2
270hunt
Guest
Has anyone here yet hunted the rubys this year...Area 10
fatrooster
Long Time Member
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270, I hunted the Rubies in September on my muzzle loader deer hunt. What are your questions? fatrooster.
2
270hunt
Guest
just wanted to know if hunting was goos and if anyone got any deer.. I will be coming up there the last few days of the hunt and wanted to know if is going to be good hunting... Thanks
fatrooster
Long Time Member
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- 4,187
270, I agree with NEVADAGUY, lots of small 4 x 4's and other small bucks with bigger ones here and there. I passed up the chance to take a couple of 26" deer and messed up my chance at a nice whopper. I was about 5 miles into the wilderness area and was camping at 9,000' elevation. I think its a good year to hunt the Rubies. Goodluck, fatrooster.
2
270hunt
Guest
Thanks I hope I get one this year you wouldnt want to tell me where to hunt in the rubys would you..... Thanks
fatrooster
Long Time Member
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270, hunt the wilderness area. Any part of it has great potiental as long as you get away from the people and find unpressured deer. I personally started at Harrison Pass and hiked in a few miles. Make sure that you are equipped to camp for several days or you shouldn't go in. Goodluck in your hunt. fatrooster.
Report on Ruby Mtn Early Opener Experience
My buddy and I hunted with an outfitter in the East Humboldt's near Wells, NV during the early opener. We packed in approximately 6-7 miles by horseback and camped around 9-10K feet elevation....man is the air thin up there. On the second night of the hunt it snowed approximately 1-2 ft with drifts of 4ft. That night, Sunday, we had to keep knocking the snow from the roof of the tent to keep the poles from collapsing. Come the next morning, I proudly exclaimed to that we in for a real back country experience and I my words proved to be prophetic.
A word of caution, those mountains are rugged and the weather at the higher elevations can be severe. On Sunday, we ran into 2 hunters that were camped in the same canyon as us. They were heading to lower elevation. The had packed in with GOATS had a string of 6-7 of the criters with them. Good thing they moved down because they would have not made it back to the trailhead after the snow fall. According to Jed (our packer) the drifts on that side of the mountain were above the belly of his mules.
He relayed this after he tried to get two of the hunters from our camp off the mountain the day after it snowed. They (father and son) had been successful prior to the snowfall and were attempting to get to their vehicles. In fact, when it came time to leave camp we packed off the mountain in a different direction then we had entered. We had to shuttle back to the trailhead parking lot. I estimated it was around a 15-20 mile car ride back to the trailhead.
We had 5 hunters in camp and in the opinion of our guides only my buddy and I had the right gear to handle the elements, which, allowed us to keep hunting through all of the bad weather?..so, one might as well be prepared for the worst?.just in case. All I can say is thank goodness for windproof and waterproof clothing, footwear, gloves, polypropylene underwear, etc. I know it can be expensive, however, I believe it makes a difference when you need to hang in there on those really bad days. Only thing we inadvertently left at home were our gaiters, but we made do.
In the afternoon of the last day of our 4 day hunt my good friend and I scored bucks......
After breaking the trail on foot the previous day, we took the horses out of camp and preceded east to a series of canyons that ran parallel to each other. Although the fog was clinging low to the ground when we headed out from camp, we carried high hopes and very positive attitudes about the day.
This was our last day and I wasn?t going to leave anything ?in the tank?. Meaning, I would be fine with not getting a deer, so long as I was satisfied with my mental and physical effort. As we rode quietly along with trail with the horse sounds, I made a special effort to absorb as much of the beauty of the mountains and this experience as I could take-in. The aspens were bright organge and with the snow blanketing the ground underneath them it was pretty incredible..wow!
We traveled somewhere around 1-2 miles and setup to glass but the fog cut visibility down to a couple hundred yards? at best. So, we proceeded to build a fire and wait for it to lift. Something about building fires?kind of prim evil I guess but is always seems very satisfying to me, go figure.
After the fog lifted we gathered the horses and rode higher towards the rim of the canyon along the back side of a knife like ridge, careful not skyline ourselves. Anyway, as luck and good fortune would have it, we found 2 bucks bedded in the snow below us on our side of the canyon from what appeared to be the better part of a mile. Glassing from the exposed windy and bitterly cold ridge we found the bucks positioned in opposite directions.
One was facing towards us and the other 180 degrees facing in the opposite direction with nothing but snow covered, knee high sage around them. They were bedded mid-point up a draw that I am guessing had 600 ? 900 feet of elevation gain between the ridge top and canyon bottom?..pretty smart rascals if you ask me.
We dropped off the ridge and circle back around and tied off the horses. On foot we descended further down the back side of the ridge. Eventually, we eased over it again and in single file fashion on hands and knees we stalked through the snow and sage towards the bucks?.fully exposed I might add. At 400 yards we debated on shooting but collectively made the decision to get closer. The bucks were unaware of our presence and we had a steady 5-10mph wind blowing in our face. The buck facing us had his head down on the ground and appeared to be sleeping. The second buck, facing away from us, was sitting in an upright alert position with his head and body fully exposed.
After what seemed like forever, but only covered 50 yards we once again reevaluated our situation. We ranged them at 358 yards and made the decision that we were close enough. With time to prepare and steady rests my buddy shot first at the exposed bedded buck facing away. I shot my buck when he stood up to see what all the commotion was about. ?.. Quite an improbably outcome and one that I will never forget.
Mine was a 24? 3x3 and my buddy got at 22? 4x4 that had a point of each side of the rack coming off the rear of the main beam I thought it to be an unusual configuration. It somewhat reminded me of a whitetail rack. Not record books by any means but to us they will always be trophy's.
Overall, the experience was incredible, the scenery was breath taking and topography varied and wild. Did, I mention steep?wow. I like to believe we worked hard for those deer including going out and breaking trail for the horses after the snowfall?.what a hump. I also want to add my admiration for the guides, wranglers and packers that we spent those precious days with. Their skills and level of effort along with their physical conditioning were astounding.
Now in my late 40?s the hunt took its toll on my body but my mind is filled with memories that will last a lifetime. Good luck on your hunt and be safe. Thanks
My buddy and I hunted with an outfitter in the East Humboldt's near Wells, NV during the early opener. We packed in approximately 6-7 miles by horseback and camped around 9-10K feet elevation....man is the air thin up there. On the second night of the hunt it snowed approximately 1-2 ft with drifts of 4ft. That night, Sunday, we had to keep knocking the snow from the roof of the tent to keep the poles from collapsing. Come the next morning, I proudly exclaimed to that we in for a real back country experience and I my words proved to be prophetic.
A word of caution, those mountains are rugged and the weather at the higher elevations can be severe. On Sunday, we ran into 2 hunters that were camped in the same canyon as us. They were heading to lower elevation. The had packed in with GOATS had a string of 6-7 of the criters with them. Good thing they moved down because they would have not made it back to the trailhead after the snow fall. According to Jed (our packer) the drifts on that side of the mountain were above the belly of his mules.
He relayed this after he tried to get two of the hunters from our camp off the mountain the day after it snowed. They (father and son) had been successful prior to the snowfall and were attempting to get to their vehicles. In fact, when it came time to leave camp we packed off the mountain in a different direction then we had entered. We had to shuttle back to the trailhead parking lot. I estimated it was around a 15-20 mile car ride back to the trailhead.
We had 5 hunters in camp and in the opinion of our guides only my buddy and I had the right gear to handle the elements, which, allowed us to keep hunting through all of the bad weather?..so, one might as well be prepared for the worst?.just in case. All I can say is thank goodness for windproof and waterproof clothing, footwear, gloves, polypropylene underwear, etc. I know it can be expensive, however, I believe it makes a difference when you need to hang in there on those really bad days. Only thing we inadvertently left at home were our gaiters, but we made do.
In the afternoon of the last day of our 4 day hunt my good friend and I scored bucks......
After breaking the trail on foot the previous day, we took the horses out of camp and preceded east to a series of canyons that ran parallel to each other. Although the fog was clinging low to the ground when we headed out from camp, we carried high hopes and very positive attitudes about the day.
This was our last day and I wasn?t going to leave anything ?in the tank?. Meaning, I would be fine with not getting a deer, so long as I was satisfied with my mental and physical effort. As we rode quietly along with trail with the horse sounds, I made a special effort to absorb as much of the beauty of the mountains and this experience as I could take-in. The aspens were bright organge and with the snow blanketing the ground underneath them it was pretty incredible..wow!
We traveled somewhere around 1-2 miles and setup to glass but the fog cut visibility down to a couple hundred yards? at best. So, we proceeded to build a fire and wait for it to lift. Something about building fires?kind of prim evil I guess but is always seems very satisfying to me, go figure.
After the fog lifted we gathered the horses and rode higher towards the rim of the canyon along the back side of a knife like ridge, careful not skyline ourselves. Anyway, as luck and good fortune would have it, we found 2 bucks bedded in the snow below us on our side of the canyon from what appeared to be the better part of a mile. Glassing from the exposed windy and bitterly cold ridge we found the bucks positioned in opposite directions.
One was facing towards us and the other 180 degrees facing in the opposite direction with nothing but snow covered, knee high sage around them. They were bedded mid-point up a draw that I am guessing had 600 ? 900 feet of elevation gain between the ridge top and canyon bottom?..pretty smart rascals if you ask me.
We dropped off the ridge and circle back around and tied off the horses. On foot we descended further down the back side of the ridge. Eventually, we eased over it again and in single file fashion on hands and knees we stalked through the snow and sage towards the bucks?.fully exposed I might add. At 400 yards we debated on shooting but collectively made the decision to get closer. The bucks were unaware of our presence and we had a steady 5-10mph wind blowing in our face. The buck facing us had his head down on the ground and appeared to be sleeping. The second buck, facing away from us, was sitting in an upright alert position with his head and body fully exposed.
After what seemed like forever, but only covered 50 yards we once again reevaluated our situation. We ranged them at 358 yards and made the decision that we were close enough. With time to prepare and steady rests my buddy shot first at the exposed bedded buck facing away. I shot my buck when he stood up to see what all the commotion was about. ?.. Quite an improbably outcome and one that I will never forget.
Mine was a 24? 3x3 and my buddy got at 22? 4x4 that had a point of each side of the rack coming off the rear of the main beam I thought it to be an unusual configuration. It somewhat reminded me of a whitetail rack. Not record books by any means but to us they will always be trophy's.
Overall, the experience was incredible, the scenery was breath taking and topography varied and wild. Did, I mention steep?wow. I like to believe we worked hard for those deer including going out and breaking trail for the horses after the snowfall?.what a hump. I also want to add my admiration for the guides, wranglers and packers that we spent those precious days with. Their skills and level of effort along with their physical conditioning were astounding.
Now in my late 40?s the hunt took its toll on my body but my mind is filled with memories that will last a lifetime. Good luck on your hunt and be safe. Thanks
hunter1975
Active Member
- Messages
- 191
Any snow in the high country yet?
M
MuleyObsessions
Guest
RE: Report on Ruby Mtn Early Opener Experience
Mr. Muley, thanks for the story that is what hunting is all about. It sounds like you had a very memorable experience. I would love to see some pictures of the hunt if you've got em.
MO
Mr. Muley, thanks for the story that is what hunting is all about. It sounds like you had a very memorable experience. I would love to see some pictures of the hunt if you've got em.
MO
fatrooster
Long Time Member
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- 4,187
RE: Report on Ruby Mtn Early Opener Experience
Mr Muley, I loved your story. Anybody going into the mountains this late in the year should be ready for snow and rain as MrMuley suggests. As I said above, if you are not equipped for camping and for the elements, I might add, don't even go into the wilderness area. I talked to Killowatt today and he told me that the deer are few and far between. There has been plenty of pressue on the outskirts of the Rubies. fatrooster.
Mr Muley, I loved your story. Anybody going into the mountains this late in the year should be ready for snow and rain as MrMuley suggests. As I said above, if you are not equipped for camping and for the elements, I might add, don't even go into the wilderness area. I talked to Killowatt today and he told me that the deer are few and far between. There has been plenty of pressue on the outskirts of the Rubies. fatrooster.
mickeyelk
Very Active Member
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- 1,895
RE: Report on Ruby Mtn Early Opener Experience
Mr. Muley! I happened to be at the trailhead when those two guys came in with the 8 goats. Talked to them for an hour. What they didn't see, while packed in, sent me and my son away from there to look for greener pastures. The Ruby's sucked this year for hunting. On Friday, day before the opener, my son and I hiked into an area that we have hunted in for the past 11 years. Opening morning we counted 27 hunters within a mile of my position. Most of them wearing orange hats and riding horses. It wouldn't have been all that bad but we were 7 miles back in and ontop of the mountain. Takes allot of energy to get that far. I thought for awhile I was hunting back in Penna on opening day of rifle. I don't know what happened to all the big bucks in this area, but we spotted all morning long and didn't see anything worth shooting. We were in the Ruby's the first 5 days of the hunt and then I went back alone the following weekend for 3 more days. We hunted in 4 different areas and were still surprised at how many hunters were there. They were everywhere. We passed thru Harrison pass and it was like a zoo. Normally, when I come off the mountain, I've seen at least 4-5 nice bucks(22-26in) and one hanging from my backpack. My last day there I took a dink(I like the deer meat) and went home disgusted. I've hunted the Ruby's 7 times in the past 11 years and have totally enjoyed all but this past year. I've always been successful at harvesting a nice buck, til now. It use to be that you could get off into a canyon and have it to yourself. Well enough complaining on this forum, I have to email the NDOW and continue complaining to them instead. They have managed this hunt terribly. With the over crowding nothing can come good from this hunt. The animals were not there in there normal populations. Later
Mr. Muley! I happened to be at the trailhead when those two guys came in with the 8 goats. Talked to them for an hour. What they didn't see, while packed in, sent me and my son away from there to look for greener pastures. The Ruby's sucked this year for hunting. On Friday, day before the opener, my son and I hiked into an area that we have hunted in for the past 11 years. Opening morning we counted 27 hunters within a mile of my position. Most of them wearing orange hats and riding horses. It wouldn't have been all that bad but we were 7 miles back in and ontop of the mountain. Takes allot of energy to get that far. I thought for awhile I was hunting back in Penna on opening day of rifle. I don't know what happened to all the big bucks in this area, but we spotted all morning long and didn't see anything worth shooting. We were in the Ruby's the first 5 days of the hunt and then I went back alone the following weekend for 3 more days. We hunted in 4 different areas and were still surprised at how many hunters were there. They were everywhere. We passed thru Harrison pass and it was like a zoo. Normally, when I come off the mountain, I've seen at least 4-5 nice bucks(22-26in) and one hanging from my backpack. My last day there I took a dink(I like the deer meat) and went home disgusted. I've hunted the Ruby's 7 times in the past 11 years and have totally enjoyed all but this past year. I've always been successful at harvesting a nice buck, til now. It use to be that you could get off into a canyon and have it to yourself. Well enough complaining on this forum, I have to email the NDOW and continue complaining to them instead. They have managed this hunt terribly. With the over crowding nothing can come good from this hunt. The animals were not there in there normal populations. Later
2
270hunt
Guest
RE: Report on Ruby Mtn Early Opener Experience
Great story MrMuley, just wanted to know if would it would be great to hunt there the end of this week. I hope I run into one of those hugs.. Will let you guys know how I did..
Great story MrMuley, just wanted to know if would it would be great to hunt there the end of this week. I hope I run into one of those hugs.. Will let you guys know how I did..
N
NV30378
Guest
RE: Report on Ruby Mtn Early Opener Experience
I hiked up to and over Liberty Pass this past Saturday afternoon and saw several does and 1 small fork(not a shooter). After that hike, I have decided that I would need horses to get to the country I would like to hunt, so it is find a different zone or hunt it during archery season. I am in good shape, but that is big and dangerous country. The trail was all snow and frozen ice which made for a longer more dangerous hike. I did not see another hunter and there were only 4 truck and horse trailers at the trailhead. Even with all the people, I took a look at the harvest statistics and they sure shoot a ton of small bucks. They ought to make it a 4pt or better zone for adult hunters. I did have a decent year got my cow elk in unit 111 and saw 3 bucks in 101-108. Just nothing I wanted to pull the hammer on.
I hiked up to and over Liberty Pass this past Saturday afternoon and saw several does and 1 small fork(not a shooter). After that hike, I have decided that I would need horses to get to the country I would like to hunt, so it is find a different zone or hunt it during archery season. I am in good shape, but that is big and dangerous country. The trail was all snow and frozen ice which made for a longer more dangerous hike. I did not see another hunter and there were only 4 truck and horse trailers at the trailhead. Even with all the people, I took a look at the harvest statistics and they sure shoot a ton of small bucks. They ought to make it a 4pt or better zone for adult hunters. I did have a decent year got my cow elk in unit 111 and saw 3 bucks in 101-108. Just nothing I wanted to pull the hammer on.
RE: Report on Ruby Mtn Early Opener Experience
mickeyelk,
Sorry to hear that things didn't work the way you had planned, especially after putting that much time and effort into your hunt. I guess the extra number of tags issued played a big factor. I saw 4 other hunters during my hunt none the last two days after the snow fell. Good luck with the NDOW......they need to hear from their customers more often. Better fortune next season.
mickeyelk,
Sorry to hear that things didn't work the way you had planned, especially after putting that much time and effort into your hunt. I guess the extra number of tags issued played a big factor. I saw 4 other hunters during my hunt none the last two days after the snow fell. Good luck with the NDOW......they need to hear from their customers more often. Better fortune next season.
hunter1975
Active Member
- Messages
- 191
RE: Report on Ruby Mtn Early Opener Experience
For you guy's that have been hunting the Ruby's. I know there are good numbers of deer in the ruby's, I've seen them, so what could be going on? Do you think the pressure on the deer has moved them deeper into the wilderness area or are they just possibly holed up in thick cover until the pressure is off? Maybe a combination things? Any thoughts?
For you guy's that have been hunting the Ruby's. I know there are good numbers of deer in the ruby's, I've seen them, so what could be going on? Do you think the pressure on the deer has moved them deeper into the wilderness area or are they just possibly holed up in thick cover until the pressure is off? Maybe a combination things? Any thoughts?
N
NV30378
Guest
RE: Report on Ruby Mtn Early Opener Experience
Nevadaguy, We scouted the range Sunday the 9th from the truck mostly to get a lay of the land. Sunday evening, we walked into Cleve Creek about 2 miles and saw 1 Elk. It looked like a bull, but we saw him from a long ways away. I have Swarovski optics and I could not make out if it was a bull or a cow for sure. It was in the fading light, but I would guess it was a bull since it was alone and right on the edge of timber. Monday, I shot my cow right off the bat in another canyon we liked during our scouting. The herd I shot my cow out of had a few small bulls(spikes). So, no bull reports. We did scout Kalamazoo pass to the north and Cooper Canyon to the south too. Did not see an elk. My bet is with this mild weather they are up real high in the timber close to the sage parks. I will say this, I like the East side of the range better. Looks more like elk country and had the fewest people. Looked like only 1 truck had been up the canyon we were in since the start of the season. I am no expert on elk, but I would get as high as I can and find as much country to glass as possible. Good Luck to you!
Nevadaguy, We scouted the range Sunday the 9th from the truck mostly to get a lay of the land. Sunday evening, we walked into Cleve Creek about 2 miles and saw 1 Elk. It looked like a bull, but we saw him from a long ways away. I have Swarovski optics and I could not make out if it was a bull or a cow for sure. It was in the fading light, but I would guess it was a bull since it was alone and right on the edge of timber. Monday, I shot my cow right off the bat in another canyon we liked during our scouting. The herd I shot my cow out of had a few small bulls(spikes). So, no bull reports. We did scout Kalamazoo pass to the north and Cooper Canyon to the south too. Did not see an elk. My bet is with this mild weather they are up real high in the timber close to the sage parks. I will say this, I like the East side of the range better. Looks more like elk country and had the fewest people. Looked like only 1 truck had been up the canyon we were in since the start of the season. I am no expert on elk, but I would get as high as I can and find as much country to glass as possible. Good Luck to you!
Califelkslayer
Long Time Member
- Messages
- 4,078
I had a simular experence as Mr. Muley. We packed in leading three horses on the Wed. before the season. we saw 70-80 bucks on Thurs. and Fri. 2 that may have streched to 26". Sat was fun. We saw at least 25 bucks after we screwed up our initial stalk. Most of these were within 250 yards. We spent hours trying to stretch one of these to 26" and couldn't. The one buck that was that wide was very flat and we decided to pass. The best buck of the day was 24" wide and every bit of 24" high with good mass for the area. He had huge rear tines and was very symetrical except for a small crab fork on one side. If it hadn't been for the crab fork making him 4 on one side we would have probably taken him. We saw several bucks that appeared to have been run out of KLectner canyon where we knew there was a lot of pressure. Sunday started with an hour and a half hike in the dark into the next canyon where I had scouted two bucks that were better than anything else we had seen. We couldn't find them nor the two other bachlor groups of bucks I'd scouted. It seemed that canyon got hammered on the opener. We saw about 10-12 small bucks that day. Sun. night we got every bit of 20 inches of snow. Mon. morning every deer we saw was literally running down to lower elevation. I had packed in 200 lbs. of horse feed to supplement the grass. After the snow, the horses couldn't get to the grass. Our neighbors panicked Mon. Morning and packed out away from the trailhead, just to lose elevation and get out of the snow. I was able to get out on a cell phone and learned that there was a warming trend forecast. We knew that Tues. was our last day to hunt because the horse feed was almost gone. We rode down canyon, planning on hunting where the snow was lighter. About 5 miles below camp, about 60 deer exited the other side of an aspen patch. Several of them were 4x4's. i jumped down along with my partner and got busy. When we were done, we had two 23" 3x4's down. It was actually kind of anti-climatic. We had spent hours looking at bucks through our spotting scopes and when it came down to it, we just took a couple of average bucks. It was the last day to hunt and the bucks were exiting uphill with snow on the ground behind them which made them look bigger to me. I think there are bigger bucks in that country because it is soooo big and they have places to escape. The biologist told me that the sun never hits the big ones backs and I believe it. The best bucks I saw were right at dark and it was hard to really judge them it the twilight. Better optics next time. As a note, when we got busy, the horses took the opportunity to run back to camp 5 miles and ate the last of the feed. The trip to get the horses wasn't anything compared to the pack out. I broke trail for the first four miles until we got to where other stock had been on the trail. Wild, huge country with alot of deer. You can't ask for more.
fatrooster
Long Time Member
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- 4,187
Great story Califelkslayer. I agree with you, I bet there are bucks in there that have never seen a human. fatrooster.
Got back home last night from hunting the Rubies and East Humboldts for a week. Guess you could say we (4 of us) had some success during the hunt, we went 75% success.
With the warm sunny weather, it made things a bit tough but after a number of days of "foot power" and sore legs we came home with 3 bucks. The largest was a decent 4x4, the first one taken was a 3x2 and the last was a 2x2. I could have shot some 2x2's but passed and came home with a tag for the soup. LOL
The deer are holed up in some real nasty brush about mid-level up the mountains and and will spot you before you spot them unless you do a lot of glassing.
All three bucks were taken within a 300 yard radious area. The first one was taken on the 18th and the other two were taken within 10 minutes of each other on the 20th on the same hillside about a mile from access road.
There is still a MONSTER up there but he has got that way from being sneaky and slips out over the top into the next canyon.
We tried a number of different areas and came back there as that is the only place we saw deer of any group size at all.
A lot of Las Vegas hunters up in this area, all were nice and we gave a young fella some fresh tomatoes to make his sandwichs with before driving back home. He was dumbfounded when he ask if by chance "we had any tomatoes" and we said yes, I think we made his day for him and his dad before headed home.
Was was able to get permission from a ranch owner and he gave me the combination for the lock on gate of his ranch and we went in one morning to check it out. Got in aways and saw where an Outfitter had his horse trailers there and hunters vehicles parked but we went ahead. Walked back into the mountains and only seen maybe 10-12 deer mostly Does and a small 2x2.
Came back out and when we drove by the "hunters" vehicles at the Outfitters staging area, I walked over to check one of the Pickups out as I saw that three PU's were from CA. Upon checking the camper shell on one of them, my thoughts were comfirmed, I left my "Business Card" on the drivers door so when he got back in and had to look out at the rear side mirrow he would see it. None other than EELGRASS's pickup. Bet he is still wondering HOW I FOUND HIM. LOL
Had a good time and only 11 more days and off to Colorado and try for Elk with an OTC Elk tag and hopefully meeting and having a "couple of Buds" with Paul "PC_The Great" Crawford down there.
To those of you that haven't left yet, good luck and stay safe.
Brian
With the warm sunny weather, it made things a bit tough but after a number of days of "foot power" and sore legs we came home with 3 bucks. The largest was a decent 4x4, the first one taken was a 3x2 and the last was a 2x2. I could have shot some 2x2's but passed and came home with a tag for the soup. LOL
The deer are holed up in some real nasty brush about mid-level up the mountains and and will spot you before you spot them unless you do a lot of glassing.
All three bucks were taken within a 300 yard radious area. The first one was taken on the 18th and the other two were taken within 10 minutes of each other on the 20th on the same hillside about a mile from access road.
There is still a MONSTER up there but he has got that way from being sneaky and slips out over the top into the next canyon.
We tried a number of different areas and came back there as that is the only place we saw deer of any group size at all.
A lot of Las Vegas hunters up in this area, all were nice and we gave a young fella some fresh tomatoes to make his sandwichs with before driving back home. He was dumbfounded when he ask if by chance "we had any tomatoes" and we said yes, I think we made his day for him and his dad before headed home.
Was was able to get permission from a ranch owner and he gave me the combination for the lock on gate of his ranch and we went in one morning to check it out. Got in aways and saw where an Outfitter had his horse trailers there and hunters vehicles parked but we went ahead. Walked back into the mountains and only seen maybe 10-12 deer mostly Does and a small 2x2.
Came back out and when we drove by the "hunters" vehicles at the Outfitters staging area, I walked over to check one of the Pickups out as I saw that three PU's were from CA. Upon checking the camper shell on one of them, my thoughts were comfirmed, I left my "Business Card" on the drivers door so when he got back in and had to look out at the rear side mirrow he would see it. None other than EELGRASS's pickup. Bet he is still wondering HOW I FOUND HIM. LOL
Had a good time and only 11 more days and off to Colorado and try for Elk with an OTC Elk tag and hopefully meeting and having a "couple of Buds" with Paul "PC_The Great" Crawford down there.
To those of you that haven't left yet, good luck and stay safe.
Brian
eelgrass
Long Time Member
- Messages
- 31,441
I hunted the last week of the early season. We hunted with Henry Krenka up Thorpe Creek. We had a full moon with no weather to speak of, which made it a tough hunt. We were all trophy hunting. Two of the hunters got shots but didn't connect. I came home without firing a shot, but with no regrets, as we hunted from daylight to dark for 5 days.
Camp was at 8500' and we hunted up to 9500'. When you live at sea level, those mountains will kick your butt! Being an old man doesn't help either. LOL
This was my first horseback hunt. I came home with nothing but respect for people with horses, and anybody who can run around those mountains chasing mule deer.
My only regret is I never caught up with Kilowatt for dinner at the Star Hotel
I've included a few pictures so you'll get an idea of the country we hunted. I think I look a lot like Clint Eastwood. Don't you agree? LOL
Steve
Camp was at 8500' and we hunted up to 9500'. When you live at sea level, those mountains will kick your butt! Being an old man doesn't help either. LOL
This was my first horseback hunt. I came home with nothing but respect for people with horses, and anybody who can run around those mountains chasing mule deer.
My only regret is I never caught up with Kilowatt for dinner at the Star Hotel
I've included a few pictures so you'll get an idea of the country we hunted. I think I look a lot like Clint Eastwood. Don't you agree? LOL
Steve
fatrooster
Long Time Member
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Killowatt, sorry that I didn't get to see ya but theres always next time. Too bad you didn't get that monster buck but I'll try and get him for ya next year, lol.
Eelgrass, nice pics and great story. I've lived and hunted here in Elko for 10 years, I'm 42 and those mountains still kick my arse. I'm glad to see an older guy still out there kickin' the brush up in the mountains. I'll have to say that it doesn't really matter to me if I fill my tag because when you hunt the Rubies while camping at 9,000 feet you know that you gave it a good honest effort and the trip and the experience alone is worth it. fatrooster.
Eelgrass, nice pics and great story. I've lived and hunted here in Elko for 10 years, I'm 42 and those mountains still kick my arse. I'm glad to see an older guy still out there kickin' the brush up in the mountains. I'll have to say that it doesn't really matter to me if I fill my tag because when you hunt the Rubies while camping at 9,000 feet you know that you gave it a good honest effort and the trip and the experience alone is worth it. fatrooster.
fatrooster,
Drew, I hope that you get that Elk you are looking for up there and don't forget to take lots of pictures.
Also for those of you that haven't seen the Elko Daily Newspaper's Sept issue, Mr. Fatrooster and his buddy were on the front page with a real nice Antelope taken up in the Sheldon area by Drews buddy and Drew was the "guide", congrats to the both of you.
If anyone is looking for a Butcher for their game, I have the number and address of a guy in Spring Creek, which is outside of Elko who is really good, and works fast and all of the meat is BONED OUT, cut and wrapped and frozen. We took two bucks to him last Friday morning at 7:30am and he called me when we were in the local Museaum in town at 11:00am that the meat was done. Went to the market in Spring Creek and bought DRY ICE and headed home. THAT'S SERVICE AND DONE RIGHT.
He is original from MT but lives there in Spring Creek and works at one of the Mines around there and cuts on the side. His father was a Butcher in MT for many years and learned from him.
Brian
Drew, I hope that you get that Elk you are looking for up there and don't forget to take lots of pictures.
Also for those of you that haven't seen the Elko Daily Newspaper's Sept issue, Mr. Fatrooster and his buddy were on the front page with a real nice Antelope taken up in the Sheldon area by Drews buddy and Drew was the "guide", congrats to the both of you.
If anyone is looking for a Butcher for their game, I have the number and address of a guy in Spring Creek, which is outside of Elko who is really good, and works fast and all of the meat is BONED OUT, cut and wrapped and frozen. We took two bucks to him last Friday morning at 7:30am and he called me when we were in the local Museaum in town at 11:00am that the meat was done. Went to the market in Spring Creek and bought DRY ICE and headed home. THAT'S SERVICE AND DONE RIGHT.
He is original from MT but lives there in Spring Creek and works at one of the Mines around there and cuts on the side. His father was a Butcher in MT for many years and learned from him.
Brian
fatrooster
Long Time Member
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Ha ha Brian, the "guide" part was a joke. I am by no means on the same hunting level as a guide and I personally would not take money for helping someone find an animal. But we got a good laugh from it. Thanks for the good wishes on my elk hunt. We'll see what happens. I hope I can LUCKILY guide myself to a monster bull. Goodluck on your Colorado elk hunt. fatrooster.
eelgrass
Long Time Member
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fatrooster,
Thanks for the nice comments. This was one hunt I didn't mind passing up small bucks at the risk of getting skunked. There is so much good looking deer country up there that I wanted to keep looking. Even with good optics, by hunts end, my eyes were shot! LOL
Good luck on your elk hunt. I sure would like to see a picture of that antelope kilowatt was talking about also, if possible.
Steve
Thanks for the nice comments. This was one hunt I didn't mind passing up small bucks at the risk of getting skunked. There is so much good looking deer country up there that I wanted to keep looking. Even with good optics, by hunts end, my eyes were shot! LOL
Good luck on your elk hunt. I sure would like to see a picture of that antelope kilowatt was talking about also, if possible.
Steve
B
BigFly
Guest
LAST EDITED ON Oct-28-05 AT 07:09PM (MST)[p]Three of us hunted the early season and spent seven days in the hot-to-cold-to-hot again weather. On the first evening of our hunt, I was perched on a sidehill watching a deep drainage. After about 2 1/2 hours of glassing, I was getting ready to head back to a different spot when I spotted this nice buck walking over a saddle directly toward me. I raised my rifle and steadied my crosshairs on the buck when outta nowhere....CRACK! BOOM!!
Dirt flew up from behind the buck. I turned around to see where the shot came from. I saw nobody. Again, I set up for the shot. By this time the buck was moving toward me faster. Crosshairs dead still and...CRACK!! BOOM!! The deer dropped like a hot rock. I was completely disgusted. I still had no idea where the shots had come from. I began to glass and from the top of the spine that the deer had been on, I see a hunter marching down as fast as his feet would carry him. I guided him to his buck and congratulated him from across the drainage. I then continued back to my camp to give the story. After a while, here come the shooter. He turned out to be a real nice guy. I helped him and his boys get the deer out in the dark. I took a picture of it and told him I would send it to him in Vegas. He received the photo and sent me back some of the best jerky I think I have ever tasted. I can't tell you how much I appreciated that. Well, I guess you guys want to see it.....He's a 5x4 25" wide. He looks huge on the quad because his back half is on the front of the quad. All-in-all, a real nice buck. The shooter told me it was the biggest deer he had ever killed. He deserved it. I am happy for him. Good luck to all. I'm headin out on the 2nd of Nov. for my kids area 6 late tag. I'll post those pics and the story when we get back.
Fly
Dirt flew up from behind the buck. I turned around to see where the shot came from. I saw nobody. Again, I set up for the shot. By this time the buck was moving toward me faster. Crosshairs dead still and...CRACK!! BOOM!! The deer dropped like a hot rock. I was completely disgusted. I still had no idea where the shots had come from. I began to glass and from the top of the spine that the deer had been on, I see a hunter marching down as fast as his feet would carry him. I guided him to his buck and congratulated him from across the drainage. I then continued back to my camp to give the story. After a while, here come the shooter. He turned out to be a real nice guy. I helped him and his boys get the deer out in the dark. I took a picture of it and told him I would send it to him in Vegas. He received the photo and sent me back some of the best jerky I think I have ever tasted. I can't tell you how much I appreciated that. Well, I guess you guys want to see it.....He's a 5x4 25" wide. He looks huge on the quad because his back half is on the front of the quad. All-in-all, a real nice buck. The shooter told me it was the biggest deer he had ever killed. He deserved it. I am happy for him. Good luck to all. I'm headin out on the 2nd of Nov. for my kids area 6 late tag. I'll post those pics and the story when we get back.
Fly
