S
SoleSearcher36
Guest
LAST EDITED ON Nov-20-11 AT 00:01AM (MST)[p]It has been a interesting but great deer season here in Co. for my family. My son Taylor just started hunting this year and after missing a solid 170 class buck the first weekend(which then proceeded to give us the middle hoof by crossing onto private land and raking his antlers for 15 minutes), he made good on a nice fat forkie in a snowstorm the last afternoon. We hunted really hard for another 3pt. or better buck in adverse conditions thru the final weekend of the hunt and Taylor passed another forkie saying.."I will wait until the last day for a forkie even if I go home with an unfilled tag". It was his choice and I let him make it but secretly I knew he would be thrilled to harvest any buck. In the snow the final day I managed to spot a nice fat forkie on an aspen ridge and Taylor enthusiastically told me he wanted to take him. We set up on the buck and I could see Taylor was really excited. I talked him thru the shot and reminded him to time his breathing and squeeze the trigger instead of jerking it. I told him to take the shot whenever he was ready. He missed the first shot at the forkie but was able to calm down and take him with the second shot from his .257 Wby Mag. The buck was hit hard but managed to make it over the top of the ridge before going down. I will never forget the look on his face when we finally walked up on his first buck. He was so thrilled with his forkie that he said..."dad, I don't even care that I missed the big buck and I'm glad he wasn't wounded".
I couldn't be more proud of my son as well as thrilled that he harbors a love for the outdoors.
After getting Taylor's buck taken care of and loaded we headed off to try to find a good meat buck for my buddy who also had a tag. With only an hour of daylight left we found a nice 3x3 and Steve made a solid heart shot for a nice finish to the season.
I was able to return to the same area for my 4th season hunt, not really knowing what to expect with the lack of snow up higher to bring down the big ones and the lack of rutting activity to bring them out of the woodwork. I was only able to get about 2hrs of glassing done in the unit the evening before my hunt and only turned up a few does, about 3 forkies and a goofy young 3x4. Opening morning we were greeted with a chilly gusting wind the would be unrelenting all day. We covered lots of ground with the glass all day turning up only a few does, a forkie, and 3 small 3 point bucks. There was alot of sign in the snow and we cut a number of bigger buck tracks but everything was hunkered down in the timber it seemed. The only bucks I saw chasing does were forkies with the exception of one tall but young 3-by. Late in the day I was checking out what at first look was a lone doe way up on a ridge in patchy snow/brush/rocks when suddenly I started picking out more deer in the woodwork. I soon had about 7 or 8 does spotted as well as two forkies and a small 3pt about 80 yards above the does. The small bucks were acting rutty and shoving eachother around. Since all the other forkies I had seen were with does and these were hanging off to the side I immediately suspected there might be a bigger buck I couldn't see with the does that was making the small bucks hold their distance. I began to look even harder, putting the 20-60x80 Swaro to maximum use. Suddenly I found what I was looking for....a big buck feeding with his head behind some low brush. When the buck finally raised his head it was just about heart-attack time and my hands began shaking so bad I had to take them off the pan-handle of the spotting scope. I was looking at the biggest typical buck I had ever seen while I had a valid buck tag in hand. The big buck I was looking at would without a doubt net over 200" and I needed to figure out fast how to get close enough to kill him. I managed to snap a quick picture or two thru the spotter but with my hands shaking and no digiscope adapter I didn't know if I would end up with a picture at all. I looked at all the different ways I might approach the buck but with it being so late in the day and lack of cover I soon decided a direct approach from below was the only option. I would only be able to get so far before the lay of the land obscured the buck from my view but it would be close enough and within my confidence for a good shot. I made it to where I wanted to be with the deer still feeding and set up quickly as they were working towards the top of the ridge. I didn't think I had time to get the spotter set up and felt with the decreased yardage I could find the buck easily.......wrong! All the other deer were still there and I felt the big typical was just out of sight behind the brush/trees and would reappear but I was understandably apprehensive. It was only a matter of time until they worked over the ridge and I knew I might not have alot of time for a shot. All of the sudden a big buck materialized in the shadows near a pine tree about 20 yards from where I had last seen the big typical. Thanks to the patchy snow and shadows I just couldn't tell through the scope if the buck I was looking at was "The One". I raised the 10 power binos and looked as hard as I could but just couldn't be sure. This buck was wide and fairly heavy but I just couldn't tell what he was with the rack blending into the shadows and background. My mind was racing and the light wasn't going to last forever. I thought to myself....."this is a good buck you are looking at and it might well be the big typical but if it isn't you got this tag with zero points." I looked hard at the buck standing slightly quartered to me up the steep hill and I knew that while there was a chance it was a different buck it wasn't likely under the conditions. And even if it was this buck was a big, wide mature buck that I would be thrilled with regardless. I had made my descision......I would shoot this buck. I write my ballistics table down on the back of my left hand because it helps dispell any "fever" before the shot so I took a moment to glance down at the table and then settled into the scope for the shot. I balanced my breathing and then found my hold and began squeezing the trigger. The Browning BAR .30-06 went off...surprising me just as it should and as I regained my sight picture after the recoil I could see the buck hit the deck on impact of the 150gr. Core-Lokt. The buck rolled down the hill never regaining his feet before coming to rest behind a dead tree. I watched thru the scope for a few minutes to make sure he didn't come out from behind the tree and thankfully he didn't. I was so focused on the downed buck I honestly never saw any of the other deer after I squeezed the trigger. My buddy and I gathered our stuff quickly and began climbing the steep ridge to the buck but the terrain would not allow us to view where he had fallen until we were within about 75 yards of the dead tree he had come to rest behind. As we cautiously topped the rise, we looked carefully ahead and spotted the buck in the snow ahead. Through the scope I could see that my buck lacked the deep back forks of the big typical.....there had been a second buck there after all. I didn't feel disappointed at all and the closer I walked to the buck the more excited I got. He only got bigger and bigger as I closed the yards between us and I began to see all the little extras that I hadn't been able to see through the scope. I had just taken my best buck to date and my favorite kind....a mature trashy buck. He had alot of character with decent mass, a 32" outside spread, cheaters on both sides, a small inline and a neat droptine near the end of his right main beam. Just a really cool mature buck. Had he been standing side by side with the big typical I honestly can't say I wouldn't shoot him all over again. What a short but great hunt. After taking a 31" buck in the same general area last year this buck was everything I could have hoped for on a zero-point tag in a heavily hunted area. After downloading the pictures I shakily snapped thru the spotting scope I discovered I did in fact have a shot of the buck I took following the big typical towards the dead tree but I can just barely make out the dark, heavy frame of the typical and nothing more.....just enough to confirm I wasn't imagining things. When I dressed my buck I discovered that he completely lacked a tail and the trailing buck in the picture clearly lacks a tail, confirming it is my deer. Not a good picture without a digiscope adapter but I will post it anyway. Apparently while I was trying to line up the camera with the lens the big typical started walking out of view and the unseen trashy buck walked into it. I didn't know this until I reviewed the shots on the computer at home. I hope you all enjoy the photos.
For you score guys, he grosses in the low 190's with a little under 18" of mass per side.
I couldn't be more proud of my son as well as thrilled that he harbors a love for the outdoors.
After getting Taylor's buck taken care of and loaded we headed off to try to find a good meat buck for my buddy who also had a tag. With only an hour of daylight left we found a nice 3x3 and Steve made a solid heart shot for a nice finish to the season.
I was able to return to the same area for my 4th season hunt, not really knowing what to expect with the lack of snow up higher to bring down the big ones and the lack of rutting activity to bring them out of the woodwork. I was only able to get about 2hrs of glassing done in the unit the evening before my hunt and only turned up a few does, about 3 forkies and a goofy young 3x4. Opening morning we were greeted with a chilly gusting wind the would be unrelenting all day. We covered lots of ground with the glass all day turning up only a few does, a forkie, and 3 small 3 point bucks. There was alot of sign in the snow and we cut a number of bigger buck tracks but everything was hunkered down in the timber it seemed. The only bucks I saw chasing does were forkies with the exception of one tall but young 3-by. Late in the day I was checking out what at first look was a lone doe way up on a ridge in patchy snow/brush/rocks when suddenly I started picking out more deer in the woodwork. I soon had about 7 or 8 does spotted as well as two forkies and a small 3pt about 80 yards above the does. The small bucks were acting rutty and shoving eachother around. Since all the other forkies I had seen were with does and these were hanging off to the side I immediately suspected there might be a bigger buck I couldn't see with the does that was making the small bucks hold their distance. I began to look even harder, putting the 20-60x80 Swaro to maximum use. Suddenly I found what I was looking for....a big buck feeding with his head behind some low brush. When the buck finally raised his head it was just about heart-attack time and my hands began shaking so bad I had to take them off the pan-handle of the spotting scope. I was looking at the biggest typical buck I had ever seen while I had a valid buck tag in hand. The big buck I was looking at would without a doubt net over 200" and I needed to figure out fast how to get close enough to kill him. I managed to snap a quick picture or two thru the spotter but with my hands shaking and no digiscope adapter I didn't know if I would end up with a picture at all. I looked at all the different ways I might approach the buck but with it being so late in the day and lack of cover I soon decided a direct approach from below was the only option. I would only be able to get so far before the lay of the land obscured the buck from my view but it would be close enough and within my confidence for a good shot. I made it to where I wanted to be with the deer still feeding and set up quickly as they were working towards the top of the ridge. I didn't think I had time to get the spotter set up and felt with the decreased yardage I could find the buck easily.......wrong! All the other deer were still there and I felt the big typical was just out of sight behind the brush/trees and would reappear but I was understandably apprehensive. It was only a matter of time until they worked over the ridge and I knew I might not have alot of time for a shot. All of the sudden a big buck materialized in the shadows near a pine tree about 20 yards from where I had last seen the big typical. Thanks to the patchy snow and shadows I just couldn't tell through the scope if the buck I was looking at was "The One". I raised the 10 power binos and looked as hard as I could but just couldn't be sure. This buck was wide and fairly heavy but I just couldn't tell what he was with the rack blending into the shadows and background. My mind was racing and the light wasn't going to last forever. I thought to myself....."this is a good buck you are looking at and it might well be the big typical but if it isn't you got this tag with zero points." I looked hard at the buck standing slightly quartered to me up the steep hill and I knew that while there was a chance it was a different buck it wasn't likely under the conditions. And even if it was this buck was a big, wide mature buck that I would be thrilled with regardless. I had made my descision......I would shoot this buck. I write my ballistics table down on the back of my left hand because it helps dispell any "fever" before the shot so I took a moment to glance down at the table and then settled into the scope for the shot. I balanced my breathing and then found my hold and began squeezing the trigger. The Browning BAR .30-06 went off...surprising me just as it should and as I regained my sight picture after the recoil I could see the buck hit the deck on impact of the 150gr. Core-Lokt. The buck rolled down the hill never regaining his feet before coming to rest behind a dead tree. I watched thru the scope for a few minutes to make sure he didn't come out from behind the tree and thankfully he didn't. I was so focused on the downed buck I honestly never saw any of the other deer after I squeezed the trigger. My buddy and I gathered our stuff quickly and began climbing the steep ridge to the buck but the terrain would not allow us to view where he had fallen until we were within about 75 yards of the dead tree he had come to rest behind. As we cautiously topped the rise, we looked carefully ahead and spotted the buck in the snow ahead. Through the scope I could see that my buck lacked the deep back forks of the big typical.....there had been a second buck there after all. I didn't feel disappointed at all and the closer I walked to the buck the more excited I got. He only got bigger and bigger as I closed the yards between us and I began to see all the little extras that I hadn't been able to see through the scope. I had just taken my best buck to date and my favorite kind....a mature trashy buck. He had alot of character with decent mass, a 32" outside spread, cheaters on both sides, a small inline and a neat droptine near the end of his right main beam. Just a really cool mature buck. Had he been standing side by side with the big typical I honestly can't say I wouldn't shoot him all over again. What a short but great hunt. After taking a 31" buck in the same general area last year this buck was everything I could have hoped for on a zero-point tag in a heavily hunted area. After downloading the pictures I shakily snapped thru the spotting scope I discovered I did in fact have a shot of the buck I took following the big typical towards the dead tree but I can just barely make out the dark, heavy frame of the typical and nothing more.....just enough to confirm I wasn't imagining things. When I dressed my buck I discovered that he completely lacked a tail and the trailing buck in the picture clearly lacks a tail, confirming it is my deer. Not a good picture without a digiscope adapter but I will post it anyway. Apparently while I was trying to line up the camera with the lens the big typical started walking out of view and the unseen trashy buck walked into it. I didn't know this until I reviewed the shots on the computer at home. I hope you all enjoy the photos.
For you score guys, he grosses in the low 190's with a little under 18" of mass per side.
Haha, just kidding! Looks like you may have yourself a little 0 point honeyhole! Congrats!!
