Late Season Elk and South Dakota Mule Deer with John, Anthony, and Joey Stallone

Show Notes:

My cousin Anthony and his son Joey (who I call my nephew), just came off a late bull season elk hunt. I purposely waited about a week to hear their stories for the first time until I was ready to do this episode, and I saw them right after they came back. We kick off by talking about elk meat, ways to prepare and process it, and some stories from past elk hunting trips.  It’s pretty easy to make a delicious dish with elk if you’re paying attention to how you’re cooking it. Here, we share some tips on how to prepare meat from your own trips to get the best results.

Next, we get into how the actual elk hunt went. Anthony wound up getting sick during the scouting process and the initial scouting trip got pushed. He did a bit of scouting through maps and got some intel from a friend, but when they got there, the roads were really tough to navigate. Joey spotted a couple of mountain lions, but Anthony wound up finding him a buck instead. Then, Joey found two bulls and they decided to try to get them a night later. Anthony’s dad was there that day and his cousin Matthew, who was new to this kind of experience and was super impressed. Eventually, Anthony wound up getting a clear shot at a bull that he had to walk about 30-40 minutes to. 

Then I get into a mule deer hunting trip I had with clients in South Dakota. A huge storm hit and my clients couldn’t get through a particular pass until days later, but that meant I got some time to myself. The weather was good and I had some great shots, especially on the fourth day. I was also talking to my friend Charles through the radio and helping him glass. We found a buck that was bedded and then when I set myself up, three does wound up coming by. Then, four more does hopped over a fence along with a younger buck. Two fawns were headed toward Charles and I was giving him a play-by-play the whole time. Eventually, he shot the buck and it hopped the fence to my neighbor’s side. I kept at it to try to get one of my targeted bucks, and I actually wound up getting a mild case of frostbite. I powered through, but after a few more days of bad luck, I went home empty-handed.   

What’s Inside:

• How to cook elk meat the right way.

Mentioned in this episode

Phoenix Shooting Bags save 20% with code johnstallone

Howl for Wildlife: https://www.howlforwildlife.org/

GoHunt: https://www.gohunt.com/

Short Description:

My cousin Anthony and his son Joey just got back from a late-season elk hunt and here, they recap their stories. We talk about everything from preparing and cooking elk meat to lessons learned from the trip. Then, I get into a mule deer hunting trip in South Dakota, which didn’t turn out as good as I hoped, but it made for some great stories.

Tags:

big game hunting, hunting tips, hunting guide, buck hunting, hunting stories, elk hunting, mule deer, mule deer hunting, elk meat, cooking, doe, white tail deer, bow hunting