The Island.

OpeningDay

Active Member
Messages
627
I am going to take my daughter for a drive out to Antelope Island. I think she will enjoy seeing the Buffalo and maybe some deer. What are the chances I will be able to see a nice buck from the road?? All they could tell me on the phone about seeing deer is that they are "free roaming" and could be anywhere.. Well Duh....
 
Haven't been out there this year. Last year, went with the wife. Took the road around towards the ranch. The north/northeast facing hill you drive around, that is covered in rocks and boulders mostly, is where we finally found some deer. The only buck was a 33"-35" 3x4. Solid, heavy buck, not great tine length, but would have been a 180+" 3x4. They were on the upper side of the road on the skyline. Have also seen them other years below the road down closer to the lake bed in the same area.

As you go around to the east side of the island, there is good cover between the road and the lake bed. Have seen deer (great great bucks) in this area before- but you have to catch them out of cover.

Just have a fun ride- I hope you get a little lucky and see some giants...

"Therefore, wo be unto him that is at ease in Zion!" 2 Ne. 28: 24
 
"There is good cover between the road and the lake bed." WTF? From previous posts, it sounded like there was no cover on the Island and this years mule deer hunt would be a slam dunk. Like hunting in a high fence area??? OR was that a bunch of penis envy?
 
LAST EDITED ON Jan-20-11 AT 10:04PM (MST)[p] I was out a couple weeks ago. Seen a lot of bucks but you will need a scope. Take the ranch road and look to the west at the base of the hill in the canyons near the trees and in the sage.. Most the bucks are a ways off the road. But there are a few dandys. You just have to stop and glass.

Rutnbuck
 
I used to spend alot of time out there. The Frary Peak trail is a great place to spot them. Good optics helps. Everybody thinks these deer are tame. Not true at all unless you are right around the ranch house. There used to be a deer that you could pet out there. I used to go out and hike that trail during the rut and saw absolute giants. However getting close to them is not as easy as one might think. If I remember right there are only just under 200 deer on the whole island, so they are not everywhere like you might think.
 
>"There is good cover between the
>road and the lake bed."
> WTF? From previous posts,
>it sounded like there was
>no cover on the Island
>and this years mule
>deer hunt would be
>a slam dunk. Like hunting
>in a high fence area???
>OR was that a bunch
>of penis envy?


Yup, simply penis envy.

We used to see it with toys when we were kids. If someone had a cool toy, everyone tried to take it away or down-play it's worth.

Silly kids!

Zeke

PS: Yes, you can see some from the road.... maybe! They're mule deer and as such tend to be bothered by people. Good luck, keep your kids interested since they're out future!
 
I need to go check this place out.

http://i130.photobucket.com/albums/p248/nv_hunter/nevadaanimatedhelmetwd2.gif[/IMG]
 
Finally some buck facts! I also heard that there are deer that actually can and do leave the island and that the deer are not ,in fact, sequestered on the island. True or not? Thanks
 
LAST EDITED ON Jan-22-11 AT 09:13AM (MST)[p]With the water level at its lowest level in my lifetime, the island is in fact not currently an island and deer, buffalo, coyotes, and antelope can and do leave the island.

The bucks are incredibly skittest and rarely give you photo ops.

Yelum
4056smisland4a.jpg


7574smlisland1a.jpg


5733smlisland5.jpg
 
YELUM
that top buck looks to be pushing 400 pounds. Maybe it's just the pic, but he is mammoth

Thanks for sharing these

The Christian
 
Sure enough but your a better photographer then I am. Or you were cheating and using Pecan Pie to lure them in close. Seen a couple wall hangers on the west side but I didn't have enough zoom. If you get out that way you can see the sheep near the ridge tops @ about 278 degrees from the parking lot at the ranch. Maybe we will run into each other out there if so I will bake ya a cake. I met you years ago at the first antler fest. Rutnbuck
 
No pie, just closer to the road. I got way more bad pics than good ones. I actually seen the sheep yesterday morning. I hadn't seen em all year. I've never seen the west side wallhangers.

Yelum
 

Click-a-Pic ... Details & Bigger Photos
Back
Top Bottom