I started applying for deer or points in 2006 in Colorado. About 8 or 9 years ago I decided to go with a unit on the south side of Gunnison. No number to research, but most can figure it out if they want. Seven years ago, with 12 points I was in the last group at that point level but wasn't chosen, since then I have been 1 or 2 points behind every year, including last year. So, I was pleasantly surprised when I had a Successful tag result this year with 19 points.
Started doing my online research and got some help from a couple of gents on here as well. In August, I planned a trip to do some scouting but mainly just get the lay of the land and check out some of the areas that had been suggested. This is where this hunt took a crazy turn. I left on a Thursday afternoon around 3 to start the 16-hour one way trip planning to stay at a lodge that is in the area I intended to hunt. I had made the first 6 hours to where I had planned on spending the night when I got a phone call from my wife that her car had broken down, thinking it is the transmission as it won't move. Remainder of trip was cancelled, as I got up the next morning and headed back home to deal with a broken-down car. After getting home, it seems that if you attempt to back up in a Jeep Cherokee with the door open it automatically applies the electronic emergency brake. So that was a 1-minute fix with 12 hours of driving to do. Needless to say, I didn't make that scouting trip. So, I decided I would just get there a day earlier before the hunt and use that to scout.
Here I need to give a little history of my recent drawn tags. Two years ago, I was drawn for a 14-point deer hunt in Wyoming in October, unfortunately my mom took a real turn for the worse that summer and I made the decision to not go on the hunt as I wanted to be there in case the worst-case scenario happened. My mom held out until March of the following year. This year, as I said I wasn't really expecting to get this tag, but I did, and wouldn't you know it, this time it is my 94-year-old dad that had a real significant decline since mid-summer. I talked with both my wife and my sister and decided that even though he was not doing well I would go on my hunt because I know he would want me too. I planned on spending the first night that I got there at the aforementioned lodge and then set up my wall tent and stay in that.
Well Sunday night at about 10:30 pm my world crashed when my sister called and said he had passed. My plans for this hunt just took another drastic turn. Obviously, the hunt has taken a back burner to handling everything here. After discussion with family, and a lot of them with myself, with the funeral being Thursday, I have decided to leave sometime Friday morning and that will put me there middle of the dayish on Saturday, opening day. Along with that decision, I also decided to skip the wall tent and just stay in a cabin for this hunt. That will save me time and should allow me to make the afternoon hunt at least.
I don't think I will have any service at the cabin I am staying in so updates to this hunt most likely will become post hunt updates. I did have a conversation with the people that run the cabins, while changing my plans for the third time, they said they had been seeing quite a few nice bucks the last few days, so hopefully there will be something to write about later.
Started doing my online research and got some help from a couple of gents on here as well. In August, I planned a trip to do some scouting but mainly just get the lay of the land and check out some of the areas that had been suggested. This is where this hunt took a crazy turn. I left on a Thursday afternoon around 3 to start the 16-hour one way trip planning to stay at a lodge that is in the area I intended to hunt. I had made the first 6 hours to where I had planned on spending the night when I got a phone call from my wife that her car had broken down, thinking it is the transmission as it won't move. Remainder of trip was cancelled, as I got up the next morning and headed back home to deal with a broken-down car. After getting home, it seems that if you attempt to back up in a Jeep Cherokee with the door open it automatically applies the electronic emergency brake. So that was a 1-minute fix with 12 hours of driving to do. Needless to say, I didn't make that scouting trip. So, I decided I would just get there a day earlier before the hunt and use that to scout.
Here I need to give a little history of my recent drawn tags. Two years ago, I was drawn for a 14-point deer hunt in Wyoming in October, unfortunately my mom took a real turn for the worse that summer and I made the decision to not go on the hunt as I wanted to be there in case the worst-case scenario happened. My mom held out until March of the following year. This year, as I said I wasn't really expecting to get this tag, but I did, and wouldn't you know it, this time it is my 94-year-old dad that had a real significant decline since mid-summer. I talked with both my wife and my sister and decided that even though he was not doing well I would go on my hunt because I know he would want me too. I planned on spending the first night that I got there at the aforementioned lodge and then set up my wall tent and stay in that.
Well Sunday night at about 10:30 pm my world crashed when my sister called and said he had passed. My plans for this hunt just took another drastic turn. Obviously, the hunt has taken a back burner to handling everything here. After discussion with family, and a lot of them with myself, with the funeral being Thursday, I have decided to leave sometime Friday morning and that will put me there middle of the dayish on Saturday, opening day. Along with that decision, I also decided to skip the wall tent and just stay in a cabin for this hunt. That will save me time and should allow me to make the afternoon hunt at least.
I don't think I will have any service at the cabin I am staying in so updates to this hunt most likely will become post hunt updates. I did have a conversation with the people that run the cabins, while changing my plans for the third time, they said they had been seeing quite a few nice bucks the last few days, so hopefully there will be something to write about later.
