New Pending World Record Elk Taken in Kerr County, Texas

 

Texas Hunt Lodge client, Kyle Bauer, took the new World Record Estate Rocky Mountain Elk this weekend.  Kyle Bauer and his 16 yr old son, Zach, of Humble, TX booked the hunt with Guide and Texas Hunt Lodge owner, Aaron Bulkley, back in early April.  The hunt took place on Friday and Saturday on the Las Catarinas Ranch in northwest Kerr County.  The first evening out, Friday, Guides Dennis Kneese and Aaron Bulkley were able to get the clients in front of plenty of big Elk ranging from 350 to 440 inches, but we needed to see the “Lightning Bull” before we let Kyle make up his mind.  The Guides had named this giant 8x9 Bull Elk the “Lightning Bull” as the only time you caught a glimpse of him was when he busted out of the trees running full steam ahead, therefore no one actually knew how big he was going to be. 

 

The hunt started around 5:00pm Friday evening with no success in located the “Lightning Bull”……by 7:00am the following morning, Kyle and his son Zach were back on the ranch in search of him.  Guides Dennis and Aaron hunted the clients both Safari Style and Spot and Stalk that morning, and subsequently put 16 yr old Zach on a monster 4 Horned Ram.  Zach shot the Ram with a Horton 150 Crossbow, and scoring a whopping 444.8 cm with Trophy Game Records of the World, became the new pending World Record as well. 

 

The Guides and Hunters all broke for a quick BBQ lunch, but couldn’t wait to get back out onto the ranch to try and find the big bull.  The guides agreed the best strategy was to hit all of the water holes on the ranch throughout the afternoon as they had seen other big bull elk coming in the heat of the day for a drink over the past few weeks.   The strategy proved to be unsuccessful as the afternoon drew on, so then it was up to the guides to walk the brush and try pushing the “Lightning Bull” out into the open.  On just our first attempt of hitting some thick brush on foot, Dennis Kneese walked up on the Bull sleeping, and in an instant, the “Lightning Bull” broke out on a sprint.  Kyle and Aaron spotted the bull running through the trees, about 300 yards away, and finally come to a stop once he met up with another bull elk grazing in a meadow.  With only a quick glimpse of the antlers, Aaron knew this was the “Lightning Bull”, and he threw up the shooting sticks for Kyle to rest his rifle. From 100 yards, and through a split oak tree, Kyle connected with the bull, and put him down with his 7mm mag rifle. 

 

Kyle Bauer’s Bull Elk was officially measured by SCI and Trophy Game Records (TGR) Officials, and came out at a whopping 503 5/8 inches SCI becoming the new pending Estate Typical World Record Rocky Mountain Elk taken with a rifle, and 1177.4 centimeters with Trophy Game Records of the World as the largest Elk ever recorded.   

 

The “Lightning Bull” will now be honored as a Diamond Trophy (largest ever taken for that species and method of hunting) for both the SCI and TGR Record Books this coming year. 

 

The Texas Hunt Lodge, owned by Aaron Bulkley, is a full service hunt package provider, and was honored to win “Outfitter of the Year 2009-2010”.  The all inclusive hunt packages they provide include exceptional Bed and Breakfast style accommodations, over 60 Exotic game species to hunt year round in the Texas Hill Country, Exotic game meals, private access to the Guadalupe River, and much more.  All hunts are guided and take place on one of 10 different ranches in the Kerrville area.   Las Catarinas Ranch, owned by JA Whittenburg IV and JA Whittenburg V, is the main hunting concession of the Texas Hunt Lodge, and was the recipient of the “2009-2010 Ranch of the Year Award.”