54 Nebraskaland • January-February 2019
Nebraska's diverse geography off ers a wide range of
hunting opportunities. From grasslands to woodlands to river
bottoms, our state is home to a wide array of wildlife. Many
Game and Parks Commission staff can point to a favorite
hunt. Nebraskaland Regional Editor Eric Fowler details his
ultimate bucket list hunt, elk in the Pine Ridge, below:
"'In Nebraska?' That's what many people will say when I
show them the photo of the bull elk I harvested in the Pine
Ridge in 2007. Not only does Nebraska off er elk hunting,
more than 80 percent of the hunters with bull tags harvest
an elk, and most of the bulls can truly be considered trophy-
class. Sure the odds of drawing a permit are long, but it's like
the lottery: Someone has to win.
As I recall, I was fairly calm as I lay on that hillside in
northeastern Dawes County, waiting for a bull elk I'd just
spotted to walk from behind a rise and present a clear shot.
Considering I'd waited 12 years to draw that permit, and that
I'd missed an opportunity from the same hillside fi ve days
earlier, I'm surprised I was. After the shot … now that was a
diff erent story. I was shaking and my heart was pounding.
Days of scouting, walking, glassing, calling and watching
elk, mostly on the wrong side of the fence, had paid off . My
once-in-a-lifetime hunt was over, and I had a beautiful bull
to show for it."
For more inspiration in planning your next hunting trip in
2019, read other bucket list hunts from Nebraska Game and
Parks staff at OutdoorNebraska.gov/bucketlisthunts/.
BUCKET LIST HUNTS
By Game and Parks Commission Staff
MIXED BAG
