Dads bull

[jnobleinaz]

Here is my dads bull. We started on friday opening day and we were walking after some bulls when my dad fell. After that I knew we would really have to take it slow. I left mid day to return for family stuff but my brother Richard stayed with my dad. They sat a tank friday night and sat afternoon after quad riding. I got back up there sat afternoon and found my dad and brother in a blind on a good water hole. I sat with them across the way till dark. We had a bull working down to the tank answering cow calls a way off then we heard a shot all was silent with no activity after that. When I went over to help get their gear my dad told me he had fallen off his quad earlier that day. His shoulder was jacked up and he had a bruise and cuts all the way down to his hip. I asked him if he wanted to go home. He said no we could go try in the morning. So that was the plan, get up if we could not connect on one we would head back so he could go to the doctor. We were very limited on the areas we could go so we planned on the spot I figured was the flattest and easiest to get around. The next morning we awoke to the alarm. My brother was opened the door going outside to turn on the generator to make coffee, at that moment an trailer vibrating bugle came from 50 yards across the campsite! I jumped up and we went outside to hear bulls screaming from every direction. No generator need we made coffee on the stove. LOL. Dad was very very stiff when we got dressed and he grabbed his flashlight so we could start paralleling the bulls. He went as fast as he could holding my brothers arm going up and downhill. I was amazed that the heard was actually moving slow enough for us. Once the bugles stopped we dredged on. I would go ahead, cow call a few times then wait for them to catch up. After an hour I felt like the heard had slowed down really good. We had walked 1 mile from camp at this point. We were know behind them directly with good wind. I blew a couple mews and waited again for my dad and brother. Right before they arrived at the spot I was standing I heard a cash and then saw a bull running I mean running straight at us. You could hear him breathing heavily every step he took. I figured he would see us since we now were in an opening about 30 yards wide. But no he kept going full speed. I looke back at my dad with wide open eyes hoping he was ready. I actually got scared that the bull was going to run us over! He ran all the way to around 10 yards or less from us and stopped. He never saw us. My dad raised the muzzy and then the shot went off. The smoke had covered up the elk. He ran downhill and then bedded down immediately. I heard him coughing and said he was choking out but go finish him off. Richard reloaded the muzzy for dad and I then started videoing after my brother grabbed it from my pack. When dad got close the bull got up and took off. Now I was scared not knowing where the shot was. He didnt go far. He would stop every 150 yards or so. It took us 2 more times fro him to get another shot and double lung him. A nice small frame 6x6 was down. Chard and I went back to camp grabbed the truck and actually got to get all the way into where dad was with the bull. After field dressing him I realized that he wasnt coughing from a lung shot. the first went through the liver, his couging was from the blast of the muzzleloader! I know that evryone says to hold out on these tags but my dad has never really cared about the size of the animal. Which makes it a lot of fun. We had a great time. My dad ended up with a bunch of bruised ribs, 3 that were knocked out of place, a contusion the size of a basketball, and a lot of soreness. He has been into the chiro 4 times this week already but is getting around better now. We are selling the quads and getting a ranger now. Hopefully he can get drawn again to get some more fun in. thanks dad

[Younghunter]

Great job! The quality of the animal doesn't matter near as much as the quality of the memories. Still a nice bull for all the trouble your dad had.

[Coach]

Congrats to your dad on a very nice bull! And way to help him out - I'm sure those are memories you can share for a lifetime.

[Coues79]

Good work for your ol man to tough it out! sounds like he is made of nails; very cool to see his success.

 

I hope to get my old man on an early muzzy hunt before he gets too old to move around in the woods.

 

congratulations!

[Will K]

Way to hang in there and still get the job done. Congrat's.

[CouesWhitetail]

Awesome! Nothing better than screaming bulls right near camp!! Great job and glad your dad got his bull and is healing up!

[Pine Donkey]

Very nice bull, sounds like a great bonding time with dad.