Sheesh, talk about a MONSTER.
According to the Oregon Department of Fish and Wildlife, an elk skull was found in Union County, Oregon, with antlers with a size of 406 6/8, and it has officially been recorded. The elk’s skull and antlers were found by a cone collecting crew on private timberland in the Catherine Creek area in 2021, and was turned into the ODFW. After measurement and certification, the bull elk took the second place record for a Rocky Mountain elk in Oregon.
This dude was just out and about, picking up pine cones like a toddler, and stumbled upon this behemoth… good enough for the second largest elk in Oregon state HISTORY. Just wow… why can’t I get that lucky?
Mark Penninger, a certified scorer for Northwest Big Game Records Inc., scored the massive elk. Penninger described the elk as “jaw dropping,” and it’s not hard to see why when you look at the picture:
“Bull elk of this caliber are incredibly rare in Oregon but it’s great to see they are still around. This bull is a testament that age, good genetics, and high-quality habitat can produce truly world class elk.”
The ODFW does not track trophy records, but will submit the score to the Northwest Big Game Records Inc. for official placement. This was the first elk since 1984 to record a size higher than 400, when one was found or harvested by Randy Ryerse in Crook County, which is now number four all time in Oregon with a score of 400 0/8.
The number one recorded Oregon elk was scored at 418 2/8 back in 1942 by Hugh Evans, also in Crook County. The previous second largest elk, discovered by Jim Sproul, was scored at 401 1/8 and was displayed at the John Day Elks Lodge, before it was burned down.
Pretty impressive elk they got growing up there in Oregon, I’d say… check it out:
Massive Elk Herd Stops Traffic In Eastern Oregon
Sometimes nature can bring you to a dead stop, whether you like it or not.
The silver lining is that this kind of traffic beats your typical gridlock any day of the week. I guarantee you that you’ve never stopped to admire the hundreds of cars in front of you, but you’d likely be happy to put the car in park to watch hundreds of elk stampede across the road.
Animal-induced traffic is more common than you think. If you don’t believe me, you are welcome to check into this traffic jam that was caused by bison, or feel free to watch this video of a parade of elk running across a Montana highway. When you live out in the nature, you’re obviously more likely to cross paths with it. Or in this case, have your path stopped.
This couple was driving in Eastern Oregon when it looked like a moving roadblock was forming up ahead. They slowly brought their vehicle to a stand still, not because they wanted to, but because they didn’t really have any other choice.
Bull elk and cow elk ran together in an endless stream as they jumped one fence, crossed the road and then launched themselves over the fencing on the other side. Most of the wild animals did it with ease, while others had to recalculate and refocus in order to make the jump and continue on with the herd.
All the people filming could do was get comfortable and watch the beauty of nature play out right in front of their eyes. As can you, since they were kind enough to get it on camera (and provide a little commentary).
Check it out:
Just amazing stuff right there.
And if you were wondering if that’s a normal amount of elk to be included in a herd, let’s just say it’s not out of the ordinary. Herds have been known to be made up by around 400 elk, especially during the summer months.
That’s when the male and female elk come together to form one group like the one you can see in action in the footage above.
