I got a bull elk!

Mr. Hill · October 21, 2016, 11:23 PM

I went to an elk camp in the White River National Forest this week. Opening day was Saturday. I sat all day at one end of a meadow that separated two large tracts of dark timber. The wind was blowing hard and I didn't see anything in the morning or over lunchtime. An hour after lunch, I changed position to the other side of the meadow. I was hoping an elk would walk out of one tract of timber and cross that meadow to the other large tract of timber. At about 5:00 pm, a nice bull elk appeared - out of one side of the timber, trotting along and looking around. I was sitting in a grove of aspen trees and he was about 100 yards away.

I instantly raised my rifle and acquired him in the scope. I could see 4 points on one side, but I couldn't see the other side of his rack, but he had really long tines. At that point, he was trotting hard across the meadow. I carefully tracked him through the scope, put the crosshairs behind the shoulder, and squeezed the trigger.

The instant that round went off, the elk stopped for just an instant, and then started running directly toward me. I racked the bolt and got him back in the crosshairs. He then broke left and started running back to the tract of timber he'd emerged from. That gave me a broadside shot. He was running full tilt and only 30 yards away from that big, dark nightmare of black timber and thick brush. I kept the crosshairs behind his shoulder the best that I could and squeezed the trigger again. The elk instantly piled up hard on the ground and he was down.

He was a beautiful, 5x4 bull elk with a nice, wide body, full of muscle. We skinned and quartered him in the field, and it took 2 long hikes in the dark with gusting wind up a trail covered in rocks and fallen timber to get him back to camp. The front quarters were so big that we had to drag them out on a tarp. It took hours to lug that meat and the head back to camp, and we didn't get back to camp until almost midnight.

The first shot went between the ribs on each side and shredded both lungs. The second shot entered high on the side above the shoulder and severed the spine. The first shot would have killed the elk eventually, but I didn't want to have to find him and drag him out of that thick timber, and the spine shot stopped him in his tracks, DRT.

A friend also got a big, fat cow; it was interesting how much fat there was on the cow compared to my bull, who was almost all lean muscle. At 11:00 pm, I got to help gut her while it was snowing. The next morning, we used an ATV to drag her out, around logs, rocks, and trees, and out of the timber.

It was the best hunting experience I've ever had, and also the most exhausting. The guys at the camp were great and really helped out. I got to learn how to skin, quarter, and debone/butcher an elk. I have a freezer full of meat and memories that'll last a lifetime! Elk are really tough; ya gotta respect an animal tough enough to run hard with shredded lungs. They are magnificent animals.

TXAZ · October 21, 2016, 11:34 PM

PICTURES! (please)

Sure Shot Mc Gee · October 22, 2016, 05:17 AM

Quote:

I got to learn how to skin, quarter, and debone/butcher an elk.

Yes you should.
You'll have much nicer cuts of meat with far less trim i.e. (ground & stew meat) When cutting your own.

BTW: Congratulations._ Well done!! Mr. Hill._

2damnold4this · October 22, 2016, 06:27 AM

Congrats!

CarJunkieLS1 · October 22, 2016, 09:43 AM

Pictures please! also sounds like a great experience. Congrats to you on your successful hunt.

Wyosmith · October 22, 2016, 10:50 AM

Congratulations My Hill.

You did well. Also I have learned (the hard way) that if they keep going, it's not a bad idea to hit them again. This is especially true if your load doesn't always exit the animal. You did well.

I never carry a camera in the field. I probably should, but I just never do. I do sometimes take pictures when I get home, but most times I don't even do that. This year I took some pics of the rack of the bull I killed, but it's pretty rare for me to do it.
So if you have no pictures, I for one will understand.

Here is the one I got 2 weeks ago.

Mr. Hill · October 22, 2016, 12:02 PM

Trying to upload photos from my iPhone, they won't upload after being resized. I'll keep trying.

Elk hunting and deer hunting are totally different animals, elk hunting is the toughest hunting I've ever done in my life!

Thanks to everyone for the kind comments, TFL really helped me get ready for the hunt! Thank you!

Mr. Hill · October 22, 2016, 12:11 PM

IMG_0656.JPG

Here's a pic of the elk, it is safe to look at (no malware or bad stuff, resized from my iPhone).

Mr. Hill · October 22, 2016, 12:13 PM

IMG_0443.JPG

Here's a pic of the elk, it is safe to look at (no malware or bad stuff, resized from my iPhone).

22-rimfire · October 22, 2016, 03:35 PM

Big congratulations!

ammo.crafter · October 22, 2016, 03:41 PM

A great hunting adventure.

Let us know what caliber you took the elk with.

Mr. Hill · October 22, 2016, 04:04 PM

My hunting rifle is a plain-Jane Remington 700 Classic, caliber .308 Winchester; the only modification was to have a gunsmith lighten the trigger. It's the only hunting rifle that I own. It shoots better than my skills allow.

The only advantage to only being able to afford one hunting rifle is that you get darn familiar with it, and how it shoots, over the years.

I used Federal Premium Sierra Gameking ammo, 165 grain btsp, which performed well on the elk. It shoots sub-moa through that rifle, and was the ammo that I had to use. Distance for the first shot at the trotting elk was about 100 yards, and about 60 yards when he was running hard and trying to get back to that dark timber. The first shot completely shredded the lungs and penetrated through both sides between the ribs; the second shot was high and completely blew out a 3" chunk of the spine. The second shot had to be a quick one and I did the best I could with it running and everything. I guess it worked out fine!

lefteye · October 22, 2016, 04:19 PM

Congratulations! Never saw an elk on my first hunt; took a small 5 x 5 on my second; and a big 5 x 5 on my third. That last hunt was on the west side of Continental Divide - a truly awesome trip - with a black bear as a bonus.

Mr. Hill · October 22, 2016, 04:40 PM

We weren't too far from Rifle, although White Castle was closer.

jersurf101 · October 23, 2016, 08:57 AM

Great elk and sounds like an awesome hunt. My father grew up in Rifle and it is beautiful country. Congratulations!

huntinaz · October 23, 2016, 01:19 PM

Cool, congrats!

kraigwy · October 23, 2016, 01:44 PM

I wasn't gonna go this year since I didn't get drawn for my pet area. Then my kid called me telling me the area he was in was over run by elk.

I had a general tag so decided to go see what he was talking about.

Didn't take long. A half day yielded this little 6X6. Not real heavy horns but I didn't put much effort into the hunt.

Wyosmith · October 23, 2016, 02:10 PM

Heck...nothing wrong with that bull, especially if you didn't have to bust a gut getting him out.

Mr. Hill · October 23, 2016, 08:49 PM

Thank you all very much, the pics are great! I feel very lucky, and I think I managed to do the best shooting of my life on that bull. I didn't have any time to contemplate the shots, I just had to react and take 'em the best that I could.

doofus47 · October 24, 2016, 12:00 PM

Mr. Hill

Quote:

A friend also got a big, fat cow; it was interesting how much fat there was on the cow compared to my bull, who was almost all lean muscle.

During the pre-rut/rut in August and Sept, the bulls spend more time chasing than eating. After the rut, they spend a lot of time eating and sleeping to try to make up the deficit. It's never easy and a hard winter can really make them pay. The winter mortality rate for elk is highest among calves and the next highest mortality rate is among bulls.

AllenJ · October 24, 2016, 04:09 PM

Congrats Mr. Hill, great job! Sounds like you're hooked for life now

Mr. Hill · October 24, 2016, 06:24 PM

I'm certainly hooked on elk hunting, and the wife & boys are tearing through the elk meat already!

huntinaz · October 24, 2016, 07:36 PM

Quote:

During the pre-rut/rut in August and Sept, the bulls spend more time chasing than eating. After the rut, they spend a lot of time eating and sleeping to try to make up the deficit. It's never easy and a hard winter can really make them pay. The winter mortality rate for elk is highest among calves and the next highest mortality rate is among bulls.

In AZ the elk rarely have fat going into winter be it a cow or a young bull. We grow them lean here (AZ lacks water

) but the bull my wife shot 2 weeks ago was incredibly lean and I couldn't believe how small his body was. He was not a huge bull but certainly mature and his body should have been bigger. I think he'd been rutting more than he'd been eating

Mr. Hill · October 24, 2016, 07:44 PM

Getting ready for the grill tomorrow!

the blur · October 29, 2016, 03:03 AM

I got a cow opening day. Very windy, so we thought the Elk wouldn't move. But she came into a call just before dark. Very adverse conditions with the wind.

October 21, 2016, 11:23 PM	#1
Mr. Hill Senior Member Join Date: November 21, 2015 Posts: 384	I got a bull elk! I went to an elk camp in the White River National Forest this week. Opening day was Saturday. I sat all day at one end of a meadow that separated two large tracts of dark timber. The wind was blowing hard and I didn't see anything in the morning or over lunchtime. An hour after lunch, I changed position to the other side of the meadow. I was hoping an elk would walk out of one tract of timber and cross that meadow to the other large tract of timber. At about 5:00 pm, a nice bull elk appeared - out of one side of the timber, trotting along and looking around. I was sitting in a grove of aspen trees and he was about 100 yards away. I instantly raised my rifle and acquired him in the scope. I could see 4 points on one side, but I couldn't see the other side of his rack, but he had really long tines. At that point, he was trotting hard across the meadow. I carefully tracked him through the scope, put the crosshairs behind the shoulder, and squeezed the trigger. The instant that round went off, the elk stopped for just an instant, and then started running directly toward me. I racked the bolt and got him back in the crosshairs. He then broke left and started running back to the tract of timber he'd emerged from. That gave me a broadside shot. He was running full tilt and only 30 yards away from that big, dark nightmare of black timber and thick brush. I kept the crosshairs behind his shoulder the best that I could and squeezed the trigger again. The elk instantly piled up hard on the ground and he was down. He was a beautiful, 5x4 bull elk with a nice, wide body, full of muscle. We skinned and quartered him in the field, and it took 2 long hikes in the dark with gusting wind up a trail covered in rocks and fallen timber to get him back to camp. The front quarters were so big that we had to drag them out on a tarp. It took hours to lug that meat and the head back to camp, and we didn't get back to camp until almost midnight. The first shot went between the ribs on each side and shredded both lungs. The second shot entered high on the side above the shoulder and severed the spine. The first shot would have killed the elk eventually, but I didn't want to have to find him and drag him out of that thick timber, and the spine shot stopped him in his tracks, DRT. A friend also got a big, fat cow; it was interesting how much fat there was on the cow compared to my bull, who was almost all lean muscle. At 11:00 pm, I got to help gut her while it was snowing. The next morning, we used an ATV to drag her out, around logs, rocks, and trees, and out of the timber. It was the best hunting experience I've ever had, and also the most exhausting. The guys at the camp were great and really helped out. I got to learn how to skin, quarter, and debone/butcher an elk. I have a freezer full of meat and memories that'll last a lifetime! Elk are really tough; ya gotta respect an animal tough enough to run hard with shredded lungs. They are magnificent animals.

October 21, 2016, 11:34 PM	#2
TXAZ Senior Member Join Date: September 5, 2010 Location: McMurdo Sound Texas Posts: 4,322	PICTURES! (please) __________________ Cave illos in guns et backhoes

October 22, 2016, 12:02 PM	#7
Mr. Hill Senior Member Join Date: November 21, 2015 Posts: 384	Working on uploading photos Trying to upload photos from my iPhone, they won't upload after being resized. I'll keep trying. Elk hunting and deer hunting are totally different animals, elk hunting is the toughest hunting I've ever done in my life! Thanks to everyone for the kind comments, TFL really helped me get ready for the hunt! Thank you!

October 22, 2016, 03:41 PM	#11
ammo.crafter Senior Member Join Date: June 25, 2006 Location: The Keystone State Posts: 1,970	WOW A great hunting adventure. Let us know what caliber you took the elk with. __________________ "Peace is that brief glorious moment in history when everybody stands around reloading". --Thomas Jefferson

October 22, 2016, 04:19 PM	#13
lefteye Senior Member Join Date: January 30, 2006 Posts: 1,433	Congratulations! Never saw an elk on my first hunt; took a small 5 x 5 on my second; and a big 5 x 5 on my third. That last hunt was on the west side of Continental Divide - a truly awesome trip - with a black bear as a bonus. __________________ Vietnam Veteran ('69-'70) NRA Life Member RMEF Life Member

October 22, 2016, 06:27 AM	#4
2damnold4this Senior Member Join Date: August 12, 2009 Location: Athens, Georgia Posts: 2,526	Congrats!

October 22, 2016, 09:43 AM	#5
CarJunkieLS1 Senior Member Join Date: October 1, 2013 Posts: 686	Pictures please! also sounds like a great experience. Congrats to you on your successful hunt.

October 22, 2016, 10:50 AM	#6
Wyosmith Senior Member Join Date: December 29, 2010 Location: Shoshoni Wyoming Posts: 2,713	Congratulations My Hill. You did well. Also I have learned (the hard way) that if they keep going, it's not a bad idea to hit them again. This is especially true if your load doesn't always exit the animal. You did well. I never carry a camera in the field. I probably should, but I just never do. I do sometimes take pictures when I get home, but most times I don't even do that. This year I took some pics of the rack of the bull I killed, but it's pretty rare for me to do it. So if you have no pictures, I for one will understand. Here is the one I got 2 weeks ago.

October 22, 2016, 12:11 PM	#8
Mr. Hill Senior Member Join Date: November 21, 2015 Posts: 384	IMG_0656.JPG Here's a pic of the elk, it is safe to look at (no malware or bad stuff, resized from my iPhone).

October 22, 2016, 12:13 PM	#9
Mr. Hill Senior Member Join Date: November 21, 2015 Posts: 384	IMG_0443.JPG Here's a pic of the elk, it is safe to look at (no malware or bad stuff, resized from my iPhone).

October 22, 2016, 03:35 PM	#10
22-rimfire Senior Member Join Date: February 19, 2005 Location: Tennessee Posts: 5,323	Big congratulations!

October 22, 2016, 04:04 PM	#12
Mr. Hill Senior Member Join Date: November 21, 2015 Posts: 384	My hunting rifle is a plain-Jane Remington 700 Classic, caliber .308 Winchester; the only modification was to have a gunsmith lighten the trigger. It's the only hunting rifle that I own. It shoots better than my skills allow. The only advantage to only being able to afford one hunting rifle is that you get darn familiar with it, and how it shoots, over the years. I used Federal Premium Sierra Gameking ammo, 165 grain btsp, which performed well on the elk. It shoots sub-moa through that rifle, and was the ammo that I had to use. Distance for the first shot at the trotting elk was about 100 yards, and about 60 yards when he was running hard and trying to get back to that dark timber. The first shot completely shredded the lungs and penetrated through both sides between the ribs; the second shot was high and completely blew out a 3" chunk of the spine. The second shot had to be a quick one and I did the best I could with it running and everything. I guess it worked out fine!

October 22, 2016, 04:40 PM	#14
Mr. Hill Senior Member Join Date: November 21, 2015 Posts: 384	We weren't too far from Rifle, although White Castle was closer.

October 23, 2016, 08:57 AM	#15
jersurf101 Senior Member Join Date: January 27, 2013 Location: Eastern NC Posts: 553	Great elk and sounds like an awesome hunt. My father grew up in Rifle and it is beautiful country. Congratulations!

October 23, 2016, 01:19 PM	#16
huntinaz Senior Member Join Date: September 21, 2010 Location: az Posts: 1,332	Cool, congrats! __________________ "When there’s lead in the air, there’s hope in the heart”- Hunter’s Proverb "Feed me, or feed me to something. I just want to be part of the food chain." -Al Bundy

October 23, 2016, 01:44 PM	#17
kraigwy Senior Member Join Date: June 16, 2008 Location: Wyoming Posts: 11,061	I wasn't gonna go this year since I didn't get drawn for my pet area. Then my kid called me telling me the area he was in was over run by elk. I had a general tag so decided to go see what he was talking about. Didn't take long. A half day yielded this little 6X6. Not real heavy horns but I didn't put much effort into the hunt. __________________ Kraig Stuart CPT USAR Ret USAMU Sniper School Distinguished Rifle Badge 1071

October 23, 2016, 02:10 PM	#18
Wyosmith Senior Member Join Date: December 29, 2010 Location: Shoshoni Wyoming Posts: 2,713	Heck...nothing wrong with that bull, especially if you didn't have to bust a gut getting him out.

October 23, 2016, 08:49 PM	#19
Mr. Hill Senior Member Join Date: November 21, 2015 Posts: 384	Thank you all very much, the pics are great! I feel very lucky, and I think I managed to do the best shooting of my life on that bull. I didn't have any time to contemplate the shots, I just had to react and take 'em the best that I could.

October 24, 2016, 04:09 PM	#21
AllenJ Senior Member Join Date: December 11, 2009 Location: Northern California Posts: 1,766	Congrats Mr. Hill, great job! Sounds like you're hooked for life now

October 24, 2016, 06:24 PM	#22
Mr. Hill Senior Member Join Date: November 21, 2015 Posts: 384	I'm certainly hooked on elk hunting, and the wife & boys are tearing through the elk meat already!

October 24, 2016, 07:44 PM	#24
Mr. Hill Senior Member Join Date: November 21, 2015 Posts: 384	Marinading tenderloins tonight! Getting ready for the grill tomorrow!

October 29, 2016, 03:03 AM	#25
the blur Senior Member Join Date: October 3, 2010 Posts: 243	I got a cow opening day. Very windy, so we thought the Elk wouldn't move. But she came into a call just before dark. Very adverse conditions with the wind.