Out in the mountain right now. Been a good weekend so far. Sent from my SAMSUNG-SGH-I317 using Tapatalk
Here's my recap from opening weekend: I left the house around 3:30 Friday morning and got fuel in the can and truck before heading out. Richard and his cousin had tire issues on the way up, so I came in through the way we did when we all went scouting. I hit the canyon around 4:30 - 5 and drove through. Just after first light, I had a deer at 32 yards, but the angle wasn't set for a shot. I did get my release and my bow out and watched in case he gave me a shot. He spooked and ran about 20 yards away before turning broad side. Fortunately for him, it was a range I can shoot, but wasn't entire confident in making a shot, so I passed. I continued down the road where I jumped another little buck, but again, he quartered away to where there was no shot. So I kept going. I jumped a third little buck about 2 miles down the road and he stayed just outside of bow range. I eventually found camp and got everything set up when Richard and Kurt (his cousin) rolled in and told me they had somewhere they wanted to go check out and planned on staying overnight out there. So we loaded up and rolled out. about 9. As we drove, we'd stop and glass for a while. During one of these stops, I was thoroughly convinced that I had seen a deer bedded in the brush. I decided to put the stalk on. I got to about 100 yards before I realized it was just the sagebrush (needless to say, I never lived that down in camp). We ended up glassing most of the day around 8000' - 10,000' in elevation. We saw a very nice bachelor herd around 4 pm and ended up behind them as they moved from draw to draw. We decided from there to race back towards camp, in hopes of seeing some bucks before shooting light was gone. We saw nothing on the way back. Saturday in the morning, I ended up hunting on my own. As I headed back towards the canyon I came in, I jumped 6 does and 3 bucks, mostly 2x2's. I ended up chasing them around, always going the wrong way. On the way back to camp, I had a 2x2 on the ridge at 32 yards. I took off my backpack, unclipped my bow, nocked an arrow and settled in, all while he stood there and watched. I set my pin where I wanted and released. And I shot the brush behind him! He dropped down and paused for a minute, but not enough to attempt a second shot. I spent a lot of time looking for the arrow and seeing if I could see where he went. After not finding either, I decided to cruise and see if there were any deer along the road back to camp. I found Richard and Kurt on the blood trail of a buck that Kurt shot. We never saw the deer and Richard was pretty sure that it was a glancing, survivable shot. We headed back to camp, had breakfast and napped until noon when we headed back out. We glassed a spot for about an hour before deciding to cruise around and look. On the way back to camp, we jumped a buck bedded on the road and Richard got a 12 yard shot at him. We quartered him out and got him back to the cooler before carrying on for the evening. The night ended with both Kurt and I getting in a couple of stalks each, getting busted every time. On the way back to camp, we saw a nice 4x4 silhouetted against the sun, along with a 3x3. Sunday started the exact same way. We cruised the road seeing what we could see. Kurt and I ended up stalking a group of three bucks (one 3x3 and a couple of 2x2's), but it was cut short when two coyotes came up the side of the hill opposite of us and spooked them. On the way back, we saw a friend of Richard's who was on an elk hunt and they told us of a couple of bucks just on the other side of the hill. I crested higher up than where they said they last saw them and glassed for a bit. After seeing nothing, I headed back to the wheeler. We kept cruising around seeing if we could see anything bedded down. Once again, nothing, so we headed back to camp. For the afternoon, we decided to leave the wheeler at camp, and I rode in the back of the side by side. I got one more stalk in on a couple of 2x2's bedded down. And, again, something spooked them and pushed them way down the draw. So we went back to camp for a break. The evening hunt was with me back on the wheeler. Cruising up and down the road, Kurt spotted a buck and got on him. After fooling the deer into thinking that he didn't see him, he got into bow range and delivered a heart/lung shot from 61 yards out. As Richard stayed to help Kurt, I rolled out to see what I could see. Nothing but does. We ended up meeting back in camp and I discovered that Kurt shot a nice 3x2. Because the deer was in velvet and Kurt wanted to do a Euro mount, we started breaking down camp and rolled out around 10:30. It was a great weekend with a lot of buck encounters. I ended up with a wicked sunburn on my forehead and nose after losing my hat. I'm waiting to see what the plan is for this next weekend with Marshall. Today, I plan on unpacking, cleaning my optics and bow (riding on the wheeler made most of my gear really dusty). Once I get my plans locked down with Marshall, I'll post an update.
It was. The miss really demotivated me for a little bit, until Kurt missed at a couple. Those helped me remember that bowhunting is a challenge in itself and nobody is perfect. Sent from my SAMSUNG-SGH-I317 using Tapatalk
It sounds like either I'll meet Marshall out Saturday morning or we'll leave Saturday afternoon (he's on night shift this week) and at least have an evening hunt and a morning hunt Sunday. I might talk to my father in law and see if he would like to go out the following weekend. Sent from my SAMSUNG-SGH-I317 using Tapatalk
Here's a recap with maps: So, I haven't posted anything about this last weekend. We hunted off one of the mines in the area. It happens to be the only one that is on public land here. Here is the overview View attachment 60480 . A is where Richard shot his deer (Forky that was gut shot at 12 yards, lung shot at 17 yards around 30 minutes later.) B is where we were camped, C is where Kurt shot is deer (3 x 2 at 58 yards, heart and lungs) and D is where I shot at my deer (32 yards, missed behind, torqued the bow). I've been talking to Marshall, and as of right now, we're guaranteed at least an evening hunt Saturday night and morning hunt Sunday. I think that we'll head to where he was hunting on Monday. I'll post more info as I can get it and find it on the maps.
It sounds like I might be hunting solo Saturday morning. Sent from my SAMSUNG-SGH-I317 using Tapatalk
I got a text from my father in law this morning and it sounds like he might be willing to head out Saturday morning with me.
So, here's my plan for this weekend: Marvin (father in law) and I will drive out tomorrow, leaving the house around 4. He won't be staying the night, so he'll drive himself and pull the Rhino. We'll park the trucks and trailer off the access road. We are looking at hunting from the time we get there until around 10 - 11. From there, I'll set up camp and hang out. I'm not sure if Marvin will roll out then or wait until later. Marshall is planning on rolling in around 5:30 for the evening hunt. We'll hunt hard until the sun goes down around the area that Richard, Kurt and I hunted this last weekend. We'll be up around 4 on Sunday and hunt hard again in the morning. Because Marshall has to be back around noon, we'll load up and break down camp around 10:30 in the morning. I put practice blades in my broad heads this evening to make sure I was the reason I missed, and not my bow. It was definitely me, as I was still on at 30 yards.
I had an okay weekend. Saturday morning started off with two stalks, including one with the buck 30 - 40 yards broadside (I was below him and could never see his body for the shot). Right before they bedded down, we saw a nice 3 x 3 and I decided to just walk on up. Once I got to 100 yards, a big 4 x 4 and another nice 3 x 3 jumped out from where they were bedded. I set up camp around 1:30 and Marvin left at 2. I cruised around and seen if I could jump anything, stopping to spot along the way. Nothing. Marshall showed up around 5:30 and we dropped his stuff off and hunted hard. We found a little beaver dam with some does and decided to sit on it and watch. Nothing. So, after watching the beavers play, we headed back to camp. This morning's hunt was chasing a bachelor herd into some trees and then getting ghosted by another set of 4 x 4's, before heading home. It doesn't look like I'll be able to hunt this weekend, which is kind of a relief. I've been hunting hard and getting only the experience out of it, and I'm a little burned out. The major disadvantage to not hunting next weekend is it leaves only one more outing before the end of the season.
I'm not out hunting this weekend. Instead, I'm handling my growing chores list around the house. I'll wash some clothes, clean my optics, put all the camping gear away (no more overnight trips this season), do some yard work and home improvement. If it all works right, I'll put in one last hard hunt next Saturday. I'm thinking of dropping the truck off in the canyon where I've liked to hunt and ride the wheeler up that way, seeing if I can get a road shot. If not, as I find them, I'll watch and see where they bed down and see if I can sneak on them that way.
Ok, so the story of the hunt. I rolled into where I've been hunting this season after leaving around 3:30. I unloaded the wheeler and cruised up by where we had camped. It was still dark and my fingers were frozen, so I decided to load the wheeler up and head back by where I had seen deer during previous hunts. I followed another truck up the road and they jumped a little buck. I jumped out of the truck and could barely range him at 47 yards. Before I could get back to full draw, he bounced down the hill. So I drove up to the fork where Marvin and I turned during my last morning hunt. I drove around the bend and caught the buck I shot down in the draw. He had an extreme quartering away position, so I walked back down the road trying to get a better shot. I could never get a shot walking that way, so I walked back and he was still standing there. He started to walk away, so I came to full draw and mouthed a call, just enough to get him to stop. He stopped, I released and I heard the hit. I listened as he ran into the woods, immediately doubting the shot. I heard him crash, so I drove back around the bend, where I could have a straight drag. I walked down and retrieved my arrow, which was covered with blood. I saw where it hit and started on the blood trail. After following the trail roughly 60 yards, there he was, taking his proverbial dirt nap. I realized that I left my pillow case (game sack) back in the truck, so I started the approximately 180 yards back to the wheeler. I contemplated just loading up the truck and heading to the house to have some help dressing the deer. I decided to just quarter him out at the truck and head home from there. It was the first of my bowhunting career. It's been a long and frustrating road to this point, but I now know that I can do it on my own, which has been one of my biggest fears. Here's the pictures:
Thanks Fitz! It's a great feeling to have that monkey off my back. Now to just wait for nature to do it's thing. I've got the head buried this afternoon after dropping the meat off to the butcher.
