moosinaround
11-10-2023, 02:26 PM
Last few years have been kinda crappy for mule deer hunting with my good work mate, and my son. My work mate works the total opposite shift than me, and my son got married and started a new job at a new company. My work mate and I did manage to fill a LEH moose tag last year, so, there was meat in the freezer still. But as all you know, mule deer hunting in Douglas fir stands of timber, is a wonderful way to hunt. So after a couple years absence of getting into our old haunts, we made it out this year! I have been jonzin for some venison sausage, and this was the year we were gonna get out!
My son, has a lot of miles hunting with me, like since he was 3, now minimoosin is 26! We have been together for his first bear, first deer, first buck, and countless other successful and unsuccessful moose and elk hunts. We arrived at our new camp location, the other was burnt up in 2017. It was an hour or so to last light, so I told minimoosin, who is 6’ and a galoot, to head down to a spot not far from camp to do some scouting for morning as I and my buddy set up the tent. Last light, I look and see a head lamp bobbing down the trail. Minimoosin come back, no dead deer, but a big smile on his face. Of course I welcomed him back to camp with a big ole bear hug, and he asked if supper was ready, dam kids!
We sat around a fire, much too late, drinking rum and whiskey, an activity we didn’t get to do much of the last few years, dam dry weather, and talked about plans for morning! As usual, I was first in the fart sack, and my buddy and son bull $hitted around the fire and got caught up on new BS.
A great sleep, first one in the Big Agnes sleeping bag this year! Woke up ˝ hour before legal shooting light, and got all geared up. My buddy was heading to a sweet little area he had not seen in 2 years, hoping to find a mule deer with some antlers. Minimoosin was heading back to the spot I sent him the night before, and I got the left over spot, poor me! We were out hunting, probably for less than 15 minutes, and I hear a FEW booms!!! Scared the poop outta me!! Nice and quiet, and then the shock of the rifle report!! Couple minutes later, my phone vibrates, Twice, one form the kid, 1 from my buddy! WHAT YA GET? From my buddy, and DAD GET OVER HERE NOW!!! Well, I was freakin worried, what happened? So I start gumbootin it over to minimoosin’s direction, phone service cutting in and out! I get there, and see him standing on the trail, shaking, and I’m so relieved to see him upright and all good. “I said where is the deer,” he replies “it ran up there”. I hate tracking wounded anything, so we went through what happened, how it all went down. From this info we put together a plan to track it. He had the direction it ran marked out, and off we went. 15 yards into the search minimoosin yelled, “here he is dad!!” I was so relieved, the buck jumped the blowdown in its way, and died on the other side of it! Well, texted my work buddy, told him to keep hunting, and we would meet him back at camp.
Field dressed the buck, and then headed back to camp to get the Can Am for the pack out! Got back to camp with the buck, and we decided to build a meat pole, as hopes were high for more than 1 buck. We hung the buck, and skinned it out, then had our brunch, bacon, eggs, hashbrowns, and some old Balderson cheddar! Plans and hopes for the evening hunt were high, this mule deer hunting stuff is easy!
https://scontent.fyvr3-1.fna.fbcdn.net/v/t39.30808-6/400806679_10160032488637842_3071748058831871654_n. jpg?stp=cp6_dst-jpg&_nc_cat=108&ccb=1-7&_nc_sid=5f2048&_nc_ohc=2iLaTgavQdUAX_OaBV9&_nc_ht=scontent.fyvr3-1.fna&oh=00_AfBOWfTXr_YVDXvfEc94L1JP1Ye_q5eYLLCVVGAD0eBx _Q&oe=6553E980
Another warm cozy night inside the wall tent with my favourite Big Agnes, and I was up before the other 2, again! Minimoosin wanted to hunt with me for the morning hunt, sure, my buddy headed back to his little spot. We are sneaking down the trail where I hunted the previous morning, beautiful sunrise popping over the Douglas firs, Minimoosin whispers, “there’s a buck dad!!” I didn’t see it at first, but then seen the white butt. Up went the binos, and I couldn’t see the antlers, dam Douglas firs. I dropped my binos and put the 300 win mag up to my shoulder. Still couldn’t see the head gear. Cranked the scope to 10x, and then couldn’t find the deer “EFFF!” Minimoosin was like “don’t panic dad, he is going to come through that opening” Funny how calm he was, and the grizzled old vet was shaking. As he walked into the opening I seen his head gear, followed him and he walked right into my crosshairs, BOOM!!!!! The ole model 70 barked, the 180 sirocco hit right in the engine room, and the buck started tumbling, down the hill towards us, SWEET!!! Up the hill we went and there he was piled up stone dead! A big ole hug was given between minimoosin and I, just as the sun was over top the Douglas firs, and the steam from the heat was warming up everything! I feel my phone vibrate, “was that you guys?” from my buddy, I sent him a pic, told him to keep on hunting! My son and I sat beside this buck for a while, talked about the trip so far, and thanked the deer, and my deceased father in law, who would of loved this yearly deer trip! Well we dressed this buck, and off to camp we went to get the packhorse, my ole ’05 powerstroke! More meat on the new meat pole!!
https://scontent.fyvr3-1.fna.fbcdn.net/v/t39.30808-6/400729828_10160032486312842_39080659304719476_n.jp g?stp=cp6_dst-jpg_p526x296&_nc_cat=106&ccb=1-7&_nc_sid=5f2048&_nc_ohc=phzRLdGIXB4AX9AumhK&_nc_ht=scontent.fyvr3-1.fna&oh=00_AfDaGfgtQTjkPuf-FOQc8KE7AC41hjc-oCRNsOVJ9TJV6Q&oe=6553DEF9
https://scontent.fyvr3-1.fna.fbcdn.net/v/t39.30808-6/396198660_10160011473142842_3777127256161354700_n. jpg?stp=cp6_dst-jpg&_nc_cat=108&ccb=1-7&_nc_sid=5f2048&_nc_ohc=7vwGhHmQu1cAX_0RuVC&_nc_ht=scontent.fyvr3-1.fna&oh=00_AfDJS9MvcjBi_bRYlcRwlcaDuLlkEcHVhjclDVycGUiu sg&oe=6552A7A0
My buddy gets back to camp, and he is pretty excited to see the meat pole filling up. He had seen a big fork horn buck, but it busted him, dam mule deer! There are a few whitetails in this area, and Mini moosin and I had whitetail tags, so off we went for the evening hunt. No more mulies were sighted, by us, but my buddy bumped some does with fawns , so he sat and watch them, thinking a buck may be following them, no luck. We packed up camp the next morning, and headed home, 2 frozen stiff bucks mounted to the Can Am, getting waves and thumbs up all the way back home from the folks in the other vehicles!
This trip, we were very fortunate to put some venison in the freezer. Many trips home have been empty handed critter wise, but overflowing memory banks! I will continue this tradition with my friends and family, till I am not able to anymore. When I’m gone from this earth, memories is all that minimoosin will have, and I will do whatever I can from whatever direction I head, up or down, to get my loved one a chance at a critter!!
Anyways I haven’t shared a story in a good long time here, so thought I’d throw one up this year!
Thanks for reading, Moosinaround, AKA Mike
My son, has a lot of miles hunting with me, like since he was 3, now minimoosin is 26! We have been together for his first bear, first deer, first buck, and countless other successful and unsuccessful moose and elk hunts. We arrived at our new camp location, the other was burnt up in 2017. It was an hour or so to last light, so I told minimoosin, who is 6’ and a galoot, to head down to a spot not far from camp to do some scouting for morning as I and my buddy set up the tent. Last light, I look and see a head lamp bobbing down the trail. Minimoosin come back, no dead deer, but a big smile on his face. Of course I welcomed him back to camp with a big ole bear hug, and he asked if supper was ready, dam kids!
We sat around a fire, much too late, drinking rum and whiskey, an activity we didn’t get to do much of the last few years, dam dry weather, and talked about plans for morning! As usual, I was first in the fart sack, and my buddy and son bull $hitted around the fire and got caught up on new BS.
A great sleep, first one in the Big Agnes sleeping bag this year! Woke up ˝ hour before legal shooting light, and got all geared up. My buddy was heading to a sweet little area he had not seen in 2 years, hoping to find a mule deer with some antlers. Minimoosin was heading back to the spot I sent him the night before, and I got the left over spot, poor me! We were out hunting, probably for less than 15 minutes, and I hear a FEW booms!!! Scared the poop outta me!! Nice and quiet, and then the shock of the rifle report!! Couple minutes later, my phone vibrates, Twice, one form the kid, 1 from my buddy! WHAT YA GET? From my buddy, and DAD GET OVER HERE NOW!!! Well, I was freakin worried, what happened? So I start gumbootin it over to minimoosin’s direction, phone service cutting in and out! I get there, and see him standing on the trail, shaking, and I’m so relieved to see him upright and all good. “I said where is the deer,” he replies “it ran up there”. I hate tracking wounded anything, so we went through what happened, how it all went down. From this info we put together a plan to track it. He had the direction it ran marked out, and off we went. 15 yards into the search minimoosin yelled, “here he is dad!!” I was so relieved, the buck jumped the blowdown in its way, and died on the other side of it! Well, texted my work buddy, told him to keep hunting, and we would meet him back at camp.
Field dressed the buck, and then headed back to camp to get the Can Am for the pack out! Got back to camp with the buck, and we decided to build a meat pole, as hopes were high for more than 1 buck. We hung the buck, and skinned it out, then had our brunch, bacon, eggs, hashbrowns, and some old Balderson cheddar! Plans and hopes for the evening hunt were high, this mule deer hunting stuff is easy!
https://scontent.fyvr3-1.fna.fbcdn.net/v/t39.30808-6/400806679_10160032488637842_3071748058831871654_n. jpg?stp=cp6_dst-jpg&_nc_cat=108&ccb=1-7&_nc_sid=5f2048&_nc_ohc=2iLaTgavQdUAX_OaBV9&_nc_ht=scontent.fyvr3-1.fna&oh=00_AfBOWfTXr_YVDXvfEc94L1JP1Ye_q5eYLLCVVGAD0eBx _Q&oe=6553E980
Another warm cozy night inside the wall tent with my favourite Big Agnes, and I was up before the other 2, again! Minimoosin wanted to hunt with me for the morning hunt, sure, my buddy headed back to his little spot. We are sneaking down the trail where I hunted the previous morning, beautiful sunrise popping over the Douglas firs, Minimoosin whispers, “there’s a buck dad!!” I didn’t see it at first, but then seen the white butt. Up went the binos, and I couldn’t see the antlers, dam Douglas firs. I dropped my binos and put the 300 win mag up to my shoulder. Still couldn’t see the head gear. Cranked the scope to 10x, and then couldn’t find the deer “EFFF!” Minimoosin was like “don’t panic dad, he is going to come through that opening” Funny how calm he was, and the grizzled old vet was shaking. As he walked into the opening I seen his head gear, followed him and he walked right into my crosshairs, BOOM!!!!! The ole model 70 barked, the 180 sirocco hit right in the engine room, and the buck started tumbling, down the hill towards us, SWEET!!! Up the hill we went and there he was piled up stone dead! A big ole hug was given between minimoosin and I, just as the sun was over top the Douglas firs, and the steam from the heat was warming up everything! I feel my phone vibrate, “was that you guys?” from my buddy, I sent him a pic, told him to keep on hunting! My son and I sat beside this buck for a while, talked about the trip so far, and thanked the deer, and my deceased father in law, who would of loved this yearly deer trip! Well we dressed this buck, and off to camp we went to get the packhorse, my ole ’05 powerstroke! More meat on the new meat pole!!
https://scontent.fyvr3-1.fna.fbcdn.net/v/t39.30808-6/400729828_10160032486312842_39080659304719476_n.jp g?stp=cp6_dst-jpg_p526x296&_nc_cat=106&ccb=1-7&_nc_sid=5f2048&_nc_ohc=phzRLdGIXB4AX9AumhK&_nc_ht=scontent.fyvr3-1.fna&oh=00_AfDaGfgtQTjkPuf-FOQc8KE7AC41hjc-oCRNsOVJ9TJV6Q&oe=6553DEF9
https://scontent.fyvr3-1.fna.fbcdn.net/v/t39.30808-6/396198660_10160011473142842_3777127256161354700_n. jpg?stp=cp6_dst-jpg&_nc_cat=108&ccb=1-7&_nc_sid=5f2048&_nc_ohc=7vwGhHmQu1cAX_0RuVC&_nc_ht=scontent.fyvr3-1.fna&oh=00_AfDJS9MvcjBi_bRYlcRwlcaDuLlkEcHVhjclDVycGUiu sg&oe=6552A7A0
My buddy gets back to camp, and he is pretty excited to see the meat pole filling up. He had seen a big fork horn buck, but it busted him, dam mule deer! There are a few whitetails in this area, and Mini moosin and I had whitetail tags, so off we went for the evening hunt. No more mulies were sighted, by us, but my buddy bumped some does with fawns , so he sat and watch them, thinking a buck may be following them, no luck. We packed up camp the next morning, and headed home, 2 frozen stiff bucks mounted to the Can Am, getting waves and thumbs up all the way back home from the folks in the other vehicles!
This trip, we were very fortunate to put some venison in the freezer. Many trips home have been empty handed critter wise, but overflowing memory banks! I will continue this tradition with my friends and family, till I am not able to anymore. When I’m gone from this earth, memories is all that minimoosin will have, and I will do whatever I can from whatever direction I head, up or down, to get my loved one a chance at a critter!!
Anyways I haven’t shared a story in a good long time here, so thought I’d throw one up this year!
Thanks for reading, Moosinaround, AKA Mike