Huge Coastal Buck Pics.

[ridgewalker]

Here are some pictures of a monster buck from Santa Barbara County, CA.
The first three photos were taken in late May, early June, and October(the double photo)of 2001. He was a 3 by 3 that year and I figured he was about 25 inches wide.
The last two photos were taken in early June of 2002. He was a 3 by 4 and looks like he gained a couple of inches in width. I saw him a couple more times fully developed, but couldn't get any good photos of him.
Unfortunately, this buck was shot and found dead by the ranchers in late October or early November. Someone had shot him with a small caliber bullet to the chest and left him. What a shame!!

 

[manny15]

looks to be around 24"'s wide.

 

[Ridgedrifter]

That is an awesome buck for S. Cal! Manny15, Why are you break'in this kids balls? The photos in both posts are nice pics. From LA county through Paso Robles, there are many mixed deer(Blacktail/Muley). There are also feral pigs(Russian/domestic gone wild). Out here in AZ, a friend shot a 200# muley with a whitetail coat and rack; muley ears and face! Biologists even tested it, agreeing it was genetically both species. As for the huge buck in the first post, 24"? Are you kidding? Look at his ears! That buck goes 27", pushing 28" wide. People are paying $12,000 to shoot a buck like that on Santa Rosa Island! keep up the good work Ridgewalker. Hey, nice name.

 

[BuckSnort]

He's a biggun'.To bad he was shot and left to rot,what a waste.Thanks for sharing the pics.

 

[ridgewalker]

Manny 15,
I studied this deer on about a dozen different occasions in 2001 either through my camera or a spotting scope and kept tossing his width around. At first I thought he was 24-24 1/2 inches, then some nights I would swear that he would go 26 inches. By the end of the season I settled on 25 inches wide, then a few months later I ran in to a guy whose friend had the sheds and between video of him and their measurements of his antlers they came up with 24 7/8 inches wide. Take it for what it's worth, but I'd say I was pretty close.
In 2002 I'm guessing he was around 27 inches wide. Since the ranchers have his antlers I should be able to get his measurements sooner or later. I'll let you know how close I am.

 

[Blacktail_boy]

That's a awsome looking blacktail! It is a shame he had to die that way. Thanks for the picture. Jordan

 

[BOHNTR]

Ridgedrifter:

The bad thing about electronic male is it doesn't show emotion or give voice tones, so many times people take things the wrong way. I've read manny's posts on here for a few years now and I can honestly say he did not reply in a negative manner. He simply gave his estimate of the spread based on years of pursuing and shooting big California bucks.

Now my personal opinion on this buck is also about 24-25". I've shot quite a few of them, especially blacktails, and that buck will NOT go 28". As an official measurer, I can also tell you that guys are not shooting bucks like that on Santa Rosa Island. That's a different species all together and the antlers on this buck are not even close to those Santa Rosa bucks transplanted from the Kaibab.

I'm not trying to take anything away from this buck, it's a nice deer. Thank you Ridgewalker for sharing the photos and keep them coming. We ALL truly enjoy them.

BOHNTR )))----------->

 

[Ridgedrifter]

Maybe I jumped on Manny15 to quick. I read both posts from Ridgewalker, and felt they were a little "jabbing". I realize the Santa Rosa bucks are Kaibab deer, and there are 30"+ bucks there. But many hunters spend large sums of money, taking 25-28 racks. The top photos (hard-horned) look 24". The bottom velvet photos, I belive, yielded a 27" buck when done growing. Ridgewalker, did you find anymore photos from the rancher that found this dead buck? If BC recognizes these coastal bucks as blacktails, this buck must make the book. The guy that poached this buck was a real jerk. I hope this kill is investigated.

 

[Blueoak]

I saw a buck on April 26th that was this big! Looked the same as the first picture, except the left eye guard was smaller and the body was bigger.I watched him for ten minutes and sneaked off. Hope I have my camera next time. He is in very rough country on our ranch so I have a chance at getting him, if my old man does not see him first.

 

[ridgewalker]

Hey Blueoak,
That buck is going to be huge!!! For him to have that much growth in late April is amazing! Are you in California?? North or South??
If I rememeber right, that first picture was taken in mid to late May. I saw that buck in late April and he just had two beams that went out just past his ears. He wasn't even branching yet.
Keep your eye on him and good luck come hunting season! If you get him I want to see a picture!!