Caught in the wide open with no concealment, young cow elk broadside not 15 paces away. I felt every pound of my longbow while I slowly drew trying not to scare the already skittish animal in front of me. Reached my anchor there is my spot whifffff, I watched my fletching pass right over the elks back. I couldn’t have had any more of a rush, from drawing on the young cow, than if it was a big bull in front of me. Why was I even taking this shot at a young cow? It's because it was the last day of the hunt. Why had I passed up the two great shots on mature cows earlier in the hunt? Because, unusual to my character, I was wrapped up around getting a "trophy bull". Why had I stepped aside and allowed a fellow hunter to put his pins on the beautiful 5x5 bull two days earlier? Because my love of traditional archery had left the bull outside my comfortable shooting range, he was shooting a nice compound with pins out to 60 yards and had a range finder. The excitement I felt partaking in that stock and being right there while he drew his bow was just like me taking the shot. This past September I booked a semi guided hunt with Olympic Mountain Outfitters in Washington State. This was my first ever Elk hunt and my first booked outfitter hunt. Being an average income family man, I always swore that I would never pay to hunt. However upon meeting Mike Vaughn and some of his staff, while he was making rounds at local hunting shows on the east coast, my mind started to change. His cost were reasonable, he and his crew had a great attitude and loved the hunt themselves. I learned that it was fair chase hunting, no cages or high fences (I'm not much for shooting fish in a barrel). Where many have negative attitude towards my choice of archery equipment (all traditional) and my love of ground hunting/ stalking, Mike and his crew were excited and encouraged it. The camp was excellent, plenty of campers for all the hunters arranged so they formed 3 sides of a box. The large mess tent with a nice wood stove and plenty of tables everyone made the fourth side of the box. In the middle a good lean-to provided area to sit and shoot the bull with other hunters at the days' end. Not 100 yard from the center of camp there was a view to the NE of one clear valley where Mike's fully guided hunters were. When I was in camp for lunch or had come in early, I would sit here with my binoculars, watching elk down in the field below them. Staying in the same camp with the fully guided hunters it was only a short walk, easily made in the dark before dawn and after dusk, to countless miles of land for the semi guided hunters. To say I was only able to cover a portion of the available land in my week there is an understatement. However in the land I did cover I saw elk EVERY DAY. Mike provided me and all semi guided hunters with a quality map of the area and pointed out good areas for the hunting. The hunting land is located in the mountains which is beautiful and breathe taking in itself. It’s a mix of old timber forest and clearings making it prime land for spot and stalk archery hunters like myself as well as tree stand hunters. The food provided both in camp and for sack lunches was great. Refrigerators were provided for beverages you may want or a place to keep meds if needed (like me). There were both bulls and cows taken during the hunt by fellow hunters. Am I disappointed that I went home empty handed? No, anyone who whet home empty handed including me was because of choices they made to pass up certain animals. Every one of the hunters in camp left with meat or saying "I should have taken that one". I have been hunting since I was shorter than the grass I had to walk thru, and I can say hands down that this was the most exciting hunt I've ever been on. I am hooked on elk hunting, I will hunt elk again and I will book another hunt with Mike and his crew. Jeremy Moore North Carolina Traditional Hunter
Jeremy, I saw Mike responded to your other review. I read it and was surprised to see no comments but then I saw this one and realized you hit the go button a bit early. It was great meeting you this year at the Dixie Deer Classic. Hope to cross paths again in Washington. Hopefully sooner than later. I guess Jerry left one to get bigger for his return trip too. Until then take care, be safe, and keep on doing it your way. True hunters like you are a rare breed. Joe
There was more rain than expected that time of year but i cannot say that it affected my hunt beacuse i was still seeing animals
