What is your \'perfect\' hunt?

[cohunter14]

We all have 10-11 months every year to dream about chasing the prized \'wapiti\'...so, what is your \'perfect\' hunt? Is it waking up opening morning, getting to your desired location, and having the sun rise to a monster bull that you take in the first few minutes of shooting light? Or are you more about the camaraderie and taking an animal is secondary? Or, as Brad (cnelk) has in his signature, nothing ruins a good elk hunt like killing an elk!

 

[archery bum]

A perfect hunt for me is too still be physically and mentally able too hunt every year. As long as I can still do what I love doing every year is good enough for me.

 

[Jaquomo]

Hunting 22 days, learning something every day, then filling the freezer on the last morning of the season

 

[Bullnuts]

Watching my kids arrow their first elk on consecutive days and then spending the rest of my vacation sleeping late, fishing, and being the camp cook. Oh, and sitting by the fire with a glass of Maker\'s Mark won\'t hurt either!

 

[bnsafe]

calling a bugling bull in, have him bugle 20 yds from me, then placing a perfect arrow into him. pref a hundred yds from the car, lol

 

[Deertick]

While I like to say it\'s not about \"killing\" ... it is, of course. A perfect hunt ends with a kill you don\'t have to track because you see the animal go down.

That said, elk hunting is about contact. It\'s not about seeing animals from a distance, or ambushing them -- though both of those are part of it. The question, though, was about the \"perfect\" hunt, and the perfect hunt involves contact -- interaction, chess-playing -- so, to me, the perfect hunt has to include bugling bulls and up-close encounters.

I will be hunting alone this year, and so it sure isn\'t about the camp-scene and reuniting with old friends. For me, that portion of the hunt\'s perfection lies in the quiet of the camp -- a time for me to be me, and to rely on me to take care of me. It\'s all about me! What could be better? :lol:

I\'m laughing about how selfish that sounds, but it\'s not selfish in the bad sense of the word -- it\'s selfish as in \"introspective\", self-examination, self-testing.

 

[OldMan]

Ah yes, the perfect hunt. Well, for me that means a hard hunt, because the hunt is everything for me. The kill is just a bonus for a hard hunt. If I had an easy shot on the first day I wouldn\'t take it. I want to hunt hard for 9 days, and if i\'m to make a kill I want it on the last day.

It\'s not the destination that\'s important. It\'s the journey you take to get there. Certainly not my words, but I live and hunt by those words. My style of hunting lets the elk use all it\'s sense against me. It can easily see, hear, and smell me if I don\'t do my part. No tricks. No aids. No gadgets. Me and the elk on a level playing field. I guess that\'s why i\'ve never called in elk. It\'s tricking the elk into thinking you\'re another elk. I prefer to not do that.

A perfect hunt? Maybe after failing for 8 days to get close to an elk for my less than 50yd shot. I finally get it all as I should on the last day, and get within my self imposed range to make a perfect humane shot for a quick kill.

That\'s what has kept me coming back every year for over 60 years to hunt the majestic elk. An animal that deserves no less than 100% from us.

 

[cohunter14]

I have to agree with some of you in that it would be difficult to look forward to the hunt all year long, only to take an animal opening morning and be done. I haven\'t yet experienced that, but I think it would be fun to do that one year. Then I could spend the rest of the hunt being camp cook, scouting some new areas, and truly enjoying God\'s beautiful country. However, regardless of the success that happens or not, a lot of the hunt is about the camaraderie for me. I love the camp stories, giving each other a hard time, and enjoying a few laughs with good friends. So I guess for this year\'s hunt, I\'d have to say dropping an elk opening morning and relaxing the rest of the hunt, enjoying time with friends. That would be the perfect hunt for this year.

 

[OldMan]

Not if you hunt alone. :mrgreen:

 

[cohunter14]

Not if you hunt alone. :mrgreen:

I would definitely have to agree with you there Pete That would change my way of thinking for sure.

 

[Swede]

I have never experienced a perfect hunt. I am not sure I would recognize one if they exist. Being with my son, our friend and killing three 5x5 bulls the first day of the season was great. Killing a nice 4x4 bull the last Saturday of the season, to finish off a very long hunt, was nearly as sweet. No, I think my best hunt came the first time I killed a 4x5 bull from a tree stand. I realized elk could be taken at a certain place, by carefully scouting and examining the evidence. Hold it: My best hunt came years ago when I shot a bull while hunting with my dad and sharing that first elk kill experience with him. No: it was the time, I was there with my son, a week after I had filled my tag, when he got his first elk. Oh, forget it. I am getting confused trying to think about my best hunt, not to mention the perfect one. Elk hunts are filled with great memories often punctuated with a brief moment of euphoria.

 

[Colorado_Lew]

Elk hunts are filled with great memories often punctuated with a brief moment of euphoria.

Amen!

 

[Zpd307]

I don\'t think a perfect hunt could be put into words.

 

[Bullnuts]

Come to think of it, every hunt is a perfect hunt.