Monarch Bull Elk - 9x8 Antlers

A massive 9×8 Bull Elk
As you move quietly through the woods, every step careful to avoid the crunch of leaves underfoot, the distant sound of branches cracking and hooves shifting in the brush catches your attention. There he is, standing tall and proud at the edge of a small clearing. His antlers are wide and sweeping, a crown of bone, crowned with the wear of the rutting season. It’s his breath and eyes, not just the rack that captures your attention.

It’s then and without warning, the bull elk throws his head back and releases a powerful bugle. His breath explodes in a thick cloud of mist, rising in the frigid air. The cold seems to freeze the very breath in his chest, and it spills out in a visible puff, like a ghostly fog.

One just stands there, motionless, absorbing the full power of the moment—the wild, untamed energy of the rutting season, the call of a bull elk in his prime.

Eric Seemann is “ The Wildlifer”