New Guy, First Elk Hunt Upcoming

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BigCountry14

New member
Aug 23, 2018
5
Good morning, new guy here from Maryland.  I've spent a lot of time reading and dreaming about elk hunting, but have never actually done it.  I was in the beginning stages of planning an elk hunt out west on 2019 or 2020 when I got a call from the PA Game Commision that I drew a bull tag this November.  So while the excitement has pretty much kept me up all week, there is also quite a bit of nervousness.  Ive been talking to a couple outfitters up there trying to get the lay of the land, but if any one on here has hunted there and has any advice, Id love to hear it.

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BigCountry14 said:
Good morning, new guy here from Maryland.  I've spent a lot of time reading and dreaming about elk hunting, but have never actually done it.  I was in the beginning stages of planning an elk hunt out west on 2019 or 2020 when I got a call from the PA Game Commision that I drew a bull tag this November.  So while the excitement has pretty much kept me up all week, there is also quite a bit of nervousness.  Ive been talking to a couple outfitters up there trying to get the lay of the land, but if any one on here has hunted there and has any advice, Id love to hear it.

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I've not hunted up there, but wanted to say CONGRATS on the tag and welcome to the forum.
I've seen some MONSTERS taken from PA!  :upthumb:
 
CONGRATS! been putting in for it for 6 years and no luck. Looks like 90 percent or more of the tags went to PA applicants. Success rate on taking a bull is pretty high so you have started with a premium tag. Let us know how the journey goes, maybe you can help us be better prepared for the future,
You gun or archery hunting? I have wondered how I would go if I get picked. Love the archery but odds will be greater with a rifle.
 
Im going rifle.  Pulling out my grandfathers .30-06.  Id love to go archery, but I retired my compound (an early 70s Ben Pearson that also was my grandfathers) a few years ago and havent replaced it since my son was born.  Im really excited, Ive been calling anyone Ive ever know to hunt in PA seeing if anyone is familiar with the area at all.

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BigCountry14 said:
Good morning, new guy here from Maryland.  I've spent a lot of time reading and dreaming about elk hunting, but have never actually done it.  I was in the beginning stages of planning an elk hunt out west on 2019 or 2020 when I got a call from the PA Game Commision that I drew a bull tag this November.  So while the excitement has pretty much kept me up all week, there is also quite a bit of nervousness.  Ive been talking to a couple outfitters up there trying to get the lay of the land, but if any one on here has hunted there and has any advice, Id love to hear it.

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How'd your hunt go?

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I just realized I never did post the story.  Things went really well.  I tagged out at 6:51am on opening morning.

It really was a crazy morning.  I only had 3 days to hunt because of other obligations so we were really pushing hard to find the bulls early.  Unfortunately several of the ones we had located had locked down on private ground we didn't have access to, and the one that was on ground we did have access for, disappeared the weekend ahead of the hunt.  My guide had both hunters in my zone and the other set had found a group of bulls on public land.  So it was decided we would go in together and try to take the two biggest of the group.

We got into the field on the rainy opening morning just as five bulls came off a hill side.  The two bigger ones were in the group, so we figured out who was going for what and set up.  The bulls were tightly grouped at about 275 yards, so getting a shot was difficult.  Then the two bulls we were going for started sparring, making it even more difficult to line up our shots.  As they separated, the other hunters bull came closer to us, and mine headed away.  He was about 285 yards out when I fired the first shot.

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All hell broke loose as soon as I fired.  The bull went down, and the other hunter fired right after me.  He fired two more follow ups.  Next thing I know, there are three bulls on the ground and I don't have a clean follow up.  I set my scope on the bull and realize that it's not the bull I shot.  Then I finally settled long enough to hear my Dad tell me not to worry, mine went straight down and stayed there.  One of the other bulls had just played down when I shot.  He jumped up and ran off shortly after.

As we walked in the field towards the other hunters bull, it stood up and charged at us.  He fired again and turned the bull away.  He finished it with a neck shot from about 10 feet. 

Field dressing showed I hit my bull through both lungs.  Video shot by the other hunters friend showed he was pretty much dead when he hit the ground.  He was a beautiful 6x6.  He had a broken tine on one side, but is still a great bull.  While we were dressing we were approached by a game warden who was on the rounds with the PA Game Commisioner.  It was a great interaction and they were as nice as could be.
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Live weight was estimated at 680lbs.  I have close to 300lbs of meat in the freezer.

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