Thanks guys,
It was truly a blessed hunt, and one of the biggest tests of my patience I've ever had. This hunt will definitely stick with me as long as I live.

Nice bull! Your story reminds me of my elk season this year. I drew an Elkhorns tag and saw a lot of nice bulls, but most of them were just out of range. I hunted hard (sick with the flue for a week) and finally filled my tag on the second to last day. I ended up in the doctors office the Monday after the season ended. I can really identify with your story. When you draw a good tag, you feel a lot of pressure to make the most of it.