Dahlmer
Active Member
- Messages
- 247
All right so here are the pictures and story of my '06 buck. Unfortunately, because I killed the deer later in the evening I was not able to get any good photos in the field. I'll be doing a european mount with this buck. He's 26 3/4" wide and I haven't scored him, but estimate he's in the 145 range.
My dad had killed a buck earlier in the day and after taking care of it we found that most of our day was over. At about 5:00 pm we decided we would ride off a ridge that would allow us to see off into several draws that we have seen deer in before. We reached a spot where the ridge split and my dad and I went down one side and our friend went down the other. As we neared the end of the ridge I looked down into the bottom of the canyon and saw the unmistakable face of a deer.
I jumped off my mule and found him in my binoculars but due to the thickness of the oak it was difficult to be sure he was a buck. We spent the next 10-15 minutes deciding he was a buck and then determining he was a shooter as well. I chambered a round and tried to find a spot I could take a shot from, but I coudn't see over the oak brush to get a shot. I knew I coudn't take the shot standing up and so I spent the next 1/2 hour trying to find a spot I could get a good rest. I went up the hill and accross the hill but could find no spot that allowed for a good shot. Finally, I decided I would have to move down into a little clearing about 50 yards down the hill. With the deer watching me the whole time I dropped into the clearing, but still could not find a good shot.
I noticed a rock about 10 inches across and 18 inches tall and decided maybe I could sit on that and see the deer. During all of this the deer was just laying down in the bottom of the canyon. I found that the rock did give me a good rest for about a 100 yard shot. I found the deer in my scope and placed the cross hairs where his neck and shoulder connnected and fired. He jumped out of his bed and ran through a stand of oak and died less than 30 yards from where he had been bedded. Turns out he was wider than we had expected and while I was disappointed that my hunt was over, I was thrilled with the chance to take this buck.
Here's some pictures of mine and my dad's buck. Both are four points. Our friend went back and was able to kill a smaller 4 point on Tuesday.
My dad had killed a buck earlier in the day and after taking care of it we found that most of our day was over. At about 5:00 pm we decided we would ride off a ridge that would allow us to see off into several draws that we have seen deer in before. We reached a spot where the ridge split and my dad and I went down one side and our friend went down the other. As we neared the end of the ridge I looked down into the bottom of the canyon and saw the unmistakable face of a deer.
I jumped off my mule and found him in my binoculars but due to the thickness of the oak it was difficult to be sure he was a buck. We spent the next 10-15 minutes deciding he was a buck and then determining he was a shooter as well. I chambered a round and tried to find a spot I could take a shot from, but I coudn't see over the oak brush to get a shot. I knew I coudn't take the shot standing up and so I spent the next 1/2 hour trying to find a spot I could get a good rest. I went up the hill and accross the hill but could find no spot that allowed for a good shot. Finally, I decided I would have to move down into a little clearing about 50 yards down the hill. With the deer watching me the whole time I dropped into the clearing, but still could not find a good shot.
I noticed a rock about 10 inches across and 18 inches tall and decided maybe I could sit on that and see the deer. During all of this the deer was just laying down in the bottom of the canyon. I found that the rock did give me a good rest for about a 100 yard shot. I found the deer in my scope and placed the cross hairs where his neck and shoulder connnected and fired. He jumped out of his bed and ran through a stand of oak and died less than 30 yards from where he had been bedded. Turns out he was wider than we had expected and while I was disappointed that my hunt was over, I was thrilled with the chance to take this buck.
Here's some pictures of mine and my dad's buck. Both are four points. Our friend went back and was able to kill a smaller 4 point on Tuesday.
~
