I had my guide, Andy Joe, check him out through the scope for confirmation. He agreed it was a nice one. Andy estimated the distance at better than two miles and the time necessary to get into position for the stalk at near an hour. There was, he reminded me, no guarantee that the stag would still be bedded on the ridge by the time we got there, and it would be a three hour hike back to camp with the meat if we connected. Off we went.
Arrow marks the spot where bull was bedded when first spotted.
I dropped most of my gear with Andy and started the final stalk on my own. It did not take long. I had barely caught my breath when the stag got to his feet and started feeding away from me without ever offering a decent shot. He was in no hurry and seemed to be following a doe that had been bedded about a hundred yards further up the ridge. Dropping down into the spruces I was able to move along parallel to the ridge top at a good clip, getting into position a few yards from the trail the doe had used to disappear off the ridge into deeper cover a few minutes earlier.