Post by: Skinner on November 24, 2008, 01:03:21 PM
Post by: Gobble on November 24, 2008, 01:07:34 PM
Post by: NW-Eric on November 24, 2008, 01:10:37 PM
Post by: actionshooter on November 24, 2008, 01:33:05 PM
Post by: andrew_12gauge on November 24, 2008, 01:49:57 PM
Post by: Skinner on November 24, 2008, 02:30:09 PM
Post by: 270Shooter on November 24, 2008, 03:13:56 PM
Post by: snipekillr on November 24, 2008, 03:14:24 PM
Post by: Slider on November 24, 2008, 03:57:31 PM
Post by: agchawk on November 24, 2008, 04:26:49 PM
Post by: snuff on November 24, 2008, 04:31:08 PM
Me and 4 buddies went on our annual fly-in trip to idaho. Not as much snow as we would have liked but we made the best of it. We flew in and made a base camp, got some good food in our belly then packed our spike camps in our packs then went to bed! At 4 the next morning we made our way towards what would be our home for the next 7 days. We set up camp and then went out to do a little scouting for the next day. We spilt into two groups and made our way out. Jason shot a big 2x3 opening day. He was getting pretty trigger happy wanting to try out his new scope he had built at leupold. He dropped it at 620 yards! The weather was cold but we weren't getting much snow. Cody got his 4x4 next and Ben got a 4x also. That is the only buck I don't have a pic of but joevon will chime in later with it I'm sure. Those three started leapfrogging the stuff and deer back to basecamp while me and joe kept hunting. I will post some more stories later. Here are a few pics to get it started.ARE YOU GUYS FRIENDS WITH PITTS?
Post by: blacktail luv on November 24, 2008, 04:41:09 PM
Post by: Skinner on November 24, 2008, 04:52:52 PM
Blacktail Luv: We bone out the deer and do everything on our back. We would take horses but it is a 38 mile ride from the closest trailhead. The boned out meat weighs roughly 50-70 lbs. depending on the deer. We do the gutless method doing one side in one meat bag then the other in a second bag the cut open the side and take the tenderloins. Works great!
Post by: snuff on November 24, 2008, 04:59:56 PM
Snuff: Ya we know pitts. Did I meet you last year? Are you from Chelan?YA I BELEIVE WE MET ON THE RUNWAY.
Blacktail Luv: We bone out the deer and do everything on our back. We would take horses but it is a 38 mile ride from the closest trailhead. The boned out meat weighs roughly 50-70 lbs. depending on the deer. We do the gutless method doing one side in one meat bag then the other in a second bag the cut open the side and take the tenderloins. Works great!
Post by: Skinner on November 24, 2008, 05:02:31 PM
Post by: cascademountainhunter on November 24, 2008, 05:18:14 PM
Post by: wf70gonehunting on November 24, 2008, 05:22:58 PM
Post by: blacktail luv on November 24, 2008, 05:29:14 PM
Post by: M_ray on November 24, 2008, 05:37:21 PM
Post by: Skinner on November 24, 2008, 05:38:35 PM
Post by: actionshooter on November 24, 2008, 05:55:30 PM
Post by: blacktail luv on November 24, 2008, 06:02:42 PM
Post by: JoeVon on November 24, 2008, 06:46:07 PM
As far as shot distances, Jason's was by far the longest at 620. He spent the off season working up a good handload that shot well, Chrono'd it, and sent off his ballistics info to Leupold to have a Ballistic Drop Compensator built for it.
My brother, Ben, ended up shooting his at 134 yards after a hellish run up a ridge. We had originally spotted the buck running a doe across and down an open hillside that we had walked just the day before. By the time we got the spotter out and on the buck, he had switched direction and was heading up the hill, hot on the does heels, but from what we could tell my brother said he would take him. So up the ridge we go, once at the top, we spotted him with the doe, resting luckily, and Ben put him down.
Not long after Ben and I had started boning his buck, we heard Cody shoot from way across the Canyon. Matt (Skinner) has more on that story but I believe it was shot from around 450 yards.
The day that Skinner shot his was pretty nasty, and we hadn't really seen many deer, in fact he hadn't spotted a deer all day, :rolleyes:, but as luck would have it, the first deer he spotted was the buck he ended up with. It was a fun stalk, with a few ups and downs,but it ended up being way worth it. When Skinner's Federal Fusion hit him at around 120 yards, their wasn't much the Buck could do but slide down the hill...and slide he did.
On the eve of what was to be our Sixth day of hunting, the rain was non-stop. We woke many times in the night to the sound of High Winds and BIG rain drops. (Kinda like Home) That morning, Skinner and I slept in a little, although we were still ready to go a little after dawn. We both kicked ideas around on where to go, but finally decided to head up the ridge where my Brother had shot his buck. So off we went.
We'd made it up the ridge about 400 yards when Skinner spots a buck on the skyline of another ridge, quite a ways away, I'd say at least a 1/2 mile away. From what we could tell from there, I decided that I couldn't pass on him this late in the hunt. So back down the ridge we went, towards the buck, all the while watching him push does across the burned hill side. After about an hour of working our way towards the buck we'd come to the ridge we thought he was on, and much to our dismay, we spotted him crossing into another drainage still pushing does... >:(
So we continued on, pressing up the ridge, when we spot the buck and his girls at
the TOP of the ridge, in the snow. Boy, he was really after it. At that point, we decided to sit down, get out the spotter and wait to see what he did while we ate some lunch (Granola Bar). As we were finishing up, the buck finally decided to give it a rest and scratched some snow off the steep slope and bedded down! As luck would have it, he bedded down next to a large red rot that looked different than anything we could see on the hill. So along with the red rot and a large snag at the top of the ridge we figured we had a landmark on where he would be.
Off we went up the hill with a renewed vigour, and after about an hour and a half we figured we were within shooting range. We slid off our back packs, and slowly inched up to a log that would make for a good rest. The only problem was, the buck wasn't by the red rot any more. They were GONE. I was pissed. Let me be the first to tell ya, I wasn't happy. :bash: We both looked and looked and looked, but could not turn up a deer. So we threw our packs back on and I slipped my gun back into my Eberlestock, and off we went in the direction that we thought the deer had gone. I'd probably made it 50 yards across the burnt hillside with my head down plugging away, when I happened to look up above me, and guess who had re-appeared....My Buck. It seems there was more than one big red rot on that burnt hillside... ;)
In a nano-second, I had my pack off, and rifle shouldered. The only problem was that my Butler Creek scope covers had held a BUNCH of moisture on the lens of my scope, (I guess thats what I get for not opening them up for a week in moist weather) so after a warning shot, the buck took his last steps, and hit the dirt! The shot was probably a little over 100 yards.
We had a great hunt, I had tons of fun, but also learned alot of valuable info. It was a great group of guys to be out there with, every one
worked there ass off and deserved what they brought home. I can't wait to go next year!
Post by: Skinner on November 24, 2008, 07:17:24 PM
Post by: snuff on November 25, 2008, 06:48:48 AM
[/quote]HEY SKINNER DID YOU SEE OR HEAR MANY WOLVES? DID YOU SEE VERY MANY ELK?
Post by: PacificNWhunter on November 25, 2008, 06:59:32 AM
Post by: blacktail luv on November 25, 2008, 03:44:54 PM
Post by: JoeVon on November 25, 2008, 05:38:10 PM
Post by: coastalghost on November 25, 2008, 05:44:10 PM
This year was the first year I let a buddy talk me into elk hunting in the wilderness. We were only 3.5 miles from the truck but packing out my elk was a real job. I give you guys a lot of props. It's a whole nother ball game when you can't back your truck up to them. It makes you feel like you have earned your animal though. A whole lot more rewarding if you as me. :)
Aint that the truth! Congrats on some fine mulies. Beautiful country guys.