Keys to Rifle Elk Hunting Success with Brandon Purcell

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This is the Elk Hunt podcast. Home to everything elk hunting. I'm your host, Cody rich. From fellow DIYers to elk hunting legends, we have elk hunting stories, tips, tactics and more to get you pumped for elk season. Join us every week for great elk hunting content. All right, this episode of the Elk Hunt podcast is brought to you by Wild Meat Gear. And I love this product. Love, love, love this product and this concept. So just this year even I was like, man, I really need a walk in cooler someday.

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Hi, Brandon. Welcome to the podcast. Man, you freaking.

Thanks.

Crushed it this year, dude.

Trying.

Well, we're just joking about or talking about how, I mean, you built. Built your house, had a baby, and, like, for all of those who said they couldn't go hunting because, like, they had all these responsibilities, dude, you for absolutely crushed it this season. So I don't know how you pulled it off. Maybe you got some, like, words of wisdom for, like, a newborn and fill in every Montana tag plus a Wyoming tag, plus. I don't know.

Yeah, I don't know. It just sometimes when it rains, it pours, you know, and sometimes you're the.

Hammer, sometimes you're nail.

It just felt like this year I.

Got to be the hammer, which is.

Sweet, you know, because bad seasons where.

I'm like, the nail all year.

But, yeah, it was crazy. Things just. I wasn't expecting it to be. You know, honestly, at the beginning of.

The year, I didn't know how much.

I was going to be able to.

Go hunting, and just I hadn't really.

I mean, I guess, you know, the.

First thing I had planned was I had five Wyoming points, and I was like, well, I'm either gonna keep building points or get the general, you know. Yeah. Or apply for it, you know, and so that was in January and then.

But you don't.

Of course, you don't find out about that till May.

Yeah.

But then I found out I drew.

That tag, and I was like, started.

Kind of planning that out, trying to.

Plan it around, like, my. My guiding schedule. And, you know, I was like, okay.

Well, I can do that in October. And then I think it was right.

Around when the Wyoming draw results came out, I got an opportunity to jump on a cancellation mountain goat hunt. And that was the last week in September. So it's just like, well, you know.

Do or die, you know, I was like, for the price point, I was.

Like, there's no way. I cannot do that. You know, I mean, for what those hunts are going for, I was like, I. I would be a fool to not do it.

Right. Like, I'll never be able to buy this one back.

Right. For sure. For sure.

And it's just, you Know, it's a great area, good outfitter.

And I was just like, I gotta do it. And so then, you know, that's now on my dock. And I got like two hunts back to back. Yeah.

Wyoming and a goat hunt in September. Plus you're guiding. They go schedules booked. Like, that's. Those are my two hunts this year. That's all I'm gonna get for sure.

Yeah. And that's what. You know. And then I think, well, I guess.

All this kind of happened around the.

Same time because the Montana draw results came out like, whatever, a couple weeks.

Before the Wyoming did.

And I found out I drew a.

Special draw mule deer in Montana, you know, and I was just like.

So in the span of like 3 or 4 weeks, it went from me being like, oh, I wonder what I'm gonna do this fall to all of.

A sudden being like, well, I've got three big hunts coming up that I was not expecting, you know, just kind of like it all just seemed to happen at once. And then I just felt very fortunate that my wife's very understanding and that my guiding schedule and my contracting schedule kind of worked out to be able to like, let me do this, you know.

Did you.

Did you pull the. The classic husband to wife babe. This is once in a lifetime.

Pretty much, yeah.

I mean, she like, you know, I've guided and hunted the whole time we've been together.

Yeah.

So it wasn't like, you know, and.

We ended up being able to have.

Her mom come out for like most of my Wyoming hunt. So that was nice to be able to have that covered.

But still it was like, you know, you think it's gonna be like, oh, I'm just gonna take a chill because I just had a baby, a new house, and then it's just like, you.

Just slammed into the seat. And I'm not very grateful for it, but it's not. Not.

And instead out at the beginning of.

The year, be like, I'm just gonna like jam pack these hunts in.

I gotta like, I gotta stay on.

The ball, you know?

Yeah, yeah.

Kind of fell into my life.

Some. Some seasons it feels like that, you know, it feels like some seasons are.

A grind and you're just not, not connecting. And this year was not like that at all.

So. Yeah, so you're like, okay, those are my hunts. Yeah. So what was goat hunt first? Or I guess that was the end of September when.

Yeah, so I did. I had clients at the beginning of September.

We had a 10 day hunt. Ended up killing a bull on day one. And then.

Which was sweet, you know, called the bowling to, like, 30 yards. It was epic. I mean, just a great morning.

You know, it was killed before 10am which is sick.

You know, that never happens. You know, I felt like that kind of set the tone for the entire.

Year, because it was just like.

Yeah. Now I'm just like, the amount of.

Times I've guided and killed something opening day, I don't. I've never killed a bull opening day.

I don't think, like, I've had opportunity. Never. Never connected.

And then here we are, like, tagged out for 10am and I was just kind of, like, in disbelief, you know?

And the one client was in great shape, and his brother was with him.

And his brother was not. His brother quit after, like, five days, which sucked, you know, because I'm like, you. You know, you want everybody to be successful, but.

Right.

Not everybody has what it takes to, like, hang in the mountains.

Yeah.

Yeah.

That's what it is. Yeah, man. I mean, it's just some people can do it, some people can't.

Yeah. Then I attempted, after that hunt to.

Go archery, elk hunting in Montana before my goat hunt, and ended up getting pink eye.

No way.

From my daughter.

Yeah.

I was gonna say welcome. Welcome to fatherhood, dude.

Like, this wolf that took me out.

Because it was like a.

It was like a viral infection. Yeah.

So it didn't, like, go away.

And here I am thinking, like, I get this.

I was slated to leave for my.

Goat on the 20th, and I got.

Pink eye on, like, the 16th, I think.

And, dude, I'm like, you know, my eyes are crossed over. Like, I. Like, my vision's, like, blurry, and I'm.

Just like, dude, of all the time.

I want to be able to see.

Like, I'm having a hard time like. Like, seeing clearly. I was like, at least it's a.

White goat on top of the mountain, you know, like, right off. So that elk hunt kind of fell through.

Well, dude.

Yeah, funny. Like, I'm gonna make a comment here because, like, anyone who's a dad totally understand this, and you're fairly new to this, but, like, you'll find out, like, this is, like, having pink eye screw up your hunt was not on your bingo card. But, like, it. Like, it very much will be.

No, Yeah, I know.

Yeah.

Because she had been. You know, my wife's a teacher, so she'd been at home all summer.

So she'd been like, no illnesses, no nothing, not sick. And this was, like, the first thing.

You know, And I'm just Like, here.

I am thinking I'm just like, this is gonna just ruin my goat hunt, you know, and like, I've been looking forward to like all year and like, yeah. So I leave to go up to B.C. still having pink eye. I show up. I don't know what the outfitter must have thought because my eyes are just like bloodshot, you know.

And he's like, oh, man, you been partaking a little bit.

And I'm just like, dude, no. Like, I didn't get that, like, destroyed on the airplane. Like, I'm just d. I have guy super bad. Like, it was rough.

But the outer had actually called me.

Like a week before the hunt was supposed to happen. And we were supposed to do a fly in hunt.

And he's like, yeah, well, the airplane.

The motor mount is cracked. And I was like, oh, I thought he's gonna like, cancel on me, you know, and end up being like, well.

We'Ll just send you into the permit area.

Because he gets X number of permits in like the special draw area. And it was just like a walk.

In, which was kind of nice because.

Then you don't have to deal with like, the headache of like waiting on the plane and, you know, all that.

So it's pretty cool. And it really wasn't, like, terribly far from town.

Just kind of cut down some logistics, you know.

The only thing is, like, when I.

Showed up, like, looking at the weather forecast, because of course, you know, you're.

Going on a big trip, at least for me.

I sit there and just like, obsessively look at the weather.

I'm like, what is it gonna do?

What is it gonna do?

And it was like, I got there on the 19th, we're slated to start.

On the 20th, and there was one day where it wasn't gonna rain. And then literally the rest of the hunt was like, solid rain. And this is coastal British Columbia.

So it's not like when it says.

Rain, it's not like Montana rain, where.

It'S like, you can see and like, you know.

Yeah, it's a nuking rain.

Yeah, for sure.

So we like, we get up, we go back, stay at the hotel, get up the next day, like, get all.

Our stuff ready to go in there. And, you know, I knew and like.

I said, try not to, like, put.

Too much stock in weather windows. You know, I'm just like, you got to try to hunt hard. And like, we packed in for 10 days and, you know, here I am, like, just hoping the entire time we're hiking in there. I was like, we pretty much got today. Like, that's our weather window. You know, you're.

When I'm gonna. You know, I've been in the mountains a lot, and it's just like, that day, the day we hiked in, was.

Our best weather window. And I'm like, it doesn't happen today. It's going to be tough.

And it took us, like, two and a half, three hours to hike in there and set up camp. We, like, hiked in, got up on the ridge, set up our tents, you know, had a cup of coffee, hung.

Out for a minute, and, like, kind of talked about what we wanted to do.

And then we, you know, packed up our stuff and went out.

And there's this glassing point that was this basin right on the backside of camp. And, dude, we weren't even to where we were gonna glass from. And my guide is walking behind me, and he, like, looks over. He's like, there's a goat. And we, like, run up to the.

Like, just a little bit, just to.

Get a little better vantage, throw the spotter up, can immediately see that it's Billy. I mean, he had, like, black rub marks all over his butt and, like, big shoulders.

Couldn't quite see his head at that.

Point because he was facing away. But, like, every other sign indicated, like, yeah, that's a Billy. And, you know, I'm, like, sitting there, and I look at him, and I range him, and he's only, like, 700 yards. And I'm just like. And I sat on the whole hike in there.

I was like, dude, it would be cool to kill a Boone or goat.

But, like, I'm not so hung up on that that I'm gonna, like, pass on a really solid goat.

Yeah.

Today, you know.

Yeah.

So we're sitting there, like, ranging him, and I, like, ranging the topography around.

Me, and I'm like, well, we just got to get right over there, get me to into, like, 500, you know, and I'm, like, dead. Go. You know, the guy, I don't think he'd never had a client shoot over, like, 250 yards, right?

So he's, like, sitting there. He's like, are you sure?

And I'm like, oh, yeah, dude.

Like, you know, don't worry. Like, I've, like, I'm not, like, a.

Competition shooter, but I shoot enough to, like, pretty proficient, you know? So we got down into, like, 530.

Yards, I think it was. And he had kind of fed a.

Little bit away from us in the time that it took us to get the 200 yards, you know?

But it was cool. Like, I still remember.

Like, I was like, you know, I've never chased a mountain. I've chased mountain goats with friends and like. But it's always been a goal of mine. And like, I was so jacked up.

Like, and I'm laying prone and it's like a mountain goat. It's not like it's a 400 inch bull.

It's a mountain goat. I mean, his horns are that long, you know.

Still a spike.

Yeah.

I was like, so jacked up. I was like. I was like, man, I was telling the guy.

I was like, dude, I gotta like, calm down here, you know? I was like, I haven't been that jacked up in a.

It's cool, you know, it's like, that's.

What you do it for, you know?

Totally. But it took me. It took a while for the goat.

To like, get into a position to that.

I felt good about the shot, I guess. I mean, that 300 PRC.

I wasn't like worried about penetration. Like, that's just, you know, it's gonna work. You put it in there, it's gonna die.

But I was surprised he ended up. He was facing away from me, kind of feeding.

And then he turned and was like quartering to me.

And I was like, okay, well, if.

I can break down that inside shoulder, if I can hit that, he's not gonna go anywhere.

Or at least that was my thought.

I crank him on the first shot.

He like starts going, you know, typical mountain goat.

Instead of like running downhill, he decides, oh, he broke my shoulder. I'm gonna run uphill. Yeah.

And like runs up and he gets up on top of these cliffs and.

He pops back out at like 450. Shoot him in the shoulder just to like try to stop him.

He wasn't getting anything, like, too nasty.

But it was like, nasty enough, you know. And then shot him again. So I had three bullets in him at that point. And after the third time, I mean, he just. He tomahawked off like 120 foot clip, which is pretty.

Which was pretty cool. I mean, that's kind of. You don't want it, but you kind of do at the same time. Yeah, like, gonna get some mountain hunt.

Out of it, you know? And he ended up like falling to basically the first spot where we saw him, which was pretty cool. But then it was like.

It was a bastard getting down to.

Him because he was.

We were sitting on like the top.

Of this big cirque and it was just like Total cliffs below us.

I mean, we maybe could have like weaseled down through some of them, you know, but like, I was like, man.

We shot this thing at like 2 o' clock in the afternoon. I was like, there's no point in, like risking it. I was like, we have all day. Might as well like go around.

And at this point, it was not raining. You know, we had like.

It was kind of misty and like, not bad.

The rain held out up until the.

Point where we got over to the.

Goat, dragged him up onto a rock, took a bunch of pictures. The second we started skinning that thing.

It was just like torrential rain.

And then that rain, like, I mean, no.

Did not let off for like. I don't think it let off for six days.

And it legitimately in. I don't know what it was on the mountain because we got out of.

There the next day. But in town it rained 20 inches.

No way.

Like, no kidding. And it was. This was like, you know, natural disaster. Not. It wasn't that bad, but it was.

Like, I mean, it was crazy.

And even the locals were like, man.

It rains a lot here, but it is not.

That's. Yeah, that's next level. Yeah, that would have been a brutal sit in a tent for six days and 20 inches. I mean, I don't even.

Probably had to pull the plug for sure.

I know. And there was like, you know, there was a couple other guys in camp and I think they ended up, you know, we were all staying in town.

When that rain was going on because I had to hang out for a couple days after my kills to kind of get everything dealt with.

But they ended up not. They were able to hunt like day one and day two because they started.

Like a day earlier than me.

I don't think they were able to.

Get back out in the field until like day seven or day eight of their hunt.

Yeah, so they lost quite a few days for sure.

I mean, most of it, you know. And then it was like, that's brutal. And you know, outfitters are on schedules. It's not like you can just like.

Oh, we missed five days.

Let's just push those back, you know?

Yeah.

It was like, I felt so lucky.

Just to get like, get an opportunity on a go. And the goat that I did kill was like a nine and a half year old dilly. So it was like.

I mean, it wasn't a Booner, but.

It was still like a great goat. I mean, the bases on that thing. Not the bases, the gland, like the scent glands were like the size like a Foster's can.

Wow.

Just like giant.

Because normally, like, the ones you see and the ones I've seen in Montana, you know, they're like that big or so.

Something like that, but not like that.

Yeah.

Even, like the taxidermist that checked it was like, dude, this is. This is the craziest thing I've ever seen, you know?

Really? That's cool.

And I mean, the age is reflected in the meat.

Super delicious meat. Yeah.

I mean, I ate some of it. I still have some in the freezer.

But, like, I was trying to eat the back straps, and it was just, like, terrible.

I mean, the flavor was. Flavor was good, but it's like I.

Couldn'T chew through it, you know? Like, I was trying to eat backstrap steaks and it was like, just turn.

The whole thing into summer sausage.

For sure.

Yeah.

Kind of rough. I mean, paid all the money to get the meat back and everything, and it was just, like, not inedible, but, yeah, pretty. I should have just left it with the locals, you know?

Dude.

So first day, get it done with a goat hunt. You get out of there before a monsoon hits, and then you're just like, man feeling. Feeling like cloud nine. So you got Wyoming up next. You like, how. How. How long till you, like, head to Wyoming?

So I think. I don't know, I killed that on, like, the 21st or whatever. And then I wasn't. I could have gone to Wyoming, like.

As soon as I got back, but I was just gonna go down for rifle season, which started on October 1, at least in the area I was going.

Yeah. So I was able to, like, go.

Down on the day before the season started. So September 30th or whatever, and supposed.

To meet up with some local guys.

And then they, like, bailed on me. Classic. Yeah. So I was, like, hunting on my own, which I wasn't, like, super pumped on. I mean, I've hunted alone a lot, but, you know, it's a lot nicer to pack out elk. Yeah, not by yourself. Yeah. Yeah, for sure.

Yeah. So I, like, kind of, you know, I was starting from square one.

I'd never hunted Wyoming before.

Just kind of, like, picked a place thought looked good.

I kind of picked a couple people's brains, you know, that I knew it. Hunted Wyoming or Wyoming residents and just.

Kind of, like, had had one area in mind. And then I just heard, like, from.

Varying accounts that the grizzly numbers were way high there. And so I decided to, like, bail on the initial area, and I decided to go for my option two, which glad I did, because there's a lot more elk there.

But it was sweet, you know, like, hunting Wyoming was cool.

Like, very high elevation. Like, higher than what I was used to. I mean, you know, you're up at, like, 9, 10,000ft. It's like some rarefied air, you know?

Yeah. Which is super cool, too. Like, I. I would love to kill a bull up that altitude.

For sure. For sure.

And it's cool because, like, there's some thick stuff, like, but the timber's not like. Like, it's not like some of the.

Stuff where I've run into in Montana at that, like, 790. It gets, like, real thick, you know? I mean, you get up there at 10,000, it's like that subalpine fur stuff, and it's, like, pretty open.

But I, like, got there the day before the season. Didn't quite get there enough time to.

Like, scout or anything and just kind of going in blind the next morning. And, like, you know, I've hunted Montana.

Opener quite a bit, like, rifle opener.

But I wasn't prepared for how many people were in the field.

Oh, really?

Oh, my God. It was like.

I don't know that I've ever seen.

That many people in the field ever.

Like it because it coincided, like, it was opening day of elk and opening.

Day a deer in that unit. So it was just like, everybody in their bra.

I mean, it was like.

And it's October 1st, which is like, you know, everyone's going out first.

I mean, it's just like, beautiful weather. It was like 60 degrees and just like. But it was like.

It felt.

I don't know, for anybody that's hunted, the brakes.

Yeah, that's not how it felt, you.

Know, like a truck at every pull out, like. Yeah.

And when I was in the field, it was like I was hiking in.

I thought I was getting an early.

Start, you know, I was like, oh.

I'll start, like, two hours before daylight, and, like, just kind of ease my way in there so I'm not, like, sweating and like, dude, I was, like.

Bumping into people in the dark.

Like, like, what is going on?

So, like, did you ever, like, at that point, do you panic a little and you're like, okay, I don't know this hunt. I don't know this area. And all of a sudden it's like, dude, there's freaking people everywhere. It's easy to, like, instantly not have regrets or, like, start to panic or, like, whatever. It's like, what's going through your Head.

Yeah. I mean, a little bit of that. I knew that, like, at least I felt like I was in a good area. And maybe part of it is just kind of like, you know, regardless of.

Pressure of feeling like, feeling like you're.

In a good area and just like, sticking with it, at least sticking it.

Out for at least a day or.

Two, because it's not like, you know, some of that country, it takes so.

Long to get to, like, you know.

What, you're not just gonna walk back.

To the trailhead and drive to a different spot and get into, like, you're pretty committed, you know.

So I, like, stuck with it and ended up like, I saw.

Well, I saw a ton of people. I saw more people than elk the first day. Like, the first morning I had like.

You know, a bull and some cows.

Like, right near me on my morning glassing spot, which was encouraging, but again, I mean, I was literally seeing people on. There was a person on, like, or group of people on every single ridge that I was looking at. You know, I was like, dude, this is.

It was. It was.

You know, I definitely did have some of that. Like, what the am I doing? You know, like, this is.

This is incredible. But I just kind of stuck with my plan. I was like, I was just going.

To work around this mountain and I got.

So I did my morning hunt, saw a couple elk, just nothing I wanted.

To kill, and got around to this other side of this lookout that I thought would be a good, like, spot to look at for the evening. And I think got there at like.

One o' clock or something.

And I think I was like, fiddle farting around or something, and then just happened to, like, look up the canyon like four miles and caught like a.

Herd of herd of elk.

And like, two of the bulls were like, pretty nice, you know, And I was like, well, like, I'm at, you.

Know, I'm at 10, 000ft.

I'm by myself. I'm like five and a half miles from the truck right now. These elk are nine miles from the truck. And there's like a voice hole by yourself for sure.

And there's a voice in my head that's like, you know, it's like you.

Got the good and the bad on each shoulder.

And like, there was one voice in.

My ear just like, do it, go for it, do it. You know, And I'm just like.

I mean, it's 2 o' clock at 10,000ft. It's pretty open, and it's like, you can. I mean, you're not like going real fast.

Cause it's pretty high elevation, but it's open enough to where I was like I could make it, you know, But God, you know what, what then, you.

Know, nine miles back out, right?

It's gonna be a 20 mile day or like it's gonna be 20 miles.

A day for the next three days, right?

For sure. I was looking at the map and I was like, well, if I go back to the truck, I can drive.

Around to a different trailhead. And they would.

Instead of being nine miles in the.

Truck, they're going to be like four or four and a half, you know.

So it's like, well, let's make the.

Smart play here and you know, get out of here.

Like, I watched those elk till like.

4 or 5 o' clock and they were kind of.

It was weird.

There was like a line where it seemed like the people stopped, you know, and just for whatever reason, like they weren't really going. At least what I could see when everybody's wearing an orange hat or whatever. So you can kind of see most people. I mean some people aren't, but kind of got a pretty good grasp on where people were at.

And it just seemed like there was a line that. Which people weren't really past it.

And so I was like, well, okay, I'm gonna watch these elk to like four or five o' clock just to see.

Because if by that time, if nobody's seen them, they're probably not gonna see.

Them because they tucked back into this canyon. That I was like, you know, I mean, it'd be open enough, they saw them, they'd right see them.

And so I like high tailed it.

Out of there at 5, got back.

To the truck and thought what was.

Going to be like a nice drive to the other trailhead, you know. No, this road is like rough that I was on.

And I started driving to the other.

Trailhead and I'm like, you gotta drop the other trail like down. And I was like halfway down this road and I got to this one steep spot and there's a guy on a four wheeler there. And I stopped and started bullshitting with him. And I'm like.

You know, this is for. Road is like pretty rough. I was like, Aaron, he just laughs at me.

He's like, buddy, you ain't seen rough yet. And I was like, oh God. And it was just like, I mean, just giant boulders.

Like it wasn't, it wasn't super bad.

Well, I mean rough.

It took me so long to get there, I think, yeah, I barely Made it there before.

Before dark. Which, thank God, because that road was sucked in the dark.

Yeah.

The whole time. Like, you know, it's super nice out.

Not set up camp or anything. I'm just sleeping out on a cot, which is night. It's October 1st, you know, 65 degrees, beautiful.

But the whole night, man, I was.

Just like sitting there, like, kind of.

Second guessing myself, you know, I was like, man, you saw those elk.

It's half the battle. Like, you should have just gone after them and dealt with consequences. And like.

Yeah.

You know, and on top of that.

Like, my plan was to wake up early enough to hike in there in the dark and get on those elk at daylight, you know, so I'm like, I'm gonna hike for at least.

My plan is like, give myself two and a half hours to get in there. Just because some of it was on.

Trail and then some of it was not.

And I mean, I can walk on.

A trail like if it's flat, like three miles an hour. If it's not, or if it's off trail, it's like two miles an hour.

You know, just like, I'll just try.

To go slow enough to where I'm not like, sweat. Well, I get in there.

Yeah. I think I Woke up like 4am.

Having not really slept at all because there's like horse guys and stuff in there. And I'm like, well, you gotta. You gotta beat the horse guys, you know?

Yeah.

As they start to creep in where you're like, I gotta beat everyone else, you know, like, you just start to second guess it. There's other people around. You're like, they're gonna know.

Someone knows.

Oh, yeah. Oh, yeah. The whole time in my mind I.

Was like, somebody saw those elk, you know, I gotta like, I gotta get in there. I gotta get in there. And I'm like.

Or that when I was on the.

Trail portion of that hike, I was like, hauling ass because it was pretty flat and like, dude, I was hiking.

So fast and like, get in there, get to where I'm like, gonna go off trail.

I'm like.

My plan was the, like, these elk were kind of working in like, a direction. And my plan was to come up.

The ridge that was in front of where the direction they were headed, you.

Know, just to like, give myself a.

Little bit of buffer because they'll move.

A lot, you know, especially during the.

Rut in, like, open country. Like, there's no reason they have to, like, hang out in one spot.

So I'm like, creeping up this ridge Thinking I'm like, you know, anywhere from.

A mile to a half mile in front of these elk and I'm like.

Just about to like hit this game.

Trail that I was going to take into this basin that I'd seen him in the day before.

And I think it's like 10, 15.

Minutes before daylight and just, it's just chaos everywhere, bugles everywhere. And I'm just like, oh, no. You know, like, was not expecting this.

I was like, I'm thinking I'm like.

Way far away from him and I'm just hearing like.

Just everywhere and I'm.

Just like, you know, and the wind's just like, weird and I'm like, oh, God. Like, at least you have gun. Yeah, it's not like hunting in the R, you know, where you're like, oh.

No, the wind's weird. Like, but I was still like, I could tell, you know, I've done this enough. Like, I could tell, like I was.

I was inside like 400 from like at least four or five different bulls. And I was just like, oh God.

And I knew, I mean, I didn't.

See every elk in the country, obviously.

But like, I knew the herd that.

I was after, there was like two shooters and.

Then there was a bunch.

Of satellites that were like, so, so like, not anything I wanted to like, pack off the mountain. Right? Yeah.

But like, so I get in there.

And I'm like trying to bide my time and I was like kind of hanging out on the one side of.

The ridge, just like trying not to make any noise, try not to let.

My wind like, do anything squirrely.

And it starts getting a little bit more light, a little bit more light.

And I'm like looking and I like see an elk at like 200 yards.

And at this point I still can't.

Even tell what it is because it's not even legal shooting light. I can just like see the elk's body and I can tell that it's bull and.

And I can hear, hear another one.

Like just a little bit away from.

Him and starts getting a little bit.

More like spotter on him. I'm like, okay, it's pretty good 6 point, like a 300 type bull.

In hindsight, I should have just waited.

A little bit and looked at the other bull. But I was like, oh, this is.

One of the shooters.

Like, you know, not my, like, good enough.

I guess in my mind, you know.

It'S like 300gr.

But it got a little bit more light and finally it.

Was like light enough to shoot. And the bull was still only like 200 yards. And I was like, man, that's a slam dunk, you know, I mean, you can't with a rifle, you know, it's like, dude, 200 is nothing.

Plus all the. Plus all the other hunters. Like you're feeling the pressure. You're like, so someone else knows. Like, it's gotta like, I gotta get this done.

Yeah. When I was like coming up the.

Ridge, I could see another headlight, like.

Not below me, but it was on.

The ridge, like down canyon for me. And I was like, like, this is gonna get. Like this is. Yeah, for sure.

And so, yeah, I. So I shoot this bull, which is great. I shoot him, dies. I like all jacked up, you know, like this. That was. It was one of the coolest mornings.

Like you're hunting elk with a rifle in the rut, you know, it's sick.

Like they're buing. You're like, you're not having to be like, oh, I gotta get in closer. Gotta get in your life, you know, like feels like cheating almost, you know, like, I mean, super cool. It's a little bit.

The advantage is in your hand for sure.

But I go over there and I get in on this. I go get to the ball and.

I like start breaking them down a little bit.

And like, I think I was there.

Like 20 minutes and the other bull.

That was with this bull like starts piping off and I mean, he's like.

He'S like 150 yards away, but I.

I can't see him, but I can hear him. And so I'm just like, oh, we'll see how this plays out. And I just start cow calling a.

Little bit, just like. And I'm literally like sitting on my elk and call this other bull in like 80 yards.

And he was like, he was probably like a 325 by six.

Like he was just missing his fifth.

On his one side.

But I was just like, dang it.

Just like looked around a little bit more. I got too like hyper focused. I was like, this is like a. You know, you see a 300 inch.

Bull and it's kind of hard to like pass up.

Totally. You know, I mean, hey, what's the saying? Bird in the hand is worth two in the bush or something.

You know, I could have hunted more.

And like, whatever, but I mean, I'm not going to turn down a solid opportunity like that.

Yeah, for sure.

You know, you're by yourself. It's kind of like, you know your.

Limitations, you know, like, man, more Than stoked.

I was super pumped. It was just like, yeah, it was a lot of work. It's a lot of work breaking out.

And elk by yourself, you know.

And I was lucky enough to like connect with this. My one buddy is a resident down there. Was like, oh man, I got this other, I got this guy who has been in contact with and he's like a. Another non resident guy. Like he's just kind of looking for.

Somebody to buddy up with. And we hadn't quite linked up at that point. And I like thought I was like.

I'll just send him an in reach and just tell him I killed one.

Just maybe fuel his soak a little.

Bit and like sent him in reach. He's like, oh man, you need help packing out? And I was like, well, I'm not.

Going to say no.

As a matter of fact I do for sure.

And he, I guess at that point.

He'D been like, he'd been there like.

Three or four days preseason, hadn't even seen any elk.

And so he like, he's, you know, four or five days into it, hasn't seen any elk. And I was just like, well, you know, I'm probably 320 up here. Yeah, for sure.

I was like, I'm probably not gonna stick around too much after I kill one.

But like I'll show you where these are and that's kind of, you know, worth it.

And so it was nice. I was able. I packed out like because it was some grizz country. Not that I'd seen a bunch, but.

There was like one grizz definitely kind of hanging around in the area where I killed that. So like the first day I packed out like the head and the back straps just to like make sure you get that out, I guess. And then the next day went and got the rest of it out in one trip with that guy. Like just.

Oh, nice.

Two quartered it, you know.

But it was, it was a heavy day. But it wasn't like, wasn't too bad, you know.

Nice.

Yeah, it's kind of crazy. I had two hunts and they both.

Were like first day and I couldn't kill them. I guess on the first day.

Dude, three pretty much three hunts. I mean between guiding and that, like three hunts pretty much. First, first, second day. Oh man. Then cranking them out. Yeah, you weren't kidding when you said it just kind of came together for sure.

I know.

And I'm just like thinking and just like it was kind of never happens like that. It seems like a lot of Years.

It's just like a grind, you know.

But then going back to the whole, you know, having kids thing, I end up getting like. I don't know if there was a result of having the pink eye or just some other next infection, Right.

That whole pack out the second day, I just was like. Had this like, gunk in the back of my throat and ended up like, getting this, like, hellacious sinus infection. And like, dude, it's.

And I'm like, quite a bit of.

A drive from home, you know, and I was like, just feeling like the whole day we were packing that thing out, and I like, we get back to the truck at like, noon, and.

I was like, dude, I'm not trying.

To bail any, but I feel terrible.

And then it was just like, by.

The time I made it home, I was like, fever and chills and like.

You know, I might not have had to pay, like, the physical toll of having to be out in the mountains.

For, like, days on end, but, like, both these times I was like, fighting through some, like, yeah, sickness. Gosh.

On top of everything. Dang, dude.

And it's one thing to be sick at home, but it's like another thing.

To be, like, out in the field and be like, not feeling good, especially.

By yourself, because there's like, you know, there's nobody to like, be like, oh, you want a cup of tea? Or like, you know, whatever. It's like you're just. You're just alone.

Yeah, for sure. It's kind of brutal, you know, I'm like, oh, God, yeah. But I mean, no complaints, you know, at that point.

And then kind of moved into, like, the next. I had after that, I had most of October off. I did end up going out with Zach for a couple days on his.

He had a limited entry tag in Wyoming, which was super cool to be able to go down and just see, see those. Just watch out. Being elk, you know, and like, in a low pressure environment because, like, dude, that's so cool.

Like, we didn't see anything like, giant.

We saw one bowl that was like, probably like a 340 type bull.

But just being able to get to.

See elk, being elk not pressured is like, is a treat, you know, for sure.

Because, like, so many times you're hunting elk, it's like they're, you know, they're. They're obviously still behaving like elk, but.

They'Re behaving like pressured elk. You know, they're like out in the.

Mornings, out in the evenings, like, sticking.

Tight to timber and like, you know, we were on that hunt in Wyoming. It was like around his hunt, it.

Was like, dude, there's bulls just like.

Hanging out wide open, like not having a care in the world, you know.

You'Re not trying to fight dudes. Like, you don't see headlamps coming up on them, like.

Yeah, no, no, not at all. I think he was saying, like, I forget how many guys were drew his.

Unit, but like, I think he had.

Talked to the biologist and I think it was something crazy.

Like 80 of the guys tagged out after the first like weekend.

Oh, wow.

So it was like there we didn't in, I think we hunted like four or five days and didn't see a.

Single other person hunting.

Wow, that's cool.

Unreal. Yeah.

I mean, this is a special experience in and of itself just to get true.

Yeah. You're like, what is this? Like, this is. This is great. Yeah.

Are we legally hunting right now?

I've had so many, like seasons in.

Montana, like, especially like public land stuff and rifle season where you're like, you can't have it in your head that like, you're gonna have the trailhead to yourself. Yeah, like, totally.

No way.

No way.

Yeah.

I was just, I was just down in Utah with one of my good buddies, drew one of the late archery tags and I was like, I just helped him for like one day and I like going out for one day and I think there's only like, I don't know, five or 10 tags and he's the only non resident with a tag. And I was like, we never saw a human. And it was like, man, this feel illegal. Like, it just feels like we're like trying to poach elk late season because like, we're just all these bulls, they're just hanging out all over the place. And you're like, dude, I'm looking at. I think in the first 10 minutes of being there, I saw more elk, more bulls in 10 minutes than I did for S on my 16 day Arizona hunt last year. I was like. I told him. I was like, in 10 minutes I saw more elk than in 16 days in Arizona.

Oh my God, that's rough. I like them odds though, you know, man, that's like. Yeah, that's right.

It's crazy. Like, just in those special draw units.

I mean, just seeing how elk just like, they just behave differently.

Dude, you've been on the podcast a couple times talking about rifle elk. I feel like you are. You're kind of my rifle elk guy. Like, you get it done. And Zach made A comment about, like, oh, Mr. Consistency. And it's like, man, I was like, when I saw you post your bull from Montana, I was like a. That looks like a absolute show of a pack out. And just congrats on just finding a grinding out an absolute giant in, like, some of the worst rifle elk hunting conditions you can get. Like, that's. And like, so, like, I feel like you haven't got to the good part yet, which is, like, kind of the part I was like, man, for sure. Epic.

Congratulations.

Killing one in Wyoming October 1st is one thing, but, like, killing rifle. I don't think people understand how killing rifle elk season in Montana is one of the toughest hunts there is. Like, it's.

Oh, absolutely. I mean, it's harder. I mean, hunted a lot of species and I mean everything except buffalo in, you know, North America. And like, elk is definitely rifle. Elk is probably the most physically and.

Mentally challenging thing you can do unless.

You hunt them in October or September.

And you can just clap them in the rut.

Yeah. But, you know, at that point in the season, it's pretty late and it's like, you know, it starts to kind.

Of wear on you and you're just like, it.

I went out the week before I killed my bull.

I went out and it snowed a bunch in the mountain range that I was in. And it was like, I hiked in there and I got up to, like, elevation where, like, the elk normally are, and I was like, I was waiting through, like, knee to thigh deep snow.

Then I wasn't seeing anything, and I.

Was, like, pissed, you know, I was.

Like, dude, this sucks. I'm, like, looking at the weather. I was like, it's supposed to snow.

Like this for the next, like, five days. I was like, what am I doing? You know?

And I was like, honestly, I kind of let it get to my, like.

Get in my head.

And I was like, you've had a great season. I was like, nobody blame you for hanging it up.

You know, it was like the week before Thanksgiving.

And I was like, yeah. And I was even like, messaging Zach at that point.

I was like, oh, dude, this is pretty brutal.

And he's like, yeah, it's pretty nice sitting on a warm couch right now at home. And I'm like, you know, And I literally, like, I just kind of, like.

Gave up mentally a little bit right there, you know, I was like, man, this sucks.

I'm not having fun.

Like, I've been dealing with like, a chronic ankle issue all year, and just.

Like, you know, it's to the point.

You know, this is on top of the illnesses and whatever.

I mean, it was to the point.

Like, I'm pretty much all my hunts. Like when I'm like walking back to the truck the last like, mile or two, I'm like limping.

It's not like, you know, and I'm.

Not like trying to play a sympathy card or anything.

It's just like, I'm like just pushing.

My body that far to where, like, I'm trying to push out. Yeah, that physical discomfort just to like, keep hunting. And I was like, man, I don't know if this is like, worth it. Like, this sucks. I'm like, you know, whatever, snow, it's gnarly.

Like, there's not a ton of people that are going in snow over their knee.

No, it sucked. And so I like, called it.

And I was like, I'm just gonna take. I'm gonna go back home for a.

Couple days and like, pack up camp.

Leave, go home, like, spend the weekend at home. And I'm like, dude, I am trying.

To summon up the motivation to like, go back out, you know, And I'm.

Just like, the whole time in my mind, if there's like two wolves, you know, and I'm just like, you can sit and hang out and call it a season. It's been a great season. I mean, at that point, it's been pretty epic. Then on the other hand, I was.

Like, it's nine months before it's going to be next elk season, and you.

Have no idea what's gonna happen between now and then. Are you gonna get a hunt this much? Are you not? You know, I always try to plan to, but like, I was just like.

You gotta go out, you know, you.

Gotta go back out.

Like Thanksgiving week. It's like this season, you know, went till December 1st. I was like, this is kind of like, I've been talking about it all year.

I was like, great year to kill a big bowl. Because the season goes so late.

Just because that was our seasons are structured, you know, And I'm like, you'd be an idiot not to go out.

I'm like, looking at the weather and.

I was like, there was a window where it had been snowing for like five days, Stopped snowing. Monday was supposed to be nice, beautiful, like bluebird, you know, and like, if.

You'Re a rifle out guy and you don't pay attention to the weather, and especially you don't pay attention to that weather window. Like, especially after a storm cycle, if there's a Storm cycle, a break and then another storm cycle. You hunt that day on the bra.

I don't care what it takes, but you gotta hunt that day. No weather, you know?

And I was like, still. Like, I knew that was gonna be.

A good day, but I was like.

I was gonna leave on Sunday.

And then, like, I saw some weather reports and some road reports. Like, the roads were absolutely, like, trash. And I was like, well, I'm not.

Not going to leave on Sunday.

I'll just leave on Monday morning.

And so I woke up, like, I was, you know, like, pow, out with.

My buddy here locally. And, you know, I'm like.

He's like, what? You know, what do you think? And I'm like, all right, well, I'm gonna get there, and I'm gonna get.

To the trail at an hour, try to get there an hour and a half before light.

I was like, I'm gonna leave Missoula at 2. And he was just like. He's like, what? You know, kind of like, he's like, ah.

He's like, I'll leave Missoula 3. And I was like, all right.

I was like, I'll meet you in there.

You know, like, you know, kind of like a little bit of a psychopath when it comes to that. I was like, oh, I can sleep later. Because in that area, it's, like, fairly.

Like, there's some pressure, you know, like, it's rifle season.

It's Thanksgiving week. There's people in there. There's horse guys. Like, there's, you know, foot traffic, the works.

So, yeah, I get to the trailhead.

Like, an hour and a half before light, start mobbing in there.

And he just, like. Not that I could feel it was.

Gonna be a good day, but I just, like, knew it was, like, weather conditions, like, it was gonna be a good day.

They get in there and start getting.

Up towards my lookout, and I, like, cut these elk tracks. And knowing what I know now, they were actually the elk tracks of the elk that I killed. Yeah.

So I cut these elk tracks, like, in the dark, kind of waited around.

For light a little bit and started kind of tracking them. And I kind of tell. They were, like, probably from the previous morning, you know?

So I was like, I don't know.

If I want to follow these or whether I should just get up to the lookout and try to just like. Because I could look up canyon from there.

So I just kind of ended up.

Bailing on those tracks and started hiking up to the lookout.

Well, in the process of doing this, I set My pack down at one.

Point, and I, like. I didn't have my holster for my pistol. Ended up, like, dropping my Glock.

So I don't have. I don't have bear spray or anything.

I just have my Glock, you know, And.

And now you don't have a Glock?

No, I don't have my Glock. Didn't realize I didn't have my Glock until I got up to my lookout, and I was, like, feeling for it.

And I was like.

I was like, you know, and you got your rifle strapped to your pack.

You're like, you know, you're in big bear country. And I'm just like, dude, this sucks. Like, God damn it.

So that was, like, the first mishap of the day. So I'm like, put that out of my mind. I was like, whatever, you're here. Get my spotter set up, go up to my lookout.

I'm, like, sitting there for, like, half hour maybe and see a group of three bulls.

And I was like, oh, sweet. This is a great start to the morning. I hadn't seen anything yet, but I was like, oh, this is great. You know, one of them was, like, decent, but just at this point.

It had a great season. I'm not, like, just trying to kill a bull. I don't need to be.

Freezer is full. You got a delicious goat in there. You don't need anything.

Yeah, for sure. Delicacy, man. So I kind of, like, let those ones, and they were a ways away.

They were, like, a mile and a half away. I was like, like, I'm not gonna kill those.

Like, my buddy probably would have wanted.

To go after him, but I was like, I'm just gonna let these go.

Well, like, I think I'd been there.

Like, an hour, and my buddy Dave is still on his way in there.

And I end up seeing Dave, and he's, like, almost up to the lookout. I'm like, fiddle farting around. I, like, start a fire.

Just getting the fire ready for him so he could get.

Get up to the lookout and be.

Kind of warm, you know, after you're sweaty and whatnot.

Well, he gets fire going.

Go. And I had my, like, saw hanging on the tree, like, above the fire like a dipshit. And I go back out to my.

Lookout, and I'm, like, kind of getting out there, See my glassing for a little bit, look back over to my.

Fire, see that my saw is on fire.

And I was just, like, running over there, try to pull my saw out of the fire, go Back over to my lookout and look up to where I'd seen those bowls previously. And I'm like, there's. There's more elk there, you know? And I, like, throw the binos up.

And I was like, there's four bulls now, and, like, before, there's only three.

And, like, get on my spotter and look. Can't quite tell what's going on at.

First because they're all kind of in a mob.

And I was like, are these the same bowls or these different bowls? And then they kind of start moving around.

I have, like, the phone, scope, mag me or whatever on them and looking.

And I can kind of see the back end of one, and they're all.

Just kind of in this mobile, and then they kind of, like, break apart. And the bull I ended up killing, like, walks out.

And it's just when you see him and they're a shooter like that, there's no question.

And I start, like, bullets. I'm just like.

I look back, I see Dave, like, 100 yards below me. I look at him, he sees me, and I just turn and give him, like, the.

You know, the big bull, like, come on, let's go.

And he's just like. You know, he's hiked all the way.

And it's not, like, a short distance in there.

And.

So I, like, get my start, like, throwing it in my pack.

He gets up there. Well, right as I'm getting back to my pack, two other dudes come up.

Below underneath the lookout, and I'm just, like, freaking out, you know, because I'm just like, this is like, stud bull.

What do you do, act cool like you didn't see anything and hope that.

Oh, no. It was pretty evident that I'd already saw Marvel freaked out.

They seen me do this, and they were just like. They were cool, though.

Like, they're like, how did you guys get in here?

And I was like, I hiked in.

Here, and they're like.

They're kind of like.

They're horse guys.

Yeah, they only hiked in there, like, a half mile. And they were just kind of like, what?

And they're like, well, what'd you see?

And I was like, there's four bulls up there. I was like, I'm gonna go kill one. And they were like, oh, okay. I was like, they're like, yeah, you saw him first. We're not gonna. We're not going up there. I was like, all right, cool.

And so, like, Dave gets there. Dave's not even, like.

He doesn't even get to sit down.

You know, it's one of those things.

And he's already hiked like a ways to get in there. And it's just like I'm freaking out, like, stuffing all the in my bag, like, getting ready.

And I like. He's just kind of like trying to reconcile what's going on. And I like, put my pack on and even Dave is like, man, I've never seen anybody like put on their pack and start sprinting like, Because I just like threw on my.

And I was just like, I was gone.

Like I was.

There's nothing stopping me. No, I'm just like.

Because I knew like, you know, at this point it's like 9:30 in the morning. Those bulls were kind of acting like.

They were gonna like, bed up or.

Something because they were on like a south facing aspect. And it was like, you know, it was nice day. It had been kind of shitty.

So like the likelihood they're probably gonna bed down somewhere right around there.

But I wanted to get them like.

On their feet if we could, because.

It'S kind of, you know, it can be tough, especially like bed down just inside the timber.

See him?

You know, so we like, yeah, I.

Start sprinting off and babe falling behind me, like, what the is going on?

And like, you know, we get onto the north facing aspect and the snow.

Went from like top of boot to all of a sudden like knee deep, you know, like that.

And it's just like, it goes from.

Being like, easy to be in like a trudge.

We get up to where we kind of thought we could see them. We don't quite see them yet. And we're like, just kind of picking our way along.

And then buddy Dave, like, he's.

Look, he's behind me and he looks.

And he's like, there he is.

And like, we're just looking through a.

Gap timber, you know, and we can see him bedded. And he's bedded out in the open.

I'm like, okay, well, we just gotta.

Kind of find a window because there was kind of some tree branches blocking him. And I was like, you know, I'm ranging him and I was like, he's 530 yards. I was like, done deal. You know, like, I. I got that. And so we kind of picked our way along. Finally found like a good window. Um, he'd actually gotten up and re. Bedded in like a slightly bit.

Slightly better position.

Um, but we're like sitting there and.

I get the spotter on him, get like, get the path kind of set.

Up and like, ready.

And in that time that I'd gotten the spotter set up and I was.

Like, kind of getting behind the rifle, like around.

Dave, like, looks in the spotter and.

Is like, he moved and the bull had gotten up and they were like right on the edge of this timber. And like, he was better down out in the open. And the three other bulls he was with were bedded, like right on the edge of the timber, like, just not inside of it, but right on the edge of it. And he had like gotten up to like move and like bed right beside them.

But it was kind of like one of those things where, you know, I'm expecting to have like a minute to.

Like sit there and get comfortable and like execute like a really calm, easy shot to all of a sudden it being like, I gotta do this now.

You know, because he was like the only thing I could see.

I could see his body, I couldn't.

See his head, I could see his body, but I basically could see from.

Like the shoulder back at like 540 yards, you know, And I'm like, well.

If he takes another two steps, he's.

Gone, you know, And I'm not like, we might be sitting here all day or might not get a shot, whatever.

So I was like, super rushed. Didn't even have time to like put.

The earplugs in, end up like shot him like two times. And I could like see the bullets impacting. And I'm like, well, I got him, but he's still like standing there.

And then end up like the last.

One ended up shooting him. I put it like, right. He's quartering away, so I put it like right. Right behind that front shoulder there. And like, he's still standing. And I'm like, dude, this is a 212 grain bullet. Like, what is going on? You know?

And he just like took it and then he like turned and starts walking. And Dave's like, dude, I don't know. He's walking, man. I was like, ah, man, I. I.

Like, I got him, you know, he.

Took like 10 steps.

Then we just see this like, oh, like he just like dusted into the snow, you know, at that point, just like, you know, I kind of let reality kind of sit in set. And I was just like, woof. You know, how did we just do that?

And then, you know, Dave's like, he's.

Been on smell cunts, but never been on anything like that. And that was like a pretty serious day. It wasn't like strolling from the trailhead shootable it was like gnarly day, you know, like. And then, you know, all that, especially.

Once we got up to her in.

That area where the bull was. I mean it wasn't like ankle deep snow anymore. We were trudging through like knee deep snow on our side and then it was even like mid shin on that side, you know, but like pretty cool walking up to a bull like that in rifle.

Yeah, any, any time of year, it's.

It'S incredible, you know.

Yeah. Dude, congrats, man. What a epic season. Like it's gonna be hard to top. It's gonna be hard.

Oh yeah, for sure.

I know. I'm trying to like plan out what I'm doing next year and I'm just like, I'm not gonna top that.

But like, you know, how do you.

What is that? I think I've asked you this before, but what is the secret to being successful in rifles late rifle season?

I think it's just consistency, man. And trying to like play those, play those weather windows correctly and like trying.

To hunt the right times.

I mean you definitely can obviously see bulls when they're. When it's snowing and like I've had success when it's snowing, but you're better.

You know, if you can hunt the.

Storm cycles and hunt them correctly.

Like you want to hunt on the tail end of it when it stops or you hunt on the front end of it right before it starts, those bulls will actually like push out into the open.

Because a lot of times, man, it's.

Like unless you get the right weather, like those bulls just don't come out in the open. Like they're just, they're timbered up. They know the program like, they know what's going on. And so it's like unless you can.

Get like, you got to get some.

Weather and you got to hunt it right and you got to be consistent and like, you know, there's a lot.

Of guys that I know, you know.

After the first two, three weeks they just, they give up.

Yeah.

You know, not like, you know, they're.

Just like, well, I don't know, it's.

This is a lot.

And you know, some of it too. I know, like you got to play your days.

You definitely got to also play pressure too. So it's like obviously the weekends you're gonna. Not that you can't be successful on the weekends, but there are so many guys out like Saturday, Sundays. I mean you can, it's tangible the difference that it makes between Saturday, Sunday and a Monday.

Yeah. You know, and you think, I mean, do you notice it in the bull behavior?

Maybe? I mean, I don't know. I mean, weather's weather, right?

And elk. Or elk.

But I definitely think, I mean, when.

You got that many people running around, I mean, there's definitely scent rolling around.

And they can, like, I mean, not.

Like, you know, late rifle in Montana is not like Wyoming opener where there's people everywhere. There's still quite a few people out there. So, like, I think definitely they're probably going to hold tighter to the timber if they smell people or like, hear horses, because, like, horses aren't quiet, you know, and you can hear that, you.

Know, man, I mean, you do really well. I. Yeah. What do you think that you think it's just consistency in the days and. And just keeping after it is kind of like what makes you successful? I mean, what makes you consistent? Like, I mean, you kill bullshit every year. It's like, I. I mean, we say it all the time, like, hunt the windows, man. Hunt the windows. And not everyone could do that, for sure. Do you think, what's your thought? Like, what does it take to get away from people? And does that matter? Like, how many miles do you have to be before you start getting away from people? And then does that matter?

I don't know that it really matters. I mean, you definitely want to try.

To cross that, like, three miles threshold. You know, that can be easier said than done.

But then at the same time, it's like, a lot of people just stick.

To trails, you know, and like, not that I don't. I mean, I definitely use trails to.

Get into places, but like, there's a.

Certain point you're probably gonna have to leave the trail.

Right?

You know, and that for some people. Some people don't want to do that. Some people don't feel comfortable doing that.

But you definitely gotta try to do that and just get away from that a little bit.

Because, I mean, I've seen in some areas, dude, you just like, you see.

Where the trails are, or even like the. I'll call them hunting trails that have been, like, made by people using them a lot. It's just like that stuff gets hammered, man. You know, and you just got to get.

Like, sometimes it's not even.

You don't even got to get that far away from them, especially like in rifle.

But then, you know, in rifle, there's a lot of places where you got to try to play it. Like, you know, there's obviously migratory areas in Montana and like, those elk kind.

Of use the same areas year in, year out. And like, if you really want to kill bull late season, go out in January and go start glassing and figure out where those elk are or the bulls are, see where they're at.

And then you. You can kind of extrapolate from there. You're like, well, okay, this is where the bulls are in January.

Where do they come from to get here? Yeah, you know, what is there? Because there's data on a lot of this stuff, you know, you know, where to dig, nowhere to look. Not. I don't do a lot of data crunching, but like, I was trying to figure it out. I did, you know, it was like.

Like, well, there's data on these elk and this is what they do.

And so, like, this is where they're at right now. So where are they going to be in between, you know, middle of November and January?

Right.

You know, yeah, I've said it too. Is like, you know, find the winter areas, find the summer areas. Which is all very, very recorded data for sure. It's not. It's math, you know, it's like just draw a line in a lot of ways, I think. Yeah, I think the one of the things you're really good at and you and I have talked about this is just being able to hunt. Hunt the timber. Almost like hunt, hunt places, you know, not just the open, it's the. It's kind of the micro open. Right. Like, if you think you're gonna just walk out and see elk in a meadow, like, that's not gonna happen in rifle season in heavily pressured area, you.

Like, how do you hunt pressured elk?

And actually the last day of rifle season, I go out just to look for a buck. And I actually went to an area just more to scout for elk. Like, I was like, I'm gonna go look for elk in here. You know, like just escouted it and was like, I'm gonna look for elk in here. If I see a deer, I see a deer. Well, I was like seeing some deer and I actually had like posted up and was glass and I was looking across the canyon probably a mile away. But I was just checking all the meadows to look for tracks and just like panning through the timber and I was like, oh, there's a bowl just laying out, you know, and not in the wide open, but like in the timber. But I could just see him from where I was. And I was like, dude, this is exactly what Brandon I talked about. I think a year ago when we did a podcast. It was like, you Know, finding them in those little hooks and crannies, like that's where they're out.

Yeah, for sure.

And a lot of times it's like, you know, you'll see them. You know, the I killed a bull in 2022 this year was on a south facing slope. 2022, I think. I don't know whether there's more pressure.

Or that elk was just feeling the pressure, but he was bedded on a north facing slope in the timber. And I just happened to be on the south facing side glassing that and picked him up, you know, just like.

From a ways away. But I think some people, like look at some of that stuff and they're.

Like, ah, I'm not gonna glass that. Or it's timber.

But there's a lot of times, you know, especially in higher pressure areas where it's like, if you're not glassing that. Because a lot of times, sometimes like, there's some areas, yeah.

Where that timber is like, I mean, it's dog hair, you're not gonna see anything.

There's a lot of areas like in southwest part of the state or even like, you know, in other areas where.

It'S not as thick, where you can like glass into the, like the south facing stuff and see things, you know, for sure.

I mean, you're in northwest Montana, you're.

Probably not going to see too much in the timber, but like glassing.

But yeah, certain areas, you know, and.

Especially like higher pressure stuff, you're a fool not to like, look into something.

Because that's the stuff that people avoid.

You know, I think your average day, like not. Not perfect weather window, your average day, you're more like, in my opinion, more likely to see elk on a north face than a south face. Because like, you're just the north face. There's a couple different reasons, in my opinion. Like you get that a little bit of open timber, there's this timber density. People have heard me talk about it, but that's where that underbrush is able to grow. And you know, it's like you get super big timber, you can't get that underbrush. And a lot of like, I mean, if you go read the, you know, biology books, like elk are chewing on those, those Woody Forbes plants, right? Like, that's what they're eating. And so they have protection, they have food in there, you know, And I think everyone's like, oh, south face. You know, there's not much live on the south face in December 1st, like, it's like eating those, you know, shrubs and whatnot. So yeah, dude, I mean, we could nerd out on Alconic stuff, but I gotta leave a shout out to, I mean just your Instagram stuff and follow along. But also, if you. Do you have any openings, I mean, you, you're outfitting your guiding. I know you have some spring bear stuff open. Yeah, people are interested in taking an elk hunt with you. Is that a thing or no?

Yeah, for sure. I have a couple openings this year. I have two archery spots open right.

Now and two rifle spots. And by spots, I mean weeks.

So reach out to me on my Instagram if you're interested in those. We also have three hunts available for.

Spring bear in May.

So if you're interested in those, hit me up, let me know.

I'll kind of send you some more details. And you know, we last year and the year before we were 100 success on our archery hunt.

So yeah, hey, I'm in. If you want to kill your elk the first day, just go with Brandon.

That's how it works.

Guarantee first day kills or your money bet dodge.

Yeah, I don't know about that.

All right, everybody. Well, appreciate it. Thanks again for coming on. And we'll put links in the show notes as well. And if anybody was interested in some and hunting with Brandon. Yeah, we'll put your. Put your info in there.

Awesome. Thanks.

All right, thanks, buddy.

Alrighty, guys.

Thanks for tuning in to the show. If you like this episode, do us a huge favor and share it with one of your hunting buddies. Also, if you want a free hunt planner, but be sure to go check the link in the show notes. It's a hundred percent free. You can download our hunt planning tool, which is a great resource for kind of keeping track of all of your hunts, your hunt plans, your points, all those things. Pretty great resource. Go check it out links in the show notes or you can check our website, www.elk hunt201.com.