During the years of hunting Canyon Creek and its tributaries, we always looked for new and better campsites. The fall of 1972, Harry, Bud, Uncle Charlie, and I chose to camp on the Banner Creek Summit. We had l○○ked the area over several times in the past. Near the turnout on the summit was an old road blocked off with some large boulders. By moving a couple, we could drive about a block to a flat large enough to camp in. This seemed like a good place to put up a camp. We were out of sight of the highway traffic and there was a toilet We could use at the turnout on the main road. After entering the side road, we pushed the rocks back so no one would know we Were there. A tent was Put up for sleeping purposes. We brought along a large roll of plastic to make a cooking and sitting area. Tables were Set up for the camp stoves and all the cooking stuff. A fire ring was built in the center of the enclosure. This was not a clever idea, because of the smoke, but once we opened the top, some of the smoke went out. By the time the week was over, we were a smelly bunch as was all the camping stuff. Some of the cooking was done on the open campfire to get the pans all blackened up. Uncle Charlie had to have a pot of coffee going all the time. With camp all set up, a big fire going, we were determined to have an enjoyable time.
The season was Open for either sex elk this year with a lot of elk in the area. The first couple of days we hunted in all directions from camp, finding tracks everywhere. We knew we Were going to find an elk at any time. The third day we were out on the mountain early. Harry and Bud went up the ridge toward Bench Creek Summit, while Uncle Charlie and I made a circle around a couple of creek heads and ridges to meet up with them somewhere on the main ridge. We were nearing the place we figured on meeting when a shot echoed across the valley. It came in the direction of Harry and Bud, so we quickly went over the top to see what was going on. By the time we reached the ridge′ the other guys were nowhere to be found. We knew about where they should have been, but they were not there. What we did find was a Blood trail of a wounded elk. There did not seem to be any man tracks following the blood trail. The ground was hard and covered with pine needles. The trail was fresh and easy to follow. We took off after the wounded elk as fast as we could, not knowing the other guys were already following it. They were about a half a mile ahead of us and moving fast. We must have followed the trail a mile or so when we spotted Harry and Bud going over a rocky point of ridge. They were going fast and acting like they were on the trail of something. Uncle Charlie and I gave out and decided to wait for them to come back or signal for us to come help them. After waiting for a couple of hours, they finally came back looking for us. They had quite a story to tell. The two of them had crawled over the ridge top to look down in the next valley. Harry thought he had heard something on the other side. A large bull elk was feeding some cows just over the edge at a flat place on the hill. He was grunting and making weird sounds to keep the cows together. He was in plain sight of Harry less than fifty yards away but straight downhill. Harry took careful aim at a spot-on top of his shoulders hoping to hit the heart. The shot went true to its mark knocking him down, but no bones were broken. The bull jumped to his feet and away he went, bleeding like crazy. The bullet had missed the spine but went through a lung and out the bottom of his chest. The two of them took off after him on the run. A wounded elk knowing he is being followed, will do everything he knows to cover his trail. He jumped logs, walked on top of logs, jumped from brush pile to brush pile, doubled back sharply, and ran in circles. He was bleeding so badly he left a trail despite what he did. They chased him for about five miles altogether. Several times he laid down, but each time managed to get up and run same more. They lost his tracks in a herd of cattle on the Bench Creek summit. They had no way of sorting out which way he had gone from there. They had to give up hoping that he would live.
After hearing their story, we headed back to camp since the day was about gone. Everyone was tired to the bone and needed to rest. I fixed a quick supper of steak, fried Potatoes, and a vegetable. When everyone was full and the cooking stuff put away, we sat around the smoky campfire deciding on what to do the next morning. Harry and Bud Wanted to go back to look for the bull again. We had to hunt somewhere anyway so we would all go look for him together. It would be a hard walk back to where they had lost the trail. We planned on being out the whole day. After a good breakfast, sandwiches were made for the backpacks. We each carried a canteen of water because there was no water at all back in there. There was a good chance to find an elk along the way. We located where the bull had gone through the cattle, then went up a good trail towards the top of a steep mountain. We followed him to the ridge top, and we could see he had gone on over into the next valley. There was no use going any farther because if he had died during the night, he would be spoiled by now. At least we knew where he was headed, but where he would end up was anyone’s guess. A couple of weeks later, Harry talked to some hunters that found a large bull about two miles over the main ridge where the bull was headed. A bear had been feeding on the carcass, but they examined him to see how he had died. They described where the bullet had passed through him from top to bottom and it had also taken off a piece of his heart. How he managed to get that far, we will never know. The entire day was spent wandering around the hills without finding another elk.
Being camped at a high altitude, rain or snow could come in at any time. Clouds were building up in the west looking like just rain. We better get back to camp before a storm hits. It was also getting close to having darkness setting in on us. There was a good trail down Bench Creek, where over the years many elk had used it to cross from the high country to go down to the lower valleys. The trail left the creek and went within a hundred yards of camp. We could follow it in the dark. After supper, we put up a table by the smoky old fire and played a few games of Pinochle to unwind. We pondered on what to do the next day. If it rained, I would not go out at all. Besides, we should have a day of rest before hitting the hills hard again. Rain came down hard most of the night and was still raining in daylight, a good reason to sleep in a little while longer. There were a lot of dishes to be washed up, more firewood to be cut, and we needed to prop up the top of the cooking area because of the rain on top of it. The rain let up in the afternoon, even though the grass would be wet, we wanted to go out hunting for a while. We put on our rain gear and rubber walking shoes, then headed up the ridge behind camp.
Uncle Charlie went out on his own up a different ridge from camp. We knew about where he would be if he shot anything. The elk were hiding from us that afternoon, we left Uncle Charlie sitting under a large spruce tree, where it was dry and went back to camp. A couple of hours later, he came hobbling into camp as he usually walks, with a tale to tell. While sitting under the spruce tree, he would blow on his elk bugle that sounds like a wooden whistle every now and then. A large bull elk must have heard it and came to investigate what was making such a noise. The bull walked right up behind the spruce tree without making a sound before catching his scent. The bull let aloud snort and ran right past him at about twenty feet, startling him badly to say the least. Uncle Charlie never fired a shot as the bull disappeared into the thick timber. We accused Uncle Charlie of taking a short nap, but he denied it. We enjoyed his story and were glad he was back at camp before it was dark. After we heard his tale of woe, we fixed a good hot supper of our usual items. We made the decision that it was again time to pack up the camp to head for home in the morning. We had hoped to have an elk to take home, but we had a wonderful time and made lots of memories.
The next morning, we fixed pancakes and eggs for breakfast. On the days we do not go hunting, pancakes are made because it takes more time to fix them. While I fixed breakfast, the other guys started taking the camp apart. The frame for the cooking area was left tied up in place, but we did take off the plastic to be used next year. We liked the campsite, and we may use it again in the coming year if we hunt this area. We would get together during the coming summer to make more plans.