The Outdoor Line

This massive 10X9 elk taken in the Yukon Territories in September scored 451 5/8 Boone and Crockett. Just when you thought elk couldn't get any bigger! The huge bull was taken by long-time Canadian sheep hunting guide, Al Klassen, and after deductions from the 2nd and 3rd points net scored 402 3/8 Boone and Crockett. After 50 years in the Yukon it's safe to assume that an even larger elk is hanging out in the Yukon. More on the Yukon elk herd below...

A Short History of the Yukon Elk Herd

Rocky Mountain elk were first planted in the Yukon in 1951 and 1954, with 49 total elk released along the Dawson Trail west of Braeburn. Another 117 elk were released over the next 15 years and the elk herd never seemed to grow as well as biologists thought it would, only replenishing itself on a yearly basisi for decades. Then in the mid 1990's the herd began to grow, almost doubling in the course of two or three years to around 265 animals. Whether global warming was the cause of the sudden increase in population or a lack of predators, no one really knows. The herds growth finally warranted hunting the last couple of years after several incidents on the highway and an elk tick outbreak within the herd. 15 permits were issued in 2009 and Al Klassen was lucky enough to draw one of them.