Kansas man wants to bag one last elk hunt in Wyoming before retiring from sport

A Kansas man who’s hunted all over the West says he wants his final “retirement” elk hunt to be in Wyoming. “It’s still one of the great Western states that’s untouched and unspoiled,” Tom Rives, 65, told Cowboy State Daily.

Rives is a lifelong hunter who has hunted pronghorn in Wyoming and elk in the Colorado mountains. “When they tell you that’s hard, you don’t realize just how hard it is until you try it,” he said. He’s been “playing the points game” — saving up preference points to increase his odds of drawing a premium Wyoming elk tag. He considers this upcoming hunt his last elk hunt, with age being a factor.

“When you get my age, you can see the end of the tunnel and you can do about half of what you could do a decade ago, you start thinking, ‘Now is the time,'” for that crowning elk hunt, he said.

Rives loves Wyoming and has visited every corner of the state. He knows how steep, high and rugged the best elk hunt areas are. “You’ve got to have legs” to hunt the high country, so he’s kept in shape by staying active. He’s also bracing himself for the altitude change. “I’m a flatlander. So, anytime you get up there in altitude, it’s going to get to you,” he said.

Other states might have better chances at a trophy-sized bull in flatter country. But Rives doesn’t want his final elk hunt anywhere but Wyoming. “I think a lot of it has to do with just a love for the state in general,” he said. “It’s still one of the great Western states that I would call untouched and unspoiled.”

Rives hasn’t yet selected which hunt areas to apply for, or whether he’ll do a solo hunt or hire an outfitter. “There’s so much satisfaction in a solo DIY hunt, so that would be my preference,” he said. “But there are some realities to consider, and it would be nice to have some help.” He wants a bull, though it doesn’t need to be a record-book trophy.

Along with age, Rives said he’s decided to retire from elk hunting because applying for tags has become so complicated. “I’m at the point where I’m tired of playing the points game,” he said. “Back 20 to 40 years ago, it was a lot simpler game getting hunting tags.”

Avid hunter Bruce Cooper, 66, of Bondurant, said packing out a bull elk last fall still “challenged” him. The bull was about 1.5 miles from a motorized trail in rugged terrain. “It took us three solid trips” to get the meat and antlers out, Cooper said. “We could go about 100 yards at a time, and then we’d have to find a log to sit down and rest.”

Cooper said he’s not sure how much longer he can keep backpacking elk out. “Even in the condition I’m in, unless I go to using horses, I’m looking at maybe another three years” of hunting in Wyoming’s rugged mountains, he said.

For Rives, the decision is made: one last hunt in Wyoming, then retirement from elk hunting for good. The flatlander from Kansas is coming back one last time. The mountains are calling, and he’s answering. After that, he’ll hang up his rifle and cherish the memories. But for now, the hunt is on. And there’s no place he’d rather be.