Finally got him!

Took a month of hard hunting. Haven't seen this guy for about three weeks.

I was getting a bit frustrated but with some snow on the ground yesterday, I made a long hike and found big track in a new hiding place so this morn I was up long before light and made a pull up the 70 degree slope to loop around behind the fir patch where I believed him to be hiding. I was so lathered up in my flannels and Filson double Mackinaw that at the top of the steep bit I stripped off coat and shirts and dropped trow and undies to my ankles and stood stark raving naked with Willy dangling in the blowing frigid mountain air till the sweat blew dry, then suited up and tippy-toed silent to an old Blitz Blind {I have them all over the mountains here} I had dug in the thick stuff about 4 years ago. It was semi-covered by a blowdown but after a bit of trimming I had a nice hidden pocket to sit in.

That held for two hours till the melting snow soaked my coat. I was mulling over a location change when I heard the red squirrels blow up down the slope, and "timber tigers" scooted this way and that out at about 80 yards along the old overgrown elk trail.

Nothing showed, and then I realized something might have been sidehilling above the trail in the state strip. The wind was good so I decided to leave my spot and stalk back up the mountain to check a couple possible bedding areas. I had gone only 40 yards or so when I caught a glimpse of movement to my left, and there was Uncle Buck picking his way along parallel to me. I pivotted and brought the gun up and after waiting a split second for an open shoulder broke the trigger.

After a brief word of thanksgiving to the Creator, I started the drag. Giggling all the way!