Colorado Elk Surprise

Neilson  Thursday, March 10, 2011

Adventure Review

After 2 successful archery mountain lion hunts, I was falling in love with Colorado, at least in the winter-time. Now I wanted to tackle elk in the mountains of northwest corner of Colorado. I called up my cougar guide and he set me up on an archery elk hunt. My buddy Bruce and I headed up towards Hayden Colorado. Russ picked us up at the airport and dropped us off at a sheep ranch somewhere up in the mountains. At camp we settled into the bunkhouse, shot the bows, ate a late lunch and planned our strategy. This property was around 8,000 feet up and loaded with elk. Surrounded by public land, the hunting pressure helped funnel the elk onto this property.

The evening hunt was more orientation than actual hunting and Bruce and I hit the bunks early. But sleep didn’t come quickly. When the sun went down the field mice and pack rats that lived in the walls of the bunkhouse decided to hold their Olympics. All night long the little beasties ran. When the alarm finally rang, I was worn out. Breakfast not only picked up my spirits, it also meant I’d be elk hunting soon. A thick fog had settled into the area. Russ saw this as good fortune as we would be able to slip into the hunting area with little detection from the elk. We all loaded up into a truck and headed out. Driving about 20 minutes, we entered a large valley. Immediately we heard elk all around us. A large herd was filtering around us. We all split up and tried to get ahead of moving elk. I dropped off the ridge we had parked on and crossed a small creek flowing from the mountains surrounding the valley. I started moving up the opposite side, trying to gain elevation to where I thought I’d be in the right position. As I continued to climb, I could hear cow elk called below me. The fog limited my vision and I used this to slip closer towards the elk. I side-hilled about 100 yards when I saw the first cow and calf elk moving up towards my area and past. I noticed an elk trail and slipped towards the elk slowly and quietly.

Searching down the hill, I spotted a bull elk slowly moving up the hill. If if continued it’s trek up the hill, I might just get a chance. To say this outdoor eXperience was eXciting was an understatement. I’d been officially elk hunting less than 30 minutes and a legal bull was heading in my direction. I had no call and I was just hoping that I could get close to an elk, any elk. Time seemed to slow as the bull slowly fed up the hill.

The bull followed the elk trail leading to me and I was beginning to wonder if I’d get a shot when more calls echoed from the bottom of the valley. More cow calls and chirps were floating all around me. I guessed the distance to the bull at around 25 yards or so. When the bull turned broadside on the trail to move up the hill, I drew. This slight movement caused the bull to freeze momentarily and the arrow was on it’s way. The stricken bull thundered down the hill and away from me. Suddenly elk were running everywhere. A few bulls bounded away and cows and calves were scattering back down the valley only to be swallowed up by the fog.

As quickly as it happened, I found myself suddenly alone on the side of the mountain and shaking like a leaf. The shot felt good and I thought I had detected a smear of red on the side of the bull as he ran off. I waited a few minutes, calmed down and began looking for the elk. I had marked the last spot I had seen the bull and decided I would start there and see what the sign was like. I moved up to the last spot I had seen the bull and surveyed the area. I could see where the elk had churned up the dirt on his escape and a few drops of blood. I scanned ahead and there, just 75 yards away from where I had shot, lay my first archery elk. I was elated and relieved.

The bull was a 4 x 5 raghorn but to me it was the king of the mountain that day. I took some time to look at the elk, drink in the mountains and make mental pictures of the whole scene. After some time, I caught up with the other guys and we replayed the whole scene as Bruce and his guide went back to pick up an ATV and backpacks to haul the meat out. Carrying the head and hide out gave me time to think about my Colorado elk surprise