Colorado Elk/Deer hunt - Day 5 By Jason Balazs
Nov 7, 2007 - 11:01:52 AM
Jason and Jodi at the end of another great day.
5:00 A.M.
I woke and up and started the coffee again. The wind was gusting, but the temperature was not cold. I knew that by the end of the day the weather was going to take a turn for the worse. Jodi and I hopped in my truck, as I took her over to the natural spring where we had gotten the picture of the doe. Hopefully she will get a shot and bring home some back straps. Doug and Carole were going across from camp to see if they could connect with anything. I was heading back down to where we were the night before. It was on the North side of the mountain and the wind was blowing from the west. This would be perfect for the area I was going to hunt.
6:00 A.M.
I still had 45 minutes until it got light enough to even see anything, so I reclined my seat in the truck and closed my eyes. I was tired of trekking all over the mountains for the week. It seemed like I had only closed my eyes for a second that my alarm was going off. It was 6:30 and time to get in the woods. The plan was for me to hunt the edge of that huge meadow that ran into the dark timber where Jodi has missed the doe the night before. I slowly walked up the road we were on and found where she had missed. There was a small road leading off of that, which went to the meadow. I knew there were elk in the area, because I had seen more sign here than anywhere else on the mountain. As I made my way to the meadow, I was hoping to see some elk out there and maybe be able to ambush them. At the edge I decided to sit and wait for light.
The wind was sporadic and would come and go. Sitting there in the dark, I could see the lights of a little town in Wyoming. The airport searchlight would flash by and almost put me in a trance. That all changed instantly when I heard a huge limb break to my left about 400 yards. I knew this was an elk, because Mule deer are so stealthy, you never hear them. "Crack" another limb went. This time further in the woods heading back towards the logging road, but further up the mountain. I still couldn't see the other side of the meadow yet, so I tried with my Nikon Monarchs. The whole are lit up with these 56X optical binoculars. They let so much light in; it is better than your own vision. There was nothing in the meadow, so I decided to head back to the road to try to catch this elk before it hit dark timber. I walked down the logging road, which was free of sticks, and things that would make noise. I was walking uphill trying to cut off the elk. Now when I say uphill, this is not just a little hill, but something that increases 10 feet in elevation every 15 yards. The sad thing is, elk can trot up this like it is nothing.
I was starting to breath hard and came across a trail cutting from the meadow to the dark timber. I decided to set an ambush and wait. I sat there for two hours and never saw anything. I decided to slowly walk back to the truck and see if I can spot anything. I was supposed to be back at camp by 9:00 so we could start the teardown, which I might add is very enjoyable in 40 MPH winds. I was about half way down the mountain and could see all the way to the bottom where the truck was parked, thanks to the straight cut-logging road.
I saw two deer bound across the road in front of me about 400 yards away. I put myself in stealth mode and closed the distance as fast as possible. The closer I got, I kept glassing in the dark timber for them. About 100 yards from where they had crossed, I spotted them. They were walking in the timber headed for bed. I kept trying to see if any of them had antlers, but they were walking so fast it was hard to see. Still closing the distance they both stopped. They were looking around as if they had a sixth sense they were being stalked. I knelt next to a tree and glassed them. They were does, very big does as a matter of fact. I ranged them, but they were 120 yards away and their heads were pointing away from me. With them on high alert, I was in trouble. Then, after what seemed like an eternity, they started walking again. I got back on track and followed. Then the deer did something I have never seen before. The front one jumped up and almost landed on the second one. I thought, "What is happening here." They took off up the hill like they had seen a ghost. They almost sounded like a herd of cattle breaking sticks and running as fast as they could.
I looked down to where they were trying to figure out what had happened. I finally found the answer further down the trail. I had my Monarchs up looking ahead, when I saw a puff of smoke. I was thinking, "Smoke, what the.." Then following it back down, I saw two guys sitting in the middle of the trail smoking and set up as if they were in ambush. Ambushing what, I am not sure, but the wind was at their back and the smoke and their scent was blowing right towards where anything was going to come from. With seeing that, I slowly backed out and headed to my tuck.
Once back at camp, Jodi and everyone else was there. Jodi had some people walk in on her, as did Doug and Carole. I guess it was the last two days of season and almost a weekend, so the crowds were out in full force. We were happy to be getting away from all the people. So with that, we started breaking down camp and got ready for the drive home. I took my Lowa boots off and secured them in my Tree-Apron boot bag to ensure they stayed clean and kept my car clean. These things are awesome and really are great for transporting your footwear to hunting camp and back. Jeff sure has some great products over there.
After camp was finally torn down, we all ate some lunch and said our goodbyes. Doug and Carole were going to her cousin's house in Fort Collins, Ralph was heading to his house near Denver, and Jodi and I were going to her Moms to get the rest of our children. Although we did not get anything this year, we had a great time. Doug and Carole can't wait for next year and Jodi finally got a shot at something. There is nothing like being in the great outdoors, especially in the great state of Colorado during the changing of the leaves. We love our Rocky Mountains and the fresh air. We always go back home successful hunters, whether we kill something or not, just knowing that we had our time in the outdoors. I have mentioned this before to everyone, if you get your wife involved with you in the outdoors, you will love it even more! There is nothing like sharing the experiences that Jodi and I have shared together while hunting.
Last, but not the least, we want to thank Rich Walton and Robert Hoague from Bowhunting.net for allowing us to share our experiences with you. Not to mention all the fine sponsors who helped us out too. Jodi and I are already planning next years hunt. If things go well, we are hunting two weeks of the season. The first week will be at the beginning, and the last one will be during the rut. We want to really maximize our chances. Until then, both Jodi and I want to wish you all a very successful hunting year, and we will see you around the camp fire.
