NEWHunter
Well-known member
Took my Dad out for antelope for the second year in a row. The hunting season extension permit for my Dad was a huge help. My brother came up from Denver and the two of them were able to put it all together on this guy. We applied the art of the Wisconsin deer drive to antelope hunting to make it happen for my Dad as walking is out of the question.
We spent the next couple of days scouting for my 10/1 opener. There was a square mile on the far end of the unit that seemed to consistently hold a pair of bucks. We put them to bed the night before the opener and just after dark I stopped up their primary exit from the pasture. I think this little trick was a key part of the events the next day.
Spent the first hour of opening day trying to get a shot at the bigger of the two bucks with no luck. Based on a previous attempt we made with my Dad on these bucks, I think they would have left the pasture if not for blocking their exit. Relatively flat terrain and 3 inch high grass does not make for good stalking. I regrouped and posted up at the windmill to start glassing again and figure out my next move. After about 5-10 minutes of this I happened to look to my right and on my 4 o’clock an antelope buck was walking by about 20 yards away.
I couldn’t believe what I was seeing. I dropped the binos, grabbed the gun, cranked the scope down, and shouldered the rifle. At this point I fully expected the buck to be headed for the next county. Thankfully the fencing and weeds around the windmill, along with all the noise it was making seemed to provide enough cover. The buck kept walking and I decided I didn’t need to spend the whole day chasing the bigger one around the pasture. Once he cleared the fence, I took one shot at 20 yards and he walked another 20 yards and tipped over. He either didn’t know I was there (thanks windmill) or didn’t care.
Took advantage of my Dad’s scooter crane.
This guy was about to follow his nose right under the truck as I was cutting up my buck.
Hauling out my buck.
It certainly was a challenging hunt as far as WY pronghorn hunts go, and I’m not sure I’ll do another 3rd choice hunt in the near future - but it was doable.
I also had the good fortune of having the adjacent landowner stop to chat as we were loading up my buck. Found out they own a few thousand acres, some of which are irrigated alfalfa. They take one or two trespass fee hunters a year for a price we can afford . . .
We spent the next couple of days scouting for my 10/1 opener. There was a square mile on the far end of the unit that seemed to consistently hold a pair of bucks. We put them to bed the night before the opener and just after dark I stopped up their primary exit from the pasture. I think this little trick was a key part of the events the next day.
Spent the first hour of opening day trying to get a shot at the bigger of the two bucks with no luck. Based on a previous attempt we made with my Dad on these bucks, I think they would have left the pasture if not for blocking their exit. Relatively flat terrain and 3 inch high grass does not make for good stalking. I regrouped and posted up at the windmill to start glassing again and figure out my next move. After about 5-10 minutes of this I happened to look to my right and on my 4 o’clock an antelope buck was walking by about 20 yards away.
I couldn’t believe what I was seeing. I dropped the binos, grabbed the gun, cranked the scope down, and shouldered the rifle. At this point I fully expected the buck to be headed for the next county. Thankfully the fencing and weeds around the windmill, along with all the noise it was making seemed to provide enough cover. The buck kept walking and I decided I didn’t need to spend the whole day chasing the bigger one around the pasture. Once he cleared the fence, I took one shot at 20 yards and he walked another 20 yards and tipped over. He either didn’t know I was there (thanks windmill) or didn’t care.
Took advantage of my Dad’s scooter crane.
This guy was about to follow his nose right under the truck as I was cutting up my buck.
Hauling out my buck.
It certainly was a challenging hunt as far as WY pronghorn hunts go, and I’m not sure I’ll do another 3rd choice hunt in the near future - but it was doable.
I also had the good fortune of having the adjacent landowner stop to chat as we were loading up my buck. Found out they own a few thousand acres, some of which are irrigated alfalfa. They take one or two trespass fee hunters a year for a price we can afford . . .
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