I joined the club! First Archery Bull...solo

Bearsears

WKR
Joined
Mar 29, 2019
Messages
421
Location
Colorado
So I finally punched my tag on a bull in Archery season. I hunted 15 days with my buddies and then had to come home. I decided to go back up alone this weekend. Friday night bulls woke me up around 2am having a total rut fest while I was sleeping in the bed of my truck. Got close in the morning but no dice.

In the evening the wind was blowing hard as I sat on a point hoping to maybe hear something despite the wind. 15 minutes before sunset I heard a bull crack off below me about 700 yards. I bugled back and he cut me off with a nasty challenge. Game on. I ran down off the point and towards him as he kept bugling his head off. I came to a small rise knowing he was on the other side I peaked over. There he was with 20 - 25 cows. I backed back down to make a plan. I decided that Id just try to get close and shoot him rather than calling. I snuck around to the right and got to a big pine tree. Slowly I worked up next to it. For the next five minutes I watched him raking and the cows feeding and even kicking eachother at 15 yards (I almost shot a cow as I figured they were going to bust me at any second). Then it happened, the cows started feeding down and the bull started shadowing them. Half went out of view while the other half stayed to my left. The bull was heading to the group out of sight. Now or never. I ranged him at 45 yards. When I ranged, the cows saw me and stopped. He looked up the hill and stopped. Im screwed I thought. I cow called while drawing and they all just starred at me. I gaped his vitals between my 40 and 50 pin and let it fly. All hell broke loose as the whole group took off. I cow called and bugled causing a few to linger before moving off. They went behind timber so I moved down to see if I could get a sense of what happend before it was dark. No blood. No arrow. Then I heard a big crash less than 50 yards away. No way could that really be him? I thought. I crept around the corner and there he was already stoned dead. I had made a perfect shot and obliterated his heart.

They always say to stay in the fight because things can turn around in minutes. I text my wife "Got a bull bugleing gotta go. Love you." at 6:40pm and I sent her the first pic of him at 7:05. I cut him up and packed him out alone because I was only 3/4 of a mile (straight line) from the truck. I am very blessed to have this intimate experience and I see the allure of solo hunting now for sure. Im humbled, sore, and exhausted.
 

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KyleR1985

WKR
Joined
Jul 28, 2019
Messages
382
Nice work! Sharing the same experience this year. Except had a buddy for the track and pack out. Congrats brother
 
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