Pueblo of Laguna Elk Hunting (Updated...Again)

[mpriest]

UPDATE

Well we got out there and she ended up tagging a nice little 6x6 on Sunday morning. We started out hunting a unit north or I-40 on Friday and Saturday morning. We never saw any fresh sign so we decided to head to a unit south of I-40 for Saturday night. We found a good vantage point that overlooked a lot of country where we saw a lot more sign but didn't end up seeing anything that night. We headed to the same vantage point on Sunday morning and ended up spotting a bull running with a spike, three cows and a calf. The bull kind of hung up on a fence line that he didn't want to cross and gave us time to get in front of him. He walked across in front of us at 40 yards and gave her a good shot. It was pretty tough. The elk densities were pretty low and dispersed but it was fun to get out there and learn a new area. Now I have to listen to her brag about her first elk has 10 more points than my biggest elk!



Here is her version of the story. It is a long read but its worth it:

I met my brother today...

He gave me a gift that no other could. He will be with me and my family until we meet him again, in our prayers and our thoughts. He came from the east and he was with his family that day too. I'm the type that when I see a spider the first thing I do is rush to grab a cup to successfully get them back outside where they like to be. I was taught that "he didn't do anything wrong" and there is never a time when an animal is killed for no reason. I'm also the type that dedicates my life to conserving wildlife through many avenues such as supporting wildlife and habitat connectivity or by promoting forest health and sustainable management. It took years and many emotional, difficult conversations with others when the topic of hunting came up. Like most, when I thought of hunting I thought of careless acts of egotistical men who had the extreme, perverse desire to kill other living beings. I now know that hunting, like all things in life, happen on a wide spectrum. Here's my hunting story:

Weeks before the trip I contacted the Natural Resource office at my reservation, which is a place that sadly is just as foreign as Washington DC to me. As a tribal member though, it hurt to know that I wasn't being proactive about going home and spending time with my own tribe. It's not like you just show up and say, hi I'm here now. I wanted an opportunity to feel the place and spend time on the land, trying to recapture the years I had missed. I felt weird asking for "starting points" because I probably wouldn't even recollect the points of reference they would provide. It felt like cheating to me, like asking for information that you haven't really deserved yet. I wanted to work for the information not just see a finger pointing on a map. I'm glad I never really asked.

Our first day was spent above my family's village where I know my uncles and grandfather's had hunted decades, centuries, ooh I don't know millennia before I arrived. Hiking around looking for sign we saw nothing that indicated elk activity but ran into other tribal members who were on the same path but taking a different route. We shared a few words and they provided some tips which led us to decide to move to a new location where they had seen tracks the day before. Our first night we ran into a conservation officer, who we likely spooked as we hiked back to our camp in the dark after glassing the drainage during the remaining light. He told us where he ran into other folks and left wishing us luck to head back to the village below. At this point there were no animals yet, except one awfully curious tarantula checking to see what we were up to as we packed up the next morning.

Finding a new spot, starting from scratch is kind of like flipping a coin. "What about that road?" "Hey that looks elkie-ish" and other statements that could dictate your entire weekend without any scientific or actual reasoning and meticulous thought. Following one dirt road after another, getting to an area that looked promising is where we settled. We sat under a cliff, on a large sandstone rock that enabled us to see for miles across a juniper wooded mesa. Their tracks all pointed in the direction to the west but we stuck it out all evening thinking maybe they would change their direction. Still no animals but I wasn't worried. Go home and get rest for big day tomorrow.

The day before we left I had a dream that we met and another night I dreamed I had met a bobcat and coyote. The night before we heard two packs of coyotes, and two great-horned owls chatting up a storm. Maybe that tarantula was a little late on his messaging service, telling us to move where the spot where we'd meet more animals. Up at 6am to put layers on and make our way back to our spot, packs full with gear and my rifle on my shoulder every moment. It's weird carrying a gun like that and the feeling continues to evolve. Something that awkward and uncomfortable the first day seemed to disappear in my hands, unnoticed after carrying it for miles.

Before we left, the packing list transformed into 3 anxious versions of packing lists with scribbles and random "don't forgets". Relentless planning, organizing and trying to think of how to prepare for different scenarios keeps you up at night. We practiced at 100 yards, 200 yards in different scenarios. My clusters were precise, which gave me confidence when it mattered. I made a dozen phone calls and talked to family members to make sure it was okay to go through with it. Some of them shared stories about hunting and why to hunt. Most were supportive, many were worried about how difficult it would be -- probably because I was the little girl who loved animals so much that she wanted to be a zoologist when she grew up --- but looking back I think they were all proud and I know their prayers were with me that day.

6:15am. Sitting on the same sandstone rock as yesterday evening. The only sounds were our slow breathing, trying to stay quiet as we panned across the mesa. 6:30, nothing. 6:31 nothing. 6:32 nothing. 6:33 nothing. As most of the time went by I kept thinking it through, how would it happen? I knew I didn't want to meet a young one or a female. That just didn't feel right. 6:34 nothing.

Then they came, from the east, walking along the southern end of the mesa. As a kid, I remember seeing the dancers come, they always entered from that direction. My brother was at the back and was the first to turn his head and look directly at us. He stopped and watched us from over 1000 yards away where we were tucked under the cliff in the shade of the rising sun. His reaction and realization that I was there was a moment I'll never forget. He and his family proceeded to cross a fenceline and were moving quickly westward. They smelled us and they heard every move we made.

Making tough decisions, thinking critically about the situation in a matter of moments forces you to act with your heart. We gently climbed down from our vantage point and weaved our way through the junipers, trying to stay with the wind to meet them before we lost them. The rest of the family moved quickly, we saw the others move ahead and I had a feeling he stayed behind. I don't know why but he stayed behind. I saw him for a moment in an opening about 400 yards away and he began making his way back along the fenceline directly to the spot where we had just left. For some reason he didn't want to cross the fence, a mystery we figured out once I was with him.

I got set up in the shadow of a juniper with an clearning in front of me and the fenceline in my view. The fence was 200 yards. I could make that shot but it would be tough. I sat and tried to control my breathing. I've never felt more in the moment. It was just us, nothing else. I waited. Breathed. Waited.
From behind a juniper a small whirling cloud of dust swept into the rising sun. I feel like I stopped breathing because I knew it was him. Dust still floating in the sunlight I saw his warm breath come out from behind the juniper in front of me. Then his nose, his eyes, his ears, legs, body. His whole body took up the entire view finder in my scope. Expecting 200 yards, 43 yards is where he met me. He came to me. I instantly prayed and cried, focusing on the moments we just shared, like most good things they go too fast and it was over. There are no words in the English language to describe a moment like that.

My dad believes my ancestors and our recent lost family members were out there rooting for me. They were with me. I couldn't have done it without them. My aunt told me my heart and my soul were in it, she knew it was going to be a good experience. Things were meant to be. The night before my mom prayed that I would meet my brother.

I came to find out that he had a fear of fences -- his scars on his underside told the whole story. Barbed wire can leave a deep wound. Here I am trying to do research on removing fences, removing barriers for my siblings and this was the thing that brought us together.

Every part of him serves a purpose and I know that experience will stay with me. I'm happy to know now I have two brothers.

Thank you to the Laguna Pueblo Natural Resource office and staff, Laguna Conservation Officers and other tribal members for their support and guidance. Thank you to my family, friends and Mike for making it possible.

[SWDesertRat]

Never hunted it but know the country.

PM me and we can talk a little.

As a word of caution, they only allow camping on their designated camping areas for non tribal members. If you plan on camping off the reservation, make sure you arent on the Navajo rez right next store.

[mpriest]

Update added

[Flatlander]

Awesome. Congrats to the lady hunter.

[SWDesertRat]

Nice job! enjoyed the story and glad you guys found them and she was able to fill her tag.

[Tucson John]

Wow awesome story! Congratulations!

[CouesWhitetail]

Excellent story, thank you for sharing your experience with us! Congratulations and of course nice sticker pic

[cramerhunts]

Very cool read and congratulations on a nice bull! Enjoyed the story and pictures, thanks for updating the post.

[Elkhunter1]

One can't get closer to nature than that! GREAT story, and great lesson to all on what being out in nature is truly all about.

 

CONGRATULATIONS!

[Elkaddict]

Never did catch her name, but if she ever writes a book I would love to read it! Congrats and let me know.

[Matt Meyer]

Congrats on the nice bull

[bonecollector]

Great write up and congrats on filling the tag.

[out2hunt]

Kudos!!

[IA Born]

Congratulations, Serra! Of course I had to come upstairs and read it when you told me about it! Excellent write up and a beautiful tribute to the elk!