So here we are, late summer 2019. So far the year has been good.
I started spring bear hunting, just easing into it, getting better at identifying sex.
The freezer was starting to look empty but it was more of an excuse to get out in the bush. No bears were harmed.
Then this summer I got married. I'm so grateful to have an adventurous and supportive wife who likes to be in the mountains as much as me.
She's an amazing hunting partner and this year she got a new backpack.
But all along in the back of my mind, there's a rematch coming up, and my wife is fully on board.
I worked most of the summer and didn't get many scouting trips in. So once Sept 1st approaches I'm thinking "screw it, I'm shutting down for a week!"
And that's what we did.
We left Saturday night to start hiking into our spot on opening day. Here's an idea of the terrain we're in.
We set up camp around dinner time and head up for an evening glassing session.
As we're setting up, a big rain shower is heading right for us so out comes the tarp.
Boy was I glad I brought it.
We glassed and glassed. Finally at last light, my wife spots a lone doe way down the valley, in a far meadow.
It's not much, but it's something. Actually seeing that one doe did lift our spirits before turning in for the evening.
Next morning we're up bright and early and head out for a breakfast glassing session.
We glassed for a couple of hours during what IME should be peak deer activity.
All I spotted was a doe with her fawn again way down the valley. We're not seeing the same amount of deer as last year, not even close.
Maybe it's warmer and they're feeding less. Maybe they're not here for some reason. I start going down the list in my mind of other spots to look at.
So we pick up and are about to head somewhere else but before we leave I tell my wife there's something I want to check out.
When we first spotted Big Hank last year, I noted where he was bedded. Above him is rock ridge that I remember thinking would probably put me within shooting distance.
So I wanted to head over and peak down from the ridge and see if I was right. We head over and we step onto the ridge and look down at an aspect we couldn't glass during breakfast.
Here's the view.
After appreciating the view with the naked eye for a few moments, I figure I should look for some deer.
I raise the binos to my eyes and point at one of the lower meadows.
As soon as the binos touch my face, I immediately see within the magnified view two deer feeding, and one has a HUGE velvety rack.
My heart skips a beat. I scan both quickly, reddish coat, 3-point, the other greyish coat, huge girth, muscular...and his rack, holeee how can I forget that rack.
I turn to my wife, pointing down and whispering with a clenched jaw "BIG HANK! He's ... right ... there!!!"