1. 4544 UNIVERSAL HUNTERUNIVERSAL HUNTER July/August/September2015July/August/September2015
Though I am now 63, and
have been hunting for as long
as I can remember, I am still
learning the ins and outs of
hunting out West as opposed to
the Midwest.
Last year, together with Mark
and Bill, we worked on our
shooting skills necessary for the
clean harvesting of game, safety
in the field, and above all, the
ethics that many hunters share.
In preparing for all of our
hunting trips, like we had done
the past few years, I will oc-
casionally watch and record
a variety of hunting shows in
order to review them later with
Bill. I also heavily use books,
DVDs, and magazines, which is
why I sent a story to one about
our 2012 hunt in Oregon, which
was a learning experience for us
both.
Our excursion to Montana
last October came as a surprise
benefit I never expected to re-
ceive, in that I was able to recon-
nect with an old friend I hadn’t
seen or communicated with for
almost ten years since he had
moved to Montana! When we
both lived in Southern Califor-
nia, we did a great deal of out-
door activities together. An old
Marine Vet, and me an old Army
Vet, but great friends. We sure
missed abusing each other! Now,
however, being older and both
suffering from some disabilities,
it made things more difficult.
Two years ago when Mark
saw my small article about
Oregon in an issue of Eastman’s
Hunting magazine he found
me. After a slew of emails, text
messages and calls, we decided
to hunt in his neck of the woods
along with Bill, so plans were
made to fly into Billings, stay at
his place, hunt opening day and
throughout the following week.
New Nikon scopes from
Optics Planet with BDC reticle,
new ammo, and sighting in, I
even splurged on Elk calls, some
new blaze orange, and boots . .
. the local Bass Pro Shop staff is
starting to recognize me when I
visit.
The day finally came, and
amidst long stares from people
at Orange County airport, we
flew through Denver to Bill-
ings. Immediately after meeting
Mark at Billings’ airport, off we
went and started scouting, to-
gether with Mark’s wife, Shelly,
whom we nicknamed “the Ora-
cle.” She just seemed to always
know where we were and where
game should be. Mark was one
heck of a driver and drill in-
structor.
Any Marines out there will
know what I mean. Sighting in
again was like basic training for
me, and Bill sure got another
lesson in everything imaginable.
It was good being together with
the guy again. Once a Jar Head,
always a Jar Head!!
The experience and memo-
ries of last year’s trip is still fresh
in my mind, and is one reason
why with Mark’s gracious in-
vitation, I planned to return in
2014. Not many shots heard at
all that week, and it surprised us
not to see a lot of animals move,
other than some antelope. It
seems that the way most locals
hunt is to drive around hop-
ing to spot game from the road
and then go after them. Maybe
the Elk and Mule Deer don’t
like traffic jams? I remember
reading about how many “pro”
hunters always going deep and
remote, and we did that to an
extent, but with no luck.
As with many trips, it’s an
added bonus when you can
enjoy non-hunting experiences
like mixing some history into
the hunt, with Lewis and Clark
having traveled through the
same terrain: Pompeii’s Pil-
lar with Clark’s signature and
Custer’s Last Stand not too far
around the bend. I think Bill is
starting to pick up that a hunt-
ing trip is not just about taking
an animal, but the journey of
the entire experience, no matter
how fruitful!
Day three had me waking
up at 3:30 a.m., even though we
didn’t need to leave the house
until 6:00 a.m. That anxious
excitement never leaves me no
matter how many hunts I’ve
been on. I made coffee and
waited for everyone to wake up
while I watched a hunting video.
We hunted very hard that day
in an area that looked more like it
would be for Whitetail Deer being
near the Yellowstone River with
a small area of standing corn and
trees, but about half a mile away
we saw four or five Muley does,
and I reminded Bill that just like
him, if there are girls around, a
male is not far away.
That Mule Deer Buck blend-
ed into the backdrop of some
interesting stone formations,
and we waited for him to move
slightly away from the rocks.
It seemed like hours, but with
patience and a great shot by Bill,
we harvested a huge bodied
3-by-5. We suspected the rut
hadn’t started yet, and when we
began to process him, the in-
credible amount of body fat we
uncovered proved our suspicion.
The weather went from
nice to better (cold with a little
snow) to nice again, so we hunt-
ed hard in the mornings, took it
easier in the late morning and
early afternoon, then drove hard
again until the end of shooting
hour. Not many deer were seen
by others we spoke with, and no
Elk at all, but with one hanging
for our group, we were happy.
Not too happy to stop hunting -
another lesson Mark and I tried
to teach young Bill is to never
give up since one never knows
what tomorrow may bring.
The last day of our hunt, we
decided to hunt near the house,
with the permission of Mark’s
neighbors. With shooting time
ending at 6:10 p.m., we decided
to drive more than hike up and
down the hills and coolies to
cover as much ground as possi-
ble. Telling jokes, talking about
maybe another trip next year,
in addition to making plans for
Mark to come down and stay
with me in Southern California
for Tuna fishing, we came to an
abrupt halt when Bill saw a fork-
ie following some young does . .
. and just like that, we were back
on the hunt.
We ended up filling our tags
exactly at 6:05PM, hung and
dressed our second prize, then
went to dinner tired and hungry,
but oh so fulfilled!
This brings us to this year,
2014, and I made a mistake fill-
ing out the online non-resident
application and called Montana
FWP, a friendly helpful group
of people. They helped me, and
in speaking with the gentlemen
on the phone, he asked where I
B Y S T E V E M O S S
WHYMONTANA
AGAINTHISYEAR?
I
often wonder why after reading so many
stories of people’s hunts and after seeing some
hunts on various Television shows, people say
“This hunt I will remember forever!” I can
honestly say that I remember all of my hunts, starting
from the beginning of my hunting experiences back
in Illinois, to Africa, Alaska, Canada, and everywhere
I’ve ever hunted. What I will certainly remember
most, however, are the friends and my children that
I’ve hunted with. Most recently with my son Bill and
my old friend Mark, who now lives in Montana. Steve Moss with his trophy.

2. 4746 UNIVERSAL HUNTERUNIVERSAL HUNTER July/August/September2015July/August/September2015
started to drop and averaged at
-20° to -25° daily and a couple of
days included snow and strong
winds. I’ve learned a lot this trip,
Elk need to eat more during the
bitter cold to stay warm, and so
they were in the open more. On
the negative side, they tend to
hide in the wind as it hindered
their hearing.
What else I found very in-
teresting were the opinions on
Wolves and their many negative
effects on game and livestock,
and also that many thought
Elk were once plains game but
settlers forced them into the
mountains. Now, the Wolves
are forcing them back into the
plains! What I was also fortu-
nate enough to experience was
one day on the Lazy E-L Ranch;
we saw hundreds of deer and
elk and the next day not one.
But when we exited the truck
to glass, we heard wolves and
saw them circle a kill, and while
mystical and haunting, I was
told that the elk were probably
ten to twenty miles away now
that the wolves killed some
during the night. They escaped
only to be haunted there by the
wolves who will follow them
and chase them back to the E-L.
I guess in a way that is the “cir-
cle of life”.
With glassing and hunting
three days, and not wanting to
shoot a spike or cow, on day
four, we spotted a nice 5x5 that
we put a long stalk on, and I
managed to get a shot off that
wounded him. My next two
shots missed as he was headed
into another county. All you old
guys out there will agree with
me, having a couple of young
studs to help sure is nice and
after kicking him out of two
beds over a three-mile hike with
them pushing me, I harvested
my first elk.
Lessons learned, experience
gained. New friends made and
future plans to hopefully return
to Absaroka-Beartooth Outfit-
ters in 2015 with Bill.
was going to hunt and slipped
and planted the idea of using
an outfitter. Bill who relocated
to Atlanta for work wouldn’t be
able to join us, so it would have
to be up to us old guys.
I did some research and
found the aforementioned
outfitter, quickly did additional
research on area, success rate,
followed up with a few phone
calls, and put a plan into effect. I
would hunt with Mark one week
near Billings, and then travel far-
ther West to hunt with Absaro-
ka-Beartooth Outfitters.
We all have to come face
to face with reality, especially
when hunting out West. Age,
physical condition, and the fact
that this would be trip number
five for my elusive Elk, it all
made sense. Having suffered
through two spinal surgeries last
year, and really not being able to
do a “do it yourself hunt” as well
as I would like, a good outfitter
was the best way to go. Deer
with Mark and I hope an Elk
with Absaroka-Beartooth.
Mark and I woke up early
every morning to sunny balmy
days (Montana style) and we
searched by vehicle and some
spot and stalk but only saw a few
small Muley does and forkies
until day four when Mark got
a nice shot off at a four-by-four
near Pompeii’s Point. An his-
torical landmark dating back to
Lewis and Clark. This put me
up to bat, but it would have to be
near Big Timber Montana. We
had just enough time to load up
the buck, hang it at Mark’s, clean
up, and start my new guided
adventure.
I made the two-hour drive
and ended up at the Allestad
home with the over the top hos-
pitality of Elaine and Lawrence
Allestad and waited to meet up
with Cameron Mayo the Out-
fitter. In the meanwhile, I met
and talked with people from
Tennessee, Alabama, Idaho, and
Washington State. We were all
excited about not only a guided
hunt, but a hunt that was on pri-
vate ranches! This would give us
I hoped an advantage over BLM
hunts that aren’t pack in which
would avoid areas over hunted
or with over-pressured animals.
Again, perfect for those with
limitations like myself.
Cameron came early and
after an incredible meal, which
was repeated daily over the
next five days, we made our
plans for daily hunts, guide as-
signments, meals, and options
if we are successful. The Alles-
tad’s being ranchers, sure gave
us the added benefit of great
beef and lamb! Being the eter-
nal optimist, I asked my guide
Tom Isaacs, an incredibly tal-
ented and experienced young
man, to fit it in to visit Brian
at Pioneer Meats and Tom at
Montana Taxidermy.
Hunts started after a large
home-cooked breakfast usually
starting between 4:30 and 5:00
a.m., but being extremely excit-
ed Elaine had fresh coffee ready
for me at 4:00. These turned
out to be very important as the
temperatures on the first day
The men taking a break.
Montana mule deer.