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in reply to: Unit 76 Colorado Elk Hunt #63124
Rick…Congrats on such a fine hunt! Well done. What an awesome slideshow. Great shot. Couldn’t have done it better…I have 4 points for this unit. Your hunt got me fired up!
in reply to: T. Downing scores again #63119Joe. Yes it is. My father Joe, 71 years young, yours truly, and my oldest boy, 10 year old Isaiah…I want to send you a few pics of the hunt. What is your email address? Your fine broadheads came through in a big way. The best broadhead I have ever used. Thank you so much for making the best single bevel ever!
in reply to: T. Downing scores again #61057It was a great hunt and isn’t over yet. Pop tore a quad muscle this evening hunting. We were into 16 elk, a herd bull with 12 cows and a small 4X4 with 2 cows. Couldn’t get any closer than 60 yards. On the way out, Pop slipped on a log and heard a loud pop on his quad. Bummer. Hopefully with ice and Advil, he can hunt tomorrow evening. In the morning I am going to try to make it two for two with good ol Elkheart, aka Petersen…The man does magical things on the last day!
in reply to: "The Good Hunt" links #60597Finally a film about honest bowhunting! Look forward to it. History in the making. Alright Dave, good hunting this afternoon. Shoot straight. Today is the magical day!
in reply to: T. Downing scores again #60591David…Email sent. Thanks bro.
in reply to: T. Downing scores again #59228Thanks guys for your kind words…It was a humbling experience. This past Tuesday, the 18th, found Pop and I headed toward a ridge that has produced two other bulls for me in the past. It takes a while to get there but by the time you do, the wind has switched and you have an updraft that is extremely reliable. On the way there, I spotted three cows being chased by a small bull. I thought about turning back and going over toward them but Pop was hesitant and we decided to let them be and continue on. We hadn’t heard any bugling thus far. Around 8:50am, we arrived at the top of the steep canyon. I began to cow call sporadically and was greeted with silence. Later on, I finally heard the herd bull bugle back to my calls far away across the creek…He was a long way off but it was good to hear him bugle. I looked back at Pop and said, “we need to go over there, that is the only bull talking. He is a long way off but we can stay out all day and get below him and have the wind for the evening hunt.” Pop shrugged his shoulders and on we went.
I was softly mewing on the way down the ridge into the canyon, making it sound as if I was a lonesome cow headed towards the herd. Suddenly, I hear the unmistakeable sounds of hooves and branching breaking. I stopped and Pop joined me right by my side. Antler tips came into view as a bull was walking right up to us! I immediately whispered, “get down and get out an arrow.” The 5X4 walked straight towards us and stopped, looking at us from seven yards away. The bull was dripping from his mouth and stared in our direction. I figured right away that we were busted and there was not going to be any shot opportunities.
As the bull continued to stare, another bull came out of the oak brush and aspen and ran past the 5X4! A small 4X4 went right by us at less than three yards. He had no idea we were there. The smaller bull continued up the ridge behind us and got our wind. He crashed off and his departure made the 5X4 get antsy and he started to leave. As the bull turned away from us, I mewed at him and called him right back. Unfortunately, we were both kneeling and we couldn’t see the bull’s midsection. The bull comes right back to 10 yards and continues to stare. I decided that if he was to turn his head away, I was going to stand up. He cooperated and turned his body around to where he was now completely broadside. I stood up as he turned and was blessed to have the bull stop. From my new standing position, the bull’s head was eclipsed by some oak brush but his vitals were completely clear. I slowly drew back my 65lb longbow. At anchor, I looked right at a spot behind his shoulder and released. The arrow went where it was supposed to. The bull exploded out, I cow called immediately and the bull stopped behind more oak brush. There was a loud crash followed by thrashing and breaking sounds. Then the bull gave us a couple of deep death moans and then everything was quiet again.
I praised God for the quick kill and for the blessing of such a beautiful animal. Gets me emotional every time I take an elk’s life. As Dave said, I shot the bull from 12 yards. I got a double lung shot, the 225 grain Tuffhead literally destroyed both of them. I killed the bull at 9:12am and we had to cut him up and pack him up to the top of the ridge. It was brutal but satisfying as well. We got the first load out to the trailhead around 10pm. We went back the following morning and got the last load which was both front shoulders and the head. 141 lbs of deboned meat! Much needed for my family.
I still have a deer tag in my pocket but I would love to get my father a chance in the next day or so. And maybe get another opportunity to hunt with Dave as well. The last day of the hunt brings magical opportunities so you never know.
in reply to: Backpacks for hauling meat… #33134I use the Mystery Ranch Crew Cab…Over the years I have used pack frames but decided in 09 to have a pack that would be flexible enough to hunt with all the time and then when you take an animal, (in my case usually an elk miles from the nearest road) you can load up the meat immediately and take a load out…Instead of what I have always done, which is shoot a bull, cut it up, put it in gamebags, and then walk out to my truck, grab the packframe and head back on in to go for another load. Figured out that my previous method is a waste of a trip. I have solved that problem with the MR Crew Cab. I love this pack. Comfortable for daily hunting and then its adjustable enough to load up a back ham or loin meat, and take a load out on the first run…T
in reply to: Is camo necessary? #63601I am no whitetail hunter but I have extensive experience bowhunting elk. So…Is camo necessary to kill an elk? No..It is not. I have shot bull elk with virtually no camo on. No facepaint, no camo clothing, no headnet, nada….That said, I still wear camo when I hunt elk and especially the elusive turkey. Wear your camo if you want or don’t, movement is the key, or lack there of. T
in reply to: My wife's new bow needs a name… #53823“Elk Beauty”
in reply to: Looking for a good broad head #12811Another vote for Tuffhead!
in reply to: Noteable Quotes! #62846God was with the boy as he grew up, he lived in the wilderness and became an Archer. Gen 21:20
Another one. “Failing to prepare is preparing to fail.”
John Wooden
If you always put limit on everything you do, physical or anything else. It will spread into your work and into your life. There are no limits. There are only plateaus, and you must not stay there, you must go beyond them.
Bruce Lee
in reply to: arrow weight for elk #60647500 grain douglas fir shafts topped off with 200g Tuffheads. Total weight: 700g.
in reply to: Dave Petersen's new avatar #42304That picture of Dave and C is a great picture! Living it up in sunny California…
in reply to: Who Hunts Alone Most of the Time? #34154I don’t spend most of my time hunting alone since I have family that hunts. That said, I absolutely love hunting alone. It is one of the only times in my life when I am truly being honest with myself and engaging a form of self expression…The mountains themselves seem different and more alive and the art of hunting takes on new meaning and more purpose when I am out there alone.
in reply to: Tent Recommendations #30386Chad said, “I recommend getting quality even if it costs more. When the wind is trying it’s best to rip your tent to shreads a $50 savings might seem insignificant.”
Couldn’t be said any better and definitely sound advice. You get what you paid for when it comes to tents. No doubt.
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