I have never had the privilege to hunt Elk. You make it sound asroutine as a day chasing whitetailswhen for me it would bethe hunting event of a life time.You're probably right on with that gut pile weighing more than a whitetail though. The deer we hunt around here are lucky to be 150+lbs on the hoof. My mom shot her first buck this year and it was the biggest deer that our camp has taken in years and it only weighed about 120lbs. So that pic of the cow in the back of your truck makes that animal look absolutely HUGE from my perspective. Enjoy those well earned steaks.