Shrek's big adventure

[Shrek]

Mike , I said most ! I could really enjoy a long weekend hunt alone but more than that it would loose luster quick.
I've been thinking about things and I really think I blew a really good opportunity when it snowed in NW Montana. I crossed five sets of wolf tracks , one set of bear tracks , one set of moose tracks , and ONE set of elk tracks. Not understanding what I was looking at I didn't bail out and track it. It was the perfect situation for me. It was following a small ridge half way down the mountain that was thick and bordered a grown over bushy cut over. Maybe a thousand yards to the bottom with main road at the bottom. There were next to no cows up high where I was but everyone said there would be a few lone bulls up there. I was too busy looking for tracks that i wasn't thinking about what they meant. Live and learn !

 

[HellsCanyon]

Mike , I said most ! I could really enjoy a long weekend hunt alone but more than that it would loose luster quick.
I've been thinking about things and I really think I blew a really good opportunity when it snowed in NW Montana. I crossed five sets of wolf tracks , one set of bear tracks , one set of moose tracks , and ONE set of elk tracks. Not understanding what I was looking at I didn't bail out and track it. It was the perfect situation for me. It was following a small ridge half way down the mountain that was thick and bordered a grown over bushy cut over. Maybe a thousand yards to the bottom with main road at the bottom. There were next to no cows up high where I was but everyone said there would be a few lone bulls up there. I was too busy looking for tracks that i wasn't thinking about what they meant. Live and learn !

I hear what you're saying but I just think once you get more experience in the backcountry hunting game the more you'll enjoy being solo... even for extended periods of time. Everyone is different though that's for sure. I have a few friends that hate hunting a lone and they've been "out west" their entire lives.

Mike

 

[Finch]

Bringing this bad boy back to life!

Shrek, I appreciate your willingness to help an elk newbie such as myself. I noticed that either you or someone made a comment about your recent hunt in my thread... had to check it out. Great read and I learned a few things. Glad you made it back to FL with something other than fried chicken.

 

[Shrek]

I should probably go back through this and remind myself of what I learned. I'm going solo again this year but if I have the opportunity to meet people I'll jump on it. I have better equipment and a real sense of what I'm looking for. If loneliness and fatigue is getting me down I'll get a motel quick and take a day off. I'm there to enjoy myself and I'm not out to prove how tough I am. I expect to camp for three or four days at a time then take a break if I'm alone. It's way different than hunting back east for sure. Bottom line Finch is go for it !

 

[Finch]

Thanks man, I plan on it! Really kinda bummed it's not this year though. Got plenty of time to prepare though.

Someone mentioned you "gotta watch the GIF" I'm sure that stands for something simple but I can't place it.

 

[2ski]

Article written by Aron. Everything is a great idea when your planning. But will you really use it. And it's more weight to carry.

 

[Shrek]

GIF=good idea fairy. An idea sounds great in your head and sucks in real life.

 

[Finch]

Ha, I like that! I've never heard it called that but she's bit me in the ass on more than one occasion! I'll check out that article.

 

[Shrek]

Thanks for bringing this back up Finch. I just went back through and it really clarified what I wanted to do this year. I got really mentally exhausted towards the end but it was a great trip. I should have more money and time this year and I'm not going back to NW Montana. I had been toying with that idea but it's plain tough hunting. There are huge animals there for sure but it's more than I want to try and chew. SW Montana was plain gorgeous and what I want to see again first. The Rimrock areas and stuff I saw late is on tap for deer again. I'll go back to NW Montana someday to prove I can but not this year. This year is big country and good glass.

 

[Finch]

No problem, I enjoyed reading it. I gotta be honest though. I don't know if it was due to the location or phase of breeding season but sounds like a fella would be crazy to take a bow on the hunt you did. I'm hoping that a Sept hunt (hopefully heavy into the rut) will provide me with an opportunity. Hell, maybe I should be setting my sights on just seeing an elk.

 

[Shrek]

It would be crazy tough but I'm a rifle hunter since my shoulders went south around fifteen years ago. I was thinking they had gotten better but last week I was pulling on some really stiff container doors and my shoulders told me to hang that up. Probably be a rifle hunter for the rest of my life unless I want surgery. There are archery hunts during rut in Wyoming , Montana , and Idaho as well as Colorado if you find the altitude daunting. There are leftover tags for this year if you get a wild hair and want to try this year.

 

[Finch]

Hey, I've thought about that wild hair for this year but it won't work. Work schedule isn't right for it plus vacation is already in for deer season. I guess the biggest thing is I wouldn't be ready this year. Really don't want to half-ass this. Sept 2015 seems like a long way away but I'll have no excuse for being ill prepared.

 

[MesaHorseCo.]

57 weeks or so

 

[Shrek]

57 weeks or so

I'm sooo thankful I don't have to schedule vacation ! If I got the money I got the time.