Benz's 2020 Montana Elk Adventure (detailed)

[benz1978]

Edited the posts and removed the units. Not trying to put anyone's panties in a bind. The reason I did the write up was to educate and to fill a void in the information on the internet. I wasn't divulging honey holes. These units are big. Lots of room to get away from each other. Any Tom, Dick or Harry can get Montana harvest data and see where the elk are getting killed. Let me know if I missed any unit mentions and I'll clean them up.

Sent from my Pixel 3a using Tapatalk

 

[Wapiti1]

Great job and thanks for putting it all out there for us to follow. Hope you get to write a lot more of these.

Jeremy

 

[benz1978]

Congratulations on a very nice bull! You definately put the work in and earned your trophy.
If you have the fuel, heat up some water before bed, put it in nalgene bottles and put it inside your sleeping bag/quilt.
It'll help keep you warm, wont freeze, and you'll have drinking water for the next day.

I did this one night boiling some creek water. Used the fire vs fuel. That's a benefit of taking a pot vs a jet boil type cookset. Should have done this more often. Didn't really come upon this idea until later in the trip. Thanks for sharing though. I'm sure someone else will benefit from the tip.

Sent from my Pixel 3a using Tapatalk

 

[Ondavirg]

Congrats! Great story as well.

 

[Olympics777]

I enjoyed the write up, thanks for taking the time to do it.

 

[slick]

Edited the posts and removed the units. Not trying to put anyone's panties in a bind. The reason I did the write up was to educate and to fill a void in the information on the internet. I wasn't divulging honey holes. These units are big. Lots of room to get away from each other. Any Tom, Dick or Harry can get Montana harvest data and see where the elk are getting killed. Let me know if I missed any unit mentions and I'll clean them up.

Sent from my Pixel 3a using Tapatalk

Thanks Benz. No panties in a bunch it’s just good practice. I think there’s enough information on the web available to new hunters that they don’t need a particular unit.
One you had listed is big country but it has limited access. Have worked and played in it a bunch, and no it’s not a secret, but again, there are enough tools for a hunter who wants to figure it out, to do so.

Putting specific unit numbers just invites the lazy and unmotivated and clogs up those few access points. Plus, that unit can be busier than shit as is, no need to add anymore if a person can help it.

Glad you all came out safe, had a wonderful experience, and got back home to enjoy some fine eats.


Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk

 

[Elkchaser54]

Awesome write up! Something I would add is that for anyone wanting to do stuff like this, you don't need all that name brand stuff . Just get after it, do it , don't waste another minute. You never know how many hunting seasons you get and don't waste a single one.

I think you did an amazing job getting prepared and it showed in some success!!!!!

I remember my first backpack experience, I was all prepared got to the trailhead and then just froze.... uhhh what do i wanna put in my pack ? What foods will I eat.... ended up putting half the truck in my pack. Hahaha first mistake that everyone does, you don't need all this stuff we think we do. Thats why experience and just doing it will make you the most successful

 

[AaronMColeman]

Thanks Benz. No panties in a bunch it’s just good practice. I think there’s enough information on the web available to new hunters that they don’t need a particular unit.
One you had listed is big country but it has limited access. Have worked and played in it a bunch, and no it’s not a secret, but again, there are enough tools for a hunter who wants to figure it out, to do so.

Putting specific unit numbers just invites the lazy and unmotivated and clogs up those few access points. Plus, that unit can be busier than shit as is, no need to add anymore if a person can help it.

Glad you all came out safe, had a wonderful experience, and got back home to enjoy some fine eats.


Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk

I don't even put what state I'm hunting in, maybe just a good idea to not even include the the country. I usually just take the same approach as Surf magazines: "somewhere in the Western Hemisphere".

I get it, I don't think it's as big a deal as others do. Only caveats are if it is a big draw unit (probably don't want to push the draw numbers up), or if the bull is massive! I don't think the dinks I shoot are going to draw anyone into a unit even if I give the trail head numbers and exact coordinates! Probably best to have a policy of no units listed in public I guess.

 

[Gila]

I don't even put what state I'm hunting in, maybe just a good idea to not even include the the country. I usually just take the same approach as Surf magazines: "somewhere in the Western Hemisphere".

I get it, I don't think it's as big a deal as others do. Only caveats are if it is a big draw unit (probably don't want to push the draw numbers up), or if the bull is massive! I don't think the dinks I shoot are going to draw anyone into a unit even if I give the trail head numbers and exact coordinates! Probably best to have a policy of no units listed in public I guess.

Go hunt Siberia and then come back here and show us your 400 class bull. Lol!

The Gila and the Apache are world famous for producing Trophy bulls. For a nonresident, acquiring one of those tags could be a once in a lifetime tag. The tags are difficult to obtain even for residents. In New Mexico, there are some over-the-counter tags available for those (public land) units that go for 15K to 20K. Outfitters compete for those tags. If I am lucky enough to draw one of those public land tags, I hunt DIY. I really don't care to have a dozen outfitters crawling up my butt when I am trying to get some huntin' done though. It has happened to me and I am here to tell you it sucks!

Some of the larger units (in any state) that don't have a very high success rate don't have as many hunters putting in for the draw or buying general hunt OTC tags. Elk are not evenly distributed in those units. The 20% who are successful obviously know where the elk are. Put that information on the forums and you will have hundreds of additional people who may want to hunt that area. That isn't very fair to the locals now is it? Nor is it very fair to anyone else who has paid for the data and mapping subscriptions to scout those units. With the information given by the OP I have been able to narrow down the area where he harvested his bull within a mile or two and I have not ever been to that area in Montana.

However having said that, the units the OP hunted are common knowledge and have been posted ad nausaeum on just about every major hunting forum. In this case, revealing the unit numbers doesn't matter much, just a lesson to be learned IMHO.

Ps "dinks" grow up to be trophy herd bulls...

 

[rvanbw00]

Great job, and congrats on your bull!

 

[Matt Cashell]

This was a great series of posts, and a good account of learning the elk hunting game.

Sometimes meat gets lost even with great effort made by the successful hunter, but this story is a good cautionary tale for prospective elk hunters. If you are going to leave meat hanging for any period of time in bear country you have to hang it really high (like 15 feet) and away from the trunk. You can make a block and tackle out of carabiners that can really make the chore easier.

How To Make a Backcountry Block and Tackle

If you're in the backcountry and need to hoist a deer or elk off the ground, here's how to rig a simple block and tackle.

www.fieldandstream.com

Even better, have the packer set up ahead of time and a communication plan ready to get the hard-earned delicious meat out ASAP.

All in all a great story and you beat the odds of success for first-time elk hunters. Congratulations.

 

[benz1978]

This was a great series of posts, and a good account of learning the elk hunting game.

Sometimes meat gets lost even with great effort made by the successful hunter, but this story is a good cautionary tale for prospective elk hunters. If you are going to leave meat hanging for any period of time in bear country you have to hang it really high (like 15 feet) and away from the trunk. You can make a block and tackle out of carabiners that can really make the chore easier.

How To Make a Backcountry Block and Tackle

If you're in the backcountry and need to hoist a deer or elk off the ground, here's how to rig a simple block and tackle.

www.fieldandstream.com

Even better, have the packer set up ahead of time and a communication plan ready to get the hard-earned delicious meat out ASAP.

All in all a great story and you beat the odds of success for first-time elk hunters. Congratulations.

Thanks for the feedback. I've actually already procured some new line from Lawson to take with me next trip. Was planning to use pct method to get the meat up high. I'll test out a few 70lb bags here to see if it's going to work. May need to resort to the carbineer example you provided. Thanks for the link.

Sent from my Pixel 3a using Tapatalk

 

[Cahunter805]

Great write up and congrats on the trip and bull!

 

[Panhandler80]

Great read and helluva job! I think my favorite two lines were:

1. Frozen tuna fish is not so yummy.

And...

2. Well, there's an elk attached to this blood!

 

[Illinihunter]

Congratulation on your bull, great write up. I love readings about someone's hunting adventures or trips. I learn so much.

 

[11boo]

Well done Benz. finding good hunting partners is pretty tough, thus I go solo mostly.

 

[tburkepa]

Great write up and congrats on the bull!

 

[claybreaker]

Thanks for taking the time to write this along with the photo. I really enjoyed the read. Congrats on your bull.

 

[Trophybucks]

Great post. Good read!

 

[scfreeman66]

Great story. I'm glad that you were successful and got to make those memories!
Thanks for taking us along

Sent from my moto g(7) optimo maxx(XT1955DL) using Tapatalk