Cado's Hunting Story for English 1010

My First Hunt

Bzzzzz! Bzzzzz! I suddenly wake up to the vibrating sound of my alarm clock. I reach over and pick up my phone to turn it off and realize that it is only 3:00 a.m. This is way too early to wake up for a silly hunt I think to myself. I squirm out of bed and immediately feel the want to crawl back into the safety of my warm covers. I reach out my arms to turn on the light and quickly realize how bright it is.  After closing my eyes for a few seconds, they finally adjust. There, in the middle of the bedroom floor, lay all my hunting clothes that I had previously set out the night before. I grudgingly put them on thinking that this whole event is a waste of my precious sleeping time. I brush my teeth and make my way to the upstairs to find my brother and dad anxiously ready to go. There are a few significant memories that will remain with us throughout our lives. Little did I realize that this early morning would become one of them.

Now for a little background:  the Law’s and hunting are two words you normally don’t put in the same sentence. My family and I had done a little hunting but had never killed anything. In fact my dad had taught me that a successful hunt meant going up to the mountains, eating a tasty Dutch-oven supper then going home, empty handed, the next morning. When I was fourteen, I decided I wanted to take hunters safety because my friends were taking it as well. The following year my brothers and I put in for a once in the lifetime hunt, in the Uintah Bookcliffs, never thinking we would actually get it.  People normally wait ten to fifteen years for this opportunity.  With my luck though, I drew out my very first year! With this lucky, draw the Law’s were going hunting.  

It is now 3:30 a.m. and I look out the window and see bright headlights coming up our lane. I yell to the others that Ken, our hunting guide and the only person who truly knows how to hunt, is here and we head out the door. I realize that it’s pretty chilly in the middle of the night at the end of November. My dad packs the supplies in the back of Ken’s truck and we all jump in. The smooth road lulls me to a deep sleep. I slumber for a precious hour when I abruptly wake up from hitting a bumpy dirt road. We drive another thirty minutes until we decide to stop and look around.

Ken pulls out his binoculars and immediately sees a small herd of elk. He can see a couple elk bulls but isn’t close enough to know how big they are or if there is the prize bull we are looking for. The decision is made to hike closer to get a better look. We get the supplies we need and my dad hands me the gun. This is the point where it hits me: I am scared to death of this gun. It is a 338 which is a huge weapon that is used to take down the biggest of animals. I’ve never shot this gun before and I’m terrified it’s going to knock me down when I try.

The others, one at a time, crawl through the barbwire fence. I have no choice but to awkwardly follow as I maneuver the gun. The sun is finally starting to rise and it’s just cold enough that I can see my breath. I have so much adrenaline at this point that the cold doesn’t bother me anymore. We start trekking up a small hill and hike for a half an hour going in and out of trees. I can smell the fresh scent of pine and eventually the trees begin to fade out and we come to a large clearing.

I dodge patches of mud form the recent snow melt. Ken guides the way, telling us to walk quietly and not to talk. I follow Ken and I know why we haven’t seen the elk. Most would think my brother and dad were trying to step on every stick possible. We trudge on and by this time I just want to turn back and go to the truck. My legs feel heavy and my arms ache from holding the gun.  We hike for another half hour when we see a small brown shadow that we know is a bull elk off in the distance.

If my adrenaline wasn’t going crazy before, it sure was now. I can feel my heart pounding thinking that it was going to scare the bull off.  I can’t believe this is really happening and can’t help but think this is definitely the biggest animal the Law family will ever find. Ken tells my dad and brother to stay behind so they won’t scare off the bull. Ken and I creep closer till were about one hundred yards away. He hands me the gun and holds the shooting stick out for me to rest the gun on. I can’t focus the scope onto the bull because I’m shaking so badly. I gaze into the scope and right when I see something that looks like an elk, I impulsively fire. I have no clue if I hit it or not. It’s still standing in the same place. Ken tells me to fire again, so I do. I fire a total of three ear shattering shots when the bull starts to walk nonchalantly out of our view.

None of us know if my bullet hit the bull or if I was completely off. By this point my brother and dad come over and we decide to start walking towards where the elk once stood.  As we get closer we can tell where he has been walking. We follow the trail and suddenly see a small spot of blood on the frosty, muddy ground. At this point I can’t believe that I actually may have hit him. We walk about twenty more feet and there behind a small blue spruce lay one of the most majestic animals I have ever seen. I feel humble and in awe at the same time.

Sometimes a moment in time will freeze and be with us forever. That chilly, November morning, when I pulled myself out of bed and grudgingly got dressed to go hunting, is one of those significant moments. The darkness of the night, the weight of the gun, the pounding of my heart, and the awe I felt, standing next the magnificence of that bull elk, will be forever engrained in my heart.