Hunting 2023

[WhistlingBadger]

Good luck! If you don't get one, I guess it will be squirrels all winter ;-)

Man, I hope not. Chewing those things is more work than it's worth. ha ha

Pretty sure either Mrs. Badger or I can get one with the rifle if necessary. But that isn't quite as satisfying.

 

[connorlindeman]

Man, I hope not. Chewing those things is more work than it's worth. ha ha

Pretty sure either Mrs. Badger or I can get one with the rifle if necessary. But that isn't quite as satisfying.

I'm sure its extra fun to get one with a bow you crafted yourself.

 

[Uberhoust]

Poor little red squirrel. Glad he tasted good. I know they eat gray squirrels further east and south from Wyoming but I never got a chance to try them. My bow shooting at this time would not be up to hitting a squirrel, even at close range, without a lot of luck. What kind of point do you use with the arrow to hunt squirrel.

I have hunted hares in the Kootenays and found you have to pretty much stew them unless you have strong jaws. I am a bit surprised that red squirrel tasted good, I would have thought that they would have tasted resinous due to all the pine seeds they eat.

 

[Back in the fold]

A hunting we will go…

For duty and humanity !

 

[WhistlingBadger]

Poor little red squirrel. Glad he tasted good. I know they eat gray squirrels further east and south from Wyoming but I never got a chance to try them. My bow shooting at this time would not be up to hitting a squirrel, even at close range, without a lot of luck. What kind of point do you use with the arrow to hunt squirrel.

I have hunted hares in the Kootenays and found you have to pretty much stew them unless you have strong jaws. I am a bit surprised that red squirrel tasted good, I would have thought that they would have tasted resinous due to all the pine seeds they eat.

Yeah, I hear the red squirrels are pretty good if you stew them all day. He had a really good flavor. Just so...dang...chewy! I use Hex blunts for small game and random field shooting.

Also, pine seeds are actually delicious, not resinous at all! I scarf them down whenever I find them, which isn't often between the squirrels, jays, and bears.

 

[Fishmanic]

WB...hope you get the Elk of your dreams and you stock your freezer with a year's worth of good eating for you and your family.

 

[Back in the fold]

I will tell you this , all you jokers who have never aten elk - it IS good ! I will take elk over beef any day of the week.

 

[Fishmanic]

WB is not only a hunter, he’s a butcher. He saves probably well over $1000 compared to buying meat from a supermarket.

 

[gwand]

Nothing like a broiled elk rib. Yum.

 

[Fishmanic]

@WhistlingBadger
I hope you score an Elk that ends up in the record books...like one of these.

The 10 Biggest World Record Elk of All Time

What's the biggest elk ever taken by a hunter? Here are the most impressive world record elk ever taken in every record category.

www.fieldandstream.com

 

[WhistlingBadger]

Well, I'm back from my final backcountry bow hunt. No elk. I almost got a shot at a cow last night. Right before she stepped into the open, the wind reversed and she realized that there were humans in the area. I add this to my depressingly long list of "Elk I would have killed if one little thing had gone differently."

I did kill a snowshoe hare and another squirrel, which will go in the stew tomorrow. I also experienced some amazing scenery and the usual wilderness "character building." Pictures to follow, after a good, long nap.

I might get the opportunity to hunt some private land, but this is my last public land bow hunt this year.

 

[WhistlingBadger]

OK, a few photos.
We had a couple moose show up at our campsite on Thursday afternoon. Neither of us had a moose tag. They decided we were OK and took a nap right next to our camp. These aren't Yellowstone moose; they're fully wild and not usually this comfortable around people. So this was kind of a special treat.

Friday was a tough day. But I can't complain about the views.

Maxon Basin. That's the Little Popo Agie River you can see sparkling down in the bottom.

Over the course of the day, we had rain, hot sun, hail, and a nice little blizzard to round things out. And the wind. Always the wind.

 

[WhistlingBadger]

Just after our near-miss with the cow elk, I killed a snowshoe hare. They are very good eating, and their fur is beautiful. I plan to tan this one for string silencers and other assorted small projects. Bonus: They are a LOT easier to hit than pine squirrels!

 

[WhistlingBadger]

This morning: Sunrise on Louie Lake.

We only heard one elk bugle today. Kind of a bummer. But we found a HUGE blueberry patch, which put our elk hunt on hold for an hour or so.

All those red bushes are blueberries. This was only about 1/4 of the patch. What fun.

Around lunch time, my body informed me that it was all done: Clumsy, making dumb navigational errors. I've been sick a lot lately, and I wasn't able to get in shape over the summer. I usually spend my summers running up and down mountains. It helps. There's "in shape," and there's "in elk hunting shape." Anyway, the elk weren't talking and my body was completely hammered after three days of very tough hunting, so I decided to pack it in. One last photo of the hike out: The Louis Creek valley.

It was a good hunt. Would have been even better if I had killed an elk. Like I said, I might get a chance at hunting some private land one of these days if the elk cooperate and come down. But this is it for back country hunting. Thanks everybody for coming along.