XD45 7,124 Posted December 8, 2013 Report Share Posted December 8, 2013 (edited) 9AM on day 2 of our northern AZ elk hunt, the 3 of us were up on a mountain around 7800 feet glassing across a ravine. Suddenly 200 yards across a herd of elk appeared in the trees. 10 seconds later, 3 elk on the ground. Mine went about 20 yards. Jeff's dropped in place (head shot). Sam's went about 30 yards. Fortunately there was a trail near the elk that we could get the jeep almost to the animals. Only took 4 hours to get them down the mountain. I think I need to buy another freezer. Edited December 15, 2013 by Darth Saigus 5 Quote Link to post Share on other sites
patriot 7,197 Posted December 8, 2013 Report Share Posted December 8, 2013 Dinner at Darth's house!!!!! Lucky bastard! Elk is delicious! 1 Quote Link to post Share on other sites
Long Shot 1,287 Posted December 8, 2013 Report Share Posted December 8, 2013 Very nice. How did you convince it to lean against that tree for the photo? Congratulations! That's a great trip right there. Quote Link to post Share on other sites
gunman1 1,753 Posted December 8, 2013 Report Share Posted December 8, 2013 Very nice Darth.......wish I was with ya brother. What rifle did you use? Quote Link to post Share on other sites
XD45 7,124 Posted December 8, 2013 Author Report Share Posted December 8, 2013 300WSM Savage 11 Quote Link to post Share on other sites
sunnybean 939 Posted December 8, 2013 Report Share Posted December 8, 2013 Strong work! Quote Link to post Share on other sites
sccritterkiller 473 Posted December 8, 2013 Report Share Posted December 8, 2013 Congrats...that's good eats there! Quote Link to post Share on other sites
patriot 7,197 Posted December 8, 2013 Report Share Posted December 8, 2013 Nice choice in firearms too! What, if any optic did you use? Quote Link to post Share on other sites
Ronin38 2,117 Posted December 8, 2013 Report Share Posted December 8, 2013 Very nice. How did you convince it to lean against that tree for the photo? Elk like to scratch their backs on trees, just like bears. Congrats guys! You could survive in Alaska with hunting like that! And go buy a lottery ticket. Quote Link to post Share on other sites
XD45 7,124 Posted December 8, 2013 Author Report Share Posted December 8, 2013 Nice choice in firearms too! What, if any optic did you use? Nikon Prostaff BDC. 250 yd zero. Broadside shot. I wasn't sure of the exact range but I knew it was less than 250. Held dead on. The 180gr Federal Trophy Copper smashed her shoulder-blade and grazed the top of her heart. Surprisingly the bullet did not exit. Quote Link to post Share on other sites
patriot 7,197 Posted December 8, 2013 Report Share Posted December 8, 2013 Good choice. I like Federal's ammo when I use factory stuff. It's hard to handload anything better. Quote Link to post Share on other sites
ChileRelleno 7,071 Posted December 8, 2013 Report Share Posted December 8, 2013 Freaking fantastic luck for all three of ya, it just doesn't get any easier unless they wander into your camp. You're making me very jealous... And hungry for fresh backstrap. Quote Link to post Share on other sites
Big John! 2,062 Posted December 8, 2013 Report Share Posted December 8, 2013 Way to go Mr. Saigus. Enjoy! Quote Link to post Share on other sites
thebuns1 4,323 Posted December 8, 2013 Report Share Posted December 8, 2013 Congrats. Thats a hell of a score. I always wanted to bag an elk with a mosin. With all that meat, you may need a bigger freezer! Quote Link to post Share on other sites
sccritterkiller 473 Posted December 8, 2013 Report Share Posted December 8, 2013 (edited) Good choice. I like Federal's ammo when I use factory stuff. It's hard to handload anything better. +1 I use federal premium in all my bolt guns. If anyone sees any 200 gr 300 WM trophy bonded bear claw let me know. Haven't been able to find any in a while.... Edited December 8, 2013 by sccritterkiller Quote Link to post Share on other sites
BpS12 512 Posted December 9, 2013 Report Share Posted December 9, 2013 Very nice. Nothing better than Elk meat. My Dad and I took one each up near Alpine about 20yrs ago. Three shots(first two, low then high) to range in the kill shot at 150yrds with irons on a 30-30. My Dads walked up near a jeep trail about 30yrds ahead of us. Hardest part was loading it in the truck. I miss Arizona. Quote Link to post Share on other sites
XD45 7,124 Posted December 11, 2013 Author Report Share Posted December 11, 2013 It doesn't look it but this is 60 pounds of meat just before we ground it up. With the beef fat it made 68 pounds of ground meat. And that's only the start. 1 Quote Link to post Share on other sites
gunfun 3,931 Posted December 11, 2013 Report Share Posted December 11, 2013 Very nice. How did you convince it to lean against that tree for the photo? Elk like to scratch their backs on trees, just like bears. Congrats guys! You could survive in Alaska with hunting like that! And go buy a lottery ticket. Truth be told, where quadripeds are concerned, in most of subsistence zoned Alaska, almost anyone could feed themselves for a full year with about 30 feet of net, a few freezers and almost no hunting skill. Caribou herds are vast. Horizon filling vast. Hunting for moose might take some skill and luck, and same for game birds and predators. But the main eating critter is caribou, and most of my friends that hunt basically do so by waiting for a herd to move somewhere easily accessible by boat. Then a dozen or so guys run the boat upriver, crawl up on the herd and pick out 3-4 of the best ones each, then blast away on signal. Then they get them back to the boat and start the bucthery as they run the boat down river. Hunts are less of a sneaky stalk than a family picnic. It's pretty common for family and friends to stay back on the boat and setup a potluck (with expected barbecue.) There's often a bonfire going and beach party. A small commercial fishing boat can be used as an assembly line style butchery if you stand in a hold, the carcass will be at about chest level. I know some ladies who are pretty efficient about packing away game. I always used to fly back to the lower 48s just a few weeks before all the fun, and I've always felt like I missed out. But I've gotten to eat a lot of that tasty 'bou anyway. Anyway, thanks for posting the pics darth- looks like you had a fun day. 1 Quote Link to post Share on other sites
XD45 7,124 Posted December 16, 2013 Author Report Share Posted December 16, 2013 This happened only a few miles from where we got our elk. This shit really pisses me off. I hope they get this bastard(s). I can understand taking an animal for food out of season. (Not agree, but understand.) But shooting animals and leaving them on the ground is sensless. Poachers Kill 4 Elk Near Flagstaff http://azdailysun.com/news/local/crime-and-courts/820c476a-634f-11e3-a678-001a4bcf887a.html Quote Link to post Share on other sites
HB of CJ 1,263 Posted December 18, 2013 Report Share Posted December 18, 2013 Look at the size of those things! And, they are so good to eat. Our neighbor got a good Elk and I traded 20 rounds of old L.C. 7.62x51 AP ammo for a TEN (nearly) pound roast. Best deal I ever made. We ate left overs that were as good as the first meal for almost one week. Even the final stew was great. Yumm yumm. HB of CJ (old coot) Quote Link to post Share on other sites
MT Predator 2,294 Posted December 18, 2013 Report Share Posted December 18, 2013 Good hunt Darth! Quote Link to post Share on other sites
XD45 7,124 Posted December 18, 2013 Author Report Share Posted December 18, 2013 We decided to split the meat evenly from the 3 animals. After giving some to friends and family, I put 200# of elk in the freezer. Quote Link to post Share on other sites
Recommended Posts
Join the conversation
You can post now and register later. If you have an account, sign in now to post with your account.