On The Hunt - Meat

 

Four am and I'm dreaming of sunrises and pastures filled with wildflowers. It's peaceful, warm; completely bliss. The Morning Flower ringtone chimes softly in the background. It's like I'm floating through time and I never want to leave this place. The ringtone get's louder and darkness starts creeping into this perfect seen. Morning Flower get's louder and louder and although it's not obnoxious, it's getting annoying. It's getting too loud now and I'm becoming frustrated...shit, it's my alarm.

 

I had a few IPA's with Wes and Paul and the rest of the folks from Bell Cross the night before - probably a couple too many. I reach over to turn off the alarm on my phone that's been ringing for the past two minutes. My head hurts. I'm thinking of bagging it this morning and just staying home to clean my little cottage up here in Wolf Creek. I mean, do I really want to get up this early for another hunt when I know all the elk in my little honey hole may very well have been run out of the country last weekend. It is Friday though and maybe nobody's been up there since last weekend. Maybe the elk have settled down. Maybe they're back. Maybe I should try somewhere else...

 

I did drag myself out of bed and took a shower lathering up with Dead Down Wind bar soap. I doused my camo with Scent Block and hung them to try. I'm trying to cover up the remnants of the night before. Maybe it will make this headache go away.

 

I decide to head back up to my spot. I've got to get to town today anyway and it's an easy turn-around from there. I take the hour drive across country and into the mountains. I take the two-track road towards the trail head and as I turn the corner I see lights.

 

"Dammit!!" Somebody is already there.

 

I pull in along side the truck parked at the trail-head. Two guys are sitting in the truck with lights on and engine running. This time I'm not waiting for any chit-chat. I'm grabbing my shit and heading up the trail before these guys make their move.

 

I decide to go back up to the parks above the wallows where it was the last I heard or saw any elk almost a week ago. I take a second to cow call in the dark towards the ridge-top where I got into elk on my first morning...nothing. I keep chugging up the trail. My head is still foggy and I'm breathing heavy. Maybe it will flush the hurt from the night before out of my system.

 

I get into the parks and let out a little cow-call. Nothing responds so I head up along the tree-line into the next park. I look out over the meadow and into the clear-cut on the far side. Still nothing. I let out another cow-call...still nothing so I pull out my grunt tube and my reed and I bugle softly. Nothing.

 

I move along the trees to get a better look at the ravine below me. I'm standing in the exact same spot where I got busted last week by a couple bulls. I call again and again; nothing. This is crap. What to do? Should I take the walk down to the wallows? Maybe their just not talking? Maybe I should just head back to the truck or maybe I should lie down and take a nap. I'm pretty tired.

 

"Snap!"

 

"Holy crap," I thought. "That's got to be an elk.

 

It was just one twig snapping under the weight of something heavy behind me and a little down-hill. I get an arrow knocked and take a step back into the trees. I look down to where the sound came and within a few seconds, a cow elk steps out into the park about 50 yards away.

 

"Are you kidding me?" I thought as she looks up at me.

 

Her eyes were fixed on me and I was doing my best to stay still. I was ducked behind a branch, slightly crouched over but in a good position to draw back if she gave me a shot. She stared at me and I thought I was busted.

 

Her head went down but immediately shot back up to try to catch me moving. I stayed still. She dropped her head again and then right back up to catch me again but I still didn't move. She took a few more steps and I clicked the release onto my string.

 

She was walking left to right quartering slightly my way and moving a little up-hill. I guessed her at 45 yards. Should I take this shot? Should I wait to see if there's a bull with her? I am meat hunting after all and she is a good sized cow; not too big but definitely not a calf. With all the hunters I've seen and knowing how difficult it can be to get a shot off on an elk, if I don't take the shot I might not get another chance...I slowly draw the bow back and put my 40 yard pin right behind her front shoulder and she stops.

 

I placed my finger on the trigger of my release. I was almost a little surprised when the arrow took off. It was almost like the decision was made for me and less than a second later I could hear the sound an arrow makes when hits it's mark.

 

The cow wheeled and stumbled down the park and into the timber. I could see the arrow hanging out the back-side and I knew I had a solid hit. She crashed into the timber and a few seconds later, all the commotion and crashing went silent.

 

"Holy...did that just fricken happen?"

 

I took a few steps to get a better look down the ravine just to see if she was with any other elk and a spike walks out. I'm glad I took the shot.

 

I wanted to wait for a few minutes before looking for the cow so I called to the little spike. He walked towards me and let out a little chuckle. I called again and he came closer. He was at about 20 yards. We played the little game for about 10 minutes before I figured it was time to go look for the cow. When I stepped out, he wasn't totally sold on me not being another elk. He bolted and took a few steps but stopped and turned back to look at me. He actually circled back to get another look and just watched me from about 50 yards walk on by.

 

I went down to where I thought the cow was standing when I let the arrow fly. It didn't take long to find blood and I ranged it back to where I was standing - 48 yards. I followed the path she took and started seeing more and more blood.

 

I'm not a big product endorsement guy but I have to be honest. I changed to Rage broad heads this year because the fixed blade broad heads I was using didn't leave much of a blood trail. The bull I shot last year didn't even leave a blood trail and it was just lucky he beaded down 40 yards from where I shot him. So after talking to my brother, I made the switch. I use the Chisel Tip, 3-blade broad head and let me tell you, there is no comparison to what I was using.

 

The blood trail started immediately and within about fifty yards, it was like taking a bucket and just pouring it over the ground. I didn't even have to look to find the trail and another fifty yards and she was down and stone-dead.

 

I'm not telling you this to be graphic but I think it's important to point out the changes in bow hunting technology so people can chose more humane and effective methods of taking animals; improving the recovery rates and putting the animals down quicker with less suffering. I put the arrow in this cow in almost the exact same spot as the bull I shot last year. Both were pass-thru shots and both went through both lungs. These broad heads are ridiculous.

 

The cow fell just off the park and into a little draw heading down the deep ravine. She didn't make it far and for that I am grateful. Not only was it a quick recovery but I won't have to pack her up that monstrously steep incline. However, she is down hill a hundred yards or so, in the trees and about 3/4 of a mile from the truck. Now the work begins.

 

Keep 'em where they live...