November 2025
Nevada Elk | An Absolute Tank
When my husband told me that I drew an archery bull elk tag in Nevada, I really didn’t know what to expect. All I knew was my competitive spirit wanted to shoot one bigger than my husband. In 2019, my husband Aaron drew in the same area I had and hired Bull Ridge Guide Service. His hunt was short and sweet, killing a 370” bull opening morning. Since then, my husband obtained his subguide license and has been helping BRGS. I had never been on an archery bull hunt before, let alone around any bull in the rut. All I knew was I had a long summer ahead of me to practice and prepare.
Before the hunt started, my husband called Trevor Marques with BRGS, and they both decided the last week of the hunt would provide me with the best experience of what archery hunting bulls in the rut would be like. Trevor said they would provide help when they could and let us know where the best rut activity would be.
We chose to sit some nearby water that Trevor knew bulls were really active around and using consistently. Early morning on day three of the hunt, a solid 360” class bull came right into the water. He stood broadside at 31 yards, bugling. I was beyond excited and shaking! My husband talked me through the shot and helped calm my nerves. I drew back as the bull let out the loudest and closest bugle I had ever heard. I did everything I could to settle the pin on his vitals while trying to ignore the stickers and dry pine needles that were poking into my knees. I released the arrow and saw the bull run away. My husband said the shot looked good but was a touch high.
While we were giving the bull some time, we had contacted the other guys to let them know we had hit a bull. My father-in-law Steve Bostic, Adrian Marques, and the Rowley family (Broc, Richard, and Erik who are all BRGS subguides) showed up a few hours later. From the very beginning tracking, there were very little traces of blood found. We searched for five hours and about five miles from the water but never saw any sign of the bull slowing down. We all agreed the bull would most likely make it and didn’t act any differently than normal. I had never been through such an adrenaline rush of a shot on such a big bull just to be followed up with such disappointment of knowing he got away all in the same day! I wanted to quit right there and go home. My husband encouraged me to stay and get some sleep to recharge my batteries. I had really worked hard all summer and didn’t want to go home empty handed. I knew I would’ve felt like a failure if I had left then.
The next three days were spent chasing bugles with my husband and getting so close to bulls but not having any shot opportunities. From other hunters scaring bulls off driving around while we were within bow range to not getting any shooting lanes while calling, I was getting beyond frustrated. My discouragement was really starting to get the best of me. All the while, the feeling of missing my two children back at home, Leah (10) and Noah (5), increased each day. I started to feel like this wasn’t going to happen for me. I told my husband that the Saturday evening hunt was going to be my last. Although there was still two days left in the season, mentally and emotionally, I was depleted.
The Saturday evening hunt went much like the other evenings, slipping in on giant bulls, getting to within 100 yards, but the bulls wanted nothing to do with my husband’s calls and followed their cows over the next ridge. I was done.
We decided to sleep in and leave for home the next morning. As the morning came, I wanted to make one last stop at a C-A-L Ranch store in Ely, Nevada to get some gifts for our children. While shopping, my husband got a text from Trevor asking us to stay just one more evening. Knowing I needed a little convincing, Trevor suggested we come down to get breakfast. Over our meal, Trevor and Jed Lyon, another BRGS subguide, spent time telling me how I needed to stay. They assured me they would personally take me out to help me get a bull killed. I reluctantly agreed. Now with some new help and feeding off their confidence, I was ready to give it one more shot.
We set out with a new fill of energy, and it wasn’t long until my husband spotted three bulls. One was a giant and two smaller satellites were both last-ditch effort keepers. When Trevor and Jed arrived, they suggested we try for the bigger of the three bulls. It wasn’t long until we started to cow call and were getting bulls screaming at us and coming in. The first bull we called in hung up at about 300 yards, and after my husband examined him, he realized it was the same bull I had hit days before. What a relief seeing him well! Due to our setup, he saw us move, so he wouldn’t come any closer. Another bull was bugling down a canyon from us, but with some failed cow call attempts, it was determined he wasn’t coming in any closer. Trevor suggested that only he and I sneak down the canyon to see if we could get a visual of the bull while my husband and Jed stayed back and called.
We slipped down the canyon slowly and quietly until we could see just part of a bull raking a tree. From the looks, we couldn’t see much of his antlers but knew it was a good bull. Trevor suggested I shoot from where we were at since the bull was occupied raking a tree. We were 57 yards from the bull. I had a little window to shoot through the trees, and it was windy. Trevor helped walk me through my nerves and know where exactly to aim. I drew back, settled my adjustable pin on my Option Archery 6s sight, and let it fly. I didn’t see exactly where the arrow went, but Trevor assured me that the arrow hit the bull perfectly. The bull ran maybe 15 yards and stopped. Not much more than 20 seconds later, he tipped over. I was beyond ecstatic! I couldn’t believe just 30 minutes earlier we were in the truck and trying for a Hail Mary. It worked out so perfectly.
As my husband and Jed walked down to meet us and we hiked up to the bull, we realized this was not just any bull. It was an absolute tank! Like I mentioned, my original goal was to shoot a bull bigger than my husband’s. Trevor measured just a few of his points, and we knew this bull was going to beat my husband’s bull by a lot! I felt so accomplished. I had finally shot a bull with my bow but just not any bull, a once-in-a-lifetime giant bull. I was pumped!
After field dressing the bull and getting back into town, we had time to really examine the bull. The size just kept on growing the more we handled him. As we started to score the bull, the inches kept increasing. After giving it a rough score, we knew this bull was going to make the 400” gross mark. I was in shock that I could have done this. I had wanted to quit so many times and actually did officially quit, if it wasn’t for Trevor and Jed talking me into staying. What really threw me for a loop was that everyone started to say that this bull could be the biggest bull killed in Nevada by a woman with a bow ever! Again, I was in disbelief. I never hunted growing up but was introduced to it by my husband eight years ago when we met. I’ve killed a few animals with my bow up to this point but nothing close to the caliber of this bull. I couldn’t believe that I would ever hold a record for anything, and now possibly hold a state record. It felt so surreal.
As I was taking this rollercoaster of a week all in, I really couldn’t take all the credit. I had such awesome talent all around pushing me. First, my husband, Aaron, who always believed that I could handle the high stakes pressure of a rut bull elk hunt; second, Trevor Marques and all our friends at Bull Ridge Guide Service for their wealth of knowledge and experience, they are truly the best elk hunters in the western United States; and finally, my deceased father who I knew was looking down on me during my hunt with such admiration and telling everyone around him how proud he is of me.