Rob Baker of West Franklin Township, Armstrong County, shot this 851-pound elk bull in 2014. Baker's bull had the largest rack at 11-by-7, 414 inches. It was the largest rack of any bull shot in the state last year.

Bagging an elk in Pennsylvania isn’t just a rare privilege, it’s a once in a lifetime experience, according to one hunter.

“It’s probably the pinnacle of hunting in Pennsylvania. I’ve killed a couple black bears, but it doesn’t compare to killing an elk,” said Rob Baker of West Franklin Township, Armstrong County.

Baker lucked out in 2014 when he was selected by the state for a permit to hunt elk. Thousands of hunters enter a lottery each year for the chance to hunt for elk, both cows and bulls, though only a handful are selected.

Hunting on a private farm in Clearfield County, Baker shot and killed an 851-pound elk bull on Nov. 3. Of the 88 elk killed by hunters last year, Baker’s bull had the largest rack at 11-by-7, measured at 414 inches according to Boone and Crockett big-game scoring standards.

Baker, joined by a friend, said he used Elk County Outfitters, which tracks elk. He spotted his bull on that Sunday night and ended up getting a shot at it Monday.

He hit it six times from about 175 yards away with a scoped rifle while it was stopped at a food plot in a clearing that the farmer had put in to attract deer. He used a high-enough caliber to put it down in that spot and was able to take it to his truck with help from the farmer.

Baker said hunting elk has many similarities to hunting white-tailed deer. People who visit elk country in September can see the animals from viewing areas and often note they are docile and oblivious to humans.

But during the November hunting season, they are just as skittish and easily spooked as deer typically are, he said.

Before he could have it butchered and processed, Baker was required to take the elk to a Pennsylvania Game Commission’s check station. There the carcass is measured, weighed and state employees collect blood and hair samples. Based on its teeth, they determined his bull to be 10 years old.

He later took it to McKruits Meats in Cabot to be butchered and the head and antlers were sent to a taxidermist.

It yielded about the same amount of meat as an adult cow, and the meat is tasty, he said.

“It’s much better than venison. It’s the best game meat I’ve ever tasted,” he said.

Pennsylvania has an estimated elk population of 900, according to the game commission website. The state’s elk management area includes nine counties in the center of the state.

The 2015 elk season runs until Saturday, and hunters will be allowed to kill 21 antlered and 95 antlerless elk.

Elk hunters can use shotguns, rifles, handguns, bows or crossbows, though there are minimum requirements of ammunition size for each type of weapon.

State residents pay $10.70 to enter the lottery and another $25 to buy the license if they are selected. Nonresidents may enter, but they pay larger fees.

Once selected, hunters must wait five years before they are permitted to enter the lottery again.

“To shoot a bull of that caliber out west you’d have to pay thousands of dollars. It’s a once in a lifetime thing for a local guy,” he said.