One of the best days of hunting of my life

peterk1234

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Oct 9, 2019
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The simple or everyday experience for one person, may be one of a lifetime for another. This is probably a day many of you have experienced over and over. For me, it was the hunt of a lifetime.

We arrived at 5:30AM. Pitch dark and our first time in this location. 3,000 acres of block management land. A big chunk is used for agriculture. The rest is arid land with sage brush, hills and drainages. Our goal was to find whitetail because my son in law had a B tag for either a buck or doe. Nice cool morning, about 25 degrees. Was going to get into the high thirties with a steady westerly wind. The wind direction sent us on a round about path as we wanted see if there would be any deer on the ag land at first light. We worked our way around, hiking about a mile then sat down and waited until first light. The sky was spectacular with it pinks against the snow covered mountains. Made me completely forget that there was not a deer to be seen.

So we decided to follow through with our main plan of working our way to the large drainage area, which of course was at the far end of this block. Compared to the crap I have been going up lately, this relatively flat landscape made for an easy hike. Along the way we come upon four muley does. They spot us, but were not too nervous since we were about 500 yards away. They slowly make their way down and away. We keep an eye on them just to see if they were heading to the far drainage. We keep walking, hoping to find some whitetail. I catch one hop a fence and disappear into one of the depressions. It will be the first and last one we see all day.

At about 8:00 AM we spot a bunch of ravens working an area. We figured there was a dead animal nearby, which was confirmed by the three coyotes we saw in the same area. I looked at my son in law and asked him, "did this just become a coyote hunt?" What the heck, it was along our route so might as well try. We slowly moved toward them but never got within range. It was fun to see them regardless, and we also got to watch two large golden eagles on the ground who were patiently waiting for us to move on so they could peck at the dead carcass.

We made our way to the drainage area and worked our way up to a piece of high ground. My son in law gets on the binos, and wouldn't you know old laser eyes pics off a huge muley buck. I range him, 1,200 yards. We back out so we don't get picked off and work on a plan. Wind is perfect. It's coming straight across at a steady 20 knots. It's windy. Plan is to go right and make a move. We get to low ground and start our hike. As we get to the boundary line of this area a sick feeling hits me. He is on private. Damn. Okay, plan B. He is too big to walk away from and we have not seen anything else. We decide to go in the opposite direction, set up, watch and pray he eventually comes our way.

So we go about a half mile or so in the other direction. We find some high ground and cover. He is about 1,600 yards away. Man I wish I brought my scope. Next time. The binos work fine but I wish I could get up close and personal with this dude because he is that big. He is the one that Randy Newburg and Steve Rinella pine about in their videos. Wide rack, and tall. I have never seen anything like it. We start to work the area where he is bedded. Imagine our surprise when we find five more bucks. Then as the day goes on, about ten or so does pop up from the resting places. It's nuts. Had we not decided to sit and glass for hours, we would have never known. Invisible with the naked eye, and barely visible with the binos, until they move. Of the bucks, there was one spike, the rest were shooters, at least for me. Back to the Big buck for a minute. I still cannot get over his size. He actually looked like an elk, just stunning. He stood up a few times and gave us a great broadside view. The size of his body was massive. Just wow.

Okay, back to the story..... We were committed. Mind you, it's only 9:30 am right now. This is going to be a long sit. Glassing in wide open country is a whole new world for me. My only reference are the Randy Newberg vids I have watched over and over and over. I kept thinking, what would he do? He would glass. So we glassed.

We sat there all day, watching the deer. If you ever get a chance to get within a thousand feet or so of a bunch of bedded deer, I highly recommend you stay and watch. I learned more this day then all my years hunting combined.. No book or video could provide me the data that I just experienced. First off, man they can hide well. However, every hour or so they will all get up, feed and move around. Not far, they always stayed in the same area. Being so close to the rut, we got to experience a special treat. Bucks sparring. Did I tell you I wish I had my scope? Next time. Oh, I just ordered a thing to hold my phone to the scope so I can take pics as well.

This was not a comfortable sit. High thirties and 20 knot winds pounding us all day long. Fortunately, sage makes for some pretty decent cover. I managed to take a couple power naps, which by the way, highly recommended. All in all we stayed fairly comfortable and any temporary inconveniences were easily tempered by the joy of watching a bunch of big deer.
 
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At 3:30 a group of does started to move. Not the usual activity. They wanted to go somewhere. One of the bucks and the spike decided to join in on the fun. We need them to come our way because they were about 400 yards from being on legally huntable land. They were tracking in the right direction. But they could go to our right or the left. If I stayed where I was then at best I would have a 300 yard shot. I have been practicing at the range but for now I have decided that 300 is beyond my comfort zone. I needed to be closer. We continue to watch them. They are at the fence. The first doe pops over. Then the next. And another. The spike goes too. One doe is hesitant. She looks younger. She works her way along the fence. The buck follows. I'm thinking to myself, are you kidding me dude? Look at all the pretty does walking away! Couple minutes go by. She finally makes the jump. Buck follows. It's decision time.

It looked like they were going to go left. We looked at each other and decided it was time for a move. I marked our spot so we could come back and find our packs. We get up and started to walk.... ah who am I kidding...... run like hell to the left to another high spot to intercept. We book it about 1500 feet to what we think will be a good intercept. Right before the edge of the hilltop, I get down on all fours and crawl between the sage. I have a tiny window to see the deer. I try to range them but I have twigs in my spot that keep screwing me up. I ask my son in law for a range; 209 yards. Nice, in my comfort zone. He asks me if the buck is good enough to shoot. It was a good question. I could wait for the big guy, but he was still bedded. Even if he gets up, he could go in a different direction. And the buck following these does, well it's bigger than anything I have ever taken. Plus, in the twenty years I have been hunting, I have only taken animals with a bow. To take one with a 308 for me is something very special. Ya, it's perfect to shoot.

The does are on the move and basically coming right toward us. The buck is a bit more hesitant. He is at 209 yards but facing at me. Not a shot I am willing to take. He finally begins to move. Uggh, straight at me. Come on, just turn broadside, even for a few seconds. He finally turns and stops . Quartered toward me a bit but plenty of room to take a good shot, as long as I do my job. He is about 180 yards away. Wind is strong but blowing straight at me. All good. I squeeze the trigger. Looked like a hit. All I can think of is Randy's videos; shoot again. I pull the bolt back and load another into the chamber. I lost him. Say what? I made sure I did not flinch and I kept the glass on him after the shot. Then I hear a voice from behind, "He is down".

He didn't go more than forty feet. We get down to him and notice that the bullet entered right behind the shoulder. Wow. Thank you Mr. Deer.

So one of the rules on this particular piece of block management is that you have to take everything out. Given the amount of coyotes, I get it. Plus, we need to respect the wishes of the landowner since he was gracious enough to allow us to hunt his land. Well, we have a lot of animal to get out of here and we are 2.5 miles from the truck. Now the fun begins. We gut the buck and put it all into a contractor trash bag. Quarter it, pull off the backstraps and tenderloins, then get the ribs and neck into another plastic bag. Head is off and will be strapped to the pack. Everything else went into game bags. We decided that we were going to haul it all in one trip. Mind you, I'm 170 pounds wet and nearly 56 year old. This was not going to be a sprint. Fortunately, my counterpart is an ox. Both of us though were carrying way too much weight. Fortunately, we both like to suffer. We made it to within a half mile of the truck. It took a couple hours. I was destroyed, as was my son in law. We broke down our packs, lightened the load and marked our location. Off to the road and the truck. We made it to the road but we were three quarters of a mile from the truck. I dropped my pack and made the trek. Got the truck and drove it back. Now it was time to get the final load. My poor son in law was wiped out. He said he would make the walk with me but that bag full of guts was going to be a morning chore; it was just too heavy for him to haul. We walked back for the rest of the meat, which he grabbed to haul back. Okay, I said. Then I will grab the guts. I gotta say, not pleasant, but manageable. At 9PM, we made it back to our vehicle.

By far the most incredible hunting experience of my life. No, I did not get the monster, but I got my monster. We did almost everything right. We found the deer. We were patient and we respected the abutting private landowner. It was the first time I got to hunt with a rifle. I stuck within my comfort zone, exercised restraint and placed the bullet perfectly. Oh, speaking of bullet. I pierced the heart. I wish I could say I was that good. I was just that lucky. One of the most memorable days of my life.20221027_162311.jpg
 
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Loved your story. Some days are just like that. What a memory. Congrats on a fine animal!
 
Thanks for the writeup , great when a plan comes together.
I would venture a guess that the requirement to take all the guts out could thin out the competition a little on that piece of block management .
 
The simple or everyday experience for one person, may be one of a lifetime for another. This is probably a day many of you have experienced over and over. For me, it was the hunt of a lifetime.

We arrived at 5:30AM. Pitch dark and our first time in this location. 3,000 acres of block management land. A big chunk is used for agriculture. The rest is arid land with sage brush, hills and drainages. Our goal was to find whitetail because my son in law had a B tag for either a buck or doe. Nice cool morning, about 25 degrees. Was going to get into the high thirties with a steady westerly wind. The wind direction sent us on a round about path as we wanted see if there would be any deer on the ag land at first light. We worked our way around, hiking about a mile then sat down and waited until first light. The sky was spectacular with it pinks against the snow covered mountains. Made me completely forget that there was not a deer to be seen.

So we decided to follow through with our main plan of working our way to the large drainage area, which of course was at the far end of this block. Compared to the crap I have been going up lately, this relatively flat landscape made for an easy hike. Along the way we come upon four muley does. They spot us, but were not too nervous since we were about 500 yards away. They slowly make their way down and away. We keep an eye on them just to see if they were heading to the far drainage. We keep walking, hoping to find some whitetail. I catch one hop a fence and disappear into one of the depressions. It will be the first and last one we see all day.

At about 8:00 AM we spot a bunch of ravens working an area. We figured there was a dead animal nearby, which was confirmed by the three coyotes we saw in the same area. I looked at my son in law and asked him, "did this just become a coyote hunt?" What the heck, it was along our route so might as well try. We slowly moved toward them but never got within range. It was fun to see them regardless, and we also got to watch two large golden eagles on the ground who were patiently waiting for us to move on so they could peck at the dead carcass.

We made our way to the drainage area and worked our way up to a piece of high ground. My son in law gets on the binos, and wouldn't you know old laser eyes pics off a huge muley buck. I range him, 1,200 yards. We back out so we don't get picked off and work on a plan. Wind is perfect. It's coming straight across at a steady 20 knots. It's windy. Plan is to go right and make a move. We get to low ground and start our hike. As we get to the boundary line of this area a sick feeling hits me. He is on private. Damn. Okay, plan B. He is too big to walk away from and we have not seen anything else. We decide to go in the opposite direction, set up, watch and pray he eventually comes our way.

So we go about a half mile or so in the other direction. We find some high ground and cover. He is about 1,600 yards away. Man I wish I brought my scope. Next time. The binos work fine but I wish I could get up close and personal with this dude because he is that big. He is the one that Randy Newburg and Steve Rinella pine about in their videos. Wide rack, and tall. I have never seen anything like it. We start to work the area where he is bedded. Imagine our surprise when we find five more bucks. Then as the day goes on, about ten or so does pop up from the resting places. It's nuts. Had we not decided to sit and glass for hours, we would have never known. Invisible with the naked eye, and barely visible with the binos, until they move. Of the bucks, there was one spike, the rest were shooters, at least for me. Back to the Big buck for a minute. I still cannot get over his size. He actually looked like an elk, just stunning. He stood up a few times and gave us a great broadside view. The size of his body was massive. Just wow.

Okay, back to the story..... We were committed. Mind you, it's only 9:30 am right now. This is going to be a long sit. Glassing in wide open country is a whole new world for me. My only reference are the Randy Newberg vids I have watched over and over and over. I kept thinking, what would he do? He would glass. So we glassed.

We sat there all day, watching the deer. If you ever get a chance to get within a thousand feet or so of a bunch of bedded deer, I highly recommend you stay and watch. I learned more this day then all my years hunting combined.. No book or video could provide me the data that I just experienced. First off, man they can hide well. However, every hour or so they will all get up, feed and move around. Not far, they always stayed in the same area. Being so close to the rut, we got to experience a special treat. Bucks sparring. Did I tell you I wish I had my scope? Next time. Oh, I just ordered a thing to hold my phone to the scope so I can take pics as well.

This was not a comfortable sit. High thirties and 20 knot winds pounding us all day long. Fortunately, sage makes for some pretty decent cover. I managed to take a couple power naps, which by the way, highly recommended. All in all we stayed fairly comfortable and any temporary inconveniences were easily tempered by the joy of watching a bunch of big deer.
Nice
 
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