Horn Porn 2012 – Montana Hunting [PHOTOS]

This is my 2012 archery bull. I got him on Sept. 29th. Called him in to 20 yards and got a double lung shot. He went about 100 yards and expired. Took us 1 whole day to pack him out.

Been chasing elk in this one area for couple days, finally this morning everything was perfect had 4 bulls around is bugling, one herd bull was working his cows right towards us, they were probably 40 yards out when the wind changed and they were gone, thought all was lost until we heard this bull across valley grunting around, took 30 min. To cow call him in but he finally came. Shot him at 40 yards ran 10 feet and fell over.

Driving up bottom of the mountain right at daybreak when I saw this pig chasing a doe about 100 yards out didn't even know I was there, popped him, gutted him and caped him.

While hunting with my 2 buddies, we were in pursuit of 2 bulls when this fella charged down hill. I took him out at 17 yards and he literally took off and jumped over my other hunting buddy (he was on his knees and hit the dirt, the bull jumped over him nearly missing him. The bull went 50 yards and expired.. great memories. Cheers, Brett N. File

(quoting Shaun of the Dead) "You've got RED on you!" NICE GOAT Chris!

45 miles south of Great Falls, saw over 50 deer, 9 different bucks, this was the biggest body and heaviest "horn wise" so I filled the tag. Not my biggest buck but it will put meat in the freezer, onto elk now.

Started the hunt in the dark and didn't see a thing until 1:45pm when I happened upon this pig. Took the shot from 300 yards through thinned timber. First shot caught a branch about 75 yards downrange, next shot was spot on. He's officially a 4x5. The G1 on his right antler is just a hair under 12". He's 17.5" wide at the G2s. Biggest muley I've ever seen in person. His neck was enormous.

Kade shot this nice little buck at 400 yards last weekend in the Sleeping Child area, south of Hamilton, with his Cooper 270.

It was up in Alberton, a few miles up the mountain. I cant tell where exactly, its our secret spot. Me and my friends split up and started hiking. We were going along for about 10 minutes, when suddenly an elk appeared on top of the ridge. it was a bit foggy, so we waited to see if it was a bull. It was, and it was broad side. I brought up my rifle and took aim. just before i shot, another popped out of no where. it just so happened to be bigger. unfortunately it lined up right in front of the other bull. we waited for about 5 minutes before the finally moved. they were watching us the whole time too. then, just before i shot it started to pop a squat and unload. i figured id give it the decency to finish up, after all it made my job easier afterwards. after all that, i took the shot and bagged my bull. KC says "Very considerate of you Keir. HAHA"

You have put in the work and get off the roads to find pigs like this! Love those public land monsters!

This is a 6x6 bull elk that was shot on Saturday Nov.3rd 2012 in rye creek.

Great hunt with my best hunting partner, my dad. He got a spike millie and I bagged this one, which will make for some nice family sized portions.

I drew a trophy bull 380 permit this year & harvested this awesome 7x7 with my bow on September 11. I always wanted to take a perfect Royal Bull & luck was on my side!

My Hubby & I drew 380 trophy bull tags...a chance of a lifetime really. After some close calls in archery season & no luck I spotted this guy on 11/11/12. An hour later he was bagged & tagged! So thrilled for the opportunity at such an amazing animal. Not gonna lie...pretty damn proud of myself to:)

My wife and I were out bowhunting for elk and while bugling this bear came charging in and luckily i had a bear tag so i shot him and it ran forty yards.

I was lucky to shoot this buck opening day with my stepdad and stepsister. My gun was dipped by my stepdad's business MontanaHydroImage here in Missoula.

Bow Hunting 30 min from Missoula, on public land. He was 10 yards from me when I shot and he only went about 30 yards and died, and it was awesome this is my first bull with my bow. Taken 09/13/12 @ 11:20am.

Well it all started on Wednesday November 7. On a cool crisp morning we struck out of Missoula with ambition in our eyes,headed for Gardner, MT. Okay...lets get to the good stuff! My boyfriend and I hiked for four days, up and down this steep mountain , the first two days we ran into lots of elk but nothing worth shooting. The third day we did not see a single thing! When morning came around I was ready to shoot ANYTHING with horns!!! In the afternoon we set up where the elk had been coming down to feed. We waited for two hours before the first cow came in. For the next 20 minutes over 50 cows and calf's had moved in, but nothing legal to shoot! 10 minutes before shooting light was over a bull stepped out of the timber and walked straight into the cows. It was not until 5 minutes of shooting light was left.... before he presented me with a 125 yard broadside shot. I squeezed the trigger, and not more than 40 yards away from where I shot him, there he lay......with a blown up heart!!! This was an exciting trip for me because....he was my FIRST ELK!!!!! 6X6 BULL!!!!!!!

Scored this lil four point up in the hills of Superior Mt. just a mile up the draw.

I shot this buck on Blacktail mtn. in Lakeside, MT. at 20yds. with a .50 caliber black powder rifle

Out with my son. 2nd day of the season.

2012 mule deer 5x6 droptine

11/18/12 @ 9:10 AM - Sitting in my blind, this guy is sneaking through the woods, behind one tree after another. Finally stops just perfect, @ 25 yds, leaning over on my 8 o'clock, Boom! Not a bad 5x5 (unofficial B&C online score: 106 4/8)

This is my first buck, shot him Thanksgiving day at 9 in the morning, he was rutting so much we were able to stalk within 50 yards of him, one shot from a .243

Last week of hunting season and I still needed to get my nephew his first shot at a animal during his first year hunting, so we worked hard and got him this nice 5 point whitetail. He had never shot a 300 but did great and hit him perfectly behind the shot into the vitals at around 300 yards. I have never seen a kid so happy in my life. (As you can see he is yelling in the picture)

Last week of hunting season in the Big Hole I rode the four wheeler until it was stuck in the snow with chains, walked into my favorite spot at dark and had this bull about 400 yards standing broadside. One shot and hit him in the spine, down he went. Then the fun started after dragging him a ways then quartering it and packing it out with a pack frame. It was tough but well worth it.

I bicycled for a few miles behind a locked gate in the dark to get to some clear cuts before light. Spotted cows and held still until they rounded a corner. They winded me and spooked up hill. Then I saw a glimse of a mature bull coming uphill from below me. As he ran through an opening I put one behind his front shoulder. He didn't skip a beat continuing uphill. I wasn't sure if I'd hit or not and was looking for the next opening in trees. Then seen a bull trotting down the clear cut. I figured it was him because he couldn't continue uphill but when I put him in the scope for another shot it was a different bull. The only reason I knew was because this was a complete non-typical I was looking at. Its entire left beam bent down the side of its head toward the ground. I didn't shoot and looked back uphill for the original bull I shot at. I couldn't see him anywhere or a drop of blood. This brought on some doubt for not shooting the second bull. But then I could see one down not far uphill. I knew it was a big bull but didn't even realize when I shot him he was non-typical also. Left beam is really webbed out. Haven't scored him yet but should be in high 300 class. Two massive unique non-typicals together, I'll win the lottery before I ever see that through my scope again.

My father and I knew our planned hunting area would see a lot of hunter pressure on opening weekend. However, we also knew that many of the competing hunters would stay close to their vehicles and the roads in the area. So, we "spike camped" in a sheltered area close to our planned hunting routes. On opening day, we saw no fresh sign, suffered bitter cold winds, and ran into several other hunters on the mountain. Meanwhile, we heard shots all day long in the areas that we purposefully avoided (close to roads). That Saturday evening, as we dozed in our tents at about 11:00 p.m., some elk wandered close to our camp and were clearly startled by what they found. A cow "barked" at us for about five minutes straight. I took that as a sign, strengthened my resolve, and awoke early to head up the mountain again. Within about a 15 minute walk from camp, I spotted a cow. Now, as I lacked a cow tag, I just had to watch her as she milled around on the hillside. Soon, I realized she had two other cows with her, and finally, a bull stepped out behind her. The group quickly stepped behind a tree and allowed me to drop to the prone position without being seen. The first cow emerged from the timber, clearly following a trail across and up the hillside. As the other cows followed in a line, I knew exactly where the bull would cross. Sure enough, he emerged from the timber and walked directly in front of my cross-hairs. I harvested the bull with one clean shot; upon my arrival I realized he likely did not even take a step before he dropped. We later ranged the shot, an uphill but easy 220 yards. So, the freezer (and subsequently my belly) are full this year, and the hunt will forever live in my memory as a payoff for trying a different strategy.

Call me the hunter that's my name

Week 4 rifle season, new snow, 4 miles in, spotted this bull with a spike and 8-10 cows. Shot bull at 68 yards! Whack em and stack em!

Spotted this buck and crawled through the snow to take a shot. Scope lens started to fog a I squeezed the trigger. Needless to say, it didn't stop hollow point.

Got this bull while I was out on November 18th. He was in a herd of about 15 elk. He will look awesome on my wall.

Victory Smoke...Enjoying a after dinner stogie with my garage homies.

Shot this near Livingston at about 150 yards with my 7mm-08. She ended up aboout 35 feet from the road, right near a bank! Easiest elk drag ever!

Shot this over near Livingston, at about 125 yards, using my 7mm-08.

I shot my buck in the Deer Lodge area with my 243 rifle. I was freezing cold, so I couldn't really smile, but I had a blast and was so happy! My shot was about 200 yards and he was bedded down, so I took my time and shot once. He didn't stand a chance!

This guy eluded us during archery season, but the first day of rifle season he was in trouble. I drug myself and my husband's Ruger #1 .25-06 (he forgave me!) through 400 yards of cut wheat to get to a place where I could wait for him to stand up and put one in him. He would have easily gone B&C if he wouldn't have busted his left cutter during the rut (the other is over 7 inches). Still a stud for a MT goat and happy to have him in the freezer.

I WAS LUCKY ENOUGH TO DRAW AN AREA 124-00 EITHER SEX ROCKEY MOUNTAIN BIGHORN SHEEP TAG THIS IS THE PARADISE/PLAINS AREA OF MONTANA. I HUNTED PUBLIC LAND, SELF GUIDED DO YOUR OWN HUNT, USED A SMALL JON BOAT TO CROSS THE FLATHEAD RIVE TO ACCESS THE NATIONAL FOREST,SCOUTED SHEEP FOR 7 DAYS AND HARVESTED THIS RAM ON THE 11 DAY I AM VERY HAPPY WITH THIS ANIMAL AND THE TOTAL HUNT, THIS WAS A DIFFICULT TO DO SOLO HUNT BUT VERY REWARDING.