megalomaniac
Well-Known Member
Just got back from Colorado's bow opener for elk. Had a blast, worked a herd of 17 animals including what was probably a 350"er herd bull along with a couple of smaller 6x6's and 5x5's. Yet once again, the big bulls all had little angels on their shoulders... everything from other hunters not paying attention to their scent/ thermals to wrong shot angles to just bad luck. But I did get a gift when a cow came running by me at 52 yards. I stood up, nocked an arrow and waited to see if there was anything else behind her. A few seconds later, a second cow came by running on the same trail. I had already estimated the range at 50, but I would shoot for 45 since it was straight downhill. I 'eeowed' as I drew and she stopped quartering away. Perfect release, a touch of wind drift at that distance, but still with a near side entrance just behind the last rib and exit out just behind the opposite shoulder. She ran around 100 yards downhill and I heard her crash in the timber. Got on the bloodtrail, and it was huge, so I made the mistake of pushing her. It had only been 10 minutes or so after the shot and she had bedded down where she fell initially, only to get up and go another 100 yards straight down the mountain. I left her alone for another 30 minutes and came back to find her dead.
Parker ultralight 31", 69lbs draw, 29" ACC 3-49, 100 gr rocket steelhead expandable... Complete passthru at 52 linear yards.
Then I found out all about the phrase, 'the only thing worse than packing an elk out is not packing an elk out'... We only had to take her 1/3 mile, but it was straight up the mountain...600 ft elevation change according to my GPS... and at 12,000 feet- there is NO AIR with 80 lbs of meat on your back!
I would estimate she would go around 500 lbs on the hoof- bigger than the cow I took last year. But the most special thing about the hunt is this was a total do-it-yourself hunt with no guide on public land with a bow... success odds on any elk runs around 8-12% in this particular unit, so two in a row is really cool.
I also fished many afternoons in the streams around where we camped. I caught and released a 24" brown without getting a picture, but did keep several in the 12-20" range for suppers.
The elk hunting ground in the background at the top of the mountain:
Parker ultralight 31", 69lbs draw, 29" ACC 3-49, 100 gr rocket steelhead expandable... Complete passthru at 52 linear yards.
Then I found out all about the phrase, 'the only thing worse than packing an elk out is not packing an elk out'... We only had to take her 1/3 mile, but it was straight up the mountain...600 ft elevation change according to my GPS... and at 12,000 feet- there is NO AIR with 80 lbs of meat on your back!
I would estimate she would go around 500 lbs on the hoof- bigger than the cow I took last year. But the most special thing about the hunt is this was a total do-it-yourself hunt with no guide on public land with a bow... success odds on any elk runs around 8-12% in this particular unit, so two in a row is really cool.
I also fished many afternoons in the streams around where we camped. I caught and released a 24" brown without getting a picture, but did keep several in the 12-20" range for suppers.
The elk hunting ground in the background at the top of the mountain:
Congrats!!!
