There Is Humor In Elk Hunting!

[ElkNut1]

The morning started out innocent enough! We were heading out 45min before light to a pre-determined spot we had been into elk 2 days earlier. It was just my Son & I. We had covered about 1 1/2 mile into the Idaho woods when we heard a bugle just north of us 400ys+ out. We had not called at all to this point so this ole boy had sounded off on his own, he bugled several more times but we could tell he was in hot pursuit of something, such as a herd of elk with a possible hot cow. We followed his bugles the best we could but he was moving fast!! At this point we could not see him but figured him to be a 5-point bull.

You must appreciate the country we hunt some! It's steep in many areas & very rugged. There are tons of downfalls in it from years of burns. Alder/Chaparral type brush grows rampant in every direction & is in the 7' to 15' high stages, it's nearly impossible to see over or get through it; you must find seams here & there & do your best to maintain a reasonable direction. In this case we were trying to follow this bull’s bugle as we felt he would lead us to the real herd. You will cover 3 times the distance as needed because of this terrain & it's steep as all get out in many places, including where he was taking us!!

We are in pursuit of this bull but his bugles are becoming faint as he's moving much quicker than we can follow, we know the area well as we've taken roughly 25 elk off this mountain range over the years. After about 45min of following & weaving our way straight up this miserable spot we hear a bugle above us aprox 1/4 mile away, we are now more excited as it sounds as though we are finally closing the distance, meaning this bull is finally where he wants to be or bed. We now hear a 2nd bull to our left; he's 500yds off & a bit below us in a downfall hell. Almost un-approachable! We know his spot well & hate it!! (Grin) He's no doubt a very good herd bull by his sounds. We do have a stroke of luck as these 2 are keeping each other entertained vocally.

We still have done no calling to give away our presence. We now close the distance to the bull above us, he's straight above us on the other side of an alder thicket, he's 55yds out & we can't see a thing. There's a small opening above us the bull is slightly right of it in the cover, he has now bugled aprox 8 times as we stand there with my Son up front as this is going to be his opportunity. Well, these 2 bulls go back & forth for 10 minutes & just when we think this bull just above us may step into the opening he retreats back, he does it time & again, the wind is in our face so no issues there. The bull has now moved further away to our right & now is a good 80-90yds away; I don't like this at all. I have my Son get down the mtn another 40yds or so from where we came up, there's a bit of an opening there. I'm going to try & call this bull over his way with some very soft cow calls & then retreat as I'm doing this in hopes this bull will follow or want to catch up with this cow. I have seen no real indication that this is a herd bull we're dealing with but my gut tells me he is so decide not to scream in his face to get him to "react" although I'm puzzled if he's not why his distance is so great from the bull to our left?

My Son sets up & I’m behind him 30yds or so & give a few soft calls, nothing, the bull does not bugle my calling! I try again & get very little response, just a slight chuckle from him for me to come. I move away & pick up the volume a bit, he shows more interest. About 4-5 minutes have passed & I slowly have picked up the excitement level some, he's starting to build in his excitement as well. I don't feel from my position that he's getting any closer but yet seems further away & going over this steep brushed out mtn. He's vocal enough to give my Son a good position & I'm hoping he's slipping in? After 10 minutes of this cat & mouse I decide to go back where I left my Son which is a good 100yds away now & he's not there? I look ahead & all around & see nothing, where the heck did he go? The bull is in front of me still a good 80yds out in this thick cover & is now giving short screams for this cow to come on over, NOW!

All I can think of is my Son must have tried to shimmy his way through the thicket above where the bull started out to close the distance & get a shot at him as he was very vocal to get a good fix on him. But the bull is now 50yds below this thicket & slightly over a small knoll on the mtn. He now seems like he's getting farther away from his last bugles & chuckles. I feel he's getting nervous because this cow hasn't shown up & I decide I HAVE to get aggressive with him or he's gone! I still can't locate my Son & feel he's surely stuck in the thicket above & can't get to the bull in fear of making too much noise or be seen?

So I take it upon myself while still 80yds out (mind you this is all taking place in my mind in a matter of seconds) from this bull to get very whiny & loud using sounds very similar to a gathering or pleading sound on mid to high volume & very pitchy, I do this along with some stomping & running partially through the lower brush to create a visual in this bulls mind that this cow is finally on her way & wants him! I'm now calling loudly & stomping my way to him making sure to keep good cover between us, I see a fir tree 15' high with green branches growing all the way to the ground & head for that feeling the bull is only 20 yds on the other side of it. I get 25yds from the tree & give my last sounds & nock a SnufferSS tipped arrow on my longbow & hurry quietly to this tree really expecting to see this bull, I get there & see nothing but am staring intently in the direction where I last heard him. ---- Mind you all the while I'm wondering where in the heck is my Son?

Well I stare a few more seconds as I am motionless & see a rack through some timber & ears & eyes staring in my direction 30yds out, I'm staring through the branches, I know he saw the movement but I feel he thinks it's the cow he's looking for, we have a 4-5 minute stare down all the while I'm holding my longbow in the ready position & my arm is starting to burn as I cannot lower the bow or move a muscle, he screams a good 1/2 doz times & the excitement level is off the charts, he is below me about 25' in elevation. After the stare down he feels all is OK, whew! He pops up on the knoll now 20yds out & stares for a few more seconds, I'm now shaking like a leaf in the wind from exhaustion & excitement that this might just happen, but where the heck is my son Paul? The bull a 6-point is now 100% broadside & wouldn't you know it there's a dead branch running across his side & is covering a portion of his vitals. It would be a slam dunk shot with a compound at that distance but too much trajectory involved to risk with a longbow & screw up the shot! I wait patiently not moving a muscle!!!!!

The bull now turns & walks a few yards to an aspen tree & starts raking it with just his brow tines. His rear is facing me, in front of me & slightly to my right about 2' away is a 12" high slab of granite stone, I feel I need to get on that slab while he's raking to get elevation for the shot & be above that darned branch. I slowly move & up I go hoping he doesn't spot my movement, he doesn't! I'm in position now still shaking of course!! (grin) If he stops raking & turns left I have no shot, too much cover, I need him to go back where he came from. The odds are in my favor he'll do this. This bull is raking to display for this unseen cow & trying to impress her in an effort to show what he's got to offer. The bull turns right, sweet, 18yds out! He takes 2 slow steps to my right & I draw anchor & release, I see the arrow fly right into his heart, I immediately felt he wouldn't travel far.

I turn around to go find my Son & he's standing right there next to me, I'm in shock as I don't understand how he could've been there so quick?

So here's how my Son saw it all unfold!

He says he had crept up to a tree not 15yds away but above me where I went to the tree with branches growing to the ground, he was there watching the bull 30yds out waiting for him to step up out of the cover & come towards my calling. That's when this crazy old man, (me) went running by him screaming those cow sounds & stomping away kicking the underbrush. My Son said he was waving his arm at me frantically & hissing at me to stop because the bull was just right there, he just knew I was going to blow the whole thing! I went by my son only 10 yds away, he said since I didn't notice his waving; he then picked up a good sized rock to throw in my direction to get my attention to STOP! He says the rock hit me calf high in the right leg & I never slowed for a second!! He said that crazy ElkNut just kept on going to the tree like a mad man on a mission. LOL! I guess I was so focused I saw & felt nothing at all. The first thing my Son said was "nice shot"--2ndly he said that's the 1st time my caller has run by me to kill the bull, we both laughed but I was actually still in shock that I shot that bull right out from under him, actually I felt terrible about it. I had no clue where he was!

My Son did say that when the bull was raking the aspen tree that if he'd turned left where I had no shot that it would've given him the perfect shot. Go Figure!!!! Gotta love elk hunting, especially with your son! (grin)

ElkNut1

[msd1228]

That's when this crazy old man, (me) went running by him screaming those cow sounds & stomping away kicking the underbrush. My Son said he was waving his arm at me frantically & hissing at me to stop because the bull was just right there, he just knew I was going to blow the whole thing! I went by my son only 10 yds away, he said since I didn't notice his waving; he then picked up a good sized rock to throw in my direction to get my attention to STOP! He says the rock hit me calf high in the right leg & I never slowed for a second!! He said that crazy ElkNut just kept on going to the tree like a mad man on a mission.

That's bloody funny stuff right there haha. Good stories like these pass the off season better than anything else - thanks for posting! I'm sure I've read this on your old forum before - it never gets old.

[dapper]

Two plus' for him. He was right there watching the old man kill a bull and more importantly, he gets to razz you forever about it!


Dan

[Swede]

Years ago I had a similar situation while hunting with my son. I lost track of him while calling a bull. It was on the other end of the day, and I started getting worried. where he was after awhile. It was getting dark and the woods suddenly went quiet. There was no sound any longer from the bull, and my son had not returned. I did not know where he was or if he had shot. In my case I decided to just wait and give out an occasional location bugle. Finally at dark he came in, saying he had no shot and the bull finally slipped away. In my case, not knowing what was happening brought me to a stop. I did not want to mess up his chances, but I just knew nothing. With no visual or communication I was just guessing. I guessed wrong.

[Garrett Drach]

Did the same thing with my brother two years ago as we worked our way into what turned out to be five bulls. I was calling for him and unknowingly went past him while he was pinned down by a cow and couldn't move. Wasn't until I was 50 yards past him that I realized he was now behind me. I then ended up hitting one of the bulls, but didn't make a fatal shot. The hardest part for me was finding out later, from my brother, that the bull I hit was going to end up in his lap if I hadn't shot, and he had his arrow knocked and was double checking his yardage when I shot. My brother didn't hold anything against me, but I felt horrible that I took a prime opportunity away from him. And coupled with the disappointment in myself for not making a good shot on the bull, my head was a complete mess, I had to leave my bow at camp the following day. That was a hard lesson learned and I now follow Swede's way of thinking- if I don't know what is happening, I don't move.

[elkmtngear]

I guess next time he will need to aim for your head, Paul!

I see myself doing the same thing...pretty hard to throw me off track when the adrenaline starts pumping!

Great Story...loved it!

[ABQ_Chica]

Thanks for sharing such a great story, Paul. A "mad man on a mission," indeed. In certain situations, aren't we all?!

[Fridaythe13th]

How often do you get to throw a rock at your old man and get away with it. Great story for the fire.

[ElkNut1]

Ha Ha, he said next time he'll just blunt me in the butt! Ouch! (grin) (he was shooting a recurve)

ElkNut1

[WapitiTalk1]

There is humor but obviously, no honor.. Geesh, pegging your pop in the leg with a rock... great story I have been known to peg hunting partners in the back with elk duds...just to make sure they saw the fresh sign which they just walked by