first week success
Hey there Ridge Patrol family! I hope you all are finding success this season, and our clothing is keeping up with you!
I wanted to share with you a hunting story from the first five days of season and hopefully you can take away something to help you on future big game hunts!
My client arrived into camp the day before season. We packed up our toyotas and headed for the remote cabin to get settled in and spend the evening glassing. Personally, I think glassing is the best way to scout, if the terrain allows it. Not only do you learn where the animals are but glassing also teaches you the lay of the land, allowing you to make a “rough draft” of how to proceed on the hunt.
Instantly we glassed up several elk on the far side of the valley, and soon heard a bugle down below us. Two small bulls appear from the thick aspens, holding their heads high, trying to make themselves appear to be the biggest and most desiring bull on the mountain. August brought a wet and fairly cool month allowing the antlers on these elk to grow to a healthy standard.
Finding elk and then hunting them the first few days of season gives us an advantage for these elk are comfortable in their area, non pressured all meanwhile starting to feel the early stages of the rut.
My client and I decided to focus on the elk we had seen just below us for opening day. We used a dirt road to pass by this herd and come in from the west, the wind in our face and using the quiet road to get in close. We were right on time as we come upon the first meadow and I let out a bugle. A healthy cow steps out at just 50 yards and is staring us down. For nearly 20 minuets this cow barks at us, but doesn’t run off as she is trying to figure out what we are. We stay still as the morning thermos are moving downhill and watch as this cow try to find our scent. Unable to smell us she wonders off and a bugle sounds in the distance. It’s go time. We progress towards to bugle, spooking a few elk on the way, and as soon as the morning sun hits our faces, all is quiet again. The day is long as we decide to sit a watering hole these elk have been using. We hide among the tall ferns using our jackets to help bring us shade mid-day. The only animal to occupy the waterhole was a bear around 11:30 and we make a plan to hunt the other side the next day.
The 4:30 alarm makes me jump out of bed, eager to get into the elk woods. We lace up the boots and head out. Just before light I let out a bugle from a high ridge line hoping to get a response which would bring us direction for the morning hunt. Sure enough a small bull responds and we drop down the hill so our scent is downwind of him. Reaching the bottom I let out another bugle to re-locate him and another, bigger bull responds. We slowly work through an aspen grove as our eyes are peeled on the meadow in front of us, cautious we don’t want to spook these elk, but call them into our laps. Seeing the meadow is clear we slowly work up a small ridge line of scattered oak and realize this bull is right on top of us. My client and stand by guide jump ahead and get set up while I hang back, roughly 60 yards, bugling, cow calling, and raking tress. I am doing what I can to sound like a heard of elk making their way into this bulls territory. I walk back and forth, up and down, all meanwhile cow calling to make it sound realistic. The bull screams his face at us, coming into 40 yards of my client, and suddenly sounds of hood running bring me out of my calling sequence. Turns out my client shot right over the bulls back. The hunt is back on.
As we looked for his arrow and to verify that there wasn’t any blood, another bugles comes from the valley below. We head for it and get in close, but the bull didn’t want to commit and soon all is quiet again.
The next three days are filled with chasing bugles and many close opportunities, and finally on day 5 we were able to connect.
We knew there was a decent bull in this particular area because we hunted him the day before and watched where he ran to and then heard him bugle at us right before dark. Often times, if not all the time, your failures in the woods can lead to success in the following days by applying what the elk gods have taught you. This morning we worked our way on a old reclaimed road and got to a well used wallow for daylight. Instantly we hear a bugle up high and started moving in closer. You most definitely want to bring a level of awareness as your working a bull for sometimes they come in silent, sometimes they will only meet you halfway and sometimes they come in so fast you don’t have time to set up. Well, this bull was going to make us work for it. Each time we would call he would respond but only close a little distance causing us to have to move in closer each time. While working this bull I look up and see him standing at 100 yards looking down the mountain for this herd of elk that supposedly is moving up towards him. Not seeing the herd he shuts up and walks off towards his bedding grounds. We let the bull chill out and head in the opposite direction to try and locate more elk. Not finding success in that we sidehill back to where I believe this bull is bedded. The time now is roughly 9 and the sun us quickly warming the hillside, causing our scent to travel up. In this case you want to be above the elk so they don’t smell you. Reaching a big basin filled with aspen benches and watering holes I bugle down into it to hopefully relocate this bull. Not one, but four bulls call back, one of them coming from directly below us. Double checking the wind we decide to slowly drop down on this bedded bull. The hillside was thick with willows, sticker bushes and scrub oak and when the wind would blow we would make slow progress down, and when the wind would stop, so would we. Each time I would cow call or bugle this bull below us would respond. Sneaking in on a bedded bull is definitely one of my favorite ways to get in close. What felt like an eterinity, we finally reached the bottom on the steep slide and drop down into what I call the “beach.” Cottonwoods and aspen trees create a cool shady place to nap as the ground is covered in sand. The sandstone rock/slide from above has eroded and left a sandy bottom for these elk to take a cool afternoon nap in. We now are on the same level as this bull and I let out a few soft lost cow calls. He bugles back, and instantly starts raking a tree. And so, I copy him and start to rake the willows just off to my side and let out a chuckle to challenge him. Looking over I see my client pulling back his bow, taking aim, and then the shot. The bull runs off 40 yards and stops as I use cow calls and a bugle to slow him down. The sounds of lethal shot take place as this bull grunts and we then hear him crash.
The real work was about to begin and luckily a couple of the guides came out to help pack this beast out. A few take aways from this hunt below.
Just because you can’t get the bull to commit and come into range, doesn’t mean the hunt is over. Give that bull a break from the action and try and pursue him again.
Get into their bedding area and they will come in close.
Use the wind to help mask your noise as your closing the distance.
Get up high to where you can listen and locate a bull
Killing them is the easy part, the real work comes when it’s time to get the meat off the mountain.
As always thank you all for following along! Don’t forget to tag us in your hunting adventures!
