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- Jan 28, 2003
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- 13,341
Well hunting season started off with a bang this year and kept right on rolling through out the whole deal. As promised I kept my vow to use only a .30-06 in honor of the passing of Col. Jeff Cooper this year. As I posted earlier I shot a nice whitetail buck during the early rifle plains season.
I had a late season elk tag and was also successful in taking a fat young cow elk also with the .30-06.
I was using my kimber M-8400 classic shooting 180gr Barnes TSX bullets @ a nominal; 2750 FPS.
Late season elk started off with a major blizzard and the closing of I-70. So we were delayed a day in getting over the passes from the front range to the western slope.
We arrived late on the afternoon of the first day of the season. After setting up camp we took a quick spin around the area and found a group of 8 cows about 850 yards and over 1500 vertical feet up the side of a canyon. Being full of piss and first day vinegar we put a stalk on them and ran out of day light before we could close to a reasonable distance.
The second day started out with a major climb up some steep and deep terrain. We got going about an hour before daylight in the frosty sub zero temperatures. It didn’t take long before I was shedding layers as my body was producing plenty of heat on the 45 to 60 degree inclines we decided to attack in search of fresh elk protein and general excitement.
As daylight was breaking and the world was coming alive my hunting buddy Tim and I split, he took the high road and I started side hilling about 100 yards below him. It wasn’t 15 minutes after we separated that I came to an open avalanche chute.
Just to the far side of the chute almost into the trees a small group of cows was standing intently staring back into the timber on the opposite side of the chute. They were staring back at Tim who was still in the thick timber and making some noise as he was trying to break out.
I laid my pack in the snow and got a solid prone hold on the largest cow. I waited to see if Tim would pop out in time to get a shot. As Tim continued to trash about in the timber still unaware that there was a group of elk ahead I knew that this game was just about up.
The elk nearest the timber started to filter into the foliage. I had just moments to get the job done so I went ahead and squeezed the trigger sending a 180gr TSX low and tight behind the near shoulder, hitting the heart and exiting just behind the point of the off shoulder.
The elk lurched at the shot tried to make the timber line in three or four wobbly steps then fell over backwards and began an epic slide down the snow covered chute.
She was 238 yards up the hill when I fired. The now prostrate cow rapidly began to take on the frictional coefficient of a bob sled as she rapidly began gaining speed down the steep, barren , snow covered slope.
Notice the snow dust on the top of the elk, that was dust from the slide.
Also notice the exit wound on the shoulder.
The whole time I am laying in my prone position watching the drama unfold. The 400LB+ animal momentarily disappears from sight as she makes a bend I am figuring she must have got hung up and stopped. Just about that time she came around the corner and had picked up considerable speed. And the is on what appears to be a direct collision course with my still prone body and enlightened spirit.
Well momma didn’t raise no fool. I jumped to my feet and started making side hill tracks as fast my oxygen starved flat land body could carry me. I watch as the gold medal luge like elk slides past me at freight train velocity and continues down into the oak shinnery crashing to a stop with a loud cracking of branches.
Turns out she would have missed me by about 3 feet if I’d the guts to remain in my nest. Color me yellow but it sure looked like eminent death from my view.
Looking at this picture you can see a dead tree on the sky line. The elk was standing just to the right of that dead pine. You can also see the slide trail next to foot prints. That was her kamakazi path down the hill
In any case it sure made the drag down to the trail easy. Sometimes gravity is your friend when elk hunting. I’ve heard of air time before but this is a new category in hunting . Major slide time dude.
The rest of the hunt was uneventful as in we didn’t even see another legal elk for the rest of the trip. Tim went home empty handed. But little did he know the hunting gods were smiling on him in a big way.
Read about Tim’s big score on the Tim’s buck thread coming to post near you very soon!
I had a late season elk tag and was also successful in taking a fat young cow elk also with the .30-06.
I was using my kimber M-8400 classic shooting 180gr Barnes TSX bullets @ a nominal; 2750 FPS.
Late season elk started off with a major blizzard and the closing of I-70. So we were delayed a day in getting over the passes from the front range to the western slope.
We arrived late on the afternoon of the first day of the season. After setting up camp we took a quick spin around the area and found a group of 8 cows about 850 yards and over 1500 vertical feet up the side of a canyon. Being full of piss and first day vinegar we put a stalk on them and ran out of day light before we could close to a reasonable distance.
The second day started out with a major climb up some steep and deep terrain. We got going about an hour before daylight in the frosty sub zero temperatures. It didn’t take long before I was shedding layers as my body was producing plenty of heat on the 45 to 60 degree inclines we decided to attack in search of fresh elk protein and general excitement.
As daylight was breaking and the world was coming alive my hunting buddy Tim and I split, he took the high road and I started side hilling about 100 yards below him. It wasn’t 15 minutes after we separated that I came to an open avalanche chute.
Just to the far side of the chute almost into the trees a small group of cows was standing intently staring back into the timber on the opposite side of the chute. They were staring back at Tim who was still in the thick timber and making some noise as he was trying to break out.
I laid my pack in the snow and got a solid prone hold on the largest cow. I waited to see if Tim would pop out in time to get a shot. As Tim continued to trash about in the timber still unaware that there was a group of elk ahead I knew that this game was just about up.
The elk nearest the timber started to filter into the foliage. I had just moments to get the job done so I went ahead and squeezed the trigger sending a 180gr TSX low and tight behind the near shoulder, hitting the heart and exiting just behind the point of the off shoulder.
The elk lurched at the shot tried to make the timber line in three or four wobbly steps then fell over backwards and began an epic slide down the snow covered chute.
She was 238 yards up the hill when I fired. The now prostrate cow rapidly began to take on the frictional coefficient of a bob sled as she rapidly began gaining speed down the steep, barren , snow covered slope.
Notice the snow dust on the top of the elk, that was dust from the slide.
Also notice the exit wound on the shoulder.
The whole time I am laying in my prone position watching the drama unfold. The 400LB+ animal momentarily disappears from sight as she makes a bend I am figuring she must have got hung up and stopped. Just about that time she came around the corner and had picked up considerable speed. And the is on what appears to be a direct collision course with my still prone body and enlightened spirit.
Well momma didn’t raise no fool. I jumped to my feet and started making side hill tracks as fast my oxygen starved flat land body could carry me. I watch as the gold medal luge like elk slides past me at freight train velocity and continues down into the oak shinnery crashing to a stop with a loud cracking of branches.
Turns out she would have missed me by about 3 feet if I’d the guts to remain in my nest. Color me yellow but it sure looked like eminent death from my view.
Looking at this picture you can see a dead tree on the sky line. The elk was standing just to the right of that dead pine. You can also see the slide trail next to foot prints. That was her kamakazi path down the hill
In any case it sure made the drag down to the trail easy. Sometimes gravity is your friend when elk hunting. I’ve heard of air time before but this is a new category in hunting . Major slide time dude.
The rest of the hunt was uneventful as in we didn’t even see another legal elk for the rest of the trip. Tim went home empty handed. But little did he know the hunting gods were smiling on him in a big way.
Read about Tim’s big score on the Tim’s buck thread coming to post near you very soon!
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Excellent shot!
