Area 6 Late Elk Hunt (pics)

bcmulie · Nov 21, 2015

Hey folks,

I don't often post my hunts but after all of the help that I received from monstermuleys.com members on this hunt, I figure I better post up.

First, though, thanks to all of those members who provided information and guidance, including:

NVHNTR
treedagain
NECALI
BigBuck23
3blade

And most importantly, a huge shout out to shedneck, who went above and beyond. Not only did he find us somewhere to stay, come out with us on his day off, show us a great area, and pack out the two front shoulders of my elk - he had cold beer waiting for us at the truck when we finished the pack out!!! Tyler, you are welcome to hunt with me any time, and if I can ever help you out on any hunt all you have to do is ask. Thanks bud.

Now to the hunt?

I missed opening day of my elk hunt due to a Colorado 3rd season muley hunt, but pulled into Elko on the second day of the season. We (my brother was with me on both my CO and NV hunts and was a huge help) didn't have much time to hunt that did, but did go for a quick drive and get to enjoy a beautiful NV sunset.

I'll pause here just to make sure my pic is showing properly.

bcmulie · Nov 21, 2015

Ok, looks like that worked.

Day 2 it was COLD:

(sorry about the celsius, but that's what you get from us Canadians)

We headed to the Cornucopia Ridge Area on our second day. I was fortunate enough to have arranged access to the IL Ranch prior to my hunt (I recommend that anyone with this tag do so, as it allowed us to access a great area where we saw close to 40 bulls). It didn't take long for us to spot our first bulls:

However, neither one was a shooter for me on this hunt.

Our plan on this day was to drive around and learn the country, but mid-morning we spotted a large herd about 5 miles back from the road, so we threw on the packs and headed back into the mountains after them. As it turned out, there weren't any bulls in this herd, but we did spot a second herd with a half dozen young bulls in it, as well as two lone bulls - a 6x6 and a really cool 5x8. The 5x8 appears to have broken off a brow tine and a sixth point on the 5 side and had 2 points where the 4th would normally be - a really cool bull. Here's a couple of pics:

I knew that being only a 5 on one side this bull wouldn't score that well, but he was a really cool-looking bull so I was definitely interested. Unfortunately, it was late in the day and he was still a mile or so away from us, so we backed out for the day.

bcmulie · Nov 21, 2015

We tried to get back into the area where we'd seen the 5x8 the following day, but encountered white-out conditions. We did manage to spot a couple of smaller bulls during a break in the weather, but for the most part day 3 was a washout.

Day 4 we were able to get back into the area where the 5x8 had been hanging out, and started to see lots of elk. We probably saw 125-150 elk on day 4, including about 20 bulls. We hiked up high to the area where the 5x8 had been and hunkered down in a great hideaway to glass for the 5x8. That's when Murphy's law struck. I choose the exact wrong moment to slip over to the edge of the hill we were on to look into another little basin. In doing so I had to leave our hideaway and cross an open snow patch. The 5x8 chose that exact moment to pop over the ridge behind us, about 700 yards away. My brother saw him immediately and whistled to me, but it was too late - he had me pegged. He stood there for a moment looking at us, and then bolted. Although I followed his tracks for some distance, he was still lined out after 2 miles so I let him go.

We continued hunting in this area for the rest of the day, seeing many bulls but nothing that interested me. There were quite a few broken bulls, including this one who appears to have been a 6x6 but had broken off 5 points on one side and one on the other!

Here are a couple more pics of the country we were hunting:

bcmulie · Nov 21, 2015

Day 5 we connected with Shedneck, who took us to a new area west of Tuscarora. Shedneck really knew the country and took us to some great glassing locations. At the first one we spotted a herd with a nice 6x6 and a couple of smaller bulls. Later in the day we spotted another group of 4 bulls, including one that piqued my interest:

He's the one with his head down, in case you didn't guess.

We decided to check a couple of additional spots to see what else we could find, but after doing that I decided that I needed a closer look at this bull. We threw on the packs and headed in after him...

bcmulie · Nov 21, 2015

The 4 bulls had moved by the time we got back to them, but we did spot another group of 6 bulls with a decent 6x6 and nice 5x5, but nothing we wanted to pursue. After a quick discussion, we decided to head up and over the mountains to check the back side of the range, as it appeared that the original herd of 4 bulls had headed that direction.

On the other side of the range, we spotted a group of 10 bulls, including a couple of possible shooters, who were walking out into the desert. As we relocated to keep them in view, shed neck spotted another group of bulls much closer to us. They appeared to be the original group that we had been after, and were now only 500 yards away. Here's a pic of the largest bull:

500 yards was a bit far for me, so I slid down a gully towards the bedded bulls while my brother and shedneck kept watch. At 325 yards I was just getting set up, using my spotting scope as a rifle rest, when the bull stood up and turned broadside. At my shot he dropped instantly and I had my first Rocky Mountain elk.

My brother and I with my bull:

And the whole crew:

After the elk was down and the pictures taken, the real work began. We started cutting up the bull at about 2:30 pm, so by the time the packs were loaded we didn't have much daylight left. We headed back up and over the mountain and managed to connect with a small two-track road we'd seen on the way up just at dark. After dropping our packs there we walked back to the trucks and drove them in to pick up the bull. I think we were back at our cabin at around 8 or 9 pm.

Here's a pic of the pack out:

All in all, this hunt was a fantastic experience. Northern Nevada is beautiful (but cold - and that's coming from a Canadian!), we saw a pile of animals, I managed to take a great bull, and I met a new hunting partner. I couldn't have asked for anything more.

I hope everyone else is having a great season, and that you all get to experience an elk hunt in NV at some point in your lives.

Bcmulie

Deerlove · Nov 21, 2015

Very nice thanks for sharing.

cmbbulldog · Nov 21, 2015

Great pics, thanks for sharing.

oilcan · Nov 21, 2015

Great pictures and story thanks for sharing

NEVADAGUY · Nov 21, 2015

Congrats on your hunt. Looks like you had a great time.

ICMDEER · Nov 22, 2015

Congrats on a great bull and an adventure of a hunt. It's also good to hear some of the MM guys helped. That's what this place is about. Great story.

Bossbrott · Nov 23, 2015

Great adventure, thanks for sharing,,,,,and congrats.

972Elk · Nov 24, 2015

PM Sent

bcmulie · Nov 26, 2015

Thanks for the kind words everyone.

972, sent you an email.

thrstyunderwater · Nov 29, 2015

That's a really fun hunt! Any chance you checked out the Taylor Canyon resort? Trying to plan a hunt for December there myself.

shedneck · Nov 29, 2015

I have always been a believer in helping out our fellow hunters. You, my friend, are a true hunter - you never questioned the drive, the glassing points, the hike or the pack out even when it was extremely cold.

I've been lucky enough to have been on quite a few elk hunts, but rarely have I seen a bull elk drop straight down with one shot. You and your brother are quality people and I consider both of you my friends. Thank you for allowing me to join you on such an awesome experience.

If you ever need anything down this way, please let me know.

bcmulie · Nov 29, 2015

thyrsty, we stayed at Taylor Canyon. Cabins are basic (a room with beds) but do the job. Owner is friendly, and a hunter, and at least one outfitter was staying there with a client. Location is good in terms of being within striking distance of a number of good elk areas. I would stay there again.

shed, it's guys like you that make the hunting community, and this website, so fantastic. You ever need anything, just let me know. Thanks again.