Been a While-2025 Season

[Kessler10]

Been a few years since I last posted. Sharing last years success on a great bull in Wyoming area 7 archery. Will be back in Wyoming this Sept. Im 44 years old, the clock is ticking, hunt more, hunt farther!

My cousin and hunting partner drew the coveted area 7 bull tag after 15 years. Ive hunted area 7 many times over the years for cows . We scouted the summer before and had horses, we pulled out all the stops to give us the best chance for him to get his first bull. We hit the rut just right and were into bugling bulls every day we hunted. (10 days). And I say that with zero exaggeration. The amount of giant bulls we saw was crazy. Looking back in my journal we saw over 18 different shooter bulls. I had a cow tag in my pocket but that was an afterthought until we got my cousin his bull.

So many encounters I could write about but will stick with the one that got us this amazing bull. We got up top at first lite on the 4th or 5th day and heard a bugle to our west. We circled around to get good wind (we were north of the herd) and glassed a bull with 20+ cows grazing on the ridge at 500 yards. My inclination was to just sit and glass them. We glassed them moving from the west to the east for about 45 mins. Then they started to turn and go down into a small valley toward our direction. At this point they were probably 800 yards. As soon as they dipped down I turned to my cousin and said "follow me, move fast" we back off a bit and made our way in that direction. When we got to a mound I peaked around and saw the head of a few of his cows. I knew this our chance. I told my cousin to get up around that corner about 10 yards. I dropped back about 50 yards where the only way any of those elk could see me is if they literally walked over my cousin who was posted up behind a small tree on a group of rocks. I let out the absolutley loudest angriest bugle ever, within 5 seconds I heard hoofs clamp rock and my cousin arrow release and "THUMP". Turn out the bull walked 5 yards by him. I walked around the corner bugling to try and keep the bull from moving further away knowing he had just been shot and saw my cousin re nocking an arrow and the bull out front of him about 50 yards. THUMP, second arrow in him and down he goes 40 yards in front of us. A beautiful bull with the largest fronts I have ever seen. The picture doesnt do those fronts justice 18 inches.