Herb
54 Cal.
- Joined
- Mar 19, 2004
- Messages
- 1,953
- Reaction score
- 445
Larry and I hunted bull elk in the Uintah Mountains from November 2 to 10. He used a .58 fullstock flintlock Hawken I built, and I used a 24" .54 GRRW barrel that went through a fire and which I made into a Leman fullstock flintlock, loosely copied after the original. I made it with a 13" length of pull, still 1/2" too long. The hunting clothes and backpack strap made the difference.
We had done no scouting, had no trail cameras or 4-wheeler. So I took us where I hunted last year, 15 miles from home. We parked and walked in a half-mile in the light snow. Five fresh elk tracks came into our area, then two more. I posted and Larry still-hunted, and he is good at it. Nothing. After lunch Larry said he was going further and would hunt till dark. I was mighty glad to see him walking out at last light, for we had no flashlights and no way to get an elk out except cut it into small pieces and carry them out. He heard 10 shots that morning.
Next day he brought a small toboggan with which to drag out bigger pieces, except there are so many dead and down trees on the forest floor that that wouldn't work. We hunted the same area but Friday went east where the tracks headed to. We heard one shot about 1/4 mile away in a clearing where we had found a single fresh elk track three or four times, probably a bull. We quit at noon from then on, not wanting to carry out an elk in the middle of the night. A friend saw a black bear eating an elk carcass during the earlier rifle season in this area, and I saw one coyote.
Saturday and Sunday we didn't hunt. Monday we left at 5:30 am and drove to the end of Dry Fork Canyon where he hunted up-canyon and I climbed the north slope about 600 feet in elevation into sagebrush and aspen. Lots of elk sign, but they are in heavy cover during midday. The Google Earth photo below shows this area. The trail ends left of center, and I hiked up into that bare area to the northwest. There was no use to go further with the upslope wind carrying my scent. The short Leman was easy to carry, I never tired of it, though I have a torn rotator cuff in my right shoulder. I used the rifle a lot to help me climb, but fell on it twice in loose rock. We both got scarred up.
Next day we were back, but I had enough climbing. I had leg clamps when I got home the day before. So I still-hunted the lower gradual slope. Larry climbed the steep south slope, which had so much dead and down timber it took him about 3 1/2 hours to climb the 1200 feet elevation to the top to Gull Lake. There he saw five cows at close range, but no horns. I can tell you the last thing I wanted to hear was his shot on top of that mountain and then the two signal shots for me to come help carry that elk out!
I was still-hunting at the bottom of the mountain, in that more brownish area. After about a half mile of seeing no elk tracks or droppings, just a lot of old moose droppings, I sez to myself "there are no elk in this forest". Just then I saw a cow walk through an opening about 80 yards away. I fumbled my binocs out to look for horns if I saw another elk, and there was one broadside about 50 yards away. Big, body almost white and shoulders very dark, but I couldn't see the head. Two steps to the right would have let me see the head, but just that fast it ran off. I think it was an old bull, and I heard two or three more run away. I inched ahead about 20 feet to see better and saw several elk about 30 yards away, about to walk right over me. Of course, they saw me and ran off. I could not see the heads, but my impression was that the first one was maybe a yearling.
After some more stalking around, I got back to the truck about 12:15, per our plan. I napped an hour. Having heard no shot (thank goodness!), about 2:30 I gathered firewood for a big bonfire if he didn't show up about 4:30. Then I'd fire a couple signal shots to see if he responded. If not, I'd light a big bonfire, leave a note on his truck (I had no keys or cell phone, which had no signal there anyway) and walk down canyon about a mile to the main road and hope to find a passing vehicle and have them phone friends back in Vernal to come check on us. Larry had a cell phone, but no signal in that canyon. If he didn't show up in the night, it would be time to call Search and Rescue. Fortunately he showed up about 2:30 pm, having walked about five miles. (Google Earth has a ruler and path so we were able to measure his trail). He got so tired he was really concerned about falling and breaking a leg.
He is only 49 years old, but that hunt wiped him out and we didn't go out next day until 10:00 am to drive and look at a new area. We didn't like it but found a better area and were back there on Thursday for our last day. Lots of elk sign and no other hunters, but we saw no elk.
So that was our hunt. Larry likes that big 36" barreled Hawken, but I liked my short Leman for carrying and using as a walking staff to help me climb hills. When we got back to the truck we fired our rifles and cleaned them. Here I got a bad surprise. My 4F prime had leaked out of the pan and my first hammer fall was a klatch. I'd had to refit a new frizzen to this lock, but I had another like it and had switched frizzens several times. This one didn't seal the pan. I have since smoke-fitted it. My load was 70 grains of Swiss 3F powder, which self-primed the pan through the .070 flash hole, if I had the frizzen down. (Goex 3F will, too). I dumped the priming when the rifle was in the vehicle, but then reprimed with 4F Goex for the hunts. I used oil for patch lube but put a dry overpowder patch down first and left the rifle loaded for the entire hunt, except I did fire it after the second day and cleaned and reloaded it.
This was a great hunt. Weather exactly right, wonderful to be in the quiet woods. I saw four or five strobe lights in the sky the two clear mornings we drove up in the dark (Google it). Not too cold, only one day too warm. We both still-hunted and walked a lot, plus taking stands for an hour or so in a good spot. We made tens of thousands of decisions (each step is a decision) and they almost all were correct, rarely did we make any noise. And we found elk. We were both lucky not to have hurt ourselves, which is all too easy to do.
The hunt ended the 10th, the 11th was Veteran's Day (and I am). I went to a black powder shoot at Doc White's (GRRW) range and am able to shoot this short rifle off-hand, though not well, like any other flintlock. Seated or rested, I can hit. The 12th was my wife and my 61st wedding anniversary. The 14th was my annual physical at the VA, and I was toned up for that- blood pressure 97 over 59, pulse 74, oxygen 97, down to 133 pounds now. The doc said "fatten up 5 or 10 pounds for winter, you need more cover on your bones". I think there are a lot of calories in ice cream or maybe whiskey!
We had done no scouting, had no trail cameras or 4-wheeler. So I took us where I hunted last year, 15 miles from home. We parked and walked in a half-mile in the light snow. Five fresh elk tracks came into our area, then two more. I posted and Larry still-hunted, and he is good at it. Nothing. After lunch Larry said he was going further and would hunt till dark. I was mighty glad to see him walking out at last light, for we had no flashlights and no way to get an elk out except cut it into small pieces and carry them out. He heard 10 shots that morning.
Next day he brought a small toboggan with which to drag out bigger pieces, except there are so many dead and down trees on the forest floor that that wouldn't work. We hunted the same area but Friday went east where the tracks headed to. We heard one shot about 1/4 mile away in a clearing where we had found a single fresh elk track three or four times, probably a bull. We quit at noon from then on, not wanting to carry out an elk in the middle of the night. A friend saw a black bear eating an elk carcass during the earlier rifle season in this area, and I saw one coyote.
Saturday and Sunday we didn't hunt. Monday we left at 5:30 am and drove to the end of Dry Fork Canyon where he hunted up-canyon and I climbed the north slope about 600 feet in elevation into sagebrush and aspen. Lots of elk sign, but they are in heavy cover during midday. The Google Earth photo below shows this area. The trail ends left of center, and I hiked up into that bare area to the northwest. There was no use to go further with the upslope wind carrying my scent. The short Leman was easy to carry, I never tired of it, though I have a torn rotator cuff in my right shoulder. I used the rifle a lot to help me climb, but fell on it twice in loose rock. We both got scarred up.
Next day we were back, but I had enough climbing. I had leg clamps when I got home the day before. So I still-hunted the lower gradual slope. Larry climbed the steep south slope, which had so much dead and down timber it took him about 3 1/2 hours to climb the 1200 feet elevation to the top to Gull Lake. There he saw five cows at close range, but no horns. I can tell you the last thing I wanted to hear was his shot on top of that mountain and then the two signal shots for me to come help carry that elk out!
I was still-hunting at the bottom of the mountain, in that more brownish area. After about a half mile of seeing no elk tracks or droppings, just a lot of old moose droppings, I sez to myself "there are no elk in this forest". Just then I saw a cow walk through an opening about 80 yards away. I fumbled my binocs out to look for horns if I saw another elk, and there was one broadside about 50 yards away. Big, body almost white and shoulders very dark, but I couldn't see the head. Two steps to the right would have let me see the head, but just that fast it ran off. I think it was an old bull, and I heard two or three more run away. I inched ahead about 20 feet to see better and saw several elk about 30 yards away, about to walk right over me. Of course, they saw me and ran off. I could not see the heads, but my impression was that the first one was maybe a yearling.
After some more stalking around, I got back to the truck about 12:15, per our plan. I napped an hour. Having heard no shot (thank goodness!), about 2:30 I gathered firewood for a big bonfire if he didn't show up about 4:30. Then I'd fire a couple signal shots to see if he responded. If not, I'd light a big bonfire, leave a note on his truck (I had no keys or cell phone, which had no signal there anyway) and walk down canyon about a mile to the main road and hope to find a passing vehicle and have them phone friends back in Vernal to come check on us. Larry had a cell phone, but no signal in that canyon. If he didn't show up in the night, it would be time to call Search and Rescue. Fortunately he showed up about 2:30 pm, having walked about five miles. (Google Earth has a ruler and path so we were able to measure his trail). He got so tired he was really concerned about falling and breaking a leg.
He is only 49 years old, but that hunt wiped him out and we didn't go out next day until 10:00 am to drive and look at a new area. We didn't like it but found a better area and were back there on Thursday for our last day. Lots of elk sign and no other hunters, but we saw no elk.
So that was our hunt. Larry likes that big 36" barreled Hawken, but I liked my short Leman for carrying and using as a walking staff to help me climb hills. When we got back to the truck we fired our rifles and cleaned them. Here I got a bad surprise. My 4F prime had leaked out of the pan and my first hammer fall was a klatch. I'd had to refit a new frizzen to this lock, but I had another like it and had switched frizzens several times. This one didn't seal the pan. I have since smoke-fitted it. My load was 70 grains of Swiss 3F powder, which self-primed the pan through the .070 flash hole, if I had the frizzen down. (Goex 3F will, too). I dumped the priming when the rifle was in the vehicle, but then reprimed with 4F Goex for the hunts. I used oil for patch lube but put a dry overpowder patch down first and left the rifle loaded for the entire hunt, except I did fire it after the second day and cleaned and reloaded it.
This was a great hunt. Weather exactly right, wonderful to be in the quiet woods. I saw four or five strobe lights in the sky the two clear mornings we drove up in the dark (Google it). Not too cold, only one day too warm. We both still-hunted and walked a lot, plus taking stands for an hour or so in a good spot. We made tens of thousands of decisions (each step is a decision) and they almost all were correct, rarely did we make any noise. And we found elk. We were both lucky not to have hurt ourselves, which is all too easy to do.
The hunt ended the 10th, the 11th was Veteran's Day (and I am). I went to a black powder shoot at Doc White's (GRRW) range and am able to shoot this short rifle off-hand, though not well, like any other flintlock. Seated or rested, I can hit. The 12th was my wife and my 61st wedding anniversary. The 14th was my annual physical at the VA, and I was toned up for that- blood pressure 97 over 59, pulse 74, oxygen 97, down to 133 pounds now. The doc said "fatten up 5 or 10 pounds for winter, you need more cover on your bones". I think there are a lot of calories in ice cream or maybe whiskey!
