Here is my buck from 2007. He isn't a monster but it was an excellent hunt-public land, DIY;
My dad, wife (Karyn) and I went 3 for 3 on tags over the course of about 5 days hunting. I first saw this buck on opening day while trying to get dad a buck. He gave us the slip, and since dad isn't very picky with horn size we went after some other bucks and he had his by about 8:30 a.m. opening day. A total of about 13 bucks were seen that morning, no big ones. That evening Karyn joined us at camp and she passed up 6 other small bucks (she had only been there 1/2 an hour so she "hadn't hunted long enough"). The next day we hunted until about noon the next day and only saw 3 small bucks on some private land. I hunted by myself the next day and hiked quite hard in a different area. That day only netted 3 buck sightings, a 3 point and 2 4points. The big 4 pt saw me first and disappeared into the bottom of a canyon.
The wife and I went the next weekend and spotted the buck I eventually harvested again, along with several smaller bucks. We watched them move into some thick sage that we figured they would bed in. By this time, Karyn was going to shoot any buck as her time off (being a teacher) is very limited. We snuck through the brush and busted up a couple bucks and does. I sent Karyn around the thick stuff, hoping I could push some more deer to her. She snuck up on a 2 pt and made a great shot on him. She was by herself at that point and was very happy with the hunt. Ironically, I think that she was within about 100 yards of the bigger deer when she shot the small one. It was the herd he was hanging with. We finished the patch without seeing any other deer, then took care of getting her deer out. I decided then that I would come back the next day and try to kill the bigger deer, since I was sure they would be using the same patch again.
The next day I spotted him feeding in about the same place he was the day before. He was again with several smaller bucks and does; I waited a 1/2 hour or so to let them get into the brush where I planned to hunt him and set off. It really helped having walked the patch (which is about 1.5 miles long and 1/2 mile wide) the day before, as I found some depressions in the ground that allowed me to be hidden. I would walk 20-30 yards, poke my head up and glass, walk, glass, walk, glass. Soon I was just past the area where Karyn had shot her deer the day before. I poked my head up slowly and I could see the top of a does head and ears about 50-60 yards out. She knew something was up but couldn't see or smell me. I could see the antler tips of a couple other bucks and some does moving in the brush. None was the big one. I knelt back down and got my rifle off my shoulder and stood back up......no buck, same doe staring my way, other deer moving around. Kneel back down, peak up over the brush again, no buck. Kneel back down and suddenly I heard the dreaded sound of a deer busting out of the brush...its go time...back up with the rifle on the shoulder and there are deer going everywhere in this 5 foot brush. Doe, doe, buck, doe, buck, doe, doe-about 15 deer start bouncing around, not really knowing what was going on. Out of the corner of my eye something stood up, pivoting 90 degrees I saw him standing there with another smaller buck. He was about 60 yard away and all I could see was his horns, head and neck down to the white patch. I put the cross hairs just below the patch and let him have it. He dropped right back into his bed.
The buck is 26" wide.
Sorry about the pictures. The camera was safely at home that day so no field pics and I had to cut him in half to get him out. He dropped about 150 yards from where Karyn shot hers the day before.
Hope everyone else is having fun this fall.
My dad, wife (Karyn) and I went 3 for 3 on tags over the course of about 5 days hunting. I first saw this buck on opening day while trying to get dad a buck. He gave us the slip, and since dad isn't very picky with horn size we went after some other bucks and he had his by about 8:30 a.m. opening day. A total of about 13 bucks were seen that morning, no big ones. That evening Karyn joined us at camp and she passed up 6 other small bucks (she had only been there 1/2 an hour so she "hadn't hunted long enough"). The next day we hunted until about noon the next day and only saw 3 small bucks on some private land. I hunted by myself the next day and hiked quite hard in a different area. That day only netted 3 buck sightings, a 3 point and 2 4points. The big 4 pt saw me first and disappeared into the bottom of a canyon.
The wife and I went the next weekend and spotted the buck I eventually harvested again, along with several smaller bucks. We watched them move into some thick sage that we figured they would bed in. By this time, Karyn was going to shoot any buck as her time off (being a teacher) is very limited. We snuck through the brush and busted up a couple bucks and does. I sent Karyn around the thick stuff, hoping I could push some more deer to her. She snuck up on a 2 pt and made a great shot on him. She was by herself at that point and was very happy with the hunt. Ironically, I think that she was within about 100 yards of the bigger deer when she shot the small one. It was the herd he was hanging with. We finished the patch without seeing any other deer, then took care of getting her deer out. I decided then that I would come back the next day and try to kill the bigger deer, since I was sure they would be using the same patch again.
The next day I spotted him feeding in about the same place he was the day before. He was again with several smaller bucks and does; I waited a 1/2 hour or so to let them get into the brush where I planned to hunt him and set off. It really helped having walked the patch (which is about 1.5 miles long and 1/2 mile wide) the day before, as I found some depressions in the ground that allowed me to be hidden. I would walk 20-30 yards, poke my head up and glass, walk, glass, walk, glass. Soon I was just past the area where Karyn had shot her deer the day before. I poked my head up slowly and I could see the top of a does head and ears about 50-60 yards out. She knew something was up but couldn't see or smell me. I could see the antler tips of a couple other bucks and some does moving in the brush. None was the big one. I knelt back down and got my rifle off my shoulder and stood back up......no buck, same doe staring my way, other deer moving around. Kneel back down, peak up over the brush again, no buck. Kneel back down and suddenly I heard the dreaded sound of a deer busting out of the brush...its go time...back up with the rifle on the shoulder and there are deer going everywhere in this 5 foot brush. Doe, doe, buck, doe, buck, doe, doe-about 15 deer start bouncing around, not really knowing what was going on. Out of the corner of my eye something stood up, pivoting 90 degrees I saw him standing there with another smaller buck. He was about 60 yard away and all I could see was his horns, head and neck down to the white patch. I put the cross hairs just below the patch and let him have it. He dropped right back into his bed.
The buck is 26" wide.
Sorry about the pictures. The camera was safely at home that day so no field pics and I had to cut him in half to get him out. He dropped about 150 yards from where Karyn shot hers the day before.
Hope everyone else is having fun this fall.
