FairChase93
Active member
This story starts November 26th, 2016 when this buck seemingly just showed up out of nowhere on the Farm/Ranch where I work part time in the summer and full time in the winter around my own seasonal small business. I had a rifle tag for a different county for the 2016 rifle season so I finished out an unsuccessful rifle season and started an aggressive archery campaign. After several unsuccessful stalks I backed off for a few days and made a new plan. He bedded nearly every day around noon in the same thickets along a shallow dry creek bed with the same 25-30 does. So instead of hunting the draws he liked to frequent in the mornings I waited for a day with a very strong Northwest wind and waited until noon and parked about as far away as I could and still cover the ground I needed to and set out for a long walk. As the crow flies he was just a touch over a mile away but the only cover offered in the area that he bedded in was the dry creek which is just deep enough I can walk right down the bottom of and not be seen. I moved slow with an arrow knocked the whole time in case he and his does pulled a fast one and were bedded in a different spot. I followed every twist and turn of the creek not daring to leave cover for a quicker route. Along the way I came across a fresh coyote kill, all that was left were a few spots of blood, a spine with a few bits of red meat still hanging on, and about a 1000 coyote tracks in the light dusting of snow on the ground. As I moved closer to where I was counting on him being I moved even slower and more cautiously. It was all for nothing as I just about stumbled over one of his does on the last bend before getting to where I assumed he was. She took off and then he did not 20 yards ahead of where she was bedded, I watched in disbelief as the whole group stood up and took off across a cut corn field. They stopped before crossing the property line so I just hunkered down and waited for awhile figuring Id just see what happened. I waited a little over an hour and it was gonna be dark in a hurry so I just threw caution to the wind and took off walking right at the herd across the cornfield. I was able to get in to about 300 yards before they really acted like they cared I was there. I kneeled down and made about 3 doe bleats and couldn't believe it but this buck came running right at me. He started to veer off course and ended up straight down wind of me where he stopped at 75 yards. We had quite the staring contest which seemed to last forever until he finally dropped his head for a second I drew my bow back and waited. Im pretty confident with my bow to about 60 yards but I figured this was about as good a chance as I was going to get to kill my first archery and by far biggest deer ever. He turned broadside about to go rejoin his does and I let one fly. I missed and boy am I glad I did.
Following this missed archery shot my work and life duties got the most of my time and we started getting a lot of snow so my 2016 season was done. This story moves ahead to April 2017, I was planting oats along the same creek that he had bedded in all winter long. Made the first round on the field and when I came back by on the second pass there were these to good sized shed antlers laying not hardly 10 feet from each other laying on top of the freshly disturbed ground. I had pulled the air seeder right over the top of them without ruining a tire or doing any damage to the antlers. I knew right away which buck they were from as he had a very distinctive G2 and G3 on his left side and it was evident they were a matching pair of sheds and were in such good shape they had to be from just the last winter.
On May 5th me and the owners wife were headed over to this same area to move some vehicles and equipment around while the boss kept the planting rig moving. It was dark and as crossed the first ridge along the way this deer jumps in front of us and I used some language I wouldn't normally use in the presence of the bosses wife but I couldnt help my self. While most other bucks were just starting to show some antler growth he was already as wide as his ears and getting tall with visible forks forming.
By the first week in June it was really evident that he was going to be special. I was sure it was the same deer as he fit the bill, not particularly wide but extremely tall with the same distinctive Scrawny G2 and bold somewhat bladed G3. I continued to see him regularly all through June and July. It was interesting because our mule deer bucks are never alone they are always either with does in the fall or bachelor groups the rest of the year but he spent the whole summer by himself. I never seen him with another deer. I seen him on July 28th and that was it, not another trace. He just completely disappeared. Talking with some neighbors I believe he moved to another property almost 6 miles away. I have a suspicion that this other property is where he came from originally towards the end of the previous year.
First weekend of rifle season 2017 arrives and I have no plans of hunting for at least the first weekend as the owners in laws were coming and had first dibs. They arrive the night before and take off with the boss to go look around and get ready for the morning. They return with stories of a big mule deer that was chasing does. I thought it was odd as I had no game camera pictures of anything of any size and hadn't seen a decent buck of any species in quite some time. I was cautiously hopeful he had returned and also selfishly hoping they didn't go kill him the next day.
I showed up for work the next morning and the owners in-laws already had the tags filled. 2 deer were hanging. I hurried over for a look and knew right away neither was the deer I was looking for. They were pretty happy and thought they had killed good deer but said there was a bigger one they seen on their way out. The boss said I could quit and go hunting if I wanted to but I decided to let everything calm down and work instead. A neighbor showed up about 3 in the afternoon for a chat and we decided to call it a day early. I was pretty sore from a particularly physical days work and was thinking I might just go home and try to do a little hunting the next day.
The boss of all people had the idea that the 4 of us (boss, neighbor, myself, and 1 in-law) all get in his pickup and just go for a look if nothing else I could make a plan for the morning. This was a bit odd as the boss doesn't have really interest at all in hunting, im not sure he has ever shot anything other than an animal that needed put down or the very rarely occasional coyote. Anyways we headed over to the area of the property where the good hunting is. We are not 10 feet through the first gate and we see 2 deer in a draw standing barely 20 yards from the gut pile of one of the deer killed that morning. A very brief glimpse through the binos and i knew it was a big deer and probably the one i had been looking for. We backed the pickup down the hill and I got out alone to try and sneak back into the draw. A short walk and I was back on top of the ridge. The deer were on alert after seeing the pickup and were getting ready to boogy. Instead of taking the time to range them as I should have done I guessed. I'm the first to admit that I have zero range estimating ability. I missed. They run a very short distance and stopped I missed again.....
I couldn't believe it, easily the best deer of my life and I had screwed it up. They were MUCH closer than I guessed. I took the walk of shame back to the pickup. We move deeper into the property and low and behold find the same buck and doe moving into a draw.We stop and me and the neighbor get out and circle almost a half mile to get into the position I wanted to be. The neighbor who is along is running the range finder for me this time around. I'm laying prone hes crouched calling ranges for me. They stop at 327 yards, i'm feeling calm cool and collected, boom! Contact! It look and sounded like a solid hit, he bucked, stumbled and took off over the next ridge. I really was expecting to find him not far away down and out on the ground. We couldn't pickup a blood trail in the dry grass and could not find him anywhere. We rejoin the others and decide to make a wide circle to get out in front of where he had to be. Along the way we run into him moving down the bottom of a long draw.
At this point we are thinking perhaps it was a gut shot as it was obvious he was wounded but still moving fairly well. We decided to just wait him out figuring he would eventually lay down and die. He manages to make it all the way back down to the dry creek he usually hung around. I decided to make my way down there as the property line is not far from that creek and finally catch up with him moving along the creek, he was barely managing to stay on his feet but would not quit moving. I set up for one more shot utterly confident that this messy ordeal would be over finally. I shoot and miss. He was moving but it was still a lay up. 5 years of working hard to improve every aspect of my shooting ability and it was all out the window. I'm beyond frustrated at this point and it gets worse. I cycle the bolt and my last round is jammed in my fancy expensive AICS mag. Finally im able to get another round out of my pocket and hand fed into the chamber. The buck gets a jolt of adrenaline about this time and is across the fence on to the neighboring property which is all paid hunting and by this time it is dark.
A phone call to the neighbors to explain what happened and get permission for a few of us to go look for him the next morning preceded a sleepless, worried, shameful night.
The next morning comes and ourselves and some of the neighbors make a plan to go for a walk in the cornfield we are assuming my gut shot deer went and laid down to die in. We figured the more man power spread out to do it the better the chance of finding him dead somewhere. We are headed over to his last know location taking the easiest route in which is from a different direction than the previous night. On the way in we find this deer standing in the bottom of a draw, a quick glass and I knew it was my deer. Again we parked the pickup out of sight and I set out alone. I got into a really good shooting position which was 259 yards from the buck. I watched him for a minute just to make absolutely sure it was the same deer as I was not about to take the wrong deer from a neighbors property. It was him with out a doubt I knew that deer's rack like the back of my hand and it was also abundantly clear he wasn't doing very well and barely on his feet. I didn't miss this time, perfect frontal chest shot and he was dead in his tracks. He had traveled over 5 Miles from our first contact and was less than a mile from where I believe he summered from July 28th to November 10th and where I also believe he originally came from. It is my belief that he was hurting bad and heading to his original home.
Everyone had showed up by this point so I had quite the Audience there to see me gut and tag my deer and celebrate with me. As it turns out my shot the night before had been very high on the back, crossing above the side and in an unusual twist the bullet continued downward around the opposite side and lodging the bullet in the top of the off side shoulder. It was one of the stranger wound channels i have ever seen. At one point even splitting his hide open at the base of his cape before continuing around the opposite side.
The entire experience was very humbling. I've only missed one other deer in my life. I'm the guy who makes fun of others who cant hit a big dumb deer! I defiantly got forced fed my humble pie. All the work, time, money, practice, and previous successes didn't mean diddly when it came to this hunt. I royally effed it up and feel blessed that I was given the chance to at least a little bit redeem myself.
Everyone told me I didn't have to admit the "whole" story but the whole story is just too good of and emotional roller coaster to not tell it. Im not to proud to admit that a hunt that started so clean the previous year had ended so messily this year. Not every hunt is something from the Outdoor channel.
I got him to my taxidermist and I almost didn't believe him as the inches kept piling up. After a 4th time measuring him came up the same it started to sink in that this very well may be the best mule deer i ever get the privilege to harvest.
Gross Green Score of 190 2/8 he has at least 11" of deductions and with a 60 day shrink he will probably end up somewhere in the 170s net B&C.
He also had a scorable point on each side right at the very base.
I will admit after the 11 month pursuit its a little bit sad knowing I cant count on watching him go bed down in his favorite spot.
I had about 4 different people taking pictures of me and these are the best ones we got though none of them really do him any true justice.
On a side note he made excellent Cajun and Polish sausages.
image_imagejpeg_1_2_1510509150027 by Dane Nelson, on Flickr
image_imagejpeg_0_3_1510508962652 by Dane Nelson, on Flickr
image_imagejpeg_1_1510882326379 by Dane Nelson, on Flickr
A picture with last years sheds.
image_IMG_3454(1)_1511461084152 by Dane Nelson, on Flickr
I really do wish we had gotten one really good picture. None of these show off his size really at all or even just his incredible hieght as he measured very nearly 30" tall. His smallest mass measurement was over 4".
This post is nominated for Hunter of the Month. Sorry, the nifty little .gif isn't rotating, so all you see is "Nominated" for now.
Following this missed archery shot my work and life duties got the most of my time and we started getting a lot of snow so my 2016 season was done. This story moves ahead to April 2017, I was planting oats along the same creek that he had bedded in all winter long. Made the first round on the field and when I came back by on the second pass there were these to good sized shed antlers laying not hardly 10 feet from each other laying on top of the freshly disturbed ground. I had pulled the air seeder right over the top of them without ruining a tire or doing any damage to the antlers. I knew right away which buck they were from as he had a very distinctive G2 and G3 on his left side and it was evident they were a matching pair of sheds and were in such good shape they had to be from just the last winter.
On May 5th me and the owners wife were headed over to this same area to move some vehicles and equipment around while the boss kept the planting rig moving. It was dark and as crossed the first ridge along the way this deer jumps in front of us and I used some language I wouldn't normally use in the presence of the bosses wife but I couldnt help my self. While most other bucks were just starting to show some antler growth he was already as wide as his ears and getting tall with visible forks forming.
By the first week in June it was really evident that he was going to be special. I was sure it was the same deer as he fit the bill, not particularly wide but extremely tall with the same distinctive Scrawny G2 and bold somewhat bladed G3. I continued to see him regularly all through June and July. It was interesting because our mule deer bucks are never alone they are always either with does in the fall or bachelor groups the rest of the year but he spent the whole summer by himself. I never seen him with another deer. I seen him on July 28th and that was it, not another trace. He just completely disappeared. Talking with some neighbors I believe he moved to another property almost 6 miles away. I have a suspicion that this other property is where he came from originally towards the end of the previous year.
First weekend of rifle season 2017 arrives and I have no plans of hunting for at least the first weekend as the owners in laws were coming and had first dibs. They arrive the night before and take off with the boss to go look around and get ready for the morning. They return with stories of a big mule deer that was chasing does. I thought it was odd as I had no game camera pictures of anything of any size and hadn't seen a decent buck of any species in quite some time. I was cautiously hopeful he had returned and also selfishly hoping they didn't go kill him the next day.
I showed up for work the next morning and the owners in-laws already had the tags filled. 2 deer were hanging. I hurried over for a look and knew right away neither was the deer I was looking for. They were pretty happy and thought they had killed good deer but said there was a bigger one they seen on their way out. The boss said I could quit and go hunting if I wanted to but I decided to let everything calm down and work instead. A neighbor showed up about 3 in the afternoon for a chat and we decided to call it a day early. I was pretty sore from a particularly physical days work and was thinking I might just go home and try to do a little hunting the next day.
The boss of all people had the idea that the 4 of us (boss, neighbor, myself, and 1 in-law) all get in his pickup and just go for a look if nothing else I could make a plan for the morning. This was a bit odd as the boss doesn't have really interest at all in hunting, im not sure he has ever shot anything other than an animal that needed put down or the very rarely occasional coyote. Anyways we headed over to the area of the property where the good hunting is. We are not 10 feet through the first gate and we see 2 deer in a draw standing barely 20 yards from the gut pile of one of the deer killed that morning. A very brief glimpse through the binos and i knew it was a big deer and probably the one i had been looking for. We backed the pickup down the hill and I got out alone to try and sneak back into the draw. A short walk and I was back on top of the ridge. The deer were on alert after seeing the pickup and were getting ready to boogy. Instead of taking the time to range them as I should have done I guessed. I'm the first to admit that I have zero range estimating ability. I missed. They run a very short distance and stopped I missed again.....
I couldn't believe it, easily the best deer of my life and I had screwed it up. They were MUCH closer than I guessed. I took the walk of shame back to the pickup. We move deeper into the property and low and behold find the same buck and doe moving into a draw.We stop and me and the neighbor get out and circle almost a half mile to get into the position I wanted to be. The neighbor who is along is running the range finder for me this time around. I'm laying prone hes crouched calling ranges for me. They stop at 327 yards, i'm feeling calm cool and collected, boom! Contact! It look and sounded like a solid hit, he bucked, stumbled and took off over the next ridge. I really was expecting to find him not far away down and out on the ground. We couldn't pickup a blood trail in the dry grass and could not find him anywhere. We rejoin the others and decide to make a wide circle to get out in front of where he had to be. Along the way we run into him moving down the bottom of a long draw.
At this point we are thinking perhaps it was a gut shot as it was obvious he was wounded but still moving fairly well. We decided to just wait him out figuring he would eventually lay down and die. He manages to make it all the way back down to the dry creek he usually hung around. I decided to make my way down there as the property line is not far from that creek and finally catch up with him moving along the creek, he was barely managing to stay on his feet but would not quit moving. I set up for one more shot utterly confident that this messy ordeal would be over finally. I shoot and miss. He was moving but it was still a lay up. 5 years of working hard to improve every aspect of my shooting ability and it was all out the window. I'm beyond frustrated at this point and it gets worse. I cycle the bolt and my last round is jammed in my fancy expensive AICS mag. Finally im able to get another round out of my pocket and hand fed into the chamber. The buck gets a jolt of adrenaline about this time and is across the fence on to the neighboring property which is all paid hunting and by this time it is dark.
A phone call to the neighbors to explain what happened and get permission for a few of us to go look for him the next morning preceded a sleepless, worried, shameful night.
The next morning comes and ourselves and some of the neighbors make a plan to go for a walk in the cornfield we are assuming my gut shot deer went and laid down to die in. We figured the more man power spread out to do it the better the chance of finding him dead somewhere. We are headed over to his last know location taking the easiest route in which is from a different direction than the previous night. On the way in we find this deer standing in the bottom of a draw, a quick glass and I knew it was my deer. Again we parked the pickup out of sight and I set out alone. I got into a really good shooting position which was 259 yards from the buck. I watched him for a minute just to make absolutely sure it was the same deer as I was not about to take the wrong deer from a neighbors property. It was him with out a doubt I knew that deer's rack like the back of my hand and it was also abundantly clear he wasn't doing very well and barely on his feet. I didn't miss this time, perfect frontal chest shot and he was dead in his tracks. He had traveled over 5 Miles from our first contact and was less than a mile from where I believe he summered from July 28th to November 10th and where I also believe he originally came from. It is my belief that he was hurting bad and heading to his original home.
Everyone had showed up by this point so I had quite the Audience there to see me gut and tag my deer and celebrate with me. As it turns out my shot the night before had been very high on the back, crossing above the side and in an unusual twist the bullet continued downward around the opposite side and lodging the bullet in the top of the off side shoulder. It was one of the stranger wound channels i have ever seen. At one point even splitting his hide open at the base of his cape before continuing around the opposite side.
The entire experience was very humbling. I've only missed one other deer in my life. I'm the guy who makes fun of others who cant hit a big dumb deer! I defiantly got forced fed my humble pie. All the work, time, money, practice, and previous successes didn't mean diddly when it came to this hunt. I royally effed it up and feel blessed that I was given the chance to at least a little bit redeem myself.
Everyone told me I didn't have to admit the "whole" story but the whole story is just too good of and emotional roller coaster to not tell it. Im not to proud to admit that a hunt that started so clean the previous year had ended so messily this year. Not every hunt is something from the Outdoor channel.
I got him to my taxidermist and I almost didn't believe him as the inches kept piling up. After a 4th time measuring him came up the same it started to sink in that this very well may be the best mule deer i ever get the privilege to harvest.
Gross Green Score of 190 2/8 he has at least 11" of deductions and with a 60 day shrink he will probably end up somewhere in the 170s net B&C.
He also had a scorable point on each side right at the very base.
I will admit after the 11 month pursuit its a little bit sad knowing I cant count on watching him go bed down in his favorite spot.
I had about 4 different people taking pictures of me and these are the best ones we got though none of them really do him any true justice.
On a side note he made excellent Cajun and Polish sausages.
image_imagejpeg_1_2_1510509150027 by Dane Nelson, on Flickrimage_imagejpeg_0_3_1510508962652 by Dane Nelson, on Flickrimage_imagejpeg_1_1510882326379 by Dane Nelson, on FlickrA picture with last years sheds.
image_IMG_3454(1)_1511461084152 by Dane Nelson, on FlickrI really do wish we had gotten one really good picture. None of these show off his size really at all or even just his incredible hieght as he measured very nearly 30" tall. His smallest mass measurement was over 4".
This post is nominated for Hunter of the Month. Sorry, the nifty little .gif isn't rotating, so all you see is "Nominated" for now.
