7:30am this morning, 169 yards down in a gully, 270 win, 45yr old Ruger M77 red butt, 140g sierra game king jsp, hand load.
We were sitting in front of a pile of rocks overlooking a 300 yard long gully filled w/thick trees/scrubs etc.
Thinking we wont see anything as the last 3 days prior to opening day (today) we saw exactly ZERO Elk, but tons of big racked deer (no tags).
Then it started slowly....CRASH...CRASH...SNAP, crash, thump thump thumping...rumble, crash, rumble, snap...like a freight train through the trees below us. NO we could not see anything. We only could hear the charging of something that may be Elk?
About 150 yards along the trees below finally out comes a cow elk...looks up the hill right at us. How the heck?? WE were in a frozen sitting position & blended right in.
She moves out and up the side hill, 18 others follow her out, we have general tags for cow/bull/calf so we wait for the last cow to come out ready to drop it....It then steps out.
Man we were not moving an millimeter and it looks us straight in the eye below us like the cow. My pal raises his Ruger....Boooomm & it shudders, takes 3 steps & drops in his tracks.
Takes 3 of us to get it up to the road 200 yards behind us.
I call it a 6x6, pal says 7th tip is big enough for a ring to fit so its a 7x7.
I dont hunt elk, but show up at his camp when he can use help w/spotting & dragging it out.
Looks like we will be filling my freezer and both of his.
We were sitting in front of a pile of rocks overlooking a 300 yard long gully filled w/thick trees/scrubs etc.
Thinking we wont see anything as the last 3 days prior to opening day (today) we saw exactly ZERO Elk, but tons of big racked deer (no tags).
Then it started slowly....CRASH...CRASH...SNAP, crash, thump thump thumping...rumble, crash, rumble, snap...like a freight train through the trees below us. NO we could not see anything. We only could hear the charging of something that may be Elk?
About 150 yards along the trees below finally out comes a cow elk...looks up the hill right at us. How the heck?? WE were in a frozen sitting position & blended right in.
She moves out and up the side hill, 18 others follow her out, we have general tags for cow/bull/calf so we wait for the last cow to come out ready to drop it....It then steps out.
Man we were not moving an millimeter and it looks us straight in the eye below us like the cow. My pal raises his Ruger....Boooomm & it shudders, takes 3 steps & drops in his tracks.
Takes 3 of us to get it up to the road 200 yards behind us.
I call it a 6x6, pal says 7th tip is big enough for a ring to fit so its a 7x7.
I dont hunt elk, but show up at his camp when he can use help w/spotting & dragging it out.
Looks like we will be filling my freezer and both of his.
