During the summer of 1972, we made plans to go back to the same camp area to the large pine trees. This was a good camp with lots of elk on the hills around us. This year just Harry, Bud and I started making plans for the trip. However, before it was time to go, Uncle Charlie informed us that he and his son, Jim were going along with us. We had not planned on them, but we could not say no to them. They would bring their own camper to stay in. We t○○k along the trailer house, for us to sleep in. LeRoy could not go this year, he would hunt with his wife, Alta, and Uncle Lewie and Aunt Lucy.
We set up everything to be comfortable under the big pine trees. Uncle Charlie put his camper beside us so we could holler back and forth between them. We usually have a wild game of pinochle anytime someone mouths off about being the best team of card players. Someone was sure to take up the challenge no matter what time of day it was. We only play for bragging rights anyway.
After camp was all set up and ready, we took a ride to l○○k for any tracks along the road. There were a lot of tracks where elk had been crossing over from side to side. Elk can be found on both sides of the canyon. over the years we have found and shot many deer and elk in this area. The weather in October is usually mild and this year was no exception, Cool at night and beautiful in the daytime. Some mornings there would be a heavy coat of frost, which caused the leaves to turn color and fall off. It is tough hunting with the leaves still on the brush, elk can blend in perfectly. If the animals don-t move it is impossible to pick them out in the shade. Elk are sneaky animals and know how to hide. For the next couple of days, we hunted both sides of the canyon without any results at all. There were a few fresh tracks, but We could not find what was making them. We really covered a lot of country, but the elk must have moved out of the area.
We found another large camp of hunters up the creek from us. The word was that they had gotten into the herd and shot more elk than they could get out. Most of the meat spoiled before they could pack it out. What we saw of the meat they had was bone soured and smelled bad. They Wasted most of the five elk they killed and ones they just wounded would die. They never even tried to find the wounded elk. These hunters were turned in to the Fish and Game Department, but we never heard any more about them. We think this was the elk herd we were looking for.
The fourth day we planned to stay in camp to rest up and clean up the dishes. In the afternoon Uncle Lewie and Aunt Lucy came by to see how we were doing. They had been hunting with LeRoy in another area not too far away. They had not found any elk either. Everyone was sitting around chatting casually when Jim brought out a .38 caliber pistol to show off. Bud took it to shoot a couple of pinecones out of the large tree we were camped under. Jim mentioned he had some handloads in it. Bud was standing under the tree shooting straight in the air with up stretched arms. The first shot was extra loud, but we did not think anything about it. The next shot really got our attention. The pistol blew up with pieces going out into the brush because of the way he was standing. The second shot had blown up causing the next bullet coming up to explode also. Half the cylinder was gone, which was what had gone out into the brush. The breach was bowed up but did not break. Had this part broken, it may have injured Bud badly. We were lucky none of the pieces hit anyone in camp. Everyone gathered around Bud to see if he was okay. He had a terrible ringing in his ears, but nothing had hit him. Jim was one of the first ones there, because it was his Pistol. Boy, he was one unhappy camper about the whole deal. His brother-in-law, Ed Ashton, had loaded the shells and thought it would be a kick to put a .357 magnum charge in a .38 casing. Jim was going to have some serious words with Mr. Ed when he could get a hold of him. Needless to Say, the rest of the bullets were buried so no one else would get hurt from his foolishness. The pistol was donated to the Hunter Safety Department of the Idaho National Guard. We were quite shaken up for the rest of the day. The sun was beginning to sink in the west with darkness not far behind.
We tried to get Uncle Lewie and Aunt Lucy to stay for supper, but they wanted to get home before it was too late. I fixed a good supper for all of us, then we spent the evening playing cards and counting our blessings that no one was injured by the mishap. Over the years we Picked up a habit of having cookies and milk before turning in for the night. This took the edge off a distressing day and helped us relax.
The next day, we went out hunting again. Everyone spread out in different directions to make a last ditch try to find an elk. We planned to pack up the next day to go home. Harry, Bud, and I went up towards where we got the elk, the year before. Uncle Charlie and Jim went up the opposite side of the canyon because it was easier to climb and not as brushy. Everyone did a lot of walking and looking but could not find a thing. As each group made it back to camp in the early afternoon, they had the same results, no elk anywhere. Therefore, the rest of the day was spent playing cards and doing the things we wanted to do. That night we fixed up a large pot of stew from cans, so we could all dine together. After eating all we could hold, we went back to playing Pinochle for the rest of the evening.
There was no reason to get up early the next morning since we were going home anyway. We made a leisurely breakfast of pancakes, bacon, and eggs then cleaned up everything and headed for home. We would decide where to go next year during the summer.