AZHunter
Iowa Boy At Heart
Time flies by and then I realize I'm not on this site as much as I used to be or should be. The first weekend in October was Jacob's last youth elk hunt. Any antlerless elk is the mark. We were camped with a great group of folks and saw elk every day. Unfortunately, the elk were all too far away and moving fast, or there was the one cow who ran across the road in front of us and kept on trucking. We finally got into a shootable group Saturday night; however, they were being pursued by another group of hunters on the other side of the valley. As much as I wanted it to work out for him, he says "All these young kids filling their first tags is a great thing. I have a lifetime of chasing elk in front of me." He's wise beyond his years, that's for sure.
We woke up Sunday morning, Oct 5, with the intention of relocating the rest of the herd from Saturday night. A good friend was with us this time. We found the bull and a lone cow in an area that we couldn't hunt, but watched their movement. Figuring on where they were going, we hatched a plan. Jacob took off and staged himself while we kept an eye out from our hilltop. Jacob has been wanting to do more solo hunting. Who am I to say no considering how much I was turkey and pheasant hunting on my own by the time I was his age. I trust him explicitly to stay calm and know how to react, even when there is no cell service. Will took over guiding him and they formulated a solid plan. I was texting Jacob that I can't see the elk and have no clue where they are. I was about to suggest that he work his way back to the truck. That's when it happened. We heard a series of shots ring out in rapid sucession. I gave it a few minutes and started texting Jacob. Nothing. No service. That's when I saw him in the opening. He walked out to where he could give me hand signals. Even from that far away, I could see his excitement and read his reactions. He'd done it! He filled his last youth elk tag on the last morning of the time we had to hunt. He did it on his own, too. We (mostly Will) gave him general guidance on how to approach the situation and Jacob took off to find success. As he told us, he was weaving through the thick junipers and, as he popped out around one, there was the cow standing broadside at 10 yards.
Jacob jumped in to help field dress his trophy, realizing he needs to learn. I was sitting back beaming with pride at the young man he's become. Selfless, hard working, altruistic, compassionate, determined, and building integrity. I already know how badly I will miss these days, but I also know how little I will have to worry in less than a year. Now its time to get ready to chase Coues bucks again with my daughter starting Nov 7th..
We woke up Sunday morning, Oct 5, with the intention of relocating the rest of the herd from Saturday night. A good friend was with us this time. We found the bull and a lone cow in an area that we couldn't hunt, but watched their movement. Figuring on where they were going, we hatched a plan. Jacob took off and staged himself while we kept an eye out from our hilltop. Jacob has been wanting to do more solo hunting. Who am I to say no considering how much I was turkey and pheasant hunting on my own by the time I was his age. I trust him explicitly to stay calm and know how to react, even when there is no cell service. Will took over guiding him and they formulated a solid plan. I was texting Jacob that I can't see the elk and have no clue where they are. I was about to suggest that he work his way back to the truck. That's when it happened. We heard a series of shots ring out in rapid sucession. I gave it a few minutes and started texting Jacob. Nothing. No service. That's when I saw him in the opening. He walked out to where he could give me hand signals. Even from that far away, I could see his excitement and read his reactions. He'd done it! He filled his last youth elk tag on the last morning of the time we had to hunt. He did it on his own, too. We (mostly Will) gave him general guidance on how to approach the situation and Jacob took off to find success. As he told us, he was weaving through the thick junipers and, as he popped out around one, there was the cow standing broadside at 10 yards.
Jacob jumped in to help field dress his trophy, realizing he needs to learn. I was sitting back beaming with pride at the young man he's become. Selfless, hard working, altruistic, compassionate, determined, and building integrity. I already know how badly I will miss these days, but I also know how little I will have to worry in less than a year. Now its time to get ready to chase Coues bucks again with my daughter starting Nov 7th..
