Here is the Week 2 report of my Colorado archery elk hunt. As a review, I was hunting with my brothers and Dan, our unofficial brother. We were hunting public land northwest of Denver in the Arapaho National Forest. I need to emphasize that we were hunting public land because what I experienced during this hunt doesn’t happen on public land and I can’t imagine that it will ever happen again.   

I was hiking and hunting my way up towards the tree line which was just over 10,000 feet above sea level. With only a few hundred yards to go, elk were spotted. I dropped to my knees and was both amazed and relieved that the 15 elk had not seen me. In the group were two bulls, one spike and the rest were cows and calves. Of course, the spike was the first to walk into archery range followed by three cows. They were all about 35 yards away and a shot was there if I wanted it. What I was really waiting for and what I really wanted was for the 6x6 bull to take three more steps. Every elk hunter has been in this spot and unfortunately more often than not, the shot at a bull never materializes. That’s how this encounter played out. The group eventually moved off to the south and I eased along behind formulating a counter attack.    

I’m not sure what kind of spidey sense made me look over my shoulder but just above the tree line a gigantic herd of elk were racing in my direction. My initial reaction was that the herd was 100 head strong and maybe more. The herd eventually slowed to a walk and started feeding on the thick green grass above the tree line.    

It was time for me to act fast. If the herd stayed on that west face there was no way for me to get to them and no way for me to call the herd bull away from that group. If I stayed put, for whatever reason, it seemed unlikely that they would eventually make their way to me. It seemed more plausible that they would head over the top and seek out the water that was on the east side of the mountain. I grabbed my gear and hot footed it almost a mile. My lungs were bursting and I was trying to catch my breath when a low rumble became louder and louder. Then it happened. All 100-plus elk passed only 50 yards away but they were moving so fast that there was no chance for a shot. I was in awe of the thundering sound and the amazing sight of so many elk. A public land archery hunt with stampeding elk is something that never happens.     

I was pinned down on the side of that bare mountain. The elk seemed to immediately settle down as they came to a stop 100 yards below me in a natural bowl of land. The only thing that I could shoot them with was my camera. I filmed long enough to know that that the herd bull had a 7x6 rack. Taking an inventory of the rest, there were two other smaller bulls, 10 spikes and the rest were cows and calves. As suddenly as it started, it was over. The herd was on the move and heading south. Even though they were quickly out of sight I could still hear them for three more minutes. 

A few days later my hunt ended without any more close encounters. I know how exciting it is to bag an elk with a bow and arrow so I can tell you that being caught up in such an extraordinary experience is a very close second.  

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