Post by: RadSav on September 03, 2014, 12:35:25 AM
Always coming out the victor, he carries steal in his left shoulder from an early battle and a scar on his neck from a deflected shot at close range years later. He has made enough mistakes he definitely knows who I am. But his mistakes and mine seem to happen in concert with one another. He should be mine! His antlers should proudly hold a special place above the mantel! And yet he continues to roam the SW Washington hills, evading all who chase him and driving this bowhunter to the edge of insanity.
He has lived long enough that he has reached legendary status in our small circle of hunting partners. Everyone in our group stays clear of our battle grounds until the second or third day of each season. No one in our group has seen him, except me. Yet they know the myth bleeds. At times my stories seem a tale too great to fully believe and even my wife has a hard time believing the images I describe about his unique antlers and his shoulder of stone. Though all know that this bowhunter, who often prefers to sleep in the truck during elk ventures, becomes elevated to obsessed madness come opening day. So in some small way they agree there must be something special out there. Whether in reality or just in the mind of a lunatic they are unsure.
Todays hunt started as most of the other opening day quests. Cover ground, look for the primary trail (which changes each year), wait for the eventual witching hour, listen for the bugle, adjust location accordingly and prepare for war. Only this year the sign is all old, the primaries are small and the air is still with a disturbing silence. I break from the usual plan of attack and head for "Rub Bluff".
Rub Bluff is an old skid road covered with alders that has recorded his life in barkless marks from the first year of our battles growing and recording each progressive year till present. Depression comes down with increasing vengeance as I realize there are no new rubs. Could it be that our days of battle have come to an end? Was some other hunter able to kill the beast where I had failed so many times? What reason would I find to hunt elk going forward if my greatest adversary was no longer around to keep me humble and enraged? I feared the worst as a weakness rush over me.
A stone catches my eye and I find rest and comfort upon it's familiar contour. It has supported me many times throughout the years. Sometimes when I needed rest after admitting defeat, sometimes when I needed support after seeing the heights at which the latest rubs had reached, and sometimes when I simply needed a place of solitude as I prepared for the battle that lay ahead. Today it held a broken man. A man distraught with sorrow as the creeping hands of time ripped at the soul and pulled tears from the eyes. A man not ready or prepared to say goodbye to an old friend.
"Well", I said to myself, "Accept a final defeat and come to grips with the fact those antlers will never find their way home. It's time to move on!"
I rock forward and rise quickly...too quickly. A flash of white blinds me and I reach for an alder to steady myself as I wait for the issue to resolve. The tree I have leaned against represents year three in our relationship. It is a year he was most aggressive. The scars show from knee to out stretch finger tip. It also represents the year our battle was greatest. The year I watched as an arrow found impact just three inches forward of my aim. A year when I sat and watched as he lay 50 yards from me, breathing hard and succumbing (fatally, I thought) to the arrows impact. With only his head visible above a large log between us we spent the next hour just watching one another. Then, as nights grip was upon us, he stood and without hesitation trotted off into the darkness. Assuming he had fallen alone in the timber I swore he deserved better. I sacrificed the rest of my season continuing to search each day until seasons end. Only to have him rise once again prepared for battle a year of nightmares later.
Before I left Rub Bluff I looked to my left at years one and two. Time skipped as I remembered that first meeting in the heavy fog and the obsession as year two came. Then I looked to my right. More memories and a lot of years marked on those trees. As you leave Rub Bluff you must go under a fallen tree and over a small spring. As I completed the task I am eye level with the grade of the old skid road. I was not prepared for what I was to find there. Laid out as if placed purposely for me to find was a gift from the "Opening Day Bull". The tears clouded my eyes as my hands explored the texture and weight of what I always imagined...to hold his wonderfully unique antlers in my hands. It's more emotional than I ever imagined it would be.
Of all days, his gift was given to me on opening day. What a great bull and what a great day!
Post by: RadSav on September 03, 2014, 12:40:20 AM
Look honey! I have proof...I'm not crazy!!
Post by: swwaoutdoorsman on September 03, 2014, 01:51:13 AM
Post by: deerhunter_98520 on September 03, 2014, 04:54:42 AM
Post by: grundy53 on September 03, 2014, 04:57:37 AM
sent from my typewriter
Post by: lewy on September 03, 2014, 05:32:39 AM
Post by: Watimberghost on September 03, 2014, 05:40:26 AM
Post by: SniperDanWA on September 03, 2014, 05:43:53 AM
Post by: turkeyfeather on September 03, 2014, 05:56:31 AM
Post by: rtspring on September 03, 2014, 06:21:54 AM
I have been chasing a buck in Washington for atleast 5 years now, I missed him last year 1 minute into legal shooting light... He drives me insane..
Post by: pianoman9701 on September 03, 2014, 06:24:14 AM
Post by: buckhorn2 on September 03, 2014, 06:53:18 AM
Post by: trophyhunt on September 03, 2014, 07:13:15 AM
Very nice write up RadSav. Gives great meaning to respect of the animal.:yeah: very cool!
Post by: MLBowhunting on September 03, 2014, 07:20:50 AM
Post by: tgray on September 03, 2014, 07:22:55 AM
Post by: WALLEYEGUY on September 03, 2014, 07:40:21 AM
Post by: 100 grain on September 03, 2014, 07:47:26 AM
Post by: deerslyr on September 03, 2014, 07:49:44 AM
Post by: jackelope on September 03, 2014, 07:58:08 AM
Post by: steeliedrew on September 03, 2014, 08:09:44 AM
Post by: Lincoln4 on September 03, 2014, 08:10:35 AM
Post by: turkeyfeather on September 03, 2014, 08:11:36 AM
Very, Very cool Radsav! Excellent writing by the way. You should submit that to Extreme Elk or Eastmans. :tup:I was thinking the same thing.
Post by: Becky on September 03, 2014, 08:17:38 AM
Post by: elkoholic1 on September 03, 2014, 08:38:57 AM
Post by: rittem1 on September 03, 2014, 09:14:02 AM
Post by: pd on September 03, 2014, 09:21:56 AM
Post by: lokidog on September 03, 2014, 09:22:27 AM
Very, Very cool Radsav! Excellent writing by the way. You should submit that to Extreme Elk or Eastmans. :tup:I was thinking the same thing.
:yeah:
Post by: de0827 on September 03, 2014, 10:36:06 AM
Post by: Killmore on September 03, 2014, 10:59:31 AM
Post by: combs338 on September 03, 2014, 11:00:28 AM
You my friend have hunting figured out :tup:
:yeah:
Post by: Gringo31 on September 03, 2014, 12:57:20 PM
Anyone else have a particular buck or bull that they have chased several times and are almost glad they get away? Its a respect thing that is hard to explain... :tup:
Post by: Ranger91298 on September 03, 2014, 01:32:40 PM
Post by: nw_bowhunter on September 03, 2014, 01:48:53 PM
Post by: gun-dog on September 03, 2014, 01:51:51 PM
Post by: headshot5 on September 03, 2014, 02:11:02 PM
Post by: HUNTINCOUPLE on September 03, 2014, 02:18:38 PM
Post by: Mudman on September 03, 2014, 02:34:27 PM
Nice write-up. I'm betting if he shed out, he is probably still up in them hills. I'd be looking around to see where he has moved to. Those are some cool looking anters! Luck to ya. :tup::yeah: Get back after his trail... Could be around still??? Maybe he moved-food? Cows moved? Pressure? Berry pickers? You write great stories and capture the joy of hunting which isnt just about the kill. :tup:
Post by: TheHunt on September 03, 2014, 03:15:57 PM
Post by: blackveltbowhunter on September 03, 2014, 03:56:04 PM
Post by: Mhamil on September 03, 2014, 06:02:08 PM
Post by: SeaRun1 on September 03, 2014, 06:08:37 PM
SR1
Post by: lamrith on September 03, 2014, 06:28:40 PM
The questions is.. He shed them, so he was still out there. Did he drop them there as a final parting :bow: to you for a great lifetime of encounters, or is it a taunt telling you to bring it on?!? :boxin:
Post by: Eli346 on September 03, 2014, 06:38:21 PM
Post by: buck man on September 03, 2014, 07:06:11 PM
Wonderful story!
sent from my typewriter
:yeah:
Post by: dreamingbig on September 03, 2014, 08:11:06 PM
Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk
Post by: Mark0202 on September 03, 2014, 08:24:56 PM
Post by: RB on September 03, 2014, 08:35:10 PM
Post by: BOWHUNTER45 on September 03, 2014, 09:06:38 PM
Post by: Greenhorn on September 03, 2014, 10:10:26 PM
Post by: chucker on September 03, 2014, 10:26:15 PM
:tup:
Post by: Damnimissed on September 04, 2014, 12:35:34 AM
Post by: RadSav on September 04, 2014, 01:25:00 AM
Those who wanted more detail...use your imagination ;) If I listed all my failures who would believe my successes :chuckle:
We have both grown old and have the battle scars to prove it. He was a mature bull when we had our first encounter. We have had our opening day battles seven out of the last nine years. This would have been year ten. It would be fitting if this is the last evidence I have of him. His sheds still represent everything he ever was. Just the way I want to remember him...unique, but not perfect.
After the last few days watching the big arse white trucks muck up everything, stopping at every open ridge top and bugling from the front seat this area is losing it's mystique. Add to this the behavior of all the wannabe movie stars that have descended upon the area after a bull was killed by a newcomer last year. Obviously the word is out and the happy hunting grounds are no longer so happy.
He was always smart enough to bug out after the pressure of that opening day. I expect he has bugged out for good with all this mindless garbage on display. I'm beginning to feel as though I should do the same. A move much easier to swallow after receiving his parting gift!
I do have a multi-season tag this year. So one more opening day to come this year. It could still happen :tung:
Post by: purdyboyz on September 04, 2014, 08:31:40 AM
Post by: huntandjeep on September 04, 2014, 07:22:17 PM
Post by: Natures Way on September 04, 2014, 09:24:48 PM
Post by: Fullabull on September 05, 2014, 10:18:51 AM
Post by: ribka on September 07, 2014, 08:49:22 AM
Would be great if your story was published in a non hunting media like Seattle times so the non hunting public could see that hunting fishing are more than just killing and maybe gain better understanding why many of us enjoy hunting
Post by: rosscrazyelk on September 07, 2014, 09:00:41 AM
Post by: Johnb317 on September 07, 2014, 09:14:53 AM
Thank you for the story
Post by: HUNT on September 07, 2014, 06:37:59 PM