Next Up - Locked & Loaded II
- Thread starter cnelk
- Start date
All settled back at home.
Meat at the processor.
160lbs, not incl the tenderloins & backstraps
A good sized elk for sure
Yeah, it was a cold windy beeeatch this morning for sure
I bet some of those wind gusts pushed 30-40mph sometimes, and that made the windchill well below 0 degrees.
We left John\'s place about 520am and headed to the ranch with the UTV in tow.
It was about a 30min drive and we bundled up, unloaded and went out braved the elements
Meat at the processor.
160lbs, not incl the tenderloins & backstraps
A good sized elk for sure
Yeah, it was a cold windy beeeatch this morning for sure
I bet some of those wind gusts pushed 30-40mph sometimes, and that made the windchill well below 0 degrees.
We left John\'s place about 520am and headed to the ranch with the UTV in tow.
It was about a 30min drive and we bundled up, unloaded and went out braved the elements
We drove thru the ranch, and went up to the foothills in the dark, riding in the UTV.
The snow had started to drift in areas and it became very obvious that this could quite well be the last time we could get up into the elk area as 4WD was a must
We parked on a ridge and sat for a bit, overlooking a big opening, letting the daylight come.
The mood was pretty grim.
Will the elk be out in these conditions?
After a few minutes, I said we should hike over to a little ridge and check on the other side
It was about 1/2 mile hike - heading with the wind.
Knowing full well what the walk back would be like...
The snow had started to drift in areas and it became very obvious that this could quite well be the last time we could get up into the elk area as 4WD was a must
We parked on a ridge and sat for a bit, overlooking a big opening, letting the daylight come.
The mood was pretty grim.
Will the elk be out in these conditions?
After a few minutes, I said we should hike over to a little ridge and check on the other side
It was about 1/2 mile hike - heading with the wind.
Knowing full well what the walk back would be like...
We made it to the next ridge, eased up and over overlooked more big meadows.
Nada.
We stood there and let daylight come and watch an absolutely gorgeous sunrise.
We were standing there and I happened to look behind us, uphill and saw 2 elk!!!
A cow and a calf!
There were heading across a big open hillside, moving left to right, same way as the wind was blowing...
The cow was in the lead with the calf following a ways behind.
We quickly decided to close the distance as much as we could...
We dipped down and up thru some some timber.
I found a rock that would be a good rest, got prone and I asked John Deertick for a range...
580yds to the tree behind the elk....
Nada.
We stood there and let daylight come and watch an absolutely gorgeous sunrise.
We were standing there and I happened to look behind us, uphill and saw 2 elk!!!
A cow and a calf!
There were heading across a big open hillside, moving left to right, same way as the wind was blowing...
The cow was in the lead with the calf following a ways behind.
We quickly decided to close the distance as much as we could...
We dipped down and up thru some some timber.
I found a rock that would be a good rest, got prone and I asked John Deertick for a range...
580yds to the tree behind the elk....
My .340 Weatherby is zeroed at 350yds...
The bullet drops 20\" at 500yds
The cow stopped.
I held over her spine 16inches
Boom!
She just looks around like \'What was that???\'
I knew I shot over her
I racked another round....
Boom...
Another miss...
I was not compesating for the wind!!!
She turned around started heading back from where they came from....
The bullet drops 20\" at 500yds
The cow stopped.
I held over her spine 16inches
Boom!
She just looks around like \'What was that???\'
I knew I shot over her
I racked another round....
Boom...
Another miss...
I was not compesating for the wind!!!
She turned around started heading back from where they came from....
Then we hiked back to the UTV, carefully looking at the best way to get back up to her without getting stuck.
[We kept an eye out for that calf, as John still had a tag]
We managed to drive up and load her up!
This is the first time EVER I have not quartered an elk to get them off the mtn...
It was exhausting!
[media]https://youtu.be/jfKOW5DaXF0[/media]
[We kept an eye out for that calf, as John still had a tag]
We managed to drive up and load her up!
This is the first time EVER I have not quartered an elk to get them off the mtn...
It was exhausting!
[media]https://youtu.be/jfKOW5DaXF0[/media]
