James Stella
40 Cal.
- Joined
- Sep 4, 2012
- Messages
- 368
- Reaction score
- 51
I got drawn for a California Tule Elk tag. My hunt started on Sat Sept 8th and I got my bull on Wed, the 12. It was a great hunt. The terrain there is very very open. You can see for miles, but so can they. I got to stock 4 other elk before I shot this one. One was a 5 point on opening morning that I got within 80 yards of and sat and watched for over 10 minutes. I just could not shoot a 5 point on that hunt on opening morning.
On the third day I got about 85 yards for a great 7x7. He had no idea I was there so I tried to get another 20 yards and literally almost ran into a spike I did not see bedded in a small dip in the ground. He spooked and took the bull with him.
On the Third day my wife and I got in on three really nice bulls bugling and fighting over a cow. I put a stalk on them only to find out they were on one side of the river and I was on the other. Just had to sit there and watch the show from 150 yards away with no way to get closer.
Wednesday morning I spotted this guy from about 500 yards away feeding. I started stalking him and just kept telling myself not to get in a hurry. I had all day and as long as I could see where he bedded I would be ok. There was no cover at all and just had to lay on my belly until he put his head down. Then I would move up a few more yards. It took about an hour and fifteen minutes to get up on him. He finally fed up to the patch of bushes you see behind me and walked into them. I was able to get up and cover the last 100 yards of so pretty quickly after that. I spotted his antlers in the brush about 35 yards from me. I figured he would bed down so I just sat and waited.
After sitting there for over 20 minutes he turned around and came out of the brush broadside to me at 35 yards. I put the sight right behind his shoulder and pressed the trigger.
The hammer fell and nothing happened. The cap did not go off. He spun a quarter turn and faced me. He was staring right at me but I was partially hidden in the bush too so I do not think he could make me out.
I slowly moved my hand up and pulled the hammer back again. He was standing quartering toward me, so I put the sight on his left shoulder and squeezed the trigger again. They gun went off and he dropped in his tracks. He did not even take a step.
When I was trying to hurry up and reload my hands were shaking so bad I had trouble pouring the powder from the horn into the powder measure.
The shot broke his left shoulder and exited just in front of the last rib on the right side.
I was shooting a 54 cal Lyman GPH with 390gr Hornady Great Plains Hunters and 105 grns of Pyrodex.
What a great experience.
On the third day I got about 85 yards for a great 7x7. He had no idea I was there so I tried to get another 20 yards and literally almost ran into a spike I did not see bedded in a small dip in the ground. He spooked and took the bull with him.
On the Third day my wife and I got in on three really nice bulls bugling and fighting over a cow. I put a stalk on them only to find out they were on one side of the river and I was on the other. Just had to sit there and watch the show from 150 yards away with no way to get closer.
Wednesday morning I spotted this guy from about 500 yards away feeding. I started stalking him and just kept telling myself not to get in a hurry. I had all day and as long as I could see where he bedded I would be ok. There was no cover at all and just had to lay on my belly until he put his head down. Then I would move up a few more yards. It took about an hour and fifteen minutes to get up on him. He finally fed up to the patch of bushes you see behind me and walked into them. I was able to get up and cover the last 100 yards of so pretty quickly after that. I spotted his antlers in the brush about 35 yards from me. I figured he would bed down so I just sat and waited.
After sitting there for over 20 minutes he turned around and came out of the brush broadside to me at 35 yards. I put the sight right behind his shoulder and pressed the trigger.
The hammer fell and nothing happened. The cap did not go off. He spun a quarter turn and faced me. He was staring right at me but I was partially hidden in the bush too so I do not think he could make me out.
I slowly moved my hand up and pulled the hammer back again. He was standing quartering toward me, so I put the sight on his left shoulder and squeezed the trigger again. They gun went off and he dropped in his tracks. He did not even take a step.
When I was trying to hurry up and reload my hands were shaking so bad I had trouble pouring the powder from the horn into the powder measure.
The shot broke his left shoulder and exited just in front of the last rib on the right side.
I was shooting a 54 cal Lyman GPH with 390gr Hornady Great Plains Hunters and 105 grns of Pyrodex.
What a great experience.
