mountainman406
WKR
Coming from the East coast to MT has been one of the greatest experiences of my life. 3 years ago I was told by Uncle Sam that I would be moving to the middle of nowhere Montana and while most people dreaded this news, I couldn't be happier. After dreaming about hunting here for years, I finally was going to GET PAID to live/hunt here. Finally, after countless hours spent studying maps, reading books and burning the soles of my boots all of the miles of scouting finally started to pay off. This year I was extremely fortunate to have the opportunity to take the man who started my hunting enthusiasm with me on his first elk hunt. My dad and I put on over 50 miles on foot the first week of hunting and were blessed with a couple beautiful animals that will feed our families for the next year. Also, I was fortunate enough to harvest a personal best Muley buck that will be going to the taxidermist! (This is my first write up so feel free to ask questions)
This buck was spotted early in the morning from about 1/4 mile up the mountain. After seeing just how big he was and watching him feed around he bedded down looking right at me. After seeing this I came up with a plan and began my descent, sliding on my back as slow as I could praying that he wouldn't get too suspicious and take off. I still don't know how or why that buck let me close the distance but when he stood up at 71 yds I was ready to send it. My Weatherby 30-06 shooting 180gr Barnes TTSX put him down as quickly as he stood up.
After climbing and climbing some more, we finally found a couple of big beds in the thick timber with what looked like fresh tracks leading even further uphill. After seeing that the tracks were just walking and feeding along, we started following them at almost a jogging pace. After about 1/4 mile we stopped to catch our breath and come up with a game plan. 3 steps later we were staring at the bull 65 yds away. I slowly began to take my 30-06 out of my gun-bearer as the elk watched my every move. About a minute later, the 30-06 with Barnes bullets had done its job again and the real work began. Luckily, most of this packout was a downhill event.
The last elk was my Dad's and was the craziest event of them all. After harvesting a mule deer buck we walked only 60 yds up the mountainside to try to get a bearing of just where we were. As we came around the side a small hill we were greeted by the sight of 2 bulls standing only 50 yds from us! As my dad ran back to the buck to grab his rifle, I gave chase after the bulls to try to get a shooting vantage point. After losing sight of the elk, the emerged from the trees only 200 yds away just as my Dad caught back up and chambered a round. After one shot wasn't enough to bring the bull down, we gave chase to an area of cliffs where we walked up on the bull and finished the job. This pack out was the most rewarding of all knowing that the last 2 tags we had were filled and again, the pack out was mostly downhill.
We were both very blessed this year and sad that our season had come to an end. Hopefully y'all had some of the same luck that we had!
Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk
This buck was spotted early in the morning from about 1/4 mile up the mountain. After seeing just how big he was and watching him feed around he bedded down looking right at me. After seeing this I came up with a plan and began my descent, sliding on my back as slow as I could praying that he wouldn't get too suspicious and take off. I still don't know how or why that buck let me close the distance but when he stood up at 71 yds I was ready to send it. My Weatherby 30-06 shooting 180gr Barnes TTSX put him down as quickly as he stood up.
After climbing and climbing some more, we finally found a couple of big beds in the thick timber with what looked like fresh tracks leading even further uphill. After seeing that the tracks were just walking and feeding along, we started following them at almost a jogging pace. After about 1/4 mile we stopped to catch our breath and come up with a game plan. 3 steps later we were staring at the bull 65 yds away. I slowly began to take my 30-06 out of my gun-bearer as the elk watched my every move. About a minute later, the 30-06 with Barnes bullets had done its job again and the real work began. Luckily, most of this packout was a downhill event.
The last elk was my Dad's and was the craziest event of them all. After harvesting a mule deer buck we walked only 60 yds up the mountainside to try to get a bearing of just where we were. As we came around the side a small hill we were greeted by the sight of 2 bulls standing only 50 yds from us! As my dad ran back to the buck to grab his rifle, I gave chase after the bulls to try to get a shooting vantage point. After losing sight of the elk, the emerged from the trees only 200 yds away just as my Dad caught back up and chambered a round. After one shot wasn't enough to bring the bull down, we gave chase to an area of cliffs where we walked up on the bull and finished the job. This pack out was the most rewarding of all knowing that the last 2 tags we had were filled and again, the pack out was mostly downhill.
We were both very blessed this year and sad that our season had come to an end. Hopefully y'all had some of the same luck that we had!
Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk
