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Elk Hunting
Wichita Mountains Wildlife Refuge
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<blockquote data-quote="RedDirtRifleman" data-source="post: 1784010" data-attributes="member: 109044"><p>I got my cow down at 9:30 on Tuesday morning. Couldn't really ask for a better hunting day.</p><p></p><p>Monday was orientation. Short history of the elk herd, rules of the hunt, safety procedures, general recommendations for the hunt. Short RMEF sales pitch with a challenge for helpers to volunteer to help more than just their hunter. Then we went and toured the borders of our zones. I was in zone J, the southwest corner of the refuge. I found a spot I wanted to start my hunt, claimed my dropoff spot, and after the tour, went back to my dropoff point to scout my path to my theoretical first spot so i wouldn't be doing it for the first time in the dark.</p><p></p><p>Tuesday morning, got to the check station, loaded into the truck, made small talks and shared plans with the hunters being dropped off closest to me. None of us had any plans to move near each other. I get dropped off and move to my spot by 6:30. Sunrise is 7:34, hunt starts at 7:04. I make myself comfortable and enjoy the cool air.</p><p></p><p>Around 8:30, I've already heard a shot to my east where I was hoping some elk might come through, so when there's no movement I start moving west northwest along the south ridge of the draw I'm squatting. I make a couple stops to glass and hydrate, and seeing nothing, divert due west to follow some day old droppings across a creek bed towards a treeline where my hunt leader said she had seen cows the morning before orientation. No luck when I get there.</p><p></p><p>I moved north to get uphill before turning back east to return to my original draw I was hunting. I stumble downhill towards a gully that's the upstream of the creek I already crossed once, and find myself staring down at two cows staring back up at me.</p><p></p><p>I rush to a nice knee height rock, lay down and brace my rifle across the stone. I get sighted in on the first cow as they run up the hillside in front of me. She stops, I pull the trigger, *CLICK*... I forgot to chamber a round. I run the bolt, get back on my scope, get her in the crosshairs, follow her up the ridge, she steps behind a tree. I move my scope to the second cow, standing directly behind her companion but clear of the tree. She stops, looks in my direction, I pull the trigger. I know the shot is good, but she doesn't react, she just casually steps behind the tree. Both cows step out to the right of the tree, I run the bolt and get back on target. The first cow runs off, my cow throws her head in the air, her front legs buckle, and she flops over.</p><p></p><p></p><p>This is the first time I've killed a large game animal. Fish, squirrels, pest birds, never a whitetail yet as much as I've tried. I scream "YES!", sit up and pull out my phone to take a picture of where she dropped and my view from where I took the shot. I'm very glad I did that, as what follows is an hour of me looking for my dead elk because I get turned around climbing the gully, and end up searching for her about 100 yards to the right of where she dropped. And since she was moving to the right in the first place, I figure if she got up and ran while I was climbing, it certainly wouldn't have been to the left, where she was actually laying dead right there. After searching, calling my hunt leader for advice, and generally freaking out for about 50 minutes, I returned to my shooting spot, handily documented on my phone, said a small prayer, and started glassing for my cow. I found her, thanked the lord and got to her much more carefully this time.</p></blockquote><p></p>
[QUOTE="RedDirtRifleman, post: 1784010, member: 109044"] I got my cow down at 9:30 on Tuesday morning. Couldn't really ask for a better hunting day. Monday was orientation. Short history of the elk herd, rules of the hunt, safety procedures, general recommendations for the hunt. Short RMEF sales pitch with a challenge for helpers to volunteer to help more than just their hunter. Then we went and toured the borders of our zones. I was in zone J, the southwest corner of the refuge. I found a spot I wanted to start my hunt, claimed my dropoff spot, and after the tour, went back to my dropoff point to scout my path to my theoretical first spot so i wouldn't be doing it for the first time in the dark. Tuesday morning, got to the check station, loaded into the truck, made small talks and shared plans with the hunters being dropped off closest to me. None of us had any plans to move near each other. I get dropped off and move to my spot by 6:30. Sunrise is 7:34, hunt starts at 7:04. I make myself comfortable and enjoy the cool air. Around 8:30, I've already heard a shot to my east where I was hoping some elk might come through, so when there's no movement I start moving west northwest along the south ridge of the draw I'm squatting. I make a couple stops to glass and hydrate, and seeing nothing, divert due west to follow some day old droppings across a creek bed towards a treeline where my hunt leader said she had seen cows the morning before orientation. No luck when I get there. I moved north to get uphill before turning back east to return to my original draw I was hunting. I stumble downhill towards a gully that's the upstream of the creek I already crossed once, and find myself staring down at two cows staring back up at me. I rush to a nice knee height rock, lay down and brace my rifle across the stone. I get sighted in on the first cow as they run up the hillside in front of me. She stops, I pull the trigger, *CLICK*... I forgot to chamber a round. I run the bolt, get back on my scope, get her in the crosshairs, follow her up the ridge, she steps behind a tree. I move my scope to the second cow, standing directly behind her companion but clear of the tree. She stops, looks in my direction, I pull the trigger. I know the shot is good, but she doesn't react, she just casually steps behind the tree. Both cows step out to the right of the tree, I run the bolt and get back on target. The first cow runs off, my cow throws her head in the air, her front legs buckle, and she flops over. This is the first time I've killed a large game animal. Fish, squirrels, pest birds, never a whitetail yet as much as I've tried. I scream "YES!", sit up and pull out my phone to take a picture of where she dropped and my view from where I took the shot. I'm very glad I did that, as what follows is an hour of me looking for my dead elk because I get turned around climbing the gully, and end up searching for her about 100 yards to the right of where she dropped. And since she was moving to the right in the first place, I figure if she got up and ran while I was climbing, it certainly wouldn't have been to the left, where she was actually laying dead right there. After searching, calling my hunt leader for advice, and generally freaking out for about 50 minutes, I returned to my shooting spot, handily documented on my phone, said a small prayer, and started glassing for my cow. I found her, thanked the lord and got to her much more carefully this time. [/QUOTE]
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