Little Mountain Elk

This hunting season was a success.  Yay!  We have been hunting for about 2 months now.  The kids were able to come out with us off and on and were troopers as they hiked some steep hills but unfortunately they weren't there the evening I got this big guy.  We actually weren't going to stay up on the mountain.   Janie had been with the kids for a couple days (so thankful for  her, it relieves a lot of stress as I know my kids are in great hands), my dad, Trav and I were hunting and suppose to be back Thursday afternoon.  Trav had some basketball lessons, and he also coaches Therans Jr. Jazz team and they had pictures and a game so we just planned on coming home after the morning hunt.  Well as we were driving out some guys informed Trav of a place they had been seeing some nice bulls.  I looked at my dad and yes I had "the itch", I wanted to fill my tag so I asked my dad if he'd like to stay with me and hunt one last evening.  Such a bummer that Trav had to head home though and couldn't be with us.  Anyway so we headed back up on top of Little Mountain, it was about 3:30 in the afternoon.  We pulled over to the side just to glass down some canyons and I spotted 3 elk on the farthest hill.  As we got looking, we noticed they were some nice bulls so we made a plan (actually my dad did, he's good at that) and we hauled bum over to the place we wanted to park the truck and start hiking, praying everything would work out.  As we started our hike we noticed the elk moving but still in the same general area so we hiked down through some thick timber to the bottom of the canyon because they were on the opposite side grazing.  We happened to come out right where there was this old cabin and right below where we had last seen the elk.  At this point my dad had only spotted one elk up in the trees but wasn't sure that it was one we had originally seen.  As we stepped into a little opening to glass the hillside I was looking the other direction when I heard my dad say "Anni, there they are", they were walking straight across the hill in front of us.  I pulled up my gun and took off the safety and noticed several good bulls all clustered in my scope.  I asked my dad which one I should shoot and he told my the second one, which gave us the best shot.  Shot him twice, once in the leg then center in the chest.   Last evening of my hunt and I landed me this beauty.  It couldn't have worked out better.  After my dad and I did some hoopin' and hollerin' my dad (whom I swear is part animal) high tailed it up the steep mountain to the truck so he could drive it around top so we could carry the elk up the other side where he was laying.  After my dad AGAIN worked his tail off quartering it up, we both made some heavy loaded trips up to the truck which was not so easy of a hike... Aggh.  Like I said my dad is part animal and never stops going so of course his daughter had to try to keep up.  hee hee.  He made one last trip to pack out the front quarters as I waited in the truck. (wimpy, I know).  He is aMaZiNg!   So thankful for my dad and Trav for all the time they spent with me.  The memories we have are priceless and a dandy of a bull to top it all.