Pony Soldier
WKR
A few years ago I started out for a simple elk hunt on a nice morning. Shortly after leaving the truck I cut tracks of an elk herd going north. I got blocked off of my path by a drift fence and had to tie up my horses to continue. Two drainages later I spotted a cow on the next ridge and shot her. It was so steep that she rolled down the hill a couple hundred yards. I towed her down to a flat I could get the horses to.
I got her cleaned out and since it was early, I decided to go back to the house and get another horse and take her home. Since there was a drift fence, I had to come into it from the east side from the bottom. I worked my way up the drainage only to discover I was one drainage off. I picked an elk trail and led my horses over the ridge. It was steep as hell and frozen which led to a wild trip across the slope.
I got to the cow and climbed the trees with my climbing spurs and set my rope for the block and tackle. I got the cow about half skinned and while pulling on the hide the rope broke and I had to start over. By the time I got the quarters split, mannied and loaded it was about 8:00 pm. I started down the drainage but not sure which one I was in. Picking my way through the trees and downfall I found myself on a rock outcrop pinched out between a couple trees. I doubled back and cut my way down looking for another trail. I found what I was looking for but as I brought the horses around the slope failed and the hillside and horses slide down the hill in an avalanche into the creek bottom. When I got down there the horses were stacked on eachother in a stack of downfall. I had to unpack the horses, pull the packs and saw them out. The gulch was about 6 ft wide with about 6" of water in the bottom. At midnight I got them stoodup, resaddled and started my way out. I stashed the meat Till morning and started out. At the first trail, I got halfway up and my mare pulled back and they tumbled into the bottom again. My gelding was head down in a spot too narrow to pull him around. I used the mare to pull him up.
I pushed to the north side and found a trail to the railroad grade. When I got to the bottom I discovered three layers of barbwire fences. I had to go back up the gulch to get around them. I found a trail over the ridge and where the grade was out onto the old railroad grade. Then I found that when they logged they took out the gate and fenced it solid. At three in the morning I had enough, pulled out my pistol and shot off the wires.
It was two miles to my truck so worked my way back. I got to the house took care of my horses and went into the house. The easiest dinner was a surplus military mre. I crawled into bed and within an hour each of the muscle groups started going into spasm. This continued almost to daylite with continuous pain. I finally got about four hours of sleep, grabbed a couple fresh horses and followed my tracks in the snow back to my meat.
Without anymore surprises I made it home with my meat in about three hours. It took two days of rest to heal up enough to quit hurting so I could start hunting deer. You need a really crappy experience to measure just how tough you are.
I got her cleaned out and since it was early, I decided to go back to the house and get another horse and take her home. Since there was a drift fence, I had to come into it from the east side from the bottom. I worked my way up the drainage only to discover I was one drainage off. I picked an elk trail and led my horses over the ridge. It was steep as hell and frozen which led to a wild trip across the slope.
I got to the cow and climbed the trees with my climbing spurs and set my rope for the block and tackle. I got the cow about half skinned and while pulling on the hide the rope broke and I had to start over. By the time I got the quarters split, mannied and loaded it was about 8:00 pm. I started down the drainage but not sure which one I was in. Picking my way through the trees and downfall I found myself on a rock outcrop pinched out between a couple trees. I doubled back and cut my way down looking for another trail. I found what I was looking for but as I brought the horses around the slope failed and the hillside and horses slide down the hill in an avalanche into the creek bottom. When I got down there the horses were stacked on eachother in a stack of downfall. I had to unpack the horses, pull the packs and saw them out. The gulch was about 6 ft wide with about 6" of water in the bottom. At midnight I got them stoodup, resaddled and started my way out. I stashed the meat Till morning and started out. At the first trail, I got halfway up and my mare pulled back and they tumbled into the bottom again. My gelding was head down in a spot too narrow to pull him around. I used the mare to pull him up.
I pushed to the north side and found a trail to the railroad grade. When I got to the bottom I discovered three layers of barbwire fences. I had to go back up the gulch to get around them. I found a trail over the ridge and where the grade was out onto the old railroad grade. Then I found that when they logged they took out the gate and fenced it solid. At three in the morning I had enough, pulled out my pistol and shot off the wires.
It was two miles to my truck so worked my way back. I got to the house took care of my horses and went into the house. The easiest dinner was a surplus military mre. I crawled into bed and within an hour each of the muscle groups started going into spasm. This continued almost to daylite with continuous pain. I finally got about four hours of sleep, grabbed a couple fresh horses and followed my tracks in the snow back to my meat.
Without anymore surprises I made it home with my meat in about three hours. It took two days of rest to heal up enough to quit hurting so I could start hunting deer. You need a really crappy experience to measure just how tough you are.
