Gotta get lucky tomorrow afternoon. Last day of Elk 1st. season. Tough one for everyone, only seen one hanging in one camp. I know where they're at right now, tracked them last night. Tree line plus, 11.6K and restless, they keep roaming. If I can leave work early tomorrow, I'll have 4 hrs. to cover 3 miles from 10K to 12K. Any volunteers to carry my butt up there?
Peak of the rut has been over for a bit, cows may come back into estrus soon, but only the ones that require more than two dinner/movie dates. I heard bugling opening morning, most probably by a bunch of Henderson Mine employees hunting on that private land. On public land I heard cows and went after them, but I'm no match for a group of cows on a mission. Tonight was a bust, didn't get off work in time to make it worth it. I did cruise the avalanche chutes hoping to find a suicidal cow I could coax onto the flatbed before being dispatched, but no such luck. I'll try 3rd. season OTC for Bull, if the weather holds I may get lucky yet.
3rd. rifle. It's a pretty long season, if the weather holds I'll have go high again. May try a different unit if tags are available.
WWW took the long way around to work this morning and rifle in truck, antelope opened today. 6 weeks this year.
He did not, took a far shot with a hand gun and missed, ooops. Guess targets are coming out tomorrow on the BLM near here for pistol or revolver practice or sighting in better or whatever, not sure about the deal but he wants to take one by pistol and not rifle. (shrug shoulders).
I understand. If my cousin gets done with my custom chest holster, I'll try Elk with my .454 this year. It's just something different.
Congrats to WWW. A pronghorn with a pistol is no small feat. Going to have to make it out west to hunt one of these years.
Well, he says no Christmas gifts for him this year, he took it to a processor instead of doing it himself. And is floored by the price, ooops. Anyway neat deal lil one likes the jerky even though it has some heat in it Me, I'll lean towards the breakfast sausage.
Standard butchering (cut and wrap) isn't to bad here but price jumps exponentially when you start getting specialties like sausage, pepperetts jerky etc. For this reason I now own a meat grinder/sausage stuffer and smoker.
Darn, made sausage egg breakfast sandwiches from the antelope breakfast sausage this morning. gamey . We've had lopes processed for almost 30 years now, some even from up here (guessing key is they were processed in Colorado, NOT up here) and they have never been this gamey. OMG I almost had to leave, it smelled like the wild boar (Russian or something?) from Texas. YES, that bad. Him and lil both have cold that is at peak so they didn't smell it as much, but once he tasted it........ He said the processor up here (only one within 100 miles) has been handed down a couple generations and when he was there it was several young dumb azz kids, too bad, what a waste of meat and processing $$.
Had the same bad luck with my very first deer years ago. Had some summer sausage made out of most of it....blech!
That sucks, but I'm not surprised. The best place for processing was on Old Wadsworth, I'm sure you know it but it's pretty far from you now. Goats are nasty, unless you can hang the quarters for a few weeks at a cold temp, just above freezing (34-36 deg.) Then, just sausage as far as I'm concerned. Mulies are the same way, nasty tasting unless you prep them right. I try for deer next week, and won't be disappointed if I don't get anything. Elk though, after Thanksgiving. If I get lucky, I hang the quarters for 2-3 weeks, dependent on the temperature. I trim off about 1/4" of rind and process the good stuff. Ageing the meat a few weeks really makes a difference, if you have room, and if the temperature works. It can be a tough call, season to season.
