We were out hunting this morning and was able to hit an elk. We had a quartering shot at 50 yards. We found the arrow and it had about 16 inches of penetration. There was bubbles in the blood which comes from the lungs. We tracked the bull for about a half a mile and left him and backed out not wanting to spook him. The cows he was with didn't follow him and the bull was not able to go uphill. He started uphill but turned back after about 20 yards and continued downhill. He went into the thick pines and we hoped he bedded. We are going in to get him i was just curious what you guys thought? Will he die?
What are your thoughts? Archery Elk
- Thread starter Huntelk
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dgwoody
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If there is a way to watch the last place you saw blood from a distance, I would suggest setting someone up to do just that when you go in for him. He's probably dead, but if he's not the wound will be scanned over enough that if you bump him again you might not ever find him again. If nothing else, set someone up on his exit route to watch for him if he does get up and try to move again. Good luck!
Bubbles don't necessarily mean lungs----more important is the blood color. Real bright red will be lung and dark/maroon is liver. You didn't specify quartering to or from either, so you may have clipped one lung and got liver. Having said this I would give him the night and look in the am. You're meat may be spoiled, but at least you'll find the animal. It's a tough decision in this heat....hope you find him.
ElkManDan
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from the sounds of it, it does sound like a lethal shot and I really hope you recover him. How long did you give him after the shot before you started tracking him? If I am unsure or think it could be a single lung/liver shot I wouldn't even think about tracking before 2 hours. On an obvious gut shot I wait 8 -10 hours before even starting tracking. This will make the difference between finding or losing an animal.
Definitely best to give plenty of time especially since he's already covered 1/2 mile. When you attempt a recovery I'd try to go very slow in case he isn't dead he should be pretty stoved up and may provide enough time for a follow up shot before he can take off. If it's somewhat open terrain I'd also suggest a spotter on another ridge that can let you know if they see something moving while you follow the trail. Good luck.
