wenaha east tag

[bucklucky]

I do weight most of my meat on scales when I can.  The little Roosie I killed last year had 65 pound Hind quarters, 35 pound shoulders all bone in, boned meat from the tiny neck, backstraps, tenderloins, and ribs  was 65 pounds, thats 265 with bone in the quarters and shoulder. AFter I cut up my meat I weighed the bones and had 30 pounds so I had 235 pounds of bones meat off a bull that was tiny in comparison to my blues bull and Travises . 30% of elk in the blues have Roosevelt blood in them and it shows. A big mature bull like the ones Travis (Bowsandhose)  and I killed in the blues were bigger than any Roosie Kill I have been on. Bone in quarters on those BIG bulls were right about 85-90 pounds. Take those quarters and double it and that is going to be a ball park for the boned out meat off the neck , ribs, backstrap, and tenderloins. The shoulders are roughly half of a hind quarter in weight bone in. So thats 450 pounds, subtract approxiately 50 pounds for the leg bones and you got 400. In all reality the bones dont weight that much. I know that average Rockies are pretty small compared to the roosies mature bull wise but those bulls in the blues are gigantic for the most part, not all are huge body wise but man, get one down and you'll *censored* your pants !

Dont quote me on this but my buddy killed a Montana bull last year and the quarters and boned meat was in that mid 400 pound range. I will ask him to be positive.

[mtncook]

Boys I had  couple paragraphs typed and sent but somehow it did not make it. That was probably good as I started venting.  I'm not here to tell anyone how to do this hunt.  I just know what I've done in the past and seen happen.  In 2009 a mature bull boned hinds were 78lbs and 81lbs.  Unless you skull plate the head and seperate the cape from the antlers that unit is another 80 minimum on a big bull.  My mules appreciate caped and skull plated loads.   Anyone can hunt this unit for one day hard but do it for a week and get 2 bulls down and you had better be real tough.  Oh and remember this is rifle season and knee deep snow has happened.  Remember to go get your camp after you have packed all that meat.  Deer Slayer told of his time here where the weather hit hard.  I have the upmost respect for the game, my stock and the country.  I do this job because I enjoy the planning, scouting, hunt and the success. I appreciate all the support form hunters I have only known online through this forum. They too have the respect  for this unit.  The video of packing that head was a reality for many,  impossible for some.  I'll attach a picture of a packstring loaded with what it takes for 2 hunters for a week hunt. This includes a wall tent, stove, their food, clothes,tools and other gear.  They had no stock to keep in camp. 

[JLS]

Everything is a good idea until reality hits.  I've been there, and been thoroughly humbled when I realized I had bit off way more than I could chew.  I've also been on some epic adventures that were a result of the same ambition.

Dhorn, I'd fully recommend that you load up your pack and spend about four or five days hiking the unit.  Only then will you really know how to accurately judge your capabilities.  Be realistic in how far you can physically go.  Don't let fear limit you, but on the flip side don't let dreamy thoughts impair your judgement.

FWIW, I'm in pretty darned good shape, and have been thinking of bowhunting this unit.  I have also strongly considered using Dave's services to pack meat if I killed something.  Where two of you have tags that you'll likely never draw again, I'd sell the horse you just bought and do a drop camp.  Whatever you choose, best of luck.  PM me if you need help getting started with your pack horse.

[slim9300]

I do weight most of my meat on scales when I can.  The little Roosie I killed last year had 65 pound Hind quarters, 35 pound shoulders all bone in, boned meat from the tiny neck, backstraps, tenderloins, and ribs  was 65 pounds, thats 265 with bone in the quarters and shoulder. AFter I cut up my meat I weighed the bones and had 30 pounds so I had 235 pounds of bones meat off a bull that was tiny in comparison to my blues bull and Travises . 30% of elk in the blues have Roosevelt blood in them and it shows. A big mature bull like the ones Travis (Bowsandhose)  and I killed in the blues were bigger than any Roosie Kill I have been on. Bone in quarters on those BIG bulls were right about 85-90 pounds. Take those quarters and double it and that is going to be a ball park for the boned out meat off the neck , ribs, backstrap, and tenderloins. The shoulders are roughly half of a hind quarter in weight bone in. So thats 450 pounds, subtract approxiately 50 pounds for the leg bones and you got 400. In all reality the bones dont weight that much. I know that average Rockies are pretty small compared to the roosies mature bull wise but those bulls in the blues are gigantic for the most part, not all are huge body wise but man, get one down and you'll *censored* your pants !

Dont quote me on this but my buddy killed a Montana bull last year and the quarters and boned meat was in that mid 400 pound range. I will ask him to be positive.

You may be be right about the elk in the Blues having Roosevelt blood. I have never heard that but I know a lot of them were transplanted to other places. The Gila elk that I have hunted have very large bodies compared to any other Rocky Mountain elk I have seen and I read somewhere that they were Roosevelt transplants. Who knows if it's true. If you are right, they could definitely be 20-30% bigger than a typical Rocky Mountain bull. I would say that 800 lbs. is a huge Rocky bull.

I have seen 400+ lbs. of boned out meat come off of one Roosevelt bull. He was killed way up on the Peninsula and shot from the road by a friend of my dad's. That was basically every piece of meat on his body since he was pulled out whole with a spool and butchered in his garage. If it didn't weight 1000 lbs. on the hoof I would be surprised and it must have been 8-9 years old. Roosevelt's typically only get that large up on the Northern part of Olympic Penninsula and Vancouver Island. The elk I have killed in the SW corner of the state seem to be closer to typical Rocky Mountain size. My partner's smallish 5x5 from 2008 probably only weighed 450 lbs. total weight, maybe less. I think I recall the hind quarters being about 60-65 lbs. with the bone.

[bucklucky]

I agree Slim!! That 30% Roosevelt came from Pat Fowler the Biologist that just retired from F@W. He said 1 of 2 things happened , either there were elk transplantred on the Oregon side that had roosie blood or they came down the columbia gorge at some point. Thats interesting about the Gila.

Is that a Hawkeye Built cart by chance??

[slim9300]

I agree Slim!! That 30% Roosevelt came from Pat Fowler the Biologist that just retired from F@W. He said 1 of 2 things happened , either there were elk transplantred on the Oregon side that had roosie blood or they came down the columbia gorge at some point. Thats interesting about the Gila.

Is that a Hawkeye Built cart by chance??

Yes it is. It has had a busy life. I remember the day I drove down to Wayne's house near Clatskanie and bought it. (I think that was his name) He was a super nice guy and had recently gotten injured on the job logging. It's too bad he couldn't make his fortune selling carts. We talked about hunting for about an hour. Him and his son are some elk killers too. Lol

[bucklucky]

I agree Slim!! That 30% Roosevelt came from Pat Fowler the Biologist that just retired from F@W. He said 1 of 2 things happened , either there were elk transplantred on the Oregon side that had roosie blood or they came down the columbia gorge at some point. Thats interesting about the Gila.

Is that a Hawkeye Built cart by chance??

Yes it is. It has had a busy life. I remember the day I drove down to Wayne's house near Clatskanie and bought it. (I think that was his name) He was a super nice guy and had recently gotten injured on the job logging. It's too bad he couldn't make his fortune selling carts. We talked about hunting for about an hour. Him and his son are some elk killers too. Lol

I always wanted to buy one of them carts but never wanted to spend the money bad enough. I thought they were about as good as a cart could get for hauling meat!!

[slim9300]

I agree Slim!! That 30% Roosevelt came from Pat Fowler the Biologist that just retired from F@W. He said 1 of 2 things happened , either there were elk transplantred on the Oregon side that had roosie blood or they came down the columbia gorge at some point. Thats interesting about the Gila.

Is that a Hawkeye Built cart by chance??

Yes it is. It has had a busy life. I remember the day I drove down to Wayne's house near Clatskanie and bought it. (I think that was his name) He was a super nice guy and had recently gotten injured on the job logging. It's too bad he couldn't make his fortune selling carts. We talked about hunting for about an hour. Him and his son are some elk killers too. Lol

I always wanted to buy one of them carts but never wanted to spend the money bad enough. I thought they were about as good as a cart could get for hauling meat!!

If I recall correctly, it was my college graduation present from my pops in 2007. I was very lucky to get it. I think he liked the idea of making our long meat hauls easier. The thing has been a godsend. You can see that even though it's a small bull, the thing handles a full elk like nothing.

[blackveltbowhunter]

Well from my perspective the very hardest part of your hunt is already over. Drawing the tag !  All kidding aside, its rugged country, i have spent some limited time there but what I have seen i fell in love with. IMHO you will either love it or hate it. Better hope for the former. Never been there during gun season, so no info on that. If you kill a mature bull in that unit you will be carrying a significant amount of meat, neck and rib meat or not, don't kid your self a mature bull is heavy!! A ton of great info has been posted in this thread so far and I have learned alot. Im not giving advice, just my own perspective. I consider myself a very die hard DIY hunter. But made the decision long ago that given the opportunity in this unit I would hire an outfitter drop camp. Hands down no questions asked, (The info about mtcook has been awesome from that aspect). Not because the area is so rugged, or I was afraid of meat spoilage. But because I want to live the dream. To wake up in a canvas wall tent, on a cot, with a stove. (Not a sub 3 pound tent, and jetboil ) Cook real coffee, biscuits and gravy, bacon and eggs, ( instead of via instant coffe and oatmeal). To come back to lanterns, firewood, and a dinner of steak and potatoes, maybe a drink ( headlamp and mountain house, no booze). And finally to watch a pack string loaded down with antlers and meat hauling my 400 incher out of the woods ( hey I said it was a dream) down the trail, the smell of horse sweat and leather, the creak of saddles and striking hooves on the trail. ( not the constant mantra of " are we there yet", and knowing when we get "there" we will be heading right back for round two, or calling in some rodeo ponies to "pack"lol). Knowing all is well and not wanting it to end. I guess what im saying is that, truly this could be a OIL tag. with real opportunity to shoot a BIG bull and I dont mean 300 inch big, think BIG. I LOVE backpack hunting, everything in parantheses is played out every september for me and I wouldnt have it any other way. But with this tag I would reward myself, live the fantasy, besides you can always spike out for a night or two, if your just getting to "comfortable" . Im not trying to change yer mind, just giving the perspective of a guy who has wrestled with the same thoughts of DIY vs DC. I wish ya the best of luck dhorn, kill some studs. And if possible get some pics up of some horses packing out some heavy bone, I get off on that $hit.

[dhorn]

well hopefully i get to post some pictures of that on here!!! either way at the end of the hunt i am going to realize why i have been putting in for this tag for so long!!!

[slim9300]

Well from my perspective the very hardest part of your hunt is already over. Drawing the tag !  All kidding aside, its rugged country, i have spent some limited time there but what I have seen i fell in love with. IMHO you will either love it or hate it. Better hope for the former. Never been there during gun season, so no info on that. If you kill a mature bull in that unit you will be carrying a significant amount of meat, neck and rib meat or not, don't kid your self a mature bull is heavy!! A ton of great info has been posted in this thread so far and I have learned alot. Im not giving advice, just my own perspective. I consider myself a very die hard DIY hunter. But made the decision long ago that given the opportunity in this unit I would hire an outfitter drop camp. Hands down no questions asked, (The info about mtcook has been awesome from that aspect). Not because the area is so rugged, or I was afraid of meat spoilage. But because I want to live the dream. To wake up in a canvas wall tent, on a cot, with a stove. (Not a sub 3 pound tent, and jetboil ) Cook real coffee, biscuits and gravy, bacon and eggs, ( instead of via instant coffe and oatmeal). To come back to lanterns, firewood, and a dinner of steak and potatoes, maybe a drink ( headlamp and mountain house, no booze). And finally to watch a pack string loaded down with antlers and meat hauling my 400 incher out of the woods ( hey I said it was a dream) down the trail, the smell of horse sweat and leather, the creak of saddles and striking hooves on the trail. ( not the constant mantra of " are we there yet", and knowing when we get "there" we will be heading right back for round two, or calling in some rodeo ponies to "pack"lol). Knowing all is well and not wanting it to end. I guess what im saying is that, truly this could be a OIL tag. with real opportunity to shoot a BIG bull and I dont mean 300 inch big, think BIG. I LOVE backpack hunting, everything in parantheses is played out every september for me and I wouldnt have it any other way. But with this tag I would reward myself, live the fantasy, besides you can always spike out for a night or two, if your just getting to "comfortable" . Im not trying to change yer mind, just giving the perspective of a guy who has wrestled with the same thoughts of DIY vs DC. I wish ya the best of luck dhorn, kill some studs. And if possible get some pics up of some horses packing out some heavy bone, I get off on that $hit.

Sweet, but odd post. I felt like I could have been talking and not you. Lol. I think your reasoning is dead on. Makes me want to start putting in for a multi-season tag every year so I can simply put in for the Eastside units with my 10 points. I did that 3 years back, but no luck. =)

[Green Lantern]

 

[toyman2]

dhorn, DON'T sell the horses!  Your wife would probably skin you and hang you for bear bait!  Definitely be prepared for complete and utter exhaustion, but remember the difference between hunting and killing.  Killing is the easy part.  The good stories and the memories don't come from "Yeah, I got a drop camp and walked 1 mile and shot a huge bull and then waited for the guy to pack me out".  The good stories come from all the pain, suffering and hard work you endured while being a true hunter and putting in the work to truly appreciate the bull you harvest.  Definitely don't look at this hunt through rose colored glasses...it's great that before you make a concrete decision on how to do this hunt that you are taking several trips to the area to see for yourself.  Once you assess the country and the terrain and your own abilities you will be better able to make the decision that suits you!  Good luck to you and don't forget...your wife LOVES packing out game (I hear it's her second favorite part of hunting) so I'm sure she will help if you need it!

Good advice, dhorn just remember everything on here is just that. This is your tag it is your choice DIY or DC. eather way make the very best of it. like i have said be prepared and ready for alot of hard work. like some have said you cant get into enough shape, same goes for the horse also.
Only you can weed through the BS and grab the advice you want, alot of us will live it through you.
To me it just seems some on here have alot to gain for sevices(nothing really wrong with that) just bugs me the way its pushed.

[JLS]

dhorn, DON'T sell the horses!  Your wife would probably skin you and hang you for bear bait!  Definitely be prepared for complete and utter exhaustion, but remember the difference between hunting and killing.  Killing is the easy part.  The good stories and the memories don't come from "Yeah, I got a drop camp and walked 1 mile and shot a huge bull and then waited for the guy to pack me out".  The good stories come from all the pain, suffering and hard work you endured while being a true hunter and putting in the work to truly appreciate the bull you harvest.  Definitely don't look at this hunt through rose colored glasses...it's great that before you make a concrete decision on how to do this hunt that you are taking several trips to the area to see for yourself.  Once you assess the country and the terrain and your own abilities you will be better able to make the decision that suits you!  Good luck to you and don't forget...your wife LOVES packing out game (I hear it's her second favorite part of hunting) so I'm sure she will help if you need it!

Good advice, dhorn just remember everything on here is just that. This is your tag it is your choice DIY or DC. eather way make the very best of it. like i have said be prepared and ready for alot of hard work. like some have said you cant get into enough shape, same goes for the horse also.
Only you can weed through the BS and grab the advice you want, alot of us will live it through you.
To me it just seems some on here have alot to gain for sevices(nothing really wrong with that) just bugs me the way its pushed.

Also the expectation that he should use the tag the way someone else would.  It's his tag.  If he has a fun hunt and isn't disappointed with whatever the end result is, then the tag wasn't "wasted". 

[jackelope]

Hopefully everyone is getting the point  a lot of the posters were trying to make. A lot of the posts were in an attempt to get across what that country is like. A lot of folks can pack a bull out 3 miles in in a lot of country. If you're not familiar with what the country in dhorn's unit is like, you can really get yourself into trouble as far as getting meat out, getting snowed in or out, etc. This is big country at fairly high elevation in November in a roadless area. A guy even with a lot of experience can get into trouble quick. Let's say 2 guys 3 miles in 3 trips a piece. That's 18 miles round trip per person over the course of a day or 2 at the most and they have 2 tags carrying what amounts to close to 100# per trip plus your camp. Not a lot of people can do that. So figure 36 miles round trip best case scenario(if you want to call it that) with close to 100 pounds on your back for half of that. Not everyone can do that. I'd be surprised if a lot of guys, me included, could do that over the course of a few days with 40 pounds on their backs...and I really mean me included.
DHorn...I hope you kill the bull of a lifetime. I hope you have the time of your life, and I hope you don't leave meat on the mountain. I hope the bull you kill is all you're hoping for, even if you are only hoping for a 300" bull. It's your hunt, do with it as you see fit. I saw 1st hand what that country can do if it decides to spit snow for a couple days in November last year. I couldn't even get to the  Teepee trailhead and I was in a 4x4 truck with 4 chains and no stock trailer.