idelkhntr
New member
The archery season came to a close in Idaho yesterday and I did not fill my tag, nor did my hunting partner. However, it was still a success. I spent the first three weeks of the season hunting and mostly scouting for when my friend was to arrive for the last week. Myself, I passed on two small bulls and four cows early on. I saw more Elk this year than in years past.
The Elk were not responding to the calls like the last few years. When I would bugle back, most would move away or get quiet last week. We did manage to call in a huge bull to about 40 yards. Problem was, he would not jump the fence off of private. We had permission to retrieve game off of the private, but not actually hunt on it. To me that meant not shooting him from public. That particular night we heard over 100 bugles and had nine bulls going at different times. The only one that would come close was the one on private.
My friend had never hunted Elk before, nor done any hiking in the mountains since he was from Kansas. I told him way ahead of time to get in shape. Like most he took it serious at first then backed off on his training when it got closer to coming. The first day when we headed out he asked where we were going. I pointed to the top of the mountain we were on and said up there. He said "I don't think so". Within a few hours we were on top, chasing a 300+ bull. After that encounter he asked me if I was trying to kill him and if it was going to get easier. I told him it would, but if it didn't I had a tree stand set up that was a half mile hike that would be a good place for him to set up. I never did take him to the tree stand.
Well, the week did get easier for him. Mostly because we got into Elk at a lower elevation for most of the week. He did tell me that he planned on coming back next year and would definitely take his training seriously. The biggest problem I think we had for last week was the full moon. The Elk were a lot quieter and less active during the day and evenings. I did manage to call a 5x5 to my friend at 20 yards, but he didn't feel he had a clear shooting lane so he passed on the shot. Better to do that than to have one running around with an arrow in him or dead that is never found.
I learned a lot this season and had a great time hunting with a friend I haven't seen for years. I used to plan my fishing trips based on the moon phase and after this year I will plan accordingly on my hunting trips in the future. I guess the good thing out of this is that I didn't get a chance to find out if a Grizzly would claim my Elk. I live and hunt 20 miles from three encounters in SE Idaho and my prime hunting area is less than a mile from where known Grizzlies hang out.
Anyway looking forward to next September already, but I still have a chance to get a cow with my muzzleloader in November. Good hunting to all and thanks for reading.
The Elk were not responding to the calls like the last few years. When I would bugle back, most would move away or get quiet last week. We did manage to call in a huge bull to about 40 yards. Problem was, he would not jump the fence off of private. We had permission to retrieve game off of the private, but not actually hunt on it. To me that meant not shooting him from public. That particular night we heard over 100 bugles and had nine bulls going at different times. The only one that would come close was the one on private.
My friend had never hunted Elk before, nor done any hiking in the mountains since he was from Kansas. I told him way ahead of time to get in shape. Like most he took it serious at first then backed off on his training when it got closer to coming. The first day when we headed out he asked where we were going. I pointed to the top of the mountain we were on and said up there. He said "I don't think so". Within a few hours we were on top, chasing a 300+ bull. After that encounter he asked me if I was trying to kill him and if it was going to get easier. I told him it would, but if it didn't I had a tree stand set up that was a half mile hike that would be a good place for him to set up. I never did take him to the tree stand.
Well, the week did get easier for him. Mostly because we got into Elk at a lower elevation for most of the week. He did tell me that he planned on coming back next year and would definitely take his training seriously. The biggest problem I think we had for last week was the full moon. The Elk were a lot quieter and less active during the day and evenings. I did manage to call a 5x5 to my friend at 20 yards, but he didn't feel he had a clear shooting lane so he passed on the shot. Better to do that than to have one running around with an arrow in him or dead that is never found.
I learned a lot this season and had a great time hunting with a friend I haven't seen for years. I used to plan my fishing trips based on the moon phase and after this year I will plan accordingly on my hunting trips in the future. I guess the good thing out of this is that I didn't get a chance to find out if a Grizzly would claim my Elk. I live and hunt 20 miles from three encounters in SE Idaho and my prime hunting area is less than a mile from where known Grizzlies hang out.
Anyway looking forward to next September already, but I still have a chance to get a cow with my muzzleloader in November. Good hunting to all and thanks for reading.
