2019 Live Hunt Elk-Ibex-Deer-Antelope

[TheCougar]

I’m not sure how many folks are even reading this thread, but I’ve got a question for you based on an experience during the hunt.

Around the evening of day 4 or so, it started to rain a bit and continued through Saturday morning. We ended up going hunting on Saturday morning, betting that the weather would break. The break in the weather never happened, but we did get into lots of elk. One of the guys shot at a bull and the arrow deflected off a branch. The second guy shot an elk and we believed it to be a miss (I was caller and did not see either shot). Once we found the arrow, it looked like some fat and hair on the arrow, but no blood. The rain had washed away any blood on the arrow or the ground.

I want to know your thoughts on shooting an elk in the rain. Would you do it, understanding that tracking blood is not an option? If you would shoot, would your acceptable shot criteria change at all? If you choose to shoot, how does your post-shot routine change - do you immediately look for the arrow and the blood trail, or do you back out and give the bull time? Any other considerations? None of these things were considerations for me prior to the shot, as I have rarely if ever hunted in the rain. I was caught off guard when I considered it in the the field.


Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk

 

[Shane]

I don't like to shoot an animal on an archery hunt in the rain. I don't mind it at all on a rifle hunt. I will stick to my favorite shot placement (crease at the base of the neck/front of the shoulder) that puts them down in their tracks, so no blood trailing necessary.

 

[chops24]

I dont like to shoot an animal in the rain. that being said i 100% will. i have found that getting close to animals in the rain is way easier than non rain scenarios and in my experience, when they spook they dont go far and generally seem confused. i dont know if its because there is a lack of human scent during rainstorms or what but i get close easily. might have to do with the fact that sound awareness is almost a non-issue. I practice in the rain because i will hunt in the rain. what i do before i shoot in the rain is "pop" my bowstring (pull it back 3-4 inches and let go) then i shoot. if i dont do that, i shoot low.

 

[FlyGuy]

No, we lost a bull this season due to rain. Wasn’t a perfect shot. Didn’t expect the rain, but about an hour after the shot it came and lasted 12 hours. Guys had to call it quits after ~ 300 yards to go get dry. Next morning found that rain had Washed away all signs of of blood.


I won’t shoot if I know it’s about to dump.




You can’t cheat the mountain

 

[FlyGuy]

Looking forward to hear every detail of the ibex hunt! I drew the late archery tag (Jan 15-30). I’m stoked for this hunt, even tho the success rates are absolutely dismal! Apparently, I like to suffer!


You can’t cheat the mountain

 

[TheCougar]

I'm not sure how I feel about shooting in the rain. I guess I would have to feel like it is a "perfect" opportunity (broadside, close range, etc), for me to even consider knowing what I know now. I'm 90% sure that the bull made it based on the arrow, which is a small consolation. When your shot is good, the bulls die within sight, which has been my experience on all but 1 elk.

 

[TheCougar]

I tagged home base for 36 hours after Montana and then immediately went overseas for a trip. I fly back from Japan tomorrow and then I'm home for 48 hours before its off to NM to help on an archery Ibex hunt!!!

 

[TheCougar]

This year I completely revamped my hunting food plan. In previous years it was a very unscientific process of throwing food in my pack without considering my actual nutritional needs. I did a little research and started to understand some basic nutritional information that enabled me to build a tailored food program that would make sure my body got what it needed, when needed, and minimized extra weight.

I started the process by determining my current caloric needs based on my daily routine. I estimated my daily caloric intake between 3000-3200 calories, which is pretty high, but I was also working out pretty hard, twice a day...

Next I determined my goals for proteins, fats, and carbs. My #1 goal was to keep my protein intake above 200gr daily, and I used that to determine the foods I ate. I also figured that a goal of 3500 calories would probably be sufficient for a day of elk hunting, given that I was already working pretty hard for a baseline caloric need. I then did some research and made a list of foods that had a respectable calorie to weight ratio and tasted good. I created three different days of meals for variety using this list of foods. In addition to the food listed for each of the days, every daily food bag contained a packet of vitamins, two instant coffees, and Gnarly Veggie Boost powder mixed in with the Endurox recovery powder.

Overall, I was pretty pleased with the results. I was never hungry or full - I felt like I was getting only what I needed without excess. I was pushing hard, as we averaged 10 miles per day and 2000' vertical feet on 8 days out of 9. I came back at the same weight that I started, but I'm willing to bet I gained a little fat and lost some muscle in the process. My only complaint is that the food was all sweet and sugary, with the exception of the dinners and the beef jerky. I think I will mix in something more savory for the middle of the day, something salty and less sweet.

 

[TheCougar]

Looks like no Ibex Hunt this season. I’ve been talking with Ryan in NM and he has been out there for a week with only two stalks. Apparently they sit in camp all day staring at Ibex that are in unhuntable positions. He already has two other guys out there to glass and he recommended that I don’t waste my time coming out, as he is going to have to end the hunt early and i would spend more time driving than helping him hunt. I get it, and although I am happy to have more than 48 hours at home with the family, I am pretty disappointed. On the bright side, I’ll take the time I gained at home and maybe do a little bow hunting for whitetail around here.

 

[chops24]

Damn that really sucks! That is such a great hunt, although ive never done it with a bow, its a shame you have to miss it.

That is one of the incredibly frustrating things about that hunt, the Ibex are there. you can sit behind 15s all day and watch them and it seems so doable. Until you hit the base of the cliffs.... Based on what you said about them sitting in camp and watching them i assume they are hunting from the bottom and climbing that sonofabitch every day. That is incredibly hard and most guys i know that were successful with a bow did it by camping on top and letting the goats come to them.

One of my favorite memories of those hunts was being way up in the cliffs and hearing a couple of guys get to the base of the mountain and then they said "F*** this, this is crazy" and turned around and left. I never saw their truck again. They were right ha ha.

Glad you get some family time. Keep us updated man.

 

[TheCougar]

Y

Damn that really sucks! That is such a great hunt, although ive never done it with a bow, its a shame you have to miss it.

That is one of the incredibly frustrating things about that hunt, the Ibex are there. you can sit behind 15s all day and watch them and it seems so doable. Until you hit the base of the cliffs.... Based on what you said about them sitting in camp and watching them i assume they are hunting from the bottom and climbing that sonofabitch every day. That is incredibly hard and most guys i know that were successful with a bow did it by camping on top and letting the goats come to them.

One of my favorite memories of those hunts was being way up in the cliffs and hearing a couple of guys get to the base of the mountain and then they said "F*** this, this is crazy" and turned around and left. I never saw their truck again. They were right ha ha.

Glad you get some family time. Keep us updated man.

Its a bummer for sure, but I’m not doing 24 hours in the truck unless I can be useful. It sounds like they are glassing from the bottom and watching a herd of 80-100 Ibex that sit in the bluffs. If the Ibex start moving towards a place they can be stalked or ambushed, they hustle up the mountain and work them from the top. Other than the first day, the herd (flock, gaggle, pod, school?) of Ibex has been parked in the same spot and haven’t moved to a place they can be hunted. I also know he hiked his face off yesterday trying to find other Ibex that were huntable and was unsuccessful. He’s a very accomplished hunter, so his lack of success means there must be extremely limited opportunities.

 

[hunter4life]

Just spent the weekend on the mountain helping my brother.
Numbers of ibex are way down from the past decade due to all the depredation hunts the last few years. G&F wanted numbers down and they accomplished that. Most herds are 80% billies with most of those being immature 20-35"ers. Not many 40" + goats left and very few nannies. They have 300 F-IM tags this year and my prediction is the population will crater after this. There will still be a bunch of mediocre billies for a few years, but with very few nannies they will not get replaced.
G&F did this in the 90's and there were almost no tags for years until the population eventually rebounded. They then got overpopulated and ate down all the brush and feed prompting the BLM to get onto G&F about their numbers and thus the "slaughters" of the past few years. Now they are set up to way overshoot their population again and it will likely suck for the next decade.

 

[chops24]

Yea that sounds about right with the herds or gaggles or whatever. That hunt will definitely show what you are made of. I have no doubt I would get my ass kicked on that mountain with a bow and I admire those who can get it done. Those that I know that have, have done it by finding a seep or a crossing and sitting there all damn day. Or ambushing from above with someone pushing from below. That’s a tough one though because there are a million ways they can go. They aren’t like deer and elk, until you see what they can do you wouldn’t believe it

 

[chops24]

Example of a crossing


Example of “How the F do I get there without a helicopter”

 

[TheCougar]

Helicopter isn’t a bad idea...

 

[TheCougar]

I’m in NM on my son’s youth deer hunt. We have been family camping for the last two days and the girls left this morning, so it’s hunting time. We’ve been doing a bit of driving and glassing and turned up very little. A handful of does and exactly zero bucks. We are in a perfect spot for glassing and it should be covered in deer, but right now I feel like the worlds worst dad as I can’t turn up a single deer! The 30kt winds certainly don’t help either...


Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk

 

[chops24]

ha ha i know that feeling! keep after em!

 

[TheCougar]

Day 1 AM was basically a total bust. Riley and I hiked about a mile up a ridge and bounced from glassing knob to glassing knob until 10:30, trying to get out of the wind and find deer. We kicked up one doe crossing a valley, and didn’t glass up a single deer. The country is very glassable and there should be lots of animals. We could have tagged out on nice bulls everyday, though! The winds are howling - I’m talking 30kts with gusts up to 40, so perhaps the deer never really moved around much this morning and bedded down in the thicker areas at the bottom. Riley did well, considering the crappy hunting. I’m teaching him the art of glassing and yesterday he glassed up a nice 5x5 bull on the top of a ridge. After we got back to the truck, we drove around for a couple of areas checking out other locations. We saw a flock of turkey and a itty bitty forkie buck, that Riley chose not to shoot. I told him I agreed with his decision, and I explained the “don’t pass up something on the first day that you would shoot on the last day” axiom. I can tell he is having second thoughts now! I’m currently trying to come up with a game plan for this evening that won’t crush his will to hunt and gives us a chance to find deer.

Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalkk

 

[TheCougar]

Day 1 pm:

Glassed up 3 does and almost shot a 3 point on the road to the glassing spot. Unfortunate, the deer’s curiosity timer was 10 seconds shorter than the time it takes Riley to find the deer and get a shot off... which is a while! Everything is down low in the bottoms. That complicates the glassing plan...

Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk

 

[TheCougar]

Day 2:

What a grinder... I’m very proud of my son. He hiked up a 700’ peak in the dark and braved 30 knot winds all morning while we glassed. He has been very patient as we basically saw diddly. We have been seeing a bunch of bulls and a few does, but other than that we can’t shake up any deer or bucks despite hours of glassing. This evening we drove the bottoms and glassed from the bottoms. I’m convinced that all the deer have moved into the thicker brush and trees in the bottoms, which would explain why I haven’t seen a deer more than 1/3 of the way up the mountain, and believe me, I have hammered the top half with glassing.

Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk