MT Grocery run

[mtlion]

This year the wife and I drew our second choice MT antelope tags. Usually we hunt on a friend's ranch and have it more or less to ourselves, but this unit has little for acces and ranchers who let me on in the past were either not allowing hunting this year, were full, or not answering their phones. Due to the lack of access and a bit of a time crunch the wife and I decided going in that we would take the first goats we saw. I had 2 tags and she had 1. We waited an a known flat for the first couple hours of opening morning hoping for neighboring hunters to push them through but no luck. We had about a section and a half we could hunt and the back side we couldn't see so we decided to walk down and take a look. After a while I spotted a lone buck bedded on the other side of the bowl in a stalkable position so we took off for him. We got to the top of the ridge he was on with the plan of dropping in on him from above so my wife could get a shot. As we crested the ridge we saw another buck about a mile off the was rutting does all over the place. I could see his does wanted to come where we were pretty bad but he didn't want to let them. We sat and watched them for a few minutes and the does made a break for it. I had to make a very fast 1/4 mile jog to get in position for a shot. I got to a small knob and got set up after a minute or so he presented a broadside shot and I squeezed it off. I saw him buck and put a second one in him dropping him. As we sat there high fiving we saw 2 does come over the ridge and bed down several hundred yards away. After a quick discussion my wife said she'd fill her tag with a doe and I still had a doe tag in my pocket. We had forgotten all about the first buck we had been stalking...As we got within 300 yards of the does, mid-stalk, I looked over to my left and there was the first buck we had been stalking, I saw him as he stood up from his bed broadside at 100 yards. I quickly got the wife set up on the shooting sticks and she made a beautiful double lunger. After her buck dropped the does remained bedded. I quickly continued my stalk and made it to 200 yards before one stood up and I put her back in her bed When it was all said and done we had filled our 3 tags in about 10 minutes of quick action. After tagging and some quick photos the wife walked back to the truck for game sacks and the cart while I worked on quartering the antelope.

The country we hunted.

My buck.

The wifes...

Booner the eskimo dog helping with the pack out.

 

[mtlion]

Now we were done by noon opening day so we decided to look for a turkey for the wife. Long story short we had several encounters that evening and the next morning with the same two toms that culminated in a swing and a miss by the wife After we ran all the turkeys we could find off the ranch we decided it was time for some grouse hunting. The wife wanted to get a little revenge on some feathered creatures. we headed out to some state and block managment that offer up some excellent sharpie and hun hunting but there were so many antelope hunters and other bird hunters out we decided alittle drive for some mountain grouse would offer alittle more solitude. So we gassed up and headed up in the hills. Right off the bat I missed a big coyote with the .270 We headed up into an area I have always done well in and started up a closed road on foot. The grouse were out big time!! In a mile and half we had flushed 8 and the wife got 1 and I got 2.

Pretty good grocery run and tons of fun.

 

[mtmiller]

Nice trip to the store.

 

[mdunc8]

That's a good start for sure.

 

[mtlion]

Check out this recipe for the grouse:

1/2 C chicken broth
1/3 C soy sauce
1/3 C olive oil
1/4 C honey
1 tsp worcestershire
2 tsp lemon juice
1 tsp sesame oil
2 Tbls minced garlic
1 Tbls chopped candied ginger

Add all ingredients in crockpot, this recipe is a single. For 3 birds I will likely double it, you want it covering or nearly covering the birds. You can either whip it up and cook it immediately or soak them in the sauce overnight first. Cook on low until birds are done and serve with fried rice.Works with any game bird and I have used a whole chicken as well. Dinner tomorrow!

 

[----]

Check out this recipe for the grouse:

1/2 C chicken broth
1/3 C soy sauce
1/3 C olive oil
1/4 C honey
1 tsp worcestershire
2 tsp lemon juice
1 tsp sesame oil
2 Tbls minced garlic
1 Tbls chopped candied ginger

Add all ingredients in crockpot, this recipe is a single. For 3 birds I will likely double it, you want it covering or nearly covering the birds. You can either whip it up and cook it immediately or soak them in the sauce overnight first. Cook on low until birds are done and serve with fried rice.Works with any game bird and I have used a whole chicken as well. Dinner tomorrow!

That sounds really good. I had a group of four sit five feet from me for ten minutes while archery hunting, was kicking myself for not bringing a pistol.

The lope hunt sounds like a blast, considering the amount of land you had to hunt I'd say you guys did really well. Congrats.

 

[pointingdogsrule]

Great hunts!!! Looks tastey!!

good luck to all
the dog

 

[mtlion]

That sounds really good. I had a group of four sit five feet from me for ten minutes while archery hunting, was kicking myself for not bringing a pistol.

The lope hunt sounds like a blast, considering the amount of land you had to hunt I'd say you guys did really well. Congrats.

That's what blunts and judos are for Randy! Many elk hunters turn into grouse hunters at the drop of a hat!

We did well for ourselves, we only saw one buck bigger than the one I got on land we could hunt. That was as we were carting ours out and that one had four guys pounding at it at what I would say was 5 times beyond their effective range. Pretty typical Needless to say we were glad we got ours and got out!

 

[----]

That's what blunts and judos are for Randy! Many elk hunters turn into grouse hunters at the drop of a hat!

I'm too cheap to risk my arrows, or buy new ones
I had a judo tip in my quiver, but ended up putting a broadhead on it to replace the one a bull in the breaks stole from me.

 

[JohnCushman]

Sounds like an awesome day

 

[vander34]

I always pack an old one with some small game tip I made, like ya said the new carbon arrows are spendy if lost lol

 

[mtlion]

I limit myself to one lost/broken arrow per elk hunting trip. This way I can get in a little practice shooting grouse and stump shooting. I figure the bullets I shoot in my rifle are going for about 3 bucks a piece and I throw those around like nothing.

 

[Big Fin]

"Sir, would you like paper, plastic, or game bags?"

I love stories like this. So often the hunt gets published as some big extravaganza, which is good also, but some of my fondest hunts are the one or two day jaunts near home, with family or friends.

Congrats on filling your freezer.

 

[mtlion]

"Sir, would you like paper, plastic, or game bags?"

I love stories like this. So often the hunt gets published as some big extravaganza, which is good also, but some of my fondest hunts are the one or two day jaunts near home, with family or friends.

Congrats on filling your freezer.

Thanks Big Fin. Definitely not the biggest bucks we have killed but good clean kills all around and all tags filled, very satisfying. Honestly I was prepared to take 2 does if it got tough. With my current situation and obligations the only thing I'm gonna be picky about this year is my buck deer tag.

 

[passinthru]

Pretty cool. Hard to beat hunting with family especially your wife.

Congrats

 

[mtlion]

Pretty cool. Hard to beat hunting with family especially your wife.

Congrats

Thanks. My wife is my favorite hunting partner. She always shoots well and it is almost more fun watching her shoot. This was her 11 th antelope, 10 bucks and a doe!

 

[fishing4sanity]

Congrats to you and the wife. I gotta start shopping at that grocery store, looks like a great time.

 

[sigpros]

Good run. I love a good mixed bag hunt. Nothing like a little variety.

 

[spook12]

Looks like it was double coupon day down at the supper market! Sounds like you guys had a blast. congrats!

 

[Sytes]

Great market run! Grats on the good times shared!

Curious, the duct tape on your game cart - The rim get flexed and it became prone to the tire slipping off the rim?