Yeti GOBOX Collection

A Little Redemption (and a good chunk of luck)

NMGuy

Well-known member
Joined
Aug 12, 2017
Messages
220
Location
Roswell, NM
Well, I got lucky and filled my ML deer tag. Going into this season, I had decided that I wanted an experience and this hunt didn't disappoint. I've had this tag before and have generally had success although I have to admit I've never seen a legal buck I wasn't willing to shoot so I usually come home with some tiny thing with a forked horn. Last year on this hunt I missed the biggest buck of my life at what should have been a chip shot distance. A rushed shot with too little pre-season practice really bit me on that one. This year was different though, I scouted more and shot more so I'd (hopefully) be ready when the time came.

Day 1

Opening morning I headed to an area where I've had repeated success finding bucks in the past. On my drive out, I listened to Randy's podcast with Dr. Bill Wilshire (the foot doc). Little did I know this podcast was speaking to me (although I was too dumb to listen). I got to my spot before daylight and waited, hoping to not see anyone else in the area. My spirits were high as nobody came by, so I parked and got my pack on. As I walked out toward my spot, I found a sinkhole I'd never noticed before. I have to admit, my wife loves murder mysteries and true crime type shows, so we've talked in the past about places to hide a body in the West....this was definitely one of those spots! Upon closer inspection, maybe somebody already used the spot (note the sneaker down in the hole)

Hole2.JPG

I'd had enough with the distraction and moved through the area, but found no bucks. I did find a small group of deer in some very open country and convinced myself one was a buck, so after about an hour of hiking around to get a good angle, I had a staring contest with a doe at about 50 yards before they all bounded off. That "buck" I saw was definitely not a buck.

Since I was already a decent distance into the area, I decided to hike across a valley and up on top of a hill to check another area that looked promising on satellite images. Found a few more does along with a few reminders that I wasn't alone in the form of a few nope rope sheds

Nope.JPG

Well, this is where the podcast should have taught me something... 6.5 miles later I was back at the truck after only seeing a few more does. I was worn out and my feet were quite angry with me. I had stopped partway through to apply moleskin and change socks, which is probably the only thing that saved me from having a really, really bad day. After deciding I had done a little too much, I headed home to rest before the afternoon hunt. A comfy couch got in the way of that afternoon hunt.
 
Day 2

I got up early and headed out to another area where I've had success in the past. What a great way to start a day!

mornin.JPG

The first area didn't have any deer, so we moved to spot two. The hunting was really slow until I was driving along and spotted a deer, then two, then three in a small draw. All three were does, and I had heard from others that the bucks and does were separate, so I didn't have much hope but I decided to go take a look anyway. I parked the truck and worked around from one of the hills. As I got to the top of the hill, I saw no deer, so I took a step and saw no deer, then took another step and 7 deer exploded out of the brush. I saw one was a legal buck down low in the draw, but I dropped down to my knees hoping to not spook them too badly and so I could get a range. The problem here is that I couldn't see the buck from where I was kneeling. Knowing how deer usually behave, I slipped my pack off to use as a rest and waited. As luck would have it, the buck walked straight away then ran off, never giving me a shot. That was the extent of the excitement for the day.
 
Day 3

The weather was supposed to start getting pretty ugly and it was supposed to rain/sleet/snow until around 10:00 so I opted to sleep in. I didn't leave the house until around 8:00, but my hopes of letting the weather pass were quickly shattered as I headed out to freezing sleet with fog.

cold.JPG

The picture doesn't really do it justice. It was just wet enough to mess up my glasses. The original plan was to park and walk into an area, but I quickly realized how miserable that would be so I decided to drive into a different area. I worked my way into some great looking country and got to my spot. As I was working along the side of a hill, I was looking down in the bottom of the draw thinking that's where the deer would be. A quick glance uphill revealed a bachelor group of bucks looking at me. I honestly can't remember if there were 3 or 4, but what I knew for sure was they were all legal and one was standing broadside. I shouldered my ML, squeezed the trigger and heard the telltale thwack of my bullet making contact. To my surprise, the deer didn't really react at the shot to being hit by the 300gr bullet. He stood for a second then kind of stumbled forward before running up over the hill. This is where the highest of highs became a panic. I reloaded the ML as quickly as possible and headed up to where the deer was standing at the shot. I initially found no blood, so I opted to rush up the hill in hopes of seeing him on the other side. As I crested the hill, I was hit in the face by freezing spray that was sticking to my glasses. My hopes sank further as I realized how difficult this was going to be. I glanced to my right and my heart skipped a beat!

surprise.JPG

This isn't a giant, but is the best buck I've shot.

cold buck.JPG
 
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