syd34 Report post Posted October 13, 2014 Noah drew his first cow elk tag for the 6A Jr. hunt this year. Noah and I set up camp last Tuesday near Lake Mary. Tuesday night we hike into the Pine Grove Quiet area west of Upper Lake Mary and found a good spot to glass from. Not seeing anything Tuesday night, we set out well before daylight Wednesday morning to the same spot. On the hike in we were surrounded by bugling bulls and numerous cows calling. We reached our glassing spot and waited for the sun to rise. As we sat waiting we could here a couple of bulls sparring within a hundred yards of us. This is the first time Noah got to hear so many bulls bugling in such a small area. As the sun began to brake the horizon, we saw bulls and cows all around us. With our scouting successful we headed back to camp while we watched the skies turn from blue to a dark gray, validating the weather forecasts for rain. Thursday was spent jumping some dirt tanks in the area looking for some ducks, unfortunately it was just a little too warm for them to be this far south yet. Friday morning, Noah, one of my friends and i headed out to our glassing spot, again, well before sun rise. As we hiked in we could see upper Lake Mary was covered in a thick fog bank. We set up and were again surrounded by bugling bulls and numerous cows calling. As the sun started to warm the eastern horizon, the fog began to set in. By the time the sun was up, we could only see about 100 yds. We began to walk towards the sound of the bulls in the hope that we would be able to find some cows. After walking about 3-miles, the fog had burned off and we found ourselves closing in on a bull. We were able to stalk up to about 40-yards from a beautiful 6x6 bull when we finally found some cows off on the side of a hill. Unfortunately, we were never able to close the deal as the cows got spooked as we tried to close the distance. After a few more hours of hiking we hiked out to our truck and drove back to camp for lunch. Later that afternoon we set back out but didn't see anything except for a few mule deer does. Saturday morning we set out again. As the sun began to rise, we saw a couple of bulls but no cows. We decided to once again push towards some other bugling bulls with the hope we would find a cow. Not long after we left our glassing area, we heard a deep and raspy bull bugling. We walked as quickly and quietly as we could, until we were so close we could feel the bugles in our chests. We slowed our pace to a very deliberate and quiet stalk. As we crept down into a small drainage we caught a glimpse of a tan elk butt between some pines. We all held our breath as the elk had its head down grazing, finally it lifted its antlerless head and we were in business. Noah crept up to a pine tree that had a limb at the perfect height for him to use as a rest. Noah dialed his 4.5-14x Leupold scope up to 14x and set the cross-hairs on the cow elk's front left shoulder. Once he got his breathing under control, he pressed the trigger and sent one of the 300 WSM bullets he reloaded 200-yards down range. The 180-grain Nosler Accubond found its mark just in front of her left shoulder. The elk took about 5 steps and dropped. We gutted, skinned and quartered the elk and waited for another friend of mine to hike in. With 241 pounds of meat divided amongst our three packs we made the 2-mile trek back to the truck. All-in-all this was a great experience for all of us. 4 Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
1uglydude Report post Posted October 13, 2014 Congrats! Cool for him that he was able to use a round that he reloaded himself. Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
6ANut Report post Posted October 13, 2014 Congrats to Noah for filling the freezer. Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
stanley Report post Posted October 13, 2014 VERY AWESOME!!! Good for Noah! My son Nicholas and I were in the Pine Grove Quiet area as well. He was fortunate enough to kill one on Friday morning. Two mile pack-out for us too, but of course it was well worth it (I love hunting in the 'quiet' areas.....)! Glad you guys had a good hunt! S. Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
Will K Report post Posted October 13, 2014 Very nice. Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
Chef Report post Posted October 14, 2014 Nice shooting Noah! You reloaded your cartridges and everything? WOW! Congratulations, I look forward to reading about your future successes. Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
KidBowHunter Report post Posted October 14, 2014 Sweet ! Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
BigGameHunter Report post Posted October 14, 2014 congratulations and great work. Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
jim Report post Posted October 14, 2014 Congrats, I like all the youth hunts. Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
cramerhunts Report post Posted October 14, 2014 Congratulations Noah on your first cow! Way to go and sounds like some good shooting and a great trip! Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
bonecollector Report post Posted October 14, 2014 Great write up. Congrats to Noah on his first cow. Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
ElkyG Report post Posted October 17, 2014 Congrats! Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
IA Born Report post Posted October 17, 2014 Congrats on a first elk! Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
hoghntr Report post Posted October 18, 2014 Congrats! Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
Couestracker Report post Posted October 20, 2014 That rocks Noah! Congratulations on an awesome hunt. Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
