My Dad and I have been saving up our Wyoming preference points for the past 13 years. Our last elk hunt in Wyoming was in 2007, where we went horseback about 13-14 miles in to camp. It was a great experience and we both loved it. However, that was 13 years ago. Today, I am 51 and my Dad is 79, so his days on horseback are done and since our last elk hunt, Dad has had some unfortunate medical experiences including a broken hip and some heart issues which present additional challenges. That said, my Dad still pheasant hunts and exercises every day to stay in the best physical shape he can. He does great! So, we decided this year was the year and we were going to apply for Unit 7 because we have heard and read so much about it and we had the points needed to draw. The challenge 11-12 months ago was to find the right outfitter with the right experience to accommodate our needs. I did a fair amount of research and talked to many folks. Eventually, I was referred to Erick Mares with High Pine Outfitters. I was searching for 3 main criteria: 1) Hunting logistics; 2) Accommodations; & 3) Reasonable Price. With Dad, the hunting logistics were the most important. Walking terrain, transport to hunting areas, guide assistance in carrying gear, weapons, etc. For the accommodations, we were looking for a cabin/resort type experience that would be comfortable, decent bed, good food, warm shower, and a relaxed environment. Finally, for those of you that are familiar with elk outfitting trips and high-end resorts, the price of these hunts are easily exceeding 10k. We just couldn’t afford to go for the high-end resort experience. I also have two other buddies that have been applying for points and they wanted a rifle hunt experience in November, so we applied as a group, but wanted to use the same outfitter if we could find one that could accommodate both archery and rifle hunts. So, after talking quite a bit with Erick, it became pretty clear that he felt he could accommodate our first two criteria and his price, while higher than we paid in 2007, wasn’t double like it was with most other outfits. Dad and I also decided to do archery. It has been a dream of mine and he has never taken an elk with a bow either so we thought we might as well do it. We could use crossbows and we thought what a great opportunity! I wanted to provide the background as I’m sure many of you could relate to our situation and/or be searching with similar needs.
All I can say is Erick Mares and his cook Stephanie Gies delivered an experience that Dad and I will never forget. Our archery hunt was from Sept. 17-21 in 2021. We are both still on “cloud 9” and will be for quite some time. Our hunt exceeded expectations and we highly recommend High Pine to anyone who might be looking for a similar type experience. First, the accommodations are wonderful. A small cabin (that Erick built) with a nice bathroom, separate rooms and comfortable bed with heat and/or windows to open for cool mountain air. Second, Stephanie did a great job cooking. If you aren’t careful, you likely will gain a little weight during your trip!! Excellent food with variety every night and breakfast burritos and sandwiches for lunch every day. Third, when we started hunting the first day, I could tell Erick was determining how well Dad could get around. There were a few trips and stumbles on some rocks early the first morning that helped set the pace for the rest of the hunt which Erick accommodated beyond expectations. We got in to some bugling bulls on the first morning and by a little after 10am, Erick called my bull in to about 25 yards. About a 310-320 class beautiful bull….my first archery bull and we called him in twice. It is a long story, but I was so tickled with the experience. Erick does a fantastic job cleaning, quartering and taking care of the animal. Even though I didn’t want to mount him, Erick caped the hide and cleaned the antlers ready to be displayed on a plaque.
The next two days were HOT and WINDY. Elk were held up in the timber and difficult to hear anything, let alone them hearing us. However, on the evening of the third night, a weather front moved in and we went to a different area on the ranch. Wow, did we find the elk. It was cold and rainy and snowed on us several times, but it was amazing listening to about a dozen bulls bugling literally all day long. We had a challenge calling them in, because they all had cows, but the numbers were tremendous, and we probably saw 3-4 bulls that were 350+ class bulls. We had also tried to call this nice 350+ class bull in not only that morning, but in the evening as well. He wouldn’t come and we were cold and wet, and not the best prepared for the conditions, so we went back to our cabins that night knowing we only had one day left. We went back and found the same bull and his cows the next morning that we had tried to call in the day before. This time, we decided to take our time getting to him, getting downwind and really getting close to put a little pressure on him. It took us about 1.5 hours to get in to position. We sat down about 200 yards below where this big bugling bull and his cows were. Erick went below us and started cow talking. Right away a little rag horn came in ready for some action. We passed him up. Then a second, shooter bull came in. This was a nice 6x6, but was not the big daddy we were going after. This bull likely pulled the big one down for a challenge. Then we saw the big bull about 110 yards away. One of his cows slipped behind him and came running in right towards us and Erick, who was doing some cow calling. Well, the big boy said, “Oh no you don’t” and came after the cow to make sure she didn’t get any ideas to go to this other bull about 110 yards to our west. The bull bugled about 40 yards away. He kept coming. He got within 15 yards of us and I’m sitting right behind Dad…I whisper yell “Shoot him”, Dad went to shoot and hit the lens cap cover with the bill of his cap blocking his view…..He cursed…. He went to re-adjust the cap and the bull saw that and jumped to the side. I thought for sure he would just run away. Well, Erick let out another cow call and the bull turned around at 30 yards broadside. RELEASE!! Perfect shot at 30 yards. We ended up waiting about 1.5 hours and then finished tracking him down. What a beautiful specimen. Dad’s largest bull ever, with a crossbow at 30 yards, and on the last day at about 8:15am. Erick estimated him to be a 360 class bull. Could not have asked for a better ending to a great experience. Thank you Erick and Stephanie from the bottom of our hearts. It is so awesome to see the relationship Erick and Stephanie both have with the ranch owner (who stopped by every night for dinner) and the neighboring outfitters. We were only there 5 days, but Dad and I made some new lifelong friends and had an experience like no other, that we will cherish for the rest of our lives. Who knows if Dad will ever elk hunt again, but if he doesn’t, this was the hunt of a lifetime and we owe it all to High Pine Outfitters.
All I can say is Erick Mares and his cook Stephanie Gies delivered an experience that Dad and I will never forget. Our archery hunt was from Sept. 17-21 in 2021. We are both still on “cloud 9” and will be for quite some time. Our hunt exceeded expectations and we highly recommend High Pine to anyone who might be looking for a similar type experience. First, the accommodations are wonderful. A small cabin (that Erick built) with a nice bathroom, separate rooms and comfortable bed with heat and/or windows to open for cool mountain air. Second, Stephanie did a great job cooking. If you aren’t careful, you likely will gain a little weight during your trip!! Excellent food with variety every night and breakfast burritos and sandwiches for lunch every day. Third, when we started hunting the first day, I could tell Erick was determining how well Dad could get around. There were a few trips and stumbles on some rocks early the first morning that helped set the pace for the rest of the hunt which Erick accommodated beyond expectations. We got in to some bugling bulls on the first morning and by a little after 10am, Erick called my bull in to about 25 yards. About a 310-320 class beautiful bull….my first archery bull and we called him in twice. It is a long story, but I was so tickled with the experience. Erick does a fantastic job cleaning, quartering and taking care of the animal. Even though I didn’t want to mount him, Erick caped the hide and cleaned the antlers ready to be displayed on a plaque.
The next two days were HOT and WINDY. Elk were held up in the timber and difficult to hear anything, let alone them hearing us. However, on the evening of the third night, a weather front moved in and we went to a different area on the ranch. Wow, did we find the elk. It was cold and rainy and snowed on us several times, but it was amazing listening to about a dozen bulls bugling literally all day long. We had a challenge calling them in, because they all had cows, but the numbers were tremendous, and we probably saw 3-4 bulls that were 350+ class bulls. We had also tried to call this nice 350+ class bull in not only that morning, but in the evening as well. He wouldn’t come and we were cold and wet, and not the best prepared for the conditions, so we went back to our cabins that night knowing we only had one day left. We went back and found the same bull and his cows the next morning that we had tried to call in the day before. This time, we decided to take our time getting to him, getting downwind and really getting close to put a little pressure on him. It took us about 1.5 hours to get in to position. We sat down about 200 yards below where this big bugling bull and his cows were. Erick went below us and started cow talking. Right away a little rag horn came in ready for some action. We passed him up. Then a second, shooter bull came in. This was a nice 6x6, but was not the big daddy we were going after. This bull likely pulled the big one down for a challenge. Then we saw the big bull about 110 yards away. One of his cows slipped behind him and came running in right towards us and Erick, who was doing some cow calling. Well, the big boy said, “Oh no you don’t” and came after the cow to make sure she didn’t get any ideas to go to this other bull about 110 yards to our west. The bull bugled about 40 yards away. He kept coming. He got within 15 yards of us and I’m sitting right behind Dad…I whisper yell “Shoot him”, Dad went to shoot and hit the lens cap cover with the bill of his cap blocking his view…..He cursed…. He went to re-adjust the cap and the bull saw that and jumped to the side. I thought for sure he would just run away. Well, Erick let out another cow call and the bull turned around at 30 yards broadside. RELEASE!! Perfect shot at 30 yards. We ended up waiting about 1.5 hours and then finished tracking him down. What a beautiful specimen. Dad’s largest bull ever, with a crossbow at 30 yards, and on the last day at about 8:15am. Erick estimated him to be a 360 class bull. Could not have asked for a better ending to a great experience. Thank you Erick and Stephanie from the bottom of our hearts. It is so awesome to see the relationship Erick and Stephanie both have with the ranch owner (who stopped by every night for dinner) and the neighboring outfitters. We were only there 5 days, but Dad and I made some new lifelong friends and had an experience like no other, that we will cherish for the rest of our lives. Who knows if Dad will ever elk hunt again, but if he doesn’t, this was the hunt of a lifetime and we owe it all to High Pine Outfitters.