deerhuntr4885
Active Member
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From reading the brochure I saw that there is some units in ID that are open until Nov 18 for any deer. I decided to give this a try. I called Silver Spur Outfitters and Lodge in Dixie, ID to see if they had any rooms available. The lodge is owned by Rick ad Deb Koesel.
I had decided to hunt out of the lodge given the unpredictable weather and the fact that I was alone. They have a pretty good deal. $95.00 per night for room and three home cooked meals per day! I arrived late in the evening and they had dinner almost ready. It was really good. I was the only guest at the time and I spent the night hanging out with them and their family. I have to say I had a really good time with them and felt very welcome. Deb is a great cook.
Rick got out a topo map and gave me some areas to start with in the morning. I woke up at 0430 to find that Rick was already up and had a hot breakfast of eggs, sausage and toast waiting for me. He also packed me a huge lunch. I went to the are he told me to go.
I drove until the road was blocked by a log. I got out and started hiking. I was on the east side of a ridge. It was very thick forest. I hiked over to the west side and found that it was burned from a fire a few years back. I could not believe how steep it was! There were trees down every where. I could not imagine shooting a deer down in that stuff. I scanned as far as I could see and it all looked pretty rough.
I was getting kind of down as I walked down the ridge on a quad trail. The ground was frozen and crunched with every step. I was in thick timber and had no expectations of seeing a deer. I was trudging along hoping to get in the open before it got to late and everything bedded.
Suddenly to my right I heard a very large deer stotting away. The deer sounded huge as it got further away. I just froze and began cussing myself for not having any discipline to keep quiet. I stood there looking into a very thick stand of trees for about two minutes. It was very quiet but I could not see through the trees at all. I took two steps forward when I heard what sounded like a heard of elk getting up below me.
I froze again and stood there as I heard them moving away. Suddenly I saw a flash a movement in the trees. I threw my rifle up and saw a doe in the scope. I kept my rifle on that spot as doe after doe stepped through this little hole in the trees. After about 8 does I saw one side of a good buck and pulled the trigger. Doe, Doe, Doe, Doe, BUCK..BANG! Just that fast. With the recoil I lost sight of the hole in the trees and had no idea if I had hit him. I had thought the shot was about 40 yards in, but as I started walking through the forest, I kept my eye on the area I had shot and it got farther and farther away. I found that there was a little draw between me and the deer when I shot. By the time I crossed and started up the other side I realized it was more like 90 yards across.
This is the shot I had. The deer were in the middle of the frame.
When I got there this nice 4X4 was laying there. He is not the widest at only 19 inches but he was very heavy and dark.
I hunted for about 30 minutes before I had this guy on the ground. I sat there shaking my head in disbelief. I usually bust my ass to get my deer. This is the 2nd biggest deer I've ever killed and the other was on a guided hunt. I had to pack him out myself of course but even that was not bad, about 3/4 of mile on a trail.
Anyway...Thanks for reading. I would like to say that if you are looking for a place to stay I would highly recommend Rick and Deb's place in Dixie, ID. They are really neat people. The lodge is gorgeous. Rick told me right where to go and Bang! I got my buck. Just leave a room for me next year!
I had decided to hunt out of the lodge given the unpredictable weather and the fact that I was alone. They have a pretty good deal. $95.00 per night for room and three home cooked meals per day! I arrived late in the evening and they had dinner almost ready. It was really good. I was the only guest at the time and I spent the night hanging out with them and their family. I have to say I had a really good time with them and felt very welcome. Deb is a great cook.
Rick got out a topo map and gave me some areas to start with in the morning. I woke up at 0430 to find that Rick was already up and had a hot breakfast of eggs, sausage and toast waiting for me. He also packed me a huge lunch. I went to the are he told me to go.
I drove until the road was blocked by a log. I got out and started hiking. I was on the east side of a ridge. It was very thick forest. I hiked over to the west side and found that it was burned from a fire a few years back. I could not believe how steep it was! There were trees down every where. I could not imagine shooting a deer down in that stuff. I scanned as far as I could see and it all looked pretty rough.
I was getting kind of down as I walked down the ridge on a quad trail. The ground was frozen and crunched with every step. I was in thick timber and had no expectations of seeing a deer. I was trudging along hoping to get in the open before it got to late and everything bedded.
Suddenly to my right I heard a very large deer stotting away. The deer sounded huge as it got further away. I just froze and began cussing myself for not having any discipline to keep quiet. I stood there looking into a very thick stand of trees for about two minutes. It was very quiet but I could not see through the trees at all. I took two steps forward when I heard what sounded like a heard of elk getting up below me.
I froze again and stood there as I heard them moving away. Suddenly I saw a flash a movement in the trees. I threw my rifle up and saw a doe in the scope. I kept my rifle on that spot as doe after doe stepped through this little hole in the trees. After about 8 does I saw one side of a good buck and pulled the trigger. Doe, Doe, Doe, Doe, BUCK..BANG! Just that fast. With the recoil I lost sight of the hole in the trees and had no idea if I had hit him. I had thought the shot was about 40 yards in, but as I started walking through the forest, I kept my eye on the area I had shot and it got farther and farther away. I found that there was a little draw between me and the deer when I shot. By the time I crossed and started up the other side I realized it was more like 90 yards across.
This is the shot I had. The deer were in the middle of the frame.
When I got there this nice 4X4 was laying there. He is not the widest at only 19 inches but he was very heavy and dark.
I hunted for about 30 minutes before I had this guy on the ground. I sat there shaking my head in disbelief. I usually bust my ass to get my deer. This is the 2nd biggest deer I've ever killed and the other was on a guided hunt. I had to pack him out myself of course but even that was not bad, about 3/4 of mile on a trail.
Anyway...Thanks for reading. I would like to say that if you are looking for a place to stay I would highly recommend Rick and Deb's place in Dixie, ID. They are really neat people. The lodge is gorgeous. Rick told me right where to go and Bang! I got my buck. Just leave a room for me next year!