its cold at my houst at 1200ft at night! 42 deg this morning.

[bobcat]

I don't think it would matter how cold it was, with the hide still on it and the guts still in it, I'd bet that at least the side laying on the ground would have been no good. Maybe ok for dog food, that's about it.

[CP]

Maybe he wasn’t dead and someone finished him off. 

[hammshunter]

atleast it didn't go to waste

[WDFW-SUX]

people are beating me to road kill too... I guess we need to be quicker