DAY 1-6
We arrived in New Mexico on September 7th and immediately got dressed for an unexpected evening hunt. It was raining and the mosquitos were TERRIBLE. I was wishing every second that I had my Thermacell as part of my packing list. Also, I forgot one of the most important items for a fair skinned gal - SUNSCREEN! Both of these are must-haves and I paid the price for not having both. Don't make my mistake!
I had a total of 4 different guides throughout my 7 day trip and they all had different styles of hunting. I loved the diversity because you learn so much more as a hunter. Each morning we spot and stalked as long as we could hear bugling, and usually in the evenings we sat at water holes. This early in the season, water holes are truly the most effective way to harvest an elk. This tested my patience because I hunt feeders in Texas so all I wanted to do was spot and stalk to change it up! I had several close calls in the mornings with my main guide and it kept my excitement up throughout the week. He had me within 50 yards of multiple bulls, but I never got a shot. I also had one of the owners get a 350+ inch bull within 50 yards really worked up to the point I had chills through my body. He was tearing up trees and bugling nonstop. I couldn't see my pins well enough in the timber so I didn’t feel comfortable taking the shot.
I felt discouraged on the days where I didn't hear much, and I was already so physically drained from staying out all day that I had somewhat accepted the idea of going home empty-handed. With that being said, I refused to go home without giving it everything I had, and that meant staying in the field all day every day. I didn't go on this trip to socialize or hang out at the cabin, and it wasn't a vacation. For 5 days straight we worked hard to get on a bull, but just couldn't make it happen. We decided to extend our hunt 2 more days, and thank God we did! On the afternoon of day 6 I sat at the same tank I shot my elk on, but I got out of the treestand early afternoon because I kept falling asleep and almost coming out of the tree. Of course I had a Hunter's Safety System on, but it's scary to wake up in a falling motion.
My dad took that as his opportunity to set up a ground blind and hunt the rest of the evening on the same tank. It really is a honey hole for elk, but I was stubborn and wanted to spot and stalk to wake up. He ended up having a 6x6 come into the tank that evening and slung an arrow, but it went straight under the elk at 50 yards. Before jumping to conclusions, please know that my dad is an awesome shot! I'm not being biased, he really is a great hunter and I get my calmness from him under intense circumstances. Something didn't seem right about him missing the entire animal, and sure enough his Montec broadheads dropped over a foot compared to field points when we finally tested it on a target. I will say this is a rookie mistake - YOU NEED TO PRACTICE SHOOTING THE EXACT SETUP THAT YOU PLAN TO HAVE IN THE FIELD! He was shooting my husband's bow that is set up using Rage broadheads which fly very similar to his field points. Some men blamed the Montec, some blamed the Mathew's bow, but I will always blame the hunter. It is your responsibility to practice with your setup before you use it on an animal. PERIOD.
DAY 7 - THE KILL
To give my followers an idea of my setup, see the picture below. I'm sitting in the treestand when I took this, but on the far left of this photo under the group of trees is the ground blind where I shot from. The bull entered directly across the tank from this treestand, so it's a blessing that I switched stands when I did. I would've never been able to take a shot from this angle, as it would've been around 60 yards, and I wouldn't of had the opportunity to shoot a second time. Everything truly happens for a reason!
I didn't have any luck day 6 and made up my mind I was going back to the tank on day 7 for the ENTIRE day. I was in the blind set up at 5:15am and could hear multiple bugles all around me. They seemed to be getting closer and then all of a sudden it was dead quiet right after daylight. I couldn't hear a thing! I began falling asleep again, so I crawled around on a tree limb and slept hanging over it for awhile to keep me stable as the wind was really intense. This quickly became the most uncomfortable position so I decided to go to the ground blind. The weather was back and forth all day - cold, rainy, and strong winds to a very hot, humid, calm day. I was constantly taking layers off and putting back on, making me extra restless. The wind was unpredictable and I still hadn't seen or heard anything as time went on.
Then 14 hours later, at almost 7pm, I hear a bugle that seemed to be a good ways off. It didn't sound like he was coming toward me, but it was a breath of fresh air to hear SOMETHING. At this point I'm laying on the ground in the dirt, my bow hanging way above me, clothes scattered around from the weather constantly switching back and forth, and the mentality that I wasn't going to see anything the last night of my trip. In other words, I wasn't prepared for a bull to show up minutes later. It seemed that within a minute of his bugle I hear the biggest splash in the water. I quickly sat up and about 6 cows came in for a swim - they were so fun to watch! A few seconds later I hear this thrashing of trees followed by sounds of wallowing back behind them but couldn't see anything. I had the entire tank in my view so I was so confused where the splashing noise was coming from. I reach up for my bow and made an awkward noise as I pulled it off the limb. The cows spooked a bit and came out of the water to look around. In this same moment the bull comes up over the dam and wades into the water. This moment was hands down the most beautiful thing I'd seen all week. He was calm and graceful as he moved toward the very center of the tank. At this point he's 20 yards from me, broadside, with just the very back of him out of the water. He stopped, took a drink, and let out a bugle that sent chills down my body. I began to shake and my heart was racing uncontrollably. Within a few seconds he did a 180 and headed straight toward the cows, who began to walk away from him, heading downwind of me!
I decided I had to get an arrow in the bull before he pushed them any further and busted me. I drew back on my knees as he was walking, barely able to break my bow over from the adrenaline rushing through me. I've never had that much trouble pulling my bow back. As soon as I could see his belly to determine "bottom third" of his body, I slung an arrow and heard it make contact. He jumped and rushed out of the water, coming to a complete stop at the top of the dam next to the only cow that stuck around. The others disappeared behind him. He stood there, almost in a daze, swinging his head side to side. He attempted to take a step and struggled, but I could tell he wasn't going down. At this point he's 25 yards away, perfectly broadside again, with a tree in between us. The width of the tree didn't allow me to take another shot, so I stood looking at him for what seemed like eternity! I kept hoping his legs would just buckle and go down, but he didn't know what happened to him.
A couple minutes go by and I realize I've got to get another arrow in him. It was too risky to let him walk away. The cow next to him was very alert and looked at me several times. As soon as she looked away for a second, I got down on my hands and knees and crawled out of the blind with my arrow nocked. It was the only way I could get to him again and somehow I was able to come to my feet and take a couple more steps. She looked at me a couple of times then turned and calmly walked away, and I drew back once again. This time around was so much smoother for me and I felt the confidence that I normally have with my bow. I got anchored, he turned and looked at me, and I released. He took off running this time and I followed him in my binoculars as far as I could but I was shaking so bad it was difficult to stay on him. I remember seeing him slow down and then I lost sight of him.
A few minor details:
I was hunting alone. I forgot to push record on my GoPro so I had nothing on film. I didn't get a chance to range either shot. I couldn't tell where either arrow hit him. I never heard him crash. My phone was on 1% with no way to call for help. It was a few minutes after 7 and getting hard to see. In other words, I WAS PANICKING!
I walked over to the dam and found a blood trail, but it wasn't NEAR the amount of blood that I'm used to seeing when I shoot. This worried me because I'm extremely confident with my bow. I'm a perfectionist (in every area of my life) and usually a really good shot. However, what I felt hunting this animal was unlike any other hunt, so I didn't know anything more than the fact that two arrows definitely went through him. A few minutes pass and I could hear a heavy gargling not too far away. I could finally breathe knowing he went down and I made at least one lung shot. I nocked another arrow and began walking, then decided to stop and just let him be. I've bumped a whitetail before from rushing and it was a terrible feeling. I didn't want to make the same mistake again.
I still hadn't heard back from anybody once I finally got some texts to go through, so I rushed down the mountain to the main highway and ran into a guide and Frank, the cook at our lodge. They took me back to camp to pick up a couple more of the guides before heading back to the tank. This was the most impatient I think I've ever been in my life. I just wanted to get to the bull! We made it back to the tank and I showed them where the blood started. After only a few minutes of tracking, the blood trail disappeared. I found both arrows, one in the water and one on land that was covered in blood, but he wasn't bleeding hardly at all on the ground. This was the worst feeling and I almost started crying. I decided to bail on the blood trail (typically not the best decision) and go straight to the last place I saw him in my binoculars. I hollered at the guys telling them I was almost positive he went down right around the area I was standing, and as I turned my headlamp around, THERE HE WAS!! I jumped up and down and started shaking all over again. I am absolutely taken away by the beauty of these animals. It almost brought tears to my eyes to be so close to him.
I have definitely found a new favorite animal to respectfully hunt. I still wake up every day replaying these detailed moments in my head. All the hard work put into him was worth it. This was easily THE most exhilarating experience of my life. It feels so surreal and I'm anxiously waiting for the next trip back. I'm truly humbled by this experience and will cherish it forever!
