I hunted hard Saturday through Monday, packed in 9 miles in a canyon with no trail! Saw plenty of elk, but heard only one bugle. Got within 50 yards several times but no better.

For anyone with ideas about the rut having to do with cold weather, here's some dope for you. This year is the coldest in the past six years here in my part of MT, yet this weekend was by far the deadest opening weekend for rutting action that I've seen in that time.

I had a really interesting encounter with a rutty bull moose. He was raking off the velvet as I sneaked up on him, thinking he might be an elk. His horns were a bloody, reddish-orange hue. I mewed at him and he stepped around a willow and stood glowering at me, trailing slobber down to the ground. The range was 40 feet! I had no moose tag, and was very pleased when he grudgingly retreated.