coach
02-22-2010, 11:01 PM
I put together a video of my friend's son shooting a mule deer during the November 2009 youth season. I finally got permission from the shooter and his dad to post it here on HBC.
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=J4t64g7nr1w
This was Adam's final crack at hunting youth season. Over the last few seasons, he had shot 4 spikes or two points - I had been lucky enough to be there for 2 of the 4.
As is pretty typical for a lot of youth hunters, Adam had hunted a lot from the truck or on quads. This year, he wanted to put a lot more time hiking. In the days leading up to the hunt, conditions were good, the rut was really getting going and there was a good chance at getting his biggest buck ever.
We headed out in the morning with high hopes. The weather was brutal. Foggy, windy and cold. We battled the conditions and put a lot of hard miles on our boots. He passed up a 4x1 in the morning that had one side broken off about 6 inches up from the base.
In the afternoon, we jumped in the truck and headed up the other side of the valley to an area that I really like for deer. As we got to where we wanted to be, the fog rolled in and it looked like the hunt was going to be over for the day. Then, as suddenly as the fog arrived, it lifted. We all got that "feeling" that this could be a special evening.
We had driven through some good areas in the fog and decided to head back through them and glass the slashes. When I turned the truck around, 3 deer appeared at the top end of a big slash. They were about 1500 yards away. We were able to drive a little closer to the base of the clearing then parked the truck and began our stalk for the final 1000 yards.
The wind was swirling, but predominantly at our back. With the deer high up in the slash, we decided our only plan was to stay low along the tree line, move past the deer then work back toward them into the wind. There was one spot where the deer were able to see us for about 50 yards. Fortunately, we only caught the attention of one doe. She stayed bedded and kept looking back and forth from us to the other deer in the clearing. Once we got out of her sight, we thought we were good to go.
Suddenly, 2 deer appeared 150 yards from us at the bottom of the slash. A quick look confirmed neither was a buck and with the wind blowing from us to them, they departed rather quickly. We saw four asses bound off together, and we have no idea if either of the hidden deer were bucks or not.
My buddy, Mike, seemed a little unsure of my strategy from the start. When these deer took off, he figured they were the same ones that we were stalking. I wasn't so sure and continued with the original plan. We were able to work our way up the slash by using a small ridge to hide behind. As we got to the same elevation where the deer had been, we worked our way to the top of the ridge where we could use a big tree for cover. Immediately, we spotted a deer feeding right where they had been earlier. With the wind perfect and the deer oblivious to our presence, we moved back behind the ridge and moved higher into the slash.
When we poked our heads over the hill, we were about 250 yards away and the only deer I could see was the 3 point. He continued feeding and I told Adam he needed to make a decision whether to take a long shot or try to get closer. He decided moving closer was best - so did I. We were able to move down into another small draw and again stay out of the deer's sight. Adam decided to slowly work his way up to a stump at the top of the draw from where he would be within 125 yards of the deer.
The plan worked perfectly and he was exactly the distance I had guessed. Although I felt he should have taken the shot from that point, Mike and Adam decided to try to move a little closer and use a fallen tree for a rest. I stayed at the stump and video taped the rest from there.
It took seemingly an eternity from Adam to take the shot. The fog was rolling in and it was getting close to dark. Mike suggested he use his 7mm magnum rather than his grandpa's 30-06, because the 7mm had a better scope. After switching guns, then tried one shot with the safety on. After all that, and despite never having shot that gun before, Adam made a perfect shot destroying the lungs and the liver. The deer ran about 20 yards then stood still, gasping for air. Adam made a follow up shot and the deer took about five more steps then went down for good.
When Adam took the first shot about 8 more deer got up and ran away - including another similar sized buck. Amazingly, none of these deer were visible while we were focused on the three point. This is a great lesson to learn as it happens so often with mulies that there are more around than just the obvious ones.
The drag out was really easy. Miraculously, there was an old skidder trail leading right from the deer to the road at the bottom of the slash. With the snow on the ground, Adam was able to do most of the work himself. We dragged the deer most of the way back to the truck. From there, I was able to drive right up to it where we got on with the business of taking pictures and then gutting the animal.
Although Adam did want to get a bigger deer on this trip, the hunt and stalk were just so good that he was very happy to close the deal on this 3 point. Sometimes it's more about the hunt than the antlers!
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=J4t64g7nr1w
This was Adam's final crack at hunting youth season. Over the last few seasons, he had shot 4 spikes or two points - I had been lucky enough to be there for 2 of the 4.
As is pretty typical for a lot of youth hunters, Adam had hunted a lot from the truck or on quads. This year, he wanted to put a lot more time hiking. In the days leading up to the hunt, conditions were good, the rut was really getting going and there was a good chance at getting his biggest buck ever.
We headed out in the morning with high hopes. The weather was brutal. Foggy, windy and cold. We battled the conditions and put a lot of hard miles on our boots. He passed up a 4x1 in the morning that had one side broken off about 6 inches up from the base.
In the afternoon, we jumped in the truck and headed up the other side of the valley to an area that I really like for deer. As we got to where we wanted to be, the fog rolled in and it looked like the hunt was going to be over for the day. Then, as suddenly as the fog arrived, it lifted. We all got that "feeling" that this could be a special evening.
We had driven through some good areas in the fog and decided to head back through them and glass the slashes. When I turned the truck around, 3 deer appeared at the top end of a big slash. They were about 1500 yards away. We were able to drive a little closer to the base of the clearing then parked the truck and began our stalk for the final 1000 yards.
The wind was swirling, but predominantly at our back. With the deer high up in the slash, we decided our only plan was to stay low along the tree line, move past the deer then work back toward them into the wind. There was one spot where the deer were able to see us for about 50 yards. Fortunately, we only caught the attention of one doe. She stayed bedded and kept looking back and forth from us to the other deer in the clearing. Once we got out of her sight, we thought we were good to go.
Suddenly, 2 deer appeared 150 yards from us at the bottom of the slash. A quick look confirmed neither was a buck and with the wind blowing from us to them, they departed rather quickly. We saw four asses bound off together, and we have no idea if either of the hidden deer were bucks or not.
My buddy, Mike, seemed a little unsure of my strategy from the start. When these deer took off, he figured they were the same ones that we were stalking. I wasn't so sure and continued with the original plan. We were able to work our way up the slash by using a small ridge to hide behind. As we got to the same elevation where the deer had been, we worked our way to the top of the ridge where we could use a big tree for cover. Immediately, we spotted a deer feeding right where they had been earlier. With the wind perfect and the deer oblivious to our presence, we moved back behind the ridge and moved higher into the slash.
When we poked our heads over the hill, we were about 250 yards away and the only deer I could see was the 3 point. He continued feeding and I told Adam he needed to make a decision whether to take a long shot or try to get closer. He decided moving closer was best - so did I. We were able to move down into another small draw and again stay out of the deer's sight. Adam decided to slowly work his way up to a stump at the top of the draw from where he would be within 125 yards of the deer.
The plan worked perfectly and he was exactly the distance I had guessed. Although I felt he should have taken the shot from that point, Mike and Adam decided to try to move a little closer and use a fallen tree for a rest. I stayed at the stump and video taped the rest from there.
It took seemingly an eternity from Adam to take the shot. The fog was rolling in and it was getting close to dark. Mike suggested he use his 7mm magnum rather than his grandpa's 30-06, because the 7mm had a better scope. After switching guns, then tried one shot with the safety on. After all that, and despite never having shot that gun before, Adam made a perfect shot destroying the lungs and the liver. The deer ran about 20 yards then stood still, gasping for air. Adam made a follow up shot and the deer took about five more steps then went down for good.
When Adam took the first shot about 8 more deer got up and ran away - including another similar sized buck. Amazingly, none of these deer were visible while we were focused on the three point. This is a great lesson to learn as it happens so often with mulies that there are more around than just the obvious ones.
The drag out was really easy. Miraculously, there was an old skidder trail leading right from the deer to the road at the bottom of the slash. With the snow on the ground, Adam was able to do most of the work himself. We dragged the deer most of the way back to the truck. From there, I was able to drive right up to it where we got on with the business of taking pictures and then gutting the animal.
Although Adam did want to get a bigger deer on this trip, the hunt and stalk were just so good that he was very happy to close the deal on this 3 point. Sometimes it's more about the hunt than the antlers!