How far out will you kill an elk by yourself?

[Rick Richard]

Does it really matter to either of you?
Really, you don't hunt together so why argue about it. Pride and ego take the fun out of a lot of things.
So what if a guy on here may (or may not be) exaggerating. He is not stopping you from hunting or hurting your chances.

None of us know either of you, so we have to take you at your word. On that same note, it really doesn't matter to us. The big picture is much greater than most of us think of ourselves.

May you have a great rest of your season/year.

Took the words out of most of our mouths.

 

[manitou]

Forgot about the bino harness with the rangefinder! That's another 4 pounds! I am as big of a weight weenie as anybody! But you are right. You don't realize how much that stuff weighs until you put it on the scale. Very similar to guys saying they climbed 2000 feet but when they run the numbers in on X it's closer to 600. Or guys saying they carried 150 pounds, when it was really 90… But definitely felt like 150!

Ha... and "we are almost to the top" is a big lie too! I cannot tell you how many mountains I NEVER found the top of!

 

[orkan]

As a guy that hunts hard at 2200ft...

I read this thread... and now my back hurts, my arms hurt, my legs hurt, and I'm winded so hard I feel like I'll never catch my breath.

... just from reading it.

Not sure how you guys do this stuff at 10,000ft... but I know that when it comes time for me to go after a big bull, I'm paying someone with a fleet of donkeys/goats/horses and lots of patience whatever he asks to haul me around, let me shoot it, and then haul me and it out.

I'd never be able to do stuff like is described in here anymore. Certainly not at those elevations.



-----------
Follow on Instagram
Subscribe on YouTube
Amazon Affiliate

 

[bpwsm]

lol yep! I'm clueless! Hahahhahaa


You stated your day pack weighed 10 pounds. That's a lie. Alright, I'll say it. I call ******** on your whole post. I think you're exaggerating to make yourself seem like a badass. No day pack weighs 10 pounds, water and pack weigh that much. No kill kit? No game bags? No headlight? No lunch? No first aid kit? No fire starting supplies? Come one…. Do your kids walk 10 miles to school, uphill both way, in the snow?

Just to give you some context, I've killed my Colorado bull every year since 2014, half bow, half rifle. I've killed 8 cows in the same time. I've killed a buck almost every year and an antelope as well. Myself, daughter and wife have killed 2 elk, 3 deer, and 5 antelope so far this year. I'm not posting to brag, just to prove I might not be quite as clueless as you might hope I am.

Look dude... I don't care how many animals you've killed.. Really! You do you, and if you think I'm full of ****... It's all good! I don't care. You can believe it or not, but until you hunt with me, then you don't know. So good luck to you! Really! I'm off to skate ski for my lunch break!.. No lie!

 

[MachV]

Anymore her/his front feet should be on a two track. I'll still pack deer and antelope a couple miles but am done hauling elk. Except to help someone else of coarse

 

[Ucsdryder]

Does it really matter to either of you?
Really, you don't hunt together so why argue about it. Pride and ego take the fun out of a lot of things.
So what if a guy on here may (or may not be) exaggerating. He is not stopping you from hunting or hurting your chances.

None of us know either of you, so we have to take you at your word. On that same note, it really doesn't matter to us. The big picture is much greater than most of us think of ourselves.

May you have a great rest of your season/year.

Well said!

 

[Ucsdryder]

Ha... and "we are almost to the top" is a big lie too! I cannot tell you how many mountains I NEVER found the top of!

As I was road hunting this weekend, I hit 3 false summits. After the 3rd one it pretty much crushed my spirit to continue. The waist deep snow didn't help. I ended up taking a 75 yard offhand neck shot at a cow and somehow missed. I told myself I sucked and went home. I was popping mustard packets all the way back to the truck as my legs were cramping from plowing through snow. The best thing I did was miss that cow.

False summits are the absolute worst!

 

[Rosebud]

All of this is making me hurt. That is why antelope hunting was so much fun. Shoot the best one you can find after looking all over a big pasture. Drive up to it.clap the shooter on the back, take a bunch of pictures. Toss it in the back, drive off. I loved antelope hunting, did I mention that earlier. I also loved black bear hunting in Minnesota, sleep in, chill around most of the day, catch a few fish. At 4 PM go to a ladder stand. Watch bears, pick a big one. Repeat what happens from antelope hunting.

 

[manitou]

As I was road hunting this weekend, I hit 3 false summits. After the 3rd one it pretty much crushed my spirit to continue. The waist deep snow didn't help. I ended up taking a 75 yard offhand neck shot at a cow and somehow missed. I told myself I sucked and went home. I was popping mustard packets all the way back to the truck as my legs were cramping from plowing through snow. The best thing I did was miss that cow.

False summits are the absolute worst! View attachment 520925

That exposes another issue...
the older I get the less romantic hunting in deep snow gets.

 

[Plinker147]

This is an actually a real good topic for anyone who hasn't had to pack out an elk on their back. It's a MoFo. We see it all the time folks kill an elk a couple miles from the road and leave half of it cuz they got into way more than they bargain for. Be real with yourself. You looking at a legit 200lbs in meat on a descent mature bull and that is not including the antlers and caped. I have pack 2 front quarters with bones on my back which probably 80lbs or more and there is no way I could do that for 4-5 miles in elk country. 1 mile was Tuff. I hunt elk with horses since I'm always 6-8 miles from road. Wouldn't attempt it without my 4 legged friends

 

[etale]

The accounts from the Lewis and Clark expedition mention Elk roaming the *plains* of North America. It seems that hunting pressure is largely responsible for driving all of them into the mountains out west (likely they also inhabited the mountains historically). Pack outs sure would be easier if they wern't in the mountains! But I think that for many (myself included), the singular allure of hunting elk out west is the austere and challenging *mountain* conditions involved, especially for those late season bulls that are fought and f***d out, and retire to remote and hellishly steep terrain to recuperate in. Yes, long packouts in miserable conditions (terrain + weather) can suck tremendously, but for many that suck is what makes this pursuit so life-changing and beautiful, especially when coupled with the camaraderie of like-minded individuals. I think that a lot of what makes hunting such a compelling activity is that it offers something real and extraordinary for everyone, whether your packout is 0.1 miles or 11 miles. Personally, I've gained tremendous respect and understanding for and of these animals and the folks who hunt them---from all walks of life and with radically different approaches and goals---over the years, and I'm tremendously grateful that the pursuit of them has so much to offer for all of us.

 

[bpwsm]

The accounts from the Lewis and Clark expedition mention Elk roaming the *plains* of North America. It seems that hunting pressure is largely responsible for driving all of them into the mountains out west (likely they also inhabited the mountains historically). Pack outs sure would be easier if they wern't in the mountains! But I think that for many (myself included), the singular allure of hunting elk out west is the austere and challenging *mountain* conditions involved, especially for those late season bulls that are fought and f***d out, and retire to remote and hellishly steep terrain to recuperate in. Yes, long packouts in miserable conditions (terrain + weather) can suck tremendously, but for many that suck is what makes this pursuit so life-changing and beautiful, especially when coupled with the camaraderie of like-minded individuals. I think that a lot of what makes hunting such a compelling activity is that it offers something real and extraordinary for everyone, whether your packout is 0.1 miles or 11 miles. Personally, I've gained tremendous respect and understanding for and of these animals and the folks who hunt them---from all walks of life and with radically different approaches and goals---over the years, and I'm tremendously grateful that the pursuit of them has so much to offer for all of us.

 

[Noobie]

In SD by law you have to check your elk in within 24 hrs.

 

[SF Bowhunter]

I had a cow elk tag, this season, and ended up not pulling the trigger because getting to them was so hard when I did the math, I just did not think I could get her out. What do everyone think? What's your worst pack outs? I know I would have made it happen for a bull. The people I talked to had an attitude of "don't work that hard for a cow". I don't know, seasons over and I'm kind of kicking myself. The best thing would have been to be in much better shape, and found some easier elk.

On my first elk hunt in the late 80s in Colorado. Stopped by a store and ran into an 88 year old guide and asked him for any advice. He told me that you kill elk where you hunt. I thought that was stupid back then but after killing many elk since then and packing all of them out on my back, his advice sunk in... Don't hunt an area that you aren't willing to pack it out from.