The Colorado Hunt
2003
Day 1
Tom had invited my brother Glen ('Al')
and me out again to try to get our first elk.
"Flatlanders" from the east we were going to be put through
our paces in the higher elevations that he calls home. But Tom had briefed us with periodic E-mail
reminding us to get our butts in shape and since I had been here before I knew that the only way to enjoy a hunt like
this required that we be physically prepared for the walking, climbing, and
days spent afield all between 9500 and 11000 feet.
Tom is
a bowhunter and is into all 'Colorado' activities which require strenuous
exertion. He mountain bikes, does some
backcountry skiing, and spends a lot of time in the highcountry just because
that is where he prefers to be. His
fitness level is way beyond that which
'Al' and I would bring to the Rockies.
We just wanted to be able to hunt hard for a week without 'flat
lining'. I prepared myself by
bicycling, usually in excess of 60-70 miles per week and playing golf (always
walking). Al also did a lot of walking
and we got ourselves out to Colorado for the muzzleloading Opener which was
September 13th. Tom had been
bowhunting for two weeks and was optimistic that we'd see some action. We all looked forward to a great trip.
Right from our very first morning we
had action. Tom took Al and I into the
area where he'd taken his first bull two years earlier. As we climbed in the predawn darkness, I struggled
to pull air into my lungs. I always
struggle it seems when I'm going uphill in the dark. I don't have a visual reference to grade how hard I'm working or
how much is left to go. I only have a
physical gauge which is currently 'red-lining' and I can almost hear the sirens
going off in my body telling me that I am fast approaching a 'system
overload'! "HOLY
SHIT"...gasp...gasp...gasp..."Is he gonna take a break?" I struggle to try and hear if Al is working
as hard as I am. I'm the oldest of the
three brothers here but I know I've worked pretty hard to prepare... I WILL NOT
stop before Al! I think I hear him
wheezing a bit up ahead but the THUNDEROUS pounding of my heart is just too loud to let me be
sure! Finally... Tom halts our progress
to allow Al and I to regain our senses.
I glance at Al who'd been telling me since yesterday that he didn't feel
any effects from the elevation. His
eyes are bugged out a bit, he is working for air and says to me.., "I,
(hack... gasp... eh,.. eh,.. rasp,.. uh,.. uh,.. cough,.. ooh,.. ooh) feel..
it.. now..! SHIT... How's he doing it? I know I've worked harder and prepared
better than him! Tom reaches into his
pocket and takes a pull from his bottle of water and glances at us with what I
think is a look of amusement. I
couldn't tell for sure because my vision was a bit blurry at the time. I feel my heart rate settle down to a more
comfortable level of about 250 beats per minute and tell Tom I'm ready before
Al can get the jump on me.
Tom wants to set us up so he can get
above us and do some cow-calling and perhaps some bugling if any bulls are
making any noise. After another 400
yards or so he puts 'Al' right near where he had taken his bull. Then I'm instructed to go 200 or so yards a
bit higher and to the right of Al.
Finally I find a place which looks good to me and I settle in, get
comfortable and wait for dawn. A half
hour or so later I hear the first cow-calls from Tom's direction. I answer with a few of my own to let Tom
know where I am and pour myself a cup of coffee from the mini thermos I'd
brought in.
It was a great morning as I welcomed in
a Colorado dawn and got ready for a week of Rocky Mountain hunting. The rest of the morning was actually rather
uneventful.. a bugling bull passed above me, heading away from the truck down
below and I gave chase for several miles back into 'no man's land' only to
relinquish my pursuit when the bull decided to make a cowardly run for the
'Continental Divide' several thousand feet above. I would have followed but I'd already vowed that I would limit my
hunt to only one half of the continent at a time. So I turned on my GPS to find out just where the truck was. I was quite surprised to discover that I was
actually relatively close to it despite having trekked so far. When I walked to where my GPS said the truck
was I found out that my GPS was lying!
There was no truck there and maybe never had been. After calling Tom on the radio and having Al
give me coordinates as to where the truck actually was I walked the mile down
an access road to meet my brothers. To
keep my GPS from 'lying' to me in the future... note to self, "Make sure
you've taken the time to get a GOOD
satellite fix before marking your position and beginning a hunt in unfamiliar
territory!"
That afternoon I hunted a ridge with Tom
exploring for elk sign while Al took a watch on the edge of a meadow which
looked promising with elk sign present and a good view. Tom and I saw nothing, but Al had an elk
pass quite close to him just before dark.
It was
a good first day.