Obsession Quest Roosevelt Elk
09/14/2006 - 09/20/2006
LOCATION:
Santa Rosa Island, CA
WEATHER:
Extremely nice! 75-80 degrees with ocean surrounding the whole island with Elephant Seals just off the coast
OUTFITTER:
Multiple Use Managers
Wayne Long
Gordon Long
P.O. Box 669
Los Molinos, CA 96055 USA
800-557-7087
530-527-3588
http://mumwildlife.com
ABOUT THIS HUNT:
MUMwildlife.com When I first saw this website address I couldn’t figure it out. The MUM in the outfitter’s name and website address stands for “multiple use management” Father and son outfitter team of Wayne and Gordon Long make up this team and what a team they are!
Wayne Long has always focused his attention on complete management of multiple resources on the land, including wildlife, range, timber, livestock grazing, etc.—hence the “multiple use management” concept.
We stayed right on Santa Rosa Island at a ranch house maintained by the Long family. Very comfortable and relaxing accomodations. There’s quite a waiting list but don’t be afraid to get your name on the list because there’s always cancellations. It took me three years to finally get there and hunt!
There’s literally nothing on Santa Rosa Island but Roosevelt Elk and Mule Deer! This is basically a spot and stalk affair. This is a two-on-one hunt and my hunting partner on this trip was James Barogan.
You always wonder on this type of hunt whether or not you’ll get along with someone you’ve never met until you’re in camp. Sometimes it goes well and you end up with great memories and another friend but other times it doesn’t go so well, egos get in the way and the hunt ends badly.
James and I got along great and had a good time laughing. This, I’m sure, was a relief for us both.
The way Wayne and Gordon Long work this two-on-one hunt is one guy hunts in the morning, the other hunts the evening.
Right off the bat James shot a 220 inch Mule Deer!
Now it was my turn. We were finding the elk but not the kind we were looking for.
On the afternoon of 9.17 while we were glassing we ran into a pair of 6X6’s. We were too far away and needed to get in much closer if I was to have any kind of decent shot. By the time we got over to this pair of 6X6’s from about 150 yards away we could see the elk were starting to push each other around. We waited patiently for the jostling to calm down and then finally a shot presented itself.
I won’t say it was a chip shot but pretty close. At 150 yards my Browning A-bolt is so dialed in sometimes I think I could hit a dime at that distance. I set up a good solid rest with my pack, got my breathing under control and took aim. After I squeezed off the round that big ‘ol 6X6 dropped straight to the ground. I was certain he was dead before he actually hit the ground.
I finally had my Roosevelt Elk on the ground to complete my sweep of the Elk for my Obsession Quest. What a relief!
ABOUT THIS ANIMAL:
Roosevelt Elk
Just take a look at this beauty!
EQUIPMENT USED:
Browing A-Bolt 300 WSM
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