OT - Got my first elk
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- deerwhacker444
- Senior Levergunner
- Posts: 1300
- Joined: Wed Sep 12, 2007 1:12 pm
- Location: Oklahoma
OT - Got my first elk
Well,...I got my first elk this past week. I drew one of the coveted Bull depredation tags on the Wichita Mountains National Wildlife Refuge outside of Lawton, OK.
All the worry about long range and caliber selection was a moot point. The first day of hunting, I didn't see a single elk. The next morning it was suggested that I try an area where a fellow hunter with a cow tag had seen some bulls.
The second morning I was on a large rockpile with binocs, glassing a huge area of native grass when I spotted a buffalo about as far as I could see. Not sure how far they were. My rangefinder works out to 600 yards and it was drawing a blank. A few minutes later as the sun was coming up, I could see a couple bulls in the same area grazing, so I grabbed my gear, climbed off the rocks and started my stalk. I was able to crawl the last little bit and get into a small cedar/oak thicket in front of the elk without them seeing me. All I could do now was wait till they grazed closer. I was shooting the Winchester 70 that I'd practiced with all summer, in .270 Win. I picked out the best one of the group and waited until he was as close as he was going to get, turned out to be 135 yards. My nerves had mostly settled by this point, so I put the crosshairs where I thought they should be and squeezed off a round.
The one constant that people told me about elk was "Shoot until they're down or until you run out of bullets" I actually had this in mind when I squeezed off my first shot.
At the first shot, the bull went straight down like he was hit by lightening. For a split second, I thought "man this was easy.!", as I worked the bolt to clear the empty and chamber a fresh one. Not a second went by when I noticed the bull getting back up, that's when I started getting nervous. As quickly as I could I put the cross hairs on a spot on his neck and gave him a second bullet, this time he went down and didn't get back up. When I made it to him, he was still alive and moving his head a bit, so I gave him another to end the suffering.
It took a few minutes for everything to sink in, what a marvelous animal. I wasn't prepared for what I was feeling at taking such a fine animal. I just had to stand there for a while and soak it all in.
This is what he looked like where he fell, he was a 5x5.
One thing that you guys didn't prepare me for was the gut-pile..... I couldn't believe the size of the gut-pile on these animals.
Luckily, I was in a good spot and the National Parks guys were able to drive pretty close. We were able to load the bull whole into their truck to take back to the check in station. We didn't have to cut it up and pack it out like I thought I'd have to. They aged him at 5.5 years old.
Once he was checked in, we got him strung up and my cousin and I commenced on our first attempt at elk skinning/quartering/processing. Another thing that everyone told me to do was get the hide off quick. Now I know why. That hide was like an electric blanket. There's no way that meat would have cooled with the hide on.
We continued processing and tried to take everything that was edible. We wanted to take everything we could and not leave a thing.
When we started cutting the meat off, it became apparent why the bull dropped so fast on the first shot. I made a rookie mistake that might have cost me the animal if I hadn't had the 2nd shot ready when the bull popped back up.
Somehow, I managed to send my first shot high and missed the vitals. The first bullet hit the top portion of the vertebra above the spine, which explains why he dropped so suddenly. You can see in the photo that the backbone makes sort of a dorsal fin on the top of the spinal cord. Well, I blew a hole thru that and made a probably less than lethal wound. The second shot went in the neck, taking out the lungs and out the ribcage. I am so glad I was able to place a proper second shot and can't believe I missed the first one so badly.
The 130 gr TSX that I used preformed just like it was supposed to. I found one while skinning him out. I don't think I could ask for better bullet performance.
Well that about wraps it up. He's processed and in the freezer and he'll feed us thru the remainder of the winter. It took me 19 years to get drawn, but was worth the wait.
Someday I hope to take a proper elk hunt with horses, tents and such. But until then, this one will do.
All the worry about long range and caliber selection was a moot point. The first day of hunting, I didn't see a single elk. The next morning it was suggested that I try an area where a fellow hunter with a cow tag had seen some bulls.
The second morning I was on a large rockpile with binocs, glassing a huge area of native grass when I spotted a buffalo about as far as I could see. Not sure how far they were. My rangefinder works out to 600 yards and it was drawing a blank. A few minutes later as the sun was coming up, I could see a couple bulls in the same area grazing, so I grabbed my gear, climbed off the rocks and started my stalk. I was able to crawl the last little bit and get into a small cedar/oak thicket in front of the elk without them seeing me. All I could do now was wait till they grazed closer. I was shooting the Winchester 70 that I'd practiced with all summer, in .270 Win. I picked out the best one of the group and waited until he was as close as he was going to get, turned out to be 135 yards. My nerves had mostly settled by this point, so I put the crosshairs where I thought they should be and squeezed off a round.
The one constant that people told me about elk was "Shoot until they're down or until you run out of bullets" I actually had this in mind when I squeezed off my first shot.
At the first shot, the bull went straight down like he was hit by lightening. For a split second, I thought "man this was easy.!", as I worked the bolt to clear the empty and chamber a fresh one. Not a second went by when I noticed the bull getting back up, that's when I started getting nervous. As quickly as I could I put the cross hairs on a spot on his neck and gave him a second bullet, this time he went down and didn't get back up. When I made it to him, he was still alive and moving his head a bit, so I gave him another to end the suffering.
It took a few minutes for everything to sink in, what a marvelous animal. I wasn't prepared for what I was feeling at taking such a fine animal. I just had to stand there for a while and soak it all in.
This is what he looked like where he fell, he was a 5x5.
One thing that you guys didn't prepare me for was the gut-pile..... I couldn't believe the size of the gut-pile on these animals.
Luckily, I was in a good spot and the National Parks guys were able to drive pretty close. We were able to load the bull whole into their truck to take back to the check in station. We didn't have to cut it up and pack it out like I thought I'd have to. They aged him at 5.5 years old.
Once he was checked in, we got him strung up and my cousin and I commenced on our first attempt at elk skinning/quartering/processing. Another thing that everyone told me to do was get the hide off quick. Now I know why. That hide was like an electric blanket. There's no way that meat would have cooled with the hide on.
We continued processing and tried to take everything that was edible. We wanted to take everything we could and not leave a thing.
When we started cutting the meat off, it became apparent why the bull dropped so fast on the first shot. I made a rookie mistake that might have cost me the animal if I hadn't had the 2nd shot ready when the bull popped back up.
Somehow, I managed to send my first shot high and missed the vitals. The first bullet hit the top portion of the vertebra above the spine, which explains why he dropped so suddenly. You can see in the photo that the backbone makes sort of a dorsal fin on the top of the spinal cord. Well, I blew a hole thru that and made a probably less than lethal wound. The second shot went in the neck, taking out the lungs and out the ribcage. I am so glad I was able to place a proper second shot and can't believe I missed the first one so badly.
The 130 gr TSX that I used preformed just like it was supposed to. I found one while skinning him out. I don't think I could ask for better bullet performance.
Well that about wraps it up. He's processed and in the freezer and he'll feed us thru the remainder of the winter. It took me 19 years to get drawn, but was worth the wait.
Someday I hope to take a proper elk hunt with horses, tents and such. But until then, this one will do.
"If ever a time should come, when vain and aspiring men
shall possess the highest seats in Government,
our country will stand in need of its experienced patriots
to prevent its ruin." Samuel Adams
shall possess the highest seats in Government,
our country will stand in need of its experienced patriots
to prevent its ruin." Samuel Adams
Re: OT - Got my first elk
Congratulations. Great story and great photos.
- gundownunder
- Senior Levergunner
- Posts: 1449
- Joined: Fri Sep 07, 2007 12:02 pm
- Location: Perth. Western Australia
Re: OT - Got my first elk
congratulations
Thanks for the story
Thanks for the story
Bob
***********************************
You have got to love democracy-
It lets you choose who your dictator is going to be.
***********************************
***********************************
You have got to love democracy-
It lets you choose who your dictator is going to be.
***********************************
Re: OT - Got my first elk
Congrats on a nice bull. Good follow up on the first shot, and welcome to the world of elk hunting and butchering. I've never heard the hide referred to as an electric blanket, but that is a good analogy.
Re: OT - Got my first elk
Congratulations! I appreciate the time you took to tell us of your hunt & the photos as well.
Awesome!
Awesome!
Re: OT - Got my first elk
Fantastic...and congratulations....
wow.... 19 years to draw a tag....
excellent report and pics too!
are you getting blasted with snow today?
wow.... 19 years to draw a tag....
excellent report and pics too!
are you getting blasted with snow today?
LETS GO SHOOT'N BOYS
-
- Levergunner 3.0
- Posts: 523
- Joined: Wed Jan 02, 2008 10:08 pm
- Location: AZ/MT
Re: OT - Got my first elk
Nice Job ! You're lucky you didn't have to haul it a long way by yourself. Not only are the gut piles big, but a mature bull is a load to tote. Your planned future horseback hunt won't make it as easy to get the meat out as it sounds like it was on this hunt.
Re: OT - Got my first elk
Them bulls are big..I couldn't believe how big they were up close when I shot mine. I packed mine out in halves on horses, and then quartered and hung them in the garage (detached garage, Wyoming cold..like a meat locker). It took me a full week by myself, after work cutting and wrapping meat. Good story of yours, great pics. Congrats on a fine hunt.
Ed
Ed
-
- Advanced Levergunner
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- Joined: Fri Sep 07, 2007 5:00 am
- Location: North Coast of America-Ohio
Re: OT - Got my first elk
Very Good all around.You will be well fed with that Elk this winter. One couldn't ask more from a bullet than that. Also, I have been a Butcher for 38 years and rareley does one see bones that clean. You have done Yourselves Proud.
- El Chivo
- Advanced Levergunner
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- Joined: Mon Sep 03, 2007 5:12 pm
- Location: Red River Gorge Area
Re: OT - Got my first elk
Congratulations, Hobie can change your username to elkwhacker270.
"I'll tell you what living is. You get up when you feel like it. You fry yourself some eggs. You see what kind of a day it is."
-
- Advanced Levergunner
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- Joined: Sat Sep 15, 2007 12:51 pm
Re: OT - Got my first elk
Congratulations!! Really nice job all the way round...
"IT IS MY OPINION, AND I AM CORRECT SO DON'T ARGUE, THE 99 SAVAGE IS THE FINEST RIFLE EVER MADE IN AMERICA."
WIL TERRY
WIL TERRY
- Old Time Hunter
- Advanced Levergunner
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- Joined: Sun Apr 01, 2007 11:18 am
- Location: Wisconsin
Re: OT - Got my first elk
Excellent! Congratulatons...hopefully it is not a once in a life time event, but if it is, you can rest assured that you did it right.
Re: OT - Got my first elk
Congratulations on a nice elk.Great story and great pictures as well.Thank you for sharing them with us.
Re: OT - Got my first elk
Nice job! Congrats!
Professional Hunter
http://www.TARSPORTING.com
"Worldwide Hunting Adventures"
Professional Hunters Assoc of South Africa
SCI - Life Member
NRA - Life Member
NAHC - Trophy Life Member
DWWC - Member
http://www.TARSPORTING.com
"Worldwide Hunting Adventures"
Professional Hunters Assoc of South Africa
SCI - Life Member
NRA - Life Member
NAHC - Trophy Life Member
DWWC - Member
Re: OT - Got my first elk
Glad it all worked out for ya. Been wondering how things were going with that, you certainly put in alot of preperation for the hunt, and looks like it all paid off in spades. (need a thumbs up smiley)
- Rube Burrows
- Advanced Levergunner
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- Joined: Tue Oct 19, 2010 12:27 pm
- Location: Louisiana
Re: OT - Got my first elk
Awesome man. Congrats. I one day hope to be able to go Elk hunting. Thanks for posting the pics too. Good to see the bullet doing its job so perfectly.
Re: OT - Got my first elk
Great post!
Sincerely,
Hobie
"We are all travelers in the wilderness of this world, and the best that we find in our travels is an honest friend." Robert Louis Stevenson
Hobie
"We are all travelers in the wilderness of this world, and the best that we find in our travels is an honest friend." Robert Louis Stevenson
-
- Senior Levergunner
- Posts: 1180
- Joined: Tue Dec 18, 2007 6:37 pm
- Location: S. of Jackson, Wyoming
Re: OT - Got my first elk
Beautiful elk. Great job. I too got my first bull this year. It also was a 5x5. What are you doing with the rack?
Re: OT - Got my first elk
Congrats Andy!
18 more years of waiting for me to get drawn...
18 more years of waiting for me to get drawn...
Re: OT - Got my first elk
Good Job, excellent account, Nice Pics - couldn't ask for more except to see more posts like this. For U
Perry in Bangor----++++===Calif
- Ysabel Kid
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Re: OT - Got my first elk
Congratulations! Nice bull as well. Some day I hope to get back to elk country and score my first.
Kevin
Kevin
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- Levergunner 3.0
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Re: OT - Got my first elk
Good story.Good hunt.The pictures were excellent and I am always reminded what absolutely beautiful animals they are.Thank you for sharing with us.
Stan in SC
Stan in SC
The more I listen,the more I hear....and vice versa.
45-70,it's almost a religion
45-70,it's almost a religion
- Streetstar
- Advanced Levergunner
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- Joined: Sun Jan 11, 2009 5:58 am
- Location: from what used to be Moore OK
Re: OT - Got my first elk
deerwhacker444 wrote: It took a few minutes for everything to sink in, what a marvelous animal. I wasn't prepared for what I was feeling at taking such a fine animal. I just had to stand there for a while and soak it all in.
Thank you for relaying to us your appreciation for that beautiful creature. I hope the meat will feed your family for a bit and the 5x5 will grace a coveted wall in your den or trophy room or whatever you have.
I do not shoot a lot of animals --- partly because i'm lazy and hate the prep work, partly because i just dont get a lot of time in the woods. Since i dont shoot tons of animals every year, i tend to feel a kinship with them and appreciate every one --- this is the feeling i get from reading your report also.
I also hope to draw an Oklahoma Elk tag someday, but until then, Colorado opportunities are cheaper for me
----- Doug
Re: OT - Got my first elk
Well first CONGRATULATIONS. Second, thanks for that great write-up!
Enjoy the eating!
Best,
Oly
Enjoy the eating!
Best,
Oly
Cheers,
Oly
I hope and pray someday the world will learn
That fires we don't put out will bigger burn
Johnny Wright
Oly
I hope and pray someday the world will learn
That fires we don't put out will bigger burn
Johnny Wright
- gamekeeper
- Spambot Zapper
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Re: OT - Got my first elk
Great post and photos, congratulations on a fine hunt and thanks for taking the time to share it with us.
Whatever you do always give 100%........... unless you are donating blood.
- Borregos
- Advanced Levergunner
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Re: OT - Got my first elk
Well done
Enjoyed your story and the pictures
Enjoyed your story and the pictures
Pete
Sometimes I wonder if it is worthwhile gnawing through the leather straps to get up in the morning..................
Sometimes I wonder if it is worthwhile gnawing through the leather straps to get up in the morning..................
Re: OT - Got my first elk
Thanks for the story and the pictures. That would be my dream hunt.
-
- Levergunner 2.0
- Posts: 420
- Joined: Wed Sep 12, 2007 9:45 am
- Location: Long Island N.Y.
Re: OT - Got my first elk
Great hunt and story! You did a bang up job on boning that critter. You could not even make soup from those bones
Re: OT - Got my first elk
CONGRADULATIONS! Really great on the followups! They did save the day. Those Barnes products really do what there supposed to. Im surpised you you found one. What a horse! Do you have any idea what it weighed? Thats some great eating iun the near future.
Re: OT - Got my first elk
Well written. I understand the emotions all the way through. Nice job. Enjoy the meals and don't waste a scrap.
Kind regards,
Tycer
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Re: OT - Got my first elk
I nearly missed this, I takes my hat off to you Sir Good photo's too.
I remember shooting two red stags and hitting both of them high and having to start over again on both of them Just one of those things.
Nath.
I remember shooting two red stags and hitting both of them high and having to start over again on both of them Just one of those things.
Nath.
Psalm ch8.
Because I wish I could!
Because I wish I could!
- kimwcook
- Advanced Levergunner
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Re: OT - Got my first elk
Fantastic! 19 years to draw a tag, wow. You did great. Thank you for the pics and report. I felt like I was there.
Old Law Dawg
Re: OT - Got my first elk
Wow! Congrats on a great hunt.
- Whit Spurzon
- Levergunner 2.0
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Re: OT - Got my first elk
Outstanding! Great story and pictures.
"There are three kinds of men: The ones that learn by reading. The few who learn by observation. The rest of them have to pee on the electric fence and find out for themselves." -Will Rogers