DAN SIMMONS Sportsman's Quest MORE COLUMNS SPECIAL TO THE PVT Drew Calvert experienced the thrill of a first hunt, when he bagged this elk at Table Mountain, in northern Nye County. Advertisement

Last week, we talked about the necessity of transportation to get us to where game is more plentiful and hunters are fewer.

This week I received an e-mail and a call from a fellow sportsman, Drew Calvert, who recently demonstrated the benefit of a good 4x4 (250 Ram Diesel) and horse combination.

Drew lives in Pahrump, works in Las Vegas and spends most of his free time hunting and fishing with his wife, Anna, and daughters, Lillian and Bethany.

They are regulars out of San Diego's H & M Landing, with several long- and medium range trips each year for yellowtail and sea bass.

I have the feeling we'll be hearing more about those trips as the season comes to an end.

You'll see from what follows that Drew can tell a pretty good story. This one is about something close to my heart, elk hunting on Table Mountain in Northern Nye County.

He only drew a cow tag this year, but that didn't curb his enthusiasm. He and his friend, Steve Sauder, put together a serious outfit, did their research and had the hunt of a lifetime.

It was Drew's first elk and a common theme in this column is my respect for "firsts."

Whether it be first elk, first fish, first car or first kiss, it can only happen once and will never be forgotten. Think of all your "firsts" and you'll understand the significance of this first elk.

I'm sure there will be many in Drew's future, and they will include some great bulls, but this will have to do until he gets his first really big one. That will be another story.

Drew has been lucky with tags over the years, having drawn several deer tags, and as you read this he's getting ready for another elk hunt in Utah.

It will be another cow tag, but that doesn't diminish the anticipation of getting into the bush and spending time in the footsteps of our forefathers.

Other common themes for Sportsman's Quest are tradition and family. Drew exemplifies the best of sportsmanship. He and his family are dedicated as they plan and work together.

'My First Elk'

I was pleasantly surprised when I learned this summer that I had drawn my first cow elk tag in Nevada's Table Mountain wilderness area, in the Moniter Mountain range.

This is where I decided to hunt with my good friend, Steve Sauder. Steve has intimate knowledge of the area and provided the horses to get where we needed to go.

So, on Sept. 29, we packed what we would both need for a week, loaded it on horseback and headed some 20 miles up the mountain. We arrived in the evening, set up camp and had a nice dinner, watched the sunset and hit the tents early.

Monday morning was the opener, and we were up before sunrise. We chose to hike about half a mile up to a hilltop for some glassing. We saw easily more than 150 head of elk in the surrounding areas.

It was amazing to see that the individual herds were in full rut, with the bulls screaming at one another across the canyons. We hiked back to camp, grabbed the horses and rode to where we had glassed a bunch of elk an hour earlier.

Fifteen minutes later, we got on our first group of about 30, but by the time I got off the horse, got my rifle out of the scabbard, and settled in, they were out of range.

This same scenario would play out two more times that day before we went back to camp and got dinner going.

As we were cooking dinner we could see clearly that several elk had made their way to the mountain range near camp. All night long I heard the bulls bugling at one another; I could barely sleep from all the noise and excitement.

Steve and I woke up to freezing temps Tuesday morning and hiked only about two miles out of camp when we spotted a herd of 35 elk.

Putting a stalk on them, we got within shooting range and Steve says, "108 yards on the rangefinder."

I picked the biggest cow I could find, got her lined up in the cross hairs and squeezed the trigger. Nothing. I cleared the action and repeated the procedure.

Nothing.

The herd wandered off into the timber and I said to Steve, "That seemed farther than 108 yards." He responded, "I said 308 yards." Oh well, I guess the adrenaline was really flowing and I may have been a little excited with my first elk.

We hiked back to camp, grabbed the horses and rode around the beautiful country.

We saw a ton of mule deer but not one elk. When we got back to camp we had a nice dinner and could hear bugling a few miles away, which continued again throughout the night.

Wednesday morning we were up an hour before sunrise, grabbed some coffee, tacked up the horses and followed the sounds of bugling elk. We spotted a nice herd of 40 plus elk about 1,000 yards away, and only 30 minutes out of camp.

I jumped off the horse, grabbed my 300 Win. Mag. and stalked the herd till I got within 225 yards. There was one huge 6X6 bull that I had in my crosshairs at one point. It was amazing to watch him chasing the smaller bulls and herding the cows.

At about 8 a.m., I picked the biggest cow I could find in the herd and dropped her in her tracks. What a beautiful animal.

Now the work really began. It took Steve and me about four hours to dress, skin and quarter the animal which weighed over 400 pounds.

We were about five miles from camp so we decided that we would pack two horses with 250 pounds of dressed meat, and Steve would head back down the mountain with the horses. I hiked back to camp and spent the night by myself. Thursday morning, Steve came back to get me and our gear. We rode back down the 20-mile trek to the truck and called it a hunt.

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Good luck on your next hunt, Drew. My hat is off to you and I offer you this toast: straight shots, tight lines and fair chase.

Events

Here's the big one -- a chance to win an African Safari for two at The Mount Charleston Chapter of the Rocky Mountain Elk Foundation's 10th annual banquet at the Mountain Falls Clubhouse Nov. 1.

This popular banquet gets bigger, better, and more exciting each year, thanks to the dedicated committee headed by Mike and Tracie Dreyer.

This is the one you won't want to miss. For more information, contact Michael or Tracie Dreyer at 1-775-209-6750.

The Las Vegas Chapter of Ducks Unlimited is holding its annual Wetlands banquet at The Orleans Hotel and Casino in Las Vegas, Nov. 15.

Doors open at 5 p.m.

For more information contact Cliff Russell at 1-702- 378-5598 or Scott Bowles at 1-702-461-8779

The Las Vegas, Desert Chapter of the Safari Club International is holding its banquet at the Rio in Las Vegas Jan. 19.

For more information, contact Dave Small at 1-702-334-3860, Rance Spurlock at 1-702-564-5668, Chris Petersen at 1-702-873-1094 or Marian Hinebauch at 1-702-419-6516.

Recipe of week

This was Anna's first elk, too, and here is a great recipe for her to start with. It's basic and I would encourage experimentation with variations.

If I have the family figured out right, they'll all be in the kitchen together playing with this one. Also worth mentioning is Drew's hobby of smoking wild game.

Needless to say, my old pard, Seldom (we haven't heard from him for awhile) and I are always ready for a taste-test.

Anna's First

Tasty Elk Steaks

Ingredients: 4 1-inch thick elk steaks; 7 tbsp. butter; 1/4 cup onion, chopped; 4 tbsp. red wine; 1/2 cup beef broth; 1/2 tbsp. molasses; 1/4 tsp. Lawry's seasoning salt; 1/4 cup brandy; 1/4 cup sour cream; 2 tbsp. whole peppercorns.

Directions: Sauté onions in butter until slightly browned. Add wine, broth and molasses. Continue cooking until liquid is reduced by half. Apply seasoning salt to the steak on both sides. Cook the steaks to your preferred doneness. Put steaks aside, lower heat to low and add brandy. Ignite brandy in the pan and allow flames to subside, burning off the alcohol.

Add sour cream and peppercorns. Heat mixture stirring constantly; do not allow it to boil. Pour over steaks and serve.

This goes well with your favorite salad and side dishes.

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If you have an adventure, a story or a comment give me a call at 727-9777 or e-mail me at dansimmons@usa.net.