Brian Fairbanks photo
Two of the three bull elks shot last week near the 2V Road south of Forks, lie where they fell.
by Denise DeVaney, Forum editor
On Tuesday morning, Oct. 24, a deer hunter near milepost 179 on Highway 101 made a disturbing and puzzling discovery according to Department of Fish and Wildlife Officer Brian Fairbanks. Three branch-antlered bull elk had been shot dead and left intact where they fell. The animals were found about 11 a.m., and Fairbanks arrived on the scene about an hour later.
"The animals were still warm," Fairbanks said, "and the bullets were well-placed. This was not random shooting; it looked as if they were targeting the bulls."
The antlers had not been removed and according to Fairbanks, the motive for the shooting was unknown.
The area in which the shooting took place had been closed to public access, while timber work went on. The gate, which had been kept locked, had been vandalized and left open every day for the two or three days prior to the shooting.
To report any information about the shooting, call the Department of Fish and Wildlife at 374-9440.