It’s been since 1958 since an elk was shot in Giles County, Virginia.
That is until local outdoorsman Wesley Woodyard pulled the trigger earlier this month on a beautiful bull, baffling locals as to where the animal came from. Having spent his whole life hunting these woods, he too was taken aback when the large bull showed up on his trail camera earlier this year.
State officials continue to look for clues as to how the elk ended up in Gile County and have since taken DNA samples of Wesley’s bull to dig a little deeper. The suspicion is that the el originated from the herd in nearby Buchanan.
“We’ve got about 200 in Buchanan County. In about 50 or so down in Wise county and there are some elk that are spread out in other counties as well and southwest Virginia.” State Wildlife Biologist Jackie Rosenberger said.
“As a hunter, I hope everybody gets a chance to witness and do what I’ve gotten to do,” Woodyard said.
The hunter is awaiting the final results from the state’s tests.
