Print

Please login or register.
1 Hour 1 Day 1 Week 1 Month Forever
Login with username, password and session length

[Keithincda]

Up here in the NW (actually anywhere where there is elk) we are 2, maybe 3 weeks away from annual ritual that I am fortunate to be able to enjoy every year on about 2000 acres of timber/farmland my brother and I have in Southeastern Washington in an area known as the Blue Mountains (which are also in NE Oregon). I was up there this weekend and a pretty good sized herd (125 +/-) of Rocky Mountain elk have landed on the property to begin preparation for mating (otherwise known as THE RUT).
Here is what the terrain/topography looks like:

[Keithincda]

Do a complete 180 from the above picture and you get this view, north to the Snake River in one of them valley's/canyon's

[Keithincda]

anyway, on last Friday I was puttin down the road on a 4 wheeler (not a cage) and these jumped out in front of me

[Keithincda]

with the big daddy chasing behind them....I was slow on the taking his picture so all you can see is his azz but if you look at where his head would be in relation to the rest of his body you can see part of his antlers (more of this guy in a few more pictures)

[Keithincda]

so lots of cows/calves in the big group

[Keithincda]

so the bulls need to impress the girls and scare off the competition and they begin by polishing up the antlers. So little trees take the brunt of it

[Keithincda]

sometimes they pick a bigger tree (notice the boughs on the ground)

[Keithincda]

so where's the big guy? Took me awhile to find him in his hiding spot...

[Keithincda]

while he will run with the herd, or even other bulls for awhile longer he likes his alone time as well. This is one of 6 bulls that we have seen, he is not the biggest but he is certainly big (as antler size goes).

[spydglide]

wow!  Beautiful pics.  thanks.  spyder

[Keithincda]

Over the next few weeks the heat will get turned up and the only thing the bulls will care about is mating so I'll have some more pictures (and maybe a video of him and his competition fighting each other). For the record I only carry a camera now days, these things are too fun to watch and enjoy instead of shootin at. Besides access we limit to very few and the big bulls are protected as it is what is known as a "spike only' area, big bulls can't be shot without a special permit that about 2000 people apply for but the state only gives 2-3 out for the area. And again, we limit access

By the way this is about 175 miles from where my actual residence is and I ride my CVO down there alot when not taking a pick up truck load of stuff down or back. This weekend I did ride and unfortunately on Friday got nabbed for going 76 in a 60 zone out on a lonely stretch or highway through the wheat fields of the Eastern Washington

Anyway, Saturday afternoon late a thunderstorm was brewing and a rainbow popped out, here is a picture to end this post til next time. This picture is looking south toward Oregon and National forest land.

[charlie]

Thats aw some.

[kraut]

you'r a lucky man, Keith.

In Europe, we don't have the wapiti (cervus canadensis), we only know alces alces - you call them moose - and the smaller cervus elaphus (stag). None of them you will ever see in even near that size of a herd, 20 to 30 is already exceptional nowadays. And in some secluded areas there are some rare bison bonasus left, the european bison we call "wisent".

Next autumn I hope I can provide you with some - certainly not so spectacular, but still very beautifull - pictures from "polish Alaska", the Bieszczady National Park. Almost completely deserted after WW II, it's one of the last resorts of untouched wildlife in overpopulated Europe 

Will be the first time I go to the Carpathians without a rifle and on bike instead of a 4-wheeler, this time the wife shoots - pictures 

[RidinRuby]

Beautiful photos  

Please keep them coming as the season progresses

[smkymtnboy]

pretty neat !!  wapati season is a exciting time for hunters. looks like u have a honey hole. they should start bugling anytime in the next few days. good luck and enjoy the hunt not the harvest!