Montana Trip 2016

[Bonecollector]

Awesome job Mark.

 

[sixbrothersandnosisters]

Thank you

After another year of preparation and training it was once again time to head to Montana to chase elk in the mountains. This is a pack in on your back pack out on your back hunt on public land. And at 55 now it seems to get a little tougher getting ready for the trip every year. I always wonder why I pick such a tough area to hunt and wonder if it might be my last trip to the high country. It takes a certain type of person both mentally and physically to make the journey to hunt these great animals in the rough high country of Montana. "I heard someone say once that hunting elk on public land in the high country will try to kill you every time yet I always go back and try and kill myself again the following year."

I thought I would take a few minutes to share a few photos and thoughts with you from the trip to Montana. We decided to come back a little early due to rain and snow being forecast for 4-5 days in a row. If anyone knows about the weather in western Montana a normal amount of precipitation for Sept is about .18-.20 inches for the month. The 4 days after we left they had 2.5 inches and I am sure it was a mess in the high country. That being said it was still a good trip.
When Danny and I arrived after two days on the road the first thing I noticed was how silent the Bulls were. After packing in to camp at 8500ft I am normally greeted with a few bugles off in the distance. This time it was different as it was just silence. We did make it up to a meadow to listen that first afternoon for the morning hunt but didn't hear any bugles at all. Being a little concerned we opted to take a different route for the morning hunt to a place we could do some glassing. It took a little while but we were finally able to spot quite a few Elk. We watched 7-8 bulls a few with cows and 5 in a bachelor group which is odd for this time of year. None of the bulls were bugling at all. This was a big change from the past few years in these particular drainage's.
After eating lunch and watching the elk for a few hours we had a head count of about 50 animals all together, some within reach and some miles away. This area has been good to me over the years and felt that if we stuck around it would produce a shot opportunity or two. We continued on after lunch slowly making our way to a place where the Elk normally use the highest trails this time of year (About 9500-9800ft). There are some excellent opportunities to setup on some excellent pinch points. Since the bulls were not bugling we felt sitting on a few of these areas and doing a little light blind calling would be a good choice.
Danny and I sat up about 150 yds apart and settled in for the afternoon. I did some light cow calls throughout the afternoon and a short time later a mix of light rain and sleet started to fall. I reset my position under a pine for a little cover and made a few more calls. Shortly after that from well above my position I heard a rumble of hoofs coming my way. I knew by the sound that there were quite a few Elk heading my direction. Sure enough here they came down the mountain to the trails I was watching. Knowing from past experiences with a herd this large there would be a bull pulling up the rear. NO bugles as they made it my way! None at all I said to myself. I drew back my bow anyway as the trail they were coming down was 18 yds up wind away from where I was at. As they filtered trough and down the trail at 18 yds I kept a mental head count waiting for the bull at the end of the line. 20 cows & calves, and a spike came through with no bull in sight. I thought to myself what a opportunity lost!! Should I have taken a shot at a cow? I have killed plenty of bulls and have a few P&Y's so horns are not so much of a issue anymore and it sure would have been nice to have one in the cooler.
After about 30 minutes of the herd coming trough I heard a small noise to my right and watched two large cow Elk slipping trough the timber. Again watching behind them for a bull. Once again no bull in sight. I thought to myself do I let this opportunity pass? From past experiences I did not want to let this opportunity pass as I might not get another chance. There was only one problem they were slipping through the timber off the trail coming straight toward me. 50yds then 30 yds then behind a tree at 20yds and now 15yds away!! I knew when they came around the tree they would be at ten yds away almost nose to nose with me! While the first and biggest cow was behind the tree I drew back the bow. When she came around the tree she was looking dead at me. I knew this would happen so I kept the cow call in my mouth. Sure enough when she saw me at ten yds she bolted back the way she came from and I made a light cow call stopping her at 20yds quartering away. I took the shot and as soon as I released the arrow she turned to walk away and I watched as the arrow disappear way further back than I wanted. I just watched as she crashed trough the timber making note of land marks she passed heading away from me. Those that hunt Elk know how large these animals are and know they can travel a very long way sometimes miles with a misplaced shot. I never saw the fletching as she ran off so I was guessing that the arrow penetrated well and either went through her or went all the way in her. I decided to wait a little while before picking up the trail. It was a long 40 minutes just sitting there questioning the shot. I decided to very quietly start tracking her to see if I could find any blood from the shot. Finding just tracks I followed them for about 75 yds then found what I was hoping to find. I located where she had stopped and there on the ground a large puddle of foaming lung blood. Feeling somewhat relived I sat down for a few minutes. Judging from the size of the puddle I knew she wouldn't go to much further.
As I continued tracking her slowly and I couldn't help but think of past Elk taken from these three drainage's where I hunt and how good they have been to me for the past 20 or so years. Now batting about 50% archery success here whether it be a bull or cow is not to bad for a 3% archery success rate area. After a short 100 yrds more heading down the mountain I finally spotted her laying against a tree. As I approached her I felt as I always do when taking one of these majestic animals whether it is a bull or cow. I am always in awe of their size and beauty and just sit there and stare at them for a short while. Now the real work begins!

A few pics from the trip Enjoy!! I will post some more when I get a chance.

Danny taking a rest after a long morning of hiking at 9000ft.



Sort of a rarity the past five or so years. These are the first Mountain Goats I have seen here in a while. It was great to see them in the area again. They are between 10000 and 10500 ft. Its amazing to watch them on these shear mountain walls and cliffs.





A treat for us after packing out the cow Elk I shot. This year we didn't forget to have a little Elk meat at camp for a dinner. Sure beats freeze dried meals!!
You can see the large thin flat rock on the stump with the meat. That is what we cook on. I put a little ovive oil on it and instant grill.

Great Story, thanks for taking the time to share!!

 

[480/277]

Great write up and pictures! It's all about memories,and every trip adds to the album.
Thanks for sharing!

 

[Ca_Vermonster]

Very nice!!!!!

 

[Old School]

Thanks for taking the time to do a recap of your hunt. Great memories! I've hunted Montana one time and it was memorable - Scapegoat Wilderness 6x6

--Mitch