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Benz's 2020 Montana Elk Adventure (detailed)
Off we went. We had talked to a couple other hunters in Bozeman who had been in the unit we were headed to on opening day. They saw a couple hunters who were successful filling their tags on opening day. They were planning to rejoin the hunt after the cold front as well and were contemplating... -
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Benz's 2020 Montana Elk Adventure (detailed)
While in Bozeman, we decided to skip one of our interim units and go straight to the one we really had our heart set on. The interim unit was just another stepping stone along the way to our top choice and it wasn’t really where we wanted to be. We decided we would focus the rest of our time... -
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Benz's 2020 Montana Elk Adventure (detailed)
That evening, we got pounded with snow. Another 8-10” I’m guessing. Several times in the evening, I got up and was shoveling snow off the tents to keep our makeshift shelter from collapsing from the weight of snow. It was a cold and miserable night. We got up the next morning and headed off into... -
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Benz's 2020 Montana Elk Adventure (detailed)
The morning met us with a hard frost. It was definitely colder than it was yesterday. Our water bottles had frozen and climbing out of the bags was an act of bravery and courage. We climbed out and headed to the truck (our eating area away from camp). When we exited the timber and looked into... -
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Benz's 2020 Montana Elk Adventure (detailed)
On to the trip…we planned to head out a couple days before opening day with the expectation that we would scout for a couple of days and possible bounce from plan A, to plan B, etc. and be ready for a hunt on opening morning. We drove straight through the night and made it to Billings before... -
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Benz's 2020 Montana Elk Adventure (detailed)
Another quick note here. I know sharing hunting area info isn’t popular and I’ve intentionally buried it deep in this write up. My intention is to share as much info as I can without completely giving up the info on the exact area where we hunted. Apologize for any of you who hunt these areas if... -
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Benz's 2020 Montana Elk Adventure (detailed)
E-scouting…this was probably the biggest challenge. Not having been out west on any sort of hunts, I was really relying on online content. Lots of secret honey holes out there and lots of hunters publishing content on how to e-scout but taking a very general approach. Translating that info into... -
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Benz's 2020 Montana Elk Adventure (detailed)
Ok…that was a lot. Haven’t gotten to any of the good parts. Trying to preface each section with a subject so that you can pick and choose what you want to read. -
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Benz's 2020 Montana Elk Adventure (detailed)
Lastly, the pack. I feel like we have some really good options in this space as well. Stone Glacier, Kifaru, KUIU, Mystery Ranch, Seek Outside, and EXO to name a few. Obviously, I was looking at internal frame packs. Again, these aren’t common in my area so trying them on wasn’t really an... -
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Benz's 2020 Montana Elk Adventure (detailed)
For the ammo, I started w/ Lapua brass and then went right to Varget powder and had a couple different primers to play with (Federal 210M and CCI 200). I wanted to use Nosler Accubonds in 165gr configurations and decided I would start there and if the rifle didn’t like it, I would try Barnes... -
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Benz's 2020 Montana Elk Adventure (detailed)
On to the rifle. Lots of info out there on what the right cartridge is for elk and what’s ethical and what’s not ethical. I mulled around with several rifle chamberings including 308 Win, 280 Rem (including AO), 300 WM, 300WSM, 6.5 Creed and the ole 30-06 standby. I’m a lefty so finding options... -
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Benz's 2020 Montana Elk Adventure (detailed)
Oh, one quick lesson learned. I made a ton of butthole sandwiches using bagels, bacon and peanut butter. I then froze them and then used my foodsaver on them. The food saver smashed them into bricks. I even did some without letting the foodsaver get all the air out. I taste tested one before the... -
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Benz's 2020 Montana Elk Adventure (detailed)
Food…the most important part of the trip. I spent a lot of time picking out my cookset. I liked the idea of a jetboil but the versatility of a pot and stove. Ultimately, I decided to go with an evernew titanium set and a soto stove. The combo worked great. I made a pot cozy for the pot and found... -
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Benz's 2020 Montana Elk Adventure (detailed)
For water and misc essentials, I got a platy gravity filter system (2L) and took an extra filter and some aquamira pills just in case. I built out a first aid kit that included the usual assortment of bandaids, bandages, keto tape, combat gauze and various OTC first aid drugs. Nothing too fancy... -
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Benz's 2020 Montana Elk Adventure (detailed)
Back to my sleep system, if I had it to do over, I’d probably get a chilkoot or other generously sized bag. I’m pretty broad shouldered so the garden variety sleeping bags you find at REI are generally not roomy enough for an active sleeper like me. The quilt worked fine but inevitably, as I... -
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Benz's 2020 Montana Elk Adventure (detailed)
With the clothing out of the way, I focused on my house. This was a little tougher to decide on. I liked the idea of a lightweight backpacking tent (like the BA Copper Spur) but was concerned about the oddball chance we get a heavy dose of winter in our hunting trip during Montana’s rifle... -
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Benz's 2020 Montana Elk Adventure (detailed)
Gear accumulation…starting here because once we had the preference point, we felt pretty good about our odds to draw a general elk tag. We were whitetail hunters and most of our gear was designed for long, cold stand sits waiting for whitetail to come. While some of it translated for the more... -
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Benz's 2020 Montana Elk Adventure (detailed)
Tag acquisition…we resolved to hunt in the great state of Montana based purely on some of the hunting success odds we looked at and availability of public land. We tossed around the idea of Colorado as well but ultimately landed on Montana. By our estimation, with a general elk tag, we could... -
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Benz's 2020 Montana Elk Adventure (detailed)
Greetings from the flatlands of mid-central Illinois. Me and a few of my buddies (Rusty Rifle Crew) undertook the adventure of our very first western elk hunt in Montana. Wanted to share our experience along with some of the lessons we learned along the way. This will be detailed and is intended... -
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2020 Best Bull Elk Hunt Photo Contest, sponsored by Kifaru
First time out west Sent from my Pixel 3a using Tapatalk
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