my sept.

[Duck-Slayer]

I started my season off by going on a 4 day elk hunt with my buddy tony, well long story short heard 4 bugles, worked 1 bull, but a maroon dodge with a topper doesn't know how too walk or shut his doors quietly.... so if you know a person in Idaho that matches that description tell him he is a moron.... had a yearling doe at 4 yards also.... Shot a nice blue grouse too put in the bourbon beans.... found some awesome places too... first year in this unit....
my grouse,








Next was my Idaho antelope tag, my wife, kids, and I went 4 days early too see if we could get a couple of deer but had no luck with that, "stalking with a 5 year old and 2 year old is almost impossible", they left on Sunday, and I hunted the first 2 days of the archery antelope by myself, was a great trip, tried a new tactic "Kinda", more of a whitetail tactic, I patterned them, and it worked, the first morning I had a miss judgment of yardage and shot over the buck antelope, rest of the day was uneventful, the next morning I sat between too finger ridges that came together in a bottom where I had seen antelope going too and from, I sat down and about 11 a.m. had a buck at 8 yards and I smoked him quartering away, went 40 yards and was done,









Next I went too wyoming with my Dad, Mom, Wife, and both kids, we had a good time, we had 3 doe antelope tags and we got'er done in 5 days from the time we left till I got home, helps its only a 6 1/2 hour drive.... dad got the first on the first morning, I got the second the second evening hunt, and dad picked off his last doe tag the evening we left... good hunt didn't see the number of animals we wanted but we expected that... we didn't get time too take a picture of the last one that dad shot, but here are pictures of Dad's and mine,





Next I came home for the last 11 days of elk, spent 7 days up there than 2 days home than the last 2 days up elk hunting...... this hunt was rather dismal, it was cooler on opening weekend, plus we had too move area's because of a forest fire, so all our scouting and first 4 days were basically in the trash, luckily while I was in wyoming my buddy Tony found a new drainage that had elk in it, fri, sat, were fairly uneventful, a couple of bugles and that was it, Sunday afternoon it rained which was awesome, it cleared the air and helped get rid of alot of the fire, but our area was still closed, that evening I shot a big fat old dry doe mule deer, needed too get some more meat in the freezer, and let me tell ya she is great eating, on Tues. morning I had my first encounter, I called in a nice 4x4 bull elk too 12 yards, but I made a bad call and tried too shoot through the bush that he was behind and my arrow deflected straight into the ground.... so I called in and drew on my first Elk ever... I than had too bad days than went home on Thursday evening, my buddy Tony picked me up again on Sat. afternoon and I had found some good trails and some watering points, we sat there and had a small bull come in right after dark on Sat. evening, Sunday morning he went too the top of what we call 3 ridges, and I went back too the bottom where we sat the previous night, sat in the same spot but after an hour I didn't see or hear anything, I moved up the canyon about 150 yards too where I saw a small bull moose laying in the creek on a train the previous week, I stood by some thick bushes for about an hour, than I heard a real light mew too my left, a spike popped out and came down too the creek behind the bushes in front of me, I couldn't see him or what he was doing so after a few minutes I did soft cow call, wow did that work, 3 steps and he was staring at me 4 yards away, of coarse he busted out of there and stopped behind a pine tree at 35 yards and slowly walked away, as soon as he was out of sight I slowly moved up too where I last saw him, again I was thinking I didn't really spook him and he wasn't all that nervous, so I did 2 estrus elk calls and it was like there was an earthquake, branches breaking ground shaking, before he came out I drew, he stepped out at 14 yards and I smoked him, just like the movies..... my buddy Tony could hear me yelling from a 1 1/2 miles away, he than met me at the trail head and we boned and packed the bull out in 3 1/2 hours, the gutless method is awesome, I'm freak'en addicted, this is my first ever elk and I got too shoot it with my bow, I am so lucky too have an understanding family and loving wife for coming with most of the time, thank you Wife, Kids, and Tony for pushing me when I was down......







and just like that the season was over..... but I did it in grand fashion, shot an Antelope, Deer, and Elk all in the same year, it was a great year and now I have a full freezer, no meat again, going on 10 years straight without buying meat....
Matt
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