idahoron
10-09-2017, 10:17 PM
I spent 10 days in the mountains on my hunt this year. I did enjoy every minute of it even the rough stuff.
The first 5 days I had a friend of mine with me on his first deer hunt. Last winter in Southern Idaho was tough on all of us, but it was especially hard on mule deer. I saw substantially less deer this year than years before. In fact from Friday to Friday I saw about 20 head of deer total and no bucks at all.
I got my buddy into two different hunts that offered him a 50 yard shot at a doe. He just didn't see them in time to shoot. Tuesday it snowed and rained all day but I got him on a 50 yard doe. Well he decided that he had enough and had to get back to work.
Wednesday it snowed all day.
https://i.imgur.com/BOIhRxD.jpg?1
I got a short hunt in the morning and spent the rest of the day watching movies.
My son Jacob was going to come hunt with me on Friday night so I wanted to be done with my deer no matter how big so I would not be competing with him for a deer. I wanted to focus on him.
So on Wednesday I was going to shoot the first deer I saw. After a big storm and it was clear and cold, I saw nothing. Not a single deer.
https://i.imgur.com/yx9aTu0.jpg?1
Thursday again I saw nothing but a couple of does a VERY long way off. I was getting worried about getting Jacob into a deer. I didn't care if I got one but He didn't get one last year. I wanted him to score.
https://i.imgur.com/4riRlNJ.jpg?1
The weather warmed up a bit and the snow melted. All the other hunters bailed out in the storm on Wed. Friday morning I got up and headed out. Quickly I saw a deer and it was in range. I took a range finder reading and it was 150 yards, but steep down hill. The deer was looking at me through the trees. I could see the full chest front on all the way up. I never looked at the head. I set the sight for 150 and I knew I was going to hit high. I was shooting my Hot Rod Hawken 45 with my paper patched RCBS 11mm bullet. I was using 80 gr of pyrodex P with an over powder wad.
At the shot the deer disappeared in the smoke. I heard a WHACK but didn't see the deer run. I headed down the hill to see what happened. I got down there and went to looking for it. After a bit I found it piled up. The pack out was going to be straight up. So I gutted it and made it into a pack.
https://i.imgur.com/ELEMwWX.jpg?1
Back at camp I took a couple better pictures.
https://i.imgur.com/SQSYq5e.jpg?1
Clearly the smallest buck I have ever shot. And it was the only buck I had seen in 8 days of looking and hunting. But I keep telling my self that since he was so tiny that makes my shooting look better.
I went out scouting about 5:00 pm and saw a doe. I thought I will come back with Jacob and see if she is still around.
Well Jacob got there at 6:00 pm and he unloaded his Honda 90 and we headed over to look for the doe.
https://i.imgur.com/jGhPLrT.jpg?1
He was using the Hot Rod Renegade. His load was a 458 gr paper patched Lee 500 S&W bullet with an over powder wad and 80 grains of Pyrodex P.
He wanted me to carry my rifle so he would have a quick second shot if needed.
We headed down the hill to where the doe was. I was in the lead since I knew where she was. I duck under a tree and a branch snagged my jacket. The pop was so loud I was sure that any deer in the area would for sure hear it. I look up and there on the opposite ridge was a deer. I grabbed my range finder and said 175 and it is a buck. Jacob set his sight and I set up the shooting sticks for him. I quickly set my sight and looked with the bino's when he shot.
The buck was looking straight at us. I told Jacob to hold for center and let him have it. At the shot the buck instantly disappeared. I handed Jacob the Hawken and told him if it gets up make the same hold and let her go.
We watched for a few long agonizing minutes. I could see an antler sticking above the brush. It was not moving, but a deer is not dead until you hang the tag on it.
I took the hawken back and told Jacob to load his gun. We worked out our hand signals and he headed out to see his buck. As he got close a Blue Grouse flushed and about gave him a heart attack. Then I heard a loud whistle, the buck was dead. Thank you Lord!
I knew this was Jacobs best deer ever. The bullet hit the deer in the neck and killed him instantly.
https://i.imgur.com/TPiCURU.jpg?1
In this picture this is where the buck died and I am looking back on the far hillside to where the bullet came from.
https://i.imgur.com/MkxOziy.jpg?1
I went up to the road and got my ATV and headed for the ridge. I grabbed my gear and took down a bunch of stuff for Jacob to use when gutting and getting it ready to back pack. It wasn't going to be a long pack but it was going to have to be packed.
https://i.imgur.com/iWnqEXr.jpg?1
https://i.imgur.com/DZc7TuN.jpg?1
We got him back to the camp and skinned him. Then we got some dinner and crashed.
The next two days we spent riding out bikes, looking for bears and picking a gallon of choak cherry's for my Mother In Law to make Jam.
Our hunting season is over for big game this year. Jacob got his biggest and I got my smallest and I could not be more happy.
The first 5 days I had a friend of mine with me on his first deer hunt. Last winter in Southern Idaho was tough on all of us, but it was especially hard on mule deer. I saw substantially less deer this year than years before. In fact from Friday to Friday I saw about 20 head of deer total and no bucks at all.
I got my buddy into two different hunts that offered him a 50 yard shot at a doe. He just didn't see them in time to shoot. Tuesday it snowed and rained all day but I got him on a 50 yard doe. Well he decided that he had enough and had to get back to work.
Wednesday it snowed all day.
https://i.imgur.com/BOIhRxD.jpg?1
I got a short hunt in the morning and spent the rest of the day watching movies.
My son Jacob was going to come hunt with me on Friday night so I wanted to be done with my deer no matter how big so I would not be competing with him for a deer. I wanted to focus on him.
So on Wednesday I was going to shoot the first deer I saw. After a big storm and it was clear and cold, I saw nothing. Not a single deer.
https://i.imgur.com/yx9aTu0.jpg?1
Thursday again I saw nothing but a couple of does a VERY long way off. I was getting worried about getting Jacob into a deer. I didn't care if I got one but He didn't get one last year. I wanted him to score.
https://i.imgur.com/4riRlNJ.jpg?1
The weather warmed up a bit and the snow melted. All the other hunters bailed out in the storm on Wed. Friday morning I got up and headed out. Quickly I saw a deer and it was in range. I took a range finder reading and it was 150 yards, but steep down hill. The deer was looking at me through the trees. I could see the full chest front on all the way up. I never looked at the head. I set the sight for 150 and I knew I was going to hit high. I was shooting my Hot Rod Hawken 45 with my paper patched RCBS 11mm bullet. I was using 80 gr of pyrodex P with an over powder wad.
At the shot the deer disappeared in the smoke. I heard a WHACK but didn't see the deer run. I headed down the hill to see what happened. I got down there and went to looking for it. After a bit I found it piled up. The pack out was going to be straight up. So I gutted it and made it into a pack.
https://i.imgur.com/ELEMwWX.jpg?1
Back at camp I took a couple better pictures.
https://i.imgur.com/SQSYq5e.jpg?1
Clearly the smallest buck I have ever shot. And it was the only buck I had seen in 8 days of looking and hunting. But I keep telling my self that since he was so tiny that makes my shooting look better.
I went out scouting about 5:00 pm and saw a doe. I thought I will come back with Jacob and see if she is still around.
Well Jacob got there at 6:00 pm and he unloaded his Honda 90 and we headed over to look for the doe.
https://i.imgur.com/jGhPLrT.jpg?1
He was using the Hot Rod Renegade. His load was a 458 gr paper patched Lee 500 S&W bullet with an over powder wad and 80 grains of Pyrodex P.
He wanted me to carry my rifle so he would have a quick second shot if needed.
We headed down the hill to where the doe was. I was in the lead since I knew where she was. I duck under a tree and a branch snagged my jacket. The pop was so loud I was sure that any deer in the area would for sure hear it. I look up and there on the opposite ridge was a deer. I grabbed my range finder and said 175 and it is a buck. Jacob set his sight and I set up the shooting sticks for him. I quickly set my sight and looked with the bino's when he shot.
The buck was looking straight at us. I told Jacob to hold for center and let him have it. At the shot the buck instantly disappeared. I handed Jacob the Hawken and told him if it gets up make the same hold and let her go.
We watched for a few long agonizing minutes. I could see an antler sticking above the brush. It was not moving, but a deer is not dead until you hang the tag on it.
I took the hawken back and told Jacob to load his gun. We worked out our hand signals and he headed out to see his buck. As he got close a Blue Grouse flushed and about gave him a heart attack. Then I heard a loud whistle, the buck was dead. Thank you Lord!
I knew this was Jacobs best deer ever. The bullet hit the deer in the neck and killed him instantly.
https://i.imgur.com/TPiCURU.jpg?1
In this picture this is where the buck died and I am looking back on the far hillside to where the bullet came from.
https://i.imgur.com/MkxOziy.jpg?1
I went up to the road and got my ATV and headed for the ridge. I grabbed my gear and took down a bunch of stuff for Jacob to use when gutting and getting it ready to back pack. It wasn't going to be a long pack but it was going to have to be packed.
https://i.imgur.com/iWnqEXr.jpg?1
https://i.imgur.com/DZc7TuN.jpg?1
We got him back to the camp and skinned him. Then we got some dinner and crashed.
The next two days we spent riding out bikes, looking for bears and picking a gallon of choak cherry's for my Mother In Law to make Jam.
Our hunting season is over for big game this year. Jacob got his biggest and I got my smallest and I could not be more happy.