An 84-year-old Idaho man fulfilled a lifelong dream after 53 years of hunting when he took down a massive 14-point imperial bull elk recently.
John Keller drew in October one of only four quality elk tags in the Couse Game Management Unit for this rifle season. That meant he would be allowed to bring down one of the massive bulls that carry racks with six or more points per side, the Idaho Statesman reported. But he’d have to track one down first, and that wasn’t going to be easy. Those elk inhabit the steep canyons and thick timber forests.
Keller went out with his son, grandson, and other family members every day, he said. They were in search of one of the elks that can grow to more than 700 pounds. After more than a week of nothing, Keller said he was beginning to think it wouldn’t happen. Then, on Nov 5., he spotted one some 100 yards in front of him, the paper reported. Keller shouldered his .30-06 and fired.
“I really didn’t see all the horns when I shot at him, I just knew he was big,” Keller recalled to the Statesman.
The elk sprinted into a canyon. John’s son Greg and grandson chased after it.
“When we found him, it was ‘Oh my gosh.’ It was nothing but high fives and happiness,” Greg Keller said. “It was a bull of a lifetime. It was worth the wait. We were excited and proud of him. That Tuesday before, he was saying ‘Maybe it was not meant to be,’ but he never gave up.”
Minnesota Nurse Brings Down Near Record Bull Elk
John Eller’s 7X7 elk green-scored at 340 on the Boone and Crockett Club’s scoring system, the newspaper said. But this is just one of the most recent massive elks hunters have taken down this season.
Lacey Lupien, a 33-year-old nurse, recently bagged the second-largest bull elk in Minnesota history in August. In fact, the animal is so large, she and her family are planning on remodeling their home to accommodate the mount for the animal, the Star Tribune reported.
The Boone and Crocket Club certified Lupien’s prized bull elk had a 7-by-9 rack and a net score of 367 2/8 inches, the paper said. The Boone and Crockett Club began keeping big game records more than a century ago.
