Not so subject bow opener share your success

[caddisguy]

Same story here although my partner had an excellent chance on a nice tall 4pt in velvet. He forgot his release in the truck and didn't realize it until he went to draw on the buck at 35 yards. Poor guy. He's been in the dumps the last few days.

Saw a few bears. One was a giant dark chocolate boar but he was way up high tucked onto a nice rock ledge having a nap. We could have stalked in on him but we were focused on mulies. Seen a few spikers and does but nothing big except that one 4pt.

Usually see multiple bucks daily but not this year so far.

Oh man, that's brutal! Is it a wrist strap? Bet he just starts wearing it year round to be safe.

I hope he tags a 5pt cranker to make up for that!

[Harvest the Land]

Well dang. I guess I jinxed it going in thinking it was a gimmie.

The bucks I've been watching just didn't seem to be around. Only saw 3 does and a fawn. No bucks, not even a bear on the cams over the last week.

Had a great time and got a lot of good excercise creeping all over the timber. Since I wasn't seeing any bucks, I ended up venturing further up the mountain. Found some benches with insane trails and beds that I'm interested in learning how and when they are used, enough that I hiked up there a second time to relocate a trailcam.

Looks like they might make us work for it this season. Last season seemed way too easy.

Well, bring on rifle season!

Same here Caddis. I think we hunt Blacktails in adjacent MU's. Sat all day both days on weekend dawn to dusk and all of the big bucks I'd been getting on camera every day or few days up until the last week of August have all but vanished. They usually disappear shortly after going hard horned but I've always seen them on camera until mid September in this area.

Ended up still hunting mid day yesterday to see if I could find fresh sign (and give my ass a break) and found fresh sign only about 30 ft from the blind. Kept following the sign seeing a bunch of freshly eaten tops of elderberries and salal and spooked a couple of does. Those Nomad Blacktails are so friggin addictive to chase!

Just so great to get back out there and away from the Rat Race. Came home with a ton of polypores and mushrooms. Always amazes me just how bountiful the North Cascades is.

Is it just me or did the season sneak up on us really quick this year? And you're right - bring on the orange Army!

[whitlers]

Oh man, that's brutal! Is it a wrist strap? Bet he just starts wearing it year round to be safe.

I hope he tags a 5pt cranker to make up for that!

Yeah wrist strap. It should have been on when we left the cabin haha. Tough brake. Lesson learned for him

[caddisguy]

Same here Caddis. I think we hunt Blacktails in adjacent MU's. Sat all day both days on weekend dawn to dusk and all of the big bucks I'd been getting on camera every day or few days up until the last week of August have all but vanished. They usually disappear shortly after going hard horned but I've always seen them on camera until mid September in this area.

Ended up still hunting mid day yesterday to see if I could find fresh sign (and give my ass a break) and found fresh sign only about 30 ft from the blind. Kept following the sign seeing a bunch of freshly eaten tops of elderberries and salal and spooked a couple of does. Those Nomad Blacktails are so friggin addictive to chase!

Just so great to get back out there and away from the Rat Race. Came home with a ton of polypores and mushrooms. Always amazes me just how bountiful the North Cascades is.

Is it just me or did the season sneak up on us really quick this year? And you're right - bring on the orange Army!

Last year our spot had bucks all the way from spring until December, but apparently this year is not last year.

I'm not smart enough to figure out what to attribute the recent disappearance to, whether it was the smoke, or I foolishly plunked down a couple blinds way too late in the game.

There's also been a lot of illegal target shooters going full ape around there shooting through the timber without backstops, though I doubt that would cause them to fully vacate.

There was also a cougar that presumably picked off one of the fawn twins (never saw the second fawn after a cougar stalked through within a few minutes of the last fawn sighting) and perhaps other deer. caddisgirl busted that cat checking me out while I was under the jeep changing some sway bar links and bushings. Maybe those ratchets sounded like ducks lol

Who knows, could be a combination of everything, or simply that this year isnt last year, or they're still around and just not exactly where I want them to be At least my hunting quiver is still fully loaded ready for next year?

I think they will be back. caddisgirl will tag one with her 30-30 before I get out of bed (again)

OH! And we found a lot of delicious looking mushrooms, but I'm not experienced enough to know for sure. I wanted to harvest them and ID them later but I got shut down lol ... I have the pics though!

[LBM]

Know of 4 bull elk taken and 2 missed so far.