Bugling Elk

Folks think its about the fishing, it is far more than the fish. Its the places it takes you the people you meet and the moments which are created along the journey.

Elk are a site to behold, the males carrying massive antlers with ease across the mountains, when you see them its a magical moment.. To witness a buggling elk now that is something- In the fall the elk rut. During this time the male elk (called bulls) compete for the femails by fighting with their antlers and making a loud wailing bugle. The bugle can be heard from dusk to dawn during the months of September to October. It was on this fall day I had arrived at the Bozeman airport for some fall fishing adventure, fall is when you can catch some epic brown trout on big streamers. The fall browns have this color that is often refered to as pumpkin, because their bellies and side turn into a stunning pumpkin orange color.

We decide to head to the sister spot on the Jefferson, as we travel down the road we start catching up and as most sisters do laugh until we are ready to pee our pants as we come along the Jefferson and are watching out the window for a good river access point all the sudden we both see this beautiful Elk stand ing on the banks of the river head held high like it was ready to bugle, we both are like we msut pull off the road and experience this site, of course this portion of the road is narrow with no shoulder to safely pull off so we continue down the road approximately 1/2 mile and vere off the road jump out of the car and run along side the road past all the cars people looking as they pass to why we would be running we are panting hearts racing with excitment to see the buggling elk, as we approch a opening close to where we had seen the elk we are both out of breath, cameras in hand as we get closer all the sudden my sister stops running and says outloud no way- so I stop running to, what I ask she laughs are you kidding me, as I turn and look I see what she sees a archery range and that Elk we saw, well that epic beautiful bugling elk standing along the river was a decor. We both start laughing and slowly make our way back to the car walking the walk of shame… We did not get to experience the epic moment of a bugling elk but we did get a belly laugh memory we will talk baout for years, the day we did the walk of shame..

Tightlines until Next Time

Zina & Sunny