For 7 years I’ve been chasing bulls with my dad - It’s become a family tradition and it’s the hunt I look forward to more than any other. He started my addiction in 2015 as a wedding gift and I’ve been hooked ever since. I went from never knowing what a bugle sounded like before my first hunt, to finally connecting on my first solo archery bull this year. It’s been quite the journey, and this is the first year that I’ve felt called to try to accomplish it on my own. After going on guided elk hunts for a few years, we started going on DIY public land hunts as a family and I’ve really enjoyed it. It’s allowed me to challenge myself and learn a lot more about elk in order to be successful. Eating tag soup isn’t easy for me, and while I know that hunting is much more than the kill, punching that tag is the biggest goal for me personally. This year, prior to this trip, I’ve been hunting OTC (over-the-counter) tags in Utah, shooting at 2 spikes already with nothing to show for it. Simply being within range is a rush, so getting a shot is something really special.
From Left-HANDED to RighT-HANDED
I’ll preface this story by saying that I originally began shooting a bow right-handed for 5 years, then later switched to left-handed when I found out that I was left-eye dominant. You can read more about that transition here. Unfortunately, the week before I left for this elk hunt, and right after a very heavy chest day at the gym, my left shoulder popped while I was drawing my bow and I was unable to draw my bow again on that side. I couldn’t even cross my left arm over my chest! I panicked, felt sorry for myself for a couple of days, then remembered I had a right-handed bow. In fact, it’s the very first bow I ever owned and the exact same bow I shot my first bull with in 2015. Thankfully I was able to draw it still and I was back in business, even though I haven’t shot an animal right handed in years!
THE NOT-SO-PRETTY MOMENTS
Opening Day - September 15th
I went out with my brother-in-law, Wade, into an area that was really open and could potentially require some longer shots. There were multiple bulls in the area, but we noticed one feeding down a finger into the bottom where we knew there was an unmarked water drinker. Sure enough, as we side-hilled above him, Wade noticed all his cows heading up the face we were on. It was on! Our goal was to get to the edge of the pines where they were going to bed down, but time it so that we could get between the cows and the bull. We crawled and played the terrain perfectly, and after I saw his last cow feed into the pines I went as fast as I possibly could while still being quiet; I made it to 60 yards before he disappeared into the timber. Wade was up above me watching it all play out and began cow calling. That bull turned immediately and moved right into my lap, bugling at 7 yards before taking 2 steps toward me for a shot opportunity. On the first stalk of the day I had a shot at a beautiful 6x6 and I just fell apart. However, I later realized that I closed the wrong eye at full draw and my arrow flew way too far left. I’m certain that adrenaline didn’t help, but this was clearly an issue for me, as you will soon notice further into this article. I shot him high in the neck, but thankfully saw him later that day without an arrow and he was bugling his head off. He was fine, although it’s not my proudest moment. I couldn’t believe I shot at a bull that close and screwed it up. I was gutted!
Day 2 - September 16th
My pops and I spent the whole day together trying to notch his tag. I took my bow in the morning, but decided to leave it behind that evening so we could focus on getting him his first archery bull. There were several close encounters, the first being a bull that I called into 40 yards but it was a tight window with a limb in the way so he didn’t take it. I don’t blame him. We saw quite a few elk, but none worth chasing and we also saw a black bear running in the bottom of that same canyon. We chased one particular bull really hard that evening, but he winded us the first time and at last light, when we finally caught up to him, he hung up around 100 yards. Welcome to archery elk hunting!
Day 3 - September 17th
My oldest sister, Candice, decided to tag along with me on day 3. We weren’t hearing many bugles when we first got out of the truck, but as we took off into the canyon we could hear a few soft bugles in the distance. We continued to cover ground and next thing we knew, we were in the middle of a rut fest, hosted by a hot cow. If you’ve experienced this in the elk woods, you know how action packed it can get. I saw 5 bulls within an hour and drew back on two of them. The 1st one hit the breaks when I was drawn at 10 yards with a tree between us, then spooked a few seconds until I cow called and stopped him broadside. I guessed the range at full draw and went under him. The next bull came around a few minutes later with a cow, raking multiple trees and giving me the tiniest window to shoot what I thought was his vitals. I’m not sure if I was seeing the wrong thing in that little opening, or if I pulled left. Either way, I nicked his front leg and he continued chasing cows the remainder of the evening, bugling and rutting like nothing happened. I was pretty down about this because it was one of the best mornings of elk hunting that I’ve had the privilege of experiencing. It was hard not to beat myself up about it all.
THE FINAL STALK
Day 4 - September 18th
I was a few minutes late leaving camp, so my plan of attack shifted a little bit and I went down a road I’d never been on. It allowed me to get on top of the ridge quicker by working up a finger that connected to many other benches and fingers. It was also on the backside of the area that my sister and I heard so many bugles the day before. Within 20 minutes of hiking, I heard a familiar bugle on the end of a ridge. This made it 3 mornings I’d heard this familiar bugle, but he hung out on a knob by himself and I wasn’t necessarily trying to target a specific bull. However, I couldn’t help but wonder what he looked like. I just like to see what makes those magic sounds, regardless if I get the opportunity to hunt them. I worked quickly to close the gap to 150 yards, then 100 yards, then slowed way down. Every move was made with some background noise, whether it was elk moving or bugling, or a plane traveling above me. The wind was very subtle and the ground was crunchy so I didn’t have a lot to work with to cover up the sound of my steps.
I finally got a good look at him at 50 yards when he was pushing cows. His head was titled back with his nose up a cow’s butt and I think my whole body got weak when I saw his fronts. It was a struggle to stay present and focused. I knew he had strong firsts and seconds, and at one point he turned and I noticed a decent whale tail. All I could confirm was that he was mature and I was within shooting distance if the right opportunity presented itself. It was a long process though, a true game of patience. At one point he bedded down, then he’d get up and rake a tree, then he’d push his cows a little. The goal was to keep the cows relaxed and not make them alert, because it’s very difficult to not screw up a stalk when the cows are looking for that random noise or they notice unfamiliar movement. They’re smart and that bull will follow their lead. I knew if I could outsmart the cows, I could outsmart the bull.
He pushed his cows closer to me and I came to full draw. I ran through my shot sequence to keep myself in the present, and it was in that moment that I caught myself closing the wrong eye again. I couldn’t believe it! My left eye is so dominant that I had to check them back and forth several times. I guess that’s what I get for switching hands last minute! I was thinking he’d step out right after his cows, but unfortunately that didn’t happen and I began to get really shaky. I tried so hard to hold my draw until he bugled so they wouldn’t hear me letting off, but thankfully my arrow didn’t hit against my bow the way I was expecting and they continued to feed at roughly 35 yards. I was actually really thankful because in the past, when I get to draw twice, I’m much more stable on that second draw. It’s like my jitters get worked out on the first one and I settle down. I had a few minutes to recover, then he came straight toward me, only a tree between us so I came to full draw. I thought I would have to take a frontal for sure, but he came to an abrupt stop, paused a few seconds then turned back around and veered right. With his head behind a tree and his vitals exposed, he gave me the perfect 30 yard broadside shot and I let it fly. That “crack” is something every avid bowhunter is familiar with and I knew it was a great shot. He spun, ran about 20 yards and stopped for a second where I could only see his rack tilting side to side, then disappeared over the ridge with his cows. I began cow calling right after the shot to calm him down, and while I never heard a crash, I was so sure of my shot. It’s hard to explain, but there are times as a bowhunter that you can literally call the shot and this was one of them. I certainly don’t always feel that way, but when I do, I can put money on that animal going down.
THE RECOVERY
I marked my shot location on onX immediately, then very slowly worked to where the bull was standing and marked that spot too. I then turned my tracker on and began looking for blood or an arrow. I stood broadside like the bull and mirrored his exact behavior, but couldn’t seem to find anything. Unfortunately, I kept turning too soon toward the ridge where I saw his head tilting back and forth. Had I done a broader turn and not acted like a bull elk has a 0 degree turning radius, I would’ve found my arrow and blood within seconds. It’s so frustrating that I walked by him multiple times, just 15 or so yards away but never noticed him. My sense of smell is still not right from having COVID-19 in January of this year, otherwise I’m certain my nose would’ve taken me to him even without the blood trail. That’s how close I was!
I sat down on the mountain and talked to God for a bit, just asking Him what lesson he wanted me to learn from all of this. It never fails that I talk to God more while hunting than any other time in my life. I’m not necessarily proud of this, but it’s my truth. I worked my way back to the truck and went to camp, confidently telling my family, “That bull is dead. Whether I find him or not, I know he’s dead. I know that shot was good.” My brother-in-law decided to go with me and look for the bull, and somehow within 5 minutes of getting there, he found my arrow, an excellent blood trail, and my first solo archery bull. I am so grateful for his patience and desire to help me, when he wasn’t even there to know how it played out.
THE PACK OUT
Thankfully we only had one ridge to climb, and it was downhill other than that. The pack-out was about a mile, maybe a little more, which made it a fairly easy pack out compared to many! I’m so grateful to have had 4 others with me so we could get it all in one trip and get in bed at a decent hour. My brother-in-law and I broke down the bull and had everything ready to go (except cutting the head off of the body) by the time the others showed up. My oldest sis Candice, my younger brother-in-law Ben, and a buddy of ours, Cody Weir, helped get him off the mountain. It worked out great! They hauled all of the meat and let me take the head and cape. In New Mexico, they require you to take all four quarters, back-straps, tenderloins, and neck meat. Every person was a huge help. My pup was the only worthless one - I’ll have to put a vest on her next time! :)
