Howdy!

[Celtic Armor]

Been watching for a while. First time really posting much. North Central Tennessee based. My Son and I (63 and 35 years old respectively) are signed up for our first ever ELK hunt, 2nd Rifle Season in Colorado with Tenderfoot Outfitters. We went online and both got our tags this week, so we are starting to get rather stoked. Lots of hiking and conditioning, planning and plotting, shooting, gear gathering and watching hunting videos in anticipation. Hope to post some more as we head out in October and ascend via horseback to our Rocky Mountain basecamp to begin the adventure. Enjoying the posts and conversations here. Have gleaned much by lurking and searching. Good and safe hunting to all!

 

[eddielasvegas]

As the self-appointed chairman of the welcoming committee, it is my privilege to extend a laurel, and hearty handshake (virtual, of course) to our new member.



Eddie

 

[Celtic Armor]

Well met good Sir!

 

[fullstrut]

Been watching for a while. First time really posting much. North Central Tennessee based. My Son and I (63 and 35 years old respectively) are signed up for our first ever ELK hunt, 2nd Rifle Season in Colorado with Tenderfoot Outfitters. We went online and both got our tags this week, so we are starting to get rather stoked. Lots of hiking and conditioning, planning and plotting, shooting, gear gathering and watching hunting videos in anticipation. Hope to post some more as we head out in October and ascend via horseback to our Rocky Mountain basecamp to begin the adventure. Enjoying the posts and conversations here. Have gleaned much by lurking and searching. Good and safe hunting to all!

Hey sir how was your hunt?

 

[Celtic Armor]

Sorry, just saw this! My adult Son and I took the trip with Tenderfoot Outfitters in CO in the Fall of 2022. It was after COVID. We had planned this for YEARS and seriously worked and trained for 2 years to get ready. Riding (We own horses and are experienced riders), hiking, general exercise and conditioning, shooting like crazy, organizing and planning. By the time we went he was mid 30's in fantastic shape, I was in my 62 and in reasonable shape. It was a first for us in many regards: 1st Elk hunt, 1st guided hunt, 1st Western/Colorado Hunt, etc. We were as ready as we could have been. The first problem we had was I began to get very ill on the 2-day trip out from TN to CO. I still do not know what I got, but tested negative for FLU, COVID, etc. But I got damn sick. Slept most of the way out, have no real memory of riding up the mountain to the Camp site. Tried to go out the first day, came back in midday, slept another day and the did the last few days as hard as I could. The entire camp staff bent over backwards to accommodate my illness. From the food crew to our Wrangler/Guide and even the other hunters, everyone was supportive. I finished up the hunt and enjoyed my ride down the mountain, seeing sights I had missed on the way up. I was 3 weeks at home recovering. No one's fault, but T.O. was supportive in every way possible. Since then I have am more susceptible to cold and have some COPD-like symptoms I never had before. Getting older ain't for sissies!

The second impediment was the weather. The area that T.O. was having us hunt in got slammed with a winter snow storm the week before we arrived. Unbeknownst to all the elk herd that lives in that area just vanished. Of the 6 hunting pairs in Camp that week only one small elk was sighted and shot and that was on the very southern fringe of the hunting area early in the week. My Son saw 2 moose on 2 different days. And that was that. You cannot shoot what you cannot see. So basically we spent q chunk of money on a Western Horseback/Mountain Camping adventure. I cannot fault T.O. in anyway except to possibly muse whether they suspected that the elk had vacated the area and we were just spinning our wheels. I just do not know. I know I have no desire to head back into the cold mountains again. My Son and I hunt whitetail a lot in middle Tennessee on our farm and one other. We try to do one big hunt trip a year together while we (I?) still can. We might still consider a guided hunt under the right conditions, especially where we are out of our experience depth such as in elk, bear or mule deer, etc. I certainly do not want to waste my time and money again on a hunt like that. We shall see where we go from here.

I'd be glad to answer any specific questions you might have. We found the gang at Tenderfoot Outfitters to be extremely responsive to questions and ideas before, during, and after our time in Colorado. They know their stuff.

 

[Celtic Armor]

Thanks. Finally realized I had never followed up. We were VERY disappointed with our trip, but VERY thrilled with Tenderfoot Outfitters from beginning to end. So much was beyond anyone's control. My Son says, that's why they call it "hunting"! Good hunting all!