Tines Report post Posted February 27, 2009 A few of you knew that because of our addition to the family that will be here in sept, I thought it would be wise to put in for a BP this year for elk. Because of this, and the fact that I've never wrapped a tag around an elk with my name on it, I decided to inquire about these OTC elk tags. Who better to talk to about these "limited opportunity" hunts than Lance? I've hunted with Lance for almost 6 years now and I've never known someone who just has a knack for finding animals- and in the most unorthodox places, I might add! This considered, and the fact that I've had the opportunity to help Lance out on several other "OTC" elk hunts, I was pretty confident we could get it done. Opening morning started out a little different than sunny Tucson. I'm pretty sure it was colder than that though... After we parked the truck and walked to our spot, I realized "I'm definitely not in Tucson anymore!" Although it was cold, I needed a drink as we stopped for the morning hunt. I reached down to grab my camelback line and lo and behold, frozen solid.. and that was just after the hike! Rookie SoAz hunters, I swear! Little did I know that it wasn't the only thing that was going to freeze that morning...... When Lance says "they usually come out at _____ time", I'll put money on the fact that they will. So when the elk didn't come out when he said they would, I was a little disappointed. I waited for another whole 3 minutes until one finally stepped out! I'll let it slide this time Lance. Afterall, you're getting paid big "bucks" to guide me! We watched a lone cow feed her way out and we decided to give it some time since it was still so early. After-all, who wants to drive 5 hrs just to hunt for 15 minutes? Yeah, me too! About 5 minutes later, a herd of cows stepped out and start heading right down the path Lance said they would. I thought about holding out for a bull on my opening day but as they started trotting right to us, I figured I'd be crazy to pass it up. We hit the ground and decided to let them drop into our lap. If you look closely, you can see their heads looking right at us. This was taken just after Lance stopped them and just before I took the shot... Lance told me to shoot one of the younger, yet bigger cows. Sorry Lance, I was at first but the only one to really hold still and give me the perfect shot was the lead cow. I was really pleased to see that the 110gr bullet went through one shoulder and out just behind the other. Not knowing this, as she spun, I sent another bullet through her mid-body. She went a total 15 yards and piled up.... After we finally had a chance to gather ourselves, we headed over to see my elk... It's funny, I've helped on so many other successful elk hunts but there I was standing over "just a cow" and I couldn't be more proud of her. After field dressing her, I went to take a drink finally........still frozen solid! Oh well, plenty of snow in the back of Lances truck to munch on! So, after it was all said and done, and we dropped her off at Casey's processing, what were we going to do now???? Flagstaff always has it's abundance of call-shy coyotes! Luckily Lance seems to always have a little something special to get their attention. Did I mention Lance can find animals??? That afternoon and the next morning produced some great coyote action. We shot several times, connected on a few but in general had a fantastic time. Oh yeah, remember how I mentioned that my camelback wasn't the only thing that froze? Well, apparently my scope had a little bit of moisture in it because this is what happens when you take a defective scope like that in freezing temperatures. This is looking through the objective lens. Here I thought an $800 scope was "good enough"! Oh well, that's what a warranty is for, right?? Thanks again, Lance for some more great memories.... As a side note, including my cow, Lance and Timberland Outfitters have helped take 11 elk so far with these OTC hunts. That's some cool stuff right there! Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
Coues Sniper Report post Posted February 27, 2009 That's quite a day Congrats on your 'camel'. That first dog is a big one also. Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
Gr8 White Jr Report post Posted February 28, 2009 Wow! That is definitely some odd looking country to be finding elk in. Congrats to you on your success! -Tracy Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
az4life Report post Posted February 28, 2009 Nice success there! Weather like that (below 20) can also bust the lcd screens on cameras too. I bought one to leave in the glove box and had a few days below 10 then thougth I'd pull it out and use it for a picture, Y'know, It did not work! Several spidered cracks... If you get on a cold hunt,keep your camera in some warmer areas or you may not be able to get your trophy pictures. Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
Ernesto C Report post Posted February 28, 2009 Excellent, good job! thanks for sharing your succes. Ernesto C Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
Azlongears Report post Posted March 17, 2009 Right on Brotha!!! Hope those new scopes work out for ya. Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
Lance Report post Posted March 23, 2009 It's been 3 weeks sience I'v had elk blood under my nails Anyone else need an elk? How about all you guys who didn't , or won't draw a tag? I'm missing the smell of elk blood in my clothes and it has all worn off my back pack. I'm going through withdrawls By the way, Jake shot one of those coyotes on a fast run around 100 yards with that blury scope! Sweet shot jake! Don't know how you could even see him through that thing? You ever get the scope replaced? This is my favorite picture! The "Congratulations Call" Lance Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
hunterdude Report post Posted March 24, 2009 Very cool! Congrats on the hunt! Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
