How old is too old to hunt elk in Wyoming? That could be an open-ended question.
Avid hunter Bruce Cooper, 66, of Bondurant told Cowboy State Daily he’s stayed in superb shape by hunting in Wyoming. But packing out a huge bull elk with a 38-year-old friend last fall still “challenged” him.
However, 83-year-old Neda Herman of Basin went on a horseback elk hunt with her son last fall. She bagged a cow elk on opening day and they had it packed out by noon.
Cooper said he’s not sure how much longer he can keep backpacking elk out; he might have to start using horses or other pack stock soon.
“Even in the condition I’m in, unless I go to using horses, I’m looking at maybe another three years,” of hunting elk in Wyoming’s rugged mountains, he said.
Bearing all that in mind as a “flatlander,” Kansas resident Tom Rives, 65, said he has no illusions about how tough his upcoming Wyoming elk hunt will be.
He considers it his “retirement” elk hunt. Meaning, it’s most likely his last elk hunt.
Age is a factor in that decision, he told Cowboy State Daily.
“When you get my age, you can see the end of the tunnel and you can do about half of what you could do a decade ago, you start thinking, ‘Now is the time,’” for that crowning elk hunt, he said.
Wyoming ‘Unspoiled’
Rives is a lifelong hunter and has hunted pronghorn in Wyoming. He’s also hunted elk at high altitude in the Colorado mountains.
“When they tell you that’s hard, you don’t realize just how hard it is until you try it,” he said.
He hasn’t hunted elk in Wyoming yet, but he’s been “playing the points game,” or saving up preference points to increase his odds of drawing a premium Wyoming elk tag.
He loves Wyoming, and over the years has visited every corner of the state, so he knows just how steep, high and rugged some of the best elk hunt areas are.
“You’ve got to have legs” to hunt the high country, so he’s kept in shape by staying active, especially doing lots of hiking.
He’s also bracing himself for the altitude change.
“I’m a flatlander. So, anytime you get up there in altitude, it’s going to get to you,” he said. "I know that I have to stay hydrated, have the right amount of calories and all of that."
Cooper said that dehydration is a common problem for flatlanders who come to Wyoming and don’t realize how much water the body needs to keep up with strenuous activity at high altitudes.
Other states, such as New Mexico and Arizona, might have better chances at a trophy-sized bull, and perhaps in flatter country and at lower altitudes.
But Rives doesn’t want his final elk hunt to be anywhere but Wyoming.
When asked why, he took a long pause to think.
“I think a lot of it has to do (with), for me, just a love for the state in general,” he said. “It’s still one of the great Western states that I would call untouched and unspoiled."
A Brutal Mile And A Half
Cooper said the densely forested mountainous country of western Wyoming can be unforgiving.
He likes to hold out for huge bulls.
Last fall, after striking out on a “beautiful 7-by-7" bull during archery season, he killed a “nice 6-by-6 bull on the opening day of rifle season."
It was about 1.5 miles from a motorized trail that he and his hunting partner could reach with their side-by-side.
That doesn’t sound all that far to go. However, factor in a 750-pound bull, rugged “up and down, up and down” terrain and fallen trees everywhere, and it was brutal, he said.
“It took us three solid trips” to get the bull’s antlers and meat packed out to the ATV trail, Cooper said.
“We could go about 100 yards at a time, and then we’d have to find a log to sit down and rest,” he said.
Rives said he hasn’t yet selected which elk hunt areas to apply for, or whether he’ll do a “solo DIY” (do-it-yourself) hunt or hire an outfitter.
“There’s so much satisfaction in a solo DIY hunt, so that would be my preference,” he said. "But there are some realities to consider, and it would be nice to have some help."
Rives wants a bull, even though it doesn’t need to be one for the trophy record books.
“I’ve never been a ‘big score’ guy, but I am a ‘take a nice, mature animal' guy,” he said.
Getting Tags Is Getting Complicated
Along with the inevitable limitations of age, Rives said he’s decided to retire from elk hunting after going to Wyoming this fall because applying for and getting hunting tags has become so complicated.
“I’m at the point where I’m tired of playing the points game,” he said. "Back 20 to 40 years ago, it was a lot simpler game getting hunting tags."
Mark Heinz can be reached at mark@cowboystatedaily.com.
