My 2011 R8 Boner WT buck [Archive]

coach

01-09-2012, 11:30 PM

Judging by the number of useless, non-hunting related threads I've been reading lately, and all of the bickering among forum members, it's clear the off-season is upon us. We've seen guys banned and recycled under different names, only to reappear as themselves again. We've debated hockey at length. We must all agree by now that the Canucks will win the Cup in 2012. That's what Gatehouse said anyway - and I read it here first!:mrgreen:

I hunted less than usual this year, but had a pretty successful season and have shared the stories of some of my hunts as well as my first foray into trapping. :) I figured I'd save the best for last - so I'm going to share the story of the boner WT buck I connected with on the last day of the rifle season here in Region 8.

Before I get to that, I thought I'd share some of my other hunts - as a lead up. There's a lot to tell - so this thread will take some time to put together. Those of you that like Big Boar's lengthy tales will like it. Those that are impatient will call me names and lose patience. If that's you, I suggest you wait a few days before reading any of it. That way you'll be able to skim through the beginning of the tale.

Feel free to bicker among yourselves - but try not to derail my thread and please don't get it locked.

The Dawg

01-09-2012, 11:31 PM

Boner buck? Ive been excited when shooting a deer, but this is ridiculous.

http://www.funnychill.com/files/funny-pictures/teacher-boner.jpg

Mr. Dean

01-09-2012, 11:33 PM

Bring It.

In the meantime, I'll come back in a couple daays when there's some reading to be had. :lol:

cainer

01-09-2012, 11:33 PM

dang-this thread just started? I better wait a coupla days ;)

Spy

01-09-2012, 11:37 PM

Are you seriously going to drag this out!LoL well it was starting to get boring arround,can't wait to see the beast!

Jagermeister

01-09-2012, 11:38 PM

Ever notice how those inane bickering threads end up with a few hundred posts and a thousand or two views?
Nevertheless, let's see what you bring on.

lip_ripper00

01-09-2012, 11:41 PM

You got a boner!!!

Spy

01-09-2012, 11:45 PM

You got a boner!!!

Yea his wife is scoring it as we speak!When she is finished with the tape, they will post the pics & we can all guess the score!

Tikka270

01-09-2012, 11:46 PM

A region 8 boner thread? Sounds a little funny......

lip_ripper00

01-09-2012, 11:47 PM

Yea his wife is scoring it as we speak!When she is finished with the tape, they will post the pics & we can all guess the score!

Nooooooo!!!

3kills

01-09-2012, 11:52 PM

2x4x16

01-09-2012, 11:52 PM

More - real hunting stories... please!

rainman

01-09-2012, 11:53 PM

ok heres my quick score guess 4 1/2 inch

coach

01-09-2012, 11:54 PM

My season started when I opened up my spring LEH and found that I'd been drawn for grizzly bear in Region 4-40 (Kinbasket). This was the first time I'd had success drawing for Grizzly, and I was quite excited at the opportunity. Over the years, I have been lucky enough to observe several nice bears while moose hunting in Regions 6-4 and 6-9 - but this would be my first trip to 4-40. A friend had drawn the same tag two years prior and harvested a grizzly in the Sullivan arm area. The successful strategy he used was to glass slides from the lake while trolling for dolly varden. My favorite method of hunting is spot and stalk - so this seemed like a great way to get 'er done. As we all remember, spring came very late last year. My original plan was to hunt around the May 24 weekend. Reports came to me a week prior that there was still several feet of snow on the ground so access would be an issue as well as a lack of green grass for the bears. I decided to push the trip back a week. As the days went by, the snow reports didn't improve much - so I decided to wait until the final week of my draw (June 1-5). After speaking with a couple of other hunters, I found out there were several other people with the same draw and that up to five other groups would be hunting the Sullivan during this same time period. There was no appeal in hunting in a crowd and potentially having to race someone up the mountain to chase a bear. After studying google earth, I decided to change my plan yet again. I liked the look of a few areas and figured I would head past Mica and camp at the Sprague Bay rec site and boat across to the Wood arm.

At this point, some of you are probably wondering why I would bother to hunt an area that I'd never been before. I figure it's part of the game. Rather than asking a bunch of people on this site for info, I thought I'd figure things out for myself. In the future, I will probably ask a few of the experts via PM. Not wanting to do my first grizzly hunt solo, I did ask two of my hunting partners to join me. Shootthesheep was all set to go, before he realized he'd forgot to ask his wife :???:, but Open-sights took time out of his busy schedule to join me.

After a night of beers at my place in Kelowna, my partner and I made our way up through Revelstoke to Kinbasket.

Along the way, we spotted this critter. Incidentally, it was within 100 yards or so of a highway sign indicating Caribou crossing..

http://i787.photobucket.com/albums/yy154/coach108/IMG_0128.jpg

coach

01-09-2012, 11:55 PM

More - real hunting stories... please!

Patience, my friend. This is a real hunting story. Don't get you're panties in a knot.

coach

01-10-2012, 12:03 AM

When we arrived at our destination, we were pleased to see the boat launch was clear and that the FSR was suitable for setting up the huge Wallmart tent, a buddy's dad lent me. I own a couple of better quality tents (North Face and a Kelty) and I'm sure Devilbear can fill us all in on how higher quality tents are better - but this one suited my most important need - I was able to set my cot up far enough from Open-sights that if he made a move on me during the night, I'd have time to load my gun and get a shot off.

http://i787.photobucket.com/albums/yy154/coach108/IMG_0139.jpg

http://i787.photobucket.com/albums/yy154/coach108/IMG_0133.jpg

coach

01-10-2012, 12:07 AM

I woke up early on the morning of the second - not because I felt the need to be up early for hunting - more because the beers I had consumed the night before had caused my bladder to expand to epic proportions. I went to take a wizz and decided it would be a good time to do a little introductory video..

http://i787.photobucket.com/albums/yy154/coach108/th_Kinbasketintro.jpg (http://s787.photobucket.com/albums/yy154/coach108/?action=view&current=Kinbasketintro.mp4)

Those that have been to Kinbasket will realize that the area I was looking at on the far side of the lake isn't actually 4-40. We managed to get that figured out once I'd woken up and actually got the boat in the water.

coach

01-10-2012, 12:30 AM

After a little breakfast, we put the boat in the water and made our way across the lake and up the Wood arm.. Here's another video of the terrain we were glassing:

http://i787.photobucket.com/albums/yy154/coach108/th_Woodarmbearandgoat.jpg (http://s787.photobucket.com/albums/yy154/coach108/?action=view&current=Woodarmbearandgoat.mp4)

Here's a crappy video of one of the critters inhabiting the area. Hopefully nobody gets seasick from this..

http://i787.photobucket.com/albums/yy154/coach108/th_longgoatvideo.jpg (http://s787.photobucket.com/albums/yy154/coach108/?action=view&current=longgoatvideo.mp4)

jeff

01-10-2012, 12:32 AM

coach ,this is hilarious .........

coach

01-10-2012, 12:43 AM

A little further up the inlet, Open-sights had to stop and make a deposit. Poor guy didn't know he'd had a toilet paper mishap until I wouldn't let him back in the boat..

http://i787.photobucket.com/albums/yy154/coach108/IMG_0164-1.jpg

http://i787.photobucket.com/albums/yy154/coach108/IMG_0166-1.jpg

coach

01-10-2012, 12:45 AM

Anyway, the scenery at the end of the Wood arm was pretty spectacular. Here's a few pictures:

http://i787.photobucket.com/albums/yy154/coach108/IMG_0174.jpg

http://i787.photobucket.com/albums/yy154/coach108/IMG_0170.jpg

http://i787.photobucket.com/albums/yy154/coach108/IMG_0169.jpg

coach

01-10-2012, 12:46 AM

http://i787.photobucket.com/albums/yy154/coach108/IMG_0163.jpg

http://i787.photobucket.com/albums/yy154/coach108/IMG_0162.jpg

http://i787.photobucket.com/albums/yy154/coach108/IMG_0161.jpg

coach

01-10-2012, 12:48 AM

http://i787.photobucket.com/albums/yy154/coach108/IMG_0159.jpg

http://i787.photobucket.com/albums/yy154/coach108/IMG_0158.jpg

http://i787.photobucket.com/albums/yy154/coach108/IMG_0177.jpg

coach

01-10-2012, 12:49 AM

coach ,this is hilarious .........

It's not meant to be funny, Jeff. It's a serious hunting story. In the end, you'll see I killed a boner buck - just not on the Kinbasket trip..

CanuckShooter

01-10-2012, 12:54 AM

Nice pics Coach!! Almost artsy.

coach

01-10-2012, 12:56 AM

Nice pics Coach!! Almost artsy.

Thanks, CS. I took the manly ones. Any of the ghey ones must have been taken by Open-sights when I wasn't looking..

coach

01-10-2012, 12:59 AM

After glassing and exploring and glassing and exploring, and glassing and exploring some more, we moved back out onto the main lake to drop a couple lines and keep glassing. I've had a lot of success on Stave Lake in past years, pulling coyote spoons for dollies, so we gave them a try.

http://i787.photobucket.com/albums/yy154/coach108/IMG_0188.jpg

http://i787.photobucket.com/albums/yy154/coach108/IMG_0181.jpg

coach

01-10-2012, 01:01 AM

The scenery was amazing. Unfortunately, the dollies didn't seem to like spoons or plugs. We spotted a couple black bears, no grizzlies and had to settle for steak dinner because we struck out on the fishing.

http://i787.photobucket.com/albums/yy154/coach108/IMG_0190.jpg

coach

01-10-2012, 01:15 AM

The great thing about hunting in June is that the days are really long. After dinner, we headed out for a road hunt and explored the 4-38 side of the lake. Both of us had black bear tags and planned on harvesting one. Open-sights wanted one over 6 feet and I would be happy with any decent "eater" as long as I could get the kill on video. About 800 yards from camp, we spotted this family unit:

http://i787.photobucket.com/albums/yy154/coach108/IMG_0225.jpg

http://i787.photobucket.com/albums/yy154/coach108/IMG_0223.jpg

coach

01-10-2012, 01:17 AM

A little further down the road, we ran into this bear:

http://i787.photobucket.com/albums/yy154/coach108/IMG_0233.jpg

http://i787.photobucket.com/albums/yy154/coach108/IMG_0232.jpg

http://i787.photobucket.com/albums/yy154/coach108/IMG_0231.jpg

Does anyone think I should have pulled the trigger?

coach

01-10-2012, 01:18 AM

Time for the coach to get to bed.. Story will continue tomorrow.

http://i787.photobucket.com/albums/yy154/coach108/IMG_0235.jpg

GoatGuy

01-10-2012, 02:23 AM

Looks like fun coach, one of the few years we didn't make a trip out there. If you ever get the draw again be sure to ask some questions. Lots of spots to check with g bars in that MU.

hunter1947

01-10-2012, 02:25 AM

Coach your thread has been fantastic so far pictures and story can't wait for you to continue your adventure feels like I have been with you all along on your adventure thank you..

6616

01-10-2012, 02:54 AM

Great thread Coach, lookin' forward to the next episode.

bcbrez

01-10-2012, 07:57 AM

Looking forward to the rest of the story and more great pics. Love the last one of the bear with a mouthful.

Wrayzer

01-10-2012, 08:17 AM

Piperdown

01-10-2012, 08:44 AM

Good post Coach I see as a Canuck fan you like to take lots of pics of Bruins :) :) :)

gorillaboy

01-10-2012, 08:52 AM

Great thread Coach, keep it coming, love the pics of that area. Waiting for more!!!!!!!

NaStY

01-10-2012, 09:39 AM

Great story, cant wait for the rest of it.

fusion

01-10-2012, 09:41 AM

I would of considered pulling the trigger on that bear. Aren't you up yet to continue the story. Great read thus far.

coach

01-10-2012, 09:48 AM

I would of considered pulling the trigger on that bear. Aren't you up yet to continue the story. Great read thus far.

I'm up - just had to drop my daughter off at school. I'll continue the story now..

Anyway, thanks for replying to my question. I'm sure a lot of guys would have considered taking that bear. It did fit the bill for me in terms of size, but she was not alone. Here's a video..

http://i787.photobucket.com/albums/yy154/coach108/th_MVI_0234.jpg (http://s787.photobucket.com/albums/yy154/coach108/?action=view&current=MVI_0234.mp4)

coach

01-10-2012, 09:53 AM

I had considered using that video as an educational tool for guys to watch pre-spring bear season. We've all read lots of threads in the past about people jumping out of the truck and quickly making the decision to pull the trigger on a bear. This cub was hidden for a while and rushing would have resulted in a big mistake. Instead of bear smokies, I got some good pics and video.

http://i787.photobucket.com/albums/yy154/coach108/IMG_0237.jpg

BlacktailStalker

01-10-2012, 09:56 AM

Nice pics. I could tell that was a big old sow right away, glad you didn't shoot it.

coach

01-10-2012, 09:57 AM

A little further down the road, we ran into this guy. Open-sights thought it was pretty decent size and it was alone. I looked at the long legs and decided it might suffer ground shrinkage. This early in the trip, we decided to let it walk.

Hopefully by now, guys know these smaller pictures are actually videos. Click on the pic to view.

http://i787.photobucket.com/albums/yy154/coach108/th_MVI_0130.jpg (http://s787.photobucket.com/albums/yy154/coach108/?action=view&current=MVI_0130.mp4)

I'm not sure if it was the right decision or not. What do the bear experts say?

http://i787.photobucket.com/albums/yy154/coach108/th_MVI_0131.jpg (http://s787.photobucket.com/albums/yy154/coach108/?action=view&current=MVI_0131.mp4)

bowhunterbruce

01-10-2012, 10:05 AM

great job so far coach.ya got me following along.

coach

01-10-2012, 10:10 AM

Our journey took us high above the lake and I was able to get a few more decent scenery shots:

http://i787.photobucket.com/albums/yy154/coach108/IMG_0192.jpg

http://i787.photobucket.com/albums/yy154/coach108/IMG_0198.jpg

coach

01-10-2012, 10:12 AM

http://i787.photobucket.com/albums/yy154/coach108/IMG_0199.jpg

http://i787.photobucket.com/albums/yy154/coach108/IMG_0202.jpg

Caveman

01-10-2012, 10:17 AM

I'm replying while reading page 1, because I'm not sure I want to read any further about your "Boner" buck!

Tikka270wsm

01-10-2012, 10:20 AM

coach

01-10-2012, 10:21 AM

No bears down so far - but we did manage to tip over quite a few beers back at camp. At one point, we introduced ourselves to the guys next door. It turned out we had quite a few common acquaintances. In fact, one of the guys was the brother to the father in law of the guy who taught me archery. The other runs the rodeo in Armstrong. I'm betting there's guys on this site that can figure out who I'm talking about. Anyway - great guys. Lots of laughs, PLENTY of bullshit and some good advice about catching fish in this lake.

coach

01-10-2012, 10:22 AM

I'm replying while reading page 1, because I'm not sure I want to read any further about your "Boner" buck!

Well, if that's the general consensus, I can just shut the story down now..

coach

01-10-2012, 10:23 AM

I'd be confident calling this one a young boar probably a 5'6-5'10. Perfect meat bear but not a cranker by any means.

That's kind of what I was thinking..

coach

01-10-2012, 10:40 AM

Great photos Coach, some beautiful country up Kinbasket. I was actually just researching the area last night for shits and giggles, so its a pleasent surprise to see so many photos of the area this morning.

As for the Boner Buck, sounds like someone, or something, was a little excited that day.....rut must have been in full swing eh!

If you want to hunt Kinbasket this spring, we'll have to chat. I'd like to get back there - draw or no draw. It's awesome country! As for the boner - you heard the shooting! We're a little ways away from that part of the tale. I still gotta tell everyone about the rest of my season. Rest assured, there will be a dead buck at the end of this long story.

Good Old Outdoors

01-10-2012, 10:59 AM

Great read so far Coach! I gotta get out that way sometime this year and check it out!

coach

01-10-2012, 11:08 AM

Anyway.. back onto the lake in the morning. We spotted a couple bears in the same slide as the day before:

http://i787.photobucket.com/albums/yy154/coach108/th_MVI_0157.jpg (http://s787.photobucket.com/albums/yy154/coach108/?action=view&current=MVI_0157.mp4)

I'm been kinda kicking myself about this for a while. First off - I own a Vortex Impact spotting scope. Unfortunately, I had to send it back to Vortex prior to the hunt because the POS didn't focus properly. Despite all the great reviews on the "over the counter" warranty, I didn't have it back in time for the hunt. Secondly - my hunting partner sells optics for a living, but he didn't bring a spotter on the trip. :twisted: We probably should have spent more time assessing the bears in this slide. It's possible the black color had to do with lighting. Not 100% sure if we were watching blackies or grizz. Big lesson learned: listen to FD and don't buy Chinese Optics - no matter what Bow Walker says!

coach

01-10-2012, 11:13 AM

We worked our way up to the end of the Wood arm and pulled the boat to shore. There is a lengthy system of logging roads at this end and we decided to go for a hike. Here's the coach after scrambling up through stumps and bushes on the way to the road. A word to the wise - pack cooler clothing for hiking than what you need for in the boat:

http://i787.photobucket.com/albums/yy154/coach108/IMG_0205.jpg

coach

01-10-2012, 11:16 AM

We worked our way along the road for a few kilometers.

http://i787.photobucket.com/albums/yy154/coach108/IMG_0204.jpg

Along the way, we found plenty of wolf and black bear sign:

http://i787.photobucket.com/albums/yy154/coach108/DSCF1215.jpg

coach

01-10-2012, 11:19 AM

Eventually, we came to a bridge. The area looked really good. If I hunt this area again, I will bring a dirt bike (or even a mountain bike) so I can get further into this valley.

http://i787.photobucket.com/albums/yy154/coach108/IMG_0209.jpg

http://i787.photobucket.com/albums/yy154/coach108/IMG_0206.jpg

http://i787.photobucket.com/albums/yy154/coach108/IMG_0208.jpg

Tikka270wsm

01-10-2012, 11:26 AM

Man those are some great shots of some beauty country! Very entertaining thread here Coach. Gonna have to keep on this one. Keep it coming.

coach

01-10-2012, 11:29 AM

On the way back to the boat, I spotted a decent sized black bear on the opposite side of the lake. Unfortunately, I only had my daughter's camera at the time (because it's much lighter and smaller than mine). It doesn't have the great zoom that my cannon has, so there's no video.

http://i787.photobucket.com/albums/yy154/coach108/DSCF1219-1.jpg

The bear was feeding along the road and I decided it would be worth boating across and making an attempt to get in on him.

Steeleco

01-10-2012, 11:38 AM

Sounds like the teachings of BigBore at work!! Great read thus far!!

coach

01-10-2012, 11:41 AM

I'm uploading more video that I shot on the other side of the lake. It could take a while - so I'll post up a couple pics taken later in the day back out on the main lake. I mentioned the guys camped next to us had shared some info about fishing. It turns out apexes are pretty hot and these dollies like a fair bit of speed (around 3 mph). It didn't take long for the coach to put Open-sights into a decent fish:

http://i787.photobucket.com/albums/yy154/coach108/IMG_0219-1.jpg

I didn't ask his permission to post his pictures - so I just put bubbles over his face. Better than having to look at his ugly mug anyway..

http://i787.photobucket.com/albums/yy154/coach108/IMG_0220-1.jpg

coach

01-10-2012, 11:44 AM

Sounds like the teachings of BigBore at work!! Great read thus far!!

I hate the way Big Boar tells stories!:-D:-D:-D

The fact is, Dave's epic tales and pics are always well done and worth the time - but I usually wait until he's done then read them backwards, starting at the end. Unfortunately, there's no ability to write part of a story and save it - so this is the best I can d..

Caveman

01-10-2012, 11:47 AM

Okay I've read it through. Great thread coach! Beauty pictures, scenery. Keep it coming. Still not sure I want to see you boner though. LOL!

coach

01-10-2012, 11:51 AM

Here's a picture Open-sights must have taken of himself. Not sure how he did it.

http://i787.photobucket.com/albums/yy154/coach108/DSCF1221.jpg

coach

01-10-2012, 11:51 AM

Okay I've read it through. Great thread coach! Beauty pictures, scenery. Keep it coming. Still not sure I want to see you boner though. LOL!

Thanks for the vote of confidence, Caveman. I'll let you know in advance if anything weird is gonna happen..

coach

01-10-2012, 11:54 AM

Thanks, CS. I took the manly ones. Any of the ghey ones must have been taken by Open-sights when I wasn't looking..

There's no chance I took this picture either:

http://i787.photobucket.com/albums/yy154/coach108/IMG_0240.jpg

coach

01-10-2012, 11:57 AM

Back to the story.. finally made it across the lake to where I'd spotted the bear. Here's a short video clip:

http://i787.photobucket.com/albums/yy154/coach108/th_MVI_0213.jpg (http://s787.photobucket.com/albums/yy154/coach108/?action=view&current=MVI_0213.mp4)

Jagermeister

01-10-2012, 11:58 AM

WOW! I think you are making way from inane to downright dynamic! And you haven't made it to the "boner" yet.
I find this Kinbasket segment very interesting. A trip down memory lane.
I worked on the diversion tunnels/spillway project and the excavation of the river bottom and and the core channel. Later I worked on the 1950 road (called 1950 because of it's elevation) that went up the west side of the river to the Canoe/Wood river confluences. Never returned since, maybe this summer.
Besides the spectacular scenery, I can say that there never was a shortage of black bears during my tenure there. I have never seen so many black bears in one place.
Anyhow, carry on!

coach

01-10-2012, 12:05 PM

After making our way up the muddy bank of the lake, we came across a camp site that had recently been used. My hunting partner's mood changed quickly after I shot this video. He must have been scared at finding the remains of the hunter who had been here before us:

http://i787.photobucket.com/albums/yy154/coach108/th_MVI_0214.jpg (http://s787.photobucket.com/albums/yy154/coach108/?action=view&current=MVI_0214.mp4)

Caveman

01-10-2012, 12:12 PM

Thanks for the vote of confidence, Caveman. I'll let you know in advance if anything weird is gonna happen..

I appreciate it! Thanks!

coach

01-10-2012, 12:23 PM

Although we had been very quiet to this point in our stalk, OS decided we weren't likely to catch up to this bear. He decided to head back to the boat while I continued up the road. Those of you that paid attention at the beginning of this story will remember that my goal was to take a black bear on video. With my camera on the tripod, ready to go, I worked my way farther up the road. Not 200 yards later, I rounded a bend and saw my quarry feeding on grass. He had no idea I was there. I laid down, got a solid rest and realized my camera was too high on the tripod to be able to operate it and the gun at the same time. As I fidgeted around to get the video going, the bear caught wind of me and ran into the bush. Here's a video of a disappointed and slightly angry coach:

http://i787.photobucket.com/albums/yy154/coach108/th_MVI_0216.jpg (http://s787.photobucket.com/albums/yy154/coach108/?action=view&current=MVI_0216.mp4)

coach

01-10-2012, 12:25 PM

I'm off to physio now. The rest of the story will have to wait until later..

stitch

01-10-2012, 01:19 PM

Epic......simply Epic Coach!!

Brett

01-10-2012, 01:39 PM

think you could tell this until May?;) Love the the story!!!!

coach

01-10-2012, 02:00 PM

Back from physio now. I'd love to have a glass of water, but I'm sure it would just leak all over my shirt through the maze of needle holes he stuck in my neck and upper back. :neutral: Any fans of IMS here?

coach

01-10-2012, 02:07 PM

Anyway, we didn't manage to connect with any bears off the lake and, quite unfortunately, didn't even spot a grizzly. I know this area has a good population of G-bars and I definitely hope to get the draw again one day. We did hike into this spot, which looked quite promising. The further back we got, the more overgrown it got. I do think it could be a worthwhile exploring on a future trip:

http://i787.photobucket.com/albums/yy154/coach108/IMG_0189.jpg

We managed to figure out the fish pretty well and caught several on our last day out. I didn't take any photos of them - but the couple we kept were pretty damn tasty!

BiG Boar

01-10-2012, 02:08 PM

And I thought I could drag out a story! Just kidding. Good story. Though I know the outcome already, its fun to see a part of the world to which I have never been.

Brambles

01-10-2012, 02:13 PM

And I thought I could drag out a story! Just kidding. Good story. Though I know the outcome already, its fun to see a part of the world to which I have never been.

OH if he changes gears and goes from bear hunting to some other hunt before finishing this one, I'll stop reading his thread as fast as I stopped reading yours. So far he's doing well, I hope he doesn't try and fill your shoes.

The Hermit

01-10-2012, 02:14 PM

I'm looking forward to a months worth of this thread/story! Thanks

Wrayzer

01-10-2012, 02:20 PM

Keep er comin Coach, this is great, this would be awesome if more guys did these kind of stories.

It may work out this Spring to get in there for a blackie, I will keep ya posted on plans, although theres a really nice blackie just above where you shot the now infamous Boner Buck that needs to be taken care of, tired of stepping in his steaming piles.

coach

01-10-2012, 02:24 PM

The last evening of our hunt, we managed to get into a little more black bear action off Lake Revelstoke. From a high vantage point, we spotted this bear feeding towards us. The wind was in our face and the distance was well within range for Open-sights. I ran the camera, while he studied the bear. Although there was a fair amount of time where this animal was in the open, we struggled to get camera, bear and gun ready at the same time. In the end, the bear wandered into the thick stuff:

http://i787.photobucket.com/albums/yy154/coach108/th_MVI_0242.jpg (http://s787.photobucket.com/albums/yy154/coach108/?action=view&current=MVI_0242.mp4)

coach

01-10-2012, 02:25 PM

coach

01-10-2012, 02:27 PM

OH if he changes gears and goes from bear hunting to some other hunt before finishing this one, I'll stop reading his thread as fast as I stopped reading yours. So far he's doing well, I hope he doesn't try and fill your shoes.

Sorry, Brambles. I still gotta finish this bear story then move onto the deer season. Remember, the boner buck didn't get killed until November 30th.

coach

01-10-2012, 02:31 PM

And I thought I could drag out a story! Just kidding. Good story. Though I know the outcome already, its fun to see a part of the world to which I have never been.

I do feel bad about dragging it out - but the website has no "save it till your done tellin' the story" function..

I also figure it's more fun to read/write hunting stories than debate whether the pope was wrong to get involved in the debate over gay marriage: http://news.sympatico.ca/world/gay_marriage_a_threat_to_humanitys_future_pope/8a7bba5e I'm sure CS will post up a thread about that one.

BiG Boar

01-10-2012, 02:32 PM

OH if he changes gears and goes from bear hunting to some other hunt before finishing this one, I'll stop reading his thread as fast as I stopped reading yours. So far he's doing well, I hope he doesn't try and fill your shoes.

LOL. That seriously makes me smile. Switch Coach Switch! Onto the buck!!!

coach

01-10-2012, 02:36 PM

Good post Coach I see as a Canuck fan you like to take lots of pics of Bruins :) :) :)

Funny you would mention that, Piperdown - the Stanley Cup finals were just getting started while we were on this hunt. I missed games 1 and 2. Open-Sights had satellite radio, but no sports package that allowed us to get the game. We found out the results while listening to American's talk about boring things like baseball, off-season college basketball bullshit and whatever meaningless sports stories they could come up with.

Anyway, I dropped OS off to go look for the bear that had evaded us and made my way down to a lower spot to pick him up. Along the way, I spotted this: Click on pic to see video

http://i787.photobucket.com/albums/yy154/coach108/th_MVI_0244.jpg (http://s787.photobucket.com/albums/yy154/coach108/?action=view&current=MVI_0244.mp4)

coach

01-10-2012, 02:42 PM

Sorry fellas, no bruins were slayed by the Coach or the Canucks last spring. I'll move on to the rest of my season shortly.

coach

01-10-2012, 02:48 PM

As the summer progressed, the kids and I made a few trips into the hills in search of deer for my daughter to chase during the early youth season. It seemed every time out, I saw bucks.

http://i787.photobucket.com/albums/yy154/coach108/IMG_0271.jpg

I posted about this deer a while ago. My girlfriend's 4 year old son was watching it with me and asked, "is that what our smokies and pepperoni are made out of?" "Yes", I replied. The next words out of his mouth were, "that deer sure is spicy!"

coach

01-10-2012, 03:16 PM

Kiana was 12 this season and hasn't completed her CORE yet, so she hunts under my license and tags as a Junior Hunter. I really wanted her to harvest a deer this year, so I decided I wouldn't pull the trigger on anything less than a booner. September 1st couldn't come quick enough. Kiana and I were up early and left the house well before first light. We headed up through 8-11 and into 3-12 to an area I had spotted several bucks at the tail end of spring bear season. Not being the sharpest knife in the drawer, the Coach left his trailer hitch locked into the receiver on the truck and forgot the keys at home. As a result, cross ditches were impossible, and we were confined to the main roads.

No big deal - we saw some good country and had chances at 5 bucks on opening morning. The first was a tall 3 point, that moved into the trees before I could get her steady to take a shot. The second was a spike buck that she decided to pass up. The third and fourth were a bit of an adventure. For whatever reason, my daughter needs a little motivating to get out of the truck and hike. She loves hunting - but it's probably more because she likes spending time with me than anything else.

Shortly before 8am, I spotted a doe feeding on a hillside a few hundred yards away. I suggested to my daughter that we should take a look over a ridge that was between us and the doe because it was highly likely she wasn't alone. As she thought about the plan, we watched the doe - who kept looking over her shoulder into the bush behind her. Figuring another deer would be appearing soon, I told Kiana to get ready. Suddenly, the doe bolted straight toward us with a coyote closely pursuing her. I watched in amazement, then asked Kiana to give me her .270. The deer and the coyote ran over a small hill and out of our site and instead of grabbing Kiana's gun, I took my .300wsm. Sneaking up to the edge of hill, I peered over and spotted the coyote immediately. Just as I was about to pull the trigger on the deer killing little *******, Kiana said, "dad, buck!" I looked to my left and sure enough, there was a nice 2 point walking toward us with a nicer 3 point right behind him. I looked at the tikka in my hands, Kiana standing beside me, then back to the truck where here .270 was sitting. I thought about giving her my gun, but wisely decided against it. In the end, the bucks, the doe and the coyote went on their way and we missed our opportunity.

coach

01-10-2012, 03:23 PM

Back into the truck we went. About half a kilometer further up the road, I spotted another buck. This one was a good size deer - either a 3x3 or 3x4. He was only 100 yards or so away and oblivious to us but moving in and out of small trees the entire time I watched him. Kiana got her gun out, I helped her load it and got her a good solid rest. Unfortunately, the buck wandered into some thicker bush. At one point, I had a clear view of his shoulder and vitals, but not his head. There never really was a decent shot opportunity, so another deer walked away.

As the season progressed, we had similar situations play themselves out on a regular basis. We saw bucks every time out - but we couldn't get our stuff together for her to have a clean shot. Once grouse season opened, she did a number on a few birds while the boys cheered her on:

http://i787.photobucket.com/albums/yy154/coach108/IMG_0988-1.jpg

coach

01-10-2012, 03:25 PM

Occasionally, I got her out of the truck on we did a few hikes. Things were looking pretty positive this day - until we found out that the hill we were hiking over had a road on the backside of it:

http://i787.photobucket.com/albums/yy154/coach108/Gangstakids.jpg

coach

01-10-2012, 03:38 PM

As the season progressed, we saw lots more bears. Most were sows with cubs. This brute was all by himself:

http://i787.photobucket.com/albums/yy154/coach108/IMG_0828.jpg

Shootthesheep was with us for this hunt and he stayed with Kiana while I stalked to within 200 yards of this guy. He took this picture while zoomed in from about 600 yards. In an extremely dumb move on my part, I covered the distance quickly, took a very poor rest, and rushed the shot. Clean miss!! Yes, we scoured the area for sign of a hit and I was back there several days in a row looking for him again. I missed. Plain and simple. After showing a ton of patience all season, this time I messed up.

coach

01-10-2012, 03:42 PM

Another sow with cubs spotted on a different trip:

http://i787.photobucket.com/albums/yy154/coach108/IMG_0832.jpg

popsy

01-10-2012, 03:50 PM

excellent story and pics Coach!!!! Looks like the kids are having a great time. Keep it coming

Fisher-Dude

01-10-2012, 05:40 PM

I'm been kinda kicking myself about this for a while. First off - I own a Vortex Impact spotting scope. Unfortunately, I had to send it back to Vortex prior to the hunt because the POS didn't focus properly. Despite all the great reviews on the "over the counter" warranty, I didn't have it back in time for the hunt. Secondly - my hunting partner sells optics for a living, but he didn't bring a spotter on the trip. :twisted: We probably should have spent more time assessing the bears in this slide. It's possible the black color had to do with lighting. Not 100% sure if we were watching blackies or grizz. Big lesson learned: listen to FD and don't buy Chinese Optics - no matter what Bow Walker says!

Best post of the thread. :D

deer nut

01-10-2012, 05:56 PM

Geez, did you & BigBoar go to the same writing class? This thread is almost as long as the hunting season! Looking forward to seeing a pic of the buck....preferably before page 20.....;)

Dirt Road King

01-10-2012, 06:04 PM

great story.....keep er coming!!!!!

Jagermeister

01-10-2012, 06:07 PM

Brambles

01-10-2012, 06:16 PM

0 for 1 and counting

open-sights

01-10-2012, 06:32 PM

this gets my vote for dumbest thread on the internet EVER

coach

01-10-2012, 06:36 PM

Geez, did you & BigBoar go to the same writing class? This thread is almost as long as the hunting season! Looking forward to seeing a pic of the buck....preferably before page 20.....;)

Change your settings. I'm only on page 3! BTW - where are all your threads? I told everyone before this started - it's a long story.

coach

01-10-2012, 06:37 PM

this gets my vote for dumbest thread on the internet EVER

Thanks, buddy!! Same time this year?

Bc Deer Hunter

01-10-2012, 06:44 PM

coach

01-10-2012, 06:45 PM

Do you know what you have done here? F-D's head has swollen up about 4 hat sizes and now everyone will start calling him Stewie.

How can FD's head possibly get any bigger than it already is? I figured the risk was worth it. The best warranty on optics is the one you never need to use. Quite frankly, a toilet paper roll with Saran Wrap over the ends of it would be more effective than my vortex - and easier to replace.

Wrayzer

01-10-2012, 06:51 PM

How can FD's head possibly get any bigger than it already is? I figured the risk was worth it. The best warranty on optics is the one you never need to use. Quite frankly, a toilet paper roll with Saran Wrap over the ends of it would be more effective than my vortex - and easier to replace.

No word of a lie, my wife did that and wrapped it under the tree for me for Christmas as a joke. Then after the dust settled, gave my the actual binos.

BillyBull

01-10-2012, 07:03 PM

Interesting.... certainly rambles along with the many pictures and different adventures. Is your plan to keep posting until the EOM or your close to showing the the infamous buck?

.300WSMImpact!

01-10-2012, 07:12 PM

really no buck pictures yet, this sh*t should be outlawed, I am starting to think there is no B&C buck

coach

01-10-2012, 07:26 PM

Interesting.... certainly rambles along with the many pictures and different adventures. Is your plan to keep posting until the EOM or your close to showing the the infamous buck?

458 posts and two threads started, BillyBull. In one you asked for advice on your LEH and the other you posted pics someone emailed to you. I thought this was a hunting website for sharing pics and info about our hunts. Mine's a bit drawn out, but it fits the spirit of why we're here. Be patient, my friend.

coach

01-10-2012, 07:30 PM

really no buck pictures yet, this sh*t should be outlawed, I am starting to think there is no B&C buck

I won't take shots at you. At least you've posted up stories of your successful hunts. I'm sure CS has started several important threads this week. Tune in over there and I'll pm you when I get to the end of this story.

OutWest

01-10-2012, 08:04 PM

458 posts and two threads started, BillyBull. In one you asked for advice on your LEH and the other you posted pics someone emailed to you. I thought this was a hunting website for sharing pics and info about our hunts. Mine's a bit drawn out, but it fits the spirit of why we're here. Be patient, my friend.

Right, you have to have thousands of posts and a bunch of useless threads like Canuckshooter to have any cred around here :confused:. At least you're getting your post count up, coach.

Brambles

01-10-2012, 08:05 PM

Don't get sidetracked by the weetards hassling you. At least the pictures and story is flowing well.

OutWest

01-10-2012, 08:10 PM

Don't get sidetracked by the weetards hassling you. At least the pictures and story is flowing well.

I for one am enjoying the story/pics.

yama49

01-10-2012, 08:22 PM

keep them coming coach, this is a good read..

Brambles

01-10-2012, 08:22 PM

Right, you have to have thousands of posts and a bunch of useless threads like Canuckshooter to have any cred around here :confused:. At least you're getting your post count up, coach.

I for one am enjoying the story/pics.

Didn't seem that way by your previous post, but then again the internet is a unforgiving beast

beni

01-10-2012, 08:27 PM

Thanks Coach, great read so far.

Stone Sheep Steve

01-10-2012, 08:32 PM

If everyone else would stop posting, Coach could get on with his story. Carry on, Coach! I'm enjoying it, although I have a tad more patience than the 4 yr olds on here.:-D

SSS

Brambles

01-10-2012, 08:40 PM

If everyone else would stop posting, Coach could get on with his story. Carry on, Coach! I'm enjoying it, although I have a tad more patience than the 4 yr olds on here.:-D

SSS

Your so patient that you missed hunting season....

OutWest

01-10-2012, 08:40 PM

Didn't seem that way by your previous post, but then again the internet is a unforgiving beast

Yest it is. It was a jab at CanuckShooter. I'm quite enjoying coach's thread.

Stone Sheep Steve

01-10-2012, 08:43 PM

Your so patient that you missed hunting season....

Hey, I managed to fill my freezer. Better late than never. Good things come to those who wait. Kinda like sex!:-D

SSS

Good Old Outdoors

01-10-2012, 09:31 PM

Great story so far! Makes me want to try bear hunting!

.300WSMImpact!

01-10-2012, 09:38 PM

I won't take shots at you. At least you've posted up stories of your successful hunts. I'm sure CS has started several important threads this week. Tune in over there and I'll pm you when I get to the end of this story.

I guess my internet joke was kinda mean, sorry, carry on, it is entertaining in many ways, (its probably that I am jealous, that I am unable to tell a story like this and that I failed at shooting a big deer this year)

2x4x16

01-10-2012, 09:49 PM

Ok... It's been a few hours now? Coach did you fall asleep? or just try to get the post #'s up:mrgreen:

coach

01-10-2012, 09:54 PM

Ok... It's been a few hours now? Coach did you fall asleep? or just try to get the post #'s up:mrgreen:

Dishes are done. Kids are almost in bed. Gotta spend a little quality time with my better half and I'll be back to tell more of the story. Thanks for the support guys. I'll try to keep it interesting.

open-sights

01-10-2012, 11:11 PM

http://i17.photobucket.com/albums/b61/trader_2b/pictures361.jpg

landphil

01-10-2012, 11:14 PM

Great read so far Coach, but before you have a chance at out-doing BigBore, you WILL have to eat coyote. Just sayin'.

91Jason91

01-10-2012, 11:28 PM

coach

01-10-2012, 11:33 PM

I'm back.. now where was I? Ok, took Kiana hunting on September 1st - check, took all the kids (and one of their friends) hunting - check, showed pics of Kiana, the boys and some grouse - check, admitted to finally taking a shot at a bear and missing - check. Took a bunch of abuse then made up with the guys that can't wait to read about my boner buck. Check..

Ok - back to the story

Hunter Dog

01-10-2012, 11:47 PM

This is excellent! We can always post a hunt/kill story, but to have conversation with others while your doing it makes it a true hunting season! Love the family involvement: good on ya!

coach

01-10-2012, 11:51 PM

September was a really fun month - hunting with my daughter. We saw a lot of great animals, but couldn't capitalize on our opportunities. Living in a "blended" family, its important to do lots of activities as a group, but to also recognize the different personalities of each member of the family. As much as Kiana is happy to drive around in the truck looking for animals, her (future) step-brother, Colin can't wait to park the truck and hike. Late in September, he and I found a free afternoon to pack my rifle, search for four points and scout a new (to me) area above Kelowna. We drove up the hill, parked, strapped on the backpack and worked our way up the mountain.

About 3 minutes after we left the truck, walking into the wind, we crested a ridge and almost stepped on a sow with two cubs. Fortunately, the sow and first cub took off running. The second cub climbed a tree right beside us. As we backed out slowly, the little guy scrambled down the tree and took off to join his mom and sibling. No pics - but a little excitement to start the afternoon.

As we climbed, we noticed deer sign everywhere. At one point, we came across this:

http://i787.photobucket.com/albums/yy154/coach108/Buckrub.jpg

Although we didn't spot any deer, I knew I had found a spot worth returning to. Here's a picture of my young hunting partner. He'll be 10 in a couple months and can't wait to start hunting (instead of simply spectating).

http://i787.photobucket.com/albums/yy154/coach108/Snapbucket/CBFB0F20.jpg

coach

01-11-2012, 12:00 AM

A few days later, I returned solo to the same area for a look around. The wind blew steadily from my right as I climbed the hill. This was perfect, as I wanted to work my way to the top, then move into the wind and work my way slowly back down. Again, there was lots of sign on the way up, but I didn't see any deer. When I reached the top of the hill, I found a good vantage point, sat down, and started glassing. Almost immediately, I picked up some movement about 500 yards below me. As I watched, a doe appeared, followed by two small bucks. I watched them for a while before losing them over a hill and into some small trees. They were completely unaware of my presence, so I decided I'd make my way down toward them for a better look. It was the 28th of September, and still a couple days before the "any buck" season. About half way down, I looked to my right and spotted a two point buck with two does. They noticed me, but didn't seem overly concerned. I sat still and watched as they moved another 100 yards or so away and then started feeding.

http://i787.photobucket.com/albums/yy154/coach108/IMG_0929-1.jpg

coach

01-11-2012, 12:06 AM

I was busy photographing this small buck for a few minutes, when I turned and looked back over my shoulder and spotted two deer sparring with each other about 200 yards behind me. They both had their heads down and one buck was pushing the other backwards pretty forcefully. I knew they weren't huge bucks. The smaller one was a two point, and I think the second was a three - although I only saw his head briefly. I really wanted to get the fight on video, but missed my opportunity and only got this crappy picture before they moved over the ridge and out of sight.

http://i787.photobucket.com/albums/yy154/coach108/IMG_0933.jpg

coach

01-11-2012, 12:27 AM

Going back to my original goals for the year - I had planned to let Kiana take "any buck" with the goal of holding out for a booner for myself. Since we share my tags, it's a bit of a balancing act. Wait too long for her to get things done and maybe we don't eat deer this winter - pull the trigger too soon and I end her chance of getting one. As the calendar passed October 1st, she was encouraging me to shoot a deer if I was out without her. With three potential tags to fill, I started thinking about taking one - but was kind of on the fence with the whole situation. For 2012, I'm going to have Colin, Kiana and my GF take their CORE.

Anyway, we moved into "any buck" season and my new spot was calling out to me. A couple days into the month, one of my longtime golf students came to stay at my house and work on his game in preparation for PGA Tour Qualifying school. Those that wonder why my name is "coach" - it's not because of my hunting ability. I coach golf and have been fortunate to work with some of BC's best junior and amateur players over the last number of years. The young man who was staying with me holds the distinction of being the youngest winner in the history of the Canadian Amateur Championship. He's a great kid and happens to be really keen to learn about hunting. We got some work done on his game, but planned a couple mornings of hunting.

It was a foggy morning as we started up the hill:

http://i787.photobucket.com/albums/yy154/coach108/5C1DDC69.jpg

About 200 hundred yards after leaving the truck, I crested a ridge and found myself standing face to face with a two point mulie. I raised my rifle, but "Wally" didn't notice the deer. He kept on walking and spooked the buck and his little harem of does. They took off running. Although they eventually slowed, the fog was rolling in and out and there was no clear shot. I would have loved to get a buck with my young friend, but wasn't too disappointed. He was happy to see the deer, but couldn't understand why I didn't pull the trigger. Here's "Wally" at the top of the hill:

http://i787.photobucket.com/albums/yy154/coach108/F134EB4C.jpg

coach

01-11-2012, 12:34 AM

When you wake a kid up early in the morning and hike to the top of a mountain and back, it doesn't take long for them to fall asleep on the ride back home:

http://i787.photobucket.com/albums/yy154/coach108/D17154EB.jpg

coach

01-11-2012, 12:43 AM

The next morning, Wally decided to sleep in while Kiana and I went to possibly help out a property owner in a local orchard. I posted this story before - so no real need to re-tell it. Kiana watched from a high vantage point while I made my way through the corn field and put an arrow into this nice fat buck.

My first kill of the year - but not the boner buck:

http://i787.photobucket.com/albums/yy154/coach108/seanandki.jpg

It kinda felt like cheating - but the meat is awesome and it was a great day with my daughter.

Brambles

01-11-2012, 12:45 AM

doesn't Wally know thats a Fanny pack, not a Pecker pack?

coach

01-11-2012, 12:47 AM

doesn't Wally know thats a Fanny pack, not a Pecker pack?

Ha ha!! That's funny, Brambles. Hope he didn't think it was a boner pack.

LeverActionJunkie

01-11-2012, 12:50 AM

doesn't Wally know thats a Fanny pack, not a Pecker pack?

LOL that's what I was thinking.

Great thread coach keep em coming. Thanks for all the pictures they help keep me focused, well that and shiny objects. I have a short attention span, but so long as I don't have to scroll too many pages without pics i keep coming back:)

91Jason91

01-11-2012, 12:52 AM

Ha ha!! That's funny, Brambles. Hope he didn't think it was a boner pack.

lmao lets hope not

LeverActionJunkie

01-11-2012, 12:56 AM

It would be a good boner hider pack though. just saying.

coach

01-11-2012, 01:02 AM

As October rolled on, my hunting days became a little more limited. It was too early to seriously start looking for Region 8 whitetails, but I was tagged out on Region 8 mulies. Region 3 is a little longer drive and didn't seem worth it until moose opened on the 15th. It/'s worthy to note that the only moose I saw prior to the 15th was a spike / fork that crossed in front of the truck shortly after dark in mid-september. Anyway, moose opened and Shootthesheep and I made our way into R3 to see what we could find. I've posted this story before as well, so I'll spare everyone the details - but I took a video that I hadn't posted previously:

The picture:

http://i787.photobucket.com/albums/yy154/coach108/IMG_0970.jpg

coach

01-11-2012, 01:13 AM

This i gota say is the only long thread that has interested me coach! I have to say i can't wait to read more :) And ya any of those bruins would be shooters in my books.. hope i can put the hammer down on my first this spring!
So how many chickens did your daughter end up getting anyways ?
Lastly I would really like to start videoing some of my hunts as well, do you know any good cameras out there ? :D
Great post cant wait for more-
Hogan

Thanks BC Deer Hunter. A couple things - most of the bears we saw this season were sows with cubs. I can't emphasize enough the importance of observing bears for a lengthy time before pulling the trigger. Bears are also very difficult to judge in the field. The bear I video taped that I said would look big if it was, was actually quite small when I got a clear view of it a few moments after shooting the video. Bear hunting is a ton of fun - but there is a learning curve. I've hunted most of my life but really just hunted bears for a the last couple seasons - so I'm no expert. There's a ton of great knowledge to tap into on this website.

The camera I use is a canon sx30is. It's a still camera that records HD video. The downside is that all of the video files are in a Quicktime format - something that doesn't work with most video editing software. As a result, I'm stuck with the video as they are when I record them. I can edit a little bit on the camera - but really need to invest in some better software. The other negative on this camera is that it's bulky. The huge positive is the amazing zoom. The goat I recorded was a REALLY long way away. Combined with a good tripod, it's a great package.

hunter1947

01-11-2012, 02:06 AM

Coach fantastic story put together as for the family and pictures thanks for taking us members along with you on your hunting expedition ,the best part of the whole thread of yours was seeing the young ones along with you on your expedition ,congrats to you and the family on a fantastic hunt..

Gilmore

01-11-2012, 07:01 AM

Awesome story Coach! Can hardly wait, really excited to see your big boner.

shallowH2O

01-11-2012, 07:12 AM

[QUOTE=coach;1062001)

The camera I use is a canon sx30is. It's a still camera that records HD video. The downside is that all of the video files are in a Quicktime format - something that doesn't work with most video editing software. As a result, I'm stuck with the video as they are when I record them. [/QUOTE]

hey coach, just google quicktime to .avi converter,,,,,,,download one of the many free programs and video editing problems no longer

pnbrock

01-11-2012, 08:14 AM

maybe Wally is using the pack to contain his excitement!!

John P

01-11-2012, 08:40 AM

Great thread, gets me looking forward to next season already.

snareman1234

01-11-2012, 08:43 AM

Your so patient that you missed hunting season....

LOL ohh a low blow, hope you aren't having a glass of wine while typing that :P

huntcoop

01-11-2012, 09:33 AM

Those that wonder why my name is "coach" - it's not because of my hunting ability...

http://thestar.blogs.com/.a/6a00d8341bf8f353ef015437a70e48970c-800wi (http://thestar.blogs.com/.a/6a00d8341bf8f353ef015437a70e48970c-pi)

coach

01-11-2012, 10:19 AM

Video of Region 3 buck. Boner story coming up later today..

http://i787.photobucket.com/albums/yy154/coach108/th_R3mulie1.jpg (http://s787.photobucket.com/albums/yy154/coach108/?action=view&current=R3mulie1.mp4)

I couldn't find the buck in my camera, but he's on the right hand side of the picture at the end of the video. When I shot him, he rolled over dead. Interestingly, he kicks right at the end of the video. Had have been nerves - as the internal damage to his neck and spine was very significant.

Brambles

01-11-2012, 10:35 AM

Interestingly, he kicks right at the end of the video. Had have been nerves - as the internal damage to his neck and spine was very significant.

A kick??? The damn thing was getting up...LOL thats one hell of a kick.

bighornbob

01-11-2012, 11:24 AM

A kick??? The damn thing was getting up...LOL thats one hell of a kick.

I shot a whitetail doe this fall (yah I know big trophy hunter that I am) in the neck at about 25m with my 300. When I walked up to her she was kicking like crazy. So much kicking that I was ready to shoot her again as it appeared she was going to stand at any second when she caught her second wind. I debated about shooting again for about 10 seconds and the kicking finally slowed down and stopped. There was so much damage to the spine that all i needed to take her head clean off was a knife. It was basically hamburger and bone chunks holding her head on.

First time I have seen a deer kick taht much with no spinal colunm left in the neck.

BHB

Wrayzer

01-11-2012, 03:08 PM

Sun is out, Coach must be out at the driving range??

coach

01-11-2012, 03:13 PM

Sun is out, Coach must be out at the driving range??

Ha ha! A couple indoor lessons this morning and another round of physio. Story to continue later today. Would be a nice afternoon to be chasing 'yotes!

coach

01-11-2012, 04:37 PM

A kick??? The damn thing was getting up...LOL thats one hell of a kick.

Lol - yes, it was quite the kick. Bizarre, as he rolled over dead right after the shot. Not a flinch - until then, which was probably 2 -3 minutes after I pulled the trigger. Good lesson for people to keep an eye on an animal once the shooting is done - and always approach a downed animal carefully and prepared for the unexpected.

coach

01-11-2012, 04:47 PM

So here's the Cole's notes on the story so far: Started the year in 4-40 looking for a grizzly and prepared to harvest a meat black bear - but only if I could get it on video. Showed good patience and passed up a couple bears. One was notable because he was decent size, it was a good stalk, and I let him walk because it didn't fit with my video goal. Decided to let my daughter shoot all of the "meat" deer this year unless I saw a "booner". Changed that goal mid-season when she wasn't able to get everything together to knock a deer down despite having multiple opportunities. Missed a nice bear in September - didn't get any of it on video. Discovered a great new spot with lots of bucks - but decided to take a "gimme" from an orchard very early in the "any buck" season. Set Kiana and my hunting partner up with my camera on a tripod while I made my archery kill - but neither of them understood it was because I wanted the kill on video. Made a great stalk on a couple of bucks in Region 3. Had the camera with me and on the tripod. Had the deer bedded and facing me, but totally unconcerned. Had lots of time to get the shot on video, but decided to shoot first and video later. Anyone notice how I struggled to stay committed to my goals? Anyway, one tag left and I was determined to hold out for a booner WT. Of course, WT does were still open for youth in R8 and I would allow Kiana to use my last tag if she wanted.

coach

01-11-2012, 04:58 PM

My long time friend and hunting and fishing partner, OldnGrey, who lives in the Lower Mainland (and is familiar to many on this site) made arrangements to take time off between November 25 and 30 to join me for a few days chasing whitetails. OldnGrey had taken two mule deer early in the season near his cabin at Sheridan Lake (one in R5 and one in R3). He owns a crossbow, so the timing of the trip conveniently coincided with the late archery mule deer season in Region 8. Here's a picture of OldnGrey from 2008 - the last time we successfully moose hunted together in Region 6.

http://i787.photobucket.com/albums/yy154/coach108/IMG_1905.jpg

I'll get back to the story of OldnGrey later, but figured I should set the stage for the boner buck story prior to talking about shootthesheep's success.

coach

01-11-2012, 05:26 PM

Shootthesheep and I have been friends for over 30 years. We met in elementary school and graduated together in 100 Mile House. Over the years, we've spend countless hours hunting and fishing throughout BC. Coincidentally, we both moved to the Kelowna area in 2007 and have done our best to discover areas to hunt in nearby Regions 3, 4 and 8. STS filled his R3 mule deer tag somewhere between the day I killed my orchard buck and the day I took my R3 mulie. We were together the day he filled that tag, but didn't get any decent pics.

On October 26, we took a morning off and hiked up into the spot I'd been seeing all the mule bucks earlier in the month. We both had to drop our kids off at school - so it was after 9 by the time we started up the hill. As we worked our way to the top, we saw lots of sign, but no deer. I was confident we would find them eventually - but was aware that they can be tougher to find at the end of October. All of the HuntingBC reports we'd been reading were doomy and gloomy. Apparently most of the bucks throughout the province had been slaughtered during the liberal open season. :-D

Fisher-Dude

01-11-2012, 05:31 PM

Hiked? Some guys never learn.

coach

01-11-2012, 05:35 PM

Shootthesheep's goal for the last two years has been to kill a buck with his bow. Although I had permission on the orchard, he decided he'd forgo that chance if we could find a decent buck. We made our way up the hill without seeing anything - but he really liked the look of the terrain. Suddenly, I spotted a doe bouncing away from us about 300 yards to our right. She was eventually joined by 4 other deer. All of them moved over a ridge and out of sight. As quiet as we had been on the way up, these deers seemed a lot more wary than they had been earlier in the month. Unsure if there were any bucks in the group, we decided to sit still and give them about 20 minutes or so to settle down before resuming our climb.

Our pace slowed considerably as we worked our way toward where they had crested the ridge. We held tight to the rocks and kept the wind in our face. When we reached the top, there was no sign whatsoever of the group. :icon_frow

coach

01-11-2012, 05:36 PM

Hiked? Some guys never learn.

That's the best you got? I set you up perfectly with the "slaughter" line..

coach

01-11-2012, 05:43 PM

We sat at the top of the hill and glassed the area around and below us. Still no sign of deer. Kiana had an appointment scheduled after school, and STS had to pick his kids up - so we decided to call it a day and start hunting our way back down. The huge cup of coffee I drank on the way to the "spot" had caught up to me and I felt the need to relieve myself. Without giving it much thought (about pissing in the bedding areas), I walked over to a rock and did my business. STS was glassing the area and didn't notice I'd done this. As we were about to head back down, he turned to me and said, "Sorry, man, but I gotta take a piss." I laughed at him and said that I'd just finished doing the same thing. "Go ahead, I don't think it makes that much difference." So here we are - we've hiked all the way to the top of this hill. We've spooked a group of deer from 300 yards. We've been quiet in our hike and tried to keep the wind in our favor. It's time to get back down the hill - and now STS is taking a leak.

coach

01-11-2012, 05:50 PM

No sooner do things start flowing, and a nice three point gets up - about 75 yards away! It had been bedded in some bushes the whole time. "Buck", I whispered. The deer notices us and walks slowly over a hill and out of sight. Talk about ridiculous! I'm standing there watching the deer - lots of time for a shot and STS has his fly down, doing his business. I'm trying to figure out a strategy to get in on the buck, when a second deer stands up. This one's a two point. By now STS has his pecker back in his pants and his rifle in his hands. The deer moves into an opening and stops. Boom! Down he goes. After years of hunting together, this is one of funnier success stories we've had. After a pretty good chuckle, we work our way down to the buck.

http://i787.photobucket.com/albums/yy154/coach108/IMG_0992.jpg

coach

01-11-2012, 05:54 PM

http://i787.photobucket.com/albums/yy154/coach108/Brianbuck-1.jpg

Wrayzer

01-11-2012, 06:02 PM

LMAO that caption made me lose it.

coach

01-11-2012, 06:09 PM

LMAO that caption made me lose it.

Ha ha!! And this, believe it or not, isn't even the boner buck.

shootthesheep

01-11-2012, 06:20 PM

Hey Coach, I never said that! Just ask all your girlfriends back in highschool :twisted:
lol

coach

01-11-2012, 06:25 PM

Hey Coach, I never said that! Just ask all your girlfriends back in highschool :twisted:
lol

They'll likely concur that YOU had fun. Probably a diappointment for them though! But, hey, water under the bridge..

BillBraskii

01-11-2012, 06:38 PM

Just show us your boner already!!!!

monasheemountainman

01-11-2012, 06:49 PM

good stuff coach! im all caught up!

jeff

01-11-2012, 06:52 PM

Just show us your boner already!!!!

ya you would like that ...sorry coach i couldnt help it .. anyways . good story

coach

01-11-2012, 10:14 PM

A short time later, we had the deer cut in half. Between the two of us, we had one game bag. It was only a kilometer downhill to the truck. I carried the hind two quarters out on my Badlands day pack. Shootthesheep carried the front half by tying a rope through the entrance and exit holes. It wasn't the easiest pack out - would have been much better with either a bigger pack, or if we'd taken the time to de-bone the deer. In the end, we made it back to Kiana's school on time to pick her up. Brian's wife picked his kids up. Gotta love driving into a schoolyard, with guns in the truck, blood dripping off the tailgate and a dead deer in the back!

http://i787.photobucket.com/albums/yy154/coach108/Seanthemeatpacker-1.jpg

I must have asked STS a half dozen times, where he had put my camo princess auto rope after securing the load to my pack. He couldn't remember where he'd put it - but scoured the ground around the gut pile to find it. Wasn't until I saw this picture that I figured out where it was. :mrgreen:

coach

01-11-2012, 10:29 PM

Onto the final chapter.. The boner buck:

I hunted for spike/fork moose a few more days between the end of October and the 15th of November. My search was pretty fruitless this year. I didn't even spot a cow, let alone a bull. In large part, it was due to hunting different areas and also because I didn't put the effort into it that I normally would. I have no doubt the region 3 and 8 moose population is healthy - it just wasn't meant to be for the coach this year. As usual, I spotted a spike fork before and another one after the season had closed. This isn't either of the bulls - but an example of what I've seen, but failed to connect with over the last 5 seasons:

http://i787.photobucket.com/albums/yy154/coach108/IMG_1598.jpg

pnbrock

01-11-2012, 10:32 PM

You competing with bigbore?

coach

01-11-2012, 10:38 PM

You competing with bigbore?

No - It just takes forever to write a story here. Can't save it and come back to write it later. Hopefully it's not too painful. I figure it's gotta be better than most of the non-hunting threads.

Whonnock Boy

01-11-2012, 10:42 PM

No - It just takes forever to write a story here. Can't save it and come back to write it later. Hopefully it's not too painful. I figure it's gotta be better than most of the non-hunting threads.

You know Coach, you could open up a notepad to write your story. Save and continue whenever you wish. And yes, it is better than most fo the non-hunting threads. Cheers!

hunter1993ap

01-11-2012, 10:45 PM

should i check back later tonight for the whittie or wait till tomoro.

coach

01-11-2012, 10:45 PM

A couple days before OldnGrey arrived, I went for a quick scout of the local area. The mule deer were chasing does pretty hard. While I didn't see any big bucks, it looked like getting him a chance with the crossbow would be fairly easy..

http://i787.photobucket.com/albums/yy154/coach108/IMG_1027.jpg

http://i787.photobucket.com/albums/yy154/coach108/IMG_1040.jpg

coach

01-11-2012, 10:50 PM

You know Coach, you could open up a notepad to write your story. Save and continue whenever you wish. And yes, it is better than most fo the non-hunting threads. Cheers!

It's kinda like my season - it just goes on and on.. For the record, I would never do a story like this during the season. The only reason I started this was to share some pics, stories, a few laughs and pass the days toward spring bear season talking about something better than things like this: http://www.huntingbc.ca/forum/showthread.php?77094-Melting-snow-exposes-snake!!-%29 (http://www.huntingbc.ca/forum/showthread.php?77094-Melting-snow-exposes-snake%21%21-%29)

monasheemountainman

01-11-2012, 10:55 PM

im finding this awesome! keeper goin Coach!!

coach

01-11-2012, 11:02 PM

Kiana joined me on two scouting trips. I think she knew I'd appreciate having a tag when OldnGrey was up - so she graciously passed up on 5 different whitetail does. I would have been happy to watch her take a deer, but it gave me a chance to tag the booner I'd dreamed about since the year before. In 2010, OldnGrey made two trips to hunt whitetails with me in the Okanagan. We didn't connect, but on his second trip, we spotted this buck - very close to where C Groves killed it in the fall of 2011:

http://i787.photobucket.com/albums/yy154/coach108/cgroves.jpg

The snow was crunchy as can be and the best we could do was get within 150 yards. I sat there, mouth wide open - no camera with me - as he slowly walked away from us..

http://www.huntingbc.ca/forum/showthread.php?72863-My-First-Ever-Buck!&highlight=groves (http://www.huntingbc.ca/forum/showthread.php?72863-My-First-Ever-Buck%21&highlight=groves)

A huge congratulations goes to this successful member of HuntingBC - but I can't tell you how many phone calls I took this year from OldnGrey telling me to find this deer's sheds, pattern him, yada yada yada...

coach

01-11-2012, 11:12 PM

OldnGrey arrived at my house mid-afternoon on the 24th. I had to pick Kiana up at school, after 3:00 and it was getting dark before 5:00. OG wasn't expecting to hunt that day, but I told him to grab his rifle and we'd pick my daughter up and head up the hill for a quick look around. We weren't very far up the road, but past all the private property and into a legal hunting area, when I spotted a whitetail buck with a doe about 50 yards into the bush. The deer walked a little further into the bush and OG got out and had a look. As he crested the hill, OldnGrey raised his rifle. I waited for the shot, but it didn't come. My partner, who has never killed a WT before, had this basket 4x4 in his scope, broadside, well within range, and let it walk away. Maybe it was because it was so early in the trip. Maybe because he wasn't expecting to hunt that day. Maybe because he'd brought the camper up and we were planning to head out of town the next day to set up camp. Whatever the reason, OldnGrey passed up a buck on the first day that I know he wouldn't pass on the last day..

coach

01-11-2012, 11:19 PM

The coach put on a pretty good mule deer backstrap meal that night and OldnGrey brought plenty of beer and wine to wash it down with.

http://i787.photobucket.com/albums/yy154/coach108/tenderloins.jpg

The conversation got a bit blurry as the night went on, but I know a lot of it was about whether CGroves had really shot "him". I know we talked a lot about the buck Doubled shot this year as well - one of the nicest I've seen posted here on HBC. We watched a lot of WildTV and my GF needed her earplugs to deal with my snoring when I eventually stumbled into bed.

coach

01-11-2012, 11:28 PM

Somewhere along the way, we formulated a plan to hunt locally in the morning, then head toward Trapping Creek to set up camp mid-day. Early in our journey, we spotted several mule does. As we got a little farther along, I spotted a spike buck about 70 yards below us. OG wasn't in "bow mode" at all and wasn't really interested in the spiker anyway. As we watched this little buck, I spotted movement over to my left. A group of deer that included 3 bucks and 3 does bounced their way out into the open. One of the bucks in the group was a small 4 point. Although they were out in the open, I figured it would be a good idea for OG to at least make a stalk on them. As he got the crossbow out, I snapped a couple pictures:

http://i787.photobucket.com/albums/yy154/coach108/IMG_1043.jpg

TPB

01-11-2012, 11:34 PM

I actually like this long stretched out thread, gives me something to look forward to when i check back to HBC and plus its well written... Thanks Coach

coach

01-11-2012, 11:38 PM

The snow was pretty crunchy, the deer were aware of our presence, and getting into bow range seemed like it would be impossible. Nevertheless, I was busy trying to figure out a plan, when suddenly I realized there was a whitetail doe on the edge of the group. She was looking at me and I couldn't see her ass - but I just knew she was a whitetail. I whispered to OG, "there's a whitetail doe on the edge of the group!" No sooner did the words leave my mouth, when a second whitetail doe broke from the middle of the group of mule deer. Hot on her tail was a decent 5x5 WT buck! Over a ridge and out of sight they went. :(

I felt like an idiot. We'd been watching this group of deer for close to 10 minutes. Clearly it was group of mule deer. Mule deer were open for bow only - so neither of us had our rifles handy. OG was standing there with a crossbow - and we completely missed the fact there was a shooter WT buck in the middle of the group! One of the stranger things I've ever experienced. :?

(Go ahead, pile on like most of my other friends. I was an idiot. Shoulda had my rifle ready, blah blah blah..) Oh well - you can't shoot a booner if you tag a small buck first. Maybe it was a blessing in disguise?

coach

01-11-2012, 11:41 PM

I actually like this long stretched out thread, gives me something to look forward to when i check back to HBC and plus its well written... Thanks Coach

Thanks TPB - I've enjoyed a number of your threads over the last year and a half. This is one of the best: http://www.huntingbc.ca/forum/showthread.php?70159-Went-for-a-day-hike

coach

01-11-2012, 11:54 PM

We spotted several more deer that morning - a couple more groups of mule does and a whitetail doe and fawn. We were back home a couple hours later and on route to Trapping creek around noon. OldnGrey had the camper on his truck and rather than take it down there and dump it off, we decided to take two vehicles. That made setting camp up easy, and meant we'd use my truck to get around. I'd scouted this area a couple times during the fall - it's where Kiana got the grouse earlier in the year - but I wasn't that familiar with the area. Unsure of where we would wind up hunting, we made camp and set off in search of sign. As we explored, we came to a great looking area with a fair amount of sign. We decided to park the truck and hike in different directions and find places to sit until dark. As we were leaving the truck, we met another hunter, who had seen a nice 5x5 earlier in the day. We felt confident we'd have some action.

I should explain that I understand the game when it comes to whitetails - find a trail and sit. This sounds easy - but I'm a lot more experienced with mule deer. I've been lucky to kill WT's each of the last three years, but two of them were does during the late archery season. There's a reason OG was on his third WT trip and still hadn't killed a buck.

Anyway, I found a great looking spot - worked my way to a decent vantage point. Hid behind some logs and sat my ass down. I sat and sat and sat. Time slowly moved by. I made a few calls and sat some more. An hour or so went by and it was getting dark. (OK - so maybe it seemed like it was a lot longer than it really was). I didn't see anything that evening. I hiked back to where OG and I were planning to meet and found out he'd seen nothing either. Nonetheless, we liked the area and planned to hunt it again in the morning.

The Hermit

01-12-2012, 12:01 AM

Okay, I am not going to finish my book this evening... I have now opened another HBC window and will leave this one open for quick refresh so as not to miss the action... :-) You did say you are finishing the story tonight right? I have a golf game in the morning so lets not make it too late eh? Ha!

coach

01-12-2012, 12:03 AM

Hermit - check back tomorrow. I'm getting close, but it's taking longer than expected. Not a ton of pics left - so I may just have to shorten it.

The Hermit

01-12-2012, 12:09 AM

Subscription ON!

coach

01-12-2012, 12:14 AM

A long time ago.. in this thread, I mentioned how nice it is to hunt in the spring when the days are long. Of course, the opposite is true in the late fall. Darkness comes early. It leaves a lot of time for BS and booze. Once the guns were tucked away, I started a bonfire and OG went to work heating up shepherds pie. OG is a damn good cook and he never lets my glass go empty. It was another good night of BS. Somewhere along the way, we must have spilled some Vodka. Surely we didn't kill as much as seemed to be missing in the morning. :-?

Our heads a little foggy, we were up about the same time as the sun and made our way up the spot we'd been the night before. As we neared the spot, there was a truck parked on the side of the road. I could see taillights - so I stopped and gave the guys space. Eventually, they waved us up. One of the hunters had a big smile on his face. He'd just killed a (according to him) big 5x5. These guys had been there in the dark and things worked out for them. The buck was well of the road and through a ravine. We offered to help - but they seemed to have things under control. My belief always is that a little good Karma goes a long way.

coach

01-12-2012, 12:30 AM

We hunted the Trapping Creek area for two more days. We saw several bucks - all but one were from the truck while driving from one spot to another. On our last day, we found an area with a ton of sign. We decided to split up and hike in different directions, still hunting through the trees. OG hiked down the hill where he explored the edges of a marshy area. I hiked uphill and came across a couple scrapes and lots of fresh tracks. I moved very slowly, peering as far ahead and to the sides as I could. As I neared the top of the hill, I spotted the ass end of deer bedded down about 50 yards in front of me. It was unaware of my presence, but it's head was behind a tree. As I moved to get a better look, the deer jumped up and ran away, tail held high. I'm 90% sure I saw a small set of antlers. No confirmation, no shots fired, no booner buck yet.

A few minutes before dark, on our last night at Trapping, we drove into the spot where the other hunters had taken their buck. As we neared where they'd been parked, a 5x5 ran across the road about 50 yards in front of us. OG bailed out and walked up the road to where the buck had crossed. I held back but got out and loaded my rifle. For the second time that week, OG raised his rifle and I waited for the shot that never came. He waved at me, indicating the deer was coming toward me through the bush. Seconds later a shadow with a white flag attached to it flashed by - followed by a second shadow. It was too dark to identify what I was looking at - but two whitetails had just passed me about 20 yards into the bush. We tried in vain to catch up to them - but realized we'd missed our chance. It turned out OG had the same issue as me when he spotted the deer in the trees. He could make out the shape of the body but couldn't clearly identify what he was looking at.

We got back in the truck and drove to the end of road to turn around. About 500 yards later, I spotted a moose running across the clearing. I put the binos on what appeared to be a cow. By this point, it was pretty dark - but I got a clear view as the moose moved in front of a snowy background. It was a classic 2x2 legal immature - a week and a half too late!

We packed up camp shortly after and were back home in Kelowna a couple hours later.

coach

01-12-2012, 12:37 AM

November 29th we saw a few more mule deer, including two bucks. The snow was really crunchy and the deer were out in the open again and way below us. OldnGray made a valiant stalk with the crossbow - but didn't even come close to getting into range. That evening, we spotted a very nice WT buck in the same spot we'd seen the mule deer and whitetails in the same group a few days before. Needless to say, we didn't connect. That one's gonna haunt us for a few years. :twisted:

coach

01-12-2012, 12:59 AM

Over beers that night, I expressed that I was disappointed in myself for how the hunt had gone. I knew we weren't going to connect on a whitetail hunting the way we'd been hunting. We spent too much time in the truck looking for spots. We found one great spot to sit (where I spooked the bedded deer) and we didn't put enough effort into hunting that spot properly. OG had let a buck walk on the first day that he would love to kill on the last day. We were determined to do things differently the next day..

November 30th was the final day of rifle season. We decided to drive close to where we'd missed our chance at the big buck the night before, then hike in a sit. We each had a spot picked out to sit. My spot was farther than OG's, so I left the truck a little earlier than him. (He also had to pack the crossbow along with his rifle - just in case). As I walked along, I realized I'd parked a little further back than I'd intended. It wasn't really a big deal, as long as OG figured it out and made it to the spot we'd picked out for him to sit. Eventually, I reached my destination, parked my butt and waited for the sun to come up. It was a cool morning - but not uncomfortable. OG had his cell phone with him and I taught him how to text the night before. He's always been a little technologically challenged - but I figured texting could be quite useful when we were sitting in places where we couldn't see each other. Determined not to give up early, I sat and watched..

And sat, and watched...

(you get the drill)

About an hour and half later, I'd had enough of sitting. No deer moved past me and I kept wondering what I was missing by not seeing into the various nooks and crannies around and behind me. I texted OG that I was going for a hike. He agreed to stay where he was. About an hour and a half later, I made my way to where OG was supposed to be sitting. Directly below his location, a WT doe was bedded down. I dropped to my stomach and got ready in case there was a buck nearby. I texted OG, "there's a WT doe, bedded directly below where you're supposed to be sitting!" I figured OG must have gone to the wrong spot. I watched the doe for 10 minutes or so and saw no sign of any "friends". Eventually, I noticed some movement to my right. It was OG - standing up. He'd been where he was supposed to be the whole time, but perfectly concealed behind a tree. He walked over to where I was and I whispered to him, "didn't you see the doe?"

"No - where?" I lost it at that point - laughed my ass off. No more whispering. "Ha ha!! You've been sitting there all along? How long has that doe been there?" He looked down and couldn't believe he'd missed it. The doe got up and ran off. We walked back to where he'd been sitting and realized the tree he was using to hide his position was directly between him and the deer. After all the hunting we'd done and all the late nights - I found this pretty facking hilarious! After a lengthy laugh, I told OG I'd leave my pack with him, walk to the truck, then come back to pick him up.

I'd just moved around the corner and out of OG's sight when I spotted a deer bedded down behind some bushes...

coach

01-12-2012, 01:07 AM

Now, this tale started in Kinbasket - in June. I told you all it was going to end with a boner WT buck that I killed on the last day of WT rifle season. I started the year with some very distinct goals. I wanted to fill my grizzly LEH - didn't happen. I really wanted to kill a bear on video - that didn't happen. I really wanted my daughter to kill a "meat buck" or two - part way through the year, I got a little selfish and decided to take a region 8 mule deer myself. I had a great opportunity to video tape my mule deer in Region 3 - but got lazy and shot first. I passed up a WT buck really early in the season because it was tiny (part of the story I left out). Kiana had passed up a few WT does because she wanted me to be able to hunt with OG. I had 20 more days to look forward to in the late archery season. I had planned to figure out WT hunting, do it right and get Mike his first buck...

coach

01-12-2012, 01:15 AM

Definitions:

Booner: a trophy buck (Boone and Crockett)

Boner - (boh-ner): a foolish and obvious blunder; stupid mistake

Which one do you guys figure was the word I meant to use for this thread?

coach

01-12-2012, 01:17 AM

So much goes into a hunting season. You've read all about mine here. Not everything goes the way we want during the season. Some things we control, some things are out of our control. Once we pull the trigger, there's no taking it back..

coach

01-12-2012, 01:25 AM

I laid down in the snow to give myself a solid rest if needed. I knew the deer was a whitetail, but couldn't see its' head. As I watched it in my binos, I was sure I could see antlers, but they didn't look very big. Bedded the way it was, the deer's body looked decent size. I hesitated, then stood up and moved over for a better look. As I got up, so did the deer. I laid back down and got my gun ready. As soon as the deer moved, I clearly identified antlers. The buck started to trot off and I found an opening it was going to pass through in the trees. As soon as the deer was in my scope, I squeezed the trigger. Down he went! It was over very quickly.

Mike heard the shot and it didn't take him long to make his way over to where I was. I lost sight of the deer when I shot, but knew it had dropped on the spot. A short while later, I put my hands on my trophy.

http://i787.photobucket.com/albums/yy154/coach108/460E1018.jpg

Indeed, this was, by definition, a boner!

coach

01-12-2012, 01:28 AM

Well.. it's a wrap. Sorry if you all thought I'd made a typo in the thread title. I know it happens often around here. No booner, just a boner. Lots of pics and videos and hopefully a few laughs. The story lasted a long time, but came to a sudden end - just like my hunting season.

I hope this kept people entertained and won't result in getting me banned or anything..

- Coach

91Jason91

01-12-2012, 01:28 AM

Definitions:

Booner: a trophy buck (Boone and Crockett)

Boner - (boh-ner): a foolish and obvious blunder; stupid mistake

Which one do you guys figure was the word I meant to use for this thread?

I thought you meant the 2nd one....... Lol just kidding its all good we all make those kind of mistakes sometimes hahahha
great story also

coach

01-12-2012, 01:33 AM

91Jason91

01-12-2012, 01:37 AM

Oh yeah, one more thing.. Never shoot a booner or a boner 150 yards downhill through blow downs! There were ways of getting this buck out by dragging him downhill to a lower road, but I figured I'd punish myself by hauling him straight up. Good thing he was light.

http://i787.photobucket.com/albums/yy154/coach108/Snapbucket/B98EB00F.jpg

Lol I did that with a monster buck and double lunged him and he ran through a pound and dropped dead, I shot him at 365 yards and ended up pulling him downhill about 600 yards through that type of crap was a bitch but it paid off big time

coach

01-12-2012, 01:43 AM

Lol I did that with a monster buck and double lunged him and he ran through a pound and dropped dead, I shot him at 365 yards and ended up pulling him downhill about 600 yards through that type of crap was a bitch but it paid off big time

LOL - I probably could have packed the camp stove and a little seasoning salt down there and just fried him up on the spot!

The Hermit

01-12-2012, 01:48 AM

Ha... well your long tale is one for the books anyway. Thanks for the story and great pics!

91Jason91

01-12-2012, 01:51 AM

the worst part was it was the first buck I ever killed..... and my friends were off away from me and if I got a buck I would meet them back at camp and they would show me how to gut it, So I also had to drag the buck without being gutted back my truck tail gate up to a hill and pull it in the back. it prob took 2 hours to do hahahha
http://sphotos.ak.fbcdn.net/hphotos-ak-snc4/hs931.snc4/74425_10150285320810012_709785011_15236655_3923949 _n.jpg

Good Old Outdoors

01-12-2012, 02:25 AM

Haha I was wondering if there would be a twist at the end! Great story!

BiG Boar

01-12-2012, 07:19 AM

this gets my vote for dumbest thread on the internet EVER

Wow, you really did suck in a lot of people with this one coach!

Thanks for showing us your dink (boner)

I really enjoyed this thread as I knew the outcome all along, but you could just see the hope in people. hahaha

I hope I really inspired you to write an incredibly long and drawn out story!

Great thread! Except next time make it longer!

barry1974w

01-12-2012, 08:02 AM

Well done, it was a good read.

cuervosail

01-12-2012, 08:06 AM

Great hunting story. I'd been wondering all along about the "typo" in the title. Chuckled into my Cheerios this morning when I reached the end. Thanks for sharing the tale. You've given me a lot of incentive to take action on something I've been wondering about for a quite a while ... Kinbasket.

2x4x16

01-12-2012, 08:09 AM

Well, I'm not totally surprised. You write to well to keep calling it a "boner" - there must have been a reason. And I'm still entertained - I much rather read stories like this than most of the other - non hunting threads. Thanks for the good read Coach.

Sitkaspruce

01-12-2012, 08:16 AM

Thanks Coach!!

I hope this does not set precedence with other story tellers!!!!

Cheers

SS

Wrayzer

01-12-2012, 08:22 AM

Haha right on, Coach! I was looking forward to seeing how people would react to your Boner buck.

I was cursing outloud when I heard your shot not far from where I was hiking, glad to finally see the trophy.

Now lets go get some 'Yotes.

r106

01-12-2012, 08:29 AM

hahahaha thats good. Good story great pics

Fishhound

01-12-2012, 08:51 AM

Good story Coach, I have been sick for afew days so I opened up HBC read your thread from page one to the end took a while but was worth it well done

FH

NaStY

01-12-2012, 09:15 AM

That was "EPIC".

Thanks coach for the entertainment. Was needed around here........

Brambles

01-12-2012, 09:22 AM

I'm speechless, a tear drips down my cheak, 3 days of my life I can't get back.......at least you didn't change gears on us. Thanks for the time and effort, story was good, outcome was ............................

coach

01-12-2012, 09:22 AM

Thanks Coach!!

I hope this does not set precedence with other story tellers!!!!

Cheers

SS

The only precedence I'm hoping to start is for more guys to share their pictures and stories with the rest of us. I could have written something entitled: "Pics and stories from my 2011 Hunting Season", but that sounded way too boring - so I went a different direction. Usually, I like to share my stories as they happen. I got back from Kinbasket in the spring and was too busy to type it all out, so I decided to wait. Deer season came and went, and I did post stories of the orchard and R3 buck, but I hadn't had time to talk about my boner WT. So, what the hell, I rolled them all into one.

I think there's a hesitance for a lot of guys to share stories and pics because it's easy to get intimidated by all the trophy animal threads. The fact is, if you've got a hunting story about a huge booner or a tiny boner, people will like to hear about it.

Glad guys enjoyed it!

coach

01-12-2012, 09:23 AM

Hombre

01-12-2012, 09:26 AM

Thank you Coach for a well written , and entertaining story!

Brambles

01-12-2012, 09:28 AM

Sorry Brambles.. Shrinkage.. :razz:

Happens to the best of us, but the rest of us don't take 3 days to share it...lol....But honestly I appreciate the time and effort you put into the story and pics, I know how long it takes to do a thourough writeup. Thanks

coach

01-12-2012, 09:30 AM

Wow, you really did suck in a lot of people with this one coach!

Thanks for showing us your dink (boner)

I really enjoyed this thread as I knew the outcome all along, but you could just see the hope in people. hahaha

I hope I really inspired you to write an incredibly long and drawn out story!

Great thread! Except next time make it longer!

Your threads are definitely inspiring, Big Boar! This site would be less interesting if it wasn't for guys like you sharing adventures. I didn't mean to draw it out - but it's probably a good thing I didn't take more pictures of my last hunt of the year.

On a side note: Open-sights is still upset with me because on the drive home from Mica, I pointed to something out on the lake to divert his attention, then hit the button to turn his heated seat on high. It was a warm day and I drove all the way from the Goldstream past the Downie before I asked him if his seat felt warm. I had to bite my lip most of the way to stop myself from laughing. Good times and a great guy to hunt with!

coach

01-12-2012, 09:33 AM

Happens to the best of us, but the rest of us don't take 3 days to share it...lol....But honestly I appreciate the time and effort you put into the story and pics, I know how long it takes to do a thourough writeup. Thanks

Thanks, Brambles!

Tikka270wsm

01-12-2012, 10:14 AM

Very nicely done Coach! This has been one of my favorite reads on this site. I've been watching it since the start and you did a great job of keeping the suspense. I kinda figured by boner buck you meant dink buck.LOL You still had a great season and thanks for sharing it . Looking forward to next seasons write up already.

Spy

01-12-2012, 10:35 AM

Ok well played!A bucks a buck & you got two thanks for the story!Better luck next year On the Booner!

kwasky

01-12-2012, 11:32 AM

great story and awsome ending haha!

Hunter Dog

01-12-2012, 11:41 AM

Great story: you really know how to make a guy feel better! LOL After being in Alberta working for 6 months straight I stopped in Valemount on my way home to hunt with friends for a couple of days. On the last morning out I decided to shoot whatever I saw knowing that I wouldn't make it back to the interior again during the hunting season. So, I shoot this doe and it is the smallest deer that I have ever shot. The razzing begins immediately! When I load this monster in the truck even the dog looked at me like I shot its best fricken friend! Needless to say I left town soon after! LOL Hunting buddies can be so cruel....

ElliotMoose

01-12-2012, 01:11 PM

QUOTE- I think there's a hesitance for a lot of guys to share stories and pics because it's easy to get intimidated by all the trophy animal threads. The fact is, if you've got a hunting story about a huge booner or a tiny boner, people will like to hear about it.

I couldnt agree with you more. A trophy is self-defined in my eyes! Great story, thanks for posting. I tried to do the same with my story of this past year. Certainly helps to ease the pain of the off season ;) Spring Bear hurry up!

Jagermeister

01-12-2012, 01:11 PM

Your threads are definitely inspiring, Big Boar! This site would be less interesting if it wasn't for guys like you sharing adventures. I didn't mean to draw it out - but it's probably a good thing I didn't take more pictures of my last hunt of the year.

On a side note: Open-sights is still upset with me because on the drive home from Mica, I pointed to something out on the lake to divert his attention, then hit the button to turn his heated seat on high. It was a warm day and I drove all the way from the Goldstream past the Downie before I asked him if his seat felt warm. I had to bite my lip most of the way to stop myself from laughing. Good times and a great guy to hunt with!
LOL, I would have waited until I hit Revelstoke or he broke into a sweat.
Anyhow, your protracted epic was certainly entertaining and very well written.
I found the Kinbasket part very interesting since I was familiar to the area in another time when things were very much different but were about to change. I have mixed emotion about the change although I have not seen the area in person since the flooding and have been going by the visual representation of photos posted here and on Google.
The area was referred to as the Big Bend and Kinbasket Lake was a relatively small lake by comparison to the Kinbasket Lake of today. Kinbasket Creek flowed into about the middle of the lake back then and the entire length of the lake was about 10 miles if my memory serves me correctly.
As you can see, I got more out of it, (like a trip down memory lane) than just your rendition of hunting and fishing experiences for the past season.
I thank you for all found. Looking forward to this coming year's epic.

deer nut

01-12-2012, 01:16 PM

I had a feeling this was coming! Suckers! :)

srupp

01-12-2012, 01:54 PM

coach

01-12-2012, 03:27 PM

good enjoyable read with quality photos, good video, exellent friends and family and healthyb outdoor adventures..even fishing..sheesh the whole shebangs..

I concur with FD (YIKES!) get quality optics...carry the and USE them..spotting the bears on the slide...use your spotting scope to KNOW what they are??size and species...could have been small black bears big black bears small G bears or Booners..

THNAK FOR TAKING THE TIME TO BRING US ALONG it is appreciated..

Steven

Thanks, Steven! Your advice is very much appreciated. I will never do a trip like this without packing a decent spotter. Although I did get my Vortex replaced - it's not good enough! Extremely important - buy the best optics you can afford.

coach

01-12-2012, 03:45 PM

LOL, I would have waited until I hit Revelstoke or he broke into a sweat.
Anyhow, your protracted epic was certainly entertaining and very well written.
I found the Kinbasket part very interesting since I was familiar to the area in another time when things were very much different but were about to change. I have mixed emotion about the change although I have not seen the area in person since the flooding and have been going by the visual representation of photos posted here and on Google.
The area was referred to as the Big Bend and Kinbasket Lake was a relatively small lake by comparison to the Kinbasket Lake of today. Kinbasket Creek flowed into about the middle of the lake back then and the entire length of the lake was about 10 miles if my memory serves me correctly.
As you can see, I got more out of it, (like a trip down memory lane) than just your rendition of hunting and fishing experiences for the past season.
I thank you for all found. Looking forward to this coming year's epic.

Thanks, Jagermeister. I'm glad you enjoyed the trip down memory lane. The Kinbasket area is awesome. I can't wait to get back there. It sure would have been interesting to see it before the dam went in.

A word of caution for anyone planning to go there: This is a HUGE lake now, the water is extremely cold and because it's a flooded valley, there can be all kinds of hazards lurking below (trees and such). The wind usually picks up mid-morning and blows until early evening. Extreme caution needs to be exercised. We never crossed the lake without provisions to set up camp on the far side and sit out a storm if necessary. We caught the weather just right, but the guys camped next to us had many stories of close calls out on that lake - including one about an elderly couple that capsized and were miraculously rescued when other boaters started noticing debris from their boat floating all around the lake. The week before we arrived, a 19 foot bayliner became swamped - and our friends towed them to shore. It's a remote area and there may not be many others around to help out in an emergency.

BearStump

01-12-2012, 04:10 PM

That little "boner" buck looks alot like my "boner" only bigger.

I was looking at this little meat buck in my scope with safety off. Pretty much just scratching my finger on the trigger when BOOM! Oh well, I guess I gotta tag it now.
http://i629.photobucket.com/albums/uu19/BearStumper/cranbrook1x22011.jpg

yama49

01-12-2012, 04:31 PM

Great write up, really enjoyed the stories.. thx for the effort put into it....

Marlin375

01-12-2012, 04:32 PM

Well done Coach, Great read. Thanks for the ride.

Your story should persuade others to share their "regular" seasons adventures (myself included). Like others have said "trophy" is truly defined by the individual that is out there taking part in the action. Every adventure with my hunting partners is mixed with mistakes, action and side-splitting hilarious events that keep me coming back for more. Nice to see you are passing down the "in it for the outing" attitude to your kids.

coach

01-12-2012, 04:33 PM

Nice one, Bearstump! One thing about those little bucks - they are good eating.

The Dude

01-12-2012, 05:13 PM

Epic thread and title Coach, thx for taking the time to upload all the pics and vids, and for doing the write up. Well written, entertaining, and you didn't go Elk hunting in the middle of a sheep hunt like Huge Bore did :D

monasheemountainman

01-12-2012, 05:50 PM

some nice tender back straps right there! nice work coach really enjoyed the read!

Rattler

01-12-2012, 07:07 PM

Enjoyed the story and pics. Thanks for sharing.

hunter1993ap

01-12-2012, 07:10 PM

good story it wasnt that drawn out. just the right lenth.

300H&H

01-12-2012, 08:01 PM

Coach Coach Coach....What am I going to do with you ?

You should hold out for a "big" buck.
But I guess "big" is subjective !

Still, even with talking to you it was great to hear some of the small details you did not tell me about
Great thread.
Now lets start your next Looooong threard off with turkey. Only 3 months to go. Or should it be yotes/wolves ?
You can choose and I will video.

Are we still on for beer & nachos ? This Saturday maybe ?

coach

01-12-2012, 08:42 PM

Sounds good, Rick! Saturday is out with family commitments - but we'll do beer and nachos soon. Wolves and 'yotes sounds great too. BTW - Shootthesheep and I spotted some turkeys in a spot I didn't expect to see them. We'll have to chat!

landphil

01-12-2012, 10:05 PM

That was an awesome story, with photos to match. This past season only afforded me 3 days out hunting due to commuting, selling house, house hunting, buying and moving, you get the picture... I was able to tag a blackie boar and bring home some meat, but really missed the time out hunting and the adventure of it. Your story took me along for the ride through a whole season and for that I thank you. Nicely done!

coach

01-13-2012, 11:14 AM

A couple pics from the late season that I forgot to add:

http://i787.photobucket.com/albums/yy154/coach108/Snapbucket/F1D1A92F.jpg
http://i787.photobucket.com/albums/yy154/coach108/Snapbucket/223A74DC.jpg

Anyone have any idea what did this?

Tikka270wsm

01-13-2012, 11:25 AM

coach

01-13-2012, 06:51 PM

Looks like a Fisher slide. Is there a snare attached to that log?

I'm pretty sure you're correct. Looked like the little guy was having a great time playing in the snow. An no snare that I'm aware off. He left tracks like this over quite a large area.

gorillaboy

01-13-2012, 07:12 PM

nice work Coach
to me your thread was just like hunting season, we have the initial investment, planning and preparing.
long hours of anticipation to see the next draw, slope or hillside. (page)
and in the end a few moments of adrenaline.
then we start planning for next year.
i enjoyed all of it Coach thank you.

coach

01-13-2012, 07:27 PM

Thanks, gorillaboy. As much as this thread was an accurate account of my hunting season, it was also a story of a season that started with goals and the noblest of intentions. As the story (season) went along, some of those goals got readjusted (compromised). The season, like the thread, was a long one. I figured guys who were following along were likely thinking the same thoughts I had as I watched that little buck bedded down: "just pull the damn trigger already! It's time to end this!". Of course, a few seconds after the buck went down, the thoughts of what I didn't accomplish came flooding into my mind. Now it's the "off season". I've got new goals for 2012 and new adventures to plan and enjoy. Hopefully there will be many stories to come.

I know one thing - my camera will be with me every step of the way.