Montana Elk Hunt
Nov 5, 2021 23:55:10 GMT -5
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Stump Buster, paul105, and 6 more like this
Post by kevshell on Nov 5, 2021 23:55:10 GMT -5
Well, another successful Montana elk hunt on the record. It was another great year with great memories and lessons learned.
My wife, a friend, a client and myself went this year. All four of us tagged out. Just like last year, I got mine on the first morning within the first 30 minutes of shoot light. It was 200 yards in a herd on the trot. One shot and it was over.
My friend and client both tagged out on the third day of the hunt. We caught a huge migration herd with several hundred elk and quite a few bulls.
The highlight of my week was my wife's bull. She got her's on the last day. She hunted hard all week even when other guys stayed at the ranch because they were sore and tired. We all continued to ride along with her for the experience even though we were all tagged out. We wanted to see each other have their moment plus we saw new things every day. We rode up on a decent sized herd with 2 bulls. We rode hard to catch up and get a decent shot. My wife's shot was from one ridge to the next. 432 yards. The herd moved through one small clearing which helped identify cows and bulls. The second clearing was going to be her only chance at one before they slipped over the ridge and would be gone. She layer over a huge boulder for a rest. The guide coached her one the shot and bang - a hard hit. We rode over and he was not going anywhere but need a final shot. I'm not sure how many hunters would hit a moving elk at 432 yards and claim their trophy.
The weather and terrain was different every day. We had a warm day. Then it snowed the following. Then we had a day when the snow was above 7000 feet. Luckily we hunted high that day while the others got wet.
Teeth and nails were always near by. We saw grizzly tracks and wolf tracks. We heard wolves but none presented themselves for our tags. We also failed to see a bear but other hunters in camp rode up on grizzlies. One group had a bluff charge from a grizzly wanting their kill. Two warning shots and the bear gave up and moved on.
I attached several other pictures that have nothing to do with "hunting" but they are part of the experience. This ranch has remnants of a gold mining town on it. This was a self sustaining town with 130 buildings consisting of mercantiles, hydroelectric facilities, a mill, etc. This mine extracted approximately 200,000 ounces of gold which would be about $350,000,000 in today's dollars.
Last year I selected Nosler Accubonds for our 300 Win Mags and was very impressed with the performance. I recommended them to my client and friend for their hunt this year. Ultimately we all anchored our elk in one shot. My wife's elk was the only one needing a finisher. The picture of the recovered bullet was from my clients elk. He had a Texas heart shot at about 200-250 yards. The bullet broke a femur, shredded the liver lungs and heart then laid to rest in the offside shoulder. These are great bullets. We had other hunters in camp that brought bullets really more designed for whitetail hunting in the east. One elk was shot 5 times and was lost. Some just don't understand bullet construction and integrity.
I have tons of pictures that I could share. It was a great week and can't wait for next year's adventures.
My wife, a friend, a client and myself went this year. All four of us tagged out. Just like last year, I got mine on the first morning within the first 30 minutes of shoot light. It was 200 yards in a herd on the trot. One shot and it was over.
My friend and client both tagged out on the third day of the hunt. We caught a huge migration herd with several hundred elk and quite a few bulls.
The highlight of my week was my wife's bull. She got her's on the last day. She hunted hard all week even when other guys stayed at the ranch because they were sore and tired. We all continued to ride along with her for the experience even though we were all tagged out. We wanted to see each other have their moment plus we saw new things every day. We rode up on a decent sized herd with 2 bulls. We rode hard to catch up and get a decent shot. My wife's shot was from one ridge to the next. 432 yards. The herd moved through one small clearing which helped identify cows and bulls. The second clearing was going to be her only chance at one before they slipped over the ridge and would be gone. She layer over a huge boulder for a rest. The guide coached her one the shot and bang - a hard hit. We rode over and he was not going anywhere but need a final shot. I'm not sure how many hunters would hit a moving elk at 432 yards and claim their trophy.
The weather and terrain was different every day. We had a warm day. Then it snowed the following. Then we had a day when the snow was above 7000 feet. Luckily we hunted high that day while the others got wet.
Teeth and nails were always near by. We saw grizzly tracks and wolf tracks. We heard wolves but none presented themselves for our tags. We also failed to see a bear but other hunters in camp rode up on grizzlies. One group had a bluff charge from a grizzly wanting their kill. Two warning shots and the bear gave up and moved on.
I attached several other pictures that have nothing to do with "hunting" but they are part of the experience. This ranch has remnants of a gold mining town on it. This was a self sustaining town with 130 buildings consisting of mercantiles, hydroelectric facilities, a mill, etc. This mine extracted approximately 200,000 ounces of gold which would be about $350,000,000 in today's dollars.
Last year I selected Nosler Accubonds for our 300 Win Mags and was very impressed with the performance. I recommended them to my client and friend for their hunt this year. Ultimately we all anchored our elk in one shot. My wife's elk was the only one needing a finisher. The picture of the recovered bullet was from my clients elk. He had a Texas heart shot at about 200-250 yards. The bullet broke a femur, shredded the liver lungs and heart then laid to rest in the offside shoulder. These are great bullets. We had other hunters in camp that brought bullets really more designed for whitetail hunting in the east. One elk was shot 5 times and was lost. Some just don't understand bullet construction and integrity.
I have tons of pictures that I could share. It was a great week and can't wait for next year's adventures.
