Ltsheets
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***Long post warning haha***
As I sit here back in NC, I figured it's time I post up how my muzz elk hunt with the wife turned out.
When my wife and I drew a solid muzz elk hunt this yr, I wanted to make the most out of it. We had just moved to NC so I knew it?d probably be my last NM elk hunt for a while unfortunately due to NR draw odds. I wasted no time buying a nice custom muzz so I'd have more than ave range if needed. This turned out to be her decision that allowed our hunt to be a success, as you'll see later.
I got there early and met up with my buddy Kyl to discuss a scouting plan. It had been an unusually slow year and we didn't turn up any bulls for the wife to chase until the day before the opener, 7 bulls to be exact. Needless to say this gave us a lot of confidence for the following morning.
Opening morning, we were where Kyl had spotted the bulls the day before at first light. Nothing. We tried hiking to where he'd seen the biggest one, at the end of a closed road...there we found 2 parked vehicles. What a great way to start. We hiked a solid loop anyway hoping to find them and though we found fresh sign, not a single elk was spotted. We made a plan for the afternoon and split up for lunch.
Around 2, Leslie and I set off on an exploratory hike, which turned out to be a little more rough than she was wanting, so we headed back to meet up with Kyl, who was glassing from his truck. We decided to hunt our way back to my camp, stopping to glass the huge country along the way. Around 545, I get a text from him... ?got bulls low?. I knew what this meant and I told Leslie we needed to get packed up and over to him ASAP as we were running out of daylight. We ran to my UTV and hurried to meet him. He explained how he'd just caught 2 bulls dropping into a nearby draw about 1/2 a mile away or so. He stayed back to glass while Leslie and I tried to go find them.
After a short walk, we were on the ridge near where the bulls had last been seen. I tried getting the wind in our favor and we eased along to have a look. About this time, I started hearing footsteps up the ridge from us. We turned and followed, very slowly. Not a few mins later, I hear Leslie say, ?what's that,? as she looked left. ?An elk butt? I said looking at the ridge on he other side of the draw. It was the 2 bulls...and a cow who seemed to already know we were there.
I told Leslie to follow right behind me and mirror my movements as we eased to the edge of the ridge, trying to get in range. I took a quick Range and it was about 425 yds. We kept going and eventually got to an even 400. The wind was blowing pretty hard but right in our face. I told her I thought we would be ok as long as she could remain steady during the gusts. I helped her get set up and soon I was watching 2 bulls in my binos as she prepared. We were running out of light fast so she decided to take the first bull that offered a shot, which of course would be the smaller of the 2.
When he stepped out, I simply told her that if she's comfortable, there's the shot. Moments later the shot rang out and all the elk scattered, except for her bull, which walked forward and stopped behind a cedar about 10 yds from where it was. For what felt like an eternity, all I could see were the tips of its antlers. When Leslie got eyes on, I reloaded the rifle. After 5 mins or so, he moved back out to where he was on the first shot and laid down. I told Leslie we needed to put another in him thinking he was liver or gut shot. She did just that and he passed almost immediately after the second shot impacted. This was her 3rd elk hunt and she finally had gotten her first bull! We were both overcome with emotions and that wouldn't be the end of it. After walking up to him, Leslie took a moment to give thanks on her own and I couldn't help but get a lump in my throat again. I was so proud of her.
It would be a late night but it was well worth it. That was one of the most satisfying nights sleep in a tent for me in a long time.
With Leslie tagged, I was going to be patient and shoot for a personal best bull. The next few days were a battle against the full moon, fog, rain, and elk that seemed to be anywhere but where they normally are this time of year. It was shaping into one of the more difficult years my buddy could remember regarding seeing bulls.
I woke up on the last day telling myself that this trip was a success and blessing even if I didn't tag. That said, I was gonna hunt my ass off and see what happened. Kyl and I decided going high was the best bet to at least see bulls but the fog was still thick and after over an hr waiting, we started back for the lower country. Halfway down, I spotted a herd of elk with a broken 6x in it. On the last day, I wasn?t going to be picky and we parked to make a stalk.
When we got to where we'd last seen the elk, nothing, though there was tons of fresh sign. We kept working higher up the ridge to gain a better view, hoping to pick them up. Right before deciding to head back, Kyl spotted an elk a couple ridges over. We dropped down and got the the next ridge over from them to try and locate he bull, thinking it might be the same group. After picking apart the hillside they were on for over 30 mins, we couldn't find a bull, and the high mountains were clearing. We were both thinking we needed to get back high as it was 1100 and any stalk up there would be time coniuming. Kyl thought we'd blow a cow call real quick thinking the bull, if hidden, might show himself. It worked to perfection. Moments after a couple quick chirps, an elk appeared from the drainage below. ?Bull!? he said quietly and the scramble to get ready for a shot began. I got prone and steady as quick and quietly as I could. Kyl told be he'd be 450 when he reached the opening if he kept that line. When he stopped in the opening, I settled and the muzz roared! By the time I recovered and got eyes on the bull, he had stopped climbing and crashed down the hill!
Kyl and a I lost it when he crashed. We couldn't believe how that had happened. The bonus?...Kyl thought he was a decent bull but wasn?t sure. We packed up and headed over, finding the bull to be much larger than I thought. He was a hell of a last day bull. Talk about good luck!
Leslie was able to get the UTV fairly close and it was nice having her there as we took apart the bull and packed him out.
I've known several guys who say they'd never want to hunt with their wives, but to me, those days spent in the woods with her have been some of the most memorable of our relationship.
Huge thanks goes out to Kyl and his fam for helping us out.
Sorry for the book. Hope everyone who took the time to read it, enjoyed it!
http://www.monstermuleys.info/photos/user_photos_2018/41883f95ce1d0265249cda0bb4944d85a0abf.jpeg
http://www.monstermuleys.info/photos/user_photos_2018/8669758cfc82ed503453387d18804e41f2adb.jpeg
http://www.monstermuleys.info/photos/user_photos_2018/3514807900194d9d945729d064f2584949e89.jpeg
http://www.monstermuleys.info/photos/user_photos_2018/328336d2fb7d792f34657b2e655f3eca4213c.jpeg
http://www.monstermuleys.info/photos/user_photos_2018/95568bd55f3f628d147b9942d20e331274987.jpeg
http://www.monstermuleys.info/photos/user_photos_2018/11442e2d03ae2c783494a9893d279b8d30676.jpeg
As I sit here back in NC, I figured it's time I post up how my muzz elk hunt with the wife turned out.
When my wife and I drew a solid muzz elk hunt this yr, I wanted to make the most out of it. We had just moved to NC so I knew it?d probably be my last NM elk hunt for a while unfortunately due to NR draw odds. I wasted no time buying a nice custom muzz so I'd have more than ave range if needed. This turned out to be her decision that allowed our hunt to be a success, as you'll see later.
I got there early and met up with my buddy Kyl to discuss a scouting plan. It had been an unusually slow year and we didn't turn up any bulls for the wife to chase until the day before the opener, 7 bulls to be exact. Needless to say this gave us a lot of confidence for the following morning.
Opening morning, we were where Kyl had spotted the bulls the day before at first light. Nothing. We tried hiking to where he'd seen the biggest one, at the end of a closed road...there we found 2 parked vehicles. What a great way to start. We hiked a solid loop anyway hoping to find them and though we found fresh sign, not a single elk was spotted. We made a plan for the afternoon and split up for lunch.
Around 2, Leslie and I set off on an exploratory hike, which turned out to be a little more rough than she was wanting, so we headed back to meet up with Kyl, who was glassing from his truck. We decided to hunt our way back to my camp, stopping to glass the huge country along the way. Around 545, I get a text from him... ?got bulls low?. I knew what this meant and I told Leslie we needed to get packed up and over to him ASAP as we were running out of daylight. We ran to my UTV and hurried to meet him. He explained how he'd just caught 2 bulls dropping into a nearby draw about 1/2 a mile away or so. He stayed back to glass while Leslie and I tried to go find them.
After a short walk, we were on the ridge near where the bulls had last been seen. I tried getting the wind in our favor and we eased along to have a look. About this time, I started hearing footsteps up the ridge from us. We turned and followed, very slowly. Not a few mins later, I hear Leslie say, ?what's that,? as she looked left. ?An elk butt? I said looking at the ridge on he other side of the draw. It was the 2 bulls...and a cow who seemed to already know we were there.
I told Leslie to follow right behind me and mirror my movements as we eased to the edge of the ridge, trying to get in range. I took a quick Range and it was about 425 yds. We kept going and eventually got to an even 400. The wind was blowing pretty hard but right in our face. I told her I thought we would be ok as long as she could remain steady during the gusts. I helped her get set up and soon I was watching 2 bulls in my binos as she prepared. We were running out of light fast so she decided to take the first bull that offered a shot, which of course would be the smaller of the 2.
When he stepped out, I simply told her that if she's comfortable, there's the shot. Moments later the shot rang out and all the elk scattered, except for her bull, which walked forward and stopped behind a cedar about 10 yds from where it was. For what felt like an eternity, all I could see were the tips of its antlers. When Leslie got eyes on, I reloaded the rifle. After 5 mins or so, he moved back out to where he was on the first shot and laid down. I told Leslie we needed to put another in him thinking he was liver or gut shot. She did just that and he passed almost immediately after the second shot impacted. This was her 3rd elk hunt and she finally had gotten her first bull! We were both overcome with emotions and that wouldn't be the end of it. After walking up to him, Leslie took a moment to give thanks on her own and I couldn't help but get a lump in my throat again. I was so proud of her.
It would be a late night but it was well worth it. That was one of the most satisfying nights sleep in a tent for me in a long time.
With Leslie tagged, I was going to be patient and shoot for a personal best bull. The next few days were a battle against the full moon, fog, rain, and elk that seemed to be anywhere but where they normally are this time of year. It was shaping into one of the more difficult years my buddy could remember regarding seeing bulls.
I woke up on the last day telling myself that this trip was a success and blessing even if I didn't tag. That said, I was gonna hunt my ass off and see what happened. Kyl and I decided going high was the best bet to at least see bulls but the fog was still thick and after over an hr waiting, we started back for the lower country. Halfway down, I spotted a herd of elk with a broken 6x in it. On the last day, I wasn?t going to be picky and we parked to make a stalk.
When we got to where we'd last seen the elk, nothing, though there was tons of fresh sign. We kept working higher up the ridge to gain a better view, hoping to pick them up. Right before deciding to head back, Kyl spotted an elk a couple ridges over. We dropped down and got the the next ridge over from them to try and locate he bull, thinking it might be the same group. After picking apart the hillside they were on for over 30 mins, we couldn't find a bull, and the high mountains were clearing. We were both thinking we needed to get back high as it was 1100 and any stalk up there would be time coniuming. Kyl thought we'd blow a cow call real quick thinking the bull, if hidden, might show himself. It worked to perfection. Moments after a couple quick chirps, an elk appeared from the drainage below. ?Bull!? he said quietly and the scramble to get ready for a shot began. I got prone and steady as quick and quietly as I could. Kyl told be he'd be 450 when he reached the opening if he kept that line. When he stopped in the opening, I settled and the muzz roared! By the time I recovered and got eyes on the bull, he had stopped climbing and crashed down the hill!
Kyl and a I lost it when he crashed. We couldn't believe how that had happened. The bonus?...Kyl thought he was a decent bull but wasn?t sure. We packed up and headed over, finding the bull to be much larger than I thought. He was a hell of a last day bull. Talk about good luck!
Leslie was able to get the UTV fairly close and it was nice having her there as we took apart the bull and packed him out.
I've known several guys who say they'd never want to hunt with their wives, but to me, those days spent in the woods with her have been some of the most memorable of our relationship.
Huge thanks goes out to Kyl and his fam for helping us out.
Sorry for the book. Hope everyone who took the time to read it, enjoyed it!
http://www.monstermuleys.info/photos/user_photos_2018/41883f95ce1d0265249cda0bb4944d85a0abf.jpeg
http://www.monstermuleys.info/photos/user_photos_2018/8669758cfc82ed503453387d18804e41f2adb.jpeg
http://www.monstermuleys.info/photos/user_photos_2018/3514807900194d9d945729d064f2584949e89.jpeg
http://www.monstermuleys.info/photos/user_photos_2018/328336d2fb7d792f34657b2e655f3eca4213c.jpeg
http://www.monstermuleys.info/photos/user_photos_2018/95568bd55f3f628d147b9942d20e331274987.jpeg
http://www.monstermuleys.info/photos/user_photos_2018/11442e2d03ae2c783494a9893d279b8d30676.jpeg
