treehugger
10-15-2013, 11:40 PM
My family and I travel over to the mainland for an annual thanksgiving trip. We stay with old family friends and usually have a chance to get out hunting! We've been hunting the area for the last 15 years or so and in the last 5 they have actually bought a large chunk of land bordering their property. There are quad trails and animals on that plot so the old man usually heads out there to get his fix and us younger guys find a mountain to climb. We've been all over the place and even if we don't always connect on an animal at least the hikes are pretty spectacular!
My wife, two kids and I arrived pretty late on Friday night and as anyone with two under four can attest, children in the car definitely seem to add a few hundred miles to any trip! My brother-in-law and I had an evening before rough plan with the area we were gonna try and the time to meet in the kitchen in the morning. With that, we went to bed.
The first morning of the hunt had us full of coffee and on an old cow trail up into the mountains just before dawn. Several years previous we had spooked a big 4 point about 100yds off the road and had him hanging in the shop cooling by about 830 only to go out and bag a second 2 point in the valley above in the early afternoon... needless to say, we were optimistic. After about 300yds I accepted reality and concentrated on the slog up the hill ahead. After about an hour we came under some bluffs and decided to split, he would follow the trail and I would skirt the bluff on the other side and get an eye on the valley above as he moved up the trail. After about 30 mins of scrambling over a noisy, sketchy scree slope I settled to catch my breath and listen. I heard an odd rhythmic grunting and thought that doesn't sound good. The wind was in my face as I peered into the brush ahead. I took a bit but at about 30yds I saw some dark fur and then heard the rhythmic grunting as a big ol' bear trudged off up the hill. I thought, damn, wish I had a tag and figured it was in bad shape with all that huffing until I saw a little further up the slope her 2 cubs. I've never really felt in danger in the bush but this actually had my heart going. I've come up on bears before but never a mum and her youngens. Needless to say I kept a pretty close eye on her and made sure she kept moving up... it would've been interesting to see what happened if she winded me instead of just hearing my clumsy scrambling up the hill. She didn't catch sight of me until she was about 100yds up the hill and I stepped out... at least I don't think she did! If she connected the sound and the smell she probably would've been long gone... but you never know, could've felt threatened. Anyways, I decided to abandon my skirting idea and pick the trail back up to try and catch my bro inlaw. He was now about 45 mins ahead but I felt I didn't need to be as careful on this not so virgin trail and make some good time. I climbed as fast as I could, wheezing, sweating and panting off the few beers from the night before and after another 45 mins or so I was about 200 yds down the slope from him. I knew the area from a few years previous and knew it came into a valley, however, it looked as though it had thickened up since I was last there. I decided that I'd move left again and try a little lateral action before climbing again meet him. The sign was really starting to pick up and the wind had shifted to blow more laterally on the hill. So, once again, with the wind in my face I traversed the slope picking up a well worn game trail. Things felt good! I could finally move quietly, I had great wind and that hunter sense started to tingle ( just to be clear, I've had that hunter sense a lot and it rarely turns into anything!). My gun came off my shoulder, the chamber was rechecked, the scope was turned down and all that extra effort not to step on a stick or kick a rock came on. I was in full stalker mode! Couldn't have been more than about 10 minutes and BOOM, out from the bush about 30yds ahead and to the right bursts a deer! All the things that run through your mind, he's huge! he's a goner! F%&K! All I could see was he was tall in the horns like he had broken a tine between his main beams but it didn't matter. At about 60yds he turned broadside at about the same time I found him in my scope. His dash had turned from spring to trot and I thought, stay steady and I can make this shot! Anyway, he didn't stay steady, he stopped, BOOM! He took one hobbly step forward and disappeared over a berm and out of sight. I took off to where I last saw him, reloaded, ejecting a live round onto the scree only to realize I had already reloaded, picked that up and continued on to where I thought I last saw him. I looked down the hill expecting to see him piled up but no, nothing. I started moving down the slope expecting him to jump and run again, nothing. I can't believe it! I missed! I must've missed! How could I miss?! I couldn't miss! I felt so good in my shot. Anyways, I hung my pack on a tree and started my search, moving down and across back up and again in an L formation from my pack as a starting point. After my second pass, standing there, blaming my gun, my scope, myself, my 3 year old for keeping me up with elbows and digging toes all night I turn to go back up the hill and bam! there he is! Oh thank the hunting gods! I walk back up to my pack to get ready for the job ahead as I get to my pack my bro inlaw crests a ridge further up only to immediately spot my deer and say, "Awesome, nice dear man!" Typical! Turns out he went over a berm beyond where I thought I shot him, took a step and that was it. We took some photos, gutted him and then started the seemingly sheer descent back to the road. Filip was on guns and packs and I was on the animal. At about noon we sat down for some trail mix and water, Filip pulls out his binos and immediately spots a group of 3 does and what looks like a big bodied buck about a km away. We decide, we're already here, you go chase those animals and I'll finish the pack down to the road. Long story short, he takes off sideways and I continue down, not long after I half ride, half drag the deer into a bush and sheer the safety right off my Remmington 700... sh!t. Filip didn't covert and get his new Tikka T3 Lite wet but I guess that's for another day!
https://fbcdn-sphotos-h-a.akamaihd.net/hphotos-ak-ash4/1375910_10152016649522214_889058672_n.jpg
Thanks for reading.
Nick
Obviously if you recognize the area, please keep it in your hat...
My wife, two kids and I arrived pretty late on Friday night and as anyone with two under four can attest, children in the car definitely seem to add a few hundred miles to any trip! My brother-in-law and I had an evening before rough plan with the area we were gonna try and the time to meet in the kitchen in the morning. With that, we went to bed.
The first morning of the hunt had us full of coffee and on an old cow trail up into the mountains just before dawn. Several years previous we had spooked a big 4 point about 100yds off the road and had him hanging in the shop cooling by about 830 only to go out and bag a second 2 point in the valley above in the early afternoon... needless to say, we were optimistic. After about 300yds I accepted reality and concentrated on the slog up the hill ahead. After about an hour we came under some bluffs and decided to split, he would follow the trail and I would skirt the bluff on the other side and get an eye on the valley above as he moved up the trail. After about 30 mins of scrambling over a noisy, sketchy scree slope I settled to catch my breath and listen. I heard an odd rhythmic grunting and thought that doesn't sound good. The wind was in my face as I peered into the brush ahead. I took a bit but at about 30yds I saw some dark fur and then heard the rhythmic grunting as a big ol' bear trudged off up the hill. I thought, damn, wish I had a tag and figured it was in bad shape with all that huffing until I saw a little further up the slope her 2 cubs. I've never really felt in danger in the bush but this actually had my heart going. I've come up on bears before but never a mum and her youngens. Needless to say I kept a pretty close eye on her and made sure she kept moving up... it would've been interesting to see what happened if she winded me instead of just hearing my clumsy scrambling up the hill. She didn't catch sight of me until she was about 100yds up the hill and I stepped out... at least I don't think she did! If she connected the sound and the smell she probably would've been long gone... but you never know, could've felt threatened. Anyways, I decided to abandon my skirting idea and pick the trail back up to try and catch my bro inlaw. He was now about 45 mins ahead but I felt I didn't need to be as careful on this not so virgin trail and make some good time. I climbed as fast as I could, wheezing, sweating and panting off the few beers from the night before and after another 45 mins or so I was about 200 yds down the slope from him. I knew the area from a few years previous and knew it came into a valley, however, it looked as though it had thickened up since I was last there. I decided that I'd move left again and try a little lateral action before climbing again meet him. The sign was really starting to pick up and the wind had shifted to blow more laterally on the hill. So, once again, with the wind in my face I traversed the slope picking up a well worn game trail. Things felt good! I could finally move quietly, I had great wind and that hunter sense started to tingle ( just to be clear, I've had that hunter sense a lot and it rarely turns into anything!). My gun came off my shoulder, the chamber was rechecked, the scope was turned down and all that extra effort not to step on a stick or kick a rock came on. I was in full stalker mode! Couldn't have been more than about 10 minutes and BOOM, out from the bush about 30yds ahead and to the right bursts a deer! All the things that run through your mind, he's huge! he's a goner! F%&K! All I could see was he was tall in the horns like he had broken a tine between his main beams but it didn't matter. At about 60yds he turned broadside at about the same time I found him in my scope. His dash had turned from spring to trot and I thought, stay steady and I can make this shot! Anyway, he didn't stay steady, he stopped, BOOM! He took one hobbly step forward and disappeared over a berm and out of sight. I took off to where I last saw him, reloaded, ejecting a live round onto the scree only to realize I had already reloaded, picked that up and continued on to where I thought I last saw him. I looked down the hill expecting to see him piled up but no, nothing. I started moving down the slope expecting him to jump and run again, nothing. I can't believe it! I missed! I must've missed! How could I miss?! I couldn't miss! I felt so good in my shot. Anyways, I hung my pack on a tree and started my search, moving down and across back up and again in an L formation from my pack as a starting point. After my second pass, standing there, blaming my gun, my scope, myself, my 3 year old for keeping me up with elbows and digging toes all night I turn to go back up the hill and bam! there he is! Oh thank the hunting gods! I walk back up to my pack to get ready for the job ahead as I get to my pack my bro inlaw crests a ridge further up only to immediately spot my deer and say, "Awesome, nice dear man!" Typical! Turns out he went over a berm beyond where I thought I shot him, took a step and that was it. We took some photos, gutted him and then started the seemingly sheer descent back to the road. Filip was on guns and packs and I was on the animal. At about noon we sat down for some trail mix and water, Filip pulls out his binos and immediately spots a group of 3 does and what looks like a big bodied buck about a km away. We decide, we're already here, you go chase those animals and I'll finish the pack down to the road. Long story short, he takes off sideways and I continue down, not long after I half ride, half drag the deer into a bush and sheer the safety right off my Remmington 700... sh!t. Filip didn't covert and get his new Tikka T3 Lite wet but I guess that's for another day!
https://fbcdn-sphotos-h-a.akamaihd.net/hphotos-ak-ash4/1375910_10152016649522214_889058672_n.jpg
Thanks for reading.
Nick
Obviously if you recognize the area, please keep it in your hat...