Bad elk hunting experiance
 

went out the other day and one of my friends dad got a shot @ a nice 6 point bull elk. it was approx 200 - 250 yards away broadside standing still so the hunter took aim fired and the bull dropped in his tracks. so we thought perfect than all of a sudden the bull like starts crawling and than manages to get up than he shoots at it 1 more time. later we went to look for the elk thinking its not far but boy we were in for a suprise. from were it was shot to the next 300 yards was a blood trail that u couldnt miss it was a very large one than all of a sudden he stops blowing the blood out and the only blood we can see is were it is being wiped off on the branches. we followed that elk blood trail for a solid kilometer according to the gps and still couldnt find him. no doubt he is probly gona die its just sad cause its was such a nice animal and now we cant find it.also were do u guys think the first shot hit maybe gut or something cause if u shoot a elk in the chest with a 300 winchester it dosent run a kilometer and more it just really puzzling cause he dropped in his track but its all over with now it just makes a guy think what went wrong.

RE: Bad elk hunting experiance
 

From my experience that could be a gut shot. A disappearing blood trail often times means a gut shot because stomach contentsor intestinal matter will alot of time end up partially or totally plugging up the entrance wound. Clues on the ground at the place the elk was hit may have been able to tellyou if it was a gut shot or not. There may have been stomach contents etc on the ground, the color of the blood etc etc.

Really he could have been hit anywhere....blood trails are ephemeral and fickle things and aren't always a good indicator of where the hit was. Also, even a solid shot with a .300 doesn't gaurantee the animal won't run.

Did you spiral out from the end of the blood trail to search for clues? I know I don't know the specifics but it sounds like you could have done more in terms of tracking him down. I'm not trying to jump your case but I mean he could have changed direction suddenly or you could've missed the trail going in a different direction etc. Assuming he stopped bleeding may have been a mistake but I don't know for sure I'm just throwing things out.

It's a shame though. I would get a dog or something and go back to make sure you didn't miss him somewhere and widen your search.

RE: Bad elk hunting experiance
 

My guess is a neck shot ,It will knock them down most of the time and half the time they recover and get up and leave a good blood trail .I wouldn't give up looking for a week if it was me.I fill for your buddy ,good luck.

RE: Bad elk hunting experiance
 

I'm assuming the crows/ravens will be on it now! go to the last known whereabouts and listen for them making a ruckus! Probably lead you right to him.

RE: Bad elk hunting experiance
 

It sounds like a shot that impacted very close to the spine and stunned the animal temporarily.That is why I hate neck and spine shots.I was in a similar situation in the past when a friend shot an elk that behaved the same way.We follwed the tracks for a bit,then abandoned the chase.Wecame back several hours later and found the elk nearly two kilometers from where it was shot.It was a long recovery,but we make every effort possible to recover any animal that has been hit.We would have come back the next morning if necessary.

RE: Bad elk hunting experiance
 

I know one time my dad shot this Bull moose in just one lung (hit a rib and bounced into the lung then down into the guts)and we seen him drop about 100yds from where he shot him. So we gave him 15 mins as we walked over to him he got back up and took of into this thick brush. He was leaving lots of blood behind then suddenly the blood stopped and we looked for hours then finally crows started circling an area about a mile from where we were so we investigated and sure enough there he was. Its amazing what animals can do when they get that adrenaline pumping.

RE: Bad elk hunting experiance
 

The phenominon with elk is their skin!
It somehow can close up the hole and stop external bleeding. I've shot wapiti's in the pump house, lost the blood trail, and then find them later over a mile away!

Find it . . . follow the coyotes. They'll be on it as well as the crows/ravens.

RE: Bad elk hunting experiance
 

My thoughts exactly. Those critters are tough as nails.

RE: Bad elk hunting experiance
 

ya well we did come back the next day also with my dog like i said we followed it for a kilometer or so than there was just tracks and it ended up just walking down a creek for a long ways so im not sure what else we could of done in terms of looking for it.

RE: Bad elk hunting experiance
 

Not sure what else you could do. You were there and know the specifics of the situation. Sometimes when hunting, you just don't find them. Coyote bait.
I can tell you that wounded critters will go to a creek or some kind of water to heal.