Bowhunting Elk

weekender said:

" We might be doing some traveling by horse. "

We bought bow scabbards for the couple years we hunted horse back. There are some outfitters that don't want you to use them and always carry your bow in your hand so you can throw it in case of a "wreck". It was nice for us to be hands free for glassing and just holding on. Some of the places you can go with a horse get a little steep, narrow and spooky. Horses sure saves on some blisters, least on your feet LOL. Elk hunting on horses is fine living to me.

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I was planing on taking my soft SKB bow case for when I'm on a horse, will that work or do I need to get a scabbard? I don't think I would like holding on to the bow the whole time while riding a horse.

Been 4 times to CO. twice on horse back hunts on public land and twice on private land where preference points are required. Saw more legal animals in one day on private land than in two hunts on public.
Some advice. Lose weight if you need to, and get in shape. Walk, run, swim, bicycle ride. Get your heart, lungs, and legs in shape. If horseback hunting, spend some time on a horse before going. I thought someone would have to get me off that animal when we got to the top of the mountain. Never been so sore in all my life.
Never, never, leave your raingear in camp!!!! I don't care what the day looks like or what the weather report says. Remember, in high elevations, you are "among" the lightning, not under it. Comfortable, well broke in leather boots with good tread and good ankle support. Make sure the outfitter or horse wrangler has stirrups that you can get your boots out of in a hurry.
Start getting into shape now. Would have been better to have started several months ago.
Have a great hunt. CO is beautiful in Sept. Got my bull, a 6x6, in 2010. Ain't nothin like it!!

gcs said:

I was planing on taking my soft SKB bow case for when I'm on a horse, will that work or do I need to get a scabbard? I don't think I would like holding on to the bow the whole time while riding a horse.

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I'd advise against the soft case and go with a bow scabbard. The scabbard keeps your bow out of the way and makes it easy to get to. Take the bow out of the scabbard when you dismount, even if just for lunch. Horses have a mind of their own and you never know what they'll do.........rubbing against trees, etc. I rode about 120 miles on horseback on my BC hunt last year and don't know what I would have done without a scabbard. Good luck!

I liked the scabbard as well, I also took over sized stirrups and used them. You may not need the oversize stirrups depending on what they already have vs the size boots you are wearing. I have a really bad leg and wore Schnee's pack boots.

Thanks for the heads up on the scabbard. Is there any scabbard better than others? Thanks for all the info guys, Greg