Big Buck Question

[NV30378]

If you have taken a buck over 27" wide on public land without snow on the ground would you please share the details of the hunt. For example, type of terrain, time of day, how you spotted the animal, were they bedded, did they seem exceptionally smart in their skills to elude hunters.....etc. basically, what do you look for when assessing terrain. How close were they to water and roads...etc again Thanks in advance for sharing.

 

[larrbo]

About 10 years ago I was hunting in Eastern Oregon for Mule Deer. It was about 8:30 in the morning and I was hunting the lower foothills of some mountains that where above farmland and riverbottom. I saw 3 deer moving ahead of me back up onto the mountains. The last deer was a nice one. I took about a 250 yard shot and he went down. The buck was a 28 1/2" 5X4 stag.

 

[AntlerKing]

K...my brother and I were sitting on two ledges when he radioed up to me that he had two coyotes sitting under a tree. This was in Northern Utah and the temsp where in the high 70's at 9869' elevations. He was on a ledge 20 yards below me. So I slide down the rockslide to him. I took the yot on the left he took the one on the right. At the count of three we both shot. Well at 400+ yards through the brush we hit one and the other took off. There was a bare ridge that was across from us. The coyote took off over that ridge into the pines. My brother and I started arguing over who it the coyote when on the same deer trail the coyote ran off on something was running in our direction on that same trail. I pulled up the bino's and say nothing but antlers. I pulled out the range finder and at 280 yards I dumped him in his tracks. He has five inch brow-tines and a 28" spread with good antler length and mass. If it wasn't for the coyote jumping the buck out of his bed we would never have saw it. Good luck

 

[five_point_buck]

First note would be stop judging animals by a spread width. There are may more factors in making a "trophy". If you want score, look for deep forks and symetry. Long tines and mass. You can also define trophies by they way they were taken, the effort involved, the people you are with, and the area genetics. Sometimes that willow horn 4x4 is the biggest buck on the mountain.

Here's a quickie on my best. Spent a lot of time in an area that had access to water, feed, cover in the forms of PJ's and tall sage. Rimrock and finger draws above. The lower areas held good numbers of does. In the mornings I'd get up into and past the finger draws and saddles and waited for the bucks to bed for the day after a night with the hoochies. In the evenings, I'd hang back in the sage flats and wait for the animals to come back down looking for nookie. Spent 5 days hauling my butt all over hells half acre, even though a few people said there had been way too much pressure. The area had it all, but we weren't seeing many deer. I was however seeing a lot of fresh sign that was obviously being laid down during the night. I stayed positive and stuck to the plan.

Two of us made our way out a flat to look over the edge. I lost a ro-sham-bow to look over a certain good looking spot. My buddy won and looked over, seeing some small bucks and a little group of does. I decided to go take a 10-200. For chits and giggles I peaked over an area about 100yards left of my buddy. There, raking the heck out of some trees was a big buck. With a 3 second evaluation, I could see the main ingredients. Mass, Deep forks, long tines. Safety off, breath, kaboom. One dead 187" buck.

Lucky...hell yes. Luck is a combination of hard work and perseverance. I walked farther, stayed out longer, payed more attention, was more positive than everyone else. I believed the signs, and was rewarded.

In hindsight. All of the bigger deer I've taken have the same things in common.....

They are always on the fringes...i.e. just far enough away from other deer, but only a short walk back to check does.

They have been killed at odd hours...10, 11 am, 12 pm, 130 pm. Just when everyone else is taking a nap.

Most have been alone, in ugly territory, facing into the wind, with multiple exit routes up, down, and out.

I have glassed a part or all of them before they've seen me.



five_point_buck
C.B.C.S.

 

[idhunters]

Well, he was only 26" wide but scored 183 as a 4 point w/o eyeguards....does that count?

It was October 4, 2003 in the high country of western wyoming. About 2 1/2 hours on horseback from the nearest road when we stopped riding and started walking. Spotted some deer on the far ridge and went up a knife ridge to get a better look. Decided to glass another ridge app. 350 yards away and spotted a medium (150-160 class) buck feeding. Sat down by a dead snag and glassed again, spotted a second buck in the same class. Watched for a couple minutes and he kept looking down into another small patch of pines. I glassed that patch and caught a third buck in his bed...saw the back forks and decided to take him.

No snow, clear but a little cool. Season had been open for 2 weeks. Didn't see another hunter.

On October 6, 2004 my best friend took a buck I had found in July. He is a 27" 4x6. Public land, over the counter tags in Idaho. No snow, clear and a little warm, second day of season. Got the buck by walking the area I had seen him in, jumped him out of his bed and wacked him. (the buck was spotted at first light that day along with another, bigger deer. The big one slipped away).

Hope this helps.
Lance

 

[NV30378]

5Pt, Thanks for the story. I like wide deer period. Not to concerned if they make the book just want wide antlers. I am funny that way.

 

[losthuntr]

shot a 32 incher in 2000, 10 deer snuck down into a small patch of timber, walked down to the patch in full view, didn't even try to sneak, 9 deer ran out, waited about 3 minutes and the big boy just couldn't stand to be by himself, if he'd have stayed in that patch of trees, he'd still be alive today. shot a 31 1/2 inch buck in 2003, my buddy had already shot his deer so he pushed a ridge for me, had to step on the sucker to get him up, I sat on the opposite ridge and waited, the buck shot straight to the bottom of the timber and skirted the edge where no body who was on the same ridge would have ever got a shot. Big bucks get big because they know how to hide and are usually smart enough not to get up unless you almost step on them.

 

[need2hunt]

LAST EDITED ON Oct-07-05 AT 07:54AM (MST)[p]I think the best tip, would be to never let your guard down. Always be on the lookout. I was on my way back home, from my work as a forester, and was looking out on some sage flats along the highway. Barely 200 yards from this major highway were two nice bucks bedded underneath one of the only trees around! Needless to say, I drove back home, grabbed my gear and went back out. I ended up making a stalk from the side (as they were facing the highway)getting the larger buck, that ended up being a heavy 27 inch 3x3! This is a top class buck in the area he came from. I couldn't believe nobody else spotted the bucks because from the neck up, they were in plain view! Good luck to you.

In response to an earlier response-Hey, a trophy is in the eye of the hunter, some like score and long tines. Score don't matter much to me, I tend to like width or height, or mass....pretty much as long as they have character to me.

 

[five_point_buck]

NV, I'm not trying to tell a feller his business. I like width, but have never had the opportunity as the places I hunt genetically produce very symetrical tall bucks with some mass. I just mentione dthat because I have come across a lot of folks that do want a buck for the book, and they foolishly disregard the symetrical 25" bucks with awesome forks. Width is very cool, height is cool, but deep forks with long tines is where its at for me....

IU like the point about always being on guard. Never fails, your beat up and exhausted and as soon as your mind wanders, there they are! Hard to stay on point from dawn till dusk.

Good luck, hopefully we can see some pics of you and a nice wide one...

five_point_buck
C.B.C.S.

 

[eweikum338]

I have found that really big, trophy class bucks like to stay mostly alone. The few really large bucks I have seen on public land have been in areas where a hunter wouldn't think a deer would even be. I saw one on a very long steep ridge line with almost no cover bedded behind the only small juniper on the hillside. This particluar buck was in Montana. It was 1PM. I took about 10 steps towards that hill and that buck was up and outta there. He was about 800 yards away and never to be seen again, at least by me.
The third really large buck I saw was just outside of Craig, Colorado. In a heavy brush patch between the Craig airport and the hwy just watching the hunters zoom by. When I spotted that buck I almost wrecked my truck. hahahaha Of course he new he was safe where he was bedded and didn't even move. I guess if I would have crossed the hwy and walked toward him he would have run, probably right out onto the runway. He was within 60 yards of the road. This was about 2PM.

I hope you get your trophy, I haven't bagged mine yet. Maybe next time.