Listening to a wild Missouri elk bugle for the first time was one of the most moving and inspiring moments I've ever experienced in the outdoors.
To witness a native wildlife species, especially an animal as majestic as the elk, returning to the lands on which they belong is simply astounding.
Those of us who cherish wildlife and wild lands recognize and thank the conservationists who came before us for their gifts of restoration. If it were not for concerned citizens back in the 1930s, we wouldn't have white-tailed deer and turkey today. Waterfowl would be non-existent and countless other non-game species would have disappeared from our lands. Because of the conservation ethic that swept our state nearly a century ago, we are flush with game in Missouri; game that inhabits healthy, rich environments.
Some fail to recognize we are still restoring wildlife to our landscape today. Future generations will have today's conservationists to thank for elk and black bears. We are writing our own chapter in the history of Missouri conservation. Our children and our children's children will hear stories of how our generation repopulated elk in the Missouri Ozarks. They'll have common opportunities to view, photograph, listen to and even hunt wild Missouri elk. Such opportunities were lost on generations of Missourians.
Today, there are an estimated 125 elk living on Peck Ranch Conservation Area, Current River Conservation Area and private lands around the two public properties. I suggest you visit and witness history in the making. Go listen to a bull elk bugle. Watch a harem of cows work their way across a lush green field. Be a part of history.
"Seeing elk in the wild is an awe-inspiring experience, and we are very excited about offering this additional place where people can enjoy elk in October, when bulls are bugling and trees are blazing with fall color," Elk program manager David Hasenbeck said.
You should make a trip out the experience. Grab a cabin in Eminence or a surrounding town. Shady Lane Cabins, which are right down town Eminence and on the banks of the Jacks Fork River, are within walking of all the restaurants and amenities this little outdoor hamlet has to offer.
The elk are best viewed at dawn and dusk, leaving the rest of your day free for a hike, springs tour, picnic or float down either the Jacks Fork of Current River. Take your binoculars with you. And be sure to take along a camera that has a long lens or a good zoom. The elk can be quite close or a couple hundred yards away.
"We encourage people to take photographs from their vehicles," says Hasenbeck, "but please do not disturb elk or other wildlife in any way. It's also important for visitors to know that gravel roads on Peck Ranch may not be accessible to vehicles without adequate ground clearance, and some roads may be impassible at times due to high water at stream crossings."
The elk driving tour routs at Peck Ranch will be closed for managed hunts Oct. 31-Nov. 2, Nov. 15-25, and Dec. 6-7. For more information about tours, call the 855-MDC-ELK (855-263-2355). For information about the tour at Current River, call 573-663-7130.
See you down the trail ...
Brandon Butler, the executive director of Conservation Federation Missouri, is an outdoors columnist for the News Tribune. Contact him at [email protected].