lovemywinchester
10-10-2013, 01:51 PM
You guys ever have a chance at a good buck and blow it because you got busted and he took off? Maybe you cracked a stick or got lazy and moved too fast trying to look into a ravine or nice swampy hidey hole when you should have stayed still and just watched. Maybe you didn't glass enough or pay attention to the wind and all you could do was stand there choked as a big buck ran away. It's going to happen to all of us if we get out and hike the back woods for bucks. It’s happened to me a few times already this year and I relive these moments over and over, awake and in my dreams.
On Tuesday I killed a buck I missed two weeks ago to the day. Same place, same time of day, same buck! My best mulie ever and the best part is I was able to relive the moment but I turned the disappointment of blowing it into manning up and killing him. Here he is.
Click the pic for the video
http://i1124.photobucket.com/albums/l573/zippogold/th_bigmulie4x3_zpsd0357321.jpg (http://i1124.photobucket.com/albums/l573/zippogold/bigmulie4x3_zpsd0357321.mp4)
Two weeks ago a buddy and myself hiked a mountain top I had my eye on for a long time. One road in and miles of thick bush behind it. Lots of ravines and swamps between sweet flat rock hills covered in buck brush and of course the dead fall beetle kill jungle patches which are all over. Perfect mule deer country. I love road hunting as much as the next guy but there is no feeling like really getting back into the suck and seeing what’s going on. Getting right into the deer's living room.
I had hiked here a few weeks before with another buddy and saw lots of promising deer sign and lots of big buck turds. I am a big believer in really working an area instead of bouncing from hill to hill hunting so I decided this was my spot for this fall. After hiking for a few hours together we were heading down to the truck and decided to split up for the last 1k to the truck. I was working my way down and came to an amazing swamp in a big bowl which was lit up with the late afternoon sun. The whole swamp was glowing yellow and the wind was perfectly into my face. I remember thinking that this was a perfect home for a buck. I stood and looked around for a few minutes soaking in the sun and decided I needed to be a few feet closer to the edge to see in and as soon as I moved a big buck took off from maybe 75 yds. Watching that muley bounce away was hard to swallow. It was September and I couldn't make out points to shoot. I could see he was wide and big bodied and I could have smacked him but I wasn't sure so there he went.
That night and pretty much every night since I have relived that moment of him bouncing away and thought what would have happened if I didn't move or if I had looked harder or if I had glassed it or.......
Due to work and the fact that its way up a mountain I was two weeks before I could get back up there. My plan was to hike a shorter loop and end up in the same swamp for the same time of day. When I got out of the truck around 11 it was beautiful. It was sunny and snowing lightly with a crisp NW breeze which was perfect. The poplars had all turned bright yellow and were falling in the breeze. Just an amazing day to be in the mountains and I was feeling like this was as good as it could get for hunting.
I hunted my planned route and saw some deer and spooked another BIG deer which I didn't get a good look at. Spooking that deer set off all the same emotions of missing the other buck and made me slow down again and get dialed in for what I was trying to do. I followed my GPS exactly to the same swamp and came in the same path slowly and quietly with the wind in my face. It was close to 5 pm so the sun was low and beaming into the swamp and it was just glowing yellow again and more so with the leaves changed. I stood at the same spot but this time I didn't move a muscle. I started at the edge of the swamp and slowly worked right looking as hard as I could. As I got the right edge where he busted from last time I caught movement and there he was. Feeding towards me. I could see his grey muzzle and wide rack lit up from behind. I was in shock almost and my heart went into overdrive.
I just couldn't believe it. I did it, I snuck up on him again but this time I didn't screw it up. The sun was right behind him and he moved and I lost him for a minute. I took some deep breaths and calmed down. I could hear him cracking sticks and a squirrel chirping at him but I had no view of him. I slowly moved over to the left and he was standing broad side with his head and ass end behind trees. All I could see was boiler room. I put the sights on and remember thinking " f#@k me, this is it!" and shot him. He jumped and spun around broad side looking right at me. I reloaded and put another one in his ribs and over he went!!
http://i1124.photobucket.com/albums/l573/zippogold/009_zpsa5665087.jpg (http://s1124.photobucket.com/user/zippogold/media/009_zpsa5665087.jpg.html)
When I walked up to him it was amazing. When I say he was in the same spot I mean he was in the EXACT same spot from where was two weeks ago. In the same footprints maybe, lol. I set up to take some video but my phone died which is too bad as I was really getting into the moment as you can see!
The fun was over and the nightmare of hauling him out was just beginning.
This will be easy with a game cart, RIGHT?
http://i1124.photobucket.com/albums/l573/zippogold/010_zpsbc26aac3.jpg (http://s1124.photobucket.com/user/zippogold/media/010_zpsbc26aac3.jpg.html)
I'll spare you the details of getting him out but I bucked him up and started heading down in the pitch black. I was prepared for this with lights and such but the bush is a different place at night. My phone died so no GPS of the easy trail out. Five minutes in I was on my back in a jumble of logs with feet in the air and was thinking this ain't good. The game cart I just bought was useless in the deadfall and between the wheels falling off (cotter pins pulled out by sticks) and losing one side of it, I had to leave the quarters up there overnight. I managed to turn the phone on for long enough to pin my location then it died for good. I headed back up yesterday to get him and besides some crow damage all was good.
To wrap it up I was able to turn the nagging memory of spooking him into a good one and I made it out alive with my best mule deer so far. Hope you all enjoy the story and I would encourage everyone to get back in there if you are able. That’s where the bruisers are! The funny thing is I can't stop wondering how big the other buck I spooked was?
On Tuesday I killed a buck I missed two weeks ago to the day. Same place, same time of day, same buck! My best mulie ever and the best part is I was able to relive the moment but I turned the disappointment of blowing it into manning up and killing him. Here he is.
Click the pic for the video
http://i1124.photobucket.com/albums/l573/zippogold/th_bigmulie4x3_zpsd0357321.jpg (http://i1124.photobucket.com/albums/l573/zippogold/bigmulie4x3_zpsd0357321.mp4)
Two weeks ago a buddy and myself hiked a mountain top I had my eye on for a long time. One road in and miles of thick bush behind it. Lots of ravines and swamps between sweet flat rock hills covered in buck brush and of course the dead fall beetle kill jungle patches which are all over. Perfect mule deer country. I love road hunting as much as the next guy but there is no feeling like really getting back into the suck and seeing what’s going on. Getting right into the deer's living room.
I had hiked here a few weeks before with another buddy and saw lots of promising deer sign and lots of big buck turds. I am a big believer in really working an area instead of bouncing from hill to hill hunting so I decided this was my spot for this fall. After hiking for a few hours together we were heading down to the truck and decided to split up for the last 1k to the truck. I was working my way down and came to an amazing swamp in a big bowl which was lit up with the late afternoon sun. The whole swamp was glowing yellow and the wind was perfectly into my face. I remember thinking that this was a perfect home for a buck. I stood and looked around for a few minutes soaking in the sun and decided I needed to be a few feet closer to the edge to see in and as soon as I moved a big buck took off from maybe 75 yds. Watching that muley bounce away was hard to swallow. It was September and I couldn't make out points to shoot. I could see he was wide and big bodied and I could have smacked him but I wasn't sure so there he went.
That night and pretty much every night since I have relived that moment of him bouncing away and thought what would have happened if I didn't move or if I had looked harder or if I had glassed it or.......
Due to work and the fact that its way up a mountain I was two weeks before I could get back up there. My plan was to hike a shorter loop and end up in the same swamp for the same time of day. When I got out of the truck around 11 it was beautiful. It was sunny and snowing lightly with a crisp NW breeze which was perfect. The poplars had all turned bright yellow and were falling in the breeze. Just an amazing day to be in the mountains and I was feeling like this was as good as it could get for hunting.
I hunted my planned route and saw some deer and spooked another BIG deer which I didn't get a good look at. Spooking that deer set off all the same emotions of missing the other buck and made me slow down again and get dialed in for what I was trying to do. I followed my GPS exactly to the same swamp and came in the same path slowly and quietly with the wind in my face. It was close to 5 pm so the sun was low and beaming into the swamp and it was just glowing yellow again and more so with the leaves changed. I stood at the same spot but this time I didn't move a muscle. I started at the edge of the swamp and slowly worked right looking as hard as I could. As I got the right edge where he busted from last time I caught movement and there he was. Feeding towards me. I could see his grey muzzle and wide rack lit up from behind. I was in shock almost and my heart went into overdrive.
I just couldn't believe it. I did it, I snuck up on him again but this time I didn't screw it up. The sun was right behind him and he moved and I lost him for a minute. I took some deep breaths and calmed down. I could hear him cracking sticks and a squirrel chirping at him but I had no view of him. I slowly moved over to the left and he was standing broad side with his head and ass end behind trees. All I could see was boiler room. I put the sights on and remember thinking " f#@k me, this is it!" and shot him. He jumped and spun around broad side looking right at me. I reloaded and put another one in his ribs and over he went!!
http://i1124.photobucket.com/albums/l573/zippogold/009_zpsa5665087.jpg (http://s1124.photobucket.com/user/zippogold/media/009_zpsa5665087.jpg.html)
When I walked up to him it was amazing. When I say he was in the same spot I mean he was in the EXACT same spot from where was two weeks ago. In the same footprints maybe, lol. I set up to take some video but my phone died which is too bad as I was really getting into the moment as you can see!
The fun was over and the nightmare of hauling him out was just beginning.
This will be easy with a game cart, RIGHT?
http://i1124.photobucket.com/albums/l573/zippogold/010_zpsbc26aac3.jpg (http://s1124.photobucket.com/user/zippogold/media/010_zpsbc26aac3.jpg.html)
I'll spare you the details of getting him out but I bucked him up and started heading down in the pitch black. I was prepared for this with lights and such but the bush is a different place at night. My phone died so no GPS of the easy trail out. Five minutes in I was on my back in a jumble of logs with feet in the air and was thinking this ain't good. The game cart I just bought was useless in the deadfall and between the wheels falling off (cotter pins pulled out by sticks) and losing one side of it, I had to leave the quarters up there overnight. I managed to turn the phone on for long enough to pin my location then it died for good. I headed back up yesterday to get him and besides some crow damage all was good.
To wrap it up I was able to turn the nagging memory of spooking him into a good one and I made it out alive with my best mule deer so far. Hope you all enjoy the story and I would encourage everyone to get back in there if you are able. That’s where the bruisers are! The funny thing is I can't stop wondering how big the other buck I spooked was?