Colockum Report: 10/16-18
10-22-2004, 03:08 AM
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Join Date: Oct 2004
Posts: 9
Colockum Report: 10/16-18
Went after my doe last weekend up on the Kingsbury Rd. above Wenatchee. We camped there for 3 days and here's an account of doings/sightings, in case anyone's interested.
Friday scouted Lower Tarpiscan Crk near Game Unit Mgrs house and above river. Nothing and no new sign. Headed up Colockum Pass Rd to top where there's a Y (After the steep rough couple of miles) where the left goes to a lookout. Went down that way towards the bottom to the Power Lines, and parked. We were told by a ranch-hand at Scrogie's place that there were 25 head of does in a patch of woods there. yeah right. Well, instead we watched 60-70 head of Elk lazily feeding in the WDFW planted field below. There were a couple of absolutely huge bulls down there.
Saturday (opener) we went back there. Didn't see any deer until mid-morning when I scared a group of 4 does up in the thick woods and they conveniently exited in front of my brother sitting beneath the power line rd. He bagged one. We hunted a while longer but didn't see any more deer. The Elk were back in force and some other guy glassing them in the field below told us he'd counted over 100 head. Another claimed it was more like 200. Anyway we headed back down the Ford Test Track that is the Colockum Rd. We didn't get more than a few hundred yds down it and here's some muzzleloader with a permit shooting Elk as they were passing in the woods off the rd. Said He'd hit one and was reloading before investigating. A few hundred more yds and here's this lady with her own special permit and a Muzzleloader with her husband looking on. She's watching as a big herd of elk come chargin up over the rd and across and up the far hill, trying to decide which one to shoot. The husbands yelling encouragement to her. The elk are passing about 40 yds from her.. literally a hundred of them!! Her permit is any elk. She tries and tries to decide which one to shoot and before she knows it, they're all gone. I swear there were over 100 that passed her. So the husband.. he's kinda frustrated and tries to explain to the wife what she should have done, when all the sudden here comes another herd chargin up through the woods and across the rd in the same place. Repeat last paragraph. She doesn't even shoot.
Husband is beside himself. It was a few less Elk this time, maybe 60-70 of them. We drive on by, laughing hysterically! Got down to the Kingsbury and drove up towards camp. Got up to the tabletop where the woods thicken up and me and my friend hiked up and separated ... 20 mins later bang bang bang and he's bagged a doe. (He's kind of a shaky shot I think) After loadin it up we head for camp and here's 2 does on the side of the rd. Of course I have my Win .270 Model 70 XTR fully stowed in its case, ammo put away like it should be. Now what? Try and exit truck and load gun and sneak up after them.
I get up in the woods where they had gone, and there they are, trotting out of sight. Time enough to draw and follow for a sec then bang. Miss. Ahh let em go, will get one tomorrow. Checked for blood, nothing but a few mins later they reappeared down at the rd a litle farther running the opposite way.
Sunday came and it rained like a monsoon. Don't think the deer do much when it rains except bed down. Anyway hours later after nothing but rain and thick fog its back to camp empty handed and wet. Afternoon comes and I head up into the woods again and hike the mile or two up to the power lines midwayup Jumpoff ridge. Climbing up the rd, the mud sticks to your boots and builds with every step! got to one spot wher ther was so much mud clingin to my boots I couldnt walk anymore, time to wipe it all off somehow. Well, the gyrations I was making scared off the only 3 deer on the mountain just below me in the woods, and too quick to get a shot off. Fricken mud! Get back to camp and my truck tire has a flat. Ever change a tire in the mud and rain? fun stuff! At that point I was done for the day trying to shoot bambi's mom.
Monday comes and off I go up the hill again, about 3 miles up into the woods along an abandoned logging rd. I see 3 elk, 2 Cows and a Calf. No deer.
Well, fast forward to today. It's 1:58am Friday and I'm about to jump in my truck and head over there for another try. Wish me luck!
Friday scouted Lower Tarpiscan Crk near Game Unit Mgrs house and above river. Nothing and no new sign. Headed up Colockum Pass Rd to top where there's a Y (After the steep rough couple of miles) where the left goes to a lookout. Went down that way towards the bottom to the Power Lines, and parked. We were told by a ranch-hand at Scrogie's place that there were 25 head of does in a patch of woods there. yeah right. Well, instead we watched 60-70 head of Elk lazily feeding in the WDFW planted field below. There were a couple of absolutely huge bulls down there.
Saturday (opener) we went back there. Didn't see any deer until mid-morning when I scared a group of 4 does up in the thick woods and they conveniently exited in front of my brother sitting beneath the power line rd. He bagged one. We hunted a while longer but didn't see any more deer. The Elk were back in force and some other guy glassing them in the field below told us he'd counted over 100 head. Another claimed it was more like 200. Anyway we headed back down the Ford Test Track that is the Colockum Rd. We didn't get more than a few hundred yds down it and here's some muzzleloader with a permit shooting Elk as they were passing in the woods off the rd. Said He'd hit one and was reloading before investigating. A few hundred more yds and here's this lady with her own special permit and a Muzzleloader with her husband looking on. She's watching as a big herd of elk come chargin up over the rd and across and up the far hill, trying to decide which one to shoot. The husbands yelling encouragement to her. The elk are passing about 40 yds from her.. literally a hundred of them!! Her permit is any elk. She tries and tries to decide which one to shoot and before she knows it, they're all gone. I swear there were over 100 that passed her. So the husband.. he's kinda frustrated and tries to explain to the wife what she should have done, when all the sudden here comes another herd chargin up through the woods and across the rd in the same place. Repeat last paragraph. She doesn't even shoot.
Husband is beside himself. It was a few less Elk this time, maybe 60-70 of them. We drive on by, laughing hysterically! Got down to the Kingsbury and drove up towards camp. Got up to the tabletop where the woods thicken up and me and my friend hiked up and separated ... 20 mins later bang bang bang and he's bagged a doe. (He's kind of a shaky shot I think) After loadin it up we head for camp and here's 2 does on the side of the rd. Of course I have my Win .270 Model 70 XTR fully stowed in its case, ammo put away like it should be. Now what? Try and exit truck and load gun and sneak up after them.
I get up in the woods where they had gone, and there they are, trotting out of sight. Time enough to draw and follow for a sec then bang. Miss. Ahh let em go, will get one tomorrow. Checked for blood, nothing but a few mins later they reappeared down at the rd a litle farther running the opposite way.
Sunday came and it rained like a monsoon. Don't think the deer do much when it rains except bed down. Anyway hours later after nothing but rain and thick fog its back to camp empty handed and wet. Afternoon comes and I head up into the woods again and hike the mile or two up to the power lines midwayup Jumpoff ridge. Climbing up the rd, the mud sticks to your boots and builds with every step! got to one spot wher ther was so much mud clingin to my boots I couldnt walk anymore, time to wipe it all off somehow. Well, the gyrations I was making scared off the only 3 deer on the mountain just below me in the woods, and too quick to get a shot off. Fricken mud! Get back to camp and my truck tire has a flat. Ever change a tire in the mud and rain? fun stuff! At that point I was done for the day trying to shoot bambi's mom.
Monday comes and off I go up the hill again, about 3 miles up into the woods along an abandoned logging rd. I see 3 elk, 2 Cows and a Calf. No deer.
Well, fast forward to today. It's 1:58am Friday and I'm about to jump in my truck and head over there for another try. Wish me luck!
