3darcher2
Lil-Rokslider
I wasn’t sure I’d put a write-up on here but after thinking about it I decided there might be some tidbits in here that would help some guys (or girls) shorten the learning curve or save a headache along the line after finishing up my archery hunt this year. Background – third archery elk hunt DIY. One in 1999 (successful in AZ with partner), one in 2020 (solo return to western hunting disaster in CO) and this one. This was a solo early archery hunt in what most would call a very mid-tier NM unit, certainly not the Gila or 34/36 or the Caldera. Nevertheless, it was NM, and it was a good tag with a lot of public land.
This wound up being a truck camp hunt. I arrived on Sept 4 midday, and the season was well underway after driving 1700 miles from PA in 2 days. I had a couple spots picked out from research and online scouting and headed to the closest one to start. I did see a 6x6 about 30 mins before dark on day one but had no way to close the gap and decided to come back the next day. I did notice during my hike up the mountain, pretty much the only halfway recent sign I saw was within 200 yards of where I saw the bull. The next day was a walk in the woods, no sign again, big storm blew in during the late afternoon and blew me off the mountain. A quick trip the next morning told me all I needed to see, which brings us to lesson number 1 – if you don’t see either 1) ELK or 2) a LOT of fresh sign, move on. There’s plenty of places to look beside in the same spot that didn’t have elk yesterday or today. I moved 20 miles to my next spot.
Lesson number 2 – the west is BIG. Three western hunts in the last three years and I am still amazed how compared to PA, nothing is easy. The mountains are often super steep or just go on forever. When you want to go “just a couple miles”, that’s a lot different than walking 8 laps at your HS track. Not to mention if you’re an easterner you’re going to find yourself 5000’+ higher in elevation than home. It’s the same driving – you want to drive to a place that’s 6 miles away? It might take 45 minutes driving 15 miles on some USFS goat path to get there. And the nearest gas station is likely an hour away, so a jerry can or three is a good idea. Realize nothing happens easy or fast in the west.
If you are going solo, lesson number 3 should be obvious, but BE CAREFUL and recognize your abilities. Have an exit strategy planned. Carry an inReach or Spot or what not. The west is not the place to take things lightly. Remember lesson 2? On night 4, I was coming down a well-established trail after dark still a mile from the truck. I caught the toe of my boot on a root as my body was committed to taking the next step. My foot couldn’t get out and down I went, hard, landing on my right hip, shoulder and my bow. I laid there for a few seconds before getting up and was relieved to find that I seemed OK and my bow was in one piece. Still, I was sore and I took the next morning off to check my sights, etc. I did crush my stabilizer, but the bow survived intact. It’s easy to see how this could have gone a different way.
Lesson number 4 shouldn’t be much of a surprise to any WKR, but it’s be persistent. DIY elk hunting is physically (and mentally) draining and it’s easy to take a day or two off when there’s time left. Remember the CO disaster I mentioned in 2020? That’s what I thought then too, and in retrospect, it was a cop out. Admittedly, being at 10,000’ by yourself in the middle of nowhere with no experience can be daunting, but the only way to get experience is to keep at it. On this trip there were a few other campers around, but truthfully, I didn’t know if they were hunters because I only saw one other group of hunters in the woods and that was less than a half mile off the road. In fact after I got my bull down and packed one quarter, I stopped in the next camp down the road and asked if they were hunting and they said yes. Since it was the 12th and first season ended the 14th, I asked if they were here for second season. No they were “hunting” first season. Never saw any of them leave the camp (a couple 5th wheels and a big trailer) and they said they were unable to help pack, as I don’t think they had a pack or pair of boots between the whole crew. They suggested I go down to the next camp since they had horses. Before I left them, they asked me what I had and I said a nice 6 point. They looked at me like I was either lying or a sorcerer, no one could pull a bull out of there. They were right – if you never leave camp, you’re probably not getting anything. Can’t get a buck (or bull) at the truck!
A few other points. This was three trips west in the past three years including a mulie trip. I find I lose my appetite at elevation. Same thing happened in CO. Admittedly, I am way overweight, but I lost 16 pounds in two weeks. Not that I ate nothing, but I forced myself to eat some stuff. I still averaged no more than 1000 calories a day while hiking 8-10 miles a day and a couple thousand feet elevation gain. I also drank a lot of water/Gatorade type stuff. Even with that, I think I was underhydrated and also low in electrolytes because I got some ridiculously painful middle of the night cramps in my hammys a couple times. I don’t know if others have this issue of no appetite but after three times it’s clearly real.
Next, and this seems pretty obvious, a bull elk is a big pile of meat, and it’s a ridiculous amount of work to pack one out. Give yourself every advantage you can – get good meat bags, have a good knife, and have a plan what you are doing. I suck at sharpening knives, so I have an Outdoor Edge for a backup but I did the whole skinning/quartering with a Cutco serrated drop point, and it was sharp the whole way. I did a gutless and it was my first time – I could do better next time for sure. One thing I hadn’t considered was my right hand was cramped so bad from pulling the hide while skinning, at one point I couldn’t even open my thumb.
Realize the plan starts before you shoot – one day I was hunting about 4 miles from the truck and I thought to myself, "what am I doing here"? Even though I’ve read this warning before, there I was. There was no way I could have gotten a bull out of there. The thought you’ll get one and figure out how to get one out afterwards is a pipe dream if you are in too deep. In the end, my packout was almost two miles and almost all downhill, and even then packing elk on your back is not easy and you need to be prepared to work hard. After packing one front quarter and a backstrap on trip one, I immediately looked for help. I had to get that bull out quickly and I knew I couldn’t make three more trips that day. I was lucky after getting shut out in camp 1, the next camp had two fellas from CA who jumped right into action with their horse and packed my hindquarters and backstrap on the horse while I packed the other front quarter. Without them I’d have been in trouble. And take a look online and plan on how you are carrying antlers – that was the worst load. Heavy, unwieldy, you’ll wonder how an elk gets through the woods. It took me an hour and thirty-five minutes to pack out 1.8 miles downhill and I was afraid to put it down. At that point, I don’t think I could have picked it up again. Trekking poles were my friend. Finally, make sure your pack will do what you want. I hunt with a Badlands Superday which I love but I need to totally revamp my pack setup (currently an older Dana Design) for moving meat and antlers. My first elk trip to AZ we hunted run and gun with ATVs and literally rode quads and a trailer right to the bulls. That was nice but it caused me to really underprepare mentally and physically for the challenge ahead. Plus I was 35, not 58
Finally, don’t be afraid to be aggressive and be confident. I listened to a bunch of @ElkNut podcasts on the drive out and being confident was a common thread. Nothing ventured, nothing gained.
Those are just some ramblings from my limited experiences. They are just mine. You western guys might think I’m nuts, heck some of you easterners too. Some of this might never apply to you. I claim no expertise, I’m simply giving you some of the stuff I ran into. Sift off what you want and pitch the rest and remember, all advice comes with a money back guarantee!
This wound up being a truck camp hunt. I arrived on Sept 4 midday, and the season was well underway after driving 1700 miles from PA in 2 days. I had a couple spots picked out from research and online scouting and headed to the closest one to start. I did see a 6x6 about 30 mins before dark on day one but had no way to close the gap and decided to come back the next day. I did notice during my hike up the mountain, pretty much the only halfway recent sign I saw was within 200 yards of where I saw the bull. The next day was a walk in the woods, no sign again, big storm blew in during the late afternoon and blew me off the mountain. A quick trip the next morning told me all I needed to see, which brings us to lesson number 1 – if you don’t see either 1) ELK or 2) a LOT of fresh sign, move on. There’s plenty of places to look beside in the same spot that didn’t have elk yesterday or today. I moved 20 miles to my next spot.
Lesson number 2 – the west is BIG. Three western hunts in the last three years and I am still amazed how compared to PA, nothing is easy. The mountains are often super steep or just go on forever. When you want to go “just a couple miles”, that’s a lot different than walking 8 laps at your HS track. Not to mention if you’re an easterner you’re going to find yourself 5000’+ higher in elevation than home. It’s the same driving – you want to drive to a place that’s 6 miles away? It might take 45 minutes driving 15 miles on some USFS goat path to get there. And the nearest gas station is likely an hour away, so a jerry can or three is a good idea. Realize nothing happens easy or fast in the west.
If you are going solo, lesson number 3 should be obvious, but BE CAREFUL and recognize your abilities. Have an exit strategy planned. Carry an inReach or Spot or what not. The west is not the place to take things lightly. Remember lesson 2? On night 4, I was coming down a well-established trail after dark still a mile from the truck. I caught the toe of my boot on a root as my body was committed to taking the next step. My foot couldn’t get out and down I went, hard, landing on my right hip, shoulder and my bow. I laid there for a few seconds before getting up and was relieved to find that I seemed OK and my bow was in one piece. Still, I was sore and I took the next morning off to check my sights, etc. I did crush my stabilizer, but the bow survived intact. It’s easy to see how this could have gone a different way.
Lesson number 4 shouldn’t be much of a surprise to any WKR, but it’s be persistent. DIY elk hunting is physically (and mentally) draining and it’s easy to take a day or two off when there’s time left. Remember the CO disaster I mentioned in 2020? That’s what I thought then too, and in retrospect, it was a cop out. Admittedly, being at 10,000’ by yourself in the middle of nowhere with no experience can be daunting, but the only way to get experience is to keep at it. On this trip there were a few other campers around, but truthfully, I didn’t know if they were hunters because I only saw one other group of hunters in the woods and that was less than a half mile off the road. In fact after I got my bull down and packed one quarter, I stopped in the next camp down the road and asked if they were hunting and they said yes. Since it was the 12th and first season ended the 14th, I asked if they were here for second season. No they were “hunting” first season. Never saw any of them leave the camp (a couple 5th wheels and a big trailer) and they said they were unable to help pack, as I don’t think they had a pack or pair of boots between the whole crew. They suggested I go down to the next camp since they had horses. Before I left them, they asked me what I had and I said a nice 6 point. They looked at me like I was either lying or a sorcerer, no one could pull a bull out of there. They were right – if you never leave camp, you’re probably not getting anything. Can’t get a buck (or bull) at the truck!
A few other points. This was three trips west in the past three years including a mulie trip. I find I lose my appetite at elevation. Same thing happened in CO. Admittedly, I am way overweight, but I lost 16 pounds in two weeks. Not that I ate nothing, but I forced myself to eat some stuff. I still averaged no more than 1000 calories a day while hiking 8-10 miles a day and a couple thousand feet elevation gain. I also drank a lot of water/Gatorade type stuff. Even with that, I think I was underhydrated and also low in electrolytes because I got some ridiculously painful middle of the night cramps in my hammys a couple times. I don’t know if others have this issue of no appetite but after three times it’s clearly real.
Next, and this seems pretty obvious, a bull elk is a big pile of meat, and it’s a ridiculous amount of work to pack one out. Give yourself every advantage you can – get good meat bags, have a good knife, and have a plan what you are doing. I suck at sharpening knives, so I have an Outdoor Edge for a backup but I did the whole skinning/quartering with a Cutco serrated drop point, and it was sharp the whole way. I did a gutless and it was my first time – I could do better next time for sure. One thing I hadn’t considered was my right hand was cramped so bad from pulling the hide while skinning, at one point I couldn’t even open my thumb.
Realize the plan starts before you shoot – one day I was hunting about 4 miles from the truck and I thought to myself, "what am I doing here"? Even though I’ve read this warning before, there I was. There was no way I could have gotten a bull out of there. The thought you’ll get one and figure out how to get one out afterwards is a pipe dream if you are in too deep. In the end, my packout was almost two miles and almost all downhill, and even then packing elk on your back is not easy and you need to be prepared to work hard. After packing one front quarter and a backstrap on trip one, I immediately looked for help. I had to get that bull out quickly and I knew I couldn’t make three more trips that day. I was lucky after getting shut out in camp 1, the next camp had two fellas from CA who jumped right into action with their horse and packed my hindquarters and backstrap on the horse while I packed the other front quarter. Without them I’d have been in trouble. And take a look online and plan on how you are carrying antlers – that was the worst load. Heavy, unwieldy, you’ll wonder how an elk gets through the woods. It took me an hour and thirty-five minutes to pack out 1.8 miles downhill and I was afraid to put it down. At that point, I don’t think I could have picked it up again. Trekking poles were my friend. Finally, make sure your pack will do what you want. I hunt with a Badlands Superday which I love but I need to totally revamp my pack setup (currently an older Dana Design) for moving meat and antlers. My first elk trip to AZ we hunted run and gun with ATVs and literally rode quads and a trailer right to the bulls. That was nice but it caused me to really underprepare mentally and physically for the challenge ahead. Plus I was 35, not 58
Finally, don’t be afraid to be aggressive and be confident. I listened to a bunch of @ElkNut podcasts on the drive out and being confident was a common thread. Nothing ventured, nothing gained.
Those are just some ramblings from my limited experiences. They are just mine. You western guys might think I’m nuts, heck some of you easterners too. Some of this might never apply to you. I claim no expertise, I’m simply giving you some of the stuff I ran into. Sift off what you want and pitch the rest and remember, all advice comes with a money back guarantee!
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