Oregon, being the closest state with over-the-counter elk tags, presented the best option for me. Although it was expensive (tag, license, gas, etc.), I wanted a chance.

Lots of long distance calls and plenty of book time later, I settled on a unit and bought the tag/license. After I and my hunting partner, Gabe Nelson, finally worked out our schedules, the hunt was on.

Opening day was absolutely a champ for us as we caught some cows and a nice bull headed toward water. Needless to say, as soon as I put antlers on the bull, the lead flew and the bull was down. My trusty Remington 700, 30.06 launched a 150-grain projectile toward this big beast 125 yards away. The shot to the heart sealed the fate of the bull before he knew what had happened.

My buddy Gabe found him and we danced like fools, because for an "any bull" hunt, we were realistically expecting a chance at a spike, and not a heavy bodied 5-point bull! He succumbed 41 yards from where he stood, which was a surprise because once field-dressed, we found great damage to his ticker. To his credit, he still made it that far with no ticker and a broken shoulder.

I know full well that encountering this fat boy was pure luck, but next year, we hope to build on this success. Now, back to the butchering...

Oscar Ramirez
Sacramento, California