Worst Case Scenario

[Huntrgathr]

Background
I hunted a total of 14 days in my unit before it was all over. Although I had tags for both elk and mule deer I had focused mainly on the mule deer rut up to that point. I was after a trophy muley (4th year of that quest). I passed on a cow and a calf opening day but was only seeing a few elk each day after that with no shot opportunities. Earlier in the hunt, I had pursued two bucks that were very similar, both would score close to that 180" mark. Again, no shot opps. I saw the larger of the two bucks on three different occasions fighting off other bucks. He would snort and roar and thrash the tar out of the challengers, sending them packing in short order. This guy was the king of the mountain and I had a serious "buck crush" on him. I shadowed him for two days, from dark to dark. I'd catch him out feeding in the morning with his harem of 5-8 does. Then, they'd retreat to the north timber for their day beds. I would also bed down for the afternoon nearby and wait for them to make a move or, when conditions allowed, I would slip off my boots and creep through the timber hoping to discover their bedding area. I felt like I had a great chance to wait him out and get a shot. On our third encounter he was fighting off a buck and I had time to slip in and grab a seat for the show. It was an all out, knock down, drag out, no holds barred, fight. Several groups of deer seemed to converge on the same spot and most were scrambling to get out of the way of the fight. When the bigger buck finally shoved the smaller buck down onto his knees it seemed to be over. The big guy circled back behind his does and started hooking them to get a move on. They were headed in the direction of my shooting lane and were only 4-5 steps from the opening. I was already telling the story in my head of how I finally took down a trophy buck with my bow. But, At that moment, the buck who lost the fight swooped back in from nowhere and tried to hook a doe that was behind the big buck. The fight was on again and they battled off over the ridge. NOOOO !! My mind screamed...
I shadowed that buck for the rest of the day, never getting closer than 80 yards. That night it snowed and he was gone...

The storm dropped 3-6 inches of snow that partially melted the next morning and then refroze. Spot and stalk hunting was no longer an option. Night time temps were dropping into the single digits and the refrozen snow/mud underfoot was louder than the 4th of July.The ground froze so fast at night that the expanding water would heave the soil up in tiny pillars that would crumble and pop under foot, alerting everything for 1000 yards to my presence. I was relegated to picking a spot and sitting. I don't like sitting. I honestly don't understand how guys can treestand. I'm just not wired for that type of hunting. But I sat that next morning from 7:30 am on. At 10;30 I saw a group of deer climbing up to the saddle I was sitting. I got ready as a nice 3 point pushed up behind the does. I stopped him with a grunt at 35 yds and let the arrow fly. The shot felt perfect but I didn't see where my arrow hit him. The buck did a 180 spin and crashed off the way he had come. I patted myself on the back for a job well done and for persevering under tough conditions. When I got to the "hit site" I saw this -

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But no blood...It took me just a quick glance to see that my arrow was embedded in a small tree just below me - not a drop of blood. As far as I can tell, that buck spun just as I shot and I grazed him as he turned. I laughed, pulled my arrow and went back to my seat. I often wonder if stopping deer with a sound is a bad idea ...

I sat the rest of the day without much action. I hiked down the mountain in the dark and wondered if I'd eat tag soup again this year.

The next day, same thing. Got in my seat at 20 min after shooting light and sat. And I sat. And I sat some more. I wasn't seeing a damn thing and as the hours dragged on I started to feel like my chances of killing anything were all but gone. Finally, at about 2:30 a small 2 point and a doe came in the my area. I watched them for awhile and even considered shooting the buck just to "get it over with". No sooner than that thought entered my mind the deer spooked and scooted out of there. I wondered why - I hadn't spooked them. I weas quiet, hidden, downwind... then I saw why. A herd of about 30 elk was filtering up the draw just below me. The lead cow was already in range, just 45 yds away. I was slightly above them and in a perfect position for a shot. I picked out a raghorn bull ( big bulls are long gone when Nov rolls around in this unit) and waited for him to get to the bush that I had ranged when I first sat down. I knew he would give me a broadside shot at right about 50 yards. I slowly raised my bow and came to full draw. I went through my mental checks - anchor, bow hand, sight picture, pin selection. I put my 50yd pin tight to the crease and released...

[ORelksniper]

aw, c'mon man.

[Swede]

And???

[Indian Summer]

LOL... reminds of some girls I knew in high school: Tease!

[Huntrgathr]

Sorry guys, it's taking longer to tell the story than I originally planned. I didn't realize I was going to have to resize all my pics....Kind of short on time tonight but I'll give you guys a preview. Take a minute and think what you would do if you found your arrow looking like this...

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[dreamhunter]

I would be getting touch with my processor and giving him my order.

[cnelk]

I see some fat between the blades...
Not something I like to see

[Swede]

Unless I am positive that the animal was not seriously injured, I would start looking for it. If the shot looked good I normally just wait a half hour and start the follow up. Other factors may change my waiting time, but until I know what happened, or have lost all hope, I am looking for the animal.

[LckyTylr]

Yup, looks like fat on blade and pretty light colored hair. Could be an iffy shot. I'd walk for 25 yards (cautiously) to see how good the blood looks. Regardless, it's a 45 minute wait at minimum, several hour wait if blood isn't good.

[Huntrgathr]

The shot felt goood. I watched the arrow sail like a dart right to where I was aiming but then drop just a couple inches low. It still looked like a perfect heart shot. The herd knew something was up as they had heard my shot but they didn't know if there was danger or where it was. They started slowly walking up the slope on the other side of the draw to follow the lead cow. As the bull turned to walk up the hill I was horrified to see about 90% of my arrow sticking out. I had either gotten no penetration or it had bounced back out. I wasn't sure, and as I tried to get a better look with my binos the bull crested the hill on the other side of the swale and turned the opposite way, concealing the arrow from sight. My mind raced. What should I do ? As I got my binos up and watched the bull for a few seconds I couldn't see the fountain of blood pouring out that I was hoping for. I quickly ranged the bull - 90 yards - way outside of my "effective range"....but I was torn. I knew I needed to get another arrow in that bull but I'd never even shot beyond 75 yards before. My bottom pin is only good to 65. A cow walked in front of the bull and I lost my opportunity momentarily. The elk were getting antsy and I knew I had just seconds to make a decision. The bull was quartering hard away, narrowing my target to maybe 6 inches wide. At some point I had already knocked another arrow so I raised my bow, waited a couple seconds for the cow to step out of the way, did a quick guesstimation of where to hold and sent an arrow across the swale. Keep in mind that this entire sequence, from the first shot to the second was maybe twenty seconds...

It felt like my arrow was in the air for a LONG time. I had enough time to tell myself what an idiot I was for taking a hail Mary shot and then to console myself by saying "It doesn't matter where you hit him on the second shot". And, By the Grace of God, that arrow stuck right through the hind quarter of the bull. I couldn't believe it. The herd crashed off and my adrenal glands opened wide up. I sat there in the snow shaking uncontrollably from the intensity of the rush with a tornado of thoughts wirling wildly in my head. Had I made the right decisions ? Did I completely blow it ? Did I send that bull to a slow, painful death ? I had no idea...

As the herd quickly disappeared into the trees and started along their escape route I lifted my binos and tried to pick out the bull in the group. There was an opening in the trees where the herd was filing through one by one about 350 yards from my position. I watched each elk that walked through that opening, hoping my bull would not be one of them. I hoped he was dead 200 yards below me. But he wasn't. He was the last elk in that line and as I saw him walk through the opening my heart sank a little. He seemed to walking just fine and I couldn't see any arrows hanging out.

You guys are probably wishing for the "short version" about now but I wanted to write this hunt up to focus on the mental aspects of elk hunting, bad shots, etc. AND to emphasize that the decisions that we make in the field (most without the proper time to weigh options) determine our success or failure as hunters. Bear with me...

Once the elk were gone, I had time to think about things a little more. I checked the time, 2:50 and thought to myself, "Okay, I've got two marginal hits on that bull and he's moving pretty good. This is going to be a LOOONG night. My first instinct was to wait. But how long ? 1/2 an hour minimum but that's with a vital shot. Maybe I should wait 4 hours.....but it would be dark in two....I debated it for ten minutes before I decided to glass over to the spot where the bull stood and look for blood. I followed his tracks from the first hit up the hill and could see no blood. Maybe it had got covered up when the rest of the herd took off...? I glassed further along his path and up to the second hit site. I saw a small spot of blood through the binos. I knew that there was no chance of bumping the bull by going to investigate the hit site so I gathered up my gear - day pack, pack frame, bow, etc. and headed down for a closer look.

When I reached the first hit site I realized that the bull was about 3 yards further than I had thought. No blood. I walked up the hill to the second hit site and saw the puddle I had glassed.

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[Willie makit]

Time for a commercial break? lol.

Well written, I'm staying tuned, don't quit now.

[Huntrgathr]

Working today so I only have my phone so can't upload pics...

I felt good about the blood I was seeing where the bull stopped after the second shot until I found the arrow just 10 yards later. I was confident it was probably the first one because I had seen the bull kicking his front hoof to knock it out. As you can see from the pic that I posted of the broad head , there was fat, muscle tissue, blood and too much hair. I had only gotten about 4 inches of penetration. My heart sank again. I knew at this point that the first shot had been a " worst case scenario " hit - a direct hit to the heaviest bone in the front shoulder. I could only pray that it had somehow deflected and punctured something vital on the other side of the shoulder. I figured that most or all of the blood I was seeing was from the second shot. The blood was pretty obviously muscle blood and of course I'd seen the hit.

" So," I thought to myself, " I can either sit on this blood trail for 4-6 hours or I can go after him and bleed him out." It would be dark in an hour and a half. I decided to push the bull...

[bnsafe]

evidently you have no idea how impatient I am, lol. hope this turns out well.

[Huntrgathr]

Disclaimer - I realize that up to this point in the story, I have done just about everything wrong. You're probably reading this and thinking " Man, this guy needs to learn how to shoot !" I am recounting the events of this hunt exactly as they happened, uncut, and I take full responsibility for my choices and the mistakes I made. In my defense, I practice shooting regularly and cut fletches out to 60 yds. I've been shooting and tuning the same bow for 5 years and know how it shoots in any condition. I've now hunted elk 4 years without taking an animal. But I have been on a lot of elk hunts in my life where I tracked and packed someone else's elk or deer. I've killed a slew of elk with rifle and muzzleloader. The decisions I made on this hunt were based on 1) Seeing the hit, 2) interpreting the blood sign and 3) Weighing those things against my experience on blood trails up to this point. As Paul would say , "Not all elk encounters are created equal." Learn from my mistakes and say "What would I have done ?"

THE TRUTH

The bull was bleeding bad enough to kill him IF the wound stayed open long enough. I had one bloody arrow in my hand and the other was yet to be found. The blood trail quickly became sparser once again and I heard a voice in my head laugh an evil laugh. I immediately started to question my decision to push him but reassured my self that the bull would have been running down the finger ridge and spreading the blood out. At some points as I descended I had to follow his tracks among several other tracks because I wasn't seeing enough blood. I kept glancing ahead hoping to see him piled up but I already knew he had entered into the dark timber. The blood trail became obvious again on the snow and I picked up my pace. The snow was crunching loudly and I had no chance of stealth. As I pressed on the weight of the decision I had made pressed on me like a wall - like an invisible line at an unknown point that, once crossed, the bull would know I was behind him and our fate would be decided. As I came around some thick brush I heard over my footsteps heavy breathing. I looked right and there he was, bedded with the setting sun behind him. A cloud of steam was coming off his hide. He had his head up, looking into my eyes from 10 yards...

[bnsafe]

first I havnt read that you did anything wrong, sounds like you took a shot at 50 yds or so which all of us would have done, then after the animal was hit you threw a hail mary out there, which all of us would have done. you cant kill em to dead, keep shootin til you start skinning, imo
second, cmon man, finish this, I was only half joking about my impatience, lol

[Huntrgathr]

I haven't figured out how to post videos yet. Can anyone help me out ? I don't have a youtube acct...

[Willie makit]

If you want you can send video to me and I can put it in my YouTube account and link it here.
I'm kinda new on here but will help if I can.

[Huntrgathr]

Sure. Want to message me your email ?

[Huntrgathr]

I just lost a fairly long post in a horrific cut and paste accident. Have to try again tomorrow.

[Willie makit]

http://youtu.be/XNExzo3-U8A

Sorry huntrgathr, couldn't figure out how to get an embedded video like Paul's tips and clips or load directly as file too big.



Got it finally. Done learned me some stuff!

[Huntrgathr]

That video was taken just a few seconds before I heard the bull breathing. I had been tracking for about 550 yards at this point. If i had kept recording i would have got an amazing video but I might have felt really dumb about coming upon a live anomal and mossing the cgance for a follow up shot. I forgot to mention that as I heard the breathing and the last couple steps around the brush that obscured my view of the bull, I subcosciously knocked another arrow. Unfortunately, it was the first arrow that I had picked up off the ground after shooting it.

When I locked eyes with the bull time stood still.

I wouldn't say that I "communicated" with the bull but as I stood there motionless, the bull staring at me, something definitely passed between us. The gravity of the situation heightened my awareness. Some instinct in me flared like a lit flame and I sensed somehow that I would kill this elk. I reckoned the bull knew the same thing. I didnt see fear in his eyes but rather, a resignation or acknowledgement of some kind. I've looked into the eyes of more than a few animals that I have killed and It is a unique experience, to look into the eyes of your prey. Sorry, don't mean to get too philosophical about the whole thing but these moments are the real nectar of the whole hunting experience for me. Talk about feeling ALIVE !

Snapping back into reality, I realized I needed to shoot this elk again. I tried to pick a spot between all the branches and twigs between us but I couldn't find a window. I took 3 or 4 tenous steps closer. It was agonizing to be so close and yet have no shot. Suddenly, the bull decided he had had enough. In a single motion he sprung from his bed and turned straight away from me. He sprinted around the small stand of trees we were in. As he come out into the open, I could see my arrow still protruding from his hind quarter. The arrow was jacking around wildly in the wound and Blood was flowing down the shaft each time the bull pushed with that leg. As he barreled down the mountain out of hearing distance I wasn't too concerned that I hadn't got off another shot. I walked to his bed to investigate.

[Bowhunter]

Great story but man you are killing us. Will it take 3 days to get to the end?

[Huntrgathr]

Okay, okay, I'll just skip to the end...

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Sorry, I swear I'm not stringing this out intentionally. I'm just really busy this week and can only get pics uploaded when I'm at home... In Utah today on business but I promise I will finish it tomorrow.

[pointysticks]

Okay, okay, I'll just skip to the end...

image.jpg

Sorry, I swear I'm not stringing this out intentionally. I'm just really busy this week and can only get pics uploaded when I'm at home... In Utah today on business but I promise I will finish it tomorrow.

i just skipped to the end too!! holy shit!! WOOOOOOOOOWWWW!

i'll go back and read now!!

[Willie makit]

Aww, dang man, so much for the suspense, always someone got to impatiently jump to the last chapter! Lol

I enjoy your writing style, congrats on that monster, I don't know if I could shoot a bruiser like that without locking up, but I'm dang sure ready to try!

[Bowhunter]

Background
The lead cow was already in range, just 45 yds away. I was slightly above them and in a perfect position for a shot. I picked out a raghorn bull ( big bulls are long gone when Nov rolls around in this unit) and waited for him to get to the bush that I had ranged when I first sat down. I knew he would give me a broadside shot at right about 50 yards. I slowly raised my bow and came to full draw. I went through my mental checks - anchor, bow hand, sight picture, pin selection. I put my 50yd pin tight to the crease and released...

If that is a raghorn what do you call BIG? Nice bull and congrats....

[Huntrgathr]

Wait, I think you guys missed the joke ! That was my attempt at humor. That's a "world record bull" pic I found on the Internet. LOL...sorry, I'll stick to the facts from here on out.

[Willie makit]

Aw heck, I bought it. But thought the bull looked familiar and did however notice the snow and trees had disappeared.

[Bowhunter]

Well?????? WE are impatiently waiting......

[Huntrgathr]

Okay, I downloaded an app to resize pics on my phone. I'll try to wrap this thing up before you guys lynch me !

As I said, I went over to investigate the bed. Here's what I saw...

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Quite a bit of blood but it was obviously coagulating. The bull's circulatory system was throwing every platelet it had at that hole to stop the hemorrhage. I felt assured that I had got there just in time to keep the wound from sealing.

I took up the blood trail again as it led out onto the south face of the mountain, this time at a much quicker pace. With only one set of tracks to follow in the soft granite sand I was able to cruise along at a good clip. The blood trail was only about half as strong though so doubt still gnawed at my confidence. I pushed on in pursuit and the tracks dropped off the steep side of the ridge towards a thick, nasty brush filled ravine below. 100...200...300 yards I descended down towards the hole with my arrow still knocked, using my free hand to keep from sliding down out of control. After about 400 yards the tracks and now sparse blood trail began to side hill and the go slightly uphill. "How much blood could he have left ?", I wondered out loud.

Then I heard him breathing again, much more labored this time. I slowed down to cautious creep, scanning ahead towards the sounds of the elk.

I knew I was only about 50 yards away now and prepared myself for a quick shot if need be. I crept ever so slowly, closer to the large Ponderosas and the elk came into view. He was 30 yards below me on about a 50 degree downslope laying with his side against a tree, facing uphill towards me. His chest heaved as tried to draw oxygen from blood that was no longer there. I thought I could slip an arrow in between his neck and front shoulder so I raised my bow and drew back on him for the third time. I saw the dried blood on my arrow as I came to full draw but the implication didn't register. I released the bent arrow and watched as it careened harmlessly of the bulls front shoulder. "IDIOT !!", I thought as the bull started to stand up. I had learned one more lesson about how not to kill elk.

But the bull had nothing left. As he tried to jump forward, his legs collapsed and he rolled down the slope 5 or 6 times before coming to rest against another tree. He took four more breaths and expired. I dropped to my knees and fumbled with my pack straps, while trying to get my hands to stop shaking. My body crashed from the repeated adrenaline dumps I had received. I sat there on the mountain for a long whole before getting up. I recovered my arrow from the willows below and clawed my way back up to the bull. He had landed with his head and rack underneath him. The slope was so steep that I had to tie his hind leg off to a tree before I could roll him over for a picture. As I stood over my kill, completely exhausted, I felt what a Mountain Lion might feel.

[Huntrgathr]

My first archery elk.

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[Huntrgathr]

I set to quartering the elk and was only half way done when it got dark. My headlamp batteries ran out and all I had for light was a $1.99 led flashlight. It was easier to skin by feel. He was sliding and rolling down the hill as I cut and I had to re-tie him off multiple times. An hour and a half and three Havalon blades later, I had a front quarter, two back straps and all the miscellaneous chunks and neck meat on my pack frame. Even though I was over three miles in, I kept the bones in the quarters because they're just too good to waste. The hinds were easily 85 pounds apiece. I figured i had about 80 on my pack with all my gear. Although I knew the area well I had never been down that side of the mountain before.

I picked a line and headed down into what would become one of the most hellacious bush whacks of my life. I struggled on in the dark for 2 1/2 hours before finally reaching the road. I dropped my pack and walked the 1/2 mile back to my car only to realize that I had left my keys in my pack !

I drove out that night and called in a coupe favors. ( It pays off to pack other people's meat) and went back the next morning. It would have taken me four days to get it all out by myself but the three of us had the whole thing packed out by 3 pm.

A few days later when I butchered the front quarter that I had shot initially, the questions in my mind were answered. My arrow had come in at a slight angle, deflecting off of the very back edge of the elbow and right into the joint. Here's a pic. You can see the trail gouged out be the broad head as it buried into the joint.

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[pointysticks]

Wait, I think you guys missed the joke ! That was my attempt at humor. That's a "world record bull" pic I found on the Internet. LOL...sorry, I'll stick to the facts from here on out.

you're dead to me..hahah..

you got me. i dont look at a lot of internet pics.

[Elkduds]

While following this thread, I found myself thinking about the bull more than the hunter. I feel for that elk, and I feel for all the wounded game that dies slowly and isn't recovered. You did the right thing by seeing it through to the end. Each of us has to decide our own ethics of shooting/wounding. No judgment here, I know how it feels to wound and track. I don't ever want to feel like that again. To me, shooting at game is a huge responsibility. Maybe this is not the best place to mention the ethical and emotional considerations of wounding. Then again, maybe it is.

[Willie makit]

X2 on that elkduds. I'll celebrate a good clean miss over a marginal hit any and every time. Poor shot placement is THE lowest of lows in hunting, unfortunately it happens.

[cnelk]

I applaud those who talk about their marginal hits.
Yes. It does happen. And its not a popular topic.

On the other hand, some of the best hunts I have had and remember are those that I totally missed shots!

[Swede]

Congratulations on a successful hunt, huntrgathr. I enjoyed your story and the suspense. I also appreciate your tenacity. Way to hang in there and git er done.

[rfc86]

Well done sir. This was one of the best posts I've read on any forum in a long time. Thanks for sharing!

[cohunter14]

Congrats on the harvest! It doesn't always go the way you plan it. Then again, what actually does go as planned when elk hunting? Way to stick with it and see it through to the end.

[bnsafe]

very nice, congrats

[Bowhunter]

When I reached the first hit site I realized that the bull was about 3 yards further than I had thought. No blood. I walked up the hill to the second hit site and saw the puddle I had glassed.

first blood re.jpg

Had you guessed the range at 53 or even 55 you would have made a perfect shot. Congrats on the elk and great job sticking with it. Other than the range misjudjement I believe you did everything right.

[>>>---WW---->]

One heck of a good write up there pard. Glad you followed it up and finally got your bull.

[Huntrgathr]

When I reached the first hit site I realized that the bull was about 3 yards further than I had thought. No blood. I walked up the hill to the second hit site and saw the puddle I had glassed.

first blood re.jpg

Had you guessed the range at 53 or even 55 you would have made a perfect shot. Congrats on the elk and great job sticking with it. Other than the range misjudjement I believe you did everything right.

Thank you guys for all of the comments and for taking the time to read my story. I hesitated to post it because it is a little messy and I knew I was opening myself to critisism. You guys have been more than fair in your assesments and comments and I truly appreciate that. This is not a hero story. It is a story about our relationship to the hunting experience. I like Elkdads comment about being focused more on the elk's situation throughout the story.
It was my intention that the reader would empathize with both the hunter and the hunted. As hunters, we strive to put ourselves in the minds of the prey we pursue. The " mental chess game" we play with these elk is made even more intimate for archery hunters. I take the lives of the animals I kill with a solemn heart. This is no sport for me. I find justification for ending life in feeding wholesome food to my family, in turn giving life. For me, Every kill imposes an obligation upon me to honor the life taken, make good use of the meat, and to share it's sacrifice with others. I hope that in telling my story, this bull gave something to you as well. If not, PM me and I'll send you some sausage !

As far as talking about marginal shots or wounding in a public forum, I realize it is a subject that is often avoided. I think there is this false belief carried by hunters that if we do everything right, bad shots will never happen. That's just not the case. If a "bad hit" is an absolutely unacceptable outcome for you, you should 't be hunting. In my opinion, more animals are lost from poor decisions made after the shot than "bad hits". You can have a great hit and still not recover the animal if you make bad decisions. If I can say I did one thing well on this hunt, it was making the right decisions in a worst case scenario. My decision to push the bull, I believe, made all the difference.

I have analyzed this whole hunt over and over again - As you can tell, I tend to over analyze things in general. There are things that, as hunters, we do wrong. Then there are things that just " go wrong", it's often hard to tell the difference. Luck is the wild card and it can go either way. Good luck, bad luck - both are equally probable. Bowhunter, you pretty much nailed it. Past 50 yards my arrow drops about 1" per yard. The position of the front leg when I shot placed the elbow right in front of the bottom portion of the heart. The bull walked in between two bushes that I had ranged - one at 45 and the other at 60. I misjudged by 3 yards. My arrow dropped three inches and missed the heart by less than that. Two things I could've done differently to prevent the shoulder hit... 1) ranging the animal again before shooting or 2) not holding so " tight to the crease". The second one probably more so. Either way, the error was very minor.

My goal in posting these thoughts is not to defend myself. I feel 100% satisfied with my hunt and my recovery efforts. I put all of this out there so that guys can learn something from my experience and maybe gain a little more insight into our relationship to nature. Thanks again guys ! Next year I'm going to post a one paragraph synopsis of how I double lunged a 350 bull and that died in 7 seconds. Chris

[ORelksniper]

Huntrgathr wrote: "I take the lives of the animals I kill with a solemn heart. This is no sport for me. I find justification for ending life in feeding wholesome food to my family, in turn giving life. For me, Every kill imposes an obligation upon me to honor the life taken, make good use of the meat, and to share it's sacrifice with others."

Very well said, Chris, and thank you. Well done on the hunt and tracking also. Congrats.

[quarbles]

i think you're one cool dude, not only for putting yourself out there to describe your experience (in honest and humble well written detail!) but also the manner by which you articulate the relationship between predator and prey......

[tdoshi9]

I have to say that this is such a great story. WEll written! I will say that I have been reading around in this forum all night. i got to this post and decide to sign up for this site just so I could post here. You sir are stand up! Hats off to you on your pursuit and harvest. I hope to contribute to this site soon.

[Trumkin the Dwarf]

My thoughts:
1. I hit the same joint as you this year. It sucks. I, however, was unable to get a followup shot and the cow ran away never to be seen again.

2. Your decision making; from the followup shot, to pushing him till he bled out, was spot on. Sometimes we are dealt a bad hand, but it doesn't mean we can't bluff our way into the winners table. You had the presence of mind to make this a success story. You have my respect for telling the whole story, and my admiration for some great thinking under pressure. Well done.

[JGH]

Yes, well done ... the hunt and the story ... well-written.

[ishy]

Congrats, great read. However I must say it was a tad long...needed to be though. But now I'm really worried elk nut forum will get black listed at work...we only have so long on any given sight and IS pulls it off. Any way gotta go!