ROGERS ELK

Wake up at 5:15AM, have breakfast and pack a lunch, this hunt is an all day affair.
Leave the lodge at 6: AM.   We arrived at the hunting area about 6:45 and had to wait
awhile for sunup. We spotted a fairly large herd of elk and planned a stalk. As I was
second shooter, I held back as the guide and my hunting buddy, Marty from Baton
Rouge, (we have hunted together the last couple of years), continued to tiptoe down the
trail and get in position for a shot. We could hear the bull bugle, we were getting close. I
watched through glasses as they maneuvered for a shot. The bull stepped out and I
waited and waited, no shot, what the h!!  Apparently the guide was trying to get Marty to
use shooting sticks and Marty thought he wanted him to kneel for the shot. Marty has
arthritis and his knees will not let him kneel, so he just sat down. All this took too long
and he did not get the shot. He beat himself up the rest of the day. We spotted several
other bulls throughout the day, but the stalks proved fruitless. As we were preparing to
leave for the day, another guide across the mountain called to let us know that he
spotted a couple of Elk close to the spot where we had the Chinese fire drill that morning
and he was pretty sure one was a bull. We turned that truck around and headed back up
the mountain. We drove to within 600-700yrd. The Guide and I take off down the skid trail
and get within a couple of hundred yards and we hear the bull bugling.  Can’t see him so
we sneak down the trail about a hundred yards and I can see the bulls’ nose and part of
a horn. But we are stuck as a cow steps out and looks right at us.
Jacob is whispering, don’t move, don’t move. Then another bull starts bugling about 40
yards up and over a small rise, can’t see him, but he is trashing a tree and we can see
the top of the tree moving and hear his horns making a racket. Those two bulls just keep
trying to aggravate one another. The one up the hill trashing a tree and bugling and the
other just bugling. Neither would move. I start laughing under my breath, this is funny,
two Bulls and can’t get a shot at either one. Finally I whisper to Jacob, I think I can get
that bull if I take a step to the right and shoot off hand( I hate that shot) He says that cow
is getting nervous and that looks like a good bull. I ease the safety off and take that big
step, throw the gun to my shoulder find the bulls leg follow it up to the color change and
let one 180 grain Nosler partition go. It knocks the bull off his feet and onto his nose.
Later we found it had broken both shoulders and did considerable damage to his boiler
room. As we approach the bull, we hear another bugle, then another, that other bull and
another one are at it.

Jacob runs about two football fields uphill to get Marty, drags him out of the truck, and off
they go through some of the damnedest deadfalls. The bull bugles and Jacob bugles
back at him, they keep this up and they continue to close the distance, using the bulls
bugling like radar to walk right up to him. Jacob tells Marty to shoot him, but  Marty’s
looking for a standing elk, Jacob says to look down, he’s laying in bed bugling, Marty
shoots, maybe 20yards, the bull gets up and he hits him again. Incredible, two bulls in
30 min, what a climax to a great day. We gutted the bulls and opened them up so they
would cool. We had dinner that night at 9:30 PM.  Returning the next day to retrieve both
bulls. What a treat to be surrounded by bugling bulls and not be able to move, just
enjoying the moment.  
Roger's Elk
Click to enlarge this great
picture of Roger and his Elk
Foster City Rod and Gun Club
Click to enlarge this great
picture of Roger and his Elk