JoeH2o Scores 1 For ElkNut Crew!

[ElkNut1]

JoeH2o, (Clayton) is the first to put the hammer down on a nice 5X6 bull this year! There are 5 of us here so it was nice to see the first go down, nice job bud! When he has a few moments he can share his story with you all, it's a pretty good one! (grin) Here's a couple photos, as you can see he was hunting alone when he connected!

ElkNut1

[BRazz]

Awesome job Clayton! Can't wait to hear how it went down (and how you get him out of there by yourself...)!

[elkmtngear]

Nice!! Way to go, Clayton!

[WapitiTalk1]

Nice bull Clayton.. Congrats!

[flystrait]

Awesome! Great elk

[Washington Wapiti]

Judging from the pics, there's got to be an interesting story behind this one! Congrats!

[BROKECARPENTER]

Nice Bull! way to go

[sreekers]

Good bull!

[easeup]

congrats to you from here also.

[dreamhunter]

OMG ! That's incredible , I am interested also to hear how you get him out of there.

[Indian Summer]

Congrats Clayton.

Dude.... you need a Clip-Shot!

Nice bull

[JoeH2o]

Congrats Clayton.

Dude.... you need a Clip-Shot!

Nice bull

Your telling me! I couldn't find a flat spot to put the camera to get a shot anywhere.

I'll try not to drag this story out to long.

Got up Sunday morning with high hopes of catching some elk in one of my favorite honey holes. On the way in I stopped on a small bench and let out a location bugle. While standing there looking up the burnt hill side waiting for something to answer from the bench above me, I hear a bull scream from the other side of the drainage. I turned around and looked down the hill side I just hiked up and thought "I'm not going all the way back down there and back up the other side!" I stood there on the edge of the bench and kept bugling the bull to see how fired up he was. He would only answer my bugles, no cow calls. I thought to myself "He sounds pissed!" Just about that time I see out of the corner of my eye 2 spikes walking up from behind me! They were coming over to find out what all the racket was, I guess. They caught me standing in an opening with the closest cover being a burnt log laying on the ground about 20 yards from me. I did manage to get an arrow nocked and draw while they ran off. I guess that's what you call "Getting caught with your pants down". This whole time the bull across the drainage was still screaming his head off. I decided to hike back down the mountain and up the other side. After rock scaling the hill side to get off the river bottom, I got to a point where I thought I was within 500 yards of the bull, I let off a bugle. To my surprise, something jumped up about 5 yards off to my right on the other side of some alder brush. Thinking to myself "Holy Sh!#, he's right there!" I nocked an arrow and snuck around the brush only to see a big ol cow standing broad side 50 yards. She saw me and started nervous grunting at me. The bull is still bugling even with this cow barking at me. I figured he's about 200/250 yards up the hill, so I tried getting out of view of this cow. She kept nervous grunting at me, so every time she would grunt, I would grunt back at her. I finally got up to where I thought I was within 100/150 yards of this bull and ripped off a scream right at him. He didn't like that to say the least. He screamed right back at me, so I tried running up the hill to cut the distance. Got to where I was 50 yards and screamed again, no answer. I thought, "Crap! I must have spooked him crashing up the mtn." Just when I was ready to move up the hill to look over the rise, here comes antlers through the timber. The bull looks over the rise I wanted to get to and screams in my face from about 30/40 yards! To say the least he rattled the Sh!# out of me. I nocked an arrow and watched him start to side hill above me. I tried to draw my bow with my fingers! I guess the bugle in the face shook me so bad I reverted back to my 30 years of shooting traditional archery! Lucky for me he gave me enough time to get my release hooked up and draw. He was stopped broad side 25/26 yards looking down the hill, but not at me. First arrow smoked him right through the back of the front shoulder, clean pass through, and he didn't even flinch! He just continued walking the same direction, stopped again behind some brush. I was at full draw when he stepped out from behind the brush. I stopped him with a cow call/grunt (or at least something that sounded like an elk) and drilled him again. He took off (not running though) tried to go up hill, made it about 10 yard and turned back down and crash about 30 yards from where I was standing. First shot was double lung, second shot was a little farther back but still caught lung, dead elk walking.

After getting him quartered up an hung, I took one load of all the loose meat and antlers out(neck, back straps, tenderloins, and heart). Made it to the road and thought "There's no way I'm going back up there 4 more time by myself". So I drove out and called a bunch of buddies to come in and help me pack it out. Glad I have friends that like to pack meat.

[Washington Wapiti]

Awesome action and story . . . way to seal it!

[Seminole]

Clayton that is Awesome!!!! I believe I have seen that tree!!! LOL!!!!

[MTLongdraw]

It might get better than that, but I wouldn't risk it. Great job!

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

Congratulations for sure. But the next time be a little more selective on where you drop one. I'll bet you worked your tail off dressing that one out. LOL!

[JoeH2o]

Congratulations for sure. But the next time be a little more selective on where you drop one. I'll bet you worked your tail off dressing that one out. LOL!

Yes I did! Turns out those things are super heavy. Got it done, but when I finished, I was exhausted.

[redtop]

Nice, way to go! Don't you just love how they can get so tangled up when they die. Even dead they can make it hard on you. Last year the one I shot ended up crashing 200 feet downhill. He landed on his back, rack stuck deeply in the dirt, belly up legs splayed. Perfect for gutting. Except I do the gutless method so had to totally untangle him to get to the spine. I did win in the end just like you. Thanks for the story.

[Indian Summer]

Hmmm.. Redtop from Wilson: Does that have anything to do with red Top Meadows near Fall Creek or Red Top Mountain down near Smoot? Had to ask when I saw your name and where you live.

[redtop]

Yes sir redtop meadows is where I'm at. And you?