Just got back from Wyoming and another awesome trip chasing antelope with the boys. I can't tell you how fortunate I am to have such an amazing group of friends and a great place to go hunt. There were 8 total hunters in camp for the opener and we all killed goats. I got mine on the 3rd morning and was the last guy in camp to tag out. After a few failed spot and stalks I jumped in a blind on Day 3 and killed this goat over a water hole first thing in the morning. 30 yard shot and he was dead in 100 yards. If you're interested in a guided Western archery hunt, I can't say enough good things about antelope in August. The weather is warm, the animals are plentiful, and it's the most affordable of all the Western big game hunts. We hunted with Big Horn Outfitters and the infamous Dustin DeCroo - personal guide to Levi Morgan. He's kind of a big deal. Next up, I need to finish my fall food plots here at home, sneak in a little fishing and get ready for Colorado elk in a month.
Congrats! How many points did it take to draw the area where Dustin guides? I have 2 antelope points in Wyoming, thinking about applying next year or the year after.
We've never needed points for any of Dustin's areas, although we may in the future as it's no longer a guarantee in some of them. Myself and Clinton hunted in Area 16 which was hit with a major die-0ff about 2 years ago. The goat population is way down and they're pretty hard to come by. But his other areas are still kicking out a ton of good animals. He tried to gar hole us, but we killed our animals anyways.
Congratulations Justin. That’s a good pic of the three of you. Something tells me the odds are more in your favor with Dustin guiding.
Nice! I figured you had to be close to going on your antelope hunt. I've never hunted them but have been feeling quite the urge to recently. It'd be nice to get out hunting a bit earlier before September elk opens. We have them in southern Idaho, ever hunted them here? Unlimited archery only tags for several units so getting a tag wouldn't be a problem. I have a couple friends from my younger days that have done it before, need to contact them and get some more details of decent units and what getting access is like. I've heard from several people that the ranch owners almost always say yes if you ask to hunt and many will offer you their own "custom" bow to use...which is usually a .243 Winchester lol. They don't care much for them. How do you like the meat? One of the above friends and I used to elk hunt together sometimes in our early twenties. One weekend he came to camp with a few steaks from one he'd shot that year. I remember it was fairly gamey but I still didn't mind it. Kind of similar to a Muley from the same type of sage brush area, maybe not quite that strong. The hide he had from it (he got it tanned) was very striking and exotic looking to me. I also remember being amazed how small they really are. He had boned it out and showed me a picture of all the meat in a small Igloo cooler that would barely hold a case of soda cans.
Yeah, they're small animals. Field dressed I'd be surprised if they're 100 pounds. We brought home two goats in a single 75 qty Yeti cooler.. The backstraps and loins are some of the best wild game meat I've ever had. The rest is okay, but not great. I typically grind it up and use it for chili, burgers, and sausage. I've never hunted them anywhere buy Wyoming, but I would like to go chase them in one of the states that produce some of the bigger bucks. I've shot 3 now and they're all nice, but nothing huge. I would guess this one is right in the 67-69" range. He's tall but his cutters aren't huge. I did miss a bigger buck the day before - probably 72-74". For reference, P&Y is 67".
Congrats! I’ve never heard the term “gar holed”, but I’m gonna start using it! And definitely not going to use it in the correct context lol
Awesome JZ! Congrats buddy! I am looking forward to getting back out next year. Missed out this due to the surgeries. JZ is right, Great place to hunt early season. Lots of fun and the animals are plentiful out there.
Awesome goat! I've wanted to hunt them for over 20 years and this year I said to hell with it and booked a hunt in South Dakota for next month. I can't wait!!
