Podcast 16 – First Elk Hunt with Charlie Williams and Josh Foster

Today we have my good friends, Charlie Williams and Josh Foster on the show to talk about their very first elk hunt which took place in Colorado during the 2017 season. These guys went into the backcountry for a public land, OTC hunt and were able to kill a truly unique bull with a bow.

We cover the details of their two-weeks afield but we also dive into the specifics of scouting, gear preparation, and physical physical conditioning leading up to their trip. We also talk about the specifics of digital scouting and relocating to different spots when others don’t pan out. If you need some inspiration to go on your first elk hunt, this is an episode you won’t want to miss!

Topics Covered In This Episode Include:

• How they got started with planning an elk hunt and digital scouting
• Showing up to their first hunting area on day one and running into a parking lot full of other hunters
• How they prepared physically for a mountain hunt living in flat terrain
• Gear selection of boots, shelters, packs, and food for lightweight, backcountry hunting for their extended 10-day hunt
• How they portioned food for each day based on the duration of their trip
• Water filtration in the backcountry
• Getting started with a new hunting area after plan A was a bust
• Utilizing onXmaps topography on north-facing slopes to find key elk rut sign
• Hunting benches, meadows and finding wallows
• Hearing the first bugle of the trip and moving in on a bull that was fired up
• Getting prepared, controlling emotions for a shot during the moment of truth when a bull is closing the distance
• The slow motion of releasing an arrow at the bull
• The details of blood trailing a bull after both Josh and Charlie put an arrow in him
• Walking up to a bull of a lifetime and describing the unique antler characteristics
• Breaking down the bull via the gutless method and overcoming the heat and the flies
• The brutal pack out of getting an entire mature bull off the mountain as 2 guys in a single day
• Heading back out to the mountain after regrouping in town after the bull was taken care of
• Going back to the kill site and a bear encounter
• Getting into a group of five screaming bulls during the second week of the hunt
• Staying the night in the wilderness without a shelter
• Moving camps and shedding weight for a more aggressive style of hunting during the last few days of the hunt
• Josh’s encounter with a bull on the last full day of the hunt
• Charlie Williams outdoor photography and camera work
• Charlie’s elk story being featured in Eastman’s Bowhunting Journal Magazine