mtbohunter
Active Member
I was asked to write a thread about my hunt here so here it goes.
The day before Montana's general elk season I left my truck at 5:00pm for the first leg of my hunt. Taping my barrel, double lacing my boots, and securing my 338WM Ruger 77, I started walking to the camp sight I had previously picked because there were few trees {to not attract Grizzly's} and a seep of water nearby, through a driving sleet storm.
Pitching camp at dark and wiping the sleet off my pack I crawled into my Kelty to eat freeze dried and an energy bar. After supper I hauled my pack to a tree about 70yds downwind, hoisted it and got back to my sleeping bag with my 629S&W with 300gr hard cast ready to bark.
The opener began at 4am, with 2.5miles left to walk I started out into the knee deep snow. Circling the end of the mountain at 6am I could see a line of ATV lights on the far rim {2.5miles south of me}. Dropping some 600ft elevation I came to the bottom of the first rock slide. I had decided this is where I would drop my bi-pods and wait.
As light began I heard the first bugle about a half mile below and to the West of me. Knowing their trail from there I began another 200ft drop{still approximately 1000ft from the bottom} and headed West across two ravines, to 150yds of the bottom of the last rock slide. Having heard countless bugles by this time as well as hearing him closing on this point my hart was racing!
I didn't even have time to drop my bi-pods again before I heard a few cow calls coming toward me, then seeing the first cow break the heavy cover to cross just below the rock slide at 100yds! As she took a trail quartering toward me I felt she would pass to close to my position and get my wind. Luckily the herd was pushing her and she passed me off as nothing at 47yds!!
I could see him at the back of the group of about 30 cows and had to make myself not take a shot through the trees, but wait for him to step into the clear.
As he took his first step into the open I centered my cross hairs at the front of his shoulder {he was steeply quartering toward me} and began to squeeze. As the 338 barked, he fell in a pile and began sliding for about 30ft into some young pines that stopped him{Thank God!} or he would have slid another several hundred feet.
With his head underneath him in a mess of young pines I began the PAIN staking process of butchering, capping, and hanging the meat bags and horns. 8 hours later at 4pm I left the finished bull and started back toward camp. Thirsty! hungry and in a hurry to break camp and head home to tell my family about the hunt! Home at 11pm then back the next morning with a horse and frame pack, I was able to pack him out in one trip.
{As my buddy with the horse told me} This is to **** much work for a bull, but I know that good bulls on public ground are extremely hard to get and here is a couple pics of him.
Good Luck hunting! and keep bear protection handy! I saw two grizzly's this year. One at 20yds! My 629 didn't feel to heavy in that moment!!
The day before Montana's general elk season I left my truck at 5:00pm for the first leg of my hunt. Taping my barrel, double lacing my boots, and securing my 338WM Ruger 77, I started walking to the camp sight I had previously picked because there were few trees {to not attract Grizzly's} and a seep of water nearby, through a driving sleet storm.
Pitching camp at dark and wiping the sleet off my pack I crawled into my Kelty to eat freeze dried and an energy bar. After supper I hauled my pack to a tree about 70yds downwind, hoisted it and got back to my sleeping bag with my 629S&W with 300gr hard cast ready to bark.
The opener began at 4am, with 2.5miles left to walk I started out into the knee deep snow. Circling the end of the mountain at 6am I could see a line of ATV lights on the far rim {2.5miles south of me}. Dropping some 600ft elevation I came to the bottom of the first rock slide. I had decided this is where I would drop my bi-pods and wait.
As light began I heard the first bugle about a half mile below and to the West of me. Knowing their trail from there I began another 200ft drop{still approximately 1000ft from the bottom} and headed West across two ravines, to 150yds of the bottom of the last rock slide. Having heard countless bugles by this time as well as hearing him closing on this point my hart was racing!
I didn't even have time to drop my bi-pods again before I heard a few cow calls coming toward me, then seeing the first cow break the heavy cover to cross just below the rock slide at 100yds! As she took a trail quartering toward me I felt she would pass to close to my position and get my wind. Luckily the herd was pushing her and she passed me off as nothing at 47yds!!
I could see him at the back of the group of about 30 cows and had to make myself not take a shot through the trees, but wait for him to step into the clear.
As he took his first step into the open I centered my cross hairs at the front of his shoulder {he was steeply quartering toward me} and began to squeeze. As the 338 barked, he fell in a pile and began sliding for about 30ft into some young pines that stopped him{Thank God!} or he would have slid another several hundred feet.
With his head underneath him in a mess of young pines I began the PAIN staking process of butchering, capping, and hanging the meat bags and horns. 8 hours later at 4pm I left the finished bull and started back toward camp. Thirsty! hungry and in a hurry to break camp and head home to tell my family about the hunt! Home at 11pm then back the next morning with a horse and frame pack, I was able to pack him out in one trip.
{As my buddy with the horse told me} This is to **** much work for a bull, but I know that good bulls on public ground are extremely hard to get and here is a couple pics of him.
Good Luck hunting! and keep bear protection handy! I saw two grizzly's this year. One at 20yds! My 629 didn't feel to heavy in that moment!!
