T
TagSouper
Guest
I may live to regret this but here goes....
Why is it people loose their minds when they draw a Mt. Emily, Walla Walla, or Wenaha tag???? I have watched it year in and out on the internet and personally w/friends. People seem to have this unrealistic expectation of not only success but of some monster 350 inch or better bull riding home in the back of their truck. For those that apply to these units and draw be realistic. 370-380 bulls don't grow on trees and are even harder to hunt-I truly don't think I have personally seen a bull bigger then 350-360 in all my time in there and believe me after seeing most of the 240-280 six points everywhere else in Oregon a true 350 bull looks like a complete monster up close or through binocs. Be realistic in your ability to hunt-stamina, physical conditioning and mental toughness (being tired and frustrated are the name of the game). Also be realistic in the size of bull you are willing to take whether it is the first full framed 6point bull of any size or a 300 inch or better bull-its hard for me to understand someone who has never shot a 6point bull of any size holding out for a 350 or better bull. Unless you are truly someone who can go home and be happy about the experience of just hunting. But don't think that by drawing the tag you are guaranteed success or even an opportunity at a 350 or better bull they just simply aren't easy nor are there a pile of them waiting behind every tree. Take a look at any of the record books there are few bulls in Oregon above the 360 mark with either rifle or bow.
Drawing the tag really is the easy part if waiting years and years can be called easy-then comes the hard part actually hunting. Every year there are posts about how bad these three units are when someone goes home empty-handed or even when they kill a bull (about how it didn't live up to their expectation). Let me tell you the truth-most people whom hunt these units whether its archery or rifle eat their tag! Hence my tagsouper name-I ate my archery Walla Walla tag in 2002. Some eat their tag from lack of preparation whether preseason scouting, conditioning, the intimidation of the country, lack of mental toughness or simply because it's called hunting not shooting and things happen that affect success. I hate hearing the excuses about spike hunters, berry pickers, and other people recreating in the units out of someone?s frustration. Believe me there are lots of things that one can point to their success or failure but rarely is it one event-unless it is me blowing a cow call at the wrong time for a buddy and blowing an opportunity at less then 50 yards which truly did happen in 2008. But it was also not his only opportunity at a bull in the 15 days we hunted.
I have been lucky enough in the last 7 years to spend time hunting in Mt. Emily and Walla Walla well over 30 plus days total three different times (I only had 1 tag in that time) all during archery season. Plus spent sometime calling in bulls for my 6 and 7 year old daughters in the Wenaha (amazingly it was completely vacant of hunters and didn't screw anybody up! There was only 1 camp within 10 miles of us). A 300 inch bull at 6 yards is amazingly fun-to watch the kids shake so bad I had to laugh. Not 1 time in those 30 plus days have we had someone else blow an opportunity for shot nor did we even bump into a spike hunter during those hunts. Maybe a testament to where we were hunting or just plain lucky-doubt it. ATV?s in the Walla Walla are truly a pain in the ass during the weekends running the bottoms of the North and South Fork from Harris Park to the top sucks and tends to shut the elk up pretty good. But the Walla Walla itself is a pain in the ass as it is small area, steep-deep, brushy and the best places to hunt it have no public access.
All of these units are far better then any general unit I have ever hunted-if people want to continue to downgrade them great! It will only help me and my buddies out-don't apply if you don't know what you are ready for. I for one would love to have the tag more then 2 times the rest of my life. And if you've read this far down this is not a shot at DogSalmon or Blue Mt or anyone else it is simply?.THE TRUTH?.of public land hunting not Primos truth and $15grand ranches.
Why is it people loose their minds when they draw a Mt. Emily, Walla Walla, or Wenaha tag???? I have watched it year in and out on the internet and personally w/friends. People seem to have this unrealistic expectation of not only success but of some monster 350 inch or better bull riding home in the back of their truck. For those that apply to these units and draw be realistic. 370-380 bulls don't grow on trees and are even harder to hunt-I truly don't think I have personally seen a bull bigger then 350-360 in all my time in there and believe me after seeing most of the 240-280 six points everywhere else in Oregon a true 350 bull looks like a complete monster up close or through binocs. Be realistic in your ability to hunt-stamina, physical conditioning and mental toughness (being tired and frustrated are the name of the game). Also be realistic in the size of bull you are willing to take whether it is the first full framed 6point bull of any size or a 300 inch or better bull-its hard for me to understand someone who has never shot a 6point bull of any size holding out for a 350 or better bull. Unless you are truly someone who can go home and be happy about the experience of just hunting. But don't think that by drawing the tag you are guaranteed success or even an opportunity at a 350 or better bull they just simply aren't easy nor are there a pile of them waiting behind every tree. Take a look at any of the record books there are few bulls in Oregon above the 360 mark with either rifle or bow.
Drawing the tag really is the easy part if waiting years and years can be called easy-then comes the hard part actually hunting. Every year there are posts about how bad these three units are when someone goes home empty-handed or even when they kill a bull (about how it didn't live up to their expectation). Let me tell you the truth-most people whom hunt these units whether its archery or rifle eat their tag! Hence my tagsouper name-I ate my archery Walla Walla tag in 2002. Some eat their tag from lack of preparation whether preseason scouting, conditioning, the intimidation of the country, lack of mental toughness or simply because it's called hunting not shooting and things happen that affect success. I hate hearing the excuses about spike hunters, berry pickers, and other people recreating in the units out of someone?s frustration. Believe me there are lots of things that one can point to their success or failure but rarely is it one event-unless it is me blowing a cow call at the wrong time for a buddy and blowing an opportunity at less then 50 yards which truly did happen in 2008. But it was also not his only opportunity at a bull in the 15 days we hunted.
I have been lucky enough in the last 7 years to spend time hunting in Mt. Emily and Walla Walla well over 30 plus days total three different times (I only had 1 tag in that time) all during archery season. Plus spent sometime calling in bulls for my 6 and 7 year old daughters in the Wenaha (amazingly it was completely vacant of hunters and didn't screw anybody up! There was only 1 camp within 10 miles of us). A 300 inch bull at 6 yards is amazingly fun-to watch the kids shake so bad I had to laugh. Not 1 time in those 30 plus days have we had someone else blow an opportunity for shot nor did we even bump into a spike hunter during those hunts. Maybe a testament to where we were hunting or just plain lucky-doubt it. ATV?s in the Walla Walla are truly a pain in the ass during the weekends running the bottoms of the North and South Fork from Harris Park to the top sucks and tends to shut the elk up pretty good. But the Walla Walla itself is a pain in the ass as it is small area, steep-deep, brushy and the best places to hunt it have no public access.
All of these units are far better then any general unit I have ever hunted-if people want to continue to downgrade them great! It will only help me and my buddies out-don't apply if you don't know what you are ready for. I for one would love to have the tag more then 2 times the rest of my life. And if you've read this far down this is not a shot at DogSalmon or Blue Mt or anyone else it is simply?.THE TRUTH?.of public land hunting not Primos truth and $15grand ranches.
