As any elk hunter knows, once the shot is made, the real work begins. There’s a huge animal on the ground, and all that fresh meat isn’t going to quarter and pack itself out.
Sarah Eloranta and Jessie Wilson knew they had a challenge after they almost simultaneously dropped cow elk in some of Wyoming’s gnarliest terrain and thickest timber in the Snowy Range above Centennial recently.
They had just filled their Type 7 early-season rifle hunt cow elk tags after traveling from their homes in Wisconsin for their long-anticipated “girls only” hunt.
“It’s kind of like this ‘yay’ moment” right after the elk are shot," Wilson told Cowboy State Daily. “And then you look at each other and it’s like, ‘Oh crap,’ thinking of all the work that lies ahead. But once you get into it, it’s just a matter of getting the job done.”
Traveling more than a mile each way, much of it scrambling over fallen timber, they traversed between the kill site and their camp three times before all the meat was secure.
They shot the elk late in the day Aug. 16, so it was well after dark by the time the work was done, Eloranta told Cowboy State Daily.
They got turned around in the dark a couple of times, adding untold distance to the packing, but all’s well that ends well, she said.
‘It’s A Way For Us To Bond’
Eloranta and Wilson grew up hunting white-tailed deer and other game in Wisconsin.
They’ve also been in the West for some big-game hunts but never in Wyoming. So, they were excited about the prospect of seeing some new territory and perhaps filling their elk tags.
Eloranta said she’s hunted mostly with her husband and family members. But changes in their work schedules have made it difficult to line up out-of-state hunts with him.
And because she’s been trying to find ways to inspire more women to get into hunting and fishing, inviting Wilson to Wyoming for an elk hunt seemed like a good way to gain new experience and set an example.
“It’s a way for us to bond,” she said.
Though the demographics of hunting are shifting more toward girls and women, it’s still a male-dominated sport, Wilson said. So she, too, welcomed the opportunity to be a source of inspiration.
“I tell other women not to be afraid,” she said. “It’s not a scary thing to start doing.”
She added that men who hunt typically aren’t sexist and many are eager to share knowledge with newcomers.
Plan For Success
Experienced hunters frequently tell greenhorns that planning can make all the difference.
Eloranta agreed and said she started well in advance.
“The hunt started well before we even got out there. Lots of research went into picking out the Wyoming elk tags to apply for. There was lots of time spent looking over maps, figuring out where the elk had been, and checking for access,” she said.
They settled on a place in the mountains where they could camp and hunt on public land, eliminating the need to ask for access to private property.
‘A Lot Like Hunting Deer in Wisconsin’
On previous western hunts, they’d been in areas with sweeping vistas where finding game was often a matter of scanning vast tracts with binoculars. And being prepared to make long-distance shots.
The country in the mountains above Centennial was a different story.
In such thick forests, it was frequently difficult to see much more than 100 yards. And finding elk was more a matter of figuring out where they were going to be and when.
Eloranta said they did some hiking and scouting before the hunting season opened, looking for signs of elk and tempting spots, such as small open meadows or water sources.
“The country up there is beautiful. But it’s a different style of elk hunting than what I’m used to, because it’s thick, dark timber,” she said.
“It was a lot like hunting deer in the woods of Wisconsin,” Wilson added.
Patience Pays Off
The first couple of days were fruitless but hardly wasted.
Wilson said at one point they heard a bull elk bugle, but it was impossible to get the location in the timber.
“We knew we were in elk country,” she said.
She also enjoyed seeing moose, including a gigantic bull.
The Snowy Range has one of Wyoming’s most robust moose populations.
Through sheer persistence, they found a small, open overlook on a knob that looked like a likely place to at least catch a glimpse of elk moving through the timber below, Eloranta said.
When the moment came, it came quickly, and they made their shots, one right after the other, from about 60 yards.
Once the meat was all packed back to camp, "Man, it was awesome, because we were able to overcome that challenge together,” Eloranta said.
She added that as a mother of two boys and a girl, she looks forward to mentoring a new generation of hunters.
“My daughter is only 6. I can’t wait to get her started on all that outdoors activity,” she said.
Mark Heinz can be reached at mark@cowboystatedaily.com.
