Vanish and FireTiger's 2025 Journal

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How's the ankle doing?

It was annoyed for a day or so, then faded, so nothing serious, thank goodness!

This morning I put down the big glass and did a ridge hike instead. The spot took some thinking to access, so I hoped it might hold some hidden deer, but it wasn't the case today.







I'm feeling like the bucks are still higher, but I don't know how to hunt them until timberline and my gut is saying thats not where they are either. So ... here I am hoping one comes looking for does.

Tonight's setup is within range of where I saw some of the does last night. There was just something I liked about this meadow. Something telling me there are more deer here to see. I also dont really have a better evening plan.

 

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What a view this morning. If only it contained some bucks. Had a single doe fairly close, 6 does about 900 yards out, and 7 does way out there.

Left around 1030 and walked into fellow hunttalker @dmarsh2 glassing from the ridge halfway back.

 

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Last night I decided to climb to a higher ridge and look over a nasty opening. I only realized later that I was looking at the "worse" half of it.



It didn't pay off directly, but i was also able to glass some of the open ridges behind me. At 515 ( end of shooting light is 522 ), I spotted a group of 12 deer, with one of then obviously a buck, just about 1.5 miles away. Not enough light to size him up.

Looking at my maps, there was an obvious place to access them. I figured there was a good chance they would still be on that ridge in the morning, so I drove around and camped about 800 yards away.

At 620am, I was looking at the first does in the group. Finally the bucks appeared.



Oh boy, a half rack forky and an even smaller spork. Damn. He didn't even have a HUGE NECK.

 

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Shortly after watching the two forks fight, I spotted a really good buck heading into some aspens almost a mile away. I hunted for another hour or so, but with the heat everything was bedding pretty quickly.

Even though it was only a mile, I had to practically drive out to town to come in a different drainage, so I filled up with gas and brunch.



It was awkward to wait, but I knew I couldn't go set up over this spot until the sun had gone down enough for the thermals to switch. I was finally in there around 415 and could see two other bucks had passed through and were feeding on private. They both looked like 2.5 year olds, so I probably wouldn't have passed at this point, but my hopes were high the big one just hadn't come out yet.

Around 445, a doe, fawn and possibly not even legal buck all passed by me, which was fun. That was the end of it, though

This morning I decided to go to the same spot. Before I even left my truck and well before shooting light, I could see a forky skylined within shooting distance along with a dozen does. That was fun.

I was in place by 615 and by 645 over a dozen does were feeding my way. About 700, I spotted a good buck heading right for me as he passed behind a pine obstructing my view.

The wind was just barely in my favor, but at some point unexpected gusts took my scent to them. I could tell the does were agitated and never saw the buck again.

I've since climbed a couple miles through aspens. Jumped one deer that somehow never let me see it. Sitting on a peak taking a break before working through a different section.

Feeling a bit beat down. When I have a good idea what to do, things are great, but I only have an hour in the morning, and I have no real game plan atm. Pretty sure this morning's spot is toast.