aquanologist
FNG
I posted earlier this year about my first elk trip to CO last year. Got drawn NM 1st rifle this year and my hunting partner drew CO so we went separate ways. Having never stepped foot in NM and knowing it would be a test, I said what the hell and decided to go solo.
Weather was warmer than expected, windy (15-20 all day and night), and dry, dry, dry. I gave myself a couple of days to scout and focused on water and cover. Glassing was pretty ineffective - I think the weather and previous weeks of hunting pressure had them holding to cover except during dark hours. After a good bit of walking, I located a bull bugling from his bed the afternoon before opening day. I roughly guestimated his location and made a date for the next day.
The smoke from CO and CA fires made for some pretty spectacular sunrises
Hunt day one opened with me bumping some elk out of a water hole right before shooting light. I was downwind and quiet so I can only guess they spotted my headlamp which I didn't really need at that point. Oh well, elk seen. Picked around a bit looking for sign until the thermals shifted and headed after the bugler. Get to the ridge top and sure enough, he's bugling. Start easing closer and pinpoint him in the creek bottom but on the other side. So thick I can't see across. He's bugling every couple minutes so I know almost exactly where he is and I'm about 60 yards away. I don't know why but he ended up getting up and walking along the creek still bugling so I paralleled him for over 100 yards, still bugling. I got slightly ahead and found a spot where I could see across the creek and set up. At this point he hung up and would not come out of the thick, but still bugling. I tried to cow call a little but he still wouldn't budge. After a few minutes of this, me calling - him bugling, he gave up and I heard him turn and walk back down the creek. He made a couple of what I can best describe as whimpers - didn't sound like alarm, but more like a shoulder shrug- and that's all from him. For those of you who speak elk, what does this mean? At this point, I decided to back out listen for a while but he didn't open back up so I went and glassed some other areas at dark, saw some cows.
Day two was mostly scouting, glassing, and moving camp. Found an awesome campsite that I could glass from and met some other hunters from Albuquerque who basically had the same hunt plan for day 3 as I did so we talked about joining up. Glassing from the tailgate with a couple beers wasn't a bad deal at all, except for the lack of elk.
Well I feel bad about standing them up but I called an audible on the morning of day 3 and went a different direction. Guys, if you're reading this, I apologize if you waited on me or I held you up. I was able to see some beautiful country and bumped one bull elk that day but it was otherwise uneventful.
Day four I decided to give the bugler another go with a plan to ease around some water holes at daylight, drop downwind and cross the creek so I could approach from the side he was bedded. Almost to the first water hole, I spot what I thought were moo cows but quickly realized was a herd of about 15-20 elk. One was a shooter so I settled in and took him. The herd had already winded me and were starting to move so I had to hurry the shot but as the herd broke and ran, one didn't. My first bull down!! Lots of emotions at this point but not the adrenaline rush I had expected. I watched another sunrise as he expired and just marveled in the beauty of the western US. I also discovered this was the best cell service of the trip so I was able to call and text family and friends to celebrate.
Quartering and packing solo is every bit as hard as people say. Luckily I was only about a mile from the truck and in relatively easy walking country. Still took me several hours to get everything coolered.
Overall, this was a truly awesome experience. Being solo made it more difficult mentally than physically and certainly I feel like a passed a personal test. Time to start planning for next year - solo? maybe.
A couple of quick points and shout outs:
Garmin InReach and Earthmate app - absolute gold mine. Shared tracks with wife, brother, and friend so they could follow along. Added piece of mind to them and me. My buddy was using the app when I killed the bull and he actually texted to ask if I had one down before I sent him anything. He was able to see I was in trees, then out in the open doing circles and guessed the outcome. The earthmate app was really easy to use and once Garmin integrates it into one handheld unit, they will be giving OnX a serious run.
Bugle tube - I think I could have easily killed that bigger bull with a few bugles. I have a feeling Eglin AFB is about to be home to one sick sounding bull elk over the next year.
Remember to stop and smell the roses. You pay for the trip, not the kill. I realized I got my moneys worth on day 3. Maybe re-centering my Chi is what put me in elk day 4.
Good luck to everyone else this season.
Weather was warmer than expected, windy (15-20 all day and night), and dry, dry, dry. I gave myself a couple of days to scout and focused on water and cover. Glassing was pretty ineffective - I think the weather and previous weeks of hunting pressure had them holding to cover except during dark hours. After a good bit of walking, I located a bull bugling from his bed the afternoon before opening day. I roughly guestimated his location and made a date for the next day.
The smoke from CO and CA fires made for some pretty spectacular sunrises
Hunt day one opened with me bumping some elk out of a water hole right before shooting light. I was downwind and quiet so I can only guess they spotted my headlamp which I didn't really need at that point. Oh well, elk seen. Picked around a bit looking for sign until the thermals shifted and headed after the bugler. Get to the ridge top and sure enough, he's bugling. Start easing closer and pinpoint him in the creek bottom but on the other side. So thick I can't see across. He's bugling every couple minutes so I know almost exactly where he is and I'm about 60 yards away. I don't know why but he ended up getting up and walking along the creek still bugling so I paralleled him for over 100 yards, still bugling. I got slightly ahead and found a spot where I could see across the creek and set up. At this point he hung up and would not come out of the thick, but still bugling. I tried to cow call a little but he still wouldn't budge. After a few minutes of this, me calling - him bugling, he gave up and I heard him turn and walk back down the creek. He made a couple of what I can best describe as whimpers - didn't sound like alarm, but more like a shoulder shrug- and that's all from him. For those of you who speak elk, what does this mean? At this point, I decided to back out listen for a while but he didn't open back up so I went and glassed some other areas at dark, saw some cows.
Day two was mostly scouting, glassing, and moving camp. Found an awesome campsite that I could glass from and met some other hunters from Albuquerque who basically had the same hunt plan for day 3 as I did so we talked about joining up. Glassing from the tailgate with a couple beers wasn't a bad deal at all, except for the lack of elk.
Well I feel bad about standing them up but I called an audible on the morning of day 3 and went a different direction. Guys, if you're reading this, I apologize if you waited on me or I held you up. I was able to see some beautiful country and bumped one bull elk that day but it was otherwise uneventful.
Day four I decided to give the bugler another go with a plan to ease around some water holes at daylight, drop downwind and cross the creek so I could approach from the side he was bedded. Almost to the first water hole, I spot what I thought were moo cows but quickly realized was a herd of about 15-20 elk. One was a shooter so I settled in and took him. The herd had already winded me and were starting to move so I had to hurry the shot but as the herd broke and ran, one didn't. My first bull down!! Lots of emotions at this point but not the adrenaline rush I had expected. I watched another sunrise as he expired and just marveled in the beauty of the western US. I also discovered this was the best cell service of the trip so I was able to call and text family and friends to celebrate.
Quartering and packing solo is every bit as hard as people say. Luckily I was only about a mile from the truck and in relatively easy walking country. Still took me several hours to get everything coolered.
Overall, this was a truly awesome experience. Being solo made it more difficult mentally than physically and certainly I feel like a passed a personal test. Time to start planning for next year - solo? maybe.
A couple of quick points and shout outs:
Garmin InReach and Earthmate app - absolute gold mine. Shared tracks with wife, brother, and friend so they could follow along. Added piece of mind to them and me. My buddy was using the app when I killed the bull and he actually texted to ask if I had one down before I sent him anything. He was able to see I was in trees, then out in the open doing circles and guessed the outcome. The earthmate app was really easy to use and once Garmin integrates it into one handheld unit, they will be giving OnX a serious run.
Bugle tube - I think I could have easily killed that bigger bull with a few bugles. I have a feeling Eglin AFB is about to be home to one sick sounding bull elk over the next year.
Remember to stop and smell the roses. You pay for the trip, not the kill. I realized I got my moneys worth on day 3. Maybe re-centering my Chi is what put me in elk day 4.
Good luck to everyone else this season.
