The Elusive Wapiti
11.03.07
Alas, today ends Elk season and I have nothing to show for it. Been all over the woods and the most we’ve done is spook em and chase em up or down. We’ve hunted Wolf Lodge Creek, Rose Creek, Killarney Creek, Beauty Creek, Blue Creek, Bullion Creek, and countless other places around the panhandle.
Down rose creek, we got skunked by some other hunters. We got up a 3, hiked down the mountain in the dark from Rose Saddle. We sat in the dark till dawn started to break. As we stood up to put on our packs and head down the creek bed, 4 other hunters on 4 wheelers roll up. Park next to us, and head off down the trail we were just planning on taking. Within 20 minutes they pulled out a cow. So that was a disappointment.
Down Killarney Creek, we sat down in the road to take a break. It was about 10 am when a doe tore out of the woods, crossed the forest road, and went back in on the other side. As I was just about to ask Jonas what her hurry might have been, a tired coyote came out of the woods in pursuit of her. He was about 300 yards down the road, and quit chasing her after we sparked his interest. We were sitting still on stumps, and camo’d, so he wasn’t sure what to make of us. As he trotted toward us a few yards, Jonas stood up and laid his sights on the varmint. Shot and it hit too low. The coyote jumped and stepped back a few feet. I told him to aim high, as the rounds for his 30-06 have a 36″ drop in the bullet at 300 yards. So he aimed around the top of the coyotes head and fired again. It hit the ground immediately at his feet, and the coyote ran into the thick. I guess I shoulda been shooting at him too, but I was enjoying watching Jonas take the shot. We’ll get him next time.
Welp, Deer is still open till December 1st, and I’m still holding out for a buck. We’ve had plenty of chances at a doe, but we won’t take one unless we need to. From December 1st through the 9th we’ll have a shot at a spike Elk once more. That’ll be with the inline muzzle loader.
