Got my first elk!!! (With A Bow Too!!!)
12-28-2006, 01:04 AM
#1
Thread Starter
Join Date: Dec 2003
Location:
Posts: 1,063
Got my first elk!!! (With A Bow Too!!!)
Well, I definitly waited til the last minute on getting my elk. Last day of the season. I will tell the story tomorrow when I am not so tired.
And sorry about the picture, the digital camera ones didn't get taken until dark and after the animal had been winched up and gutted, so there is some blood. Not very classy. But I will post my good pictures when i get them developed.
*trying to figure out how to post picture. give me a minute.
And sorry about the picture, the digital camera ones didn't get taken until dark and after the animal had been winched up and gutted, so there is some blood. Not very classy. But I will post my good pictures when i get them developed.
*trying to figure out how to post picture. give me a minute.
12-28-2006, 06:18 PM
#8
Thread Starter
Join Date: Dec 2003
Location:
Posts: 1,063
RE: Got my first elk!!! (With A Bow Too!!!)
Hey thanks for all the replies it was pretty amazing.
As for the Story:
I have been bowhunting the late season for a couple of years now. Every year I head up to the St. Joe with my dad and we meet up with some friends that live around the area and we take off after deer and elk. Deer are not hard to come by and we see between 15-30 on the average day. Elk on the other hand are a little tougher. Its not unusual to see a couple a day, but sneaking up in crunchy snow to within bow range is a whole different ball game. I have been hunting since the season has started and I got around 8 days or so from dawn to dusk hunting up ridge after ridge. Few days before I shot the elk I saw a group feeding and snuck into the herd. The only shots that were presented to me were; one small rag horn about thirty-five yards feeding down hill, and two cow elk standing at about 60,I couldn't close the gap between the cows and I couldn't get that darn bull to present me with an ethical shot the whole time i was down there. They eventually figured something was up and got out of there. The next day I got up, drove out to the st. joe and began hunting the same area. Thanks to the snow I could see a lot of tracks and get somewhat of an idea of where they were going and coming from. I only saw deer that day and no elk, though my friend did spot two a mile away. So the last day of the season rolls around and once again I wake up two hours before dark and begin driving torwards my hunting spot. I meet up with everyone and on the way up the mountain we see 10 deer, 2 moose, and one cow. Darn thing aparently was bedding down near the road and stood up to look at us as we drove by and then took off down the hill. But quite a start to the last day of the season. I spent the whole day hiking around where I thought I would intersect a few, did see four through my binoculars, and a thousand deer, but nothing too exciting. After a quick lunch break all the "old men" were trying to figure out where to go and I dropped them off at a few spots where they wanted to hike and i took off to where I snuck into the elk to first day with only two and 1/2 hours of hunting light left in the last day of the season. I parked my car around the corner of a huge steep clear cut, and got my gear on. I spent the next two hours humping up ridge after ridge and i could tell i only had a half hour or so of hunting left so I might as well hunt the stretch back to the car... The closer to the cari got the more dejected I became. I have worked my tail off all season trying to get an elk, and they always seemed to stay out of my bows capabile range. About 150 yards from my car I was walking up over the last little mini ridge when a huge cow and calf walked over the other side. Talk about a stare down. I didn't even have an arrow knocked! I was cussing myself out for not being prepared and thought for sure that i didn't have a chance. The calf took off trotting about thirty yards downhill from the cow. The cow just stood there and stared at me, prob just as surprised as i was. I slowly took an arrow out of my quiver, saying "I'm a tree, I'm a tree, don't mind me." (no joke), lol, then knocked the arrow and as slowly as possible I drew back, took a deep breath, centered my thirty-five yard pin just up and behind the shoulder and let it fly. Thwack. I could see the white/black fletching sticking out of the side of the elk right where i wanted it. She took off another thirty yards or so down the hill after her calf and stopped facing down hill, prob trying to decide where to go. I had already knocked another arrow so I pulled back and put my fifty yard (target practice) pin over the butt of the elk and let it fly. She went ten yards and went down. lights out. I was shaking so bad I couldn't believe it. I walked the rest of the way to my car as quietly as i could and drove down the mountain to get everyone else. We drove back an hour and 1/2 later in the dark and I went down to where the elk was and attached the rope to its neck and my friends used their chain saw winch to pull it up the moutain. Two broken ropes later and the big lady made it to the top.
By far the craziest and greatest day of my life. We later found out that my first arrow took out a lung and the liver and my second passed through the back of the next. Thanks G5 broadheads! Neither was damaged at all.
I was shooting a reflex excursion, 65#, 125 gr G5's, with Maxima camo carbon arrows. Did the trick that's for sure!
As for the Story:
I have been bowhunting the late season for a couple of years now. Every year I head up to the St. Joe with my dad and we meet up with some friends that live around the area and we take off after deer and elk. Deer are not hard to come by and we see between 15-30 on the average day. Elk on the other hand are a little tougher. Its not unusual to see a couple a day, but sneaking up in crunchy snow to within bow range is a whole different ball game. I have been hunting since the season has started and I got around 8 days or so from dawn to dusk hunting up ridge after ridge. Few days before I shot the elk I saw a group feeding and snuck into the herd. The only shots that were presented to me were; one small rag horn about thirty-five yards feeding down hill, and two cow elk standing at about 60,I couldn't close the gap between the cows and I couldn't get that darn bull to present me with an ethical shot the whole time i was down there. They eventually figured something was up and got out of there. The next day I got up, drove out to the st. joe and began hunting the same area. Thanks to the snow I could see a lot of tracks and get somewhat of an idea of where they were going and coming from. I only saw deer that day and no elk, though my friend did spot two a mile away. So the last day of the season rolls around and once again I wake up two hours before dark and begin driving torwards my hunting spot. I meet up with everyone and on the way up the mountain we see 10 deer, 2 moose, and one cow. Darn thing aparently was bedding down near the road and stood up to look at us as we drove by and then took off down the hill. But quite a start to the last day of the season. I spent the whole day hiking around where I thought I would intersect a few, did see four through my binoculars, and a thousand deer, but nothing too exciting. After a quick lunch break all the "old men" were trying to figure out where to go and I dropped them off at a few spots where they wanted to hike and i took off to where I snuck into the elk to first day with only two and 1/2 hours of hunting light left in the last day of the season. I parked my car around the corner of a huge steep clear cut, and got my gear on. I spent the next two hours humping up ridge after ridge and i could tell i only had a half hour or so of hunting left so I might as well hunt the stretch back to the car... The closer to the cari got the more dejected I became. I have worked my tail off all season trying to get an elk, and they always seemed to stay out of my bows capabile range. About 150 yards from my car I was walking up over the last little mini ridge when a huge cow and calf walked over the other side. Talk about a stare down. I didn't even have an arrow knocked! I was cussing myself out for not being prepared and thought for sure that i didn't have a chance. The calf took off trotting about thirty yards downhill from the cow. The cow just stood there and stared at me, prob just as surprised as i was. I slowly took an arrow out of my quiver, saying "I'm a tree, I'm a tree, don't mind me." (no joke), lol, then knocked the arrow and as slowly as possible I drew back, took a deep breath, centered my thirty-five yard pin just up and behind the shoulder and let it fly. Thwack. I could see the white/black fletching sticking out of the side of the elk right where i wanted it. She took off another thirty yards or so down the hill after her calf and stopped facing down hill, prob trying to decide where to go. I had already knocked another arrow so I pulled back and put my fifty yard (target practice) pin over the butt of the elk and let it fly. She went ten yards and went down. lights out. I was shaking so bad I couldn't believe it. I walked the rest of the way to my car as quietly as i could and drove down the mountain to get everyone else. We drove back an hour and 1/2 later in the dark and I went down to where the elk was and attached the rope to its neck and my friends used their chain saw winch to pull it up the moutain. Two broken ropes later and the big lady made it to the top.
By far the craziest and greatest day of my life. We later found out that my first arrow took out a lung and the liver and my second passed through the back of the next. Thanks G5 broadheads! Neither was damaged at all.
I was shooting a reflex excursion, 65#, 125 gr G5's, with Maxima camo carbon arrows. Did the trick that's for sure!
