central idaho muley

I

IDbones

Guest
Well i got my first muley ive spent 8 days hunting and bout the 3 weeks scouting. first i was hunting out in the boonies, 6 mile bike ride off a main road in a pretty secluded canyon. Saw a few folks on bikes and horses. Saw a good 4 point with a big outward tilting rack, had real week forks on one side though. Saw another 3 point that looked only about 20'' wide but was TALL, like 20'' backs. Had good mass and carried all the way through the points. saw lots of small bucks and dozens of does. i also probly saw 30+ bulls. I ended up getting rained and blown on off the mountain by the first rain in 3 months. Came back to town and i got some access through my dad bout 3 miles from town. I got to hunt it exclusively. Went in there and saw about a dozen bucks ranging from 120-150ish. Ended up getting some more access a little farther from town and really started hitting it hard, over a couple days saw 12-15 bucks just not the monster i was looking for. This morning I got out there a little late and was overlooking some cattle grazing flats below the rim. Saw 5 bucks, all smaller 2 1/2 year olds. Finally i spotted one that looked decent, I couldnt really tell how good until the sun finally cam over the hill into the canyon and i saw that he had good backs so i decided hell why not go for it. I watched him feed around a bush for a couple hours sure he was going to bed down so i could put a stalk on him. Well wouldnt you know it he started heading downhilll at a good clip and i was 800-1000 yards away. So i started bookin it down the ridge and luckily he had to stop and destroy every bush he saw, really rakin the hell out of em. I finally caught up to him and he was raking about his 5th tree in a 500 yard stretch. I had him ranged at 450 yards give or take, which in a 20 mph crosswind wasnt going to work for me. so i snuck down the canyon staight across from him and got set up at 297 yards, and i shite you not the second i put the scope on him he bedded down behind a bush. I waited him out for about an hour and decided i wasnt waiting till 5 pm for him to stand up given it was only 9:15am. I could see half his vitals and the bush looked pretty whispy so i went for it. Punched one through the lungs and skinned his heart and blew out his back leg at the knee. This big ol brute just got up and started heading down hill in a hurry, i couldnt believe it. I anchored 2 more in his vitals on the hobble and down he went. I was elated to say the least. I went back to the truck to get gear first rather than go get my hands on him. When i finally put my hands on him there was some considerable growage. Hes not a booner like i know some of you fellas have shot but for my first muley i was more than happy. Then the work began! Ive never cut up a whole deer by myself so it was a learning experience to say the least. After 2 1/2 hours i was all bagged up and ready to rock. I figured Id pack him out in one slow load and save myselfe some miles. That lasted about 200 yards before i about passed out and decided ill just do it in 2 trips. I was 1.7 miles from the truck and i had 3 round trips by the time the day was done. 2 for the deer and one before i got my hands on him. Im exceptionally happy for my first muley, hes not the 190 that i set out for but scores just a number right? heres the pictures

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this one is scenery shot just to show how unforgiving the country is, i had to pack uphill
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these last couple are just scenery shots of where i camped out in the back country
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That's a fine looking animal. It also appears that you were in some great country. And, you did it by yourself-good sh#t.
 
You better be careful. At the rate you're going you're going to become a real buck hunter. You hunted like a real pro. I think the big buck population will shrink by one about every year, as long as you're around. Great buck! Congrats.
 
this is tight as i could tape it but i will be trying to have it officially scored here in the next week

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LAST EDITED ON Oct-19-12 AT 08:48PM (MST)[p]your spread credit is 16 4/8......not 23....very close guess chewyman





JB
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Hey I think your right im sorry I feel like a jackass now. I guess I gotta read where it says C doesnt count! Thanks for the heads up
 
Buy another tag and go kill another one. Good work!

Dax

There is no such thing as a sure thing in trophy mule deer hunting.
 
Is that an over the counter tag or a draw unit? Nice buck either way. It looks like my neck of the woods. Good Story.
 
>its a draw tag im based
>out of lewiston


That is what I figured IDbones. Gotta love it around here, although steep and deep. You say first muley, you must be a whitetail hunter!
 
i am a whitetail hunter, i loved my muley hunt its was awsome, but ive got to say theres nothing quite like slinkin through the woods and paint drying speeds and comin up on a nice whitetail in his bed, everytime you think youve got them figured they throw you a curveball. i guess thats hunting in general, these muleys sure had me confused at times. which is what makes it awsome, if it was a sure thing evertime i went out i think id have a hard time puttin in the work and effort that we do, im already counting down the days till next years dear hunt!
 
Congrats on a well earned buck. Who cares the score. He's a great trophy. Net or gross he's your trophy, and you definitely weren't fishing so own those inches he grew! Thanks for the post.
 

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