Wyoming Wildlife magazine - 27

the August sun, our surroundings desiccated
and prickly.
I casually studied the wrinkled maps
floating around his truck. We wound up
on a plateau where we saw the plains below
and the Ferris Mountains rising above us.
From there, the road became a rutty ravine
and a jumble of broken spruce trees. Unable
to drive further, we started walking up the
mountain.
I had been to this area in early spring
and was shocked when I turned my head
to look down the valley and saw hundreds
of elk, all together, silent, in the snow. It
struck me then, the nameless lives that are
born, that live with intractable beauty, that
fall away, without comment, without notice.
Generation after generation of innumerable
species, living in another sphere, where time
isn't measured in trips to Starbucks or going
to the gym. Time on this earth can feel short
when the elk remain at a distance, unknown
gods of another realm.
We hiked up the mountain for an hour.
We decided to keep going until the light
faded. We didn't have headlamps. Just before
twilight, we saw them above us on a ridge:
soft, brown dots on a moss-green carpet.
We got out the binoculars and took turns
spotting more and more. It reminded me of
something I heard about mushroom hunting
- it's hard to spot the first one, but then you
start seeing them everywhere. We thought
maybe we'd seen the whole herd when I
saw eight more. The sky turned orange and
lavender.
"You spotted the last elk," Dave said, as
if it were a special thing. He scanned the
distance one last time to make sure I deserved
the distinction. We watched the elk until
they disappeared into the darkness. We could
see the headlights of trucks in the distance.
On opening day Dave got his elk. As
always, he reserved a roast or two for the
elk sauerbraten he knew Elke would cook.

The night of the elk sauerbraten feels on
par with old-timey Christmas. Dave decants
a bottle of black-currant wine. Elke pulls the
pretzels from the oven. We all gather around
the basket. She puts out a chub of butter
which we eat with the heavenly twists and
jammy wine.
Will pulls the elk roast from the oven and
cuts four thin slices. We stand around the

Will "The Spaetzlist" presses the spaetzle into boiling water. (Photo by Kate O'Hara)

Dave walks the high country during bow season to no avail. He harvested a bull during rifle season. (Photo by Doug Tunison)

		

Wyoming Wildlife | 27



Wyoming Wildlife magazine

Table of Contents for the Digital Edition of Wyoming Wildlife magazine

Table of contents
Cover
From the director
A couple pennies
Letters to the editor
Opening shot
News
Project profiles
Ask Game and Fish
Case files
In the Field
The terrestrial extra
Elk and Elke
Earrings with info
Still in Love
Wild country dispatch
Wyoming Wildlife magazine - Cover
Wyoming Wildlife magazine - From the director
Wyoming Wildlife magazine - Table of contents
Wyoming Wildlife magazine - A couple pennies
Wyoming Wildlife magazine - Letters to the editor
Wyoming Wildlife magazine - Opening shot
Wyoming Wildlife magazine - 7
Wyoming Wildlife magazine - News
Wyoming Wildlife magazine - 9
Wyoming Wildlife magazine - 10
Wyoming Wildlife magazine - 11
Wyoming Wildlife magazine - 12
Wyoming Wildlife magazine - Project profiles
Wyoming Wildlife magazine - Ask Game and Fish
Wyoming Wildlife magazine - Case files
Wyoming Wildlife magazine - In the Field
Wyoming Wildlife magazine - 17
Wyoming Wildlife magazine - The terrestrial extra
Wyoming Wildlife magazine - 19
Wyoming Wildlife magazine - 20
Wyoming Wildlife magazine - 21
Wyoming Wildlife magazine - 22
Wyoming Wildlife magazine - 23
Wyoming Wildlife magazine - Elk and Elke
Wyoming Wildlife magazine - 25
Wyoming Wildlife magazine - 26
Wyoming Wildlife magazine - 27
Wyoming Wildlife magazine - 28
Wyoming Wildlife magazine - 29
Wyoming Wildlife magazine - Earrings with info
Wyoming Wildlife magazine - 31
Wyoming Wildlife magazine - 32
Wyoming Wildlife magazine - 33
Wyoming Wildlife magazine - 34
Wyoming Wildlife magazine - 35
Wyoming Wildlife magazine - 36
Wyoming Wildlife magazine - 37
Wyoming Wildlife magazine - Still in Love
Wyoming Wildlife magazine - 39
Wyoming Wildlife magazine - 40
Wyoming Wildlife magazine - 41
Wyoming Wildlife magazine - 42
Wyoming Wildlife magazine - 43
Wyoming Wildlife magazine - 44
Wyoming Wildlife magazine - 45
Wyoming Wildlife magazine - Wild country dispatch
Wyoming Wildlife magazine - 47
Wyoming Wildlife magazine - 48
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