2016 Bow Bucks - Whitetail Wisdom

Facts of life : Water is wet, rocks are hard, the sky is blue, wrestling is tough and Jeff Karls kills mature whitetails!

Bowhunting in general this fall was good to our family. Jeff and Jesse kept their luck rolling back in Wisconsin and I was the blind squirrel that found a nut. Ha!

2016 Idaho Elk hunt "It's the journey, not the destination"

        Our 2016 elk hunt will mark the time we fell in love with elk hunting; the number of bugles we heard and bulls we ran into was astonishing, the scenery and camaraderie only enhanced the experience. It's always by pure luck that I come across such wonderful places to hunt, luck and maybe networking I guess... I ran into one of my old friends last fall after he returned from a Colorado Mule deer hunt and he told me about Jeff Coldwell and Antler Quest Outfitters ( http://www.antlerquest.com/). With a growing business it has become extremely difficult for me to get away in the summer to scout out west for my hunts which is key to success on any hunt; the owner Jeff does it for you and sends you a professional scouting report, that can put you on game from day one. I had an idea of where I thought I might want to hunt from a friend of a friend in Wyoming, but when I called Jeff he told me doesn't scout in WY, but he had a friend that lived in NE Utah that might help me out. Enter one of the most selfless and knowledgeable big game hunters I have ever met. Stefan, was helpful and trustworthy right from the start, he was willing to scout in WY, but I admitted I had some serious reservations about the number of Grizzly bears in the country we would be hunting, he had a better place to recommend that was Grizzly bear free, I liked the sound of that! During the summer Stefan went on two scouting trips for us and the elk sign sounded too good to be true. My friends reminded me I have ran into people in the past that tell you what you want to hear and once you arrive for the hunt things are totally different, I believe strongly I am a great judge of character, so I told them not to worry Stefan is definitely a righteous individual. Also, after meeting one of Stefan's friends Art Helin and his wife at the deer and turkey expo http://www.arthelinoutdoors.com/ they only confirmed even further what I already knew you can trust a $600 tag, 22 hour drive and week away from work will be worth it if Stefan tells you so. His scouting package was impressive, dozens of photo's of the landscape we would hunt and elk, driving directions, hotels, locker markets to get the meat taken care of, GPS coordinates of places to camp and elk hideouts, we were all set! I have to give thanks to another person besides Stefan and that would be my good buddy Danny Clum aka the elk hunting master, even though he is way to humble to admit that. I had the good fortune to hunt with him for a few days in Wyoming last fall and learned so much about calling, tactics and navigation. Mostly I realized I didn't know anything about elk hunting or calling elk and had a lot to figure out. The nice thing about the internet and this time we live in now is any subject you want to gain knowledge on is at your fingertips Danny recommended I sign up for an online course at roehuntingresources.com and learn how to talk elk from Chris Roe's video's. That was a game changer and even though both bulls we ended up killing were mostly due to stalking rather than calling, I was able to call in a few elk for my buddies and have some very fun close encounters that I am certain wouldn't have happened without spending time on this course and practicing with my calls all winter

 From the first morning as we hiked in at daybreak there were bugles in the air. We excitedly got camp set up and split into two teams: "A team" Jeff and I, "B team" Tony and Jesse and went our separate ways ha ha. Jeff and I had bulls bugling close to us until 11 am that morning which is pretty late I thought, we couldn't get anything to come into my calls, so after a nice nap on the mountain we started slowly still hunting across the ridge-line of the mountain we were on. We hadn't gone a quarter mile before I happened to stumble on a tree that was abnormally huge, I looked thirty feet up and noticed a black rug with a brown rug right next to it sitting on the tree's limbs. I looked over at Jeff wide eyed and pointed up, "bears" I whispered excitedly and reminded myself again how thankful I was we were hunting in black bear not grizzly bear country. It was a big black bear sow with her cinnamon colored cub, a very rare sight I thought. Our tags were valid for either an elk, wolf, bear or mountain lion, but these bears were safe, not only is it illegal and unethical to shoot a sow with cubs, I drove 22 hours for elk, I have killed black bear in Wisconsin. We moved on and admittedly looked back over our shoulder a couple times just to make sure Momma bear wasn't getting protective and craving a cheesehead for dinner. We got enough distance between us and the bears and started really getting into elk sign, I told Jeff to get set up and I would drop back and call. It took about 15 minutes of silence and a little questioning of whether I actually learned anything about how to call before I smelled him and I do mean smelled the bull! I was looking over my right shoulder when the scent absolutely filled my nostrils, I quickly looked to my left and locked eyes with a small bull only 15 yards away. I had two thoughts: First how did something that big sneak in on me so quietly and what the heck is my cousin doing not sending an arrow at this thing. The bull turned and trotted away and I slowly crept up to Jeff where he told me he was having a hard time getting a clean shot at the bull, before it left, I thought that could be true, but he might also have crapped his pants when he saw his first bull elk and was trying to recover from the shock. Either way I didn't get long to tease him before another small bull was coming in, we were both pumped up on adrenaline now and as we went to move in position to try and kill it Jeff dropped his rangefinder out of his hand and I watched in amusement as it rolled end for end a good hundred yards down the mountain into some brush. If Jeff wasn't flustered before he sure was now and me being the supportive friend that I am chose to laugh at him more than help him look for that expensive piece of equipment. The first day ended for us with more bugling, but no more elk sightings, we got back to camp excited to hear how Jesse and Tony did and share our stories. They had an equally thrilling first day as they ran into a bobcat mother and her kittens and of course some elk. After they spent 5 minutes trying to keep it a secret they finally blurted out that Tony had shot a great bull and they wanted our helping tracking it in the morning. We crawled into our tents and spent the night being serenaded by bugles. I remember waking up at two am thinking wow that bugle was close, it sounded like we had elk rutting within 300 yards of camp a lot of nights, you just couldn't beat this experience.  We woke up before dawn and hiked to where Tony took the shot, the blood was sparse, but the amount of bugling elk in that area was not! We decided to take a break from trailing Tony's bull and see if we could call in another one, Jesse and Jeff got set up and I started calling, the bull was bugling, but after twenty minutes I started thinking he was with cows and wasn't interested, I slowly started creeping up to where Jesse was and as I rounded a big pine tree I saw a bull standing in the meadow looking for the cow he was hearing, I ducked behind the tree and called a little more thinking Jesse should smoke that bull at any moment finally after a few tense moments I heard Jesse's let his bow rip, bow hunting is a game of inches and this bull narrowly escaped unharmed. I remember Jesse being a little down after the encounter and telling me he felt he probably just blew the only chance he would get that week on a bull, I laughed and told him with all the elk we are hearing and seeing he will get a chance at redemption. We ended up bumping Tony's bull and never finding it, we all felt awful for Tony they described it as a real trophy size animal. That evening we stumbled upon multiple herds of elk coming together and the bulls were screaming out bugles every thirty seconds for over two hours and raking trees with their horns trying to act as tough as they possibly could to keep their rivals from stealing their harem of cows. It was euphoric for sure. Jesse looked at me as he dropped his pack and told me he was going in the opposite direction of me to chase bugles and we would meet up again at dark. Jeff and I quickly realized these bulls were not going to leave their cows and come to our calls, so we started stalking side by side about thirty yards apart from each other. I could see a bull in the meadow on the edge of the woods and as I was closing the distance on him he chased a cow back into the woods Jeff had just gotten to; I figured he would be back out in the meadow before too long and I would get my shot, then I heard Jeff's bow go off and knew that bull was gone, I immediately started calling to try to get the bull to stop running if Jeff put an arrow in him hoping he would die closer to us. I waited a few minutes and turned to stalk towards a couple other nearby bugling bulls as luck would have it a bull came running towards me from behind to investigate my calls and by the time I turned around we were 15 yards from each other face to face, dang! he bolted out of there offering no shot. I got back to Jeff and told me he hit the bull, but wasn't too confident in the shot placement. My head was pounding from two straight hours of adrenaline pumping action, I was dehydrated and exhausted, but could care less this was a day to remember. We hiked back to camp thinking we probably wouldn't find that bull. The next morning we all four went in to track and found out Jeff hit the bull perfectly, (he's always such an optimist)  ha ha. One down, three to go, nice job Jeff!

 Jeff with his first elk kill

 Jeff enjoying the struggle of the pack out

Unfortunately, the weather turned very warm and the elk action slowed a little. We needed to pack out Jeff's meat and get it to town and put on ice, We got back to the trail head the next morning after spending the night in town and hiked in for a final few days of hunting. As we approached camp we kept hearing a bugle not much more than a quarter mile south of camp. It was decided that Tony and Jeff would continue searching for the bull Tony hit and Jesse and I would go after this bull. We had  stalked halfway up the mountain towards his bugles, when Jesse asked if we should try calling him in from our current location, I told him calling doesn't seem to be working on the bugling heard bulls, we need to stalk this dude. After a nice climb to the peak of the mountain we found a wallow he had used that morning, but he hadn't bugled in over twenty minutes and we were starting to lose hope. As we were discussing our next move Jesse's Bull bugled no more than a hundred yards away. Jesse and I looked at each other wide eyed and salivating to kill this elk. We snuck to the edge of an opening, shoulder to shoulder and I grabbed Jesse by the arm and said "I see a cow" coming over the ridgeline above us, he responded "the bull is behind her" that was a magnificent image watching that bull chase his cow in our direction. We decided to split up I had eased maybe forty yards away from Jesse before I heard him shoot and the sound of thundering hooves running away. I ran up to Jesse and he was laying on the ground barely able to stand from an adrenaline overload. The bull was bugling in his face and he shot it at 15 yards face to face. We were excited and after Jesse gathered himself we started off on the blood trail, we heard loud crash over the hill and Jesse thought maybe we should back out and give the bull more time to expire, I told him to ease up and peak over the hill and if he didn't see it we would wait a while before tracking it further. Jesse quickly shouted to me that he saw the bull and we both sprinted to the dead bull and began hugging and dancing in celebration like two little school girls on Christmas morning. The bull had died in such a panoramic place Jesse and took our time taking some awesome pictures, soaking in the moment and talking about how grateful we were to get to experience the beauty of these animals in such a breathtaking place. We didn't start the butchering and packing out process on the bull for over an hour after we got to him we simply sat down and just soaked in the moment. I truly believe its one of those times you won't ever forget as you get older, the Sour Patch kids we snacked on never tasted better, I have never smiled harder in my life! Jesse and I will always make a great team, there is no animal we can't bring down together, we will kill many more animals in neat places, but your first bull elk will be hard to top; I don't think you get many moments that good in life, so they should be cherished. The conversations we shared up there and the struggle of the pack down to camp was all part of the amazing journey. Unfortunately, the weather took another turn for the worst and rain started pounding the area for the next couple days and it becomes very dangerous to drive a truck and trailer down the muddy mountain trail once things get wet and the hunt was cut a couple days short.

 Jesse getting a well deserved midday nap with a pine tree branch, blanket to stay warm

 Jesse moments after he took the shot with his beautiful, first bull.

 Jesse's Bull maybe ran 100 yards after he shot it.

 Jesse's Bull died in a perfect place for pictures and butchering duties

 We always make a good team, but this hunt was the pinnacle for us thus far!

It was nice of Rambo to hike into the mountain to help us pack out Jess's Bull

   I really wanted to take my first elk this trip I have put in tons of time and effort into elk hunting, I let my attitude get bitter after I knew my hunt was done and I wouldn't be successful this year, it was stupid and juvenile of me. I need to grow up and toughen up, the elk never care about what you think is fair or you have earned. I learned so much on this trip that will benefit my elk hunts in the future, but I still have more to gain. As I reflect back on the trip now I feel much better about it, the most important thing is that my mountain, elk hunting skills improved and I was able to help my friends get an opportunity they wouldn't have had without me. I know eventually I will get an elk, it might not be next year or the year after and that's okay, but I will never quit! Someday, I will get one and it's going to be extremely gratifying, to put to use all the bits and pieces of wisdom I have been gaining to use. I know I am drawn to elk hunting because its hard, the challenge make's us all better men, you must accept discomfort which is good to do from time to time in this soft culture we live in. There's no indoor plumbing, warm beds, vehicles or elevators if you want to get somewhere you get there by the sweat of your brow, and you will be rewarded with a breathtaking view and sometimes a big, smelly, adrenaline pumping bull elk. The next time I get a chance to chase elk I will be on the wrong side of 30, an older and wiser man I hope, that is starting to realize it truly isn't about the final destination or any trophy rack, its all about the journey and the memories made to get there. Thank God I'm an American and live in a place where this opportunity is available.

Carl's first bow buck

Carl's first bow buck!

Mountains and Valleys

          It is with an extremely heavy heart that I write this memoir of our most recent hunt, it will probably be the most heartfelt blog I write for a very long time (at least I hope so). The truth is we had the best and most successful hunt this trio has ever had and I could write for day's bragging on my two hunting partner's and how far their skills have come since I first watched them pick up their bow's as young boy's and kill their first deer; there is no doubt they have far surpassed my bow hunting proficiency. If I was ever the teacher, now I am the student with Tony and Jesse and I am fine with that, for me it's just a privilege to share camp with them and enjoy the experiences. I could explain how we had the good fortune to meet our guide Kelly Riggs, who's wisdom on the hideout's of our game, caring personality, comic relief and positivity is inspiring and we are proud when he call's us family. That's how this story almost went, but the loss of a young family member the day after we returned home made me lose all taste for celebration; I spent the day not wanting to talk about the successful hunt for a record book antelope after I received the news of this tragedy. Christopher was one of my second cousin's I got to spend some time with when we were young; I will always have my childhood memories of Sunday morning's at my Grandma's, (his Great Grandma's) spent playing as young kids. He was taken way too young and it's sobering realizing how fragile life is. It made me realize something I already should have known, it's not about the trophy kill, it's about the adventure and time spent with friend's.

        Life is short, very, very short for some and when I am too old to hike into the mountains with my bow any longer, it won't be the horn's I remember as much as it is the guy's that I shared the triumph's, trial's and tribulations with; the kind of guy's that will hike halfway down a steep cliff after they watched you blow a golden opportunity for no other reason than to take your pack off your back and carry your bow for you and keep you positive as you struggle up the mountain in frustration and fatigue. That kind of bond of camaraderie can only be tempered in the fire's of adversity. True friendship is hard to come by, but I'm certain it's one of the greatest Blessings in life. May I never take one day or one friendship for granted again. RIP Christopher Lord 8/17/15

The Crew!

Jesse doing what Jesse does

My best Donnie Vincent shot

Wild Mustangs

Can't find anything

Last minutes of the hunt enjoying the brotherhood

The Man, The Myth, The Legend Uncle Kelly

Zeman's first speed goat!

The Master definitely didn't strike first on this hunt

P&Y Pronghorn

To me this picture is worth a thousand words!!

Just a few pictures from the 2014 season

Rocky Mountain High - Accept the Challenge

 

 

               Once again the month of August kick started the hunting season of first’s for my buddy’s and I; our first time hunting elk and our first time living out of our backpacks in the high country of the Rocky Mountains, but it was an experience that tests an outdoorsman in way he has never been tested before.  This type of hunt strips you down to the bare essentials of life: food, water and shelter. I believe there are certain things hard wired into every man, things like the desire to go on an adventure and the desire to be the hero; while all three of us got to go on one exciting adventure, it was only Tony that was the hero, but the triumph was definitely enjoyed by the entire trio.  I assume most people not knowledgeable about elk hunting would wonder why we were so elated over a young bull and two empty tags, well in Colorado I was told there is a 7 % success rate among archery elk hunters, we hit pay dirt on our first try, I know hunter’s in their 40’s and 50’s with multiple elk hunts under their belt’s with no more success than us. It was a journey that started back when I was 12 year’s old still sharing a room with my older brother and  talking dream hunt's at night before falling asleep and reading outdoor magazines with stories of elk hunt’s in God’s Country. I thought that was something maybe I would get to experience when I was in my 30’s and could afford a guide, but as luck would have it, I would meet a great friend in college that grew up in Denver and might be to elk hunting what Aaron Rodgers is to football, ha ha. But seriously, my old buddy Danny Clum knows the mountains and he knows elk like a Wisconsin farmer knows his cattle. When I told him I was going to come out and scout some land I had received  a tip on from a friend that might hold elk, he offered to take me out and show me one of the places he has found success.  I was blown away by that sort of generosity, fishermen don’t give away their best fishing holes and hunters don’t show others their honey holes. Danny took a day off work and spent a couple day’s in the mountains with me not only showing me elk and where to hunt them, but how to hunt them and more importantly how to survive in the mountains; I didn’t know how to load my pack, set up my tent, filter water or make dinner until my scouting trip with him. I really felt a thousand times more at ease after he took me out and taught me the ropes a bit because on this hunt I wasn’t just responsible for my own well-being, but a couple of other young hunter’s as well, I always feel pressure to make sure my compadres have a successful hunt, but this time it was about more, in the Mountains five hours from any help, it was also about survival! Danny provided me with skills and experiences I will carry with me going forward until I hang up my bow permanently.  I also am grateful Danny helped me get great deals on the best gear at his shop rmsgear.com, even if you’re a non-hunter, but enjoy camping; they have the best equipment and friendliest service.

            After a 16 hour drive out, a 20 minute four-wheeler ride up and 2 hour hike in we found our campsite, although not before we ran into a local couple and their attractive daughter that were sightseeing on this mountain and she stole Tony’s heart ha ha, we had them take our picture as we set out on our trek and tried to refocus Tony on hunting elk and not college girls; Jesse on the other hand was mesmerized by the view and the vastness of the wilderness, he did a great job of reminding us on this hunt “it’s the little things in life that mean the most” .  Daybreak found us sneaking along a creek bed through a valley Danny told me we should get on some elk in. After making it only a quarter mile and to our disappointment hearing no bugles Tony suggested we set up on the meadow in front of us and call; Jesse and Tony took their positions on either side of the meadow 50 yards in front of me and I started cow calling, to my dismay I thought I heard a bugle, couldn’t be I thought to myself because I stink at calling and no way am I lucky enough to call in elk on my first try ever. I called a second time and I heard the bugle again, I thought for sure a fellow hunter was playing a cruel trick on me, just then a calf elk ran into the meadow between Jesse and Tony, Game on! A few minutes later the bugling bull came along the side of the mountain in and out of my view, but in plain sight for Jesse, just in too much brush for a shot, Jesse watched the show as he bugled to my calls, raked his antlers on brush and just stood around being enormous to a few whitetail hunters from Wisconsin. After him and I talking back and forth and my trying to play “hard to get” cow elk style he was 30 yards from Jesse and I and only needed to take a few more steps to present the shot we traveled so far for; Just about that time I heard a loud “whack” and turned around to see Tony’s bull run out of the meadow, I turned back around as our bull figured out the game and slowly walked back up the mountain and bugled no more. After getting up to Jesse, he whispered to me that Tony had made a great shot on that bull and it was expiring within 60 yards of us, I was ecstatic, twenty minutes into the hunt and we got a  bull! Tony and Jesse noticed how I was the most excited out of us three; I thought of all the money I put into this hunt and more importantly the time away from my family, business and friends it just all seemed worth it at that moment. What a great memory with friends. After the butchering process and an afternoon hunt a thunderstorm rolled into our mountain range and little did we know was about to dump rain, wind and hail on us for the next 24 hours. I spent the night dry in my tent and woke the next morning thinking we would just wait out the storm before packing out the meat, but Jesse told me him and Tony had a much different night in a tent that leaked horribly and were wet and half frozen. Finally after truly realizing just how bad their tent leaked and how wet and serious their situation was I agreed we needed to get this meat out and get these guys to dryer land. We loaded up the meat and I asked Tony if I could carry out the head and horns of his bull for him to assure I had the most weight, it was only logical as I have 30 more pounds of mass on my frame than Tony does and I spent all summer hiking Gibraltar rock in my 60lb weighted vest preparing for that moment. Jesse reminded me of the hell I was in for; I told him we always accept the challenge! On our rainy, miserable hike out, I tripped and fell once, but mostly felt great, like my training was paying off, even in the rain and cold all three of us kept our spirits up. I will admit the only time I started feeling frustrated was when marble size hail started pelting me in the head. I remember looking at Tony as he was soaking wet and winded and got a great laugh as he sarcastically said out loud “go elk hunting they say, it will be fun!” Dry clothes and a warm meal never felt as good as they did that night; we packed back into our campsite the next morning and grabbed our bows to continue the hunt; I had an opportunity to take a cow that day, but we were all a little spent at that point and were not ready to put in that much effort again for a cow. Of course the rest of the hunt no shots were presented and I regret not bringing home more meat. Elk burgers are a delicacy in my eyes. We hiked out feeling like we conquered a huge challenge learning to navigate in the mountains and had a much clearer picture of how to hunt elk and what skills we need to improve on for the future. Reliable gear, better cardio training and more skillful calling are a must for next time and there will be a next time.

 

 

                                                   "Rise and Grind"

                                 Jesse had the excitement of a three year old at the start of this adventure!

                                      Tony's future ex Mother in - law took our photo

                        Tony's Bull, but I was the happiest SOB in CO that day!!!

                           We filtered water 2-3 times a day out of fresh spring fed streams. Ice Cold!

                   This day Jesse noted his water tasted like Bar burgers, Funyons and Mountain Dew. Haha

       Lunchtime was spent cleaning up and boiling water to enjoy Mountain House freeze dried meals.