Outdooraddict
Active member
Well, I finally decided to pull the trigger... and shot a descent buck. My father and I had a tag for the season prior and used it for a little scouting expedition. Dad ended up shooting a 3x3 and we were pretty stoked- even though we saw bigger bucks in the area.
Day 1 started off well seeing a lot of bucks that were actively pursuing the ladies. We ran into one descent 4x4 that had a great time chasing chaunch through the oak brush. The first picture is of him. Only minutes later did we see a true monster. He was huge- great width, super tall, but didn't carry too much mass (still a great buck). Before I could ready myself he jumped onto private land- I blew it. I wasted my time checking him out in the binos. I knew this was the buck I'd be chasing the next few days and he would probably ruin my hunt as I would compare all the other bucks to him.
Day 2 we saw my buck first thing in the morning as we drove in to our parking area. He had moved 300 yards south and I am kicking myself that I didn't take enough time to glass the area efficiently. We park the vehicle, run to the canyon and watch as he glides into private. Minutes later we see a 4x3- looks like a baby compared to the monster. Dad and I spend the rest of the day passing bucks. One was was bedded down (3rd pic) and the other was a pretty good buck (4th pic). He was tall and an ok 4 on the left side- didn't quite pass his ears. His right was more like a whitetail with a main beam which was wider than his ears. Dad and I argued, but he just wasn't the "one". Another buck was spotted on our way out- he was super tall, good mass, but his antlers curved in and nearly touched. Another argument with dad
No pic, but he was a neat buck too.
Day 3 I hunted with my father-in-law and the first thing we saw was the 4x3. He was much wider than I had thought but I still had my sights set high. Never found my monster. We passed a lot of bucks that day... we talked over a few 4x4s and that 3x4- I just couldn't do it.
Day before last day- hunted hard and covered a lot of ground. Passed some more- and father-in-law is now worried (myself included) if I have lost my opportunity at a large buck. We head to a water hole and see a descent buck. I load my rifle, set it on him and judge... nope- not the monster. I walk back to my father-in-law who politely explains, "Shoot that son of a bitch" We discuss and he talks me into checking him out again. I go about 100 yards and glass him again. He's got good mass and is pretty symmetrical- just not that wide. Now I'm fighting with myself as to the decision I'm going to make. The weather the next day was supposed to snow and have winds up to 40+ mph. In my limited experience- the wind has caused my critters to hunker down- making it extremely difficult to spot. Would I see another buck like this on the last day? BLAH, blah, blah. So, I shoot. He's not the biggest buck (in fact, after I shot, a larger buck blew up out of the brush ) but I am extremely happy with the hunt and the buck. And I would never trade the time I spent hunting with my dad (and father-in-law) for any buck out there. Thanks Boys!
Day 1 started off well seeing a lot of bucks that were actively pursuing the ladies. We ran into one descent 4x4 that had a great time chasing chaunch through the oak brush. The first picture is of him. Only minutes later did we see a true monster. He was huge- great width, super tall, but didn't carry too much mass (still a great buck). Before I could ready myself he jumped onto private land- I blew it. I wasted my time checking him out in the binos. I knew this was the buck I'd be chasing the next few days and he would probably ruin my hunt as I would compare all the other bucks to him.
Day 2 we saw my buck first thing in the morning as we drove in to our parking area. He had moved 300 yards south and I am kicking myself that I didn't take enough time to glass the area efficiently. We park the vehicle, run to the canyon and watch as he glides into private. Minutes later we see a 4x3- looks like a baby compared to the monster. Dad and I spend the rest of the day passing bucks. One was was bedded down (3rd pic) and the other was a pretty good buck (4th pic). He was tall and an ok 4 on the left side- didn't quite pass his ears. His right was more like a whitetail with a main beam which was wider than his ears. Dad and I argued, but he just wasn't the "one". Another buck was spotted on our way out- he was super tall, good mass, but his antlers curved in and nearly touched. Another argument with dad
No pic, but he was a neat buck too.Day 3 I hunted with my father-in-law and the first thing we saw was the 4x3. He was much wider than I had thought but I still had my sights set high. Never found my monster. We passed a lot of bucks that day... we talked over a few 4x4s and that 3x4- I just couldn't do it.
Day before last day- hunted hard and covered a lot of ground. Passed some more- and father-in-law is now worried (myself included) if I have lost my opportunity at a large buck. We head to a water hole and see a descent buck. I load my rifle, set it on him and judge... nope- not the monster. I walk back to my father-in-law who politely explains, "Shoot that son of a bitch" We discuss and he talks me into checking him out again. I go about 100 yards and glass him again. He's got good mass and is pretty symmetrical- just not that wide. Now I'm fighting with myself as to the decision I'm going to make. The weather the next day was supposed to snow and have winds up to 40+ mph. In my limited experience- the wind has caused my critters to hunker down- making it extremely difficult to spot. Would I see another buck like this on the last day? BLAH, blah, blah. So, I shoot. He's not the biggest buck (in fact, after I shot, a larger buck blew up out of the brush
) but I am extremely happy with the hunt and the buck. And I would never trade the time I spent hunting with my dad (and father-in-law) for any buck out there. Thanks Boys!
