cast_n_blast
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After a lot of scouting and help from family and friends, I finally filled my Elk tag after 24 years of getting letters from the DWR saying, thanks for the five bucks, but you are "un-successful".
I've been putting in for limited entry Elk since I was 16 years old, back in 1996 I put in dual with my older brother Mark for the Book Cliffs, he drew the tag and I didn't. Come to find out I forgot to put my hunters education number on the application and since I was born after 1965 I needed it, even though I had a lifetime license number the DWR still wouldn't give me the tag. I figured it would only be a couple of years before I drew the tag, well 11 years after I really supposedly drew I finally got a limited entry tag for the Deep Creek unit.
Back in 2005 we moved from Pleasant Grove to Lindon, I became acquainted with a neighbor Brook Blackhurst who loves to hunt Elk more than me, he kept talking about the Deeps and finally talked me into using my Max points to draw the tag. Brook's brother Chad also drew the tag for that same unit.
We spent all Labor day out there and took horses all around, we were able to find some great bulls and I was getting very excited. We went out to the Deeps on Wednesday night September 12th, so we would have Thursday and Friday to scout more and be ready for the Saturday opener.
Saturday came and went without any shooting even though I saw good elk, I spent Sunday in camp watching football; yes, we take a dish, receiver and a TV when we go camping, it is awesome, just ask those that came with us. I also recorded the BYU and UTAH games, so we had lots of football to watch on Sunday, it was great.
Monday came and I passed on what I thought was a 350 class bull, it was shot a few minutes later, I was told it went 360, so I was really second guessing myself. On Tuesday I passed on another real nice bull, the Bucks and Bulls guide had his client shoot at it, but he missed. We did hear a shot and come to find out Brook's brother Chad had shot his bull. He shot a really nice bull and the best thing about it was being able to back my truck right next to it and with four of us, we were able to put the whole thing in the back.
After Chad shot his bull I decided to head home and work for a couple of days, I knew the hunt was only going to get better with the weather getting cooler. So after my sons game on Thursday my brother Craig, his son Jared my nephew Cody and my son Jaxon headed back out to the Deeps to try and find my bull. When we got into camp at midnight there were three bulls bugling around our camp, I knew I was going to find a shooter in the morning.
Friday morning came and went and I passed on more small bulls still holding out for a big one. Saturday was the same thing, I could have shot smaller bulls, but I still wanted a big one. Saturday everyone head home again, so it was just Jaxon and I watching football on Sunday again. We did have some muzzle loader hunters camp above us and since I was planning on more people being for dinner Sunday night I invited them down for a chicken dutch oven with cobbler and ice cream. After dinner they told me if I got one to come and get them and they would help pack it out. Boy was I glad I fed them dinner.
Brook was going to come back out Sunday night after his boy?s baseball game in Las Vegas but didn't show up, so I figured he didn't get back until late, I figured he would show up later in the day.
Monday at 6:00 Jaxon and I headed back out to find the big one. We went back to the area we call the hour glass and waited for shooting hours. I still had multiple nice bulls walk by me, but I was still going to hold out. After most of the bulls came by and there wasn?t a shooter, we headed South on the wheeler to another area where I figured the elk would be. We got off the wheeler and walked up the mountain. While walking we heard a bull bugle above us, so I told Jaxon that is a good sign. We walked around the hill and I spotted an Elk, I put my binocs on it and it was a small one, so I told him it wasn?t a shooter, I then looked back up and could see another bull. I put my binocs back up and saw a really long sword, so I told Jaxon to get the spotting scope out and setup the tripod. He walked behind a cedar, but I could still see all of his antlers through my spotting scope on 40x power, I counted them over and over 1, 2, 3, 4, 5, 6, 7. I didn't see anything broken and his 5th were awesome, so said he is a shooter. I took the range finder out and ranged him, then took the scope off the tripod so I had a steady rest and pulled the trigger. It took two shots, but the second shot he dropped like a ton of bricks. Jaxon gave me a high five and off we went to find him.
After walking up the hill which seemed like a mile, Jaxon spotted the Elk first and we head right over and took a look. I was very impressed. He was a true 7x7 and had great mass. We took pictures and more pictures, Jaxon was wondering why we were taking so many pictures, I then told him that after we stop taking pictures, the fun is over and the work begins.
I cleaned him out and went back to camp to get the hunters that I fed dinner too the night before. They weren't in their camp, so I started making breakfast when they came to camp and I told them about my success. I fed them breakfast and off we went to get the animal off the hill. It was about 250 yards up and 150 yards across. We quarter him up and headed off the mountain, I packed off the head and antlers and then went right back up that steep hill to help with the rest of the meat.
After we got him in the truck, Jaxon and I head back to camp on the wheeler and right before camp we ran into Brook, he was heading out to find us. His boy ended up playing in the championship game, so he didn't get back home from Vegas until 11:30 Sunday night. Brook knew something was up, since my gun and binocs were still in camp.
We got to camp and Brook took out the tape measure and he scored him for me.
A special thanks goes out to all my family and friends that helped make this a successful hunt. I really want to thank Brook Blackhurst and his brothers for making my once in a lifetime hunt a success. I couldn't have asked for a better ending to my hunt.
For more pictures of my elk you can hit http://www.kissnetworks.net/mattelk07/index.html
