BLooDTRaCKeR
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This hunt will go down in our family history books as the most memorable and amazing hunt ever! At the age of 73, dad pulled a LE tag. He got the call from the dwr about three weeks after he lost out on his general season opportunity to hunt due to the Covid craze that forced permit sales to the “online only” phase. Dad waited in the virtual line all day and went to purchase tag with roughly 600 permits remaining and the broken system kicked him into 300,000 person waiting line with no way to reverse anything!
Dad was devastated to say the least. But the call came and sent dad into a high like I’ve never seen! He started exercising and ended up dropping 25 lbs by the time his hunt rolled around.
We scouted the week before his hunt with little success finding a bull that he liked.
I knew a certain area that held big bulls and was trying to avoid it because of the long hike and remoteness of the area. I just felt that taking dad in that far with his bad heart and knees would force his hunt to end prematurely.
I wanted this hunt to be special to him....One that he could hang his 61 year hunting career on. But as we all know, you cannot have what you wish for in the hunting world because of the many variables that define the term “hunting.”
We learned that a storm was coming. This news was a mental battle for me as the timing was mid afternoon on opening day. Again, I was hesitant to take dad up into the remote area but when we learned the storm was delayed by a few hours, we decided to go for it with the plan that if we did not see anything by noon, we would get off that mountain before the storm hit and made conditions unsafe for dad to hike in.
Opening Day:
The crew consisted of my buddy Casey, my younger brother (who has never been hunting), dad, and myself. The four of us got up at 4:20am and headed out. We hiked a couple miles up the remote canyon, going slow to ensure dad’s knees and heart held up.
Once we hit the fork, Casey and my brother broke off and went up high to the ridge to get to a vantage point where they could glass a couple areas. I stayed down low with dad and we waited for any word that the bulls were in the area. About 8:30am I get a call from Casey saying that a big bull stepped out at 350 yards!
I looked at dad and said, “We need to hurry!” So as fast as dad could move, we hoofed it up the mountain. Casey saw us coming up and ran down to take dad’s pack to make things easier for him.
We got to the top and look over the other side and this is what we see....
Dad gets set up for the shot. He’s shooting his trusty 300 Win Mag that he purchased before I was born. The bull is ranged at 385 yards. Dad waits for his opportunity....3 minutes (or an eternity) goes by and the bull finally turns enough for a shot. Dad sends one at the elk but misses to the right. Dad corrects and sends another bullet. This time the bullet hits perfectly and the bull tips over dead in its tracks!
Dads reaction when he first laid eyes on it up close.
left to right: Me, younger brother, dad
Dad (happiest guy on the planet) with his biggest bull to date! This old bull is missing a front tooth, his teeth are all ground down, and his hoofs are dished out. Not sure that this bull would make it through another season. We’re all curious to find out how old this bull is.
The pack out was brutal as usual. But, I wouldn’t have it any other way. Packing out meat is the ultimate respect for an animal!
back at home, we butchered it in the garage and relived every minute of the hunt.
Dad is amazing! He has lived the life that all fathers should.....never selfish of his time or talents....always willing to help anyone with anything....never let his family down, and has always been there for mom and the three of us kids. I cannot think of a more deserving person to experience this hunt and take such a majestic trophy.....especially as the crowning event of his hunting career. This hunt was everything we could have asked for and so much more. Special thanks to Casey and my brother for selflessly giving so much of their time and energy to help dad to have the best hunt of his hunting career! I also wanted to thank all those on this site who were willing to help out if needed. You all know who you are....Thank You!
Dad was devastated to say the least. But the call came and sent dad into a high like I’ve never seen! He started exercising and ended up dropping 25 lbs by the time his hunt rolled around.
We scouted the week before his hunt with little success finding a bull that he liked.
I knew a certain area that held big bulls and was trying to avoid it because of the long hike and remoteness of the area. I just felt that taking dad in that far with his bad heart and knees would force his hunt to end prematurely.
I wanted this hunt to be special to him....One that he could hang his 61 year hunting career on. But as we all know, you cannot have what you wish for in the hunting world because of the many variables that define the term “hunting.”
We learned that a storm was coming. This news was a mental battle for me as the timing was mid afternoon on opening day. Again, I was hesitant to take dad up into the remote area but when we learned the storm was delayed by a few hours, we decided to go for it with the plan that if we did not see anything by noon, we would get off that mountain before the storm hit and made conditions unsafe for dad to hike in.
Opening Day:
The crew consisted of my buddy Casey, my younger brother (who has never been hunting), dad, and myself. The four of us got up at 4:20am and headed out. We hiked a couple miles up the remote canyon, going slow to ensure dad’s knees and heart held up.
Once we hit the fork, Casey and my brother broke off and went up high to the ridge to get to a vantage point where they could glass a couple areas. I stayed down low with dad and we waited for any word that the bulls were in the area. About 8:30am I get a call from Casey saying that a big bull stepped out at 350 yards!
I looked at dad and said, “We need to hurry!” So as fast as dad could move, we hoofed it up the mountain. Casey saw us coming up and ran down to take dad’s pack to make things easier for him.
We got to the top and look over the other side and this is what we see....
Dad gets set up for the shot. He’s shooting his trusty 300 Win Mag that he purchased before I was born. The bull is ranged at 385 yards. Dad waits for his opportunity....3 minutes (or an eternity) goes by and the bull finally turns enough for a shot. Dad sends one at the elk but misses to the right. Dad corrects and sends another bullet. This time the bullet hits perfectly and the bull tips over dead in its tracks!
Dads reaction when he first laid eyes on it up close.
left to right: Me, younger brother, dad
Dad (happiest guy on the planet) with his biggest bull to date! This old bull is missing a front tooth, his teeth are all ground down, and his hoofs are dished out. Not sure that this bull would make it through another season. We’re all curious to find out how old this bull is.
The pack out was brutal as usual. But, I wouldn’t have it any other way. Packing out meat is the ultimate respect for an animal!
back at home, we butchered it in the garage and relived every minute of the hunt.
Dad is amazing! He has lived the life that all fathers should.....never selfish of his time or talents....always willing to help anyone with anything....never let his family down, and has always been there for mom and the three of us kids. I cannot think of a more deserving person to experience this hunt and take such a majestic trophy.....especially as the crowning event of his hunting career. This hunt was everything we could have asked for and so much more. Special thanks to Casey and my brother for selflessly giving so much of their time and energy to help dad to have the best hunt of his hunting career! I also wanted to thank all those on this site who were willing to help out if needed. You all know who you are....Thank You!